The First Steps to Optimum Health – Letter From the Editor
As you can imagine, I am frequently asked the question, “What is the most significant thing I can do to improve my health?” I usually tell people that the most important change is to eat a diet high in raw fruits and vegetables. This is the absolute foundation for good health. No supplement or herbal tincture can give you the benefits that the right diet can give you.
The second step is to go organic if possible. USDA certified organic is great, but ideally, fresh, locally grown, truly organic food is the best choice. There is a significant difference between fresh locally grown food and food that was stored, later shipped, only to be piled up again at a distributing center before being shelved for another few weeks or longer. Those fruits and vegetables lose a significant amount of vitamin content and enzymes. We don’t get enough enzymes; eating fresh, locally grown, recently picked raw fresh fruits and vegetables is our best source.
Another benefit of buying organic is avoiding genetically modified foods. Most of today’s processed foods are full of GMOs and much of our produce is genetically modified as well. The only way to ensure you are not eating GMOs is to eat organic.
You can cite studies that seem to prove genetically modified foods are bad for our health, and you can cite studies that show there is no such evidence. I don’t need a study to tell me that a genetically altered vegetable is not going to be good for me.
There are two kinds of science that come to mind with regards to one’s health: the kind of science that works with nature and the kind that works against nature. Genetically modified foods work against nature and seek to overcome nature. If you want optimum health, work with nature and eat what naturally makes sense. Eating food that has been genetically modified to combine DNA from a plant and an animal or food that has been genetically modified to contain an herbicide is not natural.
Infertility and genetic diseases are on the rise. I believe the further we remove ourselves (as well as animals, plants, or any living organism) from nature, the more our health will suffer. Only time will tell what price we will pay for our cavalier attitude towards (or rather, against) nature.
Michael Edwards
Editor in Chief
Ask OLM
Cold Sores
I have been getting cold sores on my lips since I was a teenager. I asked my doctor and she indicated that I had the herpes virus. I could not believe it because I thought herpes was an STD. I bought the audio book Natural Cures and the author kept saying that there is a natural remedy for herpes, but he did not say what it is. Do you know what he is referring to?
I really appreciate any suggestion.
Thanks,
Anonymous
DR. TIM O’SHEA: Cold sores are usually viral and indicate local micro-trauma to oral mucosa. They also indicate microbial imbalance in the whole body; equilibrium is centered in the colon. Cold sores indicate insufficient probiotic intestinal flora, an epidemic in the U.S. Three remedies are:
- Take an aspirin tablet (the old fashioned kind, not a capsule) and apply it directly to sore. The aspirin will burn off the sore in 15 minutes.
- Take lysine, an amino acid, as a supplement.
- If the condition is chronic, you must re-establish floral balance in the colon.
Dr. T
Note: To reestablish floral balance, Dr. O’Shea recommends his 60 Day Program, as described on his site www.thedoctorwithin.com. He recommends a double dose of flora for the first 30 days.
EFT
I enjoyed Ryan Harrison’s article on EFT, but I am a bit skeptical. I am willing to give it a try though. I wonder if you know of people who have had success with it in regard to allergies such as pollen, pets, etc. I have a ton of allergies and I want to get off the drugs and start living a more natural life.
Peter
RYAN HARRISON ANSWERS: Skepticism toward EFT is both understandable and, to some extent, wise. I like to tell people that I am an “optimistic skeptic.” What that means is that I genuinely want things to be/do what people claim they will, but that I’m not ready to simply take it all on faith and start seeing great results that aren’t really there. So, I appreciate your skepticism. The best way to determine whether EFT will work for you is to give it a fair shake. That means finding a skilled, trained EFT Practitioner and going through at least a few sessions together.
Will EFT help with allergies? It may, and it may not. EFT Practitioners typically suggest that all physical complaints will respond to EFT sooner or later, because all aspects of life are at some point energetic, and EFT directly affects your system on an energetic level. My experience is that if an allergy has an emotional component (such as an allergy coupled with a traumatic memory), then EFT may certainly help erase the allergy and with amazing efficiency and speed. If the allergy is an issue of competing or clashing subtle energies, then it may take a while longer for the body’s energy system to reconcile itself with the offending allergen’s energetic “thumbprint.”
Let me offer an example:
I had a client who had an intense allergic reaction to fresh chilies and bell peppers of any shape, size, color, or “heat.” His reaction was so strong that he would have to avoid the produce section of the grocery store, because if he so much as smelled a pepper he’d end up with a migraine. Touching a pepper elicited the same severe response, as did eating one, even if it was “hidden” in a prepared food item – proof enough that this wasn’t psychosomatic.
My suspicion was that there was a clash of subtle energies at play. Something about his body’s energy system rebelled when he was in the presence of bell peppers. Their unique energy signature was enough – even at a distance – to cause his body to respond with a migraine.
Using EFT and a related technique that stimulates certain acupoints while using guided imagery, we were able to radically shift this clash of subtle energies within one session. He left my office and reported the next day that he had enjoyed Mexican food loaded with bell peppers, with no negative response. The shift didn’t hold, however. Within a few days, his “allergy” returned. We worked on this issue for a few more sessions with similar results: great and immediate improvement followed by a return to the original state within a few days. Time and circumstance did not allow us to continue working on this case.
My take on this situation is that there was still work to do. Most likely, we needed to keep “massaging” his energetic response to peppers, making the meeting of their subtle energies copacetic as the norm, rather than the exception.
All this to say that I think EFT could very well help you find relief from your allergies, but you may need to give it time and you should certainly find a qualified EFT Practitioner to work with.
Ryan Harrison, MA
Gluten
Raymond Francis, I’ve read your book, Never Be Sick Again, and was astonished by how similar our stories are. I, too, had my immune system collapse and suffered from many environmental sensitivities (though not as severely as you have suffered). Through diet and naturopathic medicine, I have recovered much of my health. One thing I discovered was a sensitivity to gluten. Do you believe that when I completely restore my health I can reverse my inability to digest gluten?
Carol
RAYMOND FRANCIS ANSWERS: It is impossible to predict if gluten sensitivity can be reversed in a particular person. Whether this can happen depends on too many individual factors, including genetic makeup. That being said, I have observed numerous people overcome gluten sensitivity by rebuilding their immunity, and very importantly, rebuilding the integrity of their gut tissue. Damaged gut tissue and leaky gut are a sure-fire prescription for food allergies. Repairing gut tissue with diet, stress reduction and supplements will often make food allergies and gluten sensitivity go away. At the very least, as you improve your health, your sensitivity will be reduced and it will take exposure to higher amounts of the allergen to get a reaction.
Raymond Francis
Email your questions to questions [at] organicmail.net. Questions may be edited for clarity or length.
If You’re on Prescription Drugs, Don’t Kid Yourself
Since you’re reading this magazine right now, you probably either consider yourself healthy, or you are looking to become healthy. It’s time for some hard truth. If you are taking drugs, whether it be one or sixteen, over the counter or prescription, for prevention or a major illness, YOU ARE NOT HEALTHY!
There is a great misconception in America (and in many other countries) that drugs have something to do with health. They do not. In most cases, drugs are used by people who are looking for a way to make themselves feel better without actually having to change any of their habits. You see this if you ever pay attention to drug commercials. For instance, in a recent commercial for a blood glucose monitor, they talk about how to make diabetes treatment fit into their lifestyle. What about changing your lifestyle?
If you truly want to be healthy, I mean vibrant, no aches and pains, never a headache, hardly ever yawning, etc., you will have to get off of any and all drugs. But please note, there are many prescription drugs that are so dangerous, so addictive, that if you quit cold turkey, and/or without the assistance of a doctor, you may hurt yourself or others. I’ve seen this before. In fact, if you follow scientology and the many headlines scientologists make, you see what happens when people who know very little about drugs try to “cure” someone of their need for prescription drugs. Drugs are dangerous and in many cases getting off of drugs can be even more dangerous.
This magazine is about education. I’m not telling you to “get off of prescription drugs”. But I am saying that you can’t reach a level of optimum health if you are taking drugs. Do your own research. Take steps, baby steps, one step at a time, and start cleaning up your lifestyle. Or not. But don’t kid yourself.
Mike Adams of NaturalNews.com Discusses GMOs with OLM
OLM: Can you tell us a little about the history of the companies that are making GMOs? Who are they? What did they do before they made GMO foods?
Mike Adams: Well, I think Monsanto is one of the most dangerous corporations in the world. I think it has a long history of oppressing the farmers and oppressing developing nations and their farmers. I think it has put profits before the people time and time again to such a degree that it really poses a threat to the sustainability of the human race. That’s about as bluntly as I can state it. [chuckle]
OLM: Are there other companies doing what Monsanto does with GMOs?
Mike Adams: There are smaller companies toying with genetics in the same way, but no one has dominance over the industry like Monsanto. It virtually holds a monopolistic control over seeds. I imagine Arthur Daniel Midland would be next in line in terms of culpability for destroying the food supply, but I don’t know if ADM has a GMO lab or not. That would be interesting to check out.
OLM: We hear that Monsanto bought many seed companies. The FTC didn’t take notice of this action?
Mike Adams: It’s very clear that the FTC is highly selective in its application of anti-trade action. It totally ignores some monopolies such as the pharmaceutical monopoly or the seed monopoly while attacking other things that are beneficial to consumers. For example, the FTC will attack a church that sells anti-cancer herbs. I actually documented one of those cases, so I’ve seen it
firsthand. But the FTC completely ignores these monopolies, which are the most dangerous to human beings. I think that the food supply and the pharmaceutical industries are two of the best examples.
OLM: How did these foods get approved without testing? Wasn’t it true that many FDA scientists took issue with the foods not being tested?
Mike Adams: GRAS – generally regarded as safe. It’s sad. It’s hilarious, but sad. You’re right; there was no testing done. No safety testing, at least not to the degree any reputable scientist would agree to be adequate. Basically, they just swept it under the rug and pushed it through the approval process. They declared it to be safe by decree, you know? Like, “The king declares this poison to be safe.” It’s kind of like the aspartame story—you know where Donald Rumsfeld was pivotal in getting aspartame approved by the FDA despite all the tests showing it to be dangerous. It just proves that decisions about the food supply are political decisions. They do not have anything to do with the actual science, or real safety, or prioritizing the health of the people. They are purely political/commercial decisions. That’s the sad state of the FDA today.
Why aren’t GMO foods labeled?
Mike Adams: It is very clear that the reason they are not labeled is because the industry does not want the consumers to know. This is a censorship campaign to prevent people from being informed. It’s the same reason that irradiated foods are not labeled. The FDA is on the record as saying that they are afraid people might not understand what irradiated means. It’s a remarkable statement all by itself.
OLM: Yeah, when in fact, the statement really means the opposite. They don’t want people to know. They don’t want us to understand.
Mike Adams: Industry is afraid of knowledge. It’s afraid of people being informed and having access to accurate knowledge about GMOs or irradiated foods, or even other toxic chemicals that are in the foods such as acrylamides. Essentially, the food industry supports a delabeling campaign. It wants to remove as much information as possible from the labels so consumers don’t have access to the information they need to make informed decisions.
OLM: Obviously there is an indirect link to the drug companies and the food industry. It seems as if they have made a deal to line each others’ pockets. It seems as though they’re working together.
Mike Adams: I think that’s a really great observation on your part. The food industry feeds the pharmaceutical industry in terms of profits. It’s the foods that make people sick; they cause chronic degenerative disease. So the foods create demand for the drugs, which are real profit centers. Of course these companies are making money off of foods as well, but GMOs fit into this picture in a very clever and insidious way. All the evidence so far shows that GMOs may pose a very real health threat to those who consume them. As you mention, that benefits the pharmaceutical industry by poisoning people, by creating patients who need pharmaceuticals or who can be diagnosed with diseases and sold pharmaceuticals whether they need them or not.
I think at the retail level Walgreens demonstrates it the best. Walgreens is a pharmacy, but it sells some of the most toxic processed junk food that you can find in America. In front of the store they sell foods that cause disease and in the back of the store they sell the drugs that they claim treat disease. It’s a system of toxicity. I have gone into the store to buy samples of processed
foods that I was sending to laboratories for testing. When I walk through the store I cannot believe the depth of the poisons that are in there: personal hair care products, fragrance, cosmetics, sodas, all the foods. Those stores should be completely shut down. They should be banned. They should be outlawed in this country. They are creating
a toxic America.
OLM: What was that quote about GMO consumers not being able to reproduce?
Mike Adams: What I talked about was that GMOs do damage to the ability to reproduce and as a result the future of the human race is going to be inherited by those who do not consume GMOs and who do not expose themselves to toxic chemicals like pharmaceuticals.
Along those lines I just want to clarify that especially in the natural health field, no one wishes death or suffering upon another human being. I’m not happy that unhealthy people die. But what I am pointing out is that they are making a choice. By consuming GMOs they are choosing not to have great- grandchildren. And that choice is given a label—it’s a Darwin Award [chuckle]. These people are all participating in this multi-generational or trans-generational Darwin award. And in the long term, it is probably a great benefit to the future of human civilization that the people who choose to consume poisons do not inherit the future of our race.
OLM: Is it true that executives from these companies are hired in top positions by the USDA and FDA?
Mike Adams: Yeah, definitely. That’s called the revolving door policy. You’ll see many examples of top managers or executives at drug and food companies who become top people at the FDA or the FTC or the USDA. They often go back and forth between the regulators and the industry several times.
OLM: And then they write the laws?
Mike Adams: Well, it’s not laws. They enforce regulations. Sometimes they write regulations. It’s important to distinguish between the two. Laws are passed only by the legislative branch, members of congress. But the USDA, the FDA and the FTC are essentially lawless regulatory agencies. They are not required to follow any law in their day-to-day decision making. They are above
the law. In fact they are violating the law. If you or I did what the FDA or the FTC did, we would be charged with felony crimes. We can’t just pick up an assault rifle and walk into a company that sells products we don’t like and seize all their computers and handcuff their people and march them off to prison. But that is what the FDA does on a regular basis. It’s a violation of law. It’s a violation of the constitution. So these are lawless organizations.
OLM: Does the president appoint the heads of the USDA and the FDA?
Mike Adams: Yes, the president does appoint the heads of those organizations without a public vote. That’s important to note. All that has to happen is that the senate confirms those appointments. The public is never given a chance to vote on them, so it’s bypassing the democratic system.
OLM: What do you think of Obama’s appointee for the Department of Agriculture?
Mike Adams: I’ve been following that on the Organic Consumers Association. Ronnie Cummins there has reported on that appointment with a lot of good details. I think clearly Obama’s siding with big business. He is going to continue the policies of Monsanto and he is not going to speak up for the people, for the farmers, you know. I see a lot of this with the Obama administration which is kinda frustrating because he came in under a platform of change, you know, talking about protecting the people. And certainly, of course, none of us wanted to see the Bush policies continue, at least not on human rights, and war, and all that. But then with Obama in office, not just for agriculture, but for the treasury, and many other areas, the policies are quite disturbing. They show that the Obama administration, at least through its appointments so far, is largely continuing business as usual, at least in my opinion. I’m optimistic that maybe there will be some changes, but you know, I don’t see any big changes so far, other than a whole lot of money being handed out. And that’s not change. That’s just the same old scam.
OLM: Are you keeping up with the new laws they are trying to pass?
Mike Adams: Ronnie Cummins would have a lot more detail on this, but I keep up with some of it. The big picture is very clear. They are working at federal and state levels to destroy small family farms, to destroy even the definition of organic so that anything could be called organic. They are the enemies of anyone who believes in sustainable agriculture or true organic foods.
OLM: What’s going on with GMOs in Europe?
Mike Adams: GMOs had been banned in certain parts of the U.K. I think that issue has come to the surface again with codex and the harmonization of the European Union. They’re trying to keep GMOs in the food supply. But the thing is, GMO labeling is now mandatory in the U.K. At least that’s my understanding of it. And U.K. citizens are much better informed about this issue than U.S. citizens. And in the U.K. they are very vocal in their opposition to GMO foods, as they should be. And it is in America that people have this kind of bizarre acceptance of whatever the government tells them to do. It’s like America has been drugged into a state of complacency. Pharmaceuticals and fluoride maybe have something to do with that.
OLM: What’s your take on Monsanto’s claims that GMOs are a better way to grow food, that they produce better yields and can help stop world hunger?
Mike Adams: Sure, it’s all about short-term thinking versus long-term thinking. Of course, Monsanto and ADM and other such companies are really focused on short term thinking. In the short-term, it’s true that a single planting of a genetically modified crop can out-produce a non-GMO crop. You look at that season and you weigh how much corn came out of the field and so on. But in the long term, what risks are there to the viability of the food supply? How do GMO organisms affect honey bees, for example? We have colony collapse disorder, which is really threatening the global food supply. We had the issue of cross pollination, cross contamination, which is a huge threat to the food supply.
These long-term threats are never factored into the equations that are being decided by Monsanto or these other companies. So they ignore the long-term risks and they just highlight and focus on the short-term benefits. And it is this kind of short-term thinking that could very well spell the destruction of human civilization as we know it today. All it would take is one year of crops being wiped out around the world due to monoculture farming, and perhaps genetically, GM contamination. One season of the food disappearing and the human population collapses by maybe 70 to 80 percent.
That’s a loss of billions of lives. That’s what’s at risk here. These companies are essentially putting billions of lives at risk in order to obtain a short-term profit.
OLM: What are your favorite GMO information sources?
Mike Adams: Well, definitely the Organic Consumers Association is a top source on this issue, but there is also the Environmental Working Group which is doing great work, although they don’t post as much content as the OCA.
Recommended Supplements (These supplements help detoxify GMOs):
- Shillington’s Total Nutrition Formula
- FloraMend Prime Probiotic – Thorne Research
- Fundamental Sulfur Powder (MSM Powder) – Douglas Labs
- Shillington’s Intestinal Cleanse Formula
- Shillington’s Intestinal Detox
Further Reading:
Avoid the Frankenfoods
One of the biggest controversies surrounding food in recent years is the entry of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into our food system. If you don’t know about GMOs by now, here’s the concept in a nutshell: Genetically modified foods have had their DNA changed through genetic engineering, using advanced techniques to insert foreign genes (from such varied sources as bacteria and viruses) in order to enhance or change certain characteristics of the organism. The most common modified foods are derived from plants such as soybean, corn, canola, and cotton, but the list of GMOs also includes hormones given to dairy cattle (rbGH). Now even the animals themselves are being genetically engineered.
Supporters of genetic engineering say that modification of organisms on a genetic level is safe, and is similar to how conventional plant breeding has taken place for thousands of years. They also state that in order to gain efficiency in food production to feed the world, GM foods are necessary. The producers of these GMOs maintain that they are as safe as any other food, and have no negative effect on the people consuming them or the environment.
Critics of GMOs (including me) point out that no true trials or testing have been undertaken in order to prove the safety of these foods. In fact, adverse effects from consuming GMOs have been recorded, and because it’s such a new practice, the full results of releasing these unnatural organisms into the environment still remain to be seen. Since science can measure only what it targets, and the sheer number of variables in our natural environment is enormous, the possibility is great that many unintended consequences will occur through the use and consumption of GMOs.
Unfortunately, due to the prevalence of GMOs and the intermingling of foods in our food system during harvest, storage, and processing, most U.S. consumers have been eating genetically modified foods for years. Even those of us who focus on eating all organic probably have been ingesting these foods if we eat out or dine at someone’s house who isn’t as strict as we are with their food purchases. Some 60 to 70% of the products in a grocery store contain some type of genetically engineered ingredient, with the biggest offenders being soy, corn, canola oil, and cottonseed oil.
So why do companies like Monsanto (the world leader in genetic modification) pursue genetic engineering?
One claimed benefit is that using GM seeds increases crop yields and decreases the use of pesticides and herbicides for food production (hence the claim that GMOs will help feed the world). However, contrary to the information coming from the supporters of genetic engineering, studies have shown that just as many pesticides and herbicides are being applied to GM crops as non-GM crops, and in some cases at even higher quantities. For crops modified to be resistant to herbicides, farmers can spray even heavier without damaging the plants, leading to increased use of herbicides worldwide. These herbicides end up in our groundwater, and may also be present in food even after harvest and processing. A recent study sponsored by the Committee for Independent Research and Information on Genetic Engineering (CRIIGEN), published in Chemical Research in Toxicology journal, found that Roundup (glyphosate) diluted 105 times was toxic to three different human cell types. This level is significantly lower than the currently accepted residue levels. What this means is that every bite of GM food (modified to be tolerant of glyphosate application) will also have toxic residues which may be detrimental to your health.
Another reason given is the possible increase in nutrition from genetic modification (a higher vitamin content, such as vitamin A in so-called Golden Rice). Yet another is the production of pharmaceuticals from GM crops, which is touted as being able to increase the global availability of medicines and vaccines. Still another reason is the production of substances like spider silk in mass quantities (from genetically modified goats that can produce the silk protein in their Pesticides and GMOs milk).
The four major GM crops – soy, corn, canola, and cotton – are engineered to survive the applications of herbicides at levels which would otherwise kill the plants. Almost 70% of GM crops are engineered to be herbicide tolerant. Another trait of GM crops is a pesticide produced within the plant itself (Bt, or Bacillus thuringienses) in GM corn and cotton. Proponents claim that Bt is harmless, and is a natural bacteria, but some studies have shown an allergic reaction, a high immune response, and even damaged intestines.
If you aren’t OK with all of that, then you need to learn how to avoid GMOs in the food you buy. The best way to avoid them is to buy 100% certified organic food always (check the PLU number on the produce). Organic produce has a 5 digit PLU number, beginning with 9. Conventionally grown produce has a 4 digit PLU number. In theory, all GM produce has a 5 digit PLU number beginning with 8, but the critics say that because labeling is optional, not all GM produce will be labeled as such. If you eat meat, buy 100% grass-fed (pastured) beef and go for the certified organic meats. If you read labels carefully, you will find foods that have been labeled non-GMO or GMO-free. If it isn’t labeled as such, and the product contains non-organic soybeans, corn, canola, cottonseed oil, or dairy, you’re probably getting GM varieties in there.
For more info, be sure to bookmark Seeds of Deception and the Organic Consumers Association GM page.
I avoid GM food, and I wouldn’t feed it to my friends or family either. I highly recommend you become a careful label reader and keep it out of your diet as well.
Antiperspirants Cause Breast Cancer
Although typical deodorants and any antiperspirants are toxic to skin, antiperspirants are much more dangerous to women. Reports vary as to why; some link the increased risk to the fact that women shave their armpits and therefore cancer-causing substances in antiperspirants are absorbed through razor nicks. Other reports say that women sweat differently and not as effectively on the breast area as men do. The sweat has nowhere to go so it builds up into infectious lumps under the skin around the breasts. These lumps can and often do turn cancerous.
Many so called credible organizations such as the American Cancer Society say that there is no findings or evidence to support this claim. But we don’t really consider them credible, so… We prefer to use common sense. Your body releases much of its toxins through sweat. If you do not allow your body to sweat, where do the toxins go?
It is a little known fact that the very healthy do not have body odor. Believe it or not, your natural smell is a very good indicator of your overall health