Health Eyes
"Health can be a beautiful thing fill of youth and discoveries like a new born butterfly that spreads its wings for the
first time but it can also have a pattern of change, decay, and death. The beauty is to see all the phases and appreciate
them all. Peace starts here."
Hi there! I decided that do a section where I have some health notes for me and whoever is interested :) I have health eyes
myself, I am a health food store, drugstore, and grocery store kind of girl :) Health is a significance part of our lives
and so I would like to share my discoveries of health informations to everyone. In order to be well in both the spirit and the
body, having knowledge of new discoveries through science and applying it to better our lives and the lives of all beings is
something we all should do. If you are aware about the laws of cause and effect, you will know what I mean.
Yuri
MYTHS - FACIAL CARE, HAIRCARE, & BODY CARE
Haircare
Myth #1 - Frequent trimmings can make hair grow faster.
Hair grows half-inch per month, whether it is cut or not. Hair may grow slightly faster in the summer. It has everything
to do with hormones, which do speed hair growth a little. However, a good trim will eliminate split ends, making hair look
healthier and livelier.
Myth #2 - You should brush your hair 100 strokes every day.
It's best if you only brush your hair when styling it. Excessive brushing can do damage by over-stretching the hair,
ripping the cuticle cells and causing thinning, triggering added breakage and split ends in the long run.
Facial care
Myth #3 - Suntanning helps clear up dull complexions.
Extended explosure can lead to premature aging in the form of wrinkles and fine lines. Always use a sunscreen of SPF 30
or higher when planning to spend time outdoors.
Myth #4 - Eating chocolate and greasy foods causes pimples.
Many studies over the years have shown that there is no cause/effect relationship between food and acne. However,
it is important to ensure you wash your hands following meals and snacks to avoid transferring dirt and oils when you
touch your face.
Body care
Myth #6 - Drinking lots of water helps get rid of cellulite.
Cellulite is caused by a combination of your body holding on to water and a build-up of toxsins that sit in the fatty tissues.
The truth is that the best way to get rid of it, is by drinking lots of water - up to eight glasses a day. Incorporating a
low-fat diet into your lifestyle will also help the process along.
By Edmonton Woman Magazine Nov 2003
The Truth about Coffee
INTERESTING FACTS:
- Grown wild in Ethiopia, coffee made its way to Yemen, Venice to Europe to Canada / US
- Coffee was originally used as aid to prayers by some monastic orders.
CAFFEINE CRAVINGS
The principal active ingredient in coffee, caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant. It increases alertness
and decreases a sense of fatigue. Too much caffeine, though, leads to restlessness, increased anxiety and
difficulty concentrating. Withdrawal symptoms, which can last from one to several days, can include severe
headache, fatigue, dizziness and nausea.
RELATED HEALTH DISORDERS
-Post-menopausal women who consume more than 300 mg of caffeine daily (aprox 2- 4 [8 oz cup of coffee] )
are more likely to have lower bone density, a significant risk factor for osteoporosis.
-A variety of women's health problems such as difficulties in conception, premature births, fibrocystic breast
disease, breast cancer, birth defects and low birth weights.
-High coffee consumption is a significant risk factor for those with thromboembolic stroke (blood clots in the
brain) and high blood pressure, gastroesophageal reflux disease and gout. (Nov 2001 American Journal of
Clinical Nutrition)
CONVENTIONAL COFFEE / ORGANIC
Conventional coffee : intensive agricultural enterprise that depletes the land and relies on large amount of
pesticides and herbicides. Most are banned in North America but still commonly used in emerging countries
where coffee is normally grown.
Organic coffee: promotes land stewardship, minimized negative impacts on people and the environment, and
does not promote the use of chemicals, promote fair trade practices for farmers, use only the best quality
beans with low acid and caffeine.
ALTERNATIVES TO COFFEE
Black tea, green tea, cocoa and certain types of herbal teas
CAFFEINE CONTENT OF COFFEE AND TEA
---------------------------------------------------
| Beverage |
Size |
Avg caffeine content |
| Brewed |
8 oz |
85 mg |
| Instant |
8 oz |
75 mg |
| Decaf, brewed |
8 oz |
3 mg |
| Decaf, instant |
8 oz |
3 mg |
| Espresso |
1 oz |
40 mg |
| Black tea |
5 oz |
42 mg |
| Green tea |
5 oz |
27 mg |
Best Antioxidants
Antioxidants are our bodies naturnal defence against oxidant agents that damage or destroy our tissues, initiating
disease and cause aging to occur faster.
Foods
Apples, avocados, bananas, beans, beets, berries (cranberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries,
broccoli, buckwheat flour, cherries, grapefruit, grapes (especially red), kale, kelp, kiwis, lemons, olives, and olive oil,
oranges, papaya, pineapple, plums, prunes, raisins, red peppers, sea buckthorn and other marine algae, seeds and
sprouts, spinach.
Spices
Cinnamon, cloves, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, garlic, ginger, onions, oregano, rosemary, tea (green, black and white
thyme, tumeric.
Herbs
Standardized extracts of : Bilberry, ginkgo biloba, grapeseed, hawthorn, milk thistle, pine bark.
Supplemental nutrients
alpha-lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10, copper, cysteine, iron, manganese, selenium, taurine, vitamin A, Vitamin C,
Vitamin E, zinc.
How it works?
Your body uses oxygen to make energy. But within your cells, oxygen also produces free radicals, substances that
have unpaired electrons. Their needs to pair their electrons drives these free radicals to steal single electrons from
neighbouring molecules and, as a result, endanger our biochemical processes. In addition, vairous toxins steal pairs
of electrons; these are called oxidants. Free radicals combined with other oxidants can pose such intense oxidative
challenges that humans have an antioxidant defence system just to manage them.
From Alive magazine June 2003
Top 10 food to eat OrganicAccording to the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research group based in Washington, D.C.
Some great alternatives that contain the same valuable vitamins and minerals.
High-Pesticide Food: Strawberries
Main Nutrient: Vitamin C
Healthy Alternatives: Blueberries, raspberries, oranges, grapefruit, kiwifruit, watermelon
High-Pesticide Food: Bell peppers
Main Nutrient: Vitamin C
Healthy Alternatives: Green peas, broccoli, romaine, lettuce
High-Pesticide Food: Spinach
Main Nutrient: Vitamins A and C
Healthy Alternatives: Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, asparagus
High-Pesticide Food: Cherries
Main Nutrient: Vitamin C
Healthy Alternatives: Oranges, blueberries, raspberries, kiwifruit, blackberries, grapefruit
High-Pesticide Food: Peaches
Main Nutrient: Vitamins A and C
Healthy Alternatives: Nectarines, watermelon, tangerines, oranges, grapefruit
High-Pesticide Food: Mexican cantaloupe
Main Nutrient: Vitamins A and C
and potassium Healthy Alternatives: U.S. cantaloupe grown from May to December, watermelon
High-Pesticide Food: Celery
Main Nutrient: Carotenoids
Healthy Alternatives: Carrots, broccoli, radishes, romaine lettuce
High-Pesticide Food: Apples
Main Nutrient: Vitamin C
Healthy Alternatives: Watermelon, nectarines, bananas, tangerines
High-Pesticide Food: Apricots
Main Nutrient: Vitamins A an C and potassium
Healthy Alternatives: Nectarines, watermelon, oranges, tangerines
High-Pesticide Food: Green beans
Main Nutrient: Potassium
Healthy Alternatives: Green peas, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, asparagus
From Care2.com.
PROTECTING MEMORYPerhaps it is time to cut down the junkfood items. Not only does sugar turn into fat, the large amount of sugary sweets
that satisfieds the eyes, mouth, tummy but not health. A recent study in the proceedings of the national academy of
sciences (February 2003),
showed that middle aged and elderly people with high blood sugar also had a smaller hippocampus, the memory centre
the brain. The brain depends on blood sugar for energy. The longer that sugar (glucose) stays in the bloodstream, the
less fuel the brain has to store memories.
What can help?
The World Health Organization says sugar consumption is a major factor in obesity, and it is best to limit sugar intake-
including syrups, honey and fruit juices -to no more than 10% of the daily diieet. One hour of exercise daily helps clear
sugar from bloodstream.
Benefits of Exercise
Strengthens heart / lowers blood pressure / enhances circulation / helps reduce total cholesterol and triglyceride
levels / raises healthy HDL cholesterol / reduces risk of some cancers / improves carbohydrate metabolism /
helps prevent type II diabetes / builds bone / strengthens muscle / reduces fat / sharpen the mind / reduces risk of
Alzheimer disease / elevates mood / promotes good sleep /
prolongs the quality of life and independence without the aid of others / promotes the opportunity to get together
with friends and family / promotes a healthy body and mind / keeps us young and energetic. (Yuri)
From Alive magazine.
How much of Exercise is needed?FOR A HEALTHY HEART - Walk 20 mins a day, five days a week. Just be sure to walk briskly.
FOR A TONED MUSCLES - To build muscle and to reshape your body, you must stress your muscles. Lift weights
that feel heavy to you, and do it three or four times a week.
FOR WEIGHT LOSS - At least five hours a week. You really have to make exercise part of your life and it is only a
part of the picture, it is also what we consume as of food. For example, burning 300 calories from exercise then
eating a candy bar with the same amount will cancel out the burned calories.
FOR STRESS RELIEF - Find exercises you like to do.
From Organic style magazine.
We can reduce Global warming!Think about it, it is happening this very moment of every second as the world turns until perhaps the destruction or recycling
of our earth. Just look at our weather patterns like snow blizzards in April for Toronto...snow still in May for Alberta? There
is more to come folks if we keep up with our ways of life without the concern for the well-being of our earth and ourselves.
Did you know that the warming of our planet is causing major changes as glaciers are melting, and the rise in sea level will
have great affects on land formations, coastal cities and island countries? The environment is something we should protect
because we are part of it. Its existence is our existence. Being human is having the ability of knowing what we must do as
a whole, being aware of our responsibilities as we are capable of doing. A simple act can save all beings and the earth.
What we do in the present will determine the results of the future.
Due to our modern ways of life, there is an increase in the Greenhouse gases trapped in our atmosphere causing natural
diasters and chaotic weather patterns. Industrial immissions from cars, factories, and chemicalsuse rises the temperatures
on earth and thus changes our climate affecting not only weather but ecosystems, agriculture, and the spread of disease.
Responsible behaviours can reduced our natural diasters that are occuring and it is from "National Geographic News" that
introduces how we as individuals can help. Here are somethings we can do.
1. Change a light bulb - even though compact fluorescent bulbs will cost more, in the long run, we save money as the need
to change bulbs decreases. The consume less energy and less burning of fossil fuels thus less greenhouse gases.
2. Saving energies from the refrigerator - dialing up the applicance's temperature by 1 degree, placing the fridge in a cool
spot away from the sun, checking that the seals work properly and keeping the door closed. Lastly, dusting off the
condenser coils of the back twice a year.
3. Save water - use it more wisely like turning off the running tap while brushing your teeth or washing your face. Fix
leaky facets. A 8 mins shower compared to a 10 mins shower 300 gallons (1,100 liters) of water a month. Installing aerator
faucets and low flow shower heads can save more!
4. Energy leaks - At least 5 percent of the annual electricity bill is consumed by appliances that are switched "off". This
means "any appliance or piece of electronic or office equipment that has a remote control, battery charger, internal
memory, AC adapter plug, instant -on feature, permanent display, or sensor will use electricity even when it's switched
off... The only way to stop wasting that energy is to unplug them."
5. Car usage - the vehicle is responsible for emitting as much carbon dioxide as your entire house! We can make a
difference by choosing what kind of car you drive and how often we drive it. Car tune ups can improve the car's
efficiency by 15 to 50 percent. The smoother the ride, the less consumption of gasoline. Accelerating and braking
wisely can improve fuel efficiency. Lastly, keeping the tires properly inflated can reduce gasoline intake.
6. Grass clippings - leave them on the lawn and save on fertilizers and water.
7. Reduce meat portion - the reduction will decrease the electricity needed to water, feed, slaughter, and package the
meats.
8. Buy in bulks - when buying grocery, buy in bulk.
For further details check under News Nationalgeographic.com.
Invisible pollution (May
- June 2003)Have you ever wonder about what is in the food you are eating? Are you eating what you see? I just read an interesting
article about Dioxin or TCDD. You know what, I am new with these words too. Perhaps, you know more than me..^^
There is always new learning everyday. Here is what I discovered through the article and found significant.
Dioxin or TCDD ~ is a poisonous man-made organic chemical.
~ is the second intoxicity only to radioactive waste.
What does it do? ~ It is known as endocrine disruptors...it mimicks or block hormone functions, everything from thyroid
and adrenal systems to the reproduction system.
The effects? ~ Exposure can cause cancer, heart disease, diabetes, reproductive abnormalities and developmental
problems in children such as low IQ to fragile teeth.
The causes? ~ its a by-product of manufacture, molding, burning of plastics, and organic chemicals that contain
chlorine.
~ Dioxin is a contaminant in certain herbicides, such as the Vietnam-era defoliant Agent Orange.
~ It is a by-product of chlorine bleaching of paper and pulp.
~ uncontrolled burning of waste, certain metal processes, and dioxin-contaminated sediment in
reservoirs and river that get stirred up to the surface.
The most scarest part of this chemical is that it doesn't go away and the contaminant has a half-life of 10 years, this
gives it enough time to accumulate in our soils, water, and especially in the fatty tissues in animals and humans. The
earlier the exposure, the more damage the chemical seems to cause. Modernization have its good and not so good
effects. Japan and the United States are high in dioxin level. Japan burns its waste and in US, younger people are
expose to it by prenatally.
What we can do :-)
1. Eat fewer animal products - the highest levels of dioxins are found in diet (Sherry Rier, international private
environmental consultant). Dioxin residue from incinerators can wraft through the air to grazing lands, animals
consumed the grasses and stored it in their fat. (90% of our personal exposure to dioxin comes through meat
and dairy products". (Lynn Castrodale, the Endometriosis Association's former environmental cooredinator).
2. Consume local products - Globalization means a wider variety of food at your market which can be produced
under conditions that aren't as safe as they are here --allowing the use of DDT or other dioxin-contaminated pesticles
on fruits and vegetables.
3. Wash your produce - Dioxin particles in the air can settle on fruits and vegetables, so rinse skins throughly. Peel
waxed fruits and vegetables such as apples and cucumbers; contaminants can get sandwiched under the wax.
4. Read labels - especially chemical labels. Avoid products with organic chemicals that have chloro as part of their
name. For example, chlorophenol weed killers (2, 4-D) and some flea sprays for pets. Never use or dispose of old
insecticides and herbicides yourself. call your local waste-collection agency about disposal.
"Best not to use them at all." (Yuri)
5. Cultivate your garden carefully - If you live near farmlands or old paper mills or other factories, wear a face mask
while digging. Keep soil moist to control dust, wear clothing and shoes designated for garden use only and shower
when you're through gardening.
6. Relax about household products - Industrial bleaching processes - used to make paper, coffee filters used to be
a major source of dioxin but not anymore. There is no or very little dioxin residue in paper products, the industry uses
a different process now.
7. Avoid PVCs - Vinyl plastics - also known as polyvinyl chloride or PVC which pollute the environment during the
life cycle of a product from production to disposal. Examples of PVC are construction materials (siding, pipes), toys,
medical devices, and product packaging. When shopping at a hardware store or hiring a contractor, try asking for
non-PVC materials. At the grocery store or toy store, check if the item has a V or 3 inside a triangle, it's vinyl. Can't
see the symbol..feel it. It is stiffer and more leathery than other plastics.
8. Don't burn your garbage - in a 1999 study, a family of four burning releases as much dioxin into the air as a
well-regulated municipal waste incinerator serving tens of thousands of households.
All information from above was taken from a magazine called Organic style in the May | June issue. For further
readings check out:
Organic Style
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