I'm quickly figuring out 'how things work' as I jump in with both feet into my coursework toward my Doctor of Education in Holistic Health & Wellness degree---Here is my first 'project' that I submitted this past week that gives an idea for why I'm doing what I'm doing----I know there are many out there who truly are wondering WHY I'm doing what I'm doing!
May you and your families be blessed with great health!
Sana
My Philosophy of Natural Health
Imagine a nation in which being healthy and truly feeling well was the norm…with illness being an uncommon occurrence for which there were simple, safe and effective measures to take. While we’re at it, let’s also imagine a prevailing mindset of personal responsibility for our health. I realize that the general public would be rolling their eyes in unison after reading the above two statements. That’s okay, though. That’s why I’m embarking on this journey of education with a destination of a Doctor of Education in Holistic Health and Wellness degree.
The reason I say it’s ‘okay’ at present for the public to roll their eyes in disbelief at the thought of a healthy nation is because the majority of people aren’t aware of the sound research and information available in the natural health arena that can impact our health in positive ways. The barrage of pharmaceutical-driven health information from multiple media sources that the public is subject to, even if they aren’t looking for information, is a formidable mess of misinformation often designed to intimidate and alarm.
Many of us were raised under a Western medicine influence with a skewed view of health being ‘the absence of disease.’ Little, if any, emphasis was placed on disease prevention. The average health care consumer is growing increasingly frustrated and confused with conflicting reports and myriads of health care choices. This frustration and confusion is creating a wonderful window of opportunity in the natural health field. I believe that sound, pertinent education is the key in changing the face of our nation’s health for the better.
This ‘sound’ education can only happen with knowledgeable natural health consultants and practitioners standing up and speaking out, armed with unbiased, unequivocal research. This is what it will take in a country overridden with a medical (sick care) system driven for the most part by financial greed. I’ve been a part of both sides (Western medicine and natural health) in my 28 year nursing career and I know which side needs to win the battle. A true victory will be a cooperative force of health practitioners and consultants practicing integrative medicine that actually endorses and follows the ‘Do no harm’ credo.
I know that I will benefit personally from the knowledge gained on this journey of natural health education. My goal is to take this invaluable information and utilize effective ways to educate others in ways that make sense to them, empowering them to incorporate healthy behaviors into their lifestyles. I look forward to the journey.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
A SAFE Alternative to Tamiflu If You Get The Flu
Even healthy people can be hit with a flu bug (not necessarily the swine flu!)--especially when traveling (think poor air filtration on planes...), when sleep-deprived or around a bunch of other 'sickies'. Tamiflu (or some pharmaceutical variation) is quickly prescribed with urgency to start it right away for best effects.
There are definite concerns for taking Tamiflu---read the package insert! Tamiflu is only partially effective,very expensive, and the side effects are so bad (& dangerous) that it has been banned in Japan. (I wonder if our FDA is aware of this...)
Several years ago, the New York Times (2/5/05) stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) admitted that Tamiflu is not as effective as previously believed. So why is it still being promoted so heavily? Hmmm...$$ to be made? Hmmm...
The Sydney (Australia) Herald (4/20/09) reported that a Japanese study had been completed on the side effects of Tamiflu with negative results. A major reason for the study was to determine if Japan should lift its ban on Tamiflu, which, the Herald article stated, was very unlikely because of the of the conclusion of that study. Out of 10,000 test cases of Tamiflu used by young people under 18, over half exhibited unusual behavior after taking Tamiflu, with some behavior as extreme as attempting or committing suicide. Eighteen deaths among young Japanese were associated with taking Tamiflu!
The 1918 flu pandemic reached such a high death toll primarily due to secondary bacterial infections. There is evidence that the use of Tamiflu creates an invitation to secondary bacterial infections. The 'normal' side effects include fatigue, dizziness, vomiting, headache and coughing. The only positive of this very expensive medication is symptom relief for 1 1/2 days out of a 6-day flu. (The side effects mimic the flu symptoms anyway!)
There is an alternative for several flu viruses---a natural remedy that has no side effects and is inexpensive. (How cool is that?) It's been around for quite some time as a cold cure, but more recently has proven effective against flus. It is Black Elderberry extract.
In 1992, a team of Israeli scientists studied the effect of elderberry on flu patients. During a flu epidemic at an Israeli Kibbutz, half of the flu patients were given an elderberry syrup, the other half a placebo. The results: within 24 hours, 20% of the patients receiving elderberry had gotten significantly better. Within 2 days, 75% of the elderberry group were much improved; within 3 days 90% were completely cured. Among the placebo group, only 8% of patients improved within 24 hours and it was a full 6 days before 90% of the patients were cured.
Elderberry has a very high ORAC, or oxygen radical absorption capacity: over twice as much as blueberry. In addition, antioxidants called flavonoids stimulate the immune system. Other compounds in elderberry, called anthocyanins, have an anti-inflammatory effect; which would explain the effect on aches, pains, and fever.
Elderberry is an herb that has a long history of use as a remedy for colds, sinus infections and flu. In preliminary lab studies, elderberry extracts have been found to fight off viruses. Researchers believe that anthocyanins, compounds found naturally in elderberries, may be the active component that strengthens the immune system and blocks the flu virus from sticking to our cells.
Health food stores carry elderberry juice, syrup and capsules. Only commercially prepared extracts of the berry should be used, because the fresh leaves, flowers, bark, young buds, unripe berries and roots contain cyanide and could potentially result in cyanide poisoning.
For recommendations on keeping your immune system strong during this flu season (as well as info on flu vaccines), check out information on my August 9th blog.
May you be well & stay well--as an informed health care consumer!
Sana
There are definite concerns for taking Tamiflu---read the package insert! Tamiflu is only partially effective,very expensive, and the side effects are so bad (& dangerous) that it has been banned in Japan. (I wonder if our FDA is aware of this...)
Several years ago, the New York Times (2/5/05) stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) admitted that Tamiflu is not as effective as previously believed. So why is it still being promoted so heavily? Hmmm...$$ to be made? Hmmm...
The Sydney (Australia) Herald (4/20/09) reported that a Japanese study had been completed on the side effects of Tamiflu with negative results. A major reason for the study was to determine if Japan should lift its ban on Tamiflu, which, the Herald article stated, was very unlikely because of the of the conclusion of that study. Out of 10,000 test cases of Tamiflu used by young people under 18, over half exhibited unusual behavior after taking Tamiflu, with some behavior as extreme as attempting or committing suicide. Eighteen deaths among young Japanese were associated with taking Tamiflu!
The 1918 flu pandemic reached such a high death toll primarily due to secondary bacterial infections. There is evidence that the use of Tamiflu creates an invitation to secondary bacterial infections. The 'normal' side effects include fatigue, dizziness, vomiting, headache and coughing. The only positive of this very expensive medication is symptom relief for 1 1/2 days out of a 6-day flu. (The side effects mimic the flu symptoms anyway!)
There is an alternative for several flu viruses---a natural remedy that has no side effects and is inexpensive. (How cool is that?) It's been around for quite some time as a cold cure, but more recently has proven effective against flus. It is Black Elderberry extract.
In 1992, a team of Israeli scientists studied the effect of elderberry on flu patients. During a flu epidemic at an Israeli Kibbutz, half of the flu patients were given an elderberry syrup, the other half a placebo. The results: within 24 hours, 20% of the patients receiving elderberry had gotten significantly better. Within 2 days, 75% of the elderberry group were much improved; within 3 days 90% were completely cured. Among the placebo group, only 8% of patients improved within 24 hours and it was a full 6 days before 90% of the patients were cured.
Elderberry has a very high ORAC, or oxygen radical absorption capacity: over twice as much as blueberry. In addition, antioxidants called flavonoids stimulate the immune system. Other compounds in elderberry, called anthocyanins, have an anti-inflammatory effect; which would explain the effect on aches, pains, and fever.
Elderberry is an herb that has a long history of use as a remedy for colds, sinus infections and flu. In preliminary lab studies, elderberry extracts have been found to fight off viruses. Researchers believe that anthocyanins, compounds found naturally in elderberries, may be the active component that strengthens the immune system and blocks the flu virus from sticking to our cells.
Health food stores carry elderberry juice, syrup and capsules. Only commercially prepared extracts of the berry should be used, because the fresh leaves, flowers, bark, young buds, unripe berries and roots contain cyanide and could potentially result in cyanide poisoning.
For recommendations on keeping your immune system strong during this flu season (as well as info on flu vaccines), check out information on my August 9th blog.
May you be well & stay well--as an informed health care consumer!
Sana
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Where's the syllabus? --&-- Serious Cancer Screening Info
I'm so excited to be fully registered & ready to move forward on my journey toward a Doctorate of Education in Holistic Health & Wellness---I have my books & am ready to start! I promised to share information with you as I'm learning--hopefully you'll find some of it relevant and helpful for yourself and your family.
So first of all, I started looking for the syllabus that lists what to read, the assignments...I still remember the basics...and I know I won't get very far without the syllabus! After searching the website, I finally called my advisor to find out how to access the syllabus (I actually needed 2...). She left a voicemail describing the syllabus, which is actually what I thought was one of my books. Obviously I hadn't actually opened the books yet (not that one, anyway)---I thought I needed the syllabus first! My recollection of a class syllabus was 1-3 pieces of paper, not a bound book--Yikes! Now that I've figured out that pretty basic piece of information, I'm really ready to get started--and yes, I admit, I am blonde! :o)
On a much more serious note, here are some excerpts from an article in today's New York Times on cancer screening. To me, the message is clear---we can't rely totally on screening to keep us healthy---various screenings play important roles in our health care. (Yes, I get regular mammograms & Pap smears--& soon I'll be old enough to start the screening colonoscopies--Yay!).
Here are excerpts from today's article:
"The American Cancer Society, which has long been a staunch defender of most cancer screening, is now saying that the benefits of detecting many cancers, especially breast and prostate, have been overstated.
It is quietly working on a message, to put on its Web site early next year, to emphasize that screening for breast and prostate cancer and certain other cancers can come with a real risk of overtreating many small cancers while missing cancers that are deadly.
“We don’t want people to panic,” said Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer of the cancer society. “But I’m admitting that American medicine has overpromised when it comes to screening. The advantages to screening have been exaggerated.”
Prostate cancer screening has long been problematic. The cancer society, which with more than two million volunteers is one of the nation’s largest voluntary health agencies, does not advocate testing for all men. And many researchers point out that the PSA prostate cancer screening test has not been shown to prevent prostate cancer deaths.
In it, researchers report a 40 % increase in breast cancer diagnoses and a near doubling of early stage cancers, but just a 10 % decline in cancers that have spread beyond the breast to the lymph nodes or elsewhere in the body. With prostate cancer, the situation is similar, the researchers report.
If breast and prostate cancer screening really fulfilled their promise, the researchers note, cancers that once were found late, when they were often incurable, would now be found early, when they could be cured. A large increase in early cancers would be balanced by a commensurate decline in late-stage cancers. That is what happened with screening for colon and cervical cancers. But not with breast and prostate cancer.
Still, the researchers and others say, they do not think all screening will — or should — go away. Instead, they say that when people make a decision about being screened, they should understand what is known about the risks and benefits."
It's me again...thanks for taking time to learn about your health and how to take ownership of your health...I look forward to sharing what I'm learning with you!
Blessings on your health--
Sana
So first of all, I started looking for the syllabus that lists what to read, the assignments...I still remember the basics...and I know I won't get very far without the syllabus! After searching the website, I finally called my advisor to find out how to access the syllabus (I actually needed 2...). She left a voicemail describing the syllabus, which is actually what I thought was one of my books. Obviously I hadn't actually opened the books yet (not that one, anyway)---I thought I needed the syllabus first! My recollection of a class syllabus was 1-3 pieces of paper, not a bound book--Yikes! Now that I've figured out that pretty basic piece of information, I'm really ready to get started--and yes, I admit, I am blonde! :o)
On a much more serious note, here are some excerpts from an article in today's New York Times on cancer screening. To me, the message is clear---we can't rely totally on screening to keep us healthy---various screenings play important roles in our health care. (Yes, I get regular mammograms & Pap smears--& soon I'll be old enough to start the screening colonoscopies--Yay!).
Here are excerpts from today's article:
"The American Cancer Society, which has long been a staunch defender of most cancer screening, is now saying that the benefits of detecting many cancers, especially breast and prostate, have been overstated.
It is quietly working on a message, to put on its Web site early next year, to emphasize that screening for breast and prostate cancer and certain other cancers can come with a real risk of overtreating many small cancers while missing cancers that are deadly.
“We don’t want people to panic,” said Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer of the cancer society. “But I’m admitting that American medicine has overpromised when it comes to screening. The advantages to screening have been exaggerated.”
Prostate cancer screening has long been problematic. The cancer society, which with more than two million volunteers is one of the nation’s largest voluntary health agencies, does not advocate testing for all men. And many researchers point out that the PSA prostate cancer screening test has not been shown to prevent prostate cancer deaths.
In it, researchers report a 40 % increase in breast cancer diagnoses and a near doubling of early stage cancers, but just a 10 % decline in cancers that have spread beyond the breast to the lymph nodes or elsewhere in the body. With prostate cancer, the situation is similar, the researchers report.
If breast and prostate cancer screening really fulfilled their promise, the researchers note, cancers that once were found late, when they were often incurable, would now be found early, when they could be cured. A large increase in early cancers would be balanced by a commensurate decline in late-stage cancers. That is what happened with screening for colon and cervical cancers. But not with breast and prostate cancer.
Still, the researchers and others say, they do not think all screening will — or should — go away. Instead, they say that when people make a decision about being screened, they should understand what is known about the risks and benefits."
It's me again...thanks for taking time to learn about your health and how to take ownership of your health...I look forward to sharing what I'm learning with you!
Blessings on your health--
Sana
Friday, October 9, 2009
The 'Good' Negative (Ions) & The 'Bad' Ozone
This article is designed to provide information about air filtration units for homes & offices. Many produce negative ions, which is a great benefit, as you'll learn about below. The majority of these air filtration units that produce negative ions also produce ozone, which is NOT a benefit & can be harmful. Read on....
News about ozone can be confusing. Basically, the ozone layer found high in the upper atmosphere called the stratosphere. This is beneficial because it shields us from much of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation. Ozone air pollution at ground level where we can breathe it--the troposphere--is harmful. It can causes serious health problems. Ozone is capable of causing inflammation in the lung, shortness of breath,
chest pain, wheezing, coughing, asthma attacks & increased susceptibility to respiratory infections. People who inhale ozone during repeated exposure may permanently damage their lungs or suffer from respiratory infections.
Negative ions are good for you. They are found in abundance in places like waterfalls, seashores and rainstorms. Negative ions are water molecules that break apart and take on a negative electrical charge. Most particles in the air have a positive charge, while negative ions have a negative charge. Negative ions are drawn to these positively charged particles by a magnetic attraction. When negative ion concentration in the air is high enough, they will attract floating particles (positive ions) in large numbers. This causes the particle to become too heavy to remain airborne. As a result, the particle will drop out of the air, dramatically reducing their ability to be breathed in.
The more negative ions in the blood, the more efficient the cell can function. The more positive ions (free radicals) there are in the blood, the slower and less efficient the cell's metabolism, which causes the body's cells to become weak resulting in a greater increase in sickness and aging.
The Journal of Applied Microbiology found that the use of negative ions was even found by scientists to reduce the presence of airborne viruses by about 40%. A study featured in the 1987 issue also showed the negative ions are free from any adverse side effects.
Many scientific studies have been conducted over the years (mostly in Europe and Russia) showing how exposure to high levels of negative ions drastically or significantly reduce asthma and allergy symptoms, as well as respiratory-related illness. Studies have also shown a link between negative ion treatment and benefits for migraine headaches, depression, fatigue, sleep, mental performance & concentration, physical performance among athletes & improved burn healing.
Lo-o-o-ong story/article/blog short: Good air filtration units in our homes and offices are definitely powerful ways to build prevention and wellness into our busy lives. Now you're equipped in what to look for: solid air filtration (including a HEPA filter for best filtration), negative ion generation WITHOUT the production of ozone. You will need to check the fine print to make sure your unit doesn't produce ozone, as the majority still do.
Blessings on your health---and on the air you breathe!
Sana
News about ozone can be confusing. Basically, the ozone layer found high in the upper atmosphere called the stratosphere. This is beneficial because it shields us from much of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation. Ozone air pollution at ground level where we can breathe it--the troposphere--is harmful. It can causes serious health problems. Ozone is capable of causing inflammation in the lung, shortness of breath,
chest pain, wheezing, coughing, asthma attacks & increased susceptibility to respiratory infections. People who inhale ozone during repeated exposure may permanently damage their lungs or suffer from respiratory infections.
Negative ions are good for you. They are found in abundance in places like waterfalls, seashores and rainstorms. Negative ions are water molecules that break apart and take on a negative electrical charge. Most particles in the air have a positive charge, while negative ions have a negative charge. Negative ions are drawn to these positively charged particles by a magnetic attraction. When negative ion concentration in the air is high enough, they will attract floating particles (positive ions) in large numbers. This causes the particle to become too heavy to remain airborne. As a result, the particle will drop out of the air, dramatically reducing their ability to be breathed in.
The more negative ions in the blood, the more efficient the cell can function. The more positive ions (free radicals) there are in the blood, the slower and less efficient the cell's metabolism, which causes the body's cells to become weak resulting in a greater increase in sickness and aging.
The Journal of Applied Microbiology found that the use of negative ions was even found by scientists to reduce the presence of airborne viruses by about 40%. A study featured in the 1987 issue also showed the negative ions are free from any adverse side effects.
Many scientific studies have been conducted over the years (mostly in Europe and Russia) showing how exposure to high levels of negative ions drastically or significantly reduce asthma and allergy symptoms, as well as respiratory-related illness. Studies have also shown a link between negative ion treatment and benefits for migraine headaches, depression, fatigue, sleep, mental performance & concentration, physical performance among athletes & improved burn healing.
Lo-o-o-ong story/article/blog short: Good air filtration units in our homes and offices are definitely powerful ways to build prevention and wellness into our busy lives. Now you're equipped in what to look for: solid air filtration (including a HEPA filter for best filtration), negative ion generation WITHOUT the production of ozone. You will need to check the fine print to make sure your unit doesn't produce ozone, as the majority still do.
Blessings on your health---and on the air you breathe!
Sana
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Slow Down & Expect Great Health!
Taking steps to improve your overall health doesn't have to be time-consuming, painful or expensive---Check out these SIMPLE ideas below! You may want to make a sign/reminder for yourself to 'Slow Down'! :o)
Slower breathing is one of the simplest ways to better health. Deep breathing lowers stress and reduces systolic blood pressure (the top BP number). It allows oxygen to get down to the smallest airways in our lungs, where the oxygen exchange is most efficient. Quick, shallow breathing causes our bodies to be less oxygenated (not a healthy state to be in).
Slower eating is one of the simplest ways to eat less. This is because of the 'lag time' between when the stretch receptors in your stomach signal it is time to stop eating ('I'm full!') and when your brain gets the message. Researchers at the University of Rhode Island discovered that people who eat slowly consume around 70 less calories/meal. Multiply that by 3 meals a day and you could lose 20 pounds over the next year.
Slowing down in general is one of the simplest ways to prevent accidents. It's impossible to calculate the number of motorists killed or injured each year because they were in a rush. Insurance companies have found that the overwhelming majority of job-site accidents are traceable to hurrying. You actually save time, do better work and prevent more injuries by slowing down.
The last simple step for this blog is to simply Expect To Be Well, no matter what age you are! Obviously we need to take an active role in our health---being 'Owners of our Health' and making good decisions. Couple that along with positive expectations for good health---and you're way ahead of the average American who entertains thoughts like, 'Well, I'm almost 50, so I suppose I'll have a heart atack before long'...or 'Cancer runs in my family, so I suppose I'm next'...What?? Really?? We can't afford to have thoughts like that--We get what we think about!
How about 'changing the tape' and reminding yourself throughout the day of positive messages like 'I take good care of myself and am so blessed to be healthy' and 'I am grateful for my ever-improving health'?
Here's to Continued Great Expectations for your great health!
Sana
Slower breathing is one of the simplest ways to better health. Deep breathing lowers stress and reduces systolic blood pressure (the top BP number). It allows oxygen to get down to the smallest airways in our lungs, where the oxygen exchange is most efficient. Quick, shallow breathing causes our bodies to be less oxygenated (not a healthy state to be in).
Slower eating is one of the simplest ways to eat less. This is because of the 'lag time' between when the stretch receptors in your stomach signal it is time to stop eating ('I'm full!') and when your brain gets the message. Researchers at the University of Rhode Island discovered that people who eat slowly consume around 70 less calories/meal. Multiply that by 3 meals a day and you could lose 20 pounds over the next year.
Slowing down in general is one of the simplest ways to prevent accidents. It's impossible to calculate the number of motorists killed or injured each year because they were in a rush. Insurance companies have found that the overwhelming majority of job-site accidents are traceable to hurrying. You actually save time, do better work and prevent more injuries by slowing down.
The last simple step for this blog is to simply Expect To Be Well, no matter what age you are! Obviously we need to take an active role in our health---being 'Owners of our Health' and making good decisions. Couple that along with positive expectations for good health---and you're way ahead of the average American who entertains thoughts like, 'Well, I'm almost 50, so I suppose I'll have a heart atack before long'...or 'Cancer runs in my family, so I suppose I'm next'...What?? Really?? We can't afford to have thoughts like that--We get what we think about!
How about 'changing the tape' and reminding yourself throughout the day of positive messages like 'I take good care of myself and am so blessed to be healthy' and 'I am grateful for my ever-improving health'?
Here's to Continued Great Expectations for your great health!
Sana
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