Traditional Naturopath

Before you answer this question, read the article I have linked to below:

Recent Studies and Age Old Wisdom Point to the Health Benefits of Butter

“Someone really should write an ode to butter. Pure delicious golden butter that comes from grass fed, pastured, contented cows. Beautiful butter that wants to nourish us and protect us from disease if we would only give it a chance. But alas, all we have today is attacked, maligned and mistreated butter. Butter that’s been the whipping child of the diet dictators and the food police for decades. Well, it’s time for us to stop convicting butter of imagined terrible crimes. It’s time to restore butter to its proper place on our tables and in our hearts. This negativity about butter would come as a surprise to the many people around the globe who have valued butter for its life-sustaining properties throughout history. In the 1930’s Dr. Weston Price, a dentist who sought the answer for tooth decay, studied native diets in fourteen different cultures around the world. He found that butter was a staple in the diets of isolated, non-industrialized peoples who displayed supreme health. Children who were raised on diets in which butter was a central ingredient grew to be robust, sturdy and free of tooth decay. According to information published by The Weston Price Foundation, Swiss villagers placed a bowl of butter on their church alters, set a wick in it, and let it burn throughout the year as a sign of the divinity of the butter. How did butter get to be our enemy instead of our friend? Two opposing forces were at work in America following World War II. Women returned to being full time mothers and family caretakers igniting an interest in health and nutrition. And corporations had to retool from the war effort and find something to sell to these women. Food technology became the obvious answer. In order to reap huge profits from the products of food technology, a stake had to be driven through the hearts of the tried and true foods that people had relied on for generations. Disinformation ad campaigns were launched to assert that naturally saturated fats from animal sources were the cause of disease. The idea of margarine was sold to physicians much like drugs are sold today. In their ignorance physicians told their patients to stop eating butter and start eating margarine. Soon everyone ‘knew’ that margarine was better for health than butter. Once an idea becomes popular opinion, it tends to persist even in the face of evidence to the contrary. Today, butter is still viewed as our enemy in spite of the fact that hundreds of highly motivated studies have been unable to confirm a link between butter and disease. Does butter really cause disease? Quite the contrary. Butter actually protests us against many of the diseases on the increase today.”

The above is just an excerpt of the whole article, I double dog dare you to read the whole article with your prejudices aside… and see what you think. What if we HAVE been lied to about butter? It has to be better for you than a stick of chemicals (called “margarine!”)

More excerpts:

“Butter is rich in nutrients that protect the heart. First among them is the antioxidant, vitamin A, needed for health of the thyroid and adrenal glands which help maintain proper functioning of the whole cardiovascular system. Butter is the best and most readily absorbed source of vitamin A. Butter also contains lecithin, a substance needed for the proper assimilation and metabolism of cholesterol and other fat constituents. It also contains the antioxidant vitamin E and selenium which are protective of the whole cardiovascular system.”

“Long chain fatty acids found in polyunsaturated oils, butter substitutes, and hydrogenated fats, are immunosuppressive. Short and medium chain fatty acids found in butter have immune system strengthening properties. These medium chain fatty acids are also more easily absorbed, digested, and utilized as energy than the long chain fatty acids.”

“Short and medium fatty acid chains also have strong anti-tumor effects, particularly 12-carbon lauric acid, a medium chain fatty acid not found in other animal fats. Highly protective lauric acid is a conditional essential fatty acid because it is made only by the mammary glands and not in the liver like other saturated fats. Although it is obtainable from large amounts of coconut oil, it may be more easily obtained from small amounts of butterfat.”

“The anti-fungal and anti-tumor effects of butyric acid, a short chain fatty acid, are unique to butter. Butyric acid is an energy source for the cells lining the colon, where it plays a part in development and maintenance. It reduces chronic inflammation of the colon, and high fecal levels correlate with decreased colon cancer risk. In people with compromised immune systems, undifferentiated cell growth can be inhibited by butyric acid.”

“Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), present in butter in large amounts, has shown to be an anti-carcinogen in several animals studies. CLA has also been shown to inhibit the body’s mechanism for storing fat and results in the body’s utilization of fatty reserves for energy.”

“The fat soluble antioxidant vitamins in butter as well as selenium and cholesterol, are also protective against cancer.”

“In addition to vitamin A and E, butter contains vitamin D which is essential to the proper absorption of calcium and therefore necessary for proper bone growth and the development of healthy teeth. The rising rates of osteoporosis in milk drinking western nations may be due to people choosing skim milk over whole, thinking it is better for them. Butter is also protective against tooth decay.”

“Butter is one of the few foods that supply an adequate amount of iodine in a highly absorbable form. Iodine is critical for proper thyroid functioning as is vitamin A.”

“Butter contains small but nearly equal amounts of omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids. This excellent balance between linoleic and linolenic acid helps prevent the problems associated with excessive consumption of omega-6 fatty acids.”

Makes you think, doesn’t it? What else have we been lied to about with regard to health?

This is a Press Release from CoMeD:

“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the federal agency that oversees the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), recently conceded the first vaccine-autism case. This case was filed in the no-fault National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program as part of the Autism Omnibus proceedings in the U.S. Federal Court of Claims. It was one of the first three cases chosen that alleged Thimerosal in childhood vaccines significantly contributed to a child developing autism.

Clifford Shoemaker, of Shoemaker and Associates of Vienna, Virginia, is the attorney of record in the Hanna Poling v. Secretary of HHS (case: 02-1466V). Experts filing on behalf of the petitioner, Hanna Poling, included pediatric neurologist, Dr. Andrew Zimmerman of Johns Hopkins University, and Maryland geneticist and epidemiologist, Dr. Mark Geier of the Genetic Centers of America.

This concession shows the dishonesty of the continual media spin coming from public health officials and others who maintain there is no evidence that Thimerosal, or any other part of any vaccine, has ever caused autism or, for that matter, has harmed anyone in any way.

The facts are that the Vaccine Compensation Act has already compensated over 2,000 individuals who proved that they were harmed by vaccines, resulting in settlements of nearly two billion dollars.

Additionally, hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific/medical articles from some the world’s best universities have long implicated Thimerosal in vaccines as a causal factor in neurodevelopmental disorders including autism. Furthermore, in 2003, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Government Reform Committee, after a 3.5-year investigation, concluded that Thimerosal caused the autism epidemic and that the FDA and health authorities were guilty of ‘institutional malfeasance’ in covering it up. Evidence supporting the connection between mercury and autism include:

1. Published studies from the US and France showing that urinary porphyrins, a biomarker for body-burden of mercury, are elevated in patients diagnosed with autistic disorders (https://www.mercury-freedrugs.org).
2. A published study by researchers at Harvard University that found twice as much mercury and oxidative stress in the brains of those with an autism diagnosis as found in the brains of those who were normal.
3. A study from the US showing a significant relationship between increasing blood mercury levels and an increased risk of a diagnosis of an autistic disorder.
4. Numerous papers by independent researchers showing a link between increasing mercury exposure from childhood vaccines and the risk of a child developing an autistic disorder.
5. Several papers showing that adding low levels of Thimerosal to certain blood, brain, eye, immune, liver and/or muscle cells poisons their cellular mitochondrial pathways and can induce cell death.

Today, despite being banned in Europe and restricted in 7 U.S. states, Thimerosal-containing flu vaccines are still recommended for routine administration to pregnant women and infants, with little or no warning of the presence of this known poison in these and other vaccines.

Vaccines have and will continue to save many lives. However, an immediate ban and recall of vaccines and other drugs containing mercury compounds used in their production must be instituted immediately to stop the epidemic of developmental disorders, including autism, caused by the unsound use of mercury in medicine.”

For more information, please visit CoMeD’s website:
www.mercury-freedrugs.org

This is a pretty amazing concession, but I am willing to bet there will be almost NO news coverage of it!

Check out the link below for an exciting article on the power of Natto!

Natural Enzyme in a Japanese Food Dissolves Blood Clots

“Studies have confirmed that an enzyme present in a Japanese fermented soy food is effective in lowering blood pressure and dissolving clots. The food, natto, has been eaten by the Japanese for 1,000 years because of its taste and also as a remedy for heart and vascular diseases. No problems have been identified with its use. The enzyme, nattokinase, is present in natto, a fermented cheese-like food which is produced by adding the beneficial bacteria Bacillus natto to boiled soybeans. Nattokinase, literally ‘enzyme in natto’, was discovered in 1980 by Doctor Hiroyuki Sumi, who was researching natural substances which could dissolve blood clots associated with heart attacks and stroke. Its properties closely resemble plasmin, an enzyme produced by the human body which breaks down such blood clots. Besides its ability to dissolve clots, nattokinase has other advantages over the traditional clot-dissolving drugs, such as activase, urokinase, and streptokinase. It can be taken orally instead of intravenously and its effects last longer – eight to ten hours longer. This is because the intravenous drugs wear off shortly after their administration to the person is stopped. In addition, this enzyme acts to enhance the production of the body’s natural clot-busting substances like plasmin, adding to its power.”

I am always looking for a nice, new, fresh theme for the Blog… and now we have one! Check it out!

From a recent mailing from the American Association for Health Freedom (AAHF)

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There has been much discussion in the media and on blogs and message boards about the pilot episode of Eli Stone and its fictional legal case focusing on the link between autism and vaccinations.

What has not been discussed is the recurring character of an “alternative medicine” practitioner – actually an acupuncturist – who is portrayed in a positive light.

Could this be the start of a new trend? One where, if the mainstream media won’t acknowledge the growing acceptance of alternative medicine, then entertainment will?

Eli Stone is not the first TV series to feature another side of medicine. Shonda Rhimes, Grey’s Anatomy creator, introduced the character, Dr. Pete Wilder, an alternative medicine doctor (an MD and an acupuncturist) first on an episode of Grey’s Anatomy in the spring of last year.

Dr. Pete’s methods and opinions are treated with respect by most of the other practitioners in the show’s wellness clinic. Many of the episodes have featured alternative medicine helping a patient, oftentimes when traditional medicine has failed.

Brenna Hill, Executive Director of the American Association for Health Freedom acknowledges, “Hats off to Shonda Rhimes and ABC/Disney for taking the lead. Integrative medicine and alternative health care is increasing in predominance in the United States and needs to be showcased so consumers know traditional medicine is not the only option available.” According to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) – the federal government’s lead agency for scientific research on complementary and alternative medicine – 62% of adults in America are using some form of complementary and alternative medicine.

Rhimes and the Grey’s Anatomy writers continue to show value in alternative medicine. A January 10th episode, “Lay Your Hands on Me” featured a patient who was a faith healer who is shown as healing or assisting in the healing of other patients, herself, and even the infant son of one of the surgeons.

Also on ABC, is new show Pushing Daisies whose female lead bakes pies with homeopathic remedies to reduce the depression of her aunts who believe she is dead.

If the pilot episode of Eli Stone is any indication of the way entertainment is embracing alternative medicine then Dr. Chen’s words to Eli should ring true, “Everything has two explanations: scientific and divine. We choose which one to believe.”

Hill applauds the writers and creators, as well as the studios and networks, “I think that it’s very courageous and forward-thinking to show the other side of healthcare. In the face of potentially losing Big Pharma advertising or dealing with knee-jerk reactions from medical societies who are afraid of losing their turf, it’s important that content is not dictated by financial incentives.”

Hill adds, “The discussions that characters are now engaging in on TV about alternative medicine and healthcare options are ones that we should be having with friends and family as well as with our practitioner. Many individuals turn to alternative medicine after traditional medicine has “failed” them. It’s important to find a practitioner who you’re comfortable discussing your health options and alternative medicine.”

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It will be interesting to see if this is a trend, and if it will continue!

The truth about cholesterol is shocking… and very few people know about this truth. THE TRUTH is that cholesterol is nowhere near as big an issue as the big pharmaceutical companies make it out to be. And WHY would they, shall we say, obfuscate the truth in this matter? Well, they have products to sell… and if you knew what I know about cholesterol, you wouldn’t buy their products. So, it is in their best interests to keep this information from you.

Lipitor Ads Spark Congressional Probe

Look at what Dr. Joseph Mercola writes about cholesterol in the above linked article, “Some 30 years ago, hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol) was an affliction of middle-aged men with cholesterol over 300 plus other risk factors, such as smoking and obesity. Since then, the massive fear about this non-disease has been created largely by the drug companies. They have done this while simultaneously manipulating the definition of high cholesterol by controlling the government panels that are responsible for the definitions. This combination has led to absolutely spectacular profits of tens of billions of dollars, as their reward for their effective market manipulation. By 1984 anyone (male or female) with cholesterol over 200 could receive the dreaded diagnosis and a prescription for pills. Then it was moved down to 180. Today, we’re down to recommended levels of less than 100 and drugs are prescribed to children as young as 10 years old.”

Notice how the “target number” keeps dropping? The ONLY way a normal person can achieve such drastically LOW (un-natural) numbers is with an artificial, pharmaceutical drug! The drug companies have well known personalities and actors, and some “manufactured” personalities, pushing their drugs to us via commercials. Again, Dr. Mercola points this out in this statement, “Lipitor has been running a series of ads in which a kindly ‘doctor,’ Robert Jarvik, inventor of the artificial heart, tells viewers about the benefits of the cholesterol-lowering medication Lipitor. These ads, and their use of celebrity endorsers such as Jarvik, are now being investigated by Congress for potentially misleading viewers. In the ads, Dr. Jarvik appears to be giving medical advice, but he has never obtained a license to practice or prescribe medicine. Critics of the drug industry claim that such ads emotionally manipulate viewers and under-emphasize the potential side effects of drugs. The congressional probe focuses on the Lipitor ads, but will likely examine others, such as actress Sally Field’s endorsement of the osteoporosis drug Boniva.”

Statins, like Lipitor, which the kindly Dr. Jarvik is pushing on the air, is actually BAD for those concerned with their heart… again, Dr. Mercola says, “Statins such as Lipitor are a particularly bad choice for diabetics, but they are a poor treatment even if your only worry is your heart health. Now, statins do lower LDL (bad) cholesterol very well. The problem is they lower it too well, because cholesterol is still a necessary and natural chemical that your body needs. Cholesterol:

* Waterproofs your cell walls
* Helps repair cells
* Is vital for digesting fats, regulating hormone levels, and neurological function

Despite cholesterol’s infamous reputation, having too little of it in your body is as dangerous, if not more so, than too much. Therefore, the result of taking statin drugs can be numerous dangerous side effects, including:

* Muscle pain and weakness (most likely due to the depletion of Co-Q10)
* Dizziness and cognitive impairment,
* Depression
* Pancreatitis
* Increased cancer risk
* Heart failure

The last one is rather counter to the whole supposed point of cholesterol-lowering drugs, don’t you think? And there is this additional evidence that it more than doubles your risk of stroke if you are diabetic, in return for no benefits whatsoever — unless you enjoy anything on this list; these are the possible consequences of taking statins in strong doses or for a lengthy period of time:

* Depression of mental acuity
* Anemia
* Acidosis
* Frequent fevers
* Cataracts”

So, this points out that more than ever we need to maintain a critical eye toward the claims of drug pushing doctors, organizations, and commercials. THINK FOR YOURSELF! Even President Bush said in his last State of the Union message, “We must trust patients and doctors to make medical decisions and empower them with better information and better options.”

If you ARE concerned about your cholesterol, what would be a good approach to heading off problems? Dr. Mercola gives this advice, “Make no mistake, Lipitor completely fails to treat the underlying problems causing your high levels of cholesterol. Statins are non-specific inhibitors of a number of very important liver enzymes, including the enzyme that causes your liver to make cholesterol when it is stimulated by high insulin levels. A far more sensible treatment therefore, is to simply shut down the enzyme that makes cholesterol by reducing your insulin and leptin levels, which is the underlying cause of your high cholesterol. By eliminating sugar and most grains, you won’t cause this important enzyme to be blocked, and you also will not block other vital coenzymes such as CoQ10. This is also exactly what you should be doing if you are diabetic. To normalize your cholesterol level naturally, and keep your diabetes under control at the same time, these three primary strategies work well 99 percent of the time if properly implemented:

* Exercise daily
* Eat a low grain, low sugar diet
* Take a high quality omega-3 supplement

The omega-3 fats in krill oil or fish oil will influence your HDL cholesterol levels far more safely and effectively than taking a pill — and for a small fraction of the cost.”

Amen, Brother!

Dr. Linus Pauling pioneered what he called “Orthomolecular Nutrition” with mega-doses of Vitamin C. He had excellent results. It is a given in Natural Health circles that the “RDA” (Recommended Daily Allowance) that the FDA puts out is a joke… It is more like the “just enough not to die” allowance! Now, it seems that what many are terming “mega-doses” of nutritional copper can actually reverse enlarging of the heart!

High-dose copper reverses heart enlargement

“(NaturalNews) Relatively high doses of copper may help reverse unhealthy enlargement of the heart, according to a new study published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. The research was led by scientists at the University of Louisville Medical Center in Kentucky, in collaboration with Agricultural Research Service scientists from the Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center in North Dakota. The researchers fed a group of mice with enlarged hearts the equivalent of three times the human recommended daily allowance of copper. The mice that had been fed copper experienced a reversal of cardiac hypertrophy — enlarged heart — symptoms, whereas the non-supplemented mice did not. This is the first study to exhibit such an effect, and other scientists have not yet replicated it. In addition, it is still unknown if the effect would translate to humans. Nonetheless, the scientists are optimistic. They point out that while the doses used in the study are high, they are ‘well below today’s safe upper limit for copper.’ Copper is a naturally occurring element that is essential for human health. It is needed for various enzymes, for biological electron transport and for aiding in iron uptake. Copper deficiency can produce anemia-like symptoms. However, the metal can be toxic in high quantities, producing symptoms similar to that of arsenic poisoning. In addition, the human digestive tract appears to have a very limited ability to distinguish between zinc and copper. This means that excessive intake of one of these essential nutrients can lead to deficiency in the other.”