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A dash of POISON: Major spice brands found to contain HEAVY METALS

07/21/2023 // Ramon Tomey // 8.1K Views

Tags: badfood, badhealth, badpollution, clean food watch, contamination, Dangerous, environment, food safety, food science, food supply, grocery, Heavy metals, Herbs, poison, products, real investigations, spice mixes, Spices, stop eating poison, toxic elements, toxic ingredients, toxins


Spices are often added to dishes to give them pizzazz, but a new report has revealed that herbs and spices from some major brands contain heavy metals that can cause health issues.
The American nonprofit Consumer Reports (CR) first disclosed this in November 2021, after it tested 126 individual spice products. Spices from Walmart's Great Value, 365 by Whole Foods Market, La Flor Spices, McCormick & Co., Penzeys Spices and Spice Islands were among those tested.
Forty products – roughly one-third of the total tested – had high enough levels of heavy metals such as arsenic, lead and cadmium "to pose a health concern for children when regularly consumed in typical serving sizes." CR also noted that thyme and oregano products it tested had "concerning" levels of heavy metals.
According to experts at the nonprofit consumer group, 31 products tested had levels of lead so high that they exceeded the maximum amount anyone should have in a day. CR Director of Food Safety and Testing James E. Rogers remarked that even if some of these products are used in cooking, they raise serious heavy metal concerns when used regularly in the kitchen. (Related: Turmeric spices found heavily contaminated with toxic LEAD... FDA forces nationwide recalls for multiple brands (see list here.))
"When people think about heavy metals in their diet – if they do at all – it's probably the lead in their drinking water or arsenic in their children's fruit juices or cereals," he said. "But our tests show that dried herbs and spices can be a surprising, and worrisome, source for children and adults."

"Frequent exposure to even small amounts of lead, arsenic, cadmium and other heavy metals is dangerous, in part because it's difficult for the human body to break them down or excrete them. Over time, exposure to those heavy metals can harm health," CR warned.
"In children, it can affect brain development – increasing the risk for behavioral problems and lower IQ. In adults, it can contribute to central nervous system problems, reproductive problems and hypertension. [Heavy metal accumulation] can [also] damage kidney and immune function."
Heavy metals in water, soil contaminating spices

Tunde Akinleye, a CR chemist who oversaw the testing process for the 126 products, said heavy metals can show up in food in two ways. Some foods naturally contain these heavy metals, while some absorb them through contaminated water or soil. Processing or packaging food can also introduce these heavy metals into the final product.
But according to Laura Shumow of the American Spice Trade Association, it's almost impossible to rid herbs and spices of all heavy metals due to "the unavoidable presence in the environments where they are grown." The amount of heavy metals absorbed from the soil and the part of the plant where they can end up differs from plant to plant, she added.
"Since the risks are serious, it pays to limit intake of heavy metals as much as possible," Rogers remarked.
CR also shared the following tips toward this goal:
Use herbs and spices with lower heavy metal content

Examples of these include black pepper, white pepper, coriander, curry powder, garlic powder, saffron and sesame seeds. Versions of these herbs and spices that are low in heavy metals are available in groceries.
Avoid bringing back herbs and spices from abroad

According to CR Director of Food Policy Brian Ronholm, U.S. companies often source the highest quality herbs and spices to import from other countries. In return, spices sold in the domestic market oftentimes have a low quality and contain more heavy metals.
Make spice mixes at home

CR's tests revealed that thyme and oregano sold in groceries have high levels of heavy metals, but versions grown and dried at home often have lower levels of these toxic elements. Herbs such as basil, oregano and thyme can be stored and kept for long periods – as dried versions of these often have a stronger flavor.
Visit CleanFoodWatch.com for more stories about heavy metals in food.
Watch this WCBS 2 news report about concerning levels of heavy metals found in many spices.

This video is from the TKWK T.V channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:

Shilajit heavy metals test results released by the non-profit Consumer Wellness Center: HealthForce shows by far the highest in lead and aluminum among brands tested.
Ayurvedic shilajit supplement found to contain alarmingly high levels of LEAD and ARSENIC heavy metals: Health Ranger issues consumer warning.
Food Forensics exposes alarmingly high lead levels in breakfast cereals, supplements, spices and pet treats.
Ginkgo Biloba herbs from China found to contain shockingly high levels of toxic heavy metal lead.
Sources include:
100PercentFedUp.com
ConsumerReports.org
Brighteon.com

A dash of POISON: Major spice brands found to contain HEAVY METALS – NaturalNews.com

8 Natural ways to keep mosquitoes at bay

07/26/2023 // Olivia Cook // 50 Views

Tags: bugs, essential oils, goodhealth, green living, Herbs, home gardening, homesteading, mosquiitoes, mosquito repellent, natural health, off grid, Plants, preparedness, prepper, prepping, prevention, remedies, survival, tips


Here are some useful tips to keep mosquitoes at bay:
Use mosquito nets

Invest in a good-quality, super-fine mesh, machine-washable, lightweight mosquito net that you can hang to surround your bed at night or bring with you on your outdoor adventures. Some designs have an opening that overlaps to close so you don't need to crawl underneath the net.
Mosquito nets offer effective protection while you sleep against bites from mosquitoes and other bugs that may carry diseases.
Use fans

Mosquitoes aren't strong fliers because their wings lack range and the sweep of their wings is extremely shallow.
You can take advantage of this weakness with a few well-placed fans in your bedroom to help keep you cool at night and leave mosquitoes grounded so you can get some undisturbed sleep.
Use essential oils

Mosquitoes are quite picky when it comes to fragrances. (Related: How to make DIY non-toxic mosquito repellents with essential oils.)
Here are some of the essential oils that mosquitoes hate. You can use a diffuser to fill the air around you with these mosquito-repelling scents. (h/t to PestPointers.com)

• Cinnamon bark oil - According to a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, cinnamaldehyde, the active component in cinnamon, is effective at inhibiting the growth of yellow fever mosquito larvae.
• Lavender essential oil - If you have a lavender plant already growing, you can crush some of them to release the essential oil inside.
• Lemon eucalyptus oil - This is the only plant-based repellent recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to prevent mosquito and tick bites. The key ingredient is said to be stronger in concentration than the base plant itself.
• Peppermint essential oil - Research published in the Journal of Medical Entomology suggests that high concentrations of peppermint oil could help repel mosquitoes.
• Pine oil - A study published in the Journal of Vector Borne Diseases reported that pine oil exhibits strong repellent action against mosquitoes and can provide 100 percent protection against Anopheles culicifacies (malaria vector) for 11 hours and 97 percent protection against Culex quinquefasciatus (house mosquitoes) for nine hours.

Grow the right plants

Here are some of the best mosquito-repellent plants that will keep you comfortable outdoors all summer. Note that many of them double as delicious kitchen essentials and are great additions that can beautify your home. (h/t to HouseBeautiful.com)

• Basil - Grow basil near your outdoor dining area to keep mosquitoes away from you during mealtime. As a bonus, you can pluck and tear a fresh garnish for your meals.
• Catnip - Use catnip as a garden filler or grow them in small pots with other houseplants to keep mosquitoes at bay. Get some catnip leaves and crush them into small pieces to release their natural oil. Rub the oil on various rags or similar fabrics and spread these outside to let catnip do its magic.
• Citronella - A classic mosquito-repelling plant, citronella is great when grown in individual pots near doorways or in porch corners to create a strategic border around gathering areas. Citronella blocks the scent receptors of mosquitoes: With their scent gland affected, mosquitoes won't be able to find a proper food source and will stay away from the area.
• Garlic - Garlic plants can also be planted around flowers and herbs to repel mosquitoes and keep rabbits out of your garden.
• Lavender - A stunning and sweet-smelling way to line your front walkway, lavender can protect against mosquitoes.
• Lemongrass - Lemongrass is an effective mosquito deterrent for your entire yard.
• Marigolds - A colorful and long-lasting addition to your backyard landscaping, plant marigolds in pots so you can easily move them closer to seating areas during the summer months.
• Mint - Plant mint near your front or back steps for aromatic and pest-free entry areas. You’ll also love being able to walk out and pluck a couple of leaves for when you need them for desserts, drinks and salads.
• Rosemary - Plant rosemary in small pots and place them on your dinner table, porch ledge or window sill to create a natural mosquito barrier. You can also use this herb for cooking.
• Sage - Grow sweet-smelling and useful sage on your kitchen windowsill to repel mosquitoes if you prefer to leave the windows open all summer long.

Eliminate any standing or stagnant water

Mosquitoes reproduce in aquatic habitats, which means they lay their eggs in water. Removing all sources of stagnant or standing water is critical for reducing the mosquito population.
Use colors

According to scientists at the University of Washington, there are certain colors that repel mosquitoes and others that attract them. Their study published in Nature Communications revealed that mosquitoes' sense of smell (olfaction) influences how they respond to visual cues/colors.
This color preference only occurs in the presence of carbon dioxide (CO2), which you exhale when you breathe.
To reduce the possibility of a mosquito biting you, consider wearing white, blue or green. Lighter colors are less interesting to mosquitoes than darker shades like navy, black, red or orange.
Use screens

Install screens on your doors and windows that let you crack them open at night to help cool your space without letting mosquitoes find their way in. Make sure your screens are installed flush against the edges and always monitor them for damage. Don’t forget to wash both sides of your screens with soapy water as needed.
Shower before bed

Mosquitoes are attracted to the smell of sweat. If you’ve worked out a sweat during the day and climb straight to bed, you’re pretty much ringing the dinner bell and leading them straight to you – their next meal. Take a shower before you go to bed to wash away residual sweat.
Remember that any residual sweat in your sheets could also be a contributing factor. Replace your bedding regularly, and remember to give the actual duvet and your pillows a wash every so often.
Visit GreenLivingNews.com for more stories like this.
Watch the following video about Bill Gates admitting his GM mosquitoes are causing deadly malaria outbreak in the United States.

This video is from The Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:

Prepper projects: Make a DIY mosquito trap to protect your family from bites.
How to make cheap but effective DIY mosquito traps.
Mosquito begone: 5 Natural ingredients that work as a mosquito repellent.
Sources include:
PopSci.com
PestPointers.com
ACS.org
CDC.gov
OUP.com
ResearchGate.com
HouseBeautiful.com
Nature.com
Brighteon.com

8 Natural ways to keep mosquitoes at bay – NaturalNews.com

Summer health 101: A simple guide to address 5 heat-related illnesses

07/26/2023 // Olivia Cook // 60 Views

Tags: Climate, Cosmetics, dehydration, environment, goodhealth, health science, heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat rash, heat stroke, heat-related illnesses, natural health, natural medicine, prevention, remedies, skin health, sunburn, tips, weather


Temperatures that are unreasonably hot – and that your body is unused to – can increase your risk for heat-related illnesses. Additionally, high humidity makes it harder for sweat to evaporate, and it's the evaporation, not sweating itself, that cools the body and releases heat.
Healthcare professionals from Northwestern Medicine share this simple guide to address the following heat-related illnesses.
Sunburn

Sunburn, although often associated, is not exactly considered a "heat illness" since it is a direct result of excessive sunlight exposure. Heat illness is a result of an increase in body temperature, as indicated in a study published in The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association.
But by no means should sunburns be underestimated. Caused by too much exposure to UV rays from the sun, sunburn results in a red, painful skin burn that can increase your risk for skin cancer. (Related: Sunburn: The indirect effects of severe UV radiation.)
Sunscreen is the primary form of sunburn prevention and should be worn every day and re-applied every two hours when you're out in the sun. Other forms of sun protection you can combine with sunscreen include hats, light clothing, sunglasses and umbrellas.
Extreme sunburn can occur along with sun blisters or sun poisoning. In their most extreme, severe sun blisters can occur along with fever, chills, nausea or vomiting and should be treated by your primary care physician.
Sun poisoning is an allergic reaction to the sun that may be the result of a bad sunburn. In addition to the symptoms of sunburn (pain, blisters), sun poisoning is marked by itchy bumps and can also include chills, dizziness, fever and nausea.

Heat rash

Also known as "prickly heat" or miliaria rubia, heat rash is a red rash on the skin, but unlike sunburn, heat rash can cause small, itchy, fluid-filled bumps on the skin.
The rash is caused by heat and tends to present around the hair follicles in areas with increased sweating or friction, like in skin folds – the elbow creases, underarms, under the breasts or in the groin – and places where clothing causes friction, particularly on the back, neck and upper chest.
Infants and children tend to get it more than adults because their sweat glands are still developing. Those with hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) or sensitive skin are also likely to develop the rash.
Keeping the skin cool and avoiding hot, humid conditions is beneficial in keeping heat rash at bay. Keeping the irritated area dry is the primary form of treatment, though lotion or dusting powder may be used to help with comfort.
If you're in a hot or humid climate, try to take cool baths or showers frequently. Changing out sweaty clothes frequently can also help prevent heat rash.
Heat cramps

Painful muscle cramps in the abdomen, arms and legs, known as heat cramps, maybe the first sign of a serious heat-related illness and can be a symptom of heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
Heat cramps occur most often after exercise in hot environments. People are likely to sweat more than usual in the heat, which can worsen dehydration and salt depletion. Low salt levels diminish your body's ability to regulate fluids and cause cramps, while dehydration contributes to salt depletion as well as increases your risk for heat illness.
Heat cramps can be prevented by working out indoors or increasing fluid intake when outside. If you experience heat cramps, rest immediately and avoid resuming activity for a few hours. Drink something high in electrolytes, and stretch lightly and massage the affected muscles to relieve the spasm.
Heat exhaustion

Dehydration can also cause heat exhaustion, an illness that can develop either quickly or gradually over a few days. Heat exhaustion happens when body temperature rises to 104 degrees or higher.
Symptoms of heat exhaustion include cool, pale, clammy skin; dizziness; excessive thirst; fainting; fast, weak pulse; headaches; heavy sweating; nausea or vomiting; possible muscle cramps (including heat cramps); and weakness.
If you or someone near you is experiencing heat exhaustion, find a cool space, remove extra clothing and loosen any tight clothing. Provide water or a drink with electrolytes and apply cool, wet cloths to as much of the body as possible.
Left untreated, heat exhaustion can escalate into heat stroke.
Heat stroke

Heat stroke is your body's most severe reaction when body temperature rises, sweating mechanisms fail and your body overheats. It can happen within 15 minutes of being in the heat and can cause permanent disability or death.
In addition to certain shared symptoms with other heat illnesses – dehydration, high body temperature, red or hot skin – heat stroke can affect your mental state as well.
The absence of sweating is a key sign of heat stroke, and the pulse is rapid and strong rather than weak. Confusion, disorientation, dizziness, fogginess, hallucinations and a loss of consciousness can all be signs of heat stroke. Other physical symptoms include nausea, shallow breathing and a throbbing headache.
Heat stroke is a medical, life-threatening emergency. If you or someone around you appears to be suffering from heat stroke, call for help immediately. Meanwhile, move to a shady or cool area and attempt to cool the patient down however possible.
Tips to avoid heat-related illnesses

Soaring temperatures make daily life uncomfortable and also pose a serious threat to your health. So, when the temperature rises, take some basic precautions:
Pace yourself and plan your schedule accordingly if you have any intense activities or chores planned for the day. Keep out of the sun during the hottest parts of the day. Stay indoors with fans or air conditioning or in a cool shaded area.
Drink lots of water even if you don't feel thirsty. Staying hydrated will not only help you feel better, but it will help your body work more efficiently. (Related: Drinking more water is essential to improve mood and increase energy.)
Eat more potassium-rich foods and those with high water content – they have a natural cooling effect on the body.
Strip down and adjust your attire so that you aren't wearing stifling, restrictive clothing all day. Ditch any tight-fitting shirts and jeans and stick to more breathable fabrics that are loose-fitting and ideally light in color. Cotton or linen will work well. The right clothes will keep you much cooler.
Think twice before you open all the windows of your house to keep cool – if the temperature is higher outside than inside, you might lose a possible cool haven. Close the curtains or blinds in rooms where they face the sun.
Take frequent cold showers to cool down quickly.
Visit Health.news for more stories like this.
Watch the following video to learn how to protect yourself from heat-related illness as temperatures continue to rise.

This video is from the Daily Videos channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:

Eight home remedies to soothe sunburn.
Mild dehydration can have serious effects on health.
Driving while dehydrated found to be as dangerous as driving drunk.
Sources include:
NM.org
NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov
BBC.com
Brighteon.com

Summer health 101: A simple guide to address 5 heat-related illnesses – NaturalNews.com

Study: Bitter melon shows promising results in fighting 6 CANCERS commonly found in women

07/26/2023 // Ramon Tomey // 2K Views

Tags: anticancer, balsam pear, bitter gourd, bitter melon, blood sugar, cancer solutions, diabetes cure, diabetes science, food cures, food is medicine, goodcancer, goodfood, goodhealth, goodmedicine, goodscience, karela, natural cures, natural health, natural medicine, prevent cancer, research, superfoods, veggie


Bitter melon (Momordica charantia) takes its name from its bitter taste and rough skin that resembles that of melons. It is also known by other names including bitter gourd, karela and balsam pear. This member of the pumpkin family has its origins in South America, Asia, the Caribbean and parts of Africa.
M. charantia is often consumed as a nutritious vegetable due to its high antioxidant content and potent anti-inflammatory properties. Aside from this, it is also a vital herbal remedy in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In fact, legendary Chinese physician and pharmacologist Li Shizhen included bitter melon's therapeutic potential in his renowned "Compendium of Materia Medica."
Li's attestations to the medicinal properties of bitter melon are backed up by a modern-day study. The comprehensive review published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences found that M. charantia shows promising results in fighting six cancers commonly found in women – breast, ovarian, cervical, uterine, vaginal and vulvar cancer.
The paper done by researchers from the University of Athens and the University of the Aegean highlighted the promising qualities of bitter melon when it comes to cancer cells. In particular, they noted how it inhibits the multiplication of cancer cells and triggers apoptosis (cell death) in malignant cells. (Related: Bitter melon can stop cancer cells from growing and spreading.)
Moreover, they noted its "potential synergistic effects with standard chemotherapy" leading them to conclude: "Bitter melon seems to represent a promising natural agent which, alone or in combination with standard chemoradiotherapy, may help prevent and treat breast, ovarian, and cervical cancer."

"Bitter melon extract and its active ingredients have been extensively studied in diverse cell line-based and animal models. [It has also been] reported to exhibit promising effects on the chemoprevention and therapy of skin, brain, oral, lung, liver, colon, stomach, blood, prostate, renal and pancreatic cancers."
Bitter melon also addresses BLOOD SUGAR issues

Meanwhile, a separate study done by researchers in China scrutinized how bitter melon-derived vesicle extract (BMVE) – extracted from the juice of M. charantia – can fight breast cancer. They noted that BMVE's average size of about 147 nanometers was able to enter breast cancer cells and slow down their growth and movement.
This positive result was seen in both MC7 and 4T1 breast cancer cells cultured in the laboratory. Similar results were also found in laboratory mice injected with 4T1 breast cancer cells, with mice injected with BMVE showing significant reductions in tumor volume and weight. Further analysis revealed that BMVE-injected mice had experienced "dramatic tumor apoptosis and necrosis."
"As a potential natural nanomedicine for cancer treatment, BMVE exhibits a robust anti-tumor effect on breast cancer cells, in vitro and in vivo, without obvious side effects," the authors of the second study concluded. "BMVE is anticipated to play a more significant role in tumor therapy."
Bitter melon doesn't just target cancer cells, it also addresses high blood sugar levels. M. charantia is packed with phytochemicals that make it a bitter-tasting yet ideal superfood against diabetes. According to studies, it increases the cellular uptake of glucose, improves glucose tolerance and stimulates insulin secretion.
Bitter melon contains at least three active plant compounds with anti-diabetic properties. One such compound is charantin, which has been confirmed to lower blood glucose levels. Another compound in bitter melon called polypeptide-p shares qualities with the hormone insulin, which diabetics cannot produce sufficient amounts of.
Moreover, bitter melon contains lectin – a protein that binds to carbohydrates – that reduces blood glucose concentration by suppressing appetite. The protein's action mirrors how insulin affects the brain. Given this effect, this lectin is thought to be a major factor behind the hypoglycemic effects that follow the consumption of bitter melon.
M. charantia also helps the enzyme 5' AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which regulates metabolism and enables glucose uptake, mimicking the beneficial effects of exercise. AMPK activation also plays an instrumental role in bitter melon's anticancer properties.
Head over to Veggie.news for more stories about bitter melon.
Watch this video about four superfoods for home gardens, bitter melon included.

This video is from the Food Forest Abundance channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:

Bitter melon can lower blood sugar levels and even prevent cancer.
Bitter melon stops breast cancer cells from growing and spreading.
Bitter melon juice may hold the key to prevent and treat pancreatic cancer.
Researchers identify compound in bitter melon that can lower blood sugar effectively.
Known for its use in folk medicine for treating diabetes, bitter melon is also popular to eat in Asia.
Sources include:
NaturalHealth365.com
MDPI.com 1
MDPI.com 2
Diabetes.co.uk
Brighteon.com

Study: Bitter melon shows promising results in fighting 6 CANCERS commonly found in women – NaturalNews.com

How to clean your arteries with one simple fruit

07/28/2023 // News Editors // 3.2K Views

Tags: antiviral, arteries, food cures, food is medicine, food science, fruits, functional food, goodfood, goodhealth, goodmedicine, goodscience, health science, heart health, natural antibiotics, natural cures, natural health, natural medicine, natural remedies, organics, prevention, research, reverse heart disease, superfoods

The future of cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment will not be found in your medicine cabinet, rather in your kitchen cupboard or in your back yard growing on a tree
(Article by Sayer Ji republished from GreenMedInfo.com)
Pomegranate Found To Prevent Coronary Artery Disease Progression
A study published in the journal Atherosclerosis confirms that pomegranate extract may prevent and/or reverse the primary pathology associated with cardiac mortality: the progressive thickening of the coronary arteries caused by the accumulation of fatty materials known as atherosclerosis.[i]
Mice with a genetic susceptibility towards spontaneous coronary artery blockages were given pomegranate extract via their drinking water for two weeks, beginning at three weeks of age. Despite the fact that pomegranate treatment actually increased cholesterol levels associated with very low density lipoprotein-sized particles, the treatment both reduced the size of the atherosclerotic plaques in the aortic sinus (the dilated opening above the aortic valve) and reduced the proportion of coronary arteries with occlusive atherosclerotic plaques.
Remarkably, the researchers also found that pomegranate extract treatment resulted in the following 7 beneficial effects:

1. Reduced levels of oxidative stress
2. Reduced monocytie chemotactic protein-1, a chemical messenger (chemokine) associated with inflammatory processes within the arteries.
3. Reduced lipid accumulation in the heart muscle
4. Reduced macrophage infiltration in the heart muscle
5. Reduced levels of monocyte chemotactic protein-1 and fibrosis in the myocardium
6. Reduced cardiac enlargement
7. Reduced ECG abnormalities

How can something as benign and commonplace as a fruit extract reverse so many aspects of coronary artery disease, simultaneously, as evidenced by the study above? The answer may lie in the fact that our ancestors co-evolved with certain foods (fruits in particular) for so long that a lack of adequate quantities of these foods may directly result in deteriorating organ function. Indeed, two-time Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling argued that vitamin C deficiency is a fundamental cause of cardiovascular disease, owing to the fact that our hominid primate ancestors once had year-round access to fruits, and as a result lost the ability to synthesize it.

There's another obvious clue as to how pomegranate may work its artery opening magic. Anyone who has ever tasted pomegranate, or consumed the juice, knows it has a remarkable astringency, giving your mouth and gums that dry, puckering mouth feel. This cleansing sensation is technically caused, as with all astringents, by shrinking and disinfecting your mucous membranes.
Anyone who drinks pomegranate juice, or is lucky enough to eat one fresh, can understand why it is so effective at cleansing the circulatory system. Nature certainly planted enough poetic visual clues there for us: its juice looks like blood, and it does resemble a multi-chambered heart, at least when you consider its appearance in comparison to most other fruits.
Indeed, your mouth and your arteries are lined with the same cell type: epithelial cells. Together, they make up the epithelium, one of four basic tissue types within animals, along with connective tissue, muscle tissue and nervous tissue, and which comprises the interior walls of the entire circulatory system. So, when you feel that amazing cleansing effect in your mouth, this is in fact akin to what your circulatory system -- and the epithelium/endothelium lining the inside of your veins and arteries -- "feels" as well.
The Pomegranate "Artery Cleaning" Clinical Trial

Published in Clinical Nutrition in 2004 and titled, "Pomegranate juice consumption for 3 years by patients with carotid artery stenosis reduces common carotid intima-media thickness, blood pressure and LDL oxidation," Israeli researchers discovered pomegranate, administered in juice form over the course of a year, reversed plaque accumulation in the carotid arteries of patients with severe, though symptomless, carotid artery stenosis (defined as 70--90% blockage in the internal carotid arteries).
The study consisted of nineteen patients, 5 women and 14 men, aged 65-75, non-smokers. They were randomized to receive either pomegranate juice or placebo. Ten patients were in the pomegranate juice treatment group and 9 patients that did not consume pomegranate juice were in the control group. Both groups were matched with similar blood lipid and glucose concentrations, blood pressure, and with similar medication regimens which consisted of blood-pressure lowering (e.g. ACE inhibitors, ?-blockers, or calcium channel blockers) and lipid lowering drugs (e.g. statins).
The ten patients in the treatment group group received 8.11 ounces (240 ml) of pomegranate juice per day, for a period of 1 year, and five out of them agreed to continue for up to 3 years.
The remarkable results were reported as follows:

"The mean intima media thickness the left and right common carotid arteries in severe carotid artery stenosis patients that consumed pomegranate juice for up to 1 year was reduced after 3, 6, 9 and 12 months of pomegranate juice consumption by 13%, 22%, 26% and 35%, respectively, in comparison to baseline values."

You can only imagine what would happen if a pharmaceutical drug was shown to reverse plaque build up in the carotid arteries by 13% in just 3 months! This drug would be lauded the life-saving miracle drug, and not only would be promoted and sold successfully as a multi-billion dollar blockbuster, but discussion would inevitably follow as to why it should be mandated.
While these results are impressive, if not altogether groundbreaking for the field of cardiology, they may be even better than revealed in the stated therapeutic outcomes above. When one factors in that the carotid artery stenosis increased 9% within 1 year in the control group, the pomegranate intervention group may have seen even better results than indicated by the measured regression in intima media thickness alone. That is, if we assume that the pomegranate group had received no treatment, the thickening of their carotid arteries would have continued to progress like the control group at a rate of 9% a year, i.e. 18% within 2 years, 27% within 3 years. This could be interpreted to mean that after 3 years of pomegranate treatment, for instance, the thickening of the arteries would have been reduced over 60% beyond what would have occurred had the natural progression of the disease been allowed to continue unabated.
3 Ways How Pomegranate Heals The Cardiovascular System
The researchers identified three likely mechanisms of action behind pomegranate's observed anti-atherosclerotic activity:

• Antioxidant properties: Subjects receiving pomegranate saw significant reductions in oxidative stress, including decreases in autoantibodies formed against ox-LDL, a form of oxidized low density lipoprotein associated with the pathological process of atherosclerosis. Decreases in oxidative stress were measurable by an increase in the blood serum enzyme paraoxonase 1 (PON1) of up to 91% after 3 years; PON1 is an enzyme whose heightened activity is associated with lower oxidative stress. All of this is highly relevant to the question of pomegranate's anti-atherosclerotic activity because of something called the lipid peroxidation hypothesis of atherosclerosis, which assumes that it is the quality of the blood lipids (i.e. whether they are oxidized/damaged or not), and not their quantity alone that determine their cardiotoxicity/atherogenicity. Essentially, pomegranate prevents the heart disease promoting effects of oxidative stress.
• Blood Pressure Lowering Properties: The intervention resulted in significant improvement in blood pressure: the patient's systolic blood pressure was reduced 7%, 11% ,10%, 10% and 12% after 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of pomegranate consumption, respectively, compared to values obtained before treatment. Pomegranate's ability to reduce systolic blood pressure indicates it has a healing effect on the endothelium, or the inner lining of the artery which fails to relax fully in heart disease; a condition known as endothelial dysfunction.
• Plaque Lesion Stabilization: Because two of the ten patients on PJ (after 3 and 12 months) experienced clinical deterioration, carotid surgery was performed and the lesions were analyzed to determine the difference in their composition to those who did not receive pomegranate. The researchers noticed four distinct positive differences in the composition of the pomegranate-treated lesions: 1. Reduced Cholesterol Content: "The cholesterol content in carotid lesions from the two patients that consumed PJ was lower by 58% and 20%, respectively, in comparison to lesions obtained from CAS patients that did not consume PJ (Fig. 3A)." 2. Reduced Lipid Peroxides: "[T]he lipid peroxides content in lesions obtained from the patients after PJ consumption for 3 or 12 months was significantly reduced by 61% or 44%, respectively, as compared to lesions from patients that did not consume PJ (Fig. 3B). 3. Increased Reduced Glutathione Content: "A substantial increase in the lesion reduced glutathione (GSH) content, (GSH is a major cellular antioxidant) by 2.5-fold, was observed after PJ consumption for 3 or 12 months, (Fig. 3C). 4. Reduced LDL Oxidation: "LDL oxidation by lesions derived from the patients after PJ consumption for 3 or 12 months, was significantly (Po0.01) decreased by 43% or 32%, respectively, in comparison to LDL oxidation rates obtained by lesions from CAS patients that did not consume PJ (Fig. 3D)."

Essentially these results reveal that not only does pomegranate reduce the lesion size in the carotid arteries, but "the lesion itself may be considered less atherogenic after PJ consumption, as its cholesterol and oxidized lipid content decreased, and since its ability to oxidize LDL was significantly reduced."
This finding is quite revolutionary, as presently, the dangers of carotid artery stenosis are understood primarily through the lesion size and not by assessing for the quality of that lesion. This dovetails with the concept that the sheer quantity of lipoproteins (i.e. "cholesterol") in the blood can not accurately reveal whether those lipoproteins are actually harmful (atherogenic); rather, if lipoproteins are oxidized (e.g. ox-LDL) they can be harmful (or representative of a more systemic bodily imbalance), whereas non-oxidized low density lipoprotein may be considered entirely benign, if not indispensable for cardiovascular and body wide health. Indeed, in this study the researchers found the pomegranate group had increased levels of triglycerides and very low density lipoprotein, again, underscoring that the anti-atherosclerotic properties likely have more to do with the improved quality of the physiological milieu within which all our lipoproteins operate than the number of them, in and of itself.
Finally, it should be pointed out that all the patients in this study were undergoing conventional, drug-based care for cardiovascular disease, e.g. cholesterol- and blood pressure-lowering agents. Not only did the pomegranate treatment not appear to interfere with their drugs, making it a suitable complementary/adjunct therapy for those on pharmaceuticals, but it should be pointed out that the control group's condition got progressively worse (e.g. the mean IMT increased 9% within 1 year), speaking to just how ineffective drugs are, or how they may even contribute to the acceleration of the disease process itself.
Further Validation of Pomegranate's Artery-Clearing Properties
Pomegranate's value in cardiovascular health may be quiet broad, as evidenced by the following experimentally confirmed properties:

• Anti-inflammatory: Like many chronic degenerative diseases, inflammation plays a significant role in cardiovascular disease pathogenesis. There are five studies on GreenMedInfo.com indicating pomegranate's anti-inflammatory properties.[iii]
• Blood-Pressure Lowering: Pomegranate juice has natural angiotensin converting enzyme inhibiting properties, [iv] and is a nitric oxide enhancer, two well-known pathways for reducing blood pressure. [v] Finally, pomegranate extract rich in punicalagin has been found reduce the adverse effects of perturbed stress on arterial segments exposed to disturbed flow.[vi]
• Anti-Infective: Plaque buildup in the arteries often involves secondary viral and bacterial infection, including hepatitis C and Chlamydia pneumoniae.[vii] Pomegranate has a broad range of anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties.
• Antioxidant: One of the ways in which blood lipids become heart disease-promoting (atherogenic) is through oxidation. LDL, for instance, may be technically 'elevated' but harmless as long as it does not readily oxidize. Pomegranate has been found to reduce the oxidative stress in the blood, as measured by serum paraoxonase levels. One study in mice found this decrease in oxidative stress was associated with 44% reduction in the size of atherosclerotic lesions. [viii]
• Ant-Infective: While it is commonly overlooked, cardiovascular disease, and more particularly atherosclerosis, is connected to infection. Dentists know this, which is why they often prescribe antibiotics following dental work which releases bacteria into systemic circulation. Plaque in the arteries can also harbor viral pathogens. Pomegranate happens to have potent antiviral and antibacterial properties relevant to cardiovascular disease initiation and progression. It has been studied to combat the following infectious organisms:
  
  1. Avian Influenza
  2. Candida
  3. Escherichia Coli
  4. Hepatitis B
  5. HIV
  6. Influenza A
  7. Poxviruses
  8. Salmonella
  9. SARS
  10. Staphylococcus auerus
  11. Vaccinia virus
  12. Vibrio (Cholera) virus

For additional research on pomegranate's heart friendly properties read our article: Research: Pomegranate May Reverse Blocked Arteries, and to learn more about its broadly therapeutic properties read: 100+ Health Properties of Pomegranate Now Includes Helping Diabetics.
Also, view our dedicated research section on reversing arterial plaque: Clogged Arteries
Read more at: GreenMedInfo.com

How to clean your arteries with one simple fruit – NaturalNews.com

Lion’s Mane mushroom – Unparalleled benefits for your brain and nervous system

07/30/2023 // News Editors // 6K Views

Tags: brain function, cognition, goodhealth, goodmedicine, health benefits, Herbs, lion's mane mushroom, medicinal mushrooms, natural remedies, natural treatment, nervous system, neuroprotective benefits


Lion’s Mane is nature’s gift to your nervous system! It’s the only mushroom possessing not one but TWO potent nerve growth factors, showing potential benefits for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, multiple sclerosis, leg cramps, anxiety and more.(Article by Valerie Burke republished from GreenMedInfo.com)
What if there were one natural treatment that could restore brain function, regrow damaged nerves and reverse the progression of multiple sclerosis? There may be! Lion’s mane mushroom has been used medicinally in Asia for centuries, but for some reason it’s one of the best-kept secrets in the West.
Besides being called "lion’s mane," Hericium erinaceus, is known by several other names including bearded tooth mushroom, bearded hedgehog, bearded tooth fungus and others. In Japan, it’s known as yamabushitake, which means “mountain priest mushroom.” It has a variety of other names, depending on the country.
In Asia, it is said that lion’s mane gives you “nerves of steel and the memory of a lion,” and from what science is revealing, that’s apt prose. Thus far, evidence exists that lion’s mane mushroom confers the following health benefits:

• Improved cognitive function
• Nerve regeneration, remyelination, and increased Nerve Growth Factor (NGF)
• Improved digestive function and relief from gastritis
• Immunosupportive, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant
• Anticoagulant; mild ACE inhibitor; improved lipid profile
  

The science about lion’s mane is in its infancy, but evidence already points to unparalleled therapeutic benefits for numerous diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system, summarized in the table below, and the list seems to be growing by the day.
Conditions That May Benefit from Lion’s Mane Mushroom Dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) Parkinson’s disease Peripheral neuropathy Muscle cramps and spasms Multiple sclerosis (MS) Stroke recovery Seizures and seizure-like post-stroke episodes Anxiety and Depression
Mother Nature’s First “Smart Mushroom”

According to world renown fungi expert Paul Stamets, lion’s mane may be the first “smart mushroom,” providing support specifically for cognitive function, including memory, attention and creativity. It is reported that Buddhist monks have consumed Lion’s mane tea for centuries before meditation in order to enhance their powers of concentration.
This unique fungus contains a group of compounds that regenerate myelin along the axons, which opens the door to a world of neuroprotective benefits.
In one of the few human studies to date, older adults with mild cognitive impairment were given 250 mg powdered lion’s mane three times a day for 16 weeks and compared to another group receiving a placebo. The lion’s mane group scored significantly higher on the cognitive function scale compared with placebo, with no adverse effects. This study should prompt scientists to investigate the therapeutic efficacy of these fungi for dementia patients.

Lion’s Mane Regenerates Nerves and Stimulates NGF

One of the reasons for his mushroom’s exceptional neuroprotective powers is its ability to stimulate synthesis of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF). NGF is a protein that plays a major role in the maintenance, survival and regeneration of neurons in both your central and peripheral nervous systems. Lion’s mane contains two unique types of compounds, hericenones and erinacines. The erinacines found in Hericium erinaceus mycelium are among the most powerful NGF inducers in the natural world, able to cross your blood-brain barrier and stimulate production of new neurons within the brain itself.
With many neurological disorders, the brain is unable to manufacture NGF—in fact, this is thought to be one of the primary mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease. Making matters worse, myelin sheaths and the blood-brain barrier prevent your body from accessing external sources of NGF, and this contributes to the progressive deterioration of brain neurons over time.
Lion’s mane is the only mushroom to demonstrate significant potential for nerve regeneration. In a groundbreaking 2014 study, an oral extract proved effective in promoting peripheral nerve regeneration after surgically-induced crush-injuries in rats.
NGF also plays important roles in myelination, including protecting oligodendrocytes (myelin-producing cells) and the production of BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor). In 2003, lion’s mane extract was found to stimulate nerve myelination, which was confirmed by a later study (2013). This finding has huge implications for helping individuals with multiple sclerosis, a disease characterized by progressive demyelination.
As an aside, there is actually another mushroom that may prove helpful with demyelination—Phellinus igniarius, otherwise known as willow bracket. One study found its extract suppressed demyelination as well as suppressing many of the immune cells active (or overactive) in multiple sclerosis.
Amyloid Plaques, Anxiety and Depression

Lion’s mane has also been shown to reduce beta-amyloid plaques. Beta-amyloid plaques are proteins that form in the fatty membranes that surround nerve cells, interfering with neurotransmission. These plaques are thought to play a role in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
In a compelling animal study, mice were injected with neurotoxic peptides (to induce plaque formation), in order to assess the effects of lion’s mane on the type of amyloid plaque seen in Alzheimer’s sufferers. As the plaque developed, the mice lost their ability to memorize the maze, but when they were fed a diet containing lion’s mane mushroom, their performance in the maze significantly improved. In addition to regaining their former cognitive skills, they gained NEW cognitive skills—something akin to curiosity, as measured by greater time spent exploring novel objects compared to familiar ones. The reduction of beta amyloid plaques in the mushroom-fed mice was remarkable.
Lion’s mane also shows potential in the treatment of anxiety and depression. In a study involving menopausal women, the mushroom reduced depression and anxiety by some mechanism other than its NGF-enhancing properties. The effects were particularly strong in lowering anxiety, reducing feelings of “irritation” and enhancing concentration. So the Buddhist monks were right!
Benefits Beyond the Nervous System

As with many mushrooms, lion’s mane has a number of other therapeutic actions resulting from its anti-inflammatory and immunosupportive properties, including the following:

• Cancer: One animal study found an extract of lion’s mane inhibited the spread of colon cancer cells to the lung by 66 to 69 percent; the mushroom has also been shown to induce apoptosis in leukemia cells and inhibits angiogenesis
• Thrombosis: Hericenone B appears to “potently and specifically inhibit collagen-induced platelet aggregation”
• Mild ACE Inhibitor: The exact molecule underlying this effect is not currently known, but it is thought to be a bioactive peptide
• Lipids: Reported to reduce triglycerides and improve LDL and HDL levels (lion’s mane mycelium, specifically)
• Fat Metabolism: Increases the expression of several genes involved in fat metabolism
• Wound Healing: Topical application of the extract was found to accelerate wound healing

Lion’s mane mushroom has earned its right to be in your kitchen pantry and medicine cabinet. I’m sure we’ll be seeing many more studies illuminating its therapeutic potential in the near future.
Although the mushroom’s availability is limited to hardwood forests and a few gourmet food shops, kits are available that allow you to grow your own lion’s mane at home. Lion’s mane mushrooms are 20 percent protein and can be prepared using standard culinary techniques, just like any other edible mushroom. Mushroom Forager describes this oddball’s appearance as sort of like a “faceless hedgehog,” or a truffula tree out of The Lorax—so, they’re rather easy to spot. Does it taste like chicken? No, in this case lobster... or so they say, as I’ve not partaken myself.
According to Mushroom Forager:

“Lion’s mane has no look-alikes, edible or poisonous, and all forms are edible and delicious in the kitchen.”

You’ll will find lion’s mane in the forests of North America, Europe and Asia during the summer and fall, typically attached to dead or dying hardwood trees and logs, including maple, beech, oak, birch, walnut and sycamore. Lion’s mane is also widely available as a supplement and comes in powders and liquid extracts. Some serious allergic reactions have been reported, so please take ample precautions.
Read more at: GreenMedInfo.com
The Sayer Ji "Regenerate Yourself Masterclass" is now available as an instant download at Brighteon University

Through Brighteon University (www.BrightU.com), Sayer Ji is now making available the full download of his Regenerate Yourself Masterclass. Find the full download at this link. All revenues help support both Sayer Ji's Green Med Info as well as Brighteon University.
This full download gives you a total of 14 modules of highly informative video content:
MODULE 1 – Regenerate: The New Biology Revolution
Learn about the New Biology, focusing on the amazing capability of your body to regenerate, food as information, alternative sources of energy, and the revolutionary implications all this has to nutrition, medicine, genetics, and your lifespan and healthspan!
MODULE 2 – Regenerate Your Heart and Brain
Learn about the incredible new science of cardiac, endothelial progenitor, and neuronal stem cells, and how to use food and lifestyle practices to literally regenerate your heart and brain!
MODULE 3 – Regenerate Your Metabolism, Optimize Your Weight
Learn about the incredible new science of cardiac, endothelial progenitor, and neuronal stem cells, and how to use food and lifestyle practices to literally regenerate your heart and brain!
MODULE 4 – Regenerate Yourself Through Detoxification
You’ll learn about ways to encourage the elimination of harmful chemicals and even natural metabolic byproducts that interfere with self-regeneration.
MODULE 5 – Regenerate Your Endocrine System & Promote Longevity
As we age, our hormones taper off, and our body starts to struggle to renew. Find out powerful ways to take back control of the process, and even reverse biological aging with evidence-based strategies!
MODULE 6 – Regenerate Your Immune System
From fasting to the incorporation of specific immunomodulatory super foods, the best way to prevent cancer and infection is to support your body’s innate defenses.
MODULE 7 – Regenerate Yourself Through Fitness
You’ll learn from our fitness expert Hamad Shirazi, on ways to use movement as medicine, and incorporate simple practices to renew, strengthen, and optimize your bodily and mental fitness.
PLUS 7 ADVANCED MODULES

ADVANCED MODULE 1 – Regenerative Nutrition Deep Dive (Heart, Brain, Liver)
Learn about the top specific foods, spices, remedies and practices that enable you to regenerate your heart, brain and liver.
ADVANCED MODULE 2 – Regenerative Nutrition Deep Dive (Bone, Skin, Aging)
Learn about the top specific foods, spices, remedies and practices that enable you to regenerate your bone, skin and both decelerate and reverse premature aging.
ADVANCED MODULE 3 – Regenerate: Cancer & The New Biology
Learn how to avoid a modern medical pitfall all too commonly overlooked in the name of “preventing cancer,” and “saving lives.” Get in depth information into cancer’s true nature, and ways to avoid becoming a cancer statistic due to over-diagnosis and over-treatment. As well as learn common evidence-based alternatives signaled in the biomedical literature.
ADVANCED MODULE 4 – Regenerative Fitness with Hamad Shirazi
You’ll receive a full Regenerative Fitness program and teaching module from Sayer’s own personal coach and fitness adviser, who helped him regenerate his body to peak performance and resolve chronic mobility and back problems.
ADVANCED MODULE 5 – Regenerative Supplements
An overview on the topic of supplements (do’s and don’ts, pros and cons), as well as specific supplements that Sayer has studied for 20 years, with his top recommendations in each major class of bodily concerns.
ADVANCED MODULE 6 – Regenerate: Sayer’s Life Hacks
Learn what Sayer does daily to generate a regenerative lifestyle. Avoid these common mistakes, and take advantage of these common hacks, to realize (and hopefully exceed!) your health goals.
ADVANCED MODULE 7 – Regenerative Cooking with Tania Melkonian
Chef Tania Melkonian and Sayer Ji present a special series of recipes from the Regenerate RX Menu plan, revealing practical culinary tips, as well as in depth information into the regenerative and healing properties of commonly available food ingredients and spices!
Get the full download of all this video content (plus additional bonus interviews) at:
https://brighteonuniversity.com/prod...s-digital-file

Lion’s Mane mushroom – Unparalleled benefits for your brain and nervous system – NaturalNews.com

Ibuprofen kills thousands each year, so what’s the alternative?

07/30/2023 // News Editors // 4.7K Views

Tags: #nutrition, alternative medicine, badhealth, badmedicine, badscience, Big Pharma, health, ibufropen, nutrients, painkillers


A Reuters article opened with the following stunning sentence:

a"Long-term high-dose use of painkillers such as ibuprofen or diclofenac is 'equally hazardous' in terms of heart attack risk as use of tahe drug Vioxx, which was withdrawn due to its potential dangers, researchers said."

(Article by Sayer Ji republished from GreenMedInfo.com)
The 2004 Vioxx recall, as you may remember, was spurred by the nearly 30,000 excess cases of heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths caused by the drug between 1999-2003. Despite the fact that scientific research had accumulated as early as 2000 linking Vioxx to increased heart attacks and strokes, the drug's manufacturer Merck, and the FDA, remained silent as the death toll steadily increased.
The Reuters report focused on new research published in Lancet indicating the risk of heart attack increases as much as a third and the risk of heart failure doubles among heavier users of NSAID drugs.
INFLAMED: Our Default Bodily State
Why are so many folks taking NSAID drugs like ibuprofen anyway?
Pain and unhealthy levels of inflammation are fast becoming default bodily states in the industrialized world. While in most cases we can adjust the underlying pro-inflammatory conditions by altering our diet, and reducing stress and environmental chemical exposures, these approaches take time, discipline and energy, and sometimes we just want the pain to stop now. In those often compulsive moments we find ourselves popping an over-the-counter pill to kill the pain.
The problem with this approach is that, if we do it often enough, we may kill ourselves along with the pain...

Ibuprofen really is a perfect example of this. As mentioned above, this petrochemical-derivative has been linked to significantly increased risk of heart attack and increased cardiac and all-cause mortality (when combined with aspirin), with over two dozen serious adverse health effects, including:

1. Anemia[1]
2. DNA Damage[2]
3. Hearing Loss[3]
4. Hypertension[4]
5. Influenza Mortality[5]
6. Miscarriage[6]

Ibuprofen is, in fact, not unique in elevating cardiovascular disease risk and/or mortality. The entire category of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) appears to have this under-recognized dark side; cardiovascular disease and cardiac mortality score highest on the list of over 100 unintended adverse health effects associated with their use. See also our analysis of the rarely acknowledged dark side to aspirin: The Evidence Against Aspirin And For Natural Alternatives.
So, what does one do? Pain is pain. Whether it happens to you, or you witness it in another (which can be worse), finding relief is a top priority.

Research on Natural Alternatives To Ibuprofen
Here is some evidence-based research on alternatives to ibuprofen, sourced from the National Library of Medicine:

1. Ginger - A 2009 study found that ginger capsules (250 mg, four times daily) were as effective as the drugs mefenamic acid and ibuprofen for relieving pain in women associated with their menstrual cycle (primary dysmenorrhea). [7]
2. Topical Arnica - A 2007 human study found that topical treatment with arnica was as effective as ibuprofen for hand osteoarthritis, but with lower incidence of side effects.[8]
3. Combination: Astaxanthin, Ginkgo biloba and Vitamin C - A 2011 animal study found this combination to be equal to or better than ibuprofen for reducing asthma-associated respiratory inflammation.[9]
4. Chinese Skullcap (baicalin) - A 2003 animal study found that a compound in Chinese skullcap known as baicalin was equipotent to ibuprofen in reducing pain.[10]
5. Omega-3 fatty acids: A 2006 human study found that omega-3 fatty acids (between 1200-2400 mg daily) were as effective as ibuprofen in reducing arthritis pain, but with the added benefit of having less side effects.[11]
6. Panax Ginseng - A 2008 animal study found that panax ginseng had analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity similar to ibuprofen, indicating its possible anti-rheumatoid arthritis properties.[12]
7. St. John's Wort - A 2004 animal study found that St. John's wort was twice as effective as ibuprofen as a pain-killer.[13]
8. Anthocyanins from Sweet Cherries & Raspberries - A 2001 study cell study found that anthocyanins extracted from raspberries and sweet cherries were as effective as ibuprofen and naproxen at suppressing the inflammation-associated enzyme known as cyclooxygenase-1 and 2.[14]
9. Holy Basil - A 2000 study found that holy basil contains compounds with anti-inflammatory activity comparable to ibuprofen, naproxen and aspirin.[15]
10. Olive Oil (oleocanthal) - a compound found within olive oil known as oleocanthal has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties similar to ibuprofen.[16]

There are, of course, hundreds of additional substances which have been studied for their pain-killing and/or anti-inflammatory effects, and there are also aromatherapeutic approaches that do not require the ingestion of anything at all, but there is also a danger here. When we think of taking an alternative pain-killer to ibuprofen, we are still thinking within the palliative, allopathic medical model: suppress the symptom, and go on about our business. It would behoove us to look deeper into what is causing our pain. And when possible, remove the cause(s). And that often requires a dramatic dietary shift away from pro-inflammatory foods, many of which most Westerners still consider absolutely delightful, e.g. wheat, dairy, nighshade vegetables and even wheat-free grains, etc.
Read more at: GreenMedInfo.com
The Sayer Ji "Regenerate Yourself Masterclass" is now available as an instant download at Brighteon University

Through Brighteon University (www.BrightU.com), Sayer Ji is now making available the full download of his Regenerate Yourself Masterclass. Find the full download at this link. All revenues help support both Sayer Ji's Green Med Info as well as Brighteon University.
This full download gives you a total of 14 modules of highly informative video content:
MODULE 1 – Regenerate: The New Biology Revolution
Learn about the New Biology, focusing on the amazing capability of your body to regenerate, food as information, alternative sources of energy, and the revolutionary implications all this has to nutrition, medicine, genetics, and your lifespan and healthspan!
MODULE 2 – Regenerate Your Heart and Brain
Learn about the incredible new science of cardiac, endothelial progenitor, and neuronal stem cells, and how to use food and lifestyle practices to literally regenerate your heart and brain!
MODULE 3 – Regenerate Your Metabolism, Optimize Your Weight
Learn about the incredible new science of cardiac, endothelial progenitor, and neuronal stem cells, and how to use food and lifestyle practices to literally regenerate your heart and brain!
MODULE 4 – Regenerate Yourself Through Detoxification
You’ll learn about ways to encourage the elimination of harmful chemicals and even natural metabolic byproducts that interfere with self-regeneration.
MODULE 5 – Regenerate Your Endocrine System & Promote Longevity
As we age, our hormones taper off, and our body starts to struggle to renew. Find out powerful ways to take back control of the process, and even reverse biological aging with evidence-based strategies!
MODULE 6 – Regenerate Your Immune System
From fasting to the incorporation of specific immunomodulatory super foods, the best way to prevent cancer and infection is to support your body’s innate defenses.
MODULE 7 – Regenerate Yourself Through Fitness
You’ll learn from our fitness expert Hamad Shirazi, on ways to use movement as medicine, and incorporate simple practices to renew, strengthen, and optimize your bodily and mental fitness.
PLUS 7 ADVANCED MODULES

ADVANCED MODULE 1 – Regenerative Nutrition Deep Dive (Heart, Brain, Liver)
Learn about the top specific foods, spices, remedies and practices that enable you to regenerate your heart, brain and liver.
ADVANCED MODULE 2 – Regenerative Nutrition Deep Dive (Bone, Skin, Aging)
Learn about the top specific foods, spices, remedies and practices that enable you to regenerate your bone, skin and both decelerate and reverse premature aging.
ADVANCED MODULE 3 – Regenerate: Cancer & The New Biology
Learn how to avoid a modern medical pitfall all too commonly overlooked in the name of “preventing cancer,” and “saving lives.” Get in depth information into cancer’s true nature, and ways to avoid becoming a cancer statistic due to over-diagnosis and over-treatment. As well as learn common evidence-based alternatives signaled in the biomedical literature.
ADVANCED MODULE 4 – Regenerative Fitness with Hamad Shirazi
You’ll receive a full Regenerative Fitness program and teaching module from Sayer’s own personal coach and fitness adviser, who helped him regenerate his body to peak performance and resolve chronic mobility and back problems.
ADVANCED MODULE 5 – Regenerative Supplements
An overview on the topic of supplements (do’s and don’ts, pros and cons), as well as specific supplements that Sayer has studied for 20 years, with his top recommendations in each major class of bodily concerns.
ADVANCED MODULE 6 – Regenerate: Sayer’s Life Hacks
Learn what Sayer does daily to generate a regenerative lifestyle. Avoid these common mistakes, and take advantage of these common hacks, to realize (and hopefully exceed!) your health goals.
ADVANCED MODULE 7 – Regenerative Cooking with Tania Melkonian
Chef Tania Melkonian and Sayer Ji present a special series of recipes from the Regenerate RX Menu plan, revealing practical culinary tips, as well as in depth information into the regenerative and healing properties of commonly available food ingredients and spices!
Get the full download of all this video content (plus additional bonus interviews) at:
https://brighteonuniversity.com/prod...s-digital-file

Ibuprofen kills thousands each year, so what’s the alternative? – NaturalNews.com

Prevent urinary tract infections naturally with this antioxidant-rich superfood

08/07/2023 // Evangelyn Rodriguez // 2.4K Views

Tags: alternative medicine, antioxidants, Cranberries, food cures, food is medicine, food science, fruits, functional food, goodfood, goodhealth, goodmedicine, goodscience, health science, infections, natural cures, natural health, natural medicine, organics, phytonutrients, prevention, remedies, research, superfood, superfoods, supplements, UTI



Cranberries are a great addition to a healthy diet. These small, red wetland fruits grow on trailing vines, or lowbushes, and are farmed on 58,000 acres of land across the Northern United States, Canada and Chile.
Like their close cousin the blueberry, cranberries are considered "false berries" owing to the fact that they grow beneath flowers instead of from the flowers themselves. True berries, according to the traditional botanical definition, are seedy fruits that grow from a flower with a single ovary.
Despite not being true berries, both blueberries and cranberries are unbelievably nutritious and have been found to offer several health benefits. One of the most extensively studied benefits of cranberries is their ability to lower one's risk of urinary tract infection (UTI). (Related: Naturally occurring plant carbohydrate in cranberries could help prevent UTI.)
Cranberries are a rich source of polyphenols with antioxidant and anti-adhesion properties

North American cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon) have a sharp, sour taste, which is why they are rarely eaten raw. They are often consumed in the form of juice or included in sauces, or dried and turned into supplements.
According to studies, drinking cranberry juice can help increase good cholesterol levels, reduce bad cholesterol and lower blood pressure. It can also help prevent stomach cancer and ulcers by suppressing the growth of Helicobacter pylori, the bacterium that causes both.
A study published in FEMS Immunology & Medical Microbiology reported that a high molecular mass component of cranberry juice can inhibit the adhesion of H. pylori to the stomach's lining, which effectively prevents infection by this bacterium.

This beneficial component of cranberry juice was later identified to be polyphenols, of which cranberries have an abundance. In an analysis of the total phenolic content of 20 common fruits, which included red grapes, apples, strawberries, bananas, lemons, oranges, cranberries and grapefruit, cranberries were found to have the highest phenolic content as well as the highest antioxidant activity.
Recent clinical trials suggest that the cranberry polyphenols responsible for inhibiting H. pylori infections are the A-type proanthocyanidins (PACs). Compared to PACs found in other fruits and vegetables, cranberry PACs have a different chemical structure and are known for their anti-adhesion properties, which work well to prevent bacterial infections.
According to a study published in the journal Phytochemistry, the A-type PACS in cranberries are effective at inhibiting the adhesion of Escherichia coli to the inner surface of the urinary tract. E. coli is an intestinal bacterium that can cause serious infections and is said to be responsible for most cases of UTI.
Cranberries found to reduce the risk of UTI

A group of Australian researchers recently updated their study, which first appeared in 1998 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. The study looked into the effectiveness of cranberry products in preventing UTIs in susceptible populations.
Individuals prone to developing UTIs include women of any age, especially those going through menopause; pregnant women; children; hospitalized patients; and institutionalized adults.
The update included 26 new studies or randomized controlled trials that compared the effects of cranberry products with those of a placebo; no specific treatment or other interventions, such as antibiotics and probiotics.
After reviewing new clinical trial results, the researchers found that cranberry juice and supplements (tablets or capsules) helped reduce the risk of UTIs in children, women with recurrent UTIs and people who are at greater risk of developing UTI due to a medical intervention, such as bladder radiotherapy. However, they did not find enough information to determine if cranberry products are more or less effective than antibiotics and probiotics.
Although cranberries did little for elderly institutionalized men and women, pregnant women and adults with neuromuscular bladder dysfunction and incomplete bladder emptying, the study noted that cranberries were well-tolerated by participants, and very few reported any side effects, with the most common complaint being tummy pain.
"These data support the use of cranberry products to reduce the risk of symptomatic, culture?verified UTIs in women with recurrent UTIs, in children, and in people susceptible to UTIs following interventions," the researchers concluded in their report.
In an earlier update in 2008, the researchers reviewed 10 trials that involved a total of 1,049 participants. They found that over a 12-month period, participants who took cranberry products experienced a 35 percent reduction in the overall incidence of UTIs.
Similar to their latest report, they noted that cranberries appeared to be more effective at reducing UTI risk in women with recurrent symptomatic infections than in older adults. Cranberries also did not help people with bladder problems caused by interventions such as catheterization.
On the other hand, trial results revealed that consuming cranberries can cut the annual rate of new infections by 39 percent in women with recurrent symptomatic UTIs, suggesting that the anti-adhesive activities of cranberry compounds offer significant protection against E. coli infections in the bladder or urinary tract.
Oligosaccharides in cranberries also have anti-adhesion properties

Contrary to popular belief, drinking cranberry juice does not kill the bacteria that cause UTI -- it only helps flush them out of the body. Research also reveals that the A-type PACs in cranberries are not the only compounds responsible for the fruit's beneficial effects against UTI.
An earlier study published in the Journal of Natural Products analyzed the urine of adult female sows that were fed cranberry powder. The researchers noted that urine produced after consumption of cranberry juice was found to contain anti-adhesive metabolites that can prevent E. coli adhesion to the bladder and urinary tract. (Related: Have bacteria in your urine? Hold on, it might not be UTI.)
The researchers analyzed fractions of the urine they obtained from the sows and isolated compounds that showed anti-adhesion activity. They found that active urine fractions contained a complex series or oligosaccharides -- a type of carbohydrate -- that appeared to be responsible for the beneficial property.
Further analysis allowed them to isolate a single representative, arabinoxyloglucan octasaccharide, that they believe contributes to the anti-adhesion activity of cranberries. The researchers noted that a similar complex series of arabinoxyloglucan oligosaccharides have been found in raw cranberry samples.
"These results indicate that oligosaccharides structurally related to those found in cranberry may contribute to the antiadhesion properties of urine after cranberry consumption," the researchers wrote in their report.
Cranberries are a rich source of antioxidants and essential nutrients and offer plenty of other benefits besides preventing UTI. Learn more about cranberries and other superfruits at Fruits.news.
Watch this video to learn more about the health benefits of cranberries.

This video is from the Natural News channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:

Cranberries improve oral health, study concludes.
Cranberries prevent cancer and many other chronic diseases.
Cranberries offer an excellent way to boost your health, say nutrition researchers.
Cranberries are a great addition to the diets of pregnant women, thanks to antibacterial properties.
Skip the antibiotics: How to self-treat a UTI.
Sources include:
CranberrryInstitute.org
FlipScience.ph
MedicalNewsToday.com
Healthline.com
Academic.OUP.com
OnlineLibrary.Wiley.com
Pubs.ACS.org 1
News-Medical.net
ScienceDirect.com
UCSFHealth.org
CochraneLibrary.com
VPFW.com
Cochrane.org
Health.Harvard.edu
Pubs.ACS.org 2
Brighteon.com

Prevent urinary tract infections naturally with this antioxidant-rich superfood – NaturalNews.com

Tap water across American southwest found to be HEAVILY CONTAMINATED with cancer-causing arsenic

08/08/2023 // Ethan Huff // 70 Views

Tags: arsenic, badcancer, badhealth, badmedicine, badpollution, Bottled Water, cancer causes, cancer criminals, clean water, contamination, Dangerous, disease causes, Ecology, environment, Environmental Working Group, EWG, goodscience, health science, Heavy metals, products, real investigations, tap water, water filters, water supply, Water Wars



The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found that tap water in at least 31 states is contaminated with arsenic at levels above the legal limit.
While much attention as of late is focused on PFAS "forever chemicals" in the water supply, it cannot be overlooked that arsenic, a metal naturally found in the earth's crust, is also problematic.
Particularly in the American Southwest, arsenic-contaminated water is a serious issue that is only being made worse by pesticide use on crops and industrial processes like cement manufacturing, both of which leave behind toxic residues in groundwater used for drinking.
Prolonged exposure to arsenic is linked to damaged DNA, which in turn can lead to cancer. Arsenic is also linked to immune system dysregulation, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Researchers at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami warn that arsenic contamination is not getting nearly enough attention as PFAS, despite it posing a similar health risk.
"Since many countries are still affected by high levels of arsenic, we believe arsenic exposure is a global public health issue that requires urgent action," FIU scientists say.
"People who live in areas with naturally high levels of arsenic in the soil and water are at particular risk. In the U.S., for example, that includes regions in the Southwest such as Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico."
(Related: U.S. water sources are also contaminated with herbicides, fragrances and disinfection products, not to mention toxic fluoride.)
Bottled water is also often contaminated with arsenic

Consumer Reports conducted an investigation in 2019 about arsenic in bottled water, which similarly shows that many popular brands are also contaminated with the toxin at levels above the legal limit.

That limit, as set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is currently 10 parts per billion (ppb).
Then we have baby food, which also often contains arsenic at levels far higher than the legal limit. There have been studies to suggest that children who consume arsenic-tainted baby food end up with lower IQ scores compared to their peers.
In 2017, the American Chemical Society (ACS) published a study showing that up to 2.1 million people across the United States are exposed to arsenic simply through their drinking water, let alone added exposure through bottled water, baby food, juices and other products.
It is also important to note that the human body can absorb arsenic through skin and inhalation in addition to through food and water. There are many routes of entry into the body for arsenic, in other words.
"Research suggests that it damages DNA, stops cells from communicating with one another and impairs the immune system, creating the perfect environment for cancers to grow," reports explain.
"Arsenic in soil and rock can dissolve into groundwater and get into drinking water wells. The chemical can enter food when used by farmers as a pesticide and fertilizer ... Chronic exposure to arsenic raises the risk of developing multiple types of cancer."
We also know that arsenic interferes with cell signaling pathways while disrupting the immune system, both of which further put the body on the pathway towards the formation of cancer.
Arsenic is also linked to the formation of cancer stem cells, meaning the cells inside tumors that cause cancer to grow and spread throughout the body – not good.
In order to reduce the burden of arsenic-related health effects, Andrade-Feraud, PhD candidate, and Diana Azzam, assistant professor of Environmental Health Sciences at FIU, said more people need to learn how to reduce their exposure to the toxin.
More related news coverage about toxic drinking water and what to do about it can be found at TapWater.news.
Sources for this article include:
DailyMail.co.uk
Newstarget.com

Tap water across American southwest found to be HEAVILY CONTAMINATED with cancer-causing arsenic – NaturalNews.com

Energy drinks cause BRAIN DRAIN: here’s how

08/10/2023 // Ethan Huff // 2.4K Views

Tags: adhd, badhealth, brain drain, brain health, caffeine, disease causes, energy drinks, fatigue, ingredients, insomnia, neurodegeneration, stop eating poison, toxins


They are all the rage these days as increasingly more people are guzzling them down before class or before a rigorous workout at the gym. But just how safe really are popular energy drinks like Monster and Red Bull, not to mention the dozens of other fly-by-night brands that have appeared in recent years?
The answer is that these chemical-laden beverages are not that safe after all – and here's why.
For one, most of them are loaded with caffeine, which Omar Eliwa, a registered pharmacists in Wisconsin, says "gives a false source of energy."
"You're getting more than what your brain can take," Eliwa says. "It will be detrimental in the long-term to memory, the aging of the cells, depletion of nutrients, and it makes you not want to eat, so it affects metabolism as well."
Yikes. Who would have thought that energy drinks could cause brain drain, considering they seem to perk people up and make them more alert? But it gets worse.
According to a 2020 study published in the Anatomy and Cell Biology journal, caffeinated energy drinks can cause neurodegenerative changes in the hippocampus, a brain region essential for long-term memory.
Then there is the excessive sugar and artificial sweeteners often found in energy drinks, which depending on their forms can cause insulin resistance. In turn, cells throughout the body, including brain cells, lose their ability to properly absorb glucose, which is how metabolic syndrome forms.
(Related: Did you know that many juices and soft drinks are loaded with toxic metals, which are also bad for the body and brain?)

Chemical food colorings and dyes in energy drinks linked to ADHD

If left to run its course, unchecked insulin resistance will eventually develop into brain degeneration in the form of dementia. And the increased oxidative stress, a 2021 study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences found, only further accelerates neurodegeneration.
"[Energy drinks] are often packaged in aluminum, a neurotoxin that has been linked to Alzheimer's disease," notes Dr. Aruna Tummala, an integrative psychiatrist at Trinergy Health and founder of Psychiatry 2.0.
Many popular energy drinks are also loaded with artificial food colorings like red dye 40, also known as Allura Red AC, that are banned in most parts of the world outside the United States.
These chemical colorings can decrease absorption of minerals like zinc and iron that are needed for proper growth and development. Not only that, but they also cause and exacerbate attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children.
A 2012 meta-analysis found that around eight percent of children with ADHD experience symptoms associated with the consumption of artificial food dyes – symptoms that oftentimes go away, by the way, once a child stops consuming them.
Then we have all the fatigue, insomnia, and headaches that arise from consuming too many energy drinks. It is widely known and recognized that both sugar and caffeine cause a high followed by a crash. It can feel good at first, but then not so much.
Keep in mind that caffeine is also a diuretic. People who consume energy drinks before rigorous exercise absolutely must make sure they consume plenty of water and electrolytes to replenish, otherwise they could suffer from serious dehydration.
Regular consumption of caffeine is also linked to insomnia, according to Tummala, because it promotes wakefulness by increasing levels of histamine and glutamate, two neurotransmitters that disrupt sleep cycles.
"Energy drinks can increase the level of catecholamines, neurotransmitters involved in the body's stress response," reports further explain about the anxiety-inducing effects of energy drinks. "The spike in these chemicals increases heart rate and blood flow, triggering a fight-or-flight response in some people, leading to anxiety."
There are better ways to perk up and keep up without having to resort to toxic energy drinks. Learn more at Superfood.news.
Sources for this article include:
TheEpochTimes.com
Newstarget.com

Energy drinks cause BRAIN DRAIN: here’s how – NaturalNews.com