"We can pay the farmer or we can pay the hospital"

The Future... Generation - there is still hope!

You could be killing or harming your child every time you pour them a glass of milk, the same as pouring them a glass of slow acting poison. Please take action to ensure our children's safety, for they can not protect themselves... 
Monsanto & Cancer Milk: FOX NEWS KILLS STORY & FIRES Reporters.

Watch it and take notes.

Cheers!

Sock Doc: Natural Treatment & Prevention of Piriformis Syndrome, Low Back Pain, & Sciatica

Natural Injury Treatment & Prevention for the Athlete Within 

Sock Doc: Natural Treatment & Prevention of Piriformis Syndrome, Low Back Pain, & Sciatica

Piriformis, Low-Back-Pain, Sciatica

Your sciatic nerve is a thick nerve originating from many fibers in the lower back and sacral area. Actually it’s the sensations in the lower leg & foot – weakness, pain, numbness – that are typically true signs of “sciatica” symptoms as the sciatic nerve comes out from behind the knee and branches out into the tibial nerve and common peroneal nerve where they supply movement and sensations to much of the lower leg and foot. Pain above the knee – usually referred to as sclerotenogeous type pain – is pain originating from a muscle, tendon, or ligament. That is usually what is causing pain in the lower back and hamstring/thigh area, if not a local muscle or tendon strain. Though there may be disc involvement as well as other nerve related problems, (other than sciatica), most lower back, thigh pain, and hip pain is from muscular imbalances as well as inflammation in the body.

The muscles discussed in this video have significant involvement in the stability, strength, and movement of the lower back, hip, and legs.

 Piriformis, Low-Back-Pain, Sciatica

Piriformis – this muscle  extends from under the front side of the sacrum and attaches to the greater trochanter in the upper leg. The major action is to laterally rotate the hip as well as turn the foot out. The sciatic nerve actually comes out right under the piriformis, but in 15-20% of people, it goes through it. “Piriformis syndrome” irritates the sciatic nerve. An imbalance in the muscle often causes pain and can cause the foot to turn outwards. Since the piriformis muscles stabilize the sacrum and therefore the base of the entire spine a person can have pain all the way up to their neck or down to their foot from a piriformis issue.

Gluteus maximus – this powerful muscle extends the hip and rotates the thigh laterally a bit too,  just like piriformis. Many people think they’re having hamstring pain or hip pain from a bad disc, when really it’s because they have a glut max that isn’t functioning properly. Also, a lot of knee pain is because of a strained glut max. This muscle also makes up a significant amount of the ITB – another common injury I discuss here.

On the front side of the body are the  psoas and abdominals muscles and they are often involved in low back pain, hip pain, sciatica, and disc problems. Leg flexion, hip rotation, and the ability to reach down and touch your toes is made possible by the action of these two muscles. 

So pain performing these movements means that they are not working correctly. 

Can’t sit up because of pain or weakness from laying on your back? Pain putting on your shoes or flexing forward to pick something off the ground? Pain running, jumping, or kicking? Psoas and abdominal involvement.

No stretching! No orthotics!

Enjoy the video and check out the other Sock Doc videos as well!

~~~~~~~~

Cheers,

Gencho

Special moment... Enjoy it!

"He will cover you with his feathers..."

Herb Companion

     The Best Herbs for Pain Relief

          

           A few years ago, I had the pleasure of visiting the home of a gracious woman who deals in antiques. As I admired the many fine pieces displayed there, I came to realize that I, too, am something of a period piece - a baby boomer who’s fundamentally sound but sporting the odd creaky hinge or two.       

Fortunately, the herbal apothecary holds promise. Its medicines are good alternatives to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for chronic, mild to moderate aches and can reduce the need for prescription drugs.   

More than 100 plants are known to have pain-relieving properties, but some are really outstanding. Reporting on herbal painkillers for arthritis, a review of clinical trials in the Clinical Journal of Pain says Devil’s claw (Harpagophytum procumbens), capsaicin from hot chilies (Capsicum spp.), gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) from seed oils, and certain blended herbal extracts are especially good. Other studies indicate broader pain-relieving benefits from these as well as two traditional favorites, White willow (Salix spp.) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita).

Devil's Claw

Harpagophytum procumbens

Herbal Rx: Devil’s Claw and Capsaicin

Devil’s claw is a South African herb with medicinally active roots. This herb eases muscular tension or pain in the back, shoulders and neck. A popular treatment for osteoarthritic pain, it may ease rheumatoid arthritic pain as well. The herb’s active ingredients are harpagide and harpagoside, both iridoid glycosides with analgesic (pain-relieving) and anti-inflammatory actions. Devil’s claw extract has been shown to reduce osteoarthritic hip or knee pain by 25 percent and improve mobility within a few weeks. Rheumatoid arthritic pain may also be reduced and mobility enhanced within about two months. 
Devil’s claw extract is considered safe at the typical dosage of 750 mg (containing 3 percent iridoid glycosides) taken three times daily. It is also available as tincture (use 1 teaspoon up to three times daily) and tea. It should not be taken with blood-thinning medications and may not be safe during pregnancy or for young children, nursing mothers and individuals with liver or kidney disease, or digestive system ulcers.   

If you like to munch hot peppers, rest assured that they do not aggravate stomach ulcers as is commonly believed, and they actually might protect your stomach from prescription-drug damage.

Capsaicin puts the heat in hot peppers. It manipulates the body’s pain status by hindering pain perception, triggering the release of pain-relieving endorphins and providing analgesic action. Commercial capsaicin-containing creams such as Zostrix, Heet and Capzasin-P are used topically for arthritic and nerve pain. Creams containing .025 percent capsaicin can significantly reduce osteoarthritic pain when applied to joints four times daily. A higher concentration of .075 percent works best for peripheral nerve pain—such as that from diabetic nerve damage, HIV and pain following cancer surgery. When using topical capsaicin products, be sure to avoid touching your eyes and other sensitive areas. 

Capsaicin also can be taken internally to help with chronic digestive discomfort, or dyspepsia: A daily dose of 0.5 to 1 grams cayenne, divided and taken before meals, reduces pain, bloating and nausea over a few weeks.

Healthy Oils Help Relieve Aches and Pains

Gamma-linolenic acid is one of the good fats. It may help the body produce the kinds of prostaglandins and leukotrienes (hormone-like substances that influence the immune system and many other processes) that can reduce inflammation. It curbs rheumatoid arthritic pain, relieving morning stiffness and joint tenderness. Some evidence indicates that GLA also can help migraine headaches and mild diabetic nerve damage. Borage (Borago officinalis) and Black currant (Ribes nigrum) seed oils are the richest sources of GLA, containing up to 25 percent and 20 percent, respectively, while Evening primrose (Oenothera biennis), a traditional source, delivers 7 percent to 10 percent. The recommended daily dose for rheumatoid arthritis is 1 to 3 grams GLA supplement, and for mild diabetic neuropathy 400 to 600 mg daily. GLA is not an overnight fix and may take up to six months for significant relief. Also, long-term use may lead to inflammation, blood clots or decreased immune system functioning. A safe route to introduce a little GLA into your diet is by eating a handful of black currants regularly or spreading the preserves onto your morning toast—you might as well enjoy your medicine!

More Pain-relieving Herbs

To complete your anti-pain arsenal, consider these herbs:     

• Arnica (Arnica spp.), available in creams and tablets, relieves osteoarthritic pain in the knee and pain following carpal-tunnel release surgery. It contains helenin, an analgesic, as well as anti-inflammatory chemicals. Apply cream twice daily; use tablets according to package directions.      

• Boswellia (Boswellia serrata) contains anti-inflammatory and analgesic boswellic acids that can soothe pain from sports injuries and also can help osteoarthritic knee pain. Take 150- to 400-mg capsules or tablets (standardized to contain 30 percent to 65 percent boswellic acids) three times daily for two to three months.          

• Clove oil (Syzygium aromaticum) is a popular home remedy for a toothache. Apply a drop or two of this excellent anti-inflammatory directly to your aching tooth or tooth cavity.      

• Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) seeds are stocked with 16 analgesic and 27 antispasmodic chemicals. It makes a pleasant licorice-flavored tea and is especially good for menstrual cramps. But avoid the herb while pregnant or nursing because of its estrogenic effects.      

• Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) is a remedy many people swear by for headaches, including migraines. Feverfew can reduce both the frequency and severity of headaches when taken regularly. It is available in 60-mg capsules of fresh, powdered leaf (1 to 6 capsules daily), or 25-mg capsules of freeze-dried leaf (2 capsules daily). You can also make tea—steep 2 to 8 fresh leaves in boiling water, but do not boil them, since boiling breaks down the active parthenolides.        

• Ginger root (Zingiber officinale) has analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties that can alleviate digestive cramps and mild pain from fibromyalgia. You can take 1 to 4 grams powdered ginger daily, divided into two to four doses. Or make tea from 1 teaspoon chopped fresh root simmered in a cup of water for about 10 minutes.          

• Green tea (Camellia sinensis) is great for stiff muscles—it has nine muscle-relaxing compounds, more than just about any other plant.

• Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is recommended by the German Commission E for sore throat. Not surprising, considering its nine anesthetic, 10 analgesic and 20 anti-inflammatory compounds. To make tea, simmer about 2 teaspoons of dried root in a cup of water for 15 minutes; strain. Do not take licorice if you have high blood pressure, heart conditions, diabetes, kidney disease or glaucoma.

• Oregano (Origanum vulgare ssp. hirtum), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) and Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) are herbs you should be sprinkling liberally onto your food, as they are replete with analgesic, antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory compounds. (Oregano alone has 32 anti-inflammatories!) Mix and match these garden herbs into a pain-relieving tea: Pour a cup of boiling water over a teaspoon of dried herbs, steep 5 to 10 minutes and strain.

Aromatherapy: Experience the Sweet Smell of Pain Relief

Ever thought of using your nose to help ease your pain? Volatiles in essential oils can easily enter your body via your olfactory system and adjust brain electrical activity to alter your perception of pain. Clinical aromatherapists commonly use lavender, peppermint, chamomile, and damask rose for pain relief and relaxation. A report from Nursing Clinics of North America says that massage with lavender relieves pain and enhances the effect of orthodox pain medication. Lavender and chamomile oils are gentle enough to be used with children and, in blends, have relieved children’s pain from HIV, encephalopathy-induced muscle spasm and nerve pain. Both oils contain anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic chemicals, and exert sedative, calming action. Rose essential oil contains pain-reducing eugenol, cinnamaldehyde and geraniol; but the report’s author suggests it may also alter perception of pain because it embodies the soothing aromas of the garden.

Time-tested Herbal Aids

White willow bark is one of the oldest home analgesics, dating back to 500 b.c. in China. Modern research confirms old-time wisdom, showing it helps back, osteoarthritic and nerve pains. Willow bark contains apigenin, salicin and salicylic acid, which provide anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-neuralgic actions. At the end of a four-week study of 210 individuals suffering from back pain, reported in the American Journal of Medicine in 2000, 39 percent of those who had received 240 mg of salicin daily were essentially pain-free, compared to 6 percent of those given a placebo.  

Individuals with osteoarthritis of the knee or hip also are helped. Willow bark can be purchased as standardized extracts and teas. If you have access to white willow and wish to make your own, collect bark from a twig (never the main trunk). Use about 2 teaspoons of bark to a cup of water, boil, simmer for 10 minutes and cool slightly. Because salicin concentration is low and widely variable in willow bark, you may need several cups to obtain the equivalent of two standard aspirin tablets. A word of caution: Willow should not be given to children, due to the risk of Reye’s syndrome, nor used by individuals with aspirin allergies, bleeding disorders, or liver or kidney disease. Willow may interact adversely with blood-thinning medications and other anti-inflammatory drugs. Also, willow tends not to irritate the stomach in the short term, but long-term use can be problematic. 

 Peppermint is a famous antispasmodic for digestive cramps, while its essential oil is used as a local topical anesthetic in commercial ointments (Solarcaine and Ben-Gay, for example).

Germany’s Commission E authorizes use of oral peppermint oil for treating colicky pain in the digestive tract of adults. However, peppermint oil shouldn’t be used for colic in newborn babies, as it can cause jaundice.  

Several double-blind studies of individuals with irritable bowel syndrome demonstrate peppermint can significantly relieve painful abdominal cramps, bloating and flatulence. In the largest study, reported in the Journal of Gastroenterology, researchers administered either enteric-coated peppermint oil or a placebo to 110 individuals three to four times daily, 15 to 30 minutes before meals, for four weeks. The study found peppermint significantly reduced abdominal discomfort.           

Take a 0.2- to 0.4-ml enteric-coated peppermint capsule three times daily. (Enteric coating prevents stomach upset.) For mild stomach discomfort, try a tea from fresh or dried peppermint leaves. The menthol in peppermint relaxes the muscles. Its antispasmodic and analgesic effects also can help relieve headaches, possibly including migraines, when applied to the forehead or temples—dilute about 3 drops of essential oil in 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.

Herbal Blends and Other Old Friends

We’re also hearing more about commercial herbal mixtures for pain relief. Two apparently promising ones are avocado/soybean unsaponifiables and Phytodolor, both from Europe. Avocado/soybean unsaponifiables are a complex mix of sterols, pigments and other substances found in the oils, and initial trials suggest that a daily dose of 300 mg soothes hip and knee osteoarthritic pain by anti-inflammatory actions. Phytodolor, with a 40-year history in Germany, is a liquid extract of European aspen (Populus tremula), European ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and European goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea). The extract helps muscle and joint conditions, including osteoarthritis; it contains salicin and other chemicals with anti-inflammatory and possibly antioxidant properties.      

Don’t discount the psychological dimensions of pain in everyday aches. For instance, most headaches have psychogenic causes (such as anxiety, depression and stress), rather than vascular causes (dilated or distended blood vessels in the brain). Psychogenic headaches tend to be diffuse, often feeling more like pressure than pain, and often are accompanied by muscular tension. Vascular headaches, including migraines, respond more readily to painkillers, whereas emotionally induced ones might benefit more from herbs with calming or sedative properties, such as Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) or Valerian (Valeriana officinalis).

It shouldn’t be surprising that pain is multidimensional, and our tools for combating it need to be also. When you’re suffering from creakiness or other discomfort, consider the possible causes - disease, physical strain, nutrient deficiency, chemical sensitivities, allergies or emotional stress. Then you can access the herbal apothecary effectively and appropriately, to fully restore your well-being. 

---

Gina Mohammed, Ph.D., is a plant physiologist living in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. She is author of Catnip and Kerosene Grass: What Plants Teach Us About Life (Candlenut Books, 2002).


The reference list for this article is extensive. If you would like a copy, please send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to “Pain Relief,” The Herb Companion, 1503 SW 42nd St., Topeka, KS 66609; or e-mail us at editor@herbcompanion.com

~ ~ ~
Cheers!
To your health,


Tangra!

Vitamin D news

Researchers find vitamin D protects against liver diseases

17 January 2012

Two Israeli research teams have separately become the first to discover two different benefits from vitamin D against common liver diseases – hepatitis C and cirrhosis.
One involved the mechanism in human cells in the lab, while and the other proved itself on liver tissue in rats. The two discoveries have not yet been tested clinically.
Prof. Ran Tur-Kaspa, from the Rabin Medical Center- Beilinson Campus, and his team worked on hepatitis C, the major factor in chronic liver disease that can lead to cirrhosis. It is also the main cause in the Western world of organ failure requiring a liver transplant and is one of the causes of primary liver cancer.
Antiviral treatment can help in half the cases, but the side effects are serious even if the treatment is effective.
Tur-Kaspa, a liver specialist and researcher who is dean of the Galilee Medical Faculty in Safed, said there is a constant search for medications and other technologies that are more effective and accompanied by fewer side effects.

He and his team investigated ordinary vitamin D, which is already taken by many people as prevention for numerous diseases, to see whether it had any effect on hepatitis C and on liver cells that host it. They discovered, and published in Hepatology, a peer-reviewed medical journal, that vitamin D directly halts the activity of viruses in general and hepatitis C in particular. They also found that a system for actively producing vitamin D is found in liver cells and can activate the immune system and repress the virus.

The research showed without doubt that vitamin D functions in the liver cell, and it causes an increase in naturally produced interferon and repression of the production of the virus, said Dr. Romy Zemel, who was part of the team. The research proves that integrating the use of interferon and vitamin D boosts the effects synergistically, beyond the effects of each alone.

Interferons are a family of naturally occurring proteins that are made and secreted by immune-system cells. Thus, with the right combination, said the Beilinson researchers, one could destroy the virus. Their discovery was made serendipitously.

Vitamin D is produced as a result of exposure to the sun or taken in the diet or by supplements.

Its classic role, said Tur-Kaspa, is to protect the balance of calcium and phosphorus in the body. Over the years, additional influences such as on the immune system became clear, and at the same time, vitamin D became popular as a number of health benefits were reported.

The Beilinson discovery of the weakening of the hepatitis C virus in the presence of the vitamin opens up a potential treatment for the infections, so one can improve the efficacy of treatment while reducing the dosage of interferon, said Tur- Kaspa.

Meanwhile, the latest issue of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center’s newsletter published an article by Prof. Shimon Reif and colleagues on how vitamin D fights liver cirrhosis, in which liver tissue is replaced by fibrotic scar tissue, usually collagen, leading to the loss of liver function.

Special cells in the liver called hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) collect vitamin D when they are “resting.”

After they are activated, they produce collagen, which leads to fibrosis. Using liver tissue taking from rodents, the Sourasky team treated them with vitamin D and increased the expression of a receptor for the vitamin. This significantly repressed the growth of HSCs, they found.

The same effect was then found in live rats.

За позициите и всичко покрай тях

Тангра!

Хайде да поговорим за позициите. Те присъстват във всички детайли на нашата тренировъчна програма и, може би, са най-грешно разбраните от всички останали техники, форми и умения в арсенала на Сенките. Позициите на Сянката не са нещо накъсано и застинало в пространството, а живеят (и се зареждат с енергията ви) в зависимост от ситуацията в която се намирате. Казвам го, за да ви поясня отново и отново, че позиция не се заема без причина!

Командата да заемете определена позиция (положение в пространството) трябва да ви "поставя" в определено състояние на изострено възприемане, за да "визуализирате" ситуацията, срещу която ще отработвате дадената техника.

Елемент Земя: Естествена позиция

Елемент Вода: Защитна позиция

Елемент Огън: Агресивна позиция

Елемент Вятър: Пресрещаща позиция

• Земя: Естествената позиция изисква спокойно и непринудено поведение, такова което може да изненада нападателя и да провали намеренията му да ни нарани или да си помисли, че сме се "предали" и да ни подмине.

• Вода: Зашитната позиция ни подсказва, че трябва да отстъпим встрани и да избегнем първия удар на противника, канализирайки потока му в дълбините на собственото му поражение. Имаме достатъчно време да забележим действията му и да решим какво да правим. Можем да избягаме и се скрием, ако не сме сигурни в уменията си или не искаме да се замесваме в неприятности. Можем и да приемем играта на противника, да го изненадаме и да го откажем с болезнените удари върху ръцете, краката и тялото му. Като "тиха вода, ненапита".

• Огън: Агресивната позиция влиза в действие, когато можем и сме сигурни, че можем да спрем агресията със собствени сили. Това е добре контролирана агресия, а не сееща хаос и разруха навсякъде...

• Вятър: Пресрещащата позиция има атрибути, сходни с естествената позиция, но намеренията ни тук са различни - разперваме ръце, за да избутаме зад себе си близкия ни човек, прикривайки го със собственото си тяло. Нямаме време за размисли, а трябва да спрем нападателя преди да ни е достигнал. За него сме открити и уязвими, но дали наистина е така? Вятърът в един момент е лек, ефирен и неуловим, но само за миг може да прерастне в страховит ураган, помитащ всичко по пътя си... Като в затишие пред буря. И нападателят ни трябва да го усеща точно така.

За незнаещите това ще изглежда като статична позиция с вдигнати ръце. За нас е Защитна позиция на тигъра (елемент Вода), включваща комбинация от горен блок с лявата ръка и подготовка за контра-атака с дясната. Няма как да се осъществят от място и без движение... Кое е за предпочитане - статичната и застинала поза или действието?

Пример: Връщам се у дома след тренировка. Завивам зад ъгъла и забелязвам, че уличката е неосветена. На отсрещната страна  се размърдват три фигури с качулки, които бавно започват да се придвижват в моя посока. Личи си, че са млади, надъхани и ... зелени. Единият започва да ръси цветисти бисери по мой адрес, ръкомахайки с ръце във въздуха, втория размахва къса верига, а третия - нервно превърта в ръката си нож. 

Не мога да ги подмина, а и не искам да бягам, мога да се справя! Пускам рязко сака до себе си и влизам с десен потъващ удар в мехура на първия отляво, последван от ляв издигащ лакът в брадата му. Прикривам се с тялото му срещу атаката на втория (там, където бях застанал преди малко) - с верига отгоре, която строшава лявата ръка на първия (аз съм защитен зад неговото тяло). 

"Кръв, пот, чесън и барут!" 

Вторият замахва отново, но този път откривайки се навън с хоризонтален удар отляво-надясно. Изблъсквам тялото на първия върху му и, бъркайки в ямката на врата му с дясната ръка, избутвам дясната му ръка (тази, с веригата) с моята лява, нанасяйки му няколко мощни удара в гърдите, корема, предмишниците и бицепсите (на двете ръце)... Веригата пада до тялото на първия, а ръцете на втория увисват. И този няма как да ме нарани (освен ако не започне да рита, но болката е достатъчно сериозна, за да му позволи да мисли за подобен вариант)... За да съм сигурен, че няма да ме изненада, го подсичам с крак и той пада, виейки от болка. 

Третият се върти около нас и се опитва да ме намушка, но все не му се отдава - нали не съм се спрял на едно място... Сега сме един срещу друг и няма никой между нас, за да му се пречка. Посяга, но неуспешно, а аз го ритам тънко с пета в пищяла... Мушка отново и отново. Толкова е близо, а все не успява... Замахва, аз избягвам и удрям ръката му (ножът изхвърчава) с юмрук и влизам. Прихващам го, ритам го с пета в глезена и изкълчвам китката му с усукващо хвърляне,  със завъртане и приклякане. Коляното ми "пада" върху ключицата му, а той, бързо и с въздишка, се отказва от по нататъшни действия, заплашващи моята лична сфера на защита.

Има няма 25 секунди... Навеждам се, счупвам ножа и заедно с веригата ги хвърлям в близката кофа за боклук, вземам си сака и потеглям към къщи. Ни лук ял, ни лук мирисал. Ще ги боли, но (надявам се), ще им е за урок да не се занимават повече с глупости...

Можете ли да си го представите? 

Опитайте се да откриете кой е основният елемент зад действията ми? Сега се опитайте да си представите всяко мое действие на стоп-кадър. Щях ли да оцелея в подобна ситуация, където трябваше да спирам след всяка атака и да започвам отново?

"Всичко тече, всичко се променя!"

Очаквам коментарите ви.

Наздраве и до следващия път, когато ще поговорим за позициите и дистанцията в боя!

Тангра!

The Ten Universal Laws of the Warrior Code

The Ten Universal Laws of the Warrior Code:

1. Pay Attention. Stay in the present. It’s the only place anything real is happening.

2. Take Responsibility. This is your life, take it back. Either you get to own it or you get to blame someone or something else for it. Choose.

3. No Kvetching (to complain persistently). No whining, no sniveling – it takes you out of the present and lets you abdicate responsibility.

4. Don’t Take Any Abuse. It’s very bad for ones self esteem to take any abuse. Stand up to your tyrants, both internal and external. The cost is too great not to.

5. Do It Anyway. Hard choices temper our strength and our integrity; they make the difference between a life of excellence and a life of mediocrity.

6. Don’t Quit. Look at what stops you, at where you give the effort up. That is the edge between becoming a victim or a warrior.

7. Keep Your Agreements. A warrior is only as good as his or her word. The way we build self-trust and trust in others is by making and keeping agreements.

8. Keep Your Sense of Humor. Otherwise what’s the point? Humor helps us to stretch beyond our own limits and ourselves.

9. Love One Another. Otherwise where’s the meaning? It’s the way we remember we’re not alone in the universe.

10. Honor Your Connection To The Source. There is a force in the universe, greater than ourselves that creates us, provides for us, cares for us, guides us, and loves us. It speaks to us from within. Trust it.

 

 

“If you like what you’ve got, honey, keep it!”

DR HAZEL PARCELLS:

The Original Naughty Nutritionist

The incomparable Dr. Hazel Parcells (1889-1996)

Dr. Parcells was a feisty redhead with straight shooting advice. “Honey, if you are ever to be healthy and stay healthy, you’ll have to trade your wishbone for a backbone and get to work.”  Excellent advice on many levels, including broth making! To those who would argue with her every recommendation, she replied simply: “If you like what you’ve got, honey, keep it!”   

A total original with a talent for chopping and slicing through nutritional dogma, she had little patience with most health “experts,” saying that they were unteachable because their cups were already full. She broke the rules of establishment nutrition by recommending red meat, raw milk, butter, no soy and no margarine. And she understood body/mind/spirit medicine long before it became popular.

I am deeply grateful to The Doctor because I took her advice and became healthy. I noted that she earned several advanced degrees after the age of 50 and gathered the strength to go for my own PhD. I was so intrigued by her findings about the health problems caused by soy protein and soy margarine that I researched and wrote The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food. As for her naughtiness, she set a high bar for wit and wisdom delivered with a wide smile, knowing winks and infectious laughs. I especially love her reply to a question about whether one could go to Europe and enjoy a healthy continental breakfast:   “If it’s a roll in the hay with your honey, yes!”        

Though her quotes are priceless, it is her story that I find most inspiring. The verdict Hazel Parcells heard in 1931 was not good. Incurable tuberculosis, a collapsed lung, a hemorrhaging kidney and an enlarged heart.   Curable, said the learned MDs, only by death.   

She responded by firing the doctors whose 18 years worth of efforts had left her with a deteriorated body and depleted bank account. “They told me there was nothing more they could do for me, and I took them at their word,” she said. Though only given a few months to live Parcells looked forward to the chance to experiment on herself and learn what her body needed.  “One thing was certain, I wasn’t going to get any worse.”     

Sixty four years later Parcells died in January 1996 at the age of 106 years young.  She was, according to Joseph Dispenza, author of Live Better Longer: The Parcells Center Seven-Step Plan for Health and Longevity (Harper San Francisco, 1997) “vibrantly and vigorously alive.”  A sharp dresser who favored bright colors, she was proud of her curly red hair and patronized a beauty shop just a few days before her death, enchanting all who were there. 

When Parcells began her healing journey in 1931, she was very much on her own.  Few alternative therapies existed and there were few health books to read.  “Out of necessity, to keep myself well, I began to study the chemistry of food,” she told Dispenza.  First, she tuned in to her own body. 

Listening to her inner voices, and hearing the words “fresh” and “green,” she began eating the only green vegetable available in quantity in Colorado at that time -- spinach.  Though her consumption rivaled Popeye’s she rejected the canned  variety for raw, steamed and juice.d  parsley and other greens followed and six months later Parcells was perky enough to report back to Fitzsimmons Army Hospital near Denver to show herself off to the doctors who had condemned her to death. 

Her energy soaring and mind wide open to possibility.  Parcells made it her life’s work to explore the field of health and healing.  Drawn to many ideas that appeared -- and perhaps still appear-- improbable or impossible to establishment scientists, she ran her own laboratory and also explored homeopathy, light and color therapy, radionics, Bach Flower Remedies and other modalities.  She earned four advanced degrees, including doctors of chiropractic and naturopathy and PhDs in nutrition and comparative religions.

In time, word of the Doctor’s unusual methods and miraculous healings spread.  “From the first, I recognized her as a master healer and pioneer, far ahead of her time,” said Ann Louise Gittleman, author of Beyond Pritikin (Bantam, 1988), Guess What Came to Dinner: Parasites and Your Health (Avery, 1993) and other books. Parcells introduced Gittleman to many of the underlying causes of disease and malnutrition in the late 20th century, including parasite infestation, pesticide poisoning, mineral deficiencies, radiation sickness and aluminum and other heavy metal toxicities.

“I never heard of her methods not working,” said Sam Berne, O.D., the Santa Fe-based author of Creating Your Personal Vision: A Mind-Body Guide for Better Eyesight (Color Stone Press, 1994).  “Her reputation was impeccable.  She didn’t work with disease. She just cleaned up the body.”  And she never spoke of “cures.”  “Only taxidermists and undertakers do curing,” she told Dispenza.  “As for miracles, no it’s just nature’s way.”

The doctor’s most frequently used methods included fasts and bowel cleanses, parasite riddance programs, therapeutic baths and food cleansing baths. Food cleansed using the Doctor’s special methods gain levels of freshness and energy that belie that reality of long transports and extended stays on supermarket shelves.  According to Parcells’ measurements, untreated foods  -- whether commercial or organic -- generally rate so low in life energy that they can scarcely support health   The same foods cleaned with the Clorox bath, however, become health promoting.  Parcells also designed special lights incorporating magnets that help clear foods of negative energies  -- including the “fear” energy left in the flesh of slaughtered animals.  Known as Thea Lites or Balancing Lites, they also raise the energy of foods -- such as milk, salt or Chinese takeout -- that could not survive a Clorox soak. 

Radiation was another of her deepest concerns. She said she found it everywhere in America, even in remote, beautiful locations such as Sapello, NM, where she lived during the last few years of her life. Accordingly, she recommended that people clear themselves several times weekly with sea salt and baking soda baths and as soon as possible after X rays or plane trips. “She would say, “You can’t stay dry if you keep going out in the rain,” said Larry Martin, a friend and follower who worked closely with her during her last few years of life.   “You clear it but it comes back because you are exposed.”

“Doing this work, you start to really know what the environment is like,” said Terry Kast, who followed Parcells for two decades learning her methods and who teaches workshops in Albuquerque. “She found high readings nearly everywhere of dioxins, arsenic trisulfate, cobalt 60, you name it.”  In her final years, the doctor also began detecting mutant viruses, mutant fungi and other microbiological aliens.  Night after night she worked in her laboratory seeking and praying for remedies, only to catch yet another mutation a few months later.

Over her 65 year career, Parcells recognized many of her peers but esteemed very few.  She especially admired Dr Weston Price and illustrated points with the photographs in his book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration. Parcells was also drawn to another dentist -- Royal Lee (1895-1967) a nutritionist, inventor and forward thinker who exposed the adulteration and commercialism of our food supply.

Despite her long career and unquestionable success, Parcells was little known to the general public.  One reason was that she preferred to work in peace.  Another, she did not want to butt heads with the FDA, the AMA and other medical police.  “She kept a low profile because of her unorthodox work,” said Gittleman.  “She was very, very careful.  She had students, not clients or patients.  She didn’t want to be made a spectacle of like Ruth Drown, Max Gerson or Royal Lee.” All three were persecuted for their pioneering work. 

Indeed when Dispenza first discussed a book, Parcells resisted saying that the world wasn’t read and her message would be misconstrued and mocked.  She agreed to work with him, however, when her spirit guides told her to get the information out to as many people as possible.   So glad that “no” became a “yes.”

© copyright 2008 Kaayla T. Daniel.

The Naughty Nutritionist™

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The following is excerpt from the book "Live Better Longer" by Joseph Dispenza.

MY OWN EXPERIENCE

 “If you like what you’ve got, honey, keep it!”

When I met Dr. Hazel Parcells I was a reasonably healthy fifty-year-old man who watched what I ate, exercised vigorously three times a week, and in general took care of myself. I used food supplements off and on. I had given up smoking cigarettes a few years before (it had been very difficult, and I lapsed back a few times). Every couple of months, to "tune up," I went to an acupuncturist for a treatment. I rarely suffered any illness more than an annoying cold, and when one came, it didn't last long. I had been hospitalized only once in my life, when I was nine, to have my tonsils out. Still, I was twenty-five pounds overweight-something I just couldn't shake all my adult life (I had been an overweight child). My blood pressure hovered in the "borderline-high" area. I used antacid mints a few times a week and a stronger antacid liquid if my stomach got really irritated. I drank a lot of coffee, took aspirins to calm down, and used sleeping pills to get to sleep at night. My energy level was just so-so; if I could fit in an afternoon nap, I would.

And something else: in the past two years I noticed that my skin had begun to turn progressively darker. In short, I was one of the "half-healthy."

Cleaning House

Dr. Parcells put me on a detoxification and rejuvenation program that lasted eight days, and amazing things began to happen. First, my skin cleared up, from a dark brown to a healthy glowing pink-at the end of the eight days my skin actually looked like the skin of a baby. My weight became manageable: I lost twelve pounds doing the week-long program. I gained back four pounds in the week after I was finished with the program, stabilized for a month, then began to lose an average of two pounds a month after that until I reached my proper weight.

My energy soared. My blood pressure measured normal. I found I could work for several hours at a stretch without wanting to take a nap and get through the day and night with no help from drugs of any kind-including those I had considered rather harmless ones like caffeine, indigestion candies, laxatives, and aspirins.

I also had a new outlook on life. I felt revived, eager for challenges, ready to start off in new directions. I felt that whole worlds of possibilities were waiting for me--doors that had been closed were swung wide open. A kind of expansion of spirit came over me.

What I had experienced was not only a physical cleansing, but also a deep emotional, psychological, and spiritual cleansing.

I had never felt better in my life. The cleansing program Dr. Parcells recommended for me literally "cleaned house," as she Said, and allowed my body to take over the work of healing itself-naturally, easily, and effectively.

In my case, the liver was congested and clogged with poisons, to the point where it wasn't able to do its best work of processing and purifying. The blocked-up liver had caused a slowdown of my ability to burn food, especially fat, thus keeping me overweight. Its decreased function also had caused accumulations of unassimilated foods, food supplements, and medicines to putrefy in me, further bogging down the liver's activity; the result was that a variety of aches and pains were surfacing from a number of places, my sleep was being hindered, and my skin had darkened to a complex-ion that looked turbid, congested, and unhealthy.

"If you take your foot off the brake, your car will go faster," Dr. Parcells said to me when we went over the results of my eight-day adventure. It was a lesson I learned by doing, and the outcome was more positive than I could have imagined.

DETOXIFICATION AND REJUVENATION AT THE CELL LEVEL

Dr. Parcells developed her cleansing program in the 1950s and 1960s. She recommended it to people who came to her sincerely wanting to turn their health around. It was always the first step for all her health-building plans.

The Parcells Detoxification and Rejuvenation Program works at the cell level. It is not a simple stomach evacuation or bowel cleanse. It is not a mere rest-from-food regime for the internal organs. It actually loosens and removes toxic wastes that have been stored in the body for years.

This program works on many levels to clean the whole person. Its impact on the physical level is the most obvious and the most dramatic, of course, but it also clears blockages on the emotional level (or the emotional body, as some are calling it) and affects many other aspects of a person's life, including one's psychological and spiritual sides. If anger and resentment have been stored in the body for many years, they are given the opportunity of leaving at this time. If some self-destructive psychological patterns have gotten stuck in the mind and have spilled over into the body, they can dissolve during this program.

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106 Years!

To Your Health!

Gencho Ivanov