Archived Articles - September 2015


Cranberry consumption may help to treat cancer
    Sep-02-2015

The American Cancer Society has estimated that over 93,000 people will be affected by colon cancer, while more than 39, 500 cases of rectal cancer will be seen in the United States in 2015 alone. This, in effect, means that one in every 20 Americans is likely to suffer from colon cancer at some point in their life. On the other hand, as many as 16,000 people succumb to bowel cancer every year in the United Kingdom.

While the figures released by the American Cancer Society are certainly concerning, findings of some studies undertaken recently offer some hope. These studies have found that cranberries possess the ability to combat bowel cancer, thereby making this fruit as well as its extract a prudent choice to prevent the risks of developing bowel cancer. It is believed that to a great extent the polyphenol levels in cranberries contribute to the amazing health benefits offered by the fruit, since they are effective in restraining inflammation.

A study undertaken by Catherine Neto, Ph.D., and her colleagues at the Dartmouth-based University of Massachusetts found in tests carried out in the laboratory that the compounds present in cranberry extracts eliminate the tumour cells selectively. In order to examine the matter further, Neto and her team worked together with Hang Xiao, Ph. D., of Amherst-based University of Massachusetts, to develop a model with mice affected by colon cancer.

Cranberry extract reduces tumours, associated with reduced inflammation

During the course of their study, they assessed three powdered varieties of cranberry extracts - powder of the whole fruit, an extract containing only the polyphenols found in cranberry and another extract containing the non-polyphenols of the fruit. Following 20 weeks, Neto observed that tumours in mice that were administered cranberry extracts via their food had reduced to half compared to those mice that were not given the extract. Moreover, it was found that the inflammation markers in mice that consumed the whole cranberry extract had diminished.

The extract used equalled roughly one cup of cranberries every day

Talking about their study, Neto said that they found cranberry extracts that have the potential to protect other forms of cancer too. However, apparently it is more reasonable to currently examine their effect on colon cancer. According to Neto, the elements and metabolites of cranberry must be bioavailable to the colon while digestion progresses.

The scientists presented their findings at the American Chemical Society's 250th National Meeting & Exposition held in Boston in August.

Neto said that over the years, they have identified the presence of many different chemicals in cranberry extracts and apparently they are promising. Nevertheless, she said that they always desired to see the consequences of using these extracts on cancer in an animal model. According to Neto, their findings have been really encouraging.

Consuming less red meat, more vegetables and fruits vital for preventing colorectal cancer

It has been found that certain dietary habits are useful in preventing or diminishing bowel cancer and they include staying away from red meat and also avoiding smoked, salted, cured or processed meats. Hence, experts recommend that you should refrain from consuming hot dogs, sausages and bacon.

As there is more and more news regarding the not so stellar therapy of animals that are used to obtaining these foods, perhaps it is a wonderful idea to desist from consuming these meats in any form. As a bare minimum, you need to consider only organic, grass-fed options that entail animal practices that are more humane. Several animals bred for consumption of their meat often experience all things ranging from too much crowding as well as antibiotic use to abuse as well as living conditions wherein they have to stand right on their own excreta and urine owing to erroneous drainage and flooring.

Apart from meat consumption, binge drinking is also said to contribute to the chances of developing colorectal cancer. Precisely speaking, having two to three drinks every day may increase the hazards of developing this cancer form by 21 percent more. Similarly, people drinking alcoholic drinks every day face an increased risk - a whopping 52 percent.

Experts recommend that one should consume foods containing high amounts of vitamin C and vitamin D in order to maintain the health of bowels and also reduce the chances of related cancers. They also suggest that everyone should maintain a healthy weight and also eat more vegetables and fruits to keep colorectal cancer at bay. In fact, it has been said that consumption of black raspberries helps also to reduce the risk of developing colorectal cancer.

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Natural ways to prevent and cure migraine headaches
    Sep-09-2015

Many of you will be shocked to learn that an incredible 10 percent of people in America - about 6 percent American men, 18 percent American women and 10 percent children get migraines. In fact, migraine is not an ordinary headache, but a neurological disease having diverse and complex symptoms.

Typically, a migraine can last from just few hours to several days. It is not uncommon to find people suffering from migraines for 72 hours - during which the patient endures extreme sensitivity to light, noise, smells and even touch. In addition, they may experience vomiting, nausea, visual problems and numbness as well as tingling in the extremities. The pain may be on one or both sides of their head. The headache may also be accompanied with or with no warning aura.

While scientists as well as doctors have studied migraines for years, they are yet to ascertain the specific causes behind this disease. They are of the view that it has a genetic link, since it runs in families. In addition, it seems that the levels of estrogen also have a vital role in developing this neurological condition. In addition, inflammation, neurotransmitters, dilation of blood vessels as well as food and food additive effects seem to contribute to this condition. Even dehydration has a role. Scientists and doctors, however, agree that multiple triggers may be working together to set off a migraine attack.

Prescription and non-prescription drugs that people take often to treat migraines actually cause a lot of harm to the body. Similar to any other ailment, migraines are also an indication that the body requires help. Precisely speaking, it signals that the body requires two things - healthy nutrition everyday and continuous detoxification.

It has been found that taking feverfew on a regular basis is effective in preventing occurrence of migraine attacks. Similarly ginger shots or adding ginger to other juices can also stop migraines from persisting provided the sufferer takes them immediately when there is a sign of an imminent migraine attack.

In addition, it has been found that many essential oils are also effective in dealing with migraines. Peppermint and lavender essential oils are most popular among these.

Some people suffering from migraines have also found respite following chiropractic adjustment. Apparently, misalignment in the neck region may be a main reason for some migraine attacks. Possibly, misalignment in the region of the neck is related to the thyroid glands.

Migraine attacks can also be stopped by various other means, including massage, self-massage, acupuncture, acupressure and reflexology.

Inhaling cayenne pepper is said to be the best as well as the quickest remedy for migraine attacks. For most sufferers, this really works very promptly. However, if you think snorting cayenne pepper is a excruciating thing, it is likely that you have never experienced the pain caused by migraine attacks.

Preventing migraines

The best treatment for migraines is to prevent them from occurring. It is advisable that you stay away from all toxic foods as well as chemicals. Perhaps the best diet for avoiding migraine should incorporate 80 percent fresh, uncooked organic produce. You should consume more vegetables compared to fruits. Also avoid foods with synthetic flavours, preservatives, colors, GMOs, MSG and especially refined sugars. Also avoid trans fats and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). At the same time restrict you caffeine consumption and instead drink plenty of pure, clean water. Ensure that your diet contains lots of healthy fats containing omega-3 fatty acids. Preferably, you should undergo an elimination diet and get rid of all the possible triggers. Also consider getting rid of gluten.

If it is necessary, you should restore your gut's health. It is possible that people enduring any chronic problems, such as migraines, healing the gut becomes essential. Often, migraine attacks are triggered by an imbalance of the flora in the gut, especially when Candida is present in abundance.

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Natural means that aid treating depression
    Sep-16-2015

Depression affects everyone at some point or the other in their lives. Many would believe that the word holds the same meaning for everyone. However, this is not true. Many interpret depression as misery, the blues or a sad emotional condition that is same as clinical depression - but neither of them is correct.

The distinction between a normal depression and one that is considered a disorder is severity, constancy as well as a set of symptoms.

If someone is experiencing normal depression, he/ she would not be suffering intense sadness for two consecutive weeks, so much so that they would be unable to work or sleep properly or even get out of bed. Apart from these, the sufferers will experience a considerable weight loss; their movements will become sluggish as well as deliberate, while their mind may be crowded with death or suicidal thoughts - though all such thoughts are unlikely to be related to self-loathing. These are an instance of a combination of symptoms that would usually comprise a diagnosis of depression.

It has been found that low serotonin and elevated cortisol levels are often responsible for depression. While serotonin is considered to be the feel good neurotransmitter, cortisol is better known as stress hormone.

Conventional treatment for depression

Depression and depressive feeling are usually different and, hence, we can analyze depression on a continuum. One end of this scale will comprise the rigorous symptoms that meet the decisive factors for clinical depression, while the blues or sadness, including the common discontent with one life would be at the scale's other end. Irrespective of where an individual is on this scale, it is very likely that doctors will recommend anti-depressants when sufferers request them.

Normally, a good medical practitioner will at least suggest that the patient takes healthy diet, works out regularly and has 8 hours sound sleep at night. However, very often, physicians pull out their prescription pad and prescribe anti-depressants. Unfortunately, it has been found that anti-depressants prescribed for reducing suicidal thoughts and tendencies, may actually enhance suicidal as well as homicidal thoughts and they have been associated with suicides as well as majority of incidents of mass murders that occurred during the past few decades.

Alternative treatment for depression

As in the case of other physical as well as mental ailments, treatment for depression also begins with a healthy diet loaded with nutriments and coupled with regular exercise.

Diet

When we talk about a really healthy diet, we mean that 80 percent of it should contain fresh, raw and organic products, more vegetables compared to fruits, assortment of foods enclosing omega-3 oils and clean water. Taking 80 percent raw diet, including lots of pure water, and whole foods as well as herbs such as garlic, onions, turmeric and cilantro means you are continuously detoxifying your body. In addition, it would be highly beneficial to undergo a detox program once in every six months.

Eating the right food in right proportions does more good than just incorporating the correct type of foods into your diet. In fact, it is equally important, if not more, to get rid of harmful foods or foods that are not suitable for you from your diet. It means staying away from all types of synthetic colors, flavours and preservatives, trans fats, MSG and GMOs. It is especially important not to eat corn syrup. If a food is not organically produced, it will be genetically modified. At the same time, avoid or limit your caffeine consumption. Also stay away from sugar as well as processed packaged foodstuff. The best way to stay away from foods that you should not eat is to only consume genuinely organic food and whole food.

It is important that you should be extra careful about your gut. The health of your gut is extremely vital for treating depression. The gut contains beneficial bacteria which make about 80 percent of serotonin in the body. When there is an imbalance in the gut owing to parasites, Candida and harmful bacteria, there is a decline in the serotonin levels and our entire hormonal system is affected adversely. In case your gut is out of balance, which is common in the case of most people suffering from depression, in majority of instances the problem can be cured by taking a regular healthy diet. You may detoxify your intestinal tract to accelerate the healing process.

Exercise

There are several reasons why you should exercise regularly. First of all, exercise helps in the production of endorphins, which help to lift your mood. Studies undertaken to compare exercise to using pharmaceuticals have established that regular workouts are more effective than drugs.

Exercise also helps to enhance one's overall health by increasing blood and lymph circulation all over the tissues, thereby supplying the cells with the much-needed nutrients. At the same time, this process helps the body to get rid of toxins and other waste materials. In addition, exercise boosts the immune system; while the body as well as all its organs, counting the brain, is nourished and cleansed, it helps them to perform at their utmost ability.

Vitamin D

Researchers have documented the relation between depression and vitamin D deficiency and it is also diagnosed separately as Seasonal Affective Disorder. People residing in the upper part of the United States (draw an imaginary line from Los Angeles in Southern California to Atlanta, GA), are likely to get sufficient sunlight, which would help them to make enough vitamin D required by their body. Therefore, it is important for people with depression to actively consider taking vitamin D supplements as the first precautionary measure.

B Vitamins

Aside from vitamin D deficiency, it has been found that nearly all people enduring mental ailment also suffer from a deficit of B vitamins. It is best to take B vitamins together as B complex vitamins. It is worth mentioning here that you should never take only one B vitamin separately for any duration. Moreover, the gut should essentially have a healthy as well as balanced flora to be able to process and take up B vitamins effectively.

Our body requires B vitamins for several essential functions. Insufficiency of any of the B vitamins like B5, B6, B7 or B12 may result in depression. People suffering from deficiency of any of these B vitamins ought to take supplementation every day with a view to lift their mood, diminish tetchiness as well as promote sound sleep.

When you take the correct diet, workout regularly, detoxify your body and take the right supplements, it provides the body with the right resources to cure itself. In case, a loss, any kind of abuse or any other event in life is a contributing factor to your depression, low self-respect or any other symptom, natural therapy can prove to be a very useful healing aid.

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Mineral deficiency, heavy metal toxicity may lead to chronic migraines
    Sep-22-2015

Findings of a new study undertaken by researchers in Turkey's Yuzuncu Yil University offer some hope to people suffering from chronic migraines. The researchers have found that perhaps heavy metal toxicity is one of the reasons for this inexplicable and devastating condition that ails several million people. In other words, they suggest that detoxification as well as reinforcement with useful nutrients could possibly cure the condition.

As there is no specific factor that triggers a migraine attack and, hence, physicians have been wondering how to alleviate the sufferings of their patients. Most recent findings show that any attempt to single out a trigger may be an incorrect approach to treat the condition. It is likely that migraines may indicate a metabolic anomaly, which needs to be healed by adopting a dietary or supplemental approach.

In fact, adopting this approach when trying to identify and address the assorted factors that trigger migraine headaches may possibly provide temporary relief to the sufferers instead of tackling the basic cause. On the other hand, trying to find metabolic diagnostic indicators may help to create a support to develop an all-inclusive curative approach, which will be able to offer permanent health benefits to those suffering from this condition.

Scientists at the Yuzuncu Yil University actually did just the same by developing a diagnostic tool to examine blood composition. They hypothesised that people ailing due to migraines may perhaps be enduring heavy metal toxicity, deficiency of nutriments or both. It has been now proved that they were correct in their analysis.

The study was conducted on a group of 50 patients, half of whom have already been diagnosed as ailing from chronic migraines. They were split into two groups and the researchers collected the blood sample from patients in both groups. The blood samples were analyzed employing the atomic absorption spectrophotometry.

No participant has been taking multivitamin supplements or antioxidants during the period of the study. They also did not smoke, drink alcoholic beverages, abuse drugs, endure health conditions related to the liver or kidneys or suffer from chronic inflammation or heart disease. Earlier, the chronic migraine patients had been admitted to a hospital for check up and treatment consistent with the guidelines of the International Headache Society.

Following their analysis, the researchers found that compared to those in the control group, the blood stream of the subjects in the migraine group possesses significantly elevated levels of specific heavy metals, including lead, cadmium, manganese and iron. In addition, it was found that those in the migraine group also suffered from deficiency of specific valuable trace minerals like copper, zinc and magnesium.

Detoxifying heavy metals, mineral supplements may alleviate migraines

Maintaining the right mineral balance, including microminerals (those minerals that are required in small amounts by the body) and macrominerals (minerals required in larger amounts), is vital for optimal health. The findings of the study from Turkey suggest that people suffering from migraines have a tendency to have mineral deficiencies and imbalances, in addition to very high levels of harmful substances in their body. This kind of irregularities may result in neurotoxicity, hormone imbalances and, in this case, unbearable pain in the head as migraines.

In order to carry out its functions like enzymatic breakdown and nutrient metabolism normally, appropriate amounts of trace minerals are necessary for the human body. All these functions are extremely crucial for maintaining homeostasis. When there is any kind of imbalance in the level of the trace minerals, it may cause the body tissues to be inflamed and eventually lead to several chronic ailments.

It is interesting to note that when our body lacks in any specific mineral, our metabolic system usually uses another mineral as a substitute to carry on with that particular function - the function having the same atomic configuration.

Often, this type of substitution results in suppressed metabolism, which, in turn, can lead to more inflammation, stress and fatigue. Based on the findings of the research in Turkey, we can now say that it also leads to increased risks of migraine attacks.


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