Friday, August 26, 2016

Music Helps Alleviate Symptoms And Treatment Side Effects

 A Systematic review of 52 studies on music therapy showed that music had a beneficial effect on anxiety, pain, fatigue, heart rate, respiratory rate and blood pressure in cancer patients.

Some of these individual studies suggested that listening to music may reduce the need for anesthetics (drugs that cause a loss of sensation) and analgesics (pain meds) as well as decrease recovery time and duration of hospitalization.

 The study's authors concluded that "music interventions may have beneficial effects on anxiety,
pain, fatigue and quality of life in people with cancer"


The reason music can have an effect on so many different health issues is because it activates the relaxation response and deactivates the stress response.

When the relaxation response is activated our heart rate will drop, our breathing will slow down, our blood pressure will be reduced, our anxiety will go away, and our pain will be reduced or eliminated (calming the body down can reduce or shut off inflammation therefore reducing or shutting off pain)

 Incorporating music into our lives in one of many natural health strategies we can utilize to help
us relax and calm our bodies down when we are going through health issues or a health crisis.

* the music that was used in these studies was soft classical music. Fast paced and aggressive music will have an opposite effect !!!

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD006911.pub3/abstract;jsessionid=ECAAD5F0228DB1DC3C6573ED2FD8EA21.f03t02?systemMessage=Wiley+Online+Library+will+be+unavailable+on+Saturday+3rd+September+2016+at+08.30+BST%2F+03%3A30+EDT%2F+15%3A30+SGT+for+5+hours+and+Sunday+4th+September+at+10%3A00+BST%2F+05%3A00+EST%2F+17%3A00+SGT+for+1+hour++for+essential+maintenance.+Apologies+for+the+inconvenience

Sunday, August 21, 2016

Televised Fluoride Debate


Journalist Cameron Bennett moderated the debate, which aired on Wednesday as part of the Thinking Green series on Sky Channel’s FACE-TV.

As Paul points out at the beginning of the debate, it has taken 12+ years of challenging NZ's fluoridation proponents to a public debate to find someone willing to defend the practice. 

So this is a rare event that we need to get as many people as possible to watch.  Please share this video on your social media pages, and with friends, family, and decision-makers via email. 

For more information check out The Fluoride Action Network.
http://fluoridealert.org/

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) Use During Pregnancy Can Cause Behavioral Problems


A new study published in the Journal of American Medical Association Pediatrics showed that pregnant woman who used Acetaminophen (Tylenol) had an increased risk of having children with behavioral issues.

The data showed that woman who used Acetaminophen (aka Paracetamol) between the 18th and 32nd week of pregnancy had a 42% increased risk of a child with conduct problems and hyperactivity symptoms.

Using Acetaminophen during the 32nd week was also associated with a 29% increased risk of the child having emotional symptoms and a 46% increase in total behavioral difficulties.

I see Acetaminophen being popped like candy where ever I go. Many people mistakenly believe this drug is safe or benign because it is sold over the counter. The truth is that Acetaminophen is a dangerous drug. It is well known that it destroys the liver and just recently it was linked to Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive issues. A new study also pointed to another troubling possible side effect of this drug; it's ability to reduce empathy in people.



Sources:
Association of Acetaminophen Use During Pregnancy With Behavioral Problems in Childhood: Evidence Against Confounding.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27533796

When you take acetaminophen, you don't feel others' pain as much
http://scan.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2016/05/27/scan.nsw057


Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Can Your "Natural" Greek Sea Salt Kill A Rat?



I grew up with Kalas Greek Sea salt just as many other Greek families have.

A few years back I looked at the nutrition label and to my surprise there was an E number designated as one of its ingredients. E536.




In countries within the European union (and Switzerland) "E numbers" are codes that have been designated to food additives that have been approved for consumption.

These "E numbers" are sneaky because you have to decode them to figure out what exactly they are.

When I see an E number I personally will not consume it (or at least I try to avoid it)

So what is the E number in Kalas sea salt?

Potassium Ferrous Cyanide

Now the European Food Safety Authority has deemed this chemical safe, but I would personally not want to consume this.

I looked up the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for Potassium Ferrous Cyanide
and this is what I found:


1) It is mutagenic (meaning it can mutate) to bacteria and yeast

2) It is a skin irritant, and hazardous to ingest or inhale.

3) 1600 mg/kg of Potassium Ferrous Cyanide can kill a rat !!!


In fairness this is a very small amount of cyanide. It contains a maximum of 10 ppm of the entire chemical Potassium Ferrous Cyanide.

1) Why would I want my body using its nutrients and resources to detoxify this compound when it can be using them for more important functions.

2) Why does salt need an anticaking agent?

3) I'd rather not eat chemicals that can kill a rat !!

Again, I am not trying to be an alarmist. This is a very small amount that is being used in Kalas Sea Salt, but I rather eat salt that does not contain any additives, especially additives that are toxic.

I personally would recommend using Himalayan sea salt or Celtic sea salt.

So Can Kalas Sea Salt kill a rat? No. There is a very small amount of Potassium Ferrous Cyanide in it, but I wouldn't eat this salt because the msds says this chemical is hazardous when ingested.