As I sit looking out my office windows at the sunlight and the
miniscule, and I do mean miniscule, piles of snow, I'm reminded that
spring is just around the corner! I asked some friends how they knew
spring was coming last week and what it meant to them and I got some
really crazy answers. One said "the beginning of the yard work I hate".
Another one said that she knew it was coming because she could get the
"Shamrock shake". Ummm yeah we won't go into that one. Someone else
said something I thought was a little closer to right up my alley. This
person said "I consider it spring when the snow is done scrubbing the
ground of its last year's debris!" Now that's a concept I can get into.
We all hear about detoxing from all different places; the TV, our
friends, the vitamin isles at the store, books, radio (my personal
favorite is;" you aren't fat your just bloated and loaded with
sludge"!! LOL). I want to talk about what it's really like for your
body to detox. First of all, we are exposed to so many chemicals on a
daily basis. Especially our water that has fluoride in it which
is typically used as a preservative and an anticoagulant product for
biological specimens. I know it as something that can cause
calcification of arteries, joints and ligaments, and contributes to so
many forms of cancer and
osteoporosis.
Ray Ilg, ND
Raynette Ilg, N.D., is the owner of
Olive
Branch Wellness Center in South Elgin, IL. A Naturopath who earned a
Bachelors of Science in Biological Medicine and then a Doctor of
Naturopathic Medicine from National University of Health Sciences, she
employs Nutritional Guidance, Herbal Medicine, Hydrotherapy, and
Homeopathy in her clinic. Dr. Ray can be contacted via her website,
Olive Branch Wellness Center
Fluoride has been linked to behavioural disorders, birth
defects, flu-like symptoms and arthritis. Fluoride can cause a
malfunctions in hormone receptors and increase bone cancers as well as
hip fractures. Also present in water as well are many of the
prescriptive drugs that people flush down the toilets. Cities cannot
remove the prescriptives from the drinking and bathing water. So you
might be drinking part of your neighbor's prescription for anxiety and
not even know it because the village or city you live in doesn't have
the ability to filter those particulates out of the drinking/bathing
water.
Then there is the Chlorine found in your drinking water. It’s
been used for decades to kill bugs in drinking water, and as a home
cleanser however, it also is a free radical initiator (that's a bad
thing), that elevates cholesterol and accelerates aging. Chlorine
drills holes in your arterial walls and that is called lipid
peroxidation. At that point the body has no choice but to try and plug
that hole up and calls cholesterol to the rescue to plug the hole
before we bleed out into ourselves. Chlorine also is notorious for
promoting hardening of the arteries, various types of cancers of the
rectum and bladder. Yes all of this and more in your drinking and
bathing water, thank you very much since you pay for it monthly!
Since water is the body's most important basic need (ranked
just under air!) we have some problems here. Water has long been
considered one of the body's most important detoxification tools,
something that helps give us energy, cleans our cells out, moistens us
purely on the inside and the outside and helps keep our ph normal. But,
the problem is that it's becoming more and more polluted. You say to
yourself at this point "That's okay I drink bottled water that I get
from the grocery store." Well……………. Here's the deal on that one. The
water in those bottles is not guaranteed pure nor is it stored
properly. What I mean by that is all of those nice shiny new plastic
bottles are wrapped up in 12, 24 or 36 size packages. Then they are
shipped off to the local "box store". Along the way those packages of
your precious water are not guaranteed to be kept refrigerated and so
when they get heated up whether on the loading dock, in storage or just
on the store shelf, even just a small amount the toxins from the
bottles escape into the precious water you are paying for. Add to that
the fact that the manufacturers do not put the water into a BPH free
plastic bottle. No, they put the water into a bottle that can be
cheaply (short for poor quality and high in chemicals) made for mass
production. I know that sounds like a gloom and doom story and now you
have visions of being up in the mountains drinking water out of your
cupped hands from a crisp flowing stream with birdies flying above and
a fawn drinking downstream from you right.
The other problem with these chemicals
is that your organs which you actually need to function properly get
affected in a negative manner. The fluoride and chlorine wreak havoc on
your liver, your kidneys and not to mention your brain (this is your
brain on fluoride!).
I guess the point I'm trying to make in this short article is we need
to help the body get rid of this stuff and like the snow scrubbing the
ground clean from a long winter's debris, we need to concentrate on
getting these chemicals OUT of the body (there are so many more to list
but I only chose two).
One of the ways that is extremely beneficial for our body's to detox is
the use of Infrared Sauna Therapy. Infrared Sauna Therapy is beneficial
for: Detoxification because the sweating it causes is the body's safe
and natural way to heal and help keep itself healthy. Maybe best said
as getting the gunk out! Infrared sauna benefits the body by heating it
directly and causing a rise in the core temperature of the body which
results in a deep, detoxifying sweat at the cellular level where all of
the nasty toxins sit (think fluoride and chlorine for today). Infrared
saunas also help with: weight loss, relaxation, relieve unwanted pain,
increase your circulation (think lower blood pressure), and purify your
skin. Sweating is one of the body's most natural ways to eliminate
toxins, making it a crucial part of detoxification. Several studies
have looked at using infrared saunas in the treatment of chronic health
problems, such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and
rheumatoid arthritis, and found evidence of benefits for those
situations.
If you are going to use an infrared sauna for detox you need to make
sure you are properly hydrated (with good water) before you start that
visit usually about 1 quart before, then 1 quart during and follow up
with another quart after all is said and done. You won't believe how
amazing you feel when you finally get all of those detox pathways
opened up (they are called an Emunctory for those of you looking to add
a word to your vocabulary today). You'll look better, feel better and
heaven knows you will have more vitality!! But, most of all you can
start kissing those chemicals good by for good!
If you'd like to try an infrared sauna, give us a call and we'll get
you scheduled!
Olive Branch Wellness Center 630-370-7290
The Monthly "Vita - Mini"
You Little Zinc-er!
Oh
so many things to tell you about Zinc, but then this is a mini so here
we go. First of all it comes in five forms: Picolinate, citrate,
aspartate, gluconate and oxide. Zinc has some pretty cool functions
which include the synthesis of cholesterol, protein, and fats. It also
regulates the release of vitamin A from the liver which helps the
immune system and eye sight. Then there’s all of the positive effects
it has on taste, skin, the prostate and testosterone. It can be found
in its highest food amounts in eastern oysters (no wonder they are an
aphrodisiac!)
Zinc is actually regulated in small part by sulfur containing
amino acids so what does that mean? It means that basically
Methionine, cysteine are the two most active transports for the zinc in
the system. Zinc is enhanced by soy proteins, red wine, glucose
and lactose. BUT, it gets inhibited by iron, copper and phytates.
So what does that mean? It means that if you are taking your zinc with
those types of foods or chemicals it might not be doing you any good.
As always we recommend getting tested to see if you are deficient in
Zinc or you might just be throwing your money down the drain!
Jeana's Cucina
Eggplant Bolognese
Ingredients:
1 eggplant peeled and chopped into cubes
1 onion diced
2 garlic cloves peeled and minced
1 carrot grated
1/4 cup cremini mushrooms sliced
1/2 to 1 T olive oil
2 T tomato puree
1 can chopped tomatoes
2 T dried mixed herbs
2 to 3 t dried basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Water
Preparation
1. Add the olive oil to a medium-high heat pan.
2. Add the onion, carrot and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes.
3. Add the eggplant, mushrooms, tomato puree, canned tomatoes, mixed herbs, basil, salt and pepper. Stir everything together.
4. Add water so that it just covers the vegetables by 1 inch.
5. Cook the Bolognese on a low-medium heat for 30 to 40 minutes with a
lid placed on top but keep a little gap to allow steam out of the pan.
6. Stir occasionally. Add more water if required. The whole mix should reduce to a rich tomato Bolognese.
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