2008 Newsletter - EDITION 3
What's up?
The days seem to rush by at the same rate as prices increase and I have had so many people say they cannot afford to be healthy. This is a crazy statement as it costs much less to be ill than to be healthy! Just yesterday I visited a 59 year old woman who had chosen 25 years ago to follow the ‘medicine route’ for an auto-immune disease. She duly took her steroid prescription and that led to pain killers as her spine began to crumble. By 59 she had spent all she had (like the woman in the book of Luke) on physicians and was unable to walk and function as a normal person. So, she underwent a 12 hour procedure to insert a steel rod into her spine and it is now, a week later and as the nurse in ICU put it, “her back problem is now the least of her problems” It was so sad to see her connected to every possible machine as they breathed for her, monitored her heart rate, blood pressure etc and hissed and clicked so much the nurses had put the TV on to cover the noises. Each day that passes is costing thousands of dollars and as we (the friend I was with is fit and healthy and the same age as the woman in the hospital bed) left the hospital we discussed just how expensive it is to not look after your health.
In real terms it makes more sense to look after you health, than to buy that new car/dress/couch/TV. As your health is the only real tangible investment you have here on earth. What is the point of working for 40 years and then dying just as you retire unable to enjoy the fruit of your labour, because you thought accumulating stuff was more important that physical and spiritual health?
This week I look at what to do with Migraines and Headaches as it is a subject that comes up regularly. And there are a few more success stories to encourage you. I know they encourage me!
What's on?
This week I am doing a cooking demo in San Juan Capistrano at Merrily Bright’s home, a Q& A session with the ladies form The Natural Way Café in the same area. Contact Merrily at merrilybright@yahoo.com Merrily is also coordinating the talks I am doing here in S California. So, if you would like to attend or organise a talk contact her. I will be back in South Africa in early July and you can contact Sue at suebk@telkomsa.net if you want to attend any talks or organise something.
Saturday the 3rd May I speak at a ladies conference at Heritage Church in San Clemente contact Sharon Soneff at soneff@cox.net it starts on Friday night and carries on all day Saturday, my slot is directly after lunch.
DVD
This months DVD will have a comprehensive talk on hormones, some great recipes and an interview with someone whose hormonal system has responded to a natural diet.
What's in?
Some health benefits of being overweight!!!
Some positive results
Migraines and headaches
Health Benefits of Being Overweight
A new report suggests that being overweight is not as harmful as is commonly believed, and actually confers some surprising benefits.
Being five to ten pounds overweight could protect people from ailments ranging from tuberculosis to Alzheimer's disease, research indicates. Those carrying 15 to 25 extra pounds are better able to recover from adverse conditions such as emphysema, pneumonia, and various injuries and infections, states the report.
Thirty to forty pounds of flab could help fend off breast, kidney, pancreatic, prostate, and colon cancer. And an extra fifty pounds on the scale may improve eyesight, reverse baldness, cure the common cold, and reduce global warming.
In general, the report concludes, overweight people are happier, more successful in business, smarter, and friendlier.
The study was funded by a research grant from McDonald's, Burger King, Jack in the Box, Taco Bell, Domino's Pizza, Starbucks, Haagen Dazs, Sara Lee, and Krispy Kreme.
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We visited our daughter in Adelaide, Australia, last year (Sept.& Oct.). We diligently followed your advice re. jet lag and BarleyLife - even when we stopped over in Singapore did we go up to their roof garden with sunflowers to give our eyes the needed sunlight. And so when we landed in Perth we suffered NO ill effects!
Thank you so much for all the wonderful info.
With kind wishes and regards
Jo
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Dear Mary-Ann
This comes to thank you for the privilege of taking part in your 100 days to health programme.
I have had your book "The Natural Way", and 2 of your recipe books for a number of years but could never quite manage the suggested way of eating.
I remember making a smoothie once and the bin was full of peels and there was so much washing up to do, I felt quite exhausted and couldn't imagine doing this every day. I visualised being rich and having someone prepare my meals for me.
I could eat like that anyway, but the preparation was more than I could handle.
I had also taken BarleyLife and flax oil erratically and once I missed a few weeks of taking the oil and took a few tablespoons to try and make up for it and felt so sick, I never want to do that again!
Also, I found it very difficult to get into any routine form of exercise. I'd start with a determined bang and then other priorities would take the spot light and somehow I just couldn't stay motivated.
So, when I started on your programme it was very helpful to have a step by step guideline. First thing, do this, then do that, etc.
The first morning we had to do 5 minutes of exercise I was in my PJ's and thought about skipping but didn't have a rope (thank goodness). So I started marching on the spot (like a soldier) for 5 minutes. I was quite out of breath but pleased with myself. It felt good.
After marching for a number of mornings I remembered an old book I used to have with physical exercises designed for the Royal Canadian Air Force for men and women. 11 mins for men and 12 minutes for women. You start at level one and progress slowly. The pages are yellowish but was just what I needed.
The smoothies are so delicious and now that I am in a routine it doesn't take that long to prepare and I actually enjoy preparing them. There's usually enough for two tall glasses and I keep one in the fridge which my daughter enjoys when she gets home from school.
My husband and daughter enjoy the salads before meals and I usually make 3 separate side plates for each of us because we don't always eat together.
All in all, I have implemented some changes to our diet with the emphasis being on more fresh fruit and vegetables on a much more regular basis than before.
To me, this is a major breakthrough. I struggle with not combining protein and starch but often leave potato or rice out and rather add more veggies or salad and gradually my some of my old recipes are being revamped.
The other breakthrough is exercising. I feel so much fitter, relaxed and happy.
Mary-Ann, thank you so much for your encouragement and guidance. I appreciate your holistic and caring approach and all the time and effort that you have put into this plan.
Receiving an e-mail every day was a wonderful way of connecting with you and being encouraged.
You're an angel.
With love and best wishes
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Dear Mary-Ann
One of the things which I delighted to find in THE NATURAL WAY when I read it for the first time a year ago, was the leniency you show in living a healthy lifestyle. For years I've been put off healthy living because of people who follow it in such a rigid way, there's no room left for fun and life becomes terribly boring. I never knew what to do for special days like birthdays and Christmas if one has to follow such a strict regime. (We tried it and quit.)
When I read your book I felt like I discovered the "how to" of the above-mentioned question, and our family is happily living a healthier lifestyle now. I find your newsletters interesting and educational, since I like to read up on health and wellness.
We enjoy your Famous Raisins :-) I absolutely agree it should be fun and easy to be healthy! Keep up the good work...
Kind regards
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Migraines & Headaches
What is a headache?
Headache is defined as pain in the head that is located above the eyes or the ears, behind the head (occipital), or in the back of the upper neck. Headache, like chest pain or dizziness has many causes.
What are the causes of headaches?
There are two types of headaches: primary headaches and secondary headaches. Primary headaches are not associated with (caused by) other diseases. Examples of primary headaches are migraine headaches, tension headaches, and cluster headaches. Secondary headaches are caused by associated disease. The associated disease may be minor or serious and life threatening.
How common are primary and secondary headaches?
Tension headaches are the most common type of primary headache; as many as 90% of adults have had or will have tension headaches. Tension headaches are more common among women than men.
Migraine headaches are the second most common type of primary headache. An estimated 28 million people in the United States (about 12% of the population) will experience migraine headaches. Migraine headaches affect children as well as adults. Before puberty, boys and girls are affected equally by migraine headaches, but after puberty, more women than men are affected. An estimated 6% of men and up to 18% of women will experience a migraine headache.
In the United States, migraine headaches often go undiagnosed or are misdiagnosed as tension or sinus headaches. As a result, many migraine sufferers do not receive effective treatment.
Cluster headaches are a rare type primary headache, affecting 0.1% of the population. An estimated 85% of cluster headache sufferers are men. The average age of cluster headache sufferers is 28-30 years, although headaches may begin in childhood.
Secondary headaches have diverse causes, ranging from serious and life threatening conditions such as brain tumors, strokes, meningitis, and subarachnoid hemorrhages to less serious but common conditions such as withdrawal from caffeine and discontinuation of analgesics.
Many people suffer from "mixed" headache disorders in which tension headaches or secondary headaches trigger migraine headaches.
What diseases cause secondary headaches?
Important examples of diseases causing secondary headaches include:
- Tumors in the brain, including tumors that have spread (metastasized) to the brain from another organ such as the lung or breast
- Subdural hematomas, which are collections of blood underneath the dura (the covering of the brain) due to bleeding from ruptured veins. Subdural hematomas typically occur in elderly individuals after a fall or other trauma to the head. Sometimes the fall can precede the visit to the doctor by weeks, and the elderly patients may not even recall the fall. Symptoms of subdural hematomas include chronic headaches, change in personality, and weakness of the extremities.
- Epidural hematomas, which are rapid collections of blood due to the rupture of arteries that run on the inner surface of the skull. Epidural hematomas usually are the result of skull fractures. The typical story is a head injury that causes a concussion with loss of consciousness and a skull fracture. The return of consciousness is followed by the sudden development ofcoma caused by an expanding hematoma.
- Infections such as meningitis caused by bacteria (meningococcus and pneumococcus), tuberculosis, Lyme Disease or cryptococcus
- Strokes due either to blood clots within the arteries of the brain or rupture of the blood vessels in the brain
- Subarachnoid hemorrhages which are caused by bleeding into the space between the brain and its outer arachnoid lining. The most common source of subarachnoid hemorrhage is an aneurysm, a ballooning of the weakened wall of an artery inside the head.
- Sudden onset of severe high blood pressure. (Chronic mild to moderate high blood pressure is not a common cause of headache).
- Temporal arteritis, inflammation of the temporal artery which runs beneath the skin of the temple. Temporal arteritis occurs primarily in older people and may be associated with fatigue, body aches, and anemia. Without proper treatment, temporal arteritis may lead to blindness and strokes.
- Acute angle glaucoma with sudden elevation of pressures inside the eyes
- Infections of the sinus or sinusitis, ear (otitis), and teeth
- Hypothyroiditis, a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone
- Repeated carbon monoxide poisoning
- Medications such as indomethacin, estrogen, progestins, calcium channel blockers (commonly used for treating high blood pressure and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (commonly used to treat depression.
- Overuse of over-the-counter or prescription pain relievers. Overuse of pain relievers causes the pain relievers to become less effective. As the effect of the pain reliever wears off, headaches recur (rebound headache).
- Cardiac ischemia (lack of blood supply to the muscles of the heart caused by coronary artery disease). Although cardiac ischemia is best known as a cause of either heart attacks or angina, it also may cause a headache. The headache may occur with or without the accompanying chest pain of a heart attack or angina. As with angina, in some individuals the headache may occur with exertion and subside with rest.
Some of the causes of migraine & headaches can be;
Physiological causes
Low blood sugar – either from a lack of essential fatty acids, refined sugar, refined carbohydrates (like white bread), alcohol and caffeine (see endocrine system as this system controls blood sugar so any foods that affect the endocrine system could cause migraines)
Dehydration
This can be from lack of water or from a high salt diet or intake even from one meal.
Be sure to have a jug of water on your desk and travel with bottled water
Hormones
- - Especially when premenstrual; Lack of essential fats could cause this, estrogen overload, which can be from eating animal products or eating non organic animal products
Back and neck problems
See a good chiropractor
Foods
Gluten intolerance – what, oats, rye and barley grain contain this protein and it must be removed 100%, read labels and look for thickening agents or vegetable thickener
Cow’s milk and related products such as cheese and yoghurt – these can also cause sinus headaches
Eggs
Chocolate
Coffee or green tea
Tea or anything else containing caffeine
Additives
Preservatives and additives, nitrates and nitrites (in smoked foods)
Wine or any alcohol, even the kind formed in your digestive tract when food ferments from bad combining
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) also listed as ‘flavor enhancer’ or flavoring
Diet Soda and artificial sweeteners especially made from Aspartame are a major contributor of headaches
Natural Foods
Oranges
Nuts
Work place and home
Lack of Oxygen content
This can happen if you live in an air conditioned environment or if you do not have access t open windows in your home of office
Artificial lighting
Mould in the walls or furniture from dampness or older buildings
Solvents and glues used in carpeting and wood work
Synthetic materials especially carpets
Stress
Stress can be a huge cause and the number one way to deal with stress is prayer and then asking God to guide you in simplifying your life.
What can you do?
Remove the offending foods for at least 7 days
Open windows and doors even in colder weather, making sure you are warmly dressed
Keep plants indoors to give off oxygen during the day time, but do not keep them in the place you sleep as they give off carbon Dioxide at night.
Use full spectrum globes in your lighting and try and work in an area lit by natural light.
Take Ginkgo Biloba as it increase blood flow to the brain and may help. The best is one that is water soluble. The only one I know of and can recommend is Gingkosense from Aim.
Eat small meals often to stabilize your blood sugar making sure to include some natural protein at breakfast like raw nuts and or seeds. If you have an allergy to nuts you should do well with tahini or sunflower or pumpkin seeds.
Both BarleyLife and Aimega from Aim also help to stabilize blood sugar as BL contains a Vitamin E precursor or succinate that helps the Pituitary gland function more efficiently.
Aimega contains the essential fats needed for healthy hormonal function and stable blood sugar.
Glucochrome is a product made from plant extracts (Gymnema Silvestre and bitter melon) and is formulated specifically to help stabilize blood sugar.
Have a check up with your chiropractor; you may have a problem with your spine.
Quick checklist
- Dietary factors (irregular meal patterns, missing meals, eating sweets or starchy foods, too much caffeine)
- Sleep disturbances (irregular sleep patterns, too much or too little sleep)
- Emotional factors (excitement, anger, fear, anxiety, stress letdown)
- Environmental factors (weather changes, bright or glaring lights, loud noise, strong odors, mold)
- Alcohol (wine, champagne, beer, liquors)
- Food additives (MSG and nitrites that are found in pepperoni, luncheon meats, and hot dogs)
- Hormone cycles or changes (menstruation, oral contraceptives, estrogen replacement)
- Physical alignment out
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What's to eat?
Mexican Vegetable 'Tostado'
1 cup sliced green beans or frozen peas
1 cup Julienned carrots
1 cup cauliflower florets
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup of kidney beans (pre cooked or tinned)
1 cup butter beans (cooked or tinned)
½ cup pitted olives
3-4 diced avocado
1 red pepper, chopped
Italian Tomato puree and a little organic sour cream or olive oil
Mary-Ann's seasoning salt to taste.
Steam the green beans, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli lightly and transfer to a large bowl.
Add the beans, olives, dressing, avocado, red peppers and seasoning, and mix lightly.
Serve with corn chips or polenta bread, or wrapped in lettuce leaves or rolled in gluten free pancakes.
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What's inside?
In this age of financial instability and fear, we have found that true security is in our Creator, nothing more or less.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
Psalm 20:7
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