U of L spinal cord center brings in $13.7 million in 2011, $64.1 million since 2000

The University of Louisville's spinal cord scientists attracted more than $13.7 million in outside funding in 2011 alone, and have brought in a total of $64.1 million since 2000.

"This is tangible evidence of our effort to become a nationally recognized premier metropolitan research university," said U of L President James Ramsey. "We have taken the investment that the state has made in our program, brought in the best researchers to work on spinal cord injury, and begun to help people."

One major success story was that of Rob Summers, who played college baseball in Oregon and was paralyzed below the chest after a car accident in 2006. "In May, a team from U of L and two California universities announced that they had used electrical stimulation and rehabilitation to help (him) stand and take steps with assistance — a breakthrough with implications for millions of paralyzed people around the world," reports Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal. (Read more)

Beauty Treatments During Pregnancy

It is a well-known fact that a pregnant woman's body undergoes many alterations, owing to hormonal changes. Are you pregnant, and have started noticing changes? Your skin has turned ever so sensitive, acne has suddenly become severe, there are more freckles on your face, your skin tone has darkened, your hair may have turned dry or frizzy. And finally, one good change - there seems to be a glow on your face! All these changes are normal during pregnancy, and go away after the baby arrives. As far as the safety of beauty treatments during pregnancy is concerned, not all procedures are believed to be safe, and some treatments should be avoided by the pregnant mother.

Various Beauty Treatments During Pregnancy

Body Massage
Massage has a soothing effect on the body and is totally safe for pregnant women. To be on the safer side, massage should be avoided during the first trimester of pregnancy; many massage centers don't offer massage services when a woman is in the first trimester of her pregnancy. On and all, special massage packs are available for pregnant women and you should consult a therapist to determine the best massage routine for you.

Tip: Massage can be a boon for pregnant women, as it actually relieves the body of unnecessary tension and prepares it for future stress and strain. So consult the best masseuse, discuss with him/her all your apprehensions before taking a massage.

Manicure and Pedicure
Some pregnant women experience that their nails grow faster than usual, this is observed because of the hormonal changes and other body changes, like increase in the mineral and vitamin concentration of the body. Manicure and pedicure treatments come in handy, and they are safe too. The chemicals in nail polish can cause some harm, especially formaldehyde and toluene in the nail polish. It is best if you use nail polish that contains the least amount of chemicals.

Tip: Make sure the room is well ventilated, as the fumes and chemicals can be harmful. Massaging the ankle and heel area should be avoided, as contractions can be triggered from these points.

Tanning
Women, no matter what age, whether pregnant or not, love tanning. But is tanning safe during pregnancy? The safety of tanning depends on what medium you are using. Tanning beds should be avoided during pregnancy, also tanning in the sun is something you should not prefer doing. This is because, exposing skin to UV rays can be unsafe for the already sensitive skin. Exposing the skin to UV rays increases the chances of developing chloasma, that is, sun blotches on the skin.

Tip: Any activity that considerably raises the temperature of the body should be avoided. This includes avoiding tanning beds, steam rooms, hot tubs, jacuzzis, and sauna treatments. A good remedy is using tanning lotions, but only if you are desperate for a tan. A good quality tan lotion is safe, and does no harm to the skin. On a final note, it is advisable to stay away from tanning during pregnancy.

Hair Treatments
So, what about the safety of hair treatments during pregnancy? Your hair might look dry and dull and you would be tempted to go treatments like curling, perming, dyeing or hair relaxing. A majority of these treatments involve the use of chemicals and harmful products to be avoided during pregnancy; chemicals can enter the blood stream through the scalp and create problems, in rare cases. Though the chemicals do not harm the baby or the mother, there is no guarantee on the safety of these hair procedures during pregnancy.

Tip: It is best not to take risks and avoid hair dyeing procedures. A better option is using hair coloring sprays, as they do not enter the skin and work on the surface. Any hair procedure that uses chemicals should be avoided during the first three months.

Botox
During pregnancy there are some procedures that should be avoided altogether. Though there is no concrete evidence to confirm the harmfulness of using botox during pregnancy, it is a general opinion that this procedure should be avoided during the entire nine months. In fact, any beauty procedure that uses syringes or injections should be avoided during pregnancy. It is due to the same reason, the injected matter enters the blood stream and can harm the baby.

Hair Removal Procedures
Electrolysis is a popular method that uses electric currents to remove hair from the body. There is no conclusive evidence to determine if electric currents are harmful for pregnant women and the fetus. So, it is advised that pregnant women should stay away from this procedure. If undertaken, certain precautions should be followed, like you should not carry out electrolysis on the bikini area, abdomen and breasts. The best option is to avoid electrolysis completely during the pregnancy. If you do wish to get rid of unwanted hair, you should consult a registered electrologist. Some pregnant women tend to be sensitive to waxing due to the pain accompanying it. Pregnant women should thus consult a doctor before waxing, as sometimes it may not suit the skin. Similar can be said for hair removal creams (that contain chemicals) and depilatories. Shaving off the hair is a good option for pregnant ladies.

Aromatherapy
The use of oils for body rejuvenation is called aromatherapy. Researchers have still not arrived on a general consensus to confirm the safety of use of certain oils during pregnancy. Some oils should be avoided during pregnancy. A pregnant woman can also develop sensitivity to some oils, and experience nausea on smelling some oils.

Tip: Aromatherapy is, as such, safe during pregnancy, and it all depends on the oils being used in the process. So, consult the best aromatherapist for a safe therapy during pregnancy.

So, these were some of the common beauty procedures during which you should be a little careful. Apart from these, your daily beauty regimen can be carried out as usual, with no harm coming from it. For complex beauty treatments, it would be best if you consulted an expert. Have a happy and safe pregnancy.

Beshear says hand over child abuse records; cabinet immediately files for more time

Gov. Steve Beshear ordered the release of "state records of children who have been killed or nearly killed as a result of abuse and neglect," reports Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader. (Photo by H-L's Pablo Alcala)

"Transparency will be the new rule," he said at a news conference Tuesday.

But, immediately after he spoke, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services filed a motion in Franklin Circuit Court asking for more time. "It also asked Judge Phillip Shepherd to sharply limit the information the cabinet must release and allow it to remove a significant amount of detail — restrictions that seem to contradict the governor's pledge of openness," reports Deborah Yetter of The Courier-Journal.

The two newspapers have been suing the cabinet to see the records, and Shepherd has twice ruled that the newspapers should be able to view them. "State law says that the child protection records are private with one clear exemption — in the deaths or near-deaths of children who have died as a result of abuse or neglect," Musgrave reports.

The cabinet argued releasing the documents would run counter to federal privacy laws and could lead to a loss in federal funding.

Attorney Jon Fleischaker, who represents the C-J, was not impressed by the governor's move. "It's a sham, in my judgment," he said.

In 2009, both newspapers sued the cabinet after being denied access to documents pertaining to Kayden Branham, a toddler who died after drinking drain cleaner that was reportedly to be used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.

The Todd County Standard likewise sued the cabinet when it refused to turn over documents pertaining to Amy Dye, a 9-year-old who was beaten to death by her adoptive brother. "This crime has drawn a lot of attention, has left this community dazed, confused and angry and searching for answers as to why this could have happened and why this happened," said Todd Circuit Court Judge Tyler Gill.

The motion filed by the cabinet Tuesday would exclude details of Amy's case, such as the circumstances of her adoption, the names of her siblings, information about foster care, and the termination of parents' rights and juvenile court records, "all of which were elements of Amy's case," Yetter reports.

Records that Shepherd ordered be released Nov. 7 showed evidence that state social service workers either ignored or dismissed repeated complaints by school officials that Amy was the victim of abuse. "The cabinet had initially denied it had any records, then refused to disclose them, citing confidentiality," Yetter reports.

At the news conference Tuesday, Beshear said he planned to propose legislation in 2012 to make it more clear as to what information the cabinet is subject to releasing.

To read more in The Courier-Journal, click here.

To read more in the Herald-Leader, click here.

Baptist-Trover hospital merger another example of trend

Though the proposed merger of Saint Joseph Health System, University Hospital and Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare has grabbed recent headlines, another merger is under way, with Baptist Healthcare System hoping to expand its reach to Western Kentucky with the acquisition of Trover Health System in Madisonville.

"There's a lot of territory . . . and certainly Trover fits a geographic hole that Baptist has in the western part of the state," said Andy Sears, vice president of planning and development for the Louisville-based Baptist system.

Trover is made up of a 390-bed regional medical center and several clinics, resulting in the company having seven locations in six counties, reports Patrick Howington for The Courier-Journal.

"With reimbursements from government health plans set to tighten under health-care reforms, experts say stand-alone hospitals will have more difficulty keeping up than larger systems, which can spread costs and have more purchasing power," Howington reports.

During the first nine months of 2011, there were 71 deals involving 132 hospitals and totaling $6.9 billion, according to Sanford Steever, editor of Health Care M&A Report. (Read more)

To read more about hospitals merging nationwide, click here.

Move to managed care involves a steep learning curve, patients and providers tell Noelle Hunter of The Morehead News

Patients and providers are "ascending a steep learning curve as they implement Medicaid managed care," reports Noelle Hunter in a two-part series in The Morehead News. Even for a proactive patient, the changeover has its challenges, and vulnerable populations are at risk of falling through the cracks, providers say. For health administrators, it means getting accustomed to three new systems, all of which require pre-authorization before treatment can begin.

The move to managed care, which took place Nov. 1, was intended to fill a $166 million shortfall in the Medicaid budget. Gov. Steve Beshear pushed hard for the switch and estimates it will save the state $1.3 billion in the next three years. Managed care will be handled by four organizations — Kentucky Spirit, CoventryCares, WellCare and Passport — across the state. Passport was already handling the Louisville region.

When the switch took place, Medicaid recipient Mary Jo Long discovered "45 percent of Medicaid recipients were automatically enrolled in Kentucky Spirit," Hunter reports. "None of the doctors (in Rowan County) take Kentucky Spirit," Long said. Discovering this, she waited on hold 30 minutes before being switched to CoventryCares and doesn't "anticipate any problems from here," she said.

While Long was able to navigate the challenge, many patients, particularly those with mental or behavioral health issues, might find it difficult, said Kimberly McClanahan, CEO of Pathways, Inc., a drug or alcohol rehabilitation center. "A lot of our patients are seriously mentally ill and they don't or cannot always pay attention to the information they are getting in the mail about the change," she said. "When they got their first letter about the changes, it was seven pages long. A lot of our consumers just threw it in the trash."

Health administrators are likewise dealing with lengthy forms from managed care organizations. "We've essentially gone from a one-page document to a sometimes 25-30 page document that has to be faxed to the MCOs before any care can be given," said G.R. "Sonny" Jones, chief financial officer at St. Claire Regional Medical Center.

The paper overload stems from the fact that Medicaid patients must be pre-authorized before they can receive any treatment, the likely key to savings in such a system. "I was talking to a case manager who said she spent an hour and 45 minutes on the telephone trying to obtain a pre-authorization," said Charlotte Walker, administrative director for clinical operations at St. Claire.

Moreover, the existing network of providers is not extensive enough, in part because the move to managed care happened in just 120 days, as per the state's directive, "when it usually takes a year or two to develop a satisfactory network," Jones said.

Behavioral health organizations and pharmacies are also experiencing challenges, with some patients not able to access their prescriptions "because each MCO has different prescription formularies," Hunter reports.

Whether the move will indeed save money remains to be seen, administrators say. "In the long run, the financial incentives are there to pay hospitals and providers less," Jones said. "It will make it more difficult for us."

An op-ed piece in the Lexington Herald-Leader indicated likewise. "There will now be four bureaucracies, with each sopping up Medicaid money to pay for the bureaucrats needed to keep track of everything," writes Edward L. Smith, a charter member of Northern Kentucky's Mental Health/Substance Abuse Regional Planning Council. "Where will the money for the bureaucrats come from? From services, of course." (Read more)

To read Part 1 of Noelle Hunter's series Mandatory Medicine, click here. For Part 2, click here.

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Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day; 1.2 million Americans are thought to be infected, but only 1 in 5 know it

Friday is World AIDS Day, an opportunity to learn the facts about the virus and show support for people living with it.

In the United States, there are 1.2 million people living with the HIV infection, which leads to AIDS. Of those who are infected with the virus in the U.S., only one in five know they have it, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report. Each year, about 50,000 Americans become infected. About 1,700 Kentuckians were diagnosed with HIV between Jan. 1, 2005 and Dec. 31, 2009; Kentucky ranks 19th in the country for the number of people who have the HIV infection.

Since the epidemic began, nearly 594,500 people have died with AIDS in the U.S. Between 1981 and 2007, more than 25 million people have died from the virus around the world.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke of the epidemic in a Nov. 8 address at the National Institutes of Health. "The fight against AIDS began three decades ago in June 1981. American scientists reported the first evidence of a mysterious new disease," she said. "Thirty years later, we ... know a great deal about the virus itself. We understand how it is spread, how it constantly mutates in the body, how it hides from the immune system. And we have turned this knowledge to our advantage."

Most at risk are gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men. The CDC estimates that though this population accounts for just 2 percent of the U.S. population, it accounted for 61 percent of all new HIV infections in 2009. But heterosexuals and people who inject drugs can also contract the disease. Heterosexuals account for 27 percent of new cases. Another 9 percent of people who contracted the virus did so by using injected drugs.

Blacks accounted for 44 percent of new HIV infections in 2009, though they only represent 14 percent of the U.S. population. In 2009, the rate of new infection was 6.5 times greater for black men than it was for white men.

People can now be tested for the infection using a saliva sample and have the results in just 15 to 20 minutes. To find an HIV/AIDS prevention and service provider by county, click here.

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A Fluoride-Free Pineal Gland is More Important than Ever

by Paul Fassa
There has been some controversy over the activity of adding synthetic fluoride to municipal water supplies and elsewhere, but not enough. The seriousness of this issue is more than what most realize. Fluoridation ranks with GMO's and tainted, forced vaccinations among the great crimes against humanity.

Understanding the Different Fluorides
There are two types of fluoride. Calcium Fluoride,which appears naturally in underground water supplies, is relatively benign. However, too much consumed daily can lead to bone or dental problems. Calcium is used to counter fluoride poisoning when it occurs. This redeeming factor indicates that the calcium in naturally formed calcium fluoride neutralizes much of fluoride's toxic effects.

On the other hand, the type of fluorides added to water supplies and other beverages and foods are waste products of the nuclear, aluminum, and now mostly the phosphate (fertilizer) industries. The EPA has classified these as toxins: fluorosilicate acid, sodium silicofluoride, and sodium fluoride.

For this article, the term Sodium Fluoride will include all three types. Sodium fluoride is used for rat poison and as a pesticide. According to a scientific study done several years ago,Comparative Toxicity of Fluorine Compounds, industrial waste sodium fluorides are 85 times more toxic than naturally occurring calcium fluoride.

Health Hazards of Sodium Fluoride
Generally, most fluoride entering the body is not easily eliminated. It tends to accumulate in the body's bones and teeth. Recently, it has been discovered to accumulate even more in the pineal gland, located in the middle of the brain.

This consequence of dental fluorosis, which seriously harms teeth, from daily fluoridation has been documented. Yet, the American Dental Association (AMA) continues beating a dead horse, promoting fluoride. There is a refusal to admit that instead of preventing tooth decay, fluoride causes even more dental harm.

The flood of sodium fluoride in water and food also creates other more serious health problems that are not widely publicized, even suppressed. Nevertheless, in addition to fluorosis, independent labs and reputable researchers have linked the following health issues with daily long term intake of sodium fluoride:

*Cancer
*Genetic DNA Damage
*Thyroid Disruption- affecting the complete endocrine system and leading to obesity
*Neurological- diminished IQ and inability to focus, lethargy and weariness.
*Alzheimer's Disease
*Melatonin Disruption - lowers immunity to cancer, accelerates aging, sleep disorders.
*Pineal Gland - calcification, which clogs this gland located in the middle of the brain.

How Did We Get Stuck With Stuff?
According to investigative journalist Christopher Bryson, author of The Fluoride Deception, getting large quantities of sodium fluoride into the water and food system was a ploy of public relations sponsored by the industries who were saddled with getting rid of the toxic materials.

Fluoride was necessary for the processing or enriching of uranium. The pro-fluoride propaganda was started during the Manhattan Project to create the first atom bombs in the 1940's. The spin was to convince workers and locals where the largest nuclear plant was located in Tennessee that fluoride was not only safe, it was good for kids' dental health.

In the early 1950's, the notorious spin master and father of advertising, Edward Bernays, continued the campaign for adding fluorides to water supplies as an experiment in engineering human consent! Then the AMA picked up on the dental issue and endorsed sodium fluoride's addition to water supplies. The few dissenting health studies and reports were usually squashed. Those dissenting voices were dismissed as quacks regardless of their credentials.

Approximately 2/3 of the USA water supply is laced with sodium fluoride. Sodium fluoride is a common pesticide. So that residue is in some foods. Some sodas, packaged orange juices, and even bottled drinking water for babies contain fluoride additives. Buyer beware. Read your labels carefully.

Avoiding Fluoridation
Keep in mind that boiling only increases the concentration of fluoride to water more. But removing fluoride from tap water is not so difficult. Reverse osmosis works well for removing fluorides. If you own your home and can spring for the bucks, you can have one installed under the sink in your kitchen. That makes things very convenient for your fluoride removal from tap water.

If this is not your situation, grab a couple of large jugs and fill them up from reverse osmosis machines in health food stores, supermarkets, and other locations. There are several such machines around, usually labeled as using reverse osmosis, and they usually take coins. So it is the most accessible and cheapest way to go if you can't install one where you live.

The Physiological Importance of the Pineal Gland
During the late 1990's in England, a scientist by the name of Jennifer Luke undertook the first study the effects of sodium fluoride on the pineal gland. She determined that the pineal gland, located in the middle of the brain, was a target for fluoride. The pineal gland simply absorbed more fluoride than any other physical matter in the body, even bones.

Because of the pineal gland's importance to the endocrine system, her conclusions were a breakthrough. Her study provided the missing link to a lot of physiological damage from sodium fluoride that had been hypothesized but not positively connected. A veritable root source for the chain reaction of blocked endocrine activity had been isolated.

Good news though. Frequent exposure to outdoor sunshine, 20 minutes or so at a time, will help stimulate a fluoride calcified pineal gland. Just make sure you take off your hat. This is more important than most realize, because the pineal gland affects so much other enzyme and endocrine activity, including melatonin production.

The 2012 Connection
First a bit about 2012, a date many have heard about. According to Carlos Barrios, anthropologist, historian, and investigator who was initiated as a Mayan ceremonial priest and spiritual guide, "Anthropologists visit the temple sites and read the inscriptions . . . but they do not read the signs correctly. . . . Other people write about prophecy in the name of the Maya. They say that the world will end in December 2012. The Mayan elders are angry with this. The world will not end. It will be transformed."

Carlos Barrios goes on to say that the transformation will be both spiritual and physical. The transition started in 1987. He says that we are in a spiritual transition from the rule of materialism, greed, and enmity to a new period of cooperation and peace - but not without difficulty. The current oligarchy is happy with what they have and don't want to give it up, and they are powerful. The Mayans claim that 2012 marks the end of the period of the fourth sun and the beginning of the fifth sun.

Carlos points out that adversarial revolution against the ruling class will not work. It is up to those who want this shift to connect with others of like mind and begin actively creating networks of real cooperation. The old will crumble. The new period will dawn with its growing pains, the severity of which depends on our ability to accept what is happening and go with the flow. This, he says, requires evolving to unconditional love, with an open and simple heart, forgiveness, and cooperation with less ego competition.

Connecting the Pineal Gland to This 2012 Matter
Well, what does all this have to do with the pineal gland? A lot. It is considered a portal to the inner or higher self by yogi masters, including Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi. Psychics consider it to be the link for inter dimensional experiences. It is associated with what many call the third eye or sixth chakra, which is a doorway to higher consciousness and bliss.

And it is vital for supporting intuition, an ability that will be needed during hard times. So it is necessary to evolve spiritually in order to help create better understanding, acceptance of our fellow humans, and easier group cooperation. Meditation is a part of this evolving. That and a little sunshine, good rest and food, can cause a calcified pineal gland to loosen up and allow that portal to open.

An unusual psychiatrist, professor of at University of New Mexico, and practicing Buddhist, Dr. Rick Strassman, MD, has written a book based on actual human studies of people under the psychedelic drug, DMT, titled DMT, The Spirit Molecule. He has discovered, among other things, that the pineal gland is a source of DMT production during birth and at death, and during near death or mystical experiences. This chemical approach corroborates the idea of the pineal gland as a portal, where the spirit passes through to other dimensions, either entering this physical realm or leaving it.

South American and Central American shamans use Ayahuasca, an herbal potion that stimulates DMT for psychological healing and spiritual initiation ceremonies. They have expanded their ceremonies with Ayahuasca by traveling throughout the world or opening their local facilities to non natives. They are doing this urgently in anticipation of 2012. Their desire is to jump start and expand individuals' consciousness so the transition of consciousness will be facilitated and incorporate as many as possible.

This information is meant to link the physical realm's pineal gland to higher states of awareness and other realms. The point is not to advocate or discourage psychedelic drug use, but to encourage health, meditation and spiritual growth by maintaining a fluoride free pineal gland. 2012 is approaching. Time to get in shape!

Sources:
Fluroide: Friend or Foe? By Devid De Santo (www.lewrockwell.com)

Germans and Russians Used Fluoride to Make Prisoners Stupid and Docile, by Devvy Kidd
(www.newswithviews.com)

Fluoride Accumulates in the Pineal Gland, by Sepp Hasslberger of Health Supreme (www.newmediaexplorer.org)

Transcribed interview of journalist Christopher Bryson: The Fluoride Deception: How a Nuclear Waste Byproduct Made Its Way Into the Nation's Drinking Water http://www.democracynow.org/2004/6/

Article by Ingrid Nairman highlighting Mayan lecture in Santa Fe, NM by Carlos Barrios
ingridnaiman.com/subscription_lists/email_index.html.

The Pineal Gland: Interface Between the Spiritual and Physical Planes?
(http://circleof13.blogspot.com)

The Fluoride Debate - (www.fluoridedebate.com)

About the author

Paul Fassa is dedicated to warning others about the current corruption of food and medicine and guiding others toward a direction for better health with no restrictions on health freedom. You can visit his blog at http://healthmaven.blogspot.com

Learn more: http://www.NaturalNews.com/026364_fluoride_pineal_gland_sodium.html...

Marijuana cuts lung cancer tumor growth in half, Harvard study shows

The active ingredient in marijuana cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread, say researchers at Harvard University who tested the chemical in both lab and mouse studies.

They say this is the first set of experiments to show that the compound, Delta-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), inhibits EGF-induced growth and migration in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expressing non-small cell lung cancer cell lines. Lung cancers that over-express EGFR are usually highly aggressive and resistant to chemotherapy.

THC that targets cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 is similar in function to endocannabinoids, which are cannabinoids that are naturally produced in the body and activate these receptors. The researchers suggest that THC or other designer agents that activate these receptors might be used in a targeted fashion to treat lung cancer.

SOURCE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070417193338.htm

Hundreds of herbal remedies now outlawed across Europe

Live in Europe? Get your herbs while they last. New rules put forth by the European Union (EU) will ban the sale of certain herbal remedies that have been used for centuries.


Traditional herbs such a St. John's Wort or Echinacea must now meet strict licensing guidelines in order to be sold, while other lesser-known herbs that haven't been "traditionally" used in the last 30 years won't even make the cut to reach consumer shelves. Only those products that have been "assessed" by the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will be available for purchase. The real kicker? Even approved products will only be recommended for minor ailments such as the common cold, which means that product labeling may no longer be allowed to convey the potent health benefits of widely-used herbal remedies.

According the the EU, the laws were put in place to protect consumers from the "damaging" effects of traditional herbal remedies. The subtext of that statement, of course, is that herbal remedies can sometimes have dangerous interactions when taken with prescription drugs. Used alone, however, herbal supplements supplements rarely pose a problem. With so many people taking prescription drugs, it's clear that the EU's move to ban herbal products is a monopolistic attack on the alternative health movement. While they can't admit the dangerous and deadly side effects of manufactured drugs, they can shift the blame to herbs.

Richard Woodfield, MHRA head of herbal medicine policy, claims that the new regulations empower the consumer: "The current signs are that the [herbal remedy] market will be lively and competitive. The key difference for consumers is that in the future they will be in the driving seat and able to make an informed choice when they wish to use these medicines."

Banning widely-used natural substances that may help cure or prevent illness promotes "informed" choices?

Paul Gimson, director of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in Wales, also claims that herbal remedies may not be safe because they have not been put through clinical trials in the same way drugs are tested. Isn't this a tad obvious, however, since drug companies would never even consider testing or promoting a natural herb as a medicinal cure? Clearly, herbal remedies are not widely used because doctors or health care professionals recommend them. They are used because people know they work.

The most disturbing part? These regulations point to a movement toward complete restriction of herbal products and the idea that pharmaceutical companies may someday have patents on herbal remedies. Consider a possible scenario: A woman who has been taking Chasteberry supplements to regulate a gynecological condition may now need a prescription for it. She goes to her doctor and, instead of giving her the herb, he recommends a drug. She can no longer buy Chasteberry supplements unless she scours the Internet in search of a reputable company that sells safe herbal products. As we all know, these companies can be hard to find.

Not only do these laws threaten the livelihood of nutritionists, herbalists and holistic healthcare providers across Europe, but they put consumers in a lose-lose situation: go without herbal remedies or run the risk of purchasing them online.

Vicky Perks, clinical nutritionist at The Health Diva and health food store, Beanfreaks, notes that the regulations are "poorly thought out" and are driven by money: "Licensing is just a way of generating extra money for the government. It costs €50,000 to license one product."

Herbal products still on shelves will be for sale until their expiration dates. Stock up while you can.

Source: NaturalNews

Start your day with water and lemon

Clean water and fresh squeezed lemon is one of the most well tested energy boosters around. Most people in America rely on caffeinated beverages like coffee to get aroused in the morning. These adrenal stimulants produce dirty energy in the form of blood sugar swings and oxidative stress. Water with lemon produces clean energy by hydrating and oxygenating the body to extraordinary energy and mental clarity.

After sleeping through the night the bodily tissues are dehydrated and need clean, pure water to filter out toxins and improve energy production in the cells. Most individuals turn to stimulants like coffee in the morning to give them a jump start. Unfortunately, coffee is a diuretic that depletes your body of water reserves and essential minerals and electrolytes like sodium, potassium, calcium & magnesium.

People feel energized by coffee due to the effects of caffeine on the adrenal glands. Coffee stimulates these organs to pump out instant energy hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine. These hormones stimulate the body to breakdown stored sugar and release it into the bloodstream. This process causes abnormal blood sugar that increases oxidative stress, free radical formation and overall tissue damage.

This is called dirty energy because it produces a rampant amount of damage to the body in order to activate energy formation. Clean energy produces cellular energy without an excessive load of oxidative stress.

Food as Bioelectrical Energy

The food and beverages we eat provide electrically charged molecules that initiate energy production in our body. An ion is part of a molecule that carries an electrical charge. Positively charged ions are called "cations," while negatively charged ions are called "anions."

Most of the food we put into our bodies comes in a cationic form, while our natural digestive processes (hydrochloric acid, digestive enzymes, saliva) are anionic. Lemon is one of the only anionic foods on the planet. This means that it carries a very strong negative charge and is extremely electrically active.

Fresh lemon helps oxygenate the body and maximizes enzyme function. Lemon is known to stimulate the liver's natural enzymes. This assists the liver in the process of dumping toxins like uric acid and of liquefying congested bile ducts.

Citric Acid Cleanses the System

Citric acid can also play a very important role in chelating out abnormal calcium stones. It has a unique ability to form soluble complexes with calcium that many have used to eliminate pancreatic stones and kidney stones. This mechanism can also help prevent calcium deposits from building up in the arteries that promote cardiovascular disease.

Clean water with lemon provides the body with hydration, anti-oxidants and electrolytes. Lemon is a rich source of the immune boosting vitamin C. It also has good quantities of electrolytes such as potassium, calcium and magnesium. Lemon is a tremendous source of citrus bioflavonoid anti-oxidant phytonutrients that have been given the label Vitamin P.

Vitamin P consists of the flavonoid glycosides hesperetin and naringenin among others. Studies have shown that vitamin P enhances the anti-oxidant capability of vitamin C. These bioflavonoids also improve capillary permeability and overall blood flow. This is especially important for oxygenating tissues and maintaining normal blood pressure. These anti-oxidants have also been shown to reduce swelling, venous backup and edema.

Upon rising take 1 full lemon and squeeze it into 16-32 oz of fresh clean water and drink. Be sure to eat out the membranous parts of the lemon where the majority of the pectin fiber and citrus bioflavonoids are located. Stevia can be added to form sugar-free lemonade. Apple cider vinegar and various herbs can be used to boost enzymatic and anti-oxidant potential.

Sources for this Article Include
http://www.quantumbalancing.com/new...
http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/le...
http://www.naturalnews.com/033649_c...

About the author:
Dr. David Jockers owns and operates Exodus Health Center in Kennesaw, Ga. He is a Maximized Living doctor. His expertise is in weight loss, customized nutrition & exercise, & structural corrective chiropractic care. For more information go to www.exodushc.com

To find a Maximized Living doctor near you go to www.maximizedliving.com

Source: www.naturalnews.com

Sick of Dieting? Try a New Healthy Approach to Loosing Weight the Healthy Way

So many people these days struggle with the fact that they are unable to realize the level of weight loss they are looking for. They have tried what they believe is everything possible and still they are not finding the results they know they need to be happy. Many times, this is due to the fact that they have been given such a barrage of advice, tips and tactics that it becomes quite hard to discern the true course to weight loss from the huge number of pie in the sky ideas that might work for one person but will not work for another person. 

This is not their fault, because as long as they maintain focus on their goal then they continue to deserve to achieve it. The trick is, finding the right solution that is going to work for the individual and in order to do that, we have got to take a look at the lowest common denominator.

First, it is helpful to know that in the western world there are very few people who are getting the level of something crucial you have probably heard about: Omega 3 fatty acid. Ironically enough, this is a crucial component in the body's proper function that affect a huge number of different areas of our health and therefore our body's ability to do all the things it is capable of doing to help us lose weight naturally. When we do not have our body fine tuned then we are not going to be able to move very efficiently. 

Omega Daily is a blend that can help reduce the pain of joint movement that so many of us experience today and by doing that one thing alone, the product will be able to expand our capacity for exercise. When we do this, along with the boost to our metabolism that Omega Daily provides us with, we raise our ability to burn calories. This is, in essence the very core of weight loss - building the right amount of muscle.

When we have a body that is functioning at a peak level, it is going to burn fat without us having to struggle. This is because the muscle mass we have built up will feed on the calories and fat in the foods we eat long before it has a chance to settle around our stomach, buttocks or other unsightly areas of the body. This is why most diets will quit working the moment any sort of interruption knocks us out of the dietary pattern. 

With a supplement such as Omega Daily, it is much easier to stay on track and get our weight where we want it to be without sacrificing our quality of life in the mean time and without the need for either a massive dietary shift or a huge increase in our exercise. It is no surprise that this Miracle from the Sea helps us flow better and be in better harmony with our own inner systems that nature provides us with. By leveraging this kind of natural remedy, we are going to see results that last.

For more information, go to OmegaDaily.com.

Why is Lyme Disease Not JUST a Tick-Borne Disease Any More?

If you have been diagnosed with fibromyalia, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson's disease, ALS, MS or have gone undiagnosed with a chronic affliction, please read this article. 

Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, MD, PhD is well known for his successful treatment of neurological illness and chronic pain with Integrative Medicine.  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/27/dr-dietrich-klinghardt-on-lyme-disease.aspx?e_cid=20110820_DNL_artTest_B1

Here, he shares his latest insights into Lyme disease, including its causes, confounding factors that can make proper diagnosis elusive, and how to get around them, along with his own treatment protocol.

By Dr. Mercola

Some experts feel that almost everyone has been exposed to Lyme disease and may have it in one way, shape or form.  Whether that's true or not is up for debate, but clearly there are those who have it and are severely disabled by it.  Dr. Klinghardt—who is one of my earliest mentors in natural health and always on the leading edge—has actually suffered with Lyme disease himself, and as a result, he's passionate about finding effective natural treatments for Lyme.

The Ongoing Discovery of Lyme Disease

It's now been fairly well-established that chronic infection is an underlying factor in most chronic illnesses. Diseases such as Parkinson, multiple sclerosis and chronic fatigue are all turning out to be expressions of chronic infections.

"Right at the center of that is the ongoing discovery of Lyme disease," Dr. Klinghardt says.

Lyme disease has recently received a new definition. It now refers to illnesses transferred by insects, as opposed to simply a tick-borne disease. Mosquitoes can carry Lyme disease and many other serious infections, as can spiders, fleas and mites.

"Today I take a very different approach to Lyme disease," Dr. Klinghardt says. "I look at it as nature mingling with our genes. They are trying to incorporate their genome into our genome… Most of the time it goes wrong but sometimes it goes well. This is like the point I want to make upfront; that I take this more evolutionary view of it.

… We know that Lyme spirochetes were around for a long time but something happened maybe 30-40 years ago, where the creatures became more aggressive, more penetrating, and more illness-producing than they were before. Some of us suspect it's a man-made element. Some of us suspect that the global warming may play a role in it.

I personally suspect that the exposure to electromagnetic fields in the home and the microwaves from cell phone radiation are driving the virulence of many of the microbes that are naturally in us, and makes them aggressive and illness producing. There is probably evidence for all sides of the discussion."

Why Lyme Disease is So Tough to Diagnose…

Lyme disease is notoriously difficult to diagnose using conventional tests. And there's great variation in the presentation of the disease as well, depending on where you contracted it, and whether or not you have any other coexisting infections. There is a group of seven or eight microbes that are the most common. The worst ones are Babesia microti and the different forms of Bartonella.

"Underneath that, there's often an infection with Mycoplasma. We still don't know if it's really transferred with the same bite or if the people had it all along and become symptomatic when the immune system is suppressed by the spirochetes," Dr. Klinghardt says.

Other than the co-infections, there is what I call the "opportunistic infections." The combined effect of the initial infection is an immune suppressive effect, and then the patient becomes vulnerable to all sorts of other things. The most common things people contract early on in the course if the illness are different forms of parasites, such as protozoa; Babesia itself being one of them.

There is Giardia, amoebas, Trichomonas, malaria, and different forms of infections that aren't labeled yet. There is a new one, called FL1953. Stephen Frye discovered that. It's a protozoan organism that's causing severe fatigue and illness in chronically ill people. It's almost always present in a patient with Lyme disease.

And then we find a lot of worms in people. They may be microscopic and they may be macroscopic. That means they may be visible in the stool or they may not be visible."

Common Presentations of Lyme Disease

The most simple presentation is the orthopedic forms of Lyme disease as they're typically more superficial, affecting the larger joints. Interestingly, Dr. Klinghardt injects ozone into the joint in these cases, which he claims is:

"100 percent effective if the Lyme disease or… whatever the microbe is, lives in the joint and is confined to the joint space. Simply putting ozone in the joint will kill the spirochetes, and often with one, sometimes two treatments, make the joint completely pain free. That's one form of the expression of Lyme."

When the microbes and the associated immune reactions are situated in the connective tissue, the infection presents as a "vague, dispersed pain," which oftentimes ends up being labeled as fibromyalgia by conventional doctors. The immunological expression of Lyme covers a wide variety of immune system disorders, typically with some aspect of autoimmunity.

"I did my thesis in 1976 on autoimmune diseases and how the autonomic nervous system interacts with the immune system," Dr. Klinghardt says. "We found then that the determining factor of the outcome of an autoimmune disease was the presence of microbes that were catastrophically unresponsive to antibiotics.

Any autoimmune disease, including rheumatoid arthritis, we suspect has an underlying level of Lyme disease that needs to be treated appropriately before the patient has a chance to recover from the illness."

The gastroenterological presentation, where you have constant stomach problems, constipation, recurring stomach ulcers and/or indigestion, is very common, especially with the Babesia infection. This is sometimes the direct outcome of pancreatitis or hepatitis, but it can also be due to parasites acquired after contracting Lyme disease. In these cases, aggressive treatment of the parasites typically resolves the problem.

"The most startling form of the expression of Lyme disease is a wide variety of neurological illnesses," Dr. Klinghardt says.
"That is what we specialize in… We see a lot of cases with multiple sclerosis (MS)… ALS… [and] everything in between: the chronic fatigued patients, the patient with vague, undistinguishable neurological symptoms, the feeling of buzzing in the head, buzzing on the skin, crawling under the skin…"

How to Diagnose Lyme Disease

Insomnia is one of the key symptoms in many cases of Lyme disease, along with neurological symptoms such as headaches and a wide variety of pain syndromes. But you cannot diagnose Lyme disease on symptoms alone, because they're so varied.
Testing is required, but even that is not a sure-shot…

Most commercial tests designed to detect chronic infections are based on measuring your immune reaction—the presence of antibodies—to the invading microbe. However, one of the primary cells that get infected with Lyme spirochetes are the white blood cells themselves, which is a bit of a game-changer… because if your white blood cells are infected, they lose the ability to produce antibodies.

Hence it is relatively common to get a negative test result…
Dr. Klinghardt refers to this as "the Lyme paradox," because in order to diagnose Lyme disease properly with one of the accepted commercial tests, you have to first treat the Lyme disease, in order for your white blood cells to be able to mount an appropriate immune response. Only then can a lab test be used to detect the presence of Lyme disease.

"An exception to that are the test based on direct microscopy, where you're not depending on the immune responses for the patient," he explains.

However, this too has its drawbacks and difficulties. For example, the FISH test for Babesia is done on blood. But Babesia lives in the central nervous system, joints, and connective tissue. It doesn't live in your blood stream, at least not in significant amounts, so it can easily be missed when looking at blood.

To get around the many testing conundrums surrounding Lyme, whenever he suspects Lyme, Dr. Klinghardt treats his patients for Lyme disease for at least six to eight weeks, followed by a Western blot test, which measures immune response. The treatment is initially based on the clinical symptoms presented, along with a form of muscle testing he developed, called autonomic response testing (ART), which incorporates both classical neurological testing and kinesiology.

"It's not related to the applied kinesiology system that's quite distinct," Dr. Klinghardt explains. "It... may look similar… [but] we're looking for very specific reflexes that are connected to very specific illnesses. We arrive at a tentative diagnosis through history taking, through looking at skin signs; palpating the tissues; testing the normal neurological reflexes; orthopedic tests, and then we add the muscle testing as an additional tool."

Tests and Lab Recommendations

Dr. Klinghardt exclusively uses the IGeneX Lab in Palo Alto for his blood tests, and Fry Labs in Arizona for direct microscopy testing.

"I don't have a financial investment in it, but it's the gold standard in our field," he says. "They use two different antigens. The commercial labs and hospitals and so forth, they use one antigen and are notorious in under-diagnosing Lyme disease. We recommend to rather not test it than get a false negative, which will sometimes lead the patient 20 years on the wrong track. With the other co-infections, the detection rate drops way down.
… We do the FISH test [for Borrelia] at IGeneX Lab. It's a direct microscopy test which has more false negatives than the western blot.

… The leading test for Bartonella that we use is Fry Labs in Arizona. Steven Fry, who does a wonderful direct microscopy test, often comes back positive with the diagnosis of hemobartonella. Hemo means simply blood – Bartonella in the blood. Remember, he's testing the blood where the Bartonella typically does not live. It lives in the nervous system. So if you find it in the blood in small amounts it generally is an indicator that there is a high amount in other tissues in the body."

An indirect test is the CD57 test. "CD-57" is a specific group of natural killer cells that are particularly damaged by the Lyme spirochetes. Therefore, if your numbers drop to a certain level, it is an indirect indicator that you may have Lyme disease, because the only known infection to suppress CD57 is that of Borrelia burgdorferi.
Normally, your CD57 value should be over 100. If it's lower than that, you're infected with Borrelia. If it's below 60, you probably have both Borrelia and Mycoplasma, and, most likely, some other co-infections.

Dr. Klinghardt's Treatment Approach

Dr. Klinghardt takes microwave radiation and electromagnetic fields very seriously, as it can have a profound impact on Lyme disease.

"One of my primary treatments for Lyme disease is to put people in protective clothing that shields them from incoming microwaves," he says. "We shield the bedside. We turn off the wireless internet at home. We put shielding paint on the houses. That has been a more successful strategy to treating Lyme disease and to get people neurologically well than any of the antibiotics or any of the antimicrobial compounds."

He's convinced that the increased virulence we're now seeing is related to the dramatic increase in electromagnetic fields and microwave radiation from cell phones, cell towers, and all manner of wireless technologies. Therefore, EMF and microwave radiation mitigation are part of the standard protocol, as any subsequent treatment of Lyme disease will not be as effective unless these external factors are addressed.
Below is a summarized outline of Dr. Klinghardt's treatment for Lyme disease. For more information and details, please listen to the interview in its entirety, or read through the transcript.

1. First, external factors that act upon the body 24/7 are evaluated.
   This includes electrosmog, EMF, microwave radiation from wireless technologies, and molds. To test for the presence of mold, he uses the ERMI score, which is a semi-quantitative assessment of how much molds is in your home. The score should not exceed 2. However, most of his patients score between 15 and 20. For more information on mold, Dr. Klinghardt recommends www.SurvivingMold.com.
2. Once external influencing factors have been determined, they're remediated and mitigated. (For mold remediation, please refer to this previous article.)
   
   To mitigate microwave radiation, Dr. Klinghardt recommends shielding your home with a graphite paint called Y Shield outside, and use special silver-coated cloth for your curtains. These measures will compromise your ability to receive cell phone calls, so depending on your situation, you may opt to shield just your bedroom, or shield your entire home and just use a landline.
   
   All cordless telephones are removed, and patients are instructed to turn off all the fuses at night, until they have recovered from Lyme disease.
3. Next, the emotional component of the disease is addressed using Energy Psychology tools, including psychokinesiology (PK) which is similar to the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), but more refined and advanced..
4. Dr. Klinghardt begins the treatment for Lyme disease by addressing parasites, followed by "the Klinghardt antimicrobial cocktail," which addresses the Lyme spirochetes, Babesia, and Bartonella. For more details and complete recipes to all his treatment cocktails, see www.KlinghardtAcademy.com or send an email to info@KlinghardtAcademy.com. Some of the ingredients in his formula include: wormwood (artemisinin)—which has been found to be extremely effective for malaria—combined with phospholipids; vitamin C, and specific herbs.
   
   Lastly, viruses are addressed using a tincture of Native American herbs called Viressence, by BioPure.
5. Additional lifestyle factors are also addressed, including diet and vitamin supplementation.

A Word on Antibiotics

Conventional Lyme treatment hinges on long-term use of antibiotics. While this treatment can indeed be effective, there are many reasons to opt for alternatives such as those detailed by Dr. Klinghardt, as antibiotics will disrupt your gut flora, thereby exposing you to a whole host of other pathologies.

More Information

In Dr. Klinghardt's experience, the International Lyme and Associated Disease Society (ILADS) is by far the best and most responsible group, so to learn more about Lyme disease, see www.ILADS.org.

"Depending on where you live in the U.S., consider the treatment that is offered to you through a Lyme literate physician. Most of them have been through the training at ILADS and I do recommend that," Dr. Klinghardt says.

"But there is a level beyond that, which I'm hoping I'm introducing here. If you just do antibiotics, okay, you just do antibiotics. But if you think more holistically and do the things that I recommend, then you no longer will need to resort to antibiotics because you cover your system on so many other fronts. And with that you're not only treating Lyme disease but you're preventing cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease—you're preventing pretty much all the other things that we didn't know were associated with Lyme.
So by treating the mold, by getting electrosmog under control, by treating the infections, by treating insulin resistance, we are preparing the patient for much happy and healthier longer life, and more productive life, which is of course what I'm hoping for…"

Again, Dr. Klinghardt provides free access to all his recipes on his web site, so to learn more about his treatment, please see www.KlinghardtAcademy.com.

Lady Gaga Shows A Lot at the International Emmy Awards

Lady Gaga showed a lot of leg as she made a surprise appearance at the International Emmy Awards in New York Monday night (Nov 21) where she presented “American Idol” boss Nigel Lythgoe with an award.

After her hosting duties, the “Marry the Night” singer, sporting a long black dress with a huge split exposing her entire leg and thigh (and her unicorn tattoo), posed for photos with Lythgoe in the Press Room.

Even though we don’t feel like Gaga’s choice of attire was the most appropriate for the International Emmys, this outfit is pretty tame compared to some of her usual get-ups.

Corbin City Commission enacts smoking ban

The Corbin City Commission passed an ordinance this week to ban smoking in all enclosed public areas and enclosed public buildings. The ordinance will also require smokers to remain at least 25 feet from building entrances. Areas subject to the ban include bingo parlors, restaurants except for outdoor seating, and motels and hotels, "which may not offer more than 20 percent of rooms as smoking," Dean Manning of The News Journal reported. "Once the ordinance is advertised, it will become law," Becky Kilian of The Times-Tribune reports.

Endocrine Secretions During Sungazing

This article examines how the pineal and other endocrine glands secrete other hormones during sungazing, which create not just a high, but greater energy, longevity and experiences of samadhi or higher consciousness.
by Wayne Purdin

In the last issue of The Sun Gazette, the article “Imbibe Sunshine for a Natural High” examined how sungazing and sunbathing cause the secretion of “feel good” hormones serotonin beta-endorphins, and dopamine. This article will examine how the pineal and other endocrine glands secrete other hormones during sungazing, which create not just a high, but greater energy, longevity and experiences of samadhi or higher consciousness.

There’s more to the pineal gland than what meets the eye, or, I should say, optic nerve. The effect of sunlight on the pineal is something that needs to be researched more. It is already one of the most researched glands of the body. Scientists know that bright light stimulates the production of seratonin and melatonin in the pineal, but there are other neurochemicals produced by the pineal that have more profound effects than just the mood, sleep, reproductive and body temperature effects of serotonin and melatonin.

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania, including Dr. George C. Brenard, a leading authority on the pineal gland, observed sun yogi HRM for 130 days in 2002. They found that his pineal exhibited growth and reactivation. The average size of the pineal is 6×6 mm, but in HRM’s case it was 8×11 mm.

Scientists refer to the pineal gland as the “atrophied third eye.” Indeed, it, along with the pituitary, is the third eye chakra or energy center, but they’re just dormant, not atrophied. According to Max Heindel’s Rosicrucian writings, in the distant past, man was in touch with the inner worlds through an activated pineal and pitutary gland. Considered the most powerful and highest source of ethereal energy available to humans, the third eye has always been important in initiating psychic powers (e.g. clairvoyance and seeing auras).

To activate the ‘third eye’ and perceive higher dimensions, the pineal and the pituitary must vibrate in unison, which is achieved through meditation or sungazing. When a correct relationship is established between the personality, operating through the pituitary, and the soul, operating through the pineal, a magnetic field is created. The pineal can generate its own magnetic field because it contains magnetite. This field can interact with the earth’s magnetic field. The solar wind at dawn, charging the earth’s magnetic field, stimulates the pineal gland. This is why the period between 4 and 6 am is the best time to meditate and why sunrise is the best time to sungaze. At these times, the pineal stimulates the pituary to secrete Human Growth Hormone. That’s why sungazers experience rapid nail and hair growth, restoration of hair color, and general rejuvenation. Cleopatra used to place a magnet on her forehead to stimulate the pituitary to restore her youth and good looks. She didn’t know she already had a magnet in her head. Also at dawn, the negative and positive forces interact and become strong enough to create a “light in the head” while meditating.

This light has been seen by mystics, initiates, prophets and shamans throughout the ages, and they refer to it as the experience of God or of a universal intelligence. Many cultures and mystics have induced this experience through the use of hallucinogenic substances, such as soma, mushrooms, Mescalin, and LSD. However, these experiences tend to be short-lived and require repeated usage to re-live the experience. Most mystics agree that natural methods, such as intense meditation, visualization, deep-breathing, chanting and sungazing combined with physical purification are the best way to induce third eye activation and can have life-transforming effects.

Drugs and certain yogic techniques can force the pineal open prematurely before the mind is ready for psychic powers, and this can lead to psychosis. Sungazing, if done correctly, gradually awakens the pineal, along with the pituitary so that the person is not shocked by experiences of higher consciousness, and these experiences are not colored by negative images in the mind.

The use of mantras and chanting can also gradually awaken the pineal because it sits above the mouth suspended in the third ventrical, a chamber filled with cerebrospinal fluid, what some esotericists have called “the grail.” Its location above the mouth in a fluid chamber makes the pineal gland quite uniquely positioned to respond to sonic vibrations.

Manly P. Hall, in The Opening of the Third Eye stated that the pineal gland “vibrating at a very high rate of speed, is the actual cause of true spiritual illumination.” The pineal governs energy level. Thus, the more it is stimulated, the higher a person’s energy level. Monks at a monastery in France were told by a new abbot to stop chanting. The found that they no longer were able to get up before dawn to work in the fields after only a few hours of sleep. When chanting was restored, so was their energy. You can find chanting and singing practices in many cultures that activate the third eye. Take, for example, this quote from The Dialogues of Kabir, “In the center between the two eyes is the seat of eternal music, the music of the spheres. One who practices this sound principle gains entry into this kingdom.” And a more recent teaching from Sri Chinmoy states that “There are quite a few mantras that also help in opening the third eye. The Gayatri Mantra, for example, helps in opening the third eye, for it invokes the infinite knowledge, wisdom and light.” Sun yogis usually recite the Gayatri mantra while sungazing. The last line of this mantra can be translated as “May it [the sun] activate the brain.” Jonathan Goldman in Tantra of Sound wrote that “Sound can act like a psychoactive substance, altering and enhancing consciousness.” Perhaps this is because certain sounds can stimulate the production of psychoactive substances in the pineal.

Dr. Rick Strassman, who conducted research at the University of New Mexico from 1990 to 1995 on the effects of the psychoactive drug Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), suggested that the pineal gland is involved in DMT production, because the precursors and enzymes necessary for its formation are quite high in the pineal. He says DMT may be released from the pineal during dreams, near-death, death, birth, and during meditation and mystical experiences. Near death experiences are identical to DMT trips. HRM says that at the moment of death, the pineal gland collapses, releasing all it’s peptide contents. I propose that during sungazing, meditation, or chanting, the pineal secretes not only DMT, but other peptides as well that have psychoactive effects. The mixture of these secretions has been called various names: nectar of the gods, ambrosia, the living water, and amrita. It is said that to experience amrita is to be bestowed with immortality, that is, to be freed from the cycle of birth and death…hence liberated. The term Amrita is Sanskrit for “elixir of immortality,” it literally means “deathlessness”. This has obvious parallels to “ambrosia” the name of the classical Greek “food of the gods” which means “no death.”

During sungazing or in deep meditation, this nectar is produced, fills the grail chamber and drips down the back of the throat. David must have experienced this when he wrote in Psalm 23:5 “thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” Related phenomena are an intensely sweet taste and the brilliant inner light. Its taste is described as nectar, honey, gold dust, euphoric, ecstatic, intoxicating and gives the feeling of being imbued with holiness. People report that it usually is secreted while practicing the Khedari Mudra (tongue upward on palate).

The following is the account of an initial amrita experience by a sungazer, Lillie, who had been sungazing up to 23 minutes: “I have had an awesome experience 10 or 12 times that I have not yet read about. This will happen most often in the morning. I will get this taste in my mouth that will last anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours. It is the most wonderful taste I have ever experienced! I can assure you that there is NOTHING to describe what may be similar, or at least nothing I have ever tasted. It is just so divine I find myself getting lost in it, and wanting it to never go away. I don’t know if there’s any connection, but I now have less anxiety, and much better eating habits. Also, I can strongly feel others’ emotions before they even look at me and I have begun to see colored auras on people and animals.”

After reading about amrita and continuing sungazing for three more months, this is Lillie’s update: “The amrita has not become more often, but it lasts longer (the longest being almost three hours now). My emotions during amrita are extreme joy and happiness. The taste is still so amazing it takes my breath away. The only way I can describe even a hint of the taste is like a milk-sugar-nutty, and that’s still not even close! If I’m not at work or in the public and can find a quiet place, the taste seems much stronger.

I have energy surges that seem pretty powerful. Not nervous energy, but like a blissful energy. Kind of like when I was a happy child. I believe it stems from sungazing and meditation. I meditate twice a day. While sungazing, I do a light meditation that consists of expressing gratitude for everything. At night, I meditate on colored balls of light before going to sleep. I do deep breathing before sungazing and walk barefoot for 15 minutes afterwards. When I eat just a little fruit or nothing in a day is when I usually notice the blissful energy. I truly am more loving and grateful since I started sungazing. I now get by on five hours of sleep instead of eight. I used to be a light smoker. My cravings went away at only 7 minutes of sungazing [after about two months]. I mean they completely went away. It’s like I never smoked, and I’m amazed that I ever did that. Being able to see auras is still pretty mild. I usually can see it on an angry person, and it’s kind of like pulsating shades of reds and oranges from the head and chest area. I can see other colors on occasion when I am paying close attention. (I also can see mostly blue and white on my dogs). As far as feeling and knowing other emotions, this has become very powerful, almost to the point of frightening me on occasions. Sometimes I think I can almost physically feel the emotions of others.”

I have not been blissed out to the extent that Lillie has, nor have I experienced any indescribable taste in my mouth. However, I have experienced sensations of bliss during and after sungazing, also feel more love and gratitude, and am more sensitive to the feelings of others. I suppose that amrita is being produced and collected in the grail during sungazing, but not to the extent that it overflows down the back of my throat. It is nonetheless, being transported through the gland ducts to the blood and lymph and throughout my body.

To get back to the biochemistry of amrita, DMT increases all pituitary homones and beta-endorphins, vasopressin, prolactin, Growth Hormone, and corticotrophrin (cortisol). It is possible that a DMT-induced surge of beta-endorphins creates the euphoria of an amrita experience. Serotonin receptors are activated by DMT and serotonin receptors regulate heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, pupil diameter. Apparently DMT is a small molecule not much larger than glucose and Strassman says that it is like brainfood that is rapidly transported across the blood brain barrier.

As far as the primary active ingredient of amrita goes, besides the opiates which give a profound analgesic effect, the “wakefulness” chemical is probably a phenethylamin similar to Mescaline (3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethyla-mine). Our bodies can convert the amino acid phenylalanine to tyrosine and phenethylamine. Mescaline made from the peyote cactus is one of the oldest psychedelics known to man and is used in spiritual ceremonies. Curiously it can produce a bright internal light. Tyrosine is also a precursor to the excitatory neurotransmitters norepinephrine and dopamine. The “wakefulness” chemical could also be a tryptamine that the body produces, perhaps similar to 5-MeO/DMT. The essential amino acid tryptophan is the precursor for tryptamine, which is slightly psychedelic. Tryptamine is a naturally occurring compound found in both the animal and plant kingdoms. Tryptamine and LSD have a common mode of action.

Research will probably find that many secretions from about five different organs including the pineal and pituitary may contribute to the mixture. Thus, the production of amrita may be a joint effort of the circumventricular organs secreting into the cerebro-spinal fluid of the grail. High levels of opiates, oxytocin, vasopressin, phenethylamine and tryptamine would render the individual into the extreme heart expanding unitive experience of Samadhi or Cosmic Consciousness.

http://sunlightenment.com/endocrine-secretions-during-sungazing/

4 Best Methods for Off-the-Grid Food Production

For most of us producing all of our own food is just a fantasy. It evokes visions of multiple acres of fertile land, long work days, and expensive machinery. However, none of these are necessary to achieve self-sufficient food production.

There are many gardening techniques that can produce an abundance of food for you and your family without requiring a lot of space, money or equipment. What each of these methods will require is your time, but not the dawn-to-dusk work hours associated with farming.

Rather, you will need time to study and practice these methods and other food preparation skills such as learning to mill your own wheat or corn flour to make breads, tortillas, pastas from scratch, or learning to can, pickle, or preserve food in all its forms.

Your diet should also be considered when planning for the best self-sufficient food production method. Do you need meat and dairy products? How much grains do you require? Yes, in order fully produce all of your food off-the-grid, you may have to make changes to your current diet if your resources are limited. Some may view these as dietary sacrifices, yet the folks that can claim a high level of food self-reliance will all claim their diet is far healthier than the average American.

With dedication and proper planning, everyone has the ability to survive the looming food crisis by producing their own food. None of the following methods should necessarily be considered by itself. Each offers unique techniques that can be mixed and matched for the best results. Their optimal application depends on calculations of your property size, climate zone, or your budget and time constraints.

Here are the 4 best food production methods for self-reliance:

1. Permaculture Gardening

Permaculture is where you design an entire edible habitat based on the natural capital of your setting. Then, place plants to methodically balance the soil, water, and pests. For instance, a nitrogen fixing plant may be planted next to a nitrogen hungry plant, which may sit next to an ornamental that deters predators, and so on. Permaculture gardening re-creates nature by using a large variety of plants while incorporating as many different animals as feasible like chickens, goats, ducks, and bees. You may also see features like vertical gardening and aquaculture ponds in permaculture designs depending on the space available. Utilizing this method is not expensive, but requires a lot of know-how and trial and error. Permaculture gardening can produce massive abundance. See the amazing video below for a real-world example of going off-the-grid in suburbia:

2. Aquaponics

Aquaponics is a interdependent hybrid system of aquaculture and hydroponic gardening. Vegetables and herbs grow in soil-less containers that are fed with waste water from the aquaculture pools. The plants feast on the bacteria from fish waste and return the water to the fish in a purified state. These systems can be as big or as small as you wish and can potentially produce large amounts of fish and vegetables. When done properly, very little if any additional fertilizer or chemicals are needed, just fish food. Aquaponics can also be applied indoors, either in a greenhouse setting or with grow lights. The video below is a good description of the benefits of Aquaponics.

3. Greenhouses

If you live in a region of the world with harsh winters, then a greenhouse will be essential for food self-sufficiency. Obviously, a greenhouse alone is not a strategy for full food production unless it is a large facility. Typically it can be viewed as a compliment to other gardening methods. In fact, the Dervaes family in the first video above uses a greenhouse to clone and start seedlings even though they live in Southern California. There are great designs and greenhouse starter kits available online. Below is a brief video on the benefits of greenhouse gardening:

4. Indoor Grow Rooms

Indoor growing is typically done with grow lights and hydroponics. Some people have sun-rooms in their homes which can basically act as a fancier greenhouse. However, for this section we'll focus on indoor hydroponics. This method of growing is certainly not the cheapest way to produce food, yet it is a steadfast method especially where weather and other elements can hinder food self-sufficiency. Indoor hydroponics requires grow lights, along with tubing, drainage, fertilizer and ventilation. However, even a small space can produce fantastic yields for leafy vegetables, herbs, tomatoes, sprouts, and much more. To make this method fully off the grid find the most energy efficient grow lights possible and think about getting a solar generator to offset the electric costs. Below is a video about indoor plant lighting: