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May

2013

The Benefits of Diatomaceous Earth

by Elizabeth Renter

The Benefits of Diatomaceous Earth: What You Need to Know

DE is rich in minerals with about 85% amorphous silica and 20 trace minerals, according to NaturalNews. The silica is reportedly responsible for reducing the signs of aging, even reducing the appearance of age spots and improving skin elasticity.
You can use diatomaceous earth internally by mixing a few tablespoons in liquid or with your food. It won’t dissolve completely, so putting it in a thick juice or smoothie might be preferable. Taken daily, DE may help with:

Reducing inflammation and pain in joints
Improving skin and hair texture
Lowering blood pressure
Lowering “bad” cholesterol
Removing heavy metals like mercury, lead, and cadmium from the body
Detoxifying the digestive system of parasites

When you first begin using DE, you may experience constipation, so be sure to drink plenty of water throughout the day. Also, make sure you are using a high quality food grade diatomaceous earth product, as there are also many industrial grade versions available.

And,it can help alkalanize your blood, it makes a great detox and the high silica content can help build strong bones and keep wrinkles at bay. It’s really cheap too, you can get 5 pounds of it for less than 20 bucks!

Formation

Diatomite forms by the accumulation of the amorphous silica (opal, SiO2·nH2O) remains of dead diatoms (microscopic single-celled algae) in lacustrine or marine sediments. The fossil remains consist of a pair of symmetrical shells or frustules.

Discovery

In 1836 or 1837, the peasant and goods waggoner, Peter Kasten, discovered diatomaceous earth (German: kieselgur) when sinking a well on the northern slopes of the Haußelberg hill, in the Lüneburg Heath in north Germany. Initially, it was thought that limestone had been found, which could be used as fertilizer. Alfred Nobel used the properties of diatomaceous earth in the manufacture of dynamite. The Celle engineer, Wilhelm Berkefeld, recognized its ability to filter, and developed tubular filters (known as filter candles) fired from diatomaceous earth. During the cholera epidemic in Hamburg in 1892, these Berkefeld filters were used successfully.

Sources:
Natural Society
Natural News
Wikipedia

May

2013

Gray Hair and Vitiligo Reversed at the Root

The depigmentation associated with gray hair and vitiligo have the same “root” cause. Oxidation, which can be though of as the toxic accumulation of free oxygen wastes, in this case in the form of hydrogen peroxide, (a by product of an activated immune system) building up in the skin and hair follicles.

From a recent Medical Xpress Article
Hair dye manufacturers are on notice: The cure for gray hair is coming. That’s right, the need to cover up one of the classic signs of aging with chemical pigments will be a thing of the past thanks to a team of European researchers.

Vulkahn at the German language Wikipedia via Wikimedia Commons

In a new research report published online in The FASEB Journal people who are going gray develop massive oxidative stress via accumulation of hydrogen peroxide in the hair follicle, which causes our hair to bleach itself from the inside out, and most importantly, the report shows that this massive accumulation of hydrogen peroxide can be remedied with a proprietary treatment developed by the researchers described as a topical, UVB-activated compound called PC-KUS (a modified pseudocatalase). What’s more, the study also shows that the same treatment works for the skin condition, vitiligo.

“To date, it is beyond any doubt that the sudden loss of the inherited skin and localized hair color can affect those individuals in many fundamental ways,” said Karin U. Schallreuter, M.D., study author from the Institute for Pigmentary Disorders in association with E.M. Arndt University of Greifswald, Germany and the Centre for Skin Sciences, School of Life Sciences at the University of Bradford, United Kingdom. “The improvement of quality of life after total and even partial successful repigmentation has been documented.”

Best bet for prevention and reduction of depigmentation symptoms is eliminating oxidative stressors (e.g. problem foods, digestive issues, dysbiosis, dysglycemia) and a generous vegetable anti oxidants and supplements. Supporting glutathione production is probably a good idea. You can use precursors to glutathione (which deactives hydrogen peroxide) like glutamine, glycine and NAC as well as supportive supplements like vitamin C and alpha lipoic acid, selenium and sulfur as MSM.

May

2013

Sunshine Could Benefit Health and Prolong Life

Get out in the sunshine, it’ll lower your blood pressure, prevent heart disease and it may even help you live longer. And not just because of Vitamin D. Sunlight stimulates the production of nitric oxide, a chemical that relaxes blood vessels and lowers blood pressure.

May 7, 2013 in Health News at MedicalXpress.com
Researchers have shown that when our skin is exposed to the sun’s rays, a compound is released in our blood vessels that helps lower blood pressure.

The findings suggest that exposure to sunlight improves health overall, because the benefits of reducing blood pressure far outweigh the risk of developing skin cancer.

The study has been carried out by the University of Edinburgh.

Heart disease and stroke linked to high blood pressure are estimated to lead to around 80 times more deaths than those from skin cancer, in the UK.

Production of this pressure-reducing compound – called nitric oxide – is separate from the body’s manufacture of vitamin D, which rises after exposure to sunshine. Until now it had been thought to solely explain the sun’s benefit to human health, the scientists add.

The landmark proof-of-principle study will be presented on Friday in Edinburgh at the world’s largest gathering of skin experts.

May

2013

Restless Legs Syndrome, Insomnia and Brain Chemistry

A story today May 7, 2013 in Neuroscience News at MedicalXpress.com reads:
Johns Hopkins researchers believe they may have discovered an explanation for the sleepless nights associated with restless legs syndrome (RLS), a symptom that persists even when the disruptive, overwhelming nocturnal urge to move the legs is treated successfully with medication.

Neurologists have long believed RLS is related to a dysfunction in the way the brain uses the neurotransmitter dopamine, a chemical used by brain cells to communicate and produce smooth, purposeful muscle activity and movement. Disruption of these neurochemical signals, characteristic of Parkinson’s disease, frequently results in involuntary movements. Drugs that increase dopamine levels are mainstay treatments for RLS, but studies have shown they don’t significantly improve sleep. An estimated 5 percent of the U.S. population has RLS.
[Read more: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-restless-legs-syndrome-insomnia-brain.html]

Thank God, new drugs for Restless Leg Syndrome, so glad drug companies care. But if you’d rather not have to deal with the inevitable side effects and toxicities of taking a drug for what is in large part a nutritional issue, make sure you’re getting generous daily divided doses of the B-complex and electrolytes. It would be a good idea to sip on the Beyond Tangy Tangerine too. And a daily dose of 1000-2000 mg of magnesium glycinate and a couple of grams of calcium aspartate wouldn’t hurt either.

Below, sleep pattern of a Restless Legs Syndrome patient (red) vs.
a healthy sleep pattern (blue). Y-Axis shows “Stage of Sleep.“

By RLS-Schlafmuster.png: Markus Mueller derivative work via Wikimedia Commons

May

2013

European Commission to Criminalize Seeds & Plants Not Registered

by Mike Adams | NaturalNews.com

A new law proposed by the European Commission would make it illegal to “grow, reproduce or trade” any vegetable seeds that have not been “tested, approved and accepted” by a new EU bureaucracy named the “EU Plant Variety Agency.”

It’s called the Plant Reproductive Material Law, and it attempts to put the government in charge of virtually all plants and seeds. Home gardeners who grow their own plants from non-regulated seeds would be considered criminals under this law.

The draft text of the law, which has already been amended several times due to a huge backlash from gardeners, is viewable here.

“This law will immediately stop the professional development of vegetable varieties for home gardeners, organic growers, and small-scale market farmers,” said Ben Gabel, vegetable breeder and director of The Real Seed Catalogue. “Home gardeners have really different needs – for example they grow by hand, not machine, and can’t or don’t want to use such powerful chemical sprays. There’s no way to register the varieties suitable for home use as they don’t meet the strict criteria of the Plant Variety Agency, which is only concerned about approving the sort of seed used by industrial farmers.”

Virtually all plants, vegetable seeds and gardeners to eventually be registered by government

All governments are, of course, infatuated with the idea of registering everybody and everything. Under Title IV of the proposed EU law:

Title IV Registration of varieties in national and Union registers
The varieties, in order to be made available on the market throughout the Union, shall be included in a national register or in the Union register via direct application procedure to the CVPO.