Please take this for what it is. A concerned and caring person hoping, by sharing, to help another. Nothing more, nothing less.
I have to be honest. I have been feeling really lousy for a while. And, of course, I have no health insurance. Vague symptoms that I know could cost $thousands in tests which could reveal NOTHING.
Then, yesterday that Spirit Who Prompts Us, whispered “Go to the Health Food Store.” So I did. And remember that old adage “When you need a teacher, a teacher will appear”. Well she did. My teacher at the health food store yesterday was a woman with a story I think we will all benefit from hearing. Two products that can be life saving, one product that can make us feel better and lose weight, and one product to supplement our lousy diets of vitamin/mineral deficient foods.
All for under $100 for up to a years supply. That's affordable!
I believe these products need to be in our health arsenal just in case an uglier version of the Swine pandemic or MRSA or Lyme shows up. Also, one is helping Lyme patients, one is curing MRSA, and one is an easy fix for thyroid dysfunction which can affect our metabolism. For more:
The following four health products have proven safe when taken according to directions.
They are an iodine supplement, Manuka honey, GSE Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE), and More Than a Multiple (brand name).
Manuka honey has proven to kill MRSA infections in hospitals. $25.00 25UMF Strength
Iodine supports the thyroid, which it has been proven that 13,000,000 Americans suffer from a disfunctioning thyroid that kicks in a multitude of health issues. $15.95 for 375 days worth.
And Grapefruit Seed Extract kills just about everything inside and outside our bodies. It is so broad spectrum that it makes little sense NOT to take it for only $10.49 for 200 days worth, if used as a daily pathogen/parasite preventative dose.
More Than a Multiple (brand name). I think any/all nutrients are in this dense multi-vitamin, mineral, phyto nutrient, omega, amino acid rich product. Do check the label for food and bee allergies, etc. Not totally cheap at $38.48 for 120 tabs; however, if eating a fully balanced diet isn’t a possibility or preference, this is a great product.
If you would like more info on these items, here is the research I found. I will let you know in a month or so if my health improves. Although, and this is probably just a placebo effect, I did feel better this morning. I opened and took these at the Cafe in the Health Food Store while munching on a salmon/brown rice bowl. I felt that desperate to feel better asap!
THYROID
A poorly functioning thyroid causes a whole bunch of problems, is easily overlooked by doctors, isn’t always properly represented by tests (there are about 9 tests to see the whole picture), and the most common, hypothyroid could just be the result of not enough iodine for your body.
Endocrinologists Say TSH Normal Range is Now 0.3 to 3
New Guidelines Say Millions More Are at Thyroid Risk
AACE estimates that the new guidelines actually double the number of people who have abnormal thyroid function, bringing the total to as many as 27 million, up from 13 million thought to have the condition under the old guidelines. These new estimates would make thyroid disease the most common endocrine disorder in North America, far outpacing diabetes.
http://thyroid.about.com/...
HYPOTHYROIDISM - A CONTRIBUTOR TO OBESITY
Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the body lacks sufficient thyroid hormone. Since the main purpose of thyroid hormone is to "run the body's metabolism," it is understandable that people with this condition will have symptoms associated with a slow metabolism. Over five million Americans have this common medical condition. In fact, as many as 10% of women may have some degree of thyroid hormone deficiency. Hypothyroidism is more common than you would believe, and millions of people are currently hypothyroid and don't know it. For an overview of how thyroid hormone is produced and how its production is regulated, check out our thyroid hormone production page.
http://www.endocrineweb.com/...
It seems that hypothyroidism, underactive thyroid, is more common than hyperthyroidism or overactive thyroid.
Here are some of the symptoms of hypothyroidism. Also, some believe if you take your body temperature immediately when you awake in the morning and still in bed, that a low body temperature consistently over time can also indicate hypothyroidism. I guess this is debatable; however, mine is consistently 96.8. The usual bass ackwardness that has been this life’s challenge (snark).
Symptoms of Hypothyroidism
Fatigue
Weakness
Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight
Coarse, dry hair
Dry, rough pale skin
Hair loss
Cold intolerance (you can't tolerate cold temperatures like those around you)
Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches
Constipation
Depression
Irritability
Memory loss
Abnormal menstrual cycles
Decreased libido
With few exceptions, I would wager most of us have many of these symptoms, but I am open to being wrong.
Each individual patient may have any number of these symptoms, and they will vary with the severity of the thyroid hormone deficiency and the length of time the body has been deprived of the proper amount of hormone.
IODINE
This World Health Organization report is quite short and informative. It points out that iodine deficiency can cause interruptions in reproductive functions, impede children’s learning, and even cause mental retardation.
http://whqlibdoc.who.int/...
And, yes, millions will jump up and say it’s easy to get the iodine you need; however, if it is also as easy as taking one drop of the homeopathic Thyadine made by TriMedica a day, why not take it. There is no risk that I can find and the benefits are potentially huge.
Did you know that all that salt in packaged foods has NO iodine in it?
THE THYROID AND IODINE
This information really raised my alarm bells:
Pregnancy-related problems - Iodine deficiency is especially important in women who are pregnant or nursing their infants. Severe iodine deficiency in the mother has been associated with miscarriages, stillbirth, preterm delivery, and congenital abnormalities in their babies. Children of mothers with severe iodine deficiency during pregnancy can have mental retardation and problems with growth, hearing, and speech. In the most severe form, an underactive thyroid can result in cretinism (a syndrome characterized by permanent brain damage, mental retardation, deaf mutism, spasticity, and short stature), though this is not seen in the United States. Congenital hypothyroidism due to iodine deficiency is the most common preventable cause of mental retardation in the world. Even mild iodine deficiency during pregnancy, which may be present in some women in the United States, may be associated with low intelligence in children.
http://www.thyroid.org/...
Isn't everyone alarmed by how common fertility problems and brain functions of children are in the United States. Could it be as simple as iodine deficiency? I am sure the debate this question will foster will be ardent; however, why not at least be open to the possiblity? And suggest the simple remedy?
The condition of hair and nails can indicate iodine deficiency as well. And iodine deficiency can contribute to hypothyroidism, which can also contribute to obesity, a huge problem in the US. If people aren’t cooking at home using iodized salt and/or eating iodine rich foods (which can be expensive with the exception of eggs), could insufficient iodine intake be a contributor to obesity? Are cows, chickens, and other food sources ingesting enough iodine to pass onto us in Fast Foods? Other questions to spark debate.
Hypothyroidism – As the body’s iodine levels fall, hypothyroidism may develop, since iodine is essential for making thyroid hormone. While this is uncommon in the United States, iodine deficiency is the most common cause of hypothyroidism worldwide (see Hypothyroidism brochure).
In the United States, iodine status has remained generally adequate in the last 2 decades although studies have shown that urinaryiodine levels dropped by about half between the early 1970s and the early 1990s.However, iodine deficiency is a major issue in other parts of the world, including parts of Europe, Africa and Asia.
http://www.thyroid.org/...
Again, each individual must responsibly determine if iodine supplementation is right for them. There is controversy regarding iodine intake and prescribed doses, especially for pregnant women.
MANUKA HONEY and MRSA Infections
Manuka honey is delicious. It's easy medicine to take, even for children. It doesn't sting when you put it on a wound either.
Honey's history in healing and infection control began around 3,000 B.C. in Egypt. Lately, however, researchers have revitalized the age-old remedy and turned to examining honey as a wound treatment.
In a four-week randomized, controlled trial, manuka honey was put to the test against hydrogel dressing as to their efficacy for desloughing chronic venous leg ulcers. As is often the case, the wounds were breeding grounds for various pathogens.
During the treatment, the honey not only worked as a desloughing agent but also wiped out MRSA from 70% of the wounds, whereas the hydrogel managed to work in just 16% of the cases. As an additional perk, manuka honey significantly reduced wound pain after one week.
http://rn.modernmedicine.com/...
HONEY HELPS HEALING SAY SCIENTISTS
06 September 2004
"This suggests that simple honey could be a realistic alternative to treatment with antibiotics and antiseptics," says Ana Henriques. "With the rise in hospital infections from resistant bacteria, we need more effective treatments quickly. Dressings impregnated with Manuka honey became available for prescription earlier this year, and for the first time we have shown that honey is effective against these tough biofilms as well as slowing isolated bacteria."
http://www.sgm.ac.uk/...
WHAT! Science has known about this since 2004! Why isn’t this information a well-known factor for patients in the USA? Are Manuka honey dressings available with prescriptions here, in America? If not, why not?
Well, I guess we don’t have to do there. We just need to know that Manuka honey seems to work.
I helped my friend who contracted a drug resistant infection when she had her appendix removed. When she called I literally rushed to her house with the Manuka and the infection healed. True story!
For more support of Manuka you can go here to read:
http://tahilla.typepad.com/...
It is also a healthy, tasty product to ingest and has a very long shelf life.
GRAPEFRUIT SEED EXTRACT (GSE) - A CURE ALL
Again, remembering that old adage “When you need a teacher, a teacher will appear”.
My teacher at the health food store yesterday was a woman with a story. Her son was going with his class to study abroad in a third world country. She sent him with a good supply of GSE and she said he was the only one in his class to avoid illness. She taught him how to wash food with GSE, to put it in the water he drank, and to take a daily dose for good measure
.
And according to research, most of us are hosting parasites which negatively affect our health:
Dr. Parish closes his investigation by stating that grapefruit seed extract "can be used as a prophylactic agent for people living in or traveling to infested areas." __How much grapefruit extract should I take for parasites?
http://www.nutriteam.com/...
In short, after our visit, I surmised that a daily intake of GSE (provided it doesn’t contraindicate with your meds or allergies), is a broad spectrum cure all. So why not take it. It's only $10.00! It is bitter, but a 1/2 teaspoon of Manuka mixed with with waterhelps the GSA go down easily. ALWAYS DILUTE GRAPEFRUIT SEED EXTRACT. Read directions thoroughly!
Grapefruit seed extract (GSE) is truly a broad-spectrum natural antibiotic, capable of killing a wide variety of pathogens. Highly active against protozoa, bacteria, yeast and some viruses, it has been used for quite some time in the treatment of parasitic infections. It is nontoxic, generally hypoallergenic and can be administered for up to several months, which may be required to eliminate stubborn infections.
http://www.diagnose-me.com/...
There are even hopeful signs that GSE can help combat Lyme disease:
Grapefruit seed extract has also been used for Lyme disease caused by ticks. It appears that grapefruit seed extract can disorganize the organism's cell wall and allow leakage of cellular contents, ultimately resulting in the death of the cell. We humans have no cell wall and thus our cells are not affected. Read more about lyme disease.
http://www.pureliquidgold.com/...
http://www.mdjunction.com/...
Consider that in June 2002, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine published research conducted by John Heggers, PhD, at the University of Texas Med School. This preliminary research confirmed that GSE was effective in inhibiting the growth of 67 different pathogens at dilutions that were non-toxic. Dr. Heggers plans further research on GSE as a wound dressing, as he is also affiliated with the Shriner’s Hospital Burn Center in Galveston, TX.
Or, the testing conducted by the U. of Georgia, in Athens, GA, to evaluate grapefruit seed extract in tests against E. Coli, Salmonella sps., and Staph aureus. Roger Wyatt, Ph.D., and Microbiologist for the University of Georgia, reported,
http://holistic-personal-development...
DISCLAIMER:
Please do not take anything I say as medical advice. I am not a doctor. I am not a trained medical professional, other than going to the trouble of studying on line to get a license as a pharmacy tech who ARE the dog kicked by patients and pharmacists! Also, as with any substance each individual must determine their food allergies and other meds they may be taking for contraindications. Your doctor and/or pharmacist would/should be consulted. Always check with both before taking a new supplement of any kind, and those above specifically. End of disclaimer.
With the Swine Pandemic around the corner, I had to share what I learned in my quest for curing whatever is ailing me. Could these small measures make a difference? I hope so. What I do know is that they probably can’t hurt.
Bon Appetit!
Oh yeah, just in case Kim John Eel trumps the Pandemic with a nuclear attack, it won't hurt to have a lot of iodine on hand as well.