The dangers of drinking too much cola

Did you hear Jim Carrey on television saying he controls his mental issues with supplements ?????
I have a friend who has been doing that for years. I love that it's being talked about now, can certainly help a lot of us that have issues and feel the chemicals making us worse.......then there is the news that says:

Drinking too much cola can increase the risk of a muscle problem called hypokalemia, experts warn.

In people with hypokalemia, a drop in blood potassium levels results in problems with vital muscle functions. Symptoms can range from mild weakness to serious paralysis, say Greek researchers who conducted a review of people who drank between two to nine liters of cola a day.

Two of the patients were pregnant women who were admitted to hospital with low potassium levels. One was a 21-year-old woman who drank up to three liters of cola a day and complained of fatigue, appetite loss and persistent vomiting. An electrocardiogram revealed she had a heart blockage, and blood tests showed she had low potassium levels, the researchers explained in a news release.

The second pregnant patient, who'd consumed up to seven liters of cola a day for 10 months, had low potassium levels and was suffering from increasing muscular weakness, the researchers noted.

Both patients made a rapid and full recovery after they stopped drinking cola and took oral or intravenous potassium. The case studies are described in the June issue of the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

"We are consuming more soft drinks than ever before, and a number of health issues have already been identified including tooth problems, bone demineralization and the development of metabolic syndrome and diabetes," and there's increasing evidence that excessive cola consumption leads to hypokalemia, Dr. Moses Elisaf, of the University of Ioannina, said in the news release.

Elisaf said the three most common ingredients in cola -- glucose, fructose and caffeine -- can contribute to hypokalemia.

"The individual role of each of these ingredients in the pathophysiology of cola-induced hypokalemia has not been determined and may vary in different patients," Elisaf said. "However, in most of the cases we looked at for our review, caffeine intoxication was thought to play the most important role. This has been borne out by case studies that focus on other products that contain high levels of caffeine but no glucose or fructose."

However, "caffeine-free cola products can also cause hypokalemia because the fructose they contain can cause diarrhea," Elisaf said.

Now my first reaction on reading this was why would anybody in their right mind want to drink 7 litres of cola a day until I realized I used to be one of those simple-minded people....amazing what we do to ourselves.....I wonder if that's why I shake?
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!

ARUGULA GOOD FOR GASTRIC ULCERS?

Great News ! When a favourite food of MINE is found to be great for something it makes me very happy.....

A salad herb – Rocket, better known as Arugula (Eruca Sativa) has depicted anti-ulcer properties, confirmed a Saudi Arabia-based research group.
The team noticed that Rocket extract depicts antisecretory, cytoprotective and anti-ulcer activities against experimentally-induced gastric lesions in rats.
The anti-ulcer properties are probably due to prostaglandin mediated activity and/or through antioxidant and anti-secretory properties.
Gastric ulcer is a common illness affecting millions worldwide, and despite several revolutionized treatments available for peptic ulcers and gastrointestinal disorder, there is no complete cure for the disease. Also, long-term use of drugs is believed to lead to several adverse affects. Hence, a more effective and safe anti-ulcer agent is the need of the hour.

Now to me arugula makes all salads taste better, so I love hearing this......I have found over the past 3 years that staying on track and eating a certain way is so difficult sometimes as the" wrong "food just calls my name and although I guess there is no proof medically that eating according to your blood type is better for you , I have found that eating this way makes me feel good, eating coconuts and tomatoes just doesn`t make me feel good like how a day of cho cho juice and raw ackee and greens does... That's because tomatoes and coconuts are not for my blood type (B).
When I have fruit all morning, eat according to my blood type for lunch and dinner preferably raw,a glass of raw almond milk sometime during the day, with my teas in between, my body just looks and works perfectly.Once I succumb to the call of what I KNOW I`m not supposed to eat, e.g cashew or sunflower seeds (whether I`m eating raw or not I get cravings and have to fight to get back on track).
I also think one of the major reasons I feel so bad when I go off track is because not only am I fairly clean (non-toxic) but because a lot of what I am eating I didn`t grow in my garden, or get from somebody who I knew grew it organically and I didn`t fix it myself or watch it being fixed, so I`m filling myself with GMO`S, which I told you about before....they are everywhere and in everything.
We need not wait for the results before taking the doctors advice to avoid Genetically Modified(GM) foods. People can stay away from anything with soy or corn derivatives, cottonseed and canola oil, and sugar from GM sugar beets—unless it says organic or “non-GMO.” There is a pocket Non-GMO Shopping Guide, co-produced by the Institute for Responsible Technology and the Center for Food Safety, which is available as a download, as well as in natural food stores and in many doctors’ offices,(IN THE USA)we need to do this for ourselves,our health depends on it!

Cooking with plant oils

Whenever I tell people not to cook with their Extra Virgin Olive Oil they always look at me like I came out of the ark..well if REAL AGE.COM tells you,you might listen right?
Here is the information - PLEASE NOTE I DON`T AGREE WITH WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT CANOLA OIL - AS I WROTE SOME TIME AGO IT IS NOT A HEALTHY OIL IN MY OPINION.... I`ll stay with the raw food people who say too much oil is not good for you.......read and decide for yourself!

Olive, canola, peanut, sesame, grapeseed . . . these five heart-smart plant oils have one terrific thing in common: They’re rich in monounsaturated and/or polyunsaturated fats, which have cholesterol-lowering benefits. But overheat them and those healthy perks may go up in smoke. Cooking at high enough temperatures to set off smoke means the oil’s breaking down, losing nutrients, and releasing potentially carcinogenic free radicals. And when oil hits its “smoking point,” food cooked in it tastes off. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t cook with these healthful oils. Just pick and choose what you use. Here’s how.

Extra-virgin olive: It’s so heat-sensitive that chefs usually recommend not cooking with it -- it’s too delicate and too expensive. Instead, cook with pure or virgin olive oil, which can take much higher heat. Use them to quickly saute vegetables in a hot pan or slowly roast them in the oven -- just spritz lightly with olive oil, and then roast at 325–350 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour or so, till fork-tender.

Canola: This is a superb cooking oil. It has the least saturated fat of any vegetable oil (about half that of olive and peanut oils); it’s virtually tasteless, so you can use it in anything; and its high smoking point (400 degrees Fahrenheit or more) makes it perfect for hot cooking, like stir-fries and sautes.

Peanut: It’s also known for a high smoking point (around 440 degrees Fahrenheit). And if you choose refined peanut oil, it too is nearly tasteless. On the other hand, if you want the yummy, peanuty flavor that makes Southeast Asian dishes so delicious, cook with refined oil, but add a few drops of roasted peanut oil just before serving.

Sesame: Refined light sesame oil has a high smoking point (about 450 degrees Fahrenheit), which makes it terrific for stir-fries, though it doesn’t add much flavor. For that, choose dark sesame oil but -- because its smoking point is a fairly low 350 degrees Fahrenheit -- reserve it for drizzling on Asian noodle dishes or miso soup.

Grapeseed: Although a tad pricier than most grocery-store plant oils, grapeseed oil’s neutral flavor won’t overwhelm even the most delicate fish or vegetables. Yet its relatively high smoking point (about 420 degrees Fahrenheit) means it’s fine for brushing on fish or vegetables before grilling. Grapeseed oil is also low in saturated fat and high in vitamin E.
The biggest benefit of keeping your cuisine well-oiled with these healthier options? Eating only healthful fat can make your RealAge 3.4 years younger."

This weekend when everybody is barbecuing try and stay healthy as I realize that doing the right thing in the wrong way hurts, or using the wrong things to try and stay healthy.......The more I learn the more I realize that I really didn`t have a chance with MY lifestyle...The fact is when you are grilling you are not to char the meat..... how did I like it? Charred of course!
THERE IS A REASON FOR EVERYTHING IN LIFE!

CANCER CURES

For those of you who have not read it , I have copied below an excellent commentary on the article entitled "Cancer is a fungus" written by Mark Wignall that had us all fascinated. The commentary is a great read on cancer cures ......AND IT COMES FROM A DOCTOR...mark you it's a doctor with cancer, but really explaining to us that there are so many types of cancer and some respond to chemo and some do not meanwhile shooting down the "cure" being promoted by Dr. Simoncini.
It just proves to me that we need to prevent instead of repent.....if you have a cancer that can be helped by chemo or radiation after surgery - choose the new chemo not the one that kills every cell in our body but the new ones that are less toxic and are made to target specific areas. You need to talk to your oncologist and if he/she doesn`t know find someone who knows, it's your body and you need to make sure your new cells grow back healthy.
The only way to do that is to change your lifestyle and cut out processed foods and GMO`S (genetically modified organism) out of your diet.
Sanjay Gupta was on American Morning discussing alternatives....looks like this lady running away with her son,over the court-ordered chemo has caused lots of debate.
Take the time to read Dr. Lofters commentary reproduced in full below:

I had intended not to respond publicly to the article by Mark Wignall on "Cancer is a fungus", but after reading Part 2 decided that I should do so to set the record straight and because I believe Mr Wignall has some influence with the average reader.

President Thabo Mbeki held very erroneous views on the cause of AIDS and this has led his country to enormous grief. Although not as influential as Mr Mbeki, Mr Wignall may have a similar effect on some readers as Mr Mbeki had in South Africa.

Let me first begin by stating categorically that a conspiracy does not exist between doctors and pharmaceutical companies to prevent "cures", like the one being promoted by Dr Simoncini, from being made available to patients as we are all interested in huge profits. In fact, let me tell you how you can obtain Dr Simoncini's miracle drug very easily. Look in your kitchen cabinet for baking soda and if you have a container, you are well on your way to curing cancer. Sodium bicarbonate is baking soda. It is not even a good treatment for Candida albicans. Doctors and their loved ones also get cancer and I would not have undergone a bone marrow transplantation for my cancer, if baking soda would have done the trick.

As both a recipient of, and the prescriber of chemotherapy, I will be the first to admit that chemotherapy is not something that one enters into lightly. Chemotherapy has side effects, some of which are serious and debilitating and can sometimes cause death. Every oncologist I know explains the risks and benefits of chemotherapy before it is administered and in all institutions I know of in Canada, a consent form stating that the risks and benefits have been explained, has to be signed by the patient prior to starting chemotherapy. Why then did I and countless others pursue this avenue? The simple answer is that it works.

Chemotherapy alone can cure metastatic (cancer that has spread) choriocarcinoma, and testicular cancer (remember Lance Armstrong). It can also cure a significant number of patients with other malignancies, including Hodgkin's Disease and childhood acute leukaemia. When given as an adjunct to surgery it can prevent many patients with breast and colon cancer from dying of their disease.

What will not cure cancer is baking soda, asparagus, sour sop seeds or drink, laetrile, pycnoginol and whatever the latest "natural" remedy being marketed by "natural healers" who have found the cure doctors and Big Pharma do not want you to know about. What I should also state is that not everyone has the same experience with chemotherapy, and many patients have asked me if it was doing them any good because they had no side effects. What is also not equally known is that we often advise patients not to have chemotherapy because the benefit is likely to be less than the risks. Chemotherapy cannot cure metastatic cancer (with a few exceptions), but can improve significantly the quality of life and duration of life for many patients. I am living proof.

Most people think of cancer as one disease. It is not. There are many types of cancer which arise from different tissues and so behave, and are treated differently. Even seemingly similar cancers are not all the same. It is now recognised that there are different types of breast cancer having different prognoses, for example HER2 positive breast cancer and triple negative breast cancer. With this knowledge, patients with HER2 positive breast cancer are now being treated with a new agent, Herceptin, which has significantly improved the chances of cure after surgery. Research is now leading to personalised treatment although we are still years away from this being a reality. Therefore similar to the situation where people are treated with different blood pressure and pain medications, it would be far-fetched to think that all the different types of cancer can be treated in the same manner.

Dr Simoncini believes (and that what it is: a belief) that candida causes cancer. There are no scientific data to support his view. Cancer is caused by mutations in a person's DNA and that can lead to uncontrolled growth and spread. To learn more readers may find the following website useful: www.cancerquest.org.

As for Dr Simoncini's claim that he has presented papers at the International Oncology Convention, I checked for the website of this organisation and it turned out to be about Dr Simoncini himself. The information at this site can be found in Mr Wignall's opening paragraphs. As usual there is a link to buy CDs. At his official website he presents a detailed and obfuscating explanation of his "theory", testimonials from patients as well as promoting his book. His Eureka moment came when he realised that psoriasis is caused by a fungus (this is not true, it is an auto-immune disease) and is incurable, so therefore if cancer is incurable it must also be caused by a fungus. By his logic AIDS is incurable, so should it not be caused by a fungus? As I have shown cancer is not incurable, so even on that score he is wrong. It should also be pointed out that Dr Simoncini can no longer practise medicine in Italy as he has been struck from the registry. In 2006 he was found guilty by an Italian court of wrongful death by his treatment, and fraud. He is appealing his conviction. He went further and set up a clinic in the Netherlands and this has now been closed by the authorities.

Lastly, while I agree that at times the various pharmaceutical companies seem to put profit before patients, where would we be without them? I have often been a vocal critic of drug companies, but without them the many diseases that are now successfully treated, allowing us to live longer and better lives, would still be the scourge of mankind. Where would we be without antibiotics and vaccines, to name but two groups of agents? Let us criticise and be sceptical, but do not mislead.

Dr. W S Lofters, MBBS, FRCPC, is a Jamaican associate professor in the Department of Oncology, Queen's University, Canada.

The chemo, salt and sugar debate

HERE WE GO AGAIN! According to the Associated Press, a state judge in Minnesota "ruled that a 13-year-old cancer patient must be evaluated by a doctor to determine if he would benefit from restarting chemotherapy over the objections of his parents. The judge, John Rodenberg, found that the patient, Daniel Hauser, had been “medically neglected” by his parents. Judge Rodenberg gave the Hausers until Tuesday to select an oncologist. Daniel was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and stopped chemotherapy in February after one treatment. He and his parents opted instead for “alternative medicines” based on religious belief"
Thank God I don't live in America and still have freedom as to whether I want chemo or not.........whenever we are sick there is enough pressure from friends and family who are scared and if Doctor says so it must be so, I don`t need pressure from the State too.........
As an adult you should be able to choose for yourself, just like the people who don`t want blood transfusion, it's their choice.If you are going to die so be it! YOUR CHOICE....YOUR LIFE! When you choose to kill yourself with chemo why doesn`t the state step in?
Maybe what they should be doing is watching more closely what we are consuming.........THAT`S what they need to step in and change.
A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows how much weight we gain from sugar-sweetened beverages.out of seven beverages which included 100%juice,milk,and alcohol,only the sugar-sweetened beverages which are sodas and juices with added sugar had an effect on weight change.I wish they had done a study on the beverages that have Splenda etc. so we can find out just what effect those have on us.
The other day in Jamaica,the Government raised the taxes on some things including salt -not a popular move at all - well I think they should have raised the tax on sugar too - we use much too much salt and sugar!
It's 2009 -- have we heeded the call to cut down or cut out salt and sugar or do we only listen after we are diagnosed with hypertension or diabetes?
What happen to "prevention better than cure"?
Well Melinda Beck recently did an excellent piece in WSJ entitled "Why We Need A Diet Less Rich in Sodium " in which she reports that a typical American consumes about 3,400 milligrams of sodium per day. Beck states "That's well beyond the 2,300 mg recommended by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines. And it's 15 times as much as the human body requires. Average sodium intake has increased about 50% since the 1970s. That's largely because we're eating more convenience foods. And, as makers of processed food have cut fat and sugar from their products, they've often added more salt to restore flavor.
How bad is all this sodium for your health?
Excess salt has been linked to osteoporosis, kidney damage and stomach cancer. Worse, it raises blood pressure, a key factor in heart attacks and strokes, which kill about 850,000 Americans a year.
"After smoking, high blood pressure is the leading cause of preventable illness and death," says New York City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden, who is urging makers of packaged foods and restaurants nationwide to gradually reduce their sodium content by 50% over the next 10 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that such a reduction could save 150,000 lives and $18 billion in health-care expenditures a year.
Some 50 million Americans have hypertension (that is, blood pressure readings consistently at or above 140/90 mm/Hg). Another 20 million are prehypertensive (with blood pressure from 120/80 to 139/ 89 mm/Hg). Hypertension is more common among African-Americans than whites, and nearly 90% of Americans eventually develop it as they age.
With that in mind, the CDC is urging anyone who has hypertension, is African-American or over age 40 -- nearly 70% of the U.S. population -- to follow a stricter guideline of just 1,500 mgs a day."
WHOA!!!!!
Don`t you realize that the flavour has to come from somewhere so if it's fat free they add sodium as sodium-free means less than 5% sodium.... plus salt adds texture and is used as a preservative so you really think it's not being used? People - you know the main thing most food producers are thinking about is their bottom line! We really have to be smart about our choices. I sit with friends who add salt before they taste their food what's up with that?
And I`m sorry I don`t trust restaurants that say they use 'no MSG'.... you mean they are making a fresh pot of chop suey just for me? I think not! They all have that 'Accent' container in their kitchens.....I remember how my mother loved that .....made everything taste better...if only we knew!
Beck indicates in her article "A few critics don't think a broad reduction in sodium is warranted. Michael Alderman, a professor of medicine and public health at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, N.Y., says it hasn't been conclusively shown that cutting salt intake across the population would save lives, and it could have unintended consequences. Lowering salt can cause kidney problems and contribute to insulin resistance in some cases, says Dr. Alderman, who is an unpaid consultant to the Salt Institute, an industry group.
Darwin Labarthe, director of the CDC's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, counters that there's a very broad consensus that reducing salt would cut the risk of heart attacks and strokes, and there is little evidence of harm.The American Heart Association, the American Medical Association and the World Health Organization all urge lower salt consumption".
While they fight it out - you should control your intake - remember when a product says "less sodium", it's loaded with salt, so don`t add salt, why do you think you feel so bloated when you eat out?
Also when you are cooking at home cut the recommended amount of salt in recipes in half or use more herbs and spices.....YOUR TASTE BUDS WILL GET USED TO IT ... and your health will thank you ......TRUST ME!

Meet the Press rating slump

Last week NBC's "Meet the Press" suffered its lowest ratings since David Gregory became moderator, dipping below the 3 million viewer mark for the first time since August 2007. Meanwhile, CBS' "Face the Nation," averaged 2.74 million total viewers, and ABC's "This Week," averaged 2.62 million total viewers.
Last month, Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace told the Washington Post that "the throne is empty" (in regards to Tim Russert's successor as the Sunday morning TV king). The LA Times also wrote that "Meet the Press" may soon lose the top spot in the Sunday morning ratings.
BUT I TOLD YOU THAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN , NUH TRUE?
There is no way David Gregory could come even close to Tim Russert,in fact I think they should have put his son Luke on, and we all would have tuned in to watch him grow in the position.....I don`t even remember it's on....I watch FACE THE NATION and if GEORGE has anything spectacular on I watch him as I think his wife is funny.....go figure!

Farrah`s Story........

I just finished watching Farrah`s Story and one thing hasn`t left my mind, while undergoing therapy and being sick as a dog, throwing up.... what is on her bedside table? Yes u guessed it...... a can of coke.......
Not to mention all the pie cooking at christmas,i shudder to think of the sugar!
I heard her ask about alternative treatments but I wondered as I watched if while she was having these treatments in Germany, if she had changed her diet, thrown away the coke, went totally on raw food, would she have had a vein left? Can any one get chemo for 3 years and survive? When they had lasered her tumours would the one by her anus have kept growing back if they had controlled what she ate so she made healthy cells instead of growing back cancerous cells?
So many questions.........so little time......Cheerios was just asked to change their labels on their packaging as the picture of the heart on their boxes suggests it's good for our heart when it's no such thing.
Please read this article by Melinda Beck that I recently came across on what's really in a lot of 'healthy' foods as when some us try and think we are eating healthily, she explains that "it's easy to be fooled by our assumptions and the ways that food manufacturers play on them " .....it's a sad sad world..........