That’s right, it is rare that when I am helping people with their skin problem, that we focus only on the skin. When you are wanting to maximise the health of your skin, you simply have to be addressing other aspects of your health and making sure that you are as healthy as possible in every way. It is difficult to take this approach when it is your skin that is the most troublesome…..
Check out this very short couple of paragraphs I’ve written at my Clear Skin International Face Book Page. There are lots of very interesting articles and info on skin health. And I’d love you to like the page! It’s only new and I need some likes!!! Andrew
Drinking healthy water will reduce much physiological stress on your body.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjBkBsCL8SQ
Water is one of the most essential elements that sustains life. It regulates many processes throughout the body and without it – life for us would not be possible. It helps to transport nutrients around the body as well as remove toxins from the cells and them excretes them from the body. If you are working towards ultimate health then regular, long term water intake is essential. Water hydrates the body down to a cellular level and without it, or with less-than-optimal levels, the cells are effected and effectively cause them to dehydrate. One of the results of this is that it increases your susceptibility, for example, to viral infections. The water you drink must be of a very high quality if you are to move towards better health and healing. These conditions may be related to significant dehydration and the build up of various inorganic minerals in the body due to unhealthy water.
Check List: Do you or your loved ones have any of the following conditions?
Constipation, kidney stones, gallstones, arteriosclerosis, high blood pressure,
back pain, joint pain, high cholesterol, migraines, stress, varicose veins,
If you loose 20% of it, your health can be adversely effected.”
There is no doubt that if you consistently have sufficient levels of water in your diet – and the right sort of water – will enjoy better health and healing compared to being dehydrated – even a small degree. The right sort of water can be derived from fresh fruits, vegetables, freshly prepared juice of fruit & vegetables and filtered water.
If you are having fresh juice, remember that one glass of orange juice for example is about 5 oranges – and that is a lot of sugar. Even though it is from fruit, it will still cause the same harmful effects as having white processed sugar. So we recommend that you dilute your juices with purified water. (This is more the case with fruits). Remember that we need about 2 – 2 1/2 litres of water a day and this includes liquid from our food. The amount of water we need can change depending on various circumstances. If you are exercising, hot weather, drinking tea and coffee will increase your need for water.
One glass of orange juice is like eating 5 oranges in 10 seconds flat!
The average glass of tap water contains traces of many substances that can harm you and cause damage. Pesticides: Levels are controlled in many countries, including Australia. However, levels of Lindane for example, allowed in Australia are 200 times more than that allowed in Europe. Some of its toxic effects include: cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and male infertility.
Chloroform: Resulting form the production of chlorine, this can cause reproductive problems, brain damage and can be toxic to the lungs and skin.
PCB’s: Added to plastics and used in some domestic piping. Benzene: Only absorbed in small amounts but can cause drowsiness, dizziness, headaches, confusion, rapid heart rate, unconsciousness, coma and even death. It can affect the reproductive organs, cause low birth weights, delayed bone formation, and bone marrow damage in unborn foetus
Mercury: Exposure can cause fatigue, memory loss, mental disorders, headaches, heart attacks, angina, deafness, kidney damage,, Hodgkin’s disease, liver damage, arthritis, muscle tension and weakness, Alzheimer’s disease and autism. It also can cause infertility in both males and females.
Lead: Easy absorbed from old plumbing. Toxic effects include anaemia, hypertension, colic, constipation, deafness, kidney & liver damage, cancer, brain damage, dementia, insomnia, male infertility and miscarriages.
Bacteria and other organisms can cause diarrhoea, bloating, burping, gut pain, ulcers, dysentery and lung disease.
Other components that can be found in tap water: sewerage, industrial wastes and many, many other chemicals.
Most municipal water contains calcium carbonate – an inorganic mineral. This and other inorganic minerals can contribute to the formation of ‘stones’ in the body such as kidney, gallbladder, and bladder. It can also effect the health of our joints and contribute to the hardening of arteries. Remember that calcium carbonate is used to made cement! So what do we do about tall of this? Simple. I encourage you to use filtered water as much as possible. There are many filters on the market and I’m not going to go into details in this newsletter. Also remember that a significant amount of our water intake is from fresh foods – mainly fruits and vegetables.
Not being your ‘ideal weight’ is a significant stress on your body, something that can lead to disease. It is also stressful on an emotional level, not allowing you to fully enjoy life to the full. But it is not easy for everyone to be at their ideal weight. Do you know the 2 most common mistakes made when it comes to weight control that can jeopardize how effectively you manage your weight as well as having implications for your general health levels? And are you approaching weight management in a way that will help ensure you maintain a healthy & ideal weight which at the same times helps protect you from many diseases that are at practically epidemic proportions?
Even if your weight is at a healthy level and doesn’t really fluctuate, you still need to be mindful of a lifestyle that encourages what I can an ideal ‘weight equilibrium’ because it is really common & easy for our weight to either increase or decrease which then leads to numerous health problems.
Watching your diet & partaking in exercise are only part of much broader strategy to have an ideal weight.
In this Blog, I’m not going to give you a weight loss diet – rather I want to talk to you about a Naturopathic & Homoeopathic perspective on maintaining ‘weight equilibrium’ so that you can make sure that your focus is directed on thinngs that will help to bring you the very best results and promote your health and wellb
eing at a deep level.
So what are the two most common mistakes people make when dealing with weight control? They focus on 1. Diet and 2. Exercise. That’s right!
This is a mistake that can lead to disappointment and less-than-optimal results. Now of course diet and exercise play a really important role in weight control, however, it must not be the primary focus of what you do. I have a client who is very concerned about his weight and therefore is very actively involved in his sport and is very physically active & his diet is generally pretty good. He believes that this is enough to control his weight (and to keep him healthy). However, my client has sugar binges and has a family history of heart disease. He also has extreme anxiety and mood swings. But he really believes that he is doing enough for his health with his exercise, ‘watching what he eats’ as well as over-the-counter supplements that are self-prescribed. And according to the general perception in society, he’s right. However, he is neglecting to take a holistic approach to his weight control and so I will continue encourage him to address more than exercise & diet. For Ultimate health, he needs to address his anxiety, mood swings, blood glucose chemistry, family medical history. He will also greatly benefit from carefully selected medicines and supplements to promote and optimise his health and help prevent disease. So I repeat: Diet and exercise should not be the primary focus of your weight control – this is a mistake. You need to take a holistic approach for the best results.
Great health doesn’t just happen! You need to plan for it and work towards it.
The fact that you are reading this says to me that you are keen to be finding ways to move forward with your health and healing and have some idea of the level of health you would like. And no doubt you have various health-promoting strategies in place – and this is wonderful. Good on you! But are you doing enough for your health so that you can reach your health-potential? Doing more exercise & reducing coffee are not enough if you are wanting to achieve superior health and healing. Health aims can be compared to other areas of our life where by if we have goals clearly set out then it is going to be much easier to work towards them and achieve them. It’s no different when thinking about your health.
In this blog, I want to help you to identify what your health goals are in a very specific – non general way and then work out in an equally specific way, how you might go about working towards them.To make it more likely that you will reach these goals, you need to be asking yourself certain questions:
“Do You Know The Key Areas To Invest In So That You Can
Help Maximise Health And Healing?”
That’s right – you may be making some changes to your health regime, but are those changes going to maximise the improvements to your health and healing. You need to know the specific areas to focus on so that you can really optimise the heath-benefits you can achieve. So if you would like to maximise your health, help to avoid illness and disease, or actively work on particular health issues and maximise healing, then you need to map out a bit of a “health plan” for yourself over both the short term as well as the next 12 months. Have a bit of fun while you are doing this! And don’t just read this blog and do nothing! Wait until you have some time and write down your thoughts and answers…… you will get so much more out of the exercise.
Major Life Divisions Now some of you might think this is a little simplistic, but if you haven’t done anything like this for a while I think it is really great way to quickly give you a perspective of where the issue of health sits in your life and the level of priority you give it. List 5 or 6 main categories that cover the major areas of your life. Make sure health is one of them! Now, for each, estimate an approximate percentage of your time, effort & energy that you give to each category. Then look at each category, including health, to give you an idea of how much emphasis you place on each. For some people, health plays a minor role. Other people become obsessed about health.
One question to ask yourself: Does the level of my health reflect the amount of time I give it? So for example, you may be wanting to feel more emotionally balanced but the time, energy, resources, money you spend on your health, are minimal.
When thinking about setting your “health goals”, some of the areas to consider are: 1. Disease Prevention 2.Food Choices 3. What Treatments Will You Choose? 4. Exercise 5. Emotional health
6. Mindset
So have some fun with this and actually articulate what you would like to achieve with your health and specifically how you are going to go about reaching those goals.
[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_video link=”https://youtu.be/_p-P_3oLRxc” align=”right”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]Some of you may have heard or read recently about homoeopathy, naturopathy, acupuncture, chiropractics etc, and how they are not valid systems of medicine or approaches to health. I have had quite a few people ask me about this, as these sort of comments can stir up some uncertainty about the worth of such approaches to health care. In order to respond to these criticisms, we need to take a bit of a philosophical approach and look deeply into this issue with an open and questioning mind. Yes, we need to try and adopt some of the attributes of the great thinkers of humanity, like Aristotle, for example![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”60px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]I want to make clear 2 really important facts about these criticisms. When we are assessing the validity of any body of knowledge, I’m sure you will realise that it is not always a simple process. I will use homoeopathic medicine as an example, but the issues apply to other forms of treatment. Assessing the validity of homoeopathic medicine requires much consideration and thought. There is a lot at stake here – making decisions and drawing conclusions about a system of medicine can have massive consequences at many levels. I want you to become the ‘wise health consumer’, understanding the ‘hows and whys’ of natural health and healing.
As you look for ways to improve your own health and the health of your loved ones as well as help yourself to prevent the onset of illness and disease, you need keep pushing the limits of knowledge and understanding about health and disease. Now I know many of you have been to the clinic for naturopathic and homoeopathic treatments and have enjoyed the health-promoting benefits that they bring. I don’t have to try and convince you of the validity of these approaches. But I think it is really helpful to think through some of the arguments for and against homoeopathy, if not for yourself then for others so that your can clearly articulate the salient issues.
But before I do I just want to make the point that none of the criticisms that have been reported are new. For the last 200 years there have been groups and individuals criticising homoeopathy and the objections put forth are the same now as they were 200 years ago. For that reason, I am a little blasé about what has been said about homoeopathy – I’ve heard it all before. Before long it will all die down until the next wave of reporting against this system of medicine.
So Is Homoeopathy Is Scientific?
Simply, there are numerous studies showing the efficacy of homoeopathic medicine. For example the Swedish government has just concluded that homoeopathic medicine is a viable system of medicine after assessing the scientific data available on homoeopathy. In some situations concluded that homoeopathy is more effective than traditional “Western” medicine.
Having a well thought out, sophisticated definition of science is really important. Defining that which is scientific is not clear-cut – t is not straight forward in any way and many different factors need to be considered. When we arriving at a point where we can say that something is scientific, we have to then decide is that valid, or how is that valid and then ask if something is not scientific does that mean it is not valid, or is not a useful piece of information.
I will not go into too much detail here in this blog, but for example, here are two criteria that need to be met for something to be deemed scientific: 1. its ability to be duplicated. Experiments or studies must be repeatable so that some one else can duplicate the results. 2. Also variables must be reduced as much as possible so that the effect on one thing or one action can be better ascertained.
I realise this is a little simplistic but these two points need to be met in order for something to be scientific. Now homoeopathic medicine and the studies that have been conducted, certainly meet these criteria. So on this basis it is wrong to assume that there are no scientific validity showing the efficacy of homoeopathy.
Anyway, hopefully I have got you thinking and I know there is a lot more to be said about this. But let me reiterate one very important point – well a question really! If something cannot be substantiated scientifically (and homoeopathic medicine can be) does that mean we should not use that knowledge when treating illness and maintaining optimal health? Love to hear what you think!
The outbreak of bird flu certainly took its toll. The ominous fear that it could spread to humans and become a pandemic was a real threat – and challenge – to public health. The potential for the virus to mutate into a strain deadly to humans was being taken seriously with world health bodies. The World Health Organisation has warned it is only a matter of time until the next pandemic.
Can Naturopathic approaches to health and healing offer some insights when dealing with these types of infections and indeed the flu in general?
In today’s Blog I want to touch on some really important issues that you need to understand if you are going to help minimise the risk of Influenza, using Bird Flu as out focus. If we have a strategy for BF, then that will serve us well when dealing with ‘the flu’ in general.
Using Bird Flu as an example, I am going to show you ways to help strengthen your immunity and avoid influenza, in general.
So how do we help prevent ourselves from becoming infected with such viruses? This is the question us naturopaths ask all the time and the answer takes us back to a fundamental approach is that we need to be taking in order to look after our health and our healing.
Bird Flu Symptoms.
Influenza is an infection associated with a virus which mainly affects the respiratory system. The symptoms he may feel will vary between different people but some of the more common symptoms include; chills, rigors (shivering), they muscle aches and pains, increased temperature and fever, cough.
The flu is considered to be self-limiting which means that it will run its own course and within a relatively short period of time, ceased to be a problem. But the problem is that the symptoms can be so severe that they become life-threatening to some people, or they can cause someone who is seemingly healthy to be bed-ridden for a week or more, causing days and days off work. Bird Flu is considered extremely serious because the symptoms it produces are life threatening and it is very virulent, which means it has the potential to more easily affect greater numbers of people.
Bird Flu. Two key Factors.
1. Consider your current state of physical health and 2. your emotional health and balance.
Our physical health is an important factor in determining how susceptible you are to a viral infection weather it be bird Flu or general influenzae. Have you ever wondered why certain people will catch a cold or get the flu while others are spared, even though they have been in contact with infected people?
Your emotional health and balance is every bit as important as our physical health and is a potent factor in determining whether or not we become ill. Although a bit of a cliché now, it is well-known that ‘emotional stress’ will lower the immune system’s ability to fight infections and therefore, in terms of prevention, reducing stress becomes a serious component of preventing infectious diseases. “Remember Stress Can Decrease Your Immune Reaction, making You More Susceptible To Infection”
Never Underestimate The Medicine Of Rest!
The most important thing I would say is that if you are experiencing less than optimal health or indeed have an influenza infection, we must simply listen to our body and for most people their body is saying, “REST”. How simple is that? You can take this supplement or that herbal tonic (which can really help) but at the end of the day if you are unwell and your immune system is fighting off an infection and in this case the potentially serious infection rest is essential and you are the one thing that many office don’t do well! Over the years I have seen countless clients who quickly recovered from influenza OR get quick relief from symptoms only to be back at work burning the candle at both ends. I recall one lady some years ago who was healing well from the flu, pushed herself a bit too far and ended up in hospital and pneumonia.
Bird Flue Cure?
Check Your Cupboard!
Because the influenza often affects the respiratory system I find one of the most effective home remedies is good old garlic. Garlic contains essential oils and has an antiseptic and an anti-viral effect. The essential oil is effective because it is exhale via the lungs and so is used for respiratory infections. It is also an important her for the prevention of infections. Please include fresh garlic regularly in your diet as much as possible. One of my favourite ways of having garlic is some wholemeal toast with tahini, chopped tomato, finely chopped coriander or parsley and crushed garlic! Now this may not be everyone’s favourite snack but it is a delicious way to take advantage of the powerful healing properties that garlic cloves have to offer.
When we talking about prophylaxis one very important approach is to ensure that we very carefully treat any symptoms that we may develop, or any other pre-existing conditions that we have. So if you have a sore throat for example, sure use a thyme gargle, but remember this is going to be symptomatic in its action and the underlying causes must be addressed in one way or another. So you have a gargle but look at other ways of supporting your immune system. And in a broader sense nourishing and nurturing yourself. This might simply mean taking the time to eat home-cooked meals rather than takeaway food. It may mean getting to bed at a reasonable hour etc etc. In the clinic we would treat the source throat with medicine that will have a symptomatic effect as well as address the underlying immunological issues.
Sometimes it is helpful to look at contracting influenza as your body telling you that something is out of balance and needs to be attended to. In this sense being ill needs to be considered as something which is not only necessary but conducive to leading towards better health and healing and getting your body back in balance. So when you begin to feel symptoms of the flu remember that this is a tap the shoulder from nature reminding you that something needs to change to bring your body back into harmony.
Protect Your Health With These Savy Tips
Some of the more important nutrients required for healing are vitamins A, B complex, niacin (the B3) pantothenic acid (B5), C, potassium and proteins. I am not necessarily recommending supplements of these but I am recommending that your diet consists of fresh unprocessed foods including the following:
A – carrots bringing leafy vegetables such as spinach and broccoli, B – whole grains (Barley in home-made soup is a great example) C – don’t just think of oranges as a source of vitamin C, in fact oranges are sometimes best avoided when there is a lot of mucus in the system. Obtain rich sources of vitamin C from other citrus fruits, fresh fruits and vegetables.
Niacin – lean meats paltry fish brewers yeast wheat germ Pantothenic acid – brewers yeast egg yolks whole-grain cereals. Pantothenic acid is made in the digestive system as well. Proteins – derived from meat and egg legumes.
So the best way to help reduce your risk of the Bird Flu as well as general influenza, is to maximise your health in a broad general sense both physically and emotionally, as well as carefully treating any pre-existing conditions you may have. Don’t wait until you are sick before you take measure to protect yourself. And remember, both the treatment and prevention of the flu does not mean simply taking a few self-prescribed, over-the-counter supplements.
Deadly Bird Flu On Our Door Step: How You Can Help Protect Yourself
Another outbreak of bird flu is on our door step and the ominous fear that it could spread to humans and become a pandemic, is a real threat to public health. The potential for the virus to mutate into a strain deadly to humans is being taken seriously with world health bodies. In the past, the World Health Organisation has warned it is only a matter of time until the next pandemic.
In today’s Blog I want to touch on some really important issues that you need to understand if you are going to help minimise the risk of Bird Flu and indeed other infections. With the onset of the cooler weather here in Australia, many people are becoming more vulnerable to infections and now is the time to act. So to help us understand the Bird Flu, I am going to be talking about influenzae as well and showing you how to help avoid it this year.
So how do we help prevent ourselves from becoming infected with such viruses? This is the question us naturopaths ask all the time and the answer takes us back to a fundamental approach is that we need to be taking in order to look after our health and our healing.
What Is The Flu?
Influenza is an infection associated with a virus which mainly affects the respiratory system. The symptoms he may feel will vary between different people but some of the more common symptoms include; chills, rigors (shivering), they muscle aches and pains, increased temperature and fever, cough.
The flu is considered to be self-limiting which means that it will run its own course and within a relatively short period of time, ceased to be a problem. But the problem is that the symptoms can be so severe that they become life-threatening to some people, or they can cause someone who is seemingly healthy to be bed-ridden for a week or more, causing days and days off work. Bird Flu is considered extremely serious because the symptoms it produces are life threatening and it is very virulent, which means it has the potential to more easily affect greater numbers of people.
My Most Important Advice To You
1. Consider your current state of physical health and 2. your emotional health and balance.
Our physical health is an important factor in determining how susceptible you are to a viral infection weather it be bird Flu or general influenzae. Have you ever wondered why certain people will catch a cold or get the flu while others are spared, even though they have been in contact with infected people?
Your emotional health and balance is every bit as important as our physical health and is a potent factor in determining whether or not we become ill. Although a bit of a cliché now, it is well-known that ‘emotional stress’ will lower the immune system’s ability to fight infections and therefore, in terms of prevention, reducing stress becomes a serious component of preventing infectious diseases.
“Remember Stress Can Decrease Your Immune Reaction,
making You More Susceptible To Infection”
Never Underestimate The Medicine Of Rest!
The most important thing I would say is that if you are experiencing less than optimal health or indeed have an influenza infection, we must simply listen to our body and for most people their body is saying, “REST”. How simple is that? You can take this supplement or that herbal tonic (which can really help) but at the end of the day if you are unwell and your immune system is fighting off an infection and in this case the potentially serious infection rest is essential and you are the one thing that many office don’t do well! Over the years I have seen countless clients who quickly recovered from influenza OR get quick relief from symptoms only to be back at work burning the candle at both ends. I recall one lady some years ago who was healing well from the flu, pushed herself a bit too far and ended up in hospital and pneumonia.
Look In Your Cupboard The Cure Might Be There
Because the influenza often affects the respiratory system I find one of the most effective home remedies is good old garlic. Garlic contains essential oils and has an antiseptic and an anti-viral effect. The essential oil is effective because it is exhale via the lungs and so is used for respiratory infections. It is also an important her for the prevention of infections. Please include fresh garlic regularly in your diet as much as possible. One of my favourite ways of having garlic is some wholemeal toast with tahini, chopped tomato, finely chopped coriander or parsley and crushed garlic! Now this may not be everyone’s favourite snack but it is a delicious way to take advantage of the powerful healing properties that garlic cloves have to offer.
When we talking about prophylaxis one very important approach is to ensure that we very carefully treat any symptoms that we may develop, or any other pre-existing conditions that we have. So if you have a sore throat for example, sure use a thyme gargle, but remember this is going to be symptomatic in its action and the underlying causes must be addressed in one way or another. So you have a gargle but look at other ways of supporting your immune system. And in a broader sense nourishing and nurturing yourself. This might simply mean taking the time to eat home-cooked meals rather than takeaway food. It may mean getting to bed at a reasonable hour etc etc. In the clinic we would treat the source throat with medicine that will have a symptomatic effect as well as address the underlying immunological issues.
Sometimes it is helpful to look at contracting influenza as your body telling you that something is out of balance and needs to be attended to. In this sense being ill needs to be considered as something which is not only necessary but conducive to leading towards better health and healing and getting your body back in balance. So when you begin to feel symptoms of the flu remember that this is a tap the shoulder from nature reminding you that something needs to change to bring your body back into harmony.
Protect Your Health With These Savy Tips
Some of the more important nutrients required for healing are vitamins A, B complex, niacin (the B3) pantothenic acid (B5), C, potassium and proteins. I am not necessarily recommending supplements of these but I am recommending that your diet consists of fresh unprocessed foods including the following:
A – carrots bringing leafy vegetables such as spinach and broccoli, B – whole grains (Barley in home-made soup is a great example) C – don’t just think of oranges as a source of vitamin C, in fact oranges are sometimes best avoided when there is a lot of mucus in the system. Obtain rich sources of vitamin C from other citrus fruits, fresh fruits and vegetables.
Niacin – lean meats paltry fish brewers yeast wheat germ Pantothenic acid – brewers yeast egg yolks whole-grain cereals. Pantothenic acid is made in the digestive system as well. Proteins – derived from meat and egg legumes.
So the best way to help reduce your risk of the Bird Flu as well as general influenza, is to maximise your health in a broad general sense both physically and emotionally, as well as carefully treating any pre-existing conditions you may have. Don’t wait until you are sick before you take measure to protect yourself. And remember, both the treatment and prevention of the flu does not mean simply taking a few self-prescribed, over-the-counter supplements.
This might be an article or an announcement. This is different from the videos, though you could have a video in it. This would put a video in a page, but the video posts are for the media bar, and open direct above the home page, so they are special.
