Well-Being Report

By Zoere’ Wilcoxen, CCN

Well-Being Associates

September/October 2007

Contents

The Stress/Sleep Connection
Be a Smarter Produce Shopper
Cashews Cause Worse Allergies Than Peanuts
Fruits & Roots: Natural Blood Pressure Control
Television and the Developing Brain
Resource for Parents of Adopted Children
$75,000 Offer to Doctors and Drug CEO’s
Breakthrough in GI Testing: The GI Effects Test
Vitamin D

10. The Future of Medicine by Bruce Lipton

The Stress/Sleep Connection

More than 54% of Americans have stress-related concerns and symptoms. Chronic stress is one of the most important factors that can affect sleep quality; making it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep. It also contributes to increased nightmare activity, daytime sleepiness and over all fatigue. The lack of sleep can have a serious impact on daily living, work performance, relationships, and personal safety not to mention health consequences, such as type 2 diabetes. The good news is that most people want to do something about stress in their lives but not all approaches are necessarily healthy choices. For this article we are only going to address improved sleep. Most common solutions (and those seen on TV) advocate some sort of drug sleep aid. These solutions can increase daytime sleepiness and focus thus causing more stress which can result in increased dependence on stimulants such as caffeine beverages to over come their side effects.

There is a new/old healthy solution available. Who hasn’t heard of hot milk as a sleep aid to help relax you? Research has identified a natural component from milk that has sleep-relieving properties in a bioactive peptide preparation from a tryptic hydrolysate of an S1-casein derived from bovine skimmed milk.

In clinical trials this peptide preparation has shown reduction in manifestations of stress, such as improved systolic and diastolic blood pressures, heart rate, and cortisol levels-without a sedative effect. This makes it an ideal approach for relaxation to help clear the mind and prepare for nighttime rest.

Research also shows this peptide is able to cross the blood brain barrier, making it possible to have positive influence on neurotransmitter and neurological function.

This preparation is a safe alternative for restful, quality sleep. Also, new advances in nutrient processing have enabled the development of a product that has no intact casein making it much less likely to cause an allergic reaction to those with milk protein sensitivity.

The only product with this ingredient that I know of at this time is Benesom from Metagenics. Cost for a bottle of 60 tablets is $49.95 plus shipping. Below is the manufacturer’s information.

Benesom is formulated to promote a restful, relaxed state and relieve occasional sleeplessness by beneficially modulating the metabolism of melatonin and GABA

Features melatonin, a hormone naturally produced in the brain that helps regulate sleep, waking, and the body's circadian rhythm (or time clock)
Provides LactiumPure™ and passion flower, which may favorably modulate the metabolism of GABA

Caution: For adult use only. Avoid use with a history of seizures or depression, if taking benzodiazepine or sedating medication, or if consuming alcohol. If taking medications, including anticoagulants, consult your healthcare practitioner before use. Use caution if driving or operating machinery. Do not take product for more than two consecutive months unless recommended by your healthcare practitioner.

Be a Smarter Produce Shopper

One of the best sources for reliable environmental related information that I have found is The Environmental Working Group (www.ewg.org). They have recently published their 4 th edition of the popular “ Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce”. EWG analyzed over 42,000 of the latest government tests for pesticide residues on commonly-eaten fruits and vegetables and ranked the results based on six measures of pesticide load after washing and peeling. Click here to download your printer-friendly PDF Guide.

English:

http://www.foodnews.org/pdf/EWG_pesticide.pdf

Spanish:

http://www.foodnews.org/pdf/EWG_pesticide_span.pdf

Cashews Cause Worse Allergies Than Peanuts

A recent study of nut allergies showed that cashews trigger more severe reactions in children than peanuts. In a study in Cambridge, England, 47 children with cashew allergy were matched with 94 children with peanut allergy. The children with cashew allergy were 8 times more likely to suffer wheezing and nearly 14 times more likely to have potentially severe cardiovascular symptoms, like heartbeat disturbances or a drop in blood pressure.

Overall, 10 children with cashew allergy had what was defined as severe reactions-extreme difficulty breathing and/or loss of consciousness with only 1 child in the peanut group experiencing a severe reaction. The complete results of the study appear in the August 2007 issue of the journal “Allergy”.

Cashews are found in a wide range of dessert, candies, Asian dishes, pesto sauce, cereals, granola bars, dressings, sauces, and even shampoos and lotions. It is worth mentioning that mangos are related to cashews so they should be avoided if you have a known allergy to the nut.

In general it is recommended that if you are allergic to any tree nut you should avoid all tree nuts and peanuts. There are excellent homeopathic formulas available that can help reduce reaction to most fruit, nut, grain, dairy, and vegetable sensitivities.

On a personal note: I have a son that is so severely allergic to peanuts and has anaphylactic reactions that could be fatal if he ingested peanut containing foods. As a result he has to carry an injectable epinephrine device with him at all times. He travels internationally so isn’t always able to determine ingredients in his meals. He can eat cashews and filberts but no pecans, almonds or walnuts.

Peanut content can be found in such items as detergent powders, shaving cream and certainly cooking oils. It pays to read the label and perhaps dig a little deeper into the wide variety of products that can contain ingredients you may be sensitive to.

Fruits & Roots: Natural Blood Pressure Control

By the time Americans reach age 55, it is estimated that an astounding 90% have elevated blood pressure. Warning signs of advanced hypertension may include:

Headaches
Sweating
Rapid Pulse
Shortness of Breath
Dizziness
Visual Disturbances

The many prescription drugs used to control blood pressure have the potential for mild to serious side effects that are well documented. Patients are often prescribed more than one medication which ups the chances for side effects.

Dr. Mark Houston, MD, a hypertension expert and author of

“What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About™ Hypertension: The Revolutionary Nutrition and Lifestyle Program to Help Fight High Blood Pressure”, recommends that you have your physician run a blood test for Renin and/or Aldosterone levels to help idrntify the source of your hypertension. This will help to determine what category of blood pressure controlling drugs will be most effective for you. This avoids a lot of trial and error medications and increased risk for side effects. Dr. Houston uses diet, lifestyle changes and natural supplements to treat the hundreds of patients he sees in his practice.

A comprehensive new formula that includes Pomella™, a standardized Pomegranate Extract, Grape Seed Polyphenols, Japanese Knotweed Root, Resveratrol from grapes and Turmeric Root is an excellent combination of natural ingredients. There is extensive research documenting the action of these fruits and roots on their ability to aid in hypertension control as well as supplying other health benefits.

The product is BP Natural from Progressive Laboratories and the cost is $49.00 for 120 capsules plus shipping.

Dietary Recommendations for Hypertension Control from Designs for Health:

1. Eat 4 fresh celery sticks every day. Include fresh garlic and onions in your diet.

2. If needed, add a source of fiber such as PaleoFiber to reach the recommended 50 grams of fiber per day. Gradually increase your fiber intake up to this dose. Be sure to increase your water intake as well.

3. Consume 10 servings of vegetables/fruits every day (6 vegetables and 4 fruits). Use dark berries such as blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, cranberries, boysenberries and red grapes (½ cup of fruit = 1 serving). Add 1-2 servings of PaleoGreens and PaleoReds daily, if you are unable to get all 10 servings from food alone.

4. Increase the amount of omega 3 fatty acids in your diet (i.e. large cold water fish), green leafy vegetables, walnuts and pumpkin seeds, decrease saturated fat, avoid trans fatty acids (hydrogenated margarines and vegetable oils) and increase monounsaturated fats (olive oil and olives).

5. Avoid artificial sweeteners, aspartame (Equal®, NutraSweet®), Splenda® and saccharin; use stevia, and xylitol as sweeteners (½ teaspoon 2-3 times per day).

6. Drink at least 100 ounces of filtered, bottled or distilled water every day. In addition, drink 2-3 cups of green tea (naturally decaffeinated).

Television and the Developing Brain

The brains of the infant, toddler and preschooler are genetically programmed to develop most effectively when exposed to an environment which has essentially remained unchanged for thousands of years. In early childhood exposure to language and social interaction help to develop understanding of self-awareness, provide opportunities for physical, imaginative and creative play when interacting with other children and adults. We now live in a society where these experiences, so critical for brain development, have been relegated to the television set and other electronic media. When children watch television or play electronic games, they are not engaging in other fundamentally important activities for cognitive and social development. They are not playing, exercising, socializing with other individuals and most importantly, not receiving feedback from the environment. The long term results of this “Plug-In Drug” are well summarized in author Marie Winn’s book of the same name. If you are a parent, grand-parent or will become one, read this book and/or give a copy as a baby shower gift.

Resource for Parents of Adopted Children

There is a new “must read” book that is specifically for parents of adopted children and in my opinion should also be read by adults that were adopted as children. This book is especially important for people considering adoption or who have already adopted children from other countries or children in foster care. The book is “The Connected Child” by Karyn B. Purvis, David R. Cross, and Wendy Lyons Sunshine. Reviews of the book are available on line at www.amazon.com in the book department.

The urinary neurotransmitter testing and targeted amino acid therapy mentioned is the same as I use in my practice.

$75,000 Offer To Medical Doctors and Drug CEO’s

Jock Doubleday, director of the California non-profit Natural Woman, Natural man, Inc., has offered $75,000 to the first medical doctor or pharmaceutical company CEO who would publicly drink a mixture of standard vaccine additives.

The additive cocktail would be the same as those contained in vaccines recommended for a 6-year-old according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control guidelines, and would be calibrated for body weight. It would include but not be limited to:

Thimersal (a mercury derivative)
Ethylene glycol (antifreeze)
Phenol (a disinfectant dye)
Aluminum
Benzethonium chloride (a disinfectant)
Formaldehyde (a preservative and disinfectant)

Beginning August 1, 2007, if no one has taken the challenge, the offer will be increased to $90,000, and will increase at the rate of $5,000 per month until someone accepts.

To my knowledge no one has accepted the challenge as yet.

For more information on vaccines check out these two websites:

www.drtenpenny.com

www.vaclib.org

Breakthrough in GI Testing GI Effects™ Stool Profiles

Good gastrointestinal function is essential to good health. GI health is key to digestion, nutrient usage, and ridding the body of waste and pathogens. Poor digestion and malabsorption can lead to immune dysfunction, nutritional insufficiencies, obesity, and various disease states. Poor GI function can also lead to food allergies and other toxic conditions. Many chronic health problems can be due to overgrowth of potentially harmful bacteria and intestinal permeability.

MetaMetrix Clinical Laboratory has introduced the latest advancement in stool analysis using DNA to identify microbiota and anaerobes with 100% accuracy. Many of these organisms were previously unmeasurable with the older culture techniques.

A detailed description of the GI Effects™ Stool Profile is on my website, www.well-being.net under the Resources menu.

Vitamin D

One of the hot topics in the news these days is Vitamin D and its health benefits. I recommend that unless you are working with a knowledgeable health practitioner you ask your doctor to include Vitamin D levels in your next blood test. The optimum blood level range is 40 to 65 ng/ml. Optimal recommend daily dosage is 1000 IU’s for infants, 2000 IU’s for children and 4000 IU’s for adults.

The Future of Medicine by Bruce H. Lipton, PhD

Everything in the universe is now understood to be made out of energy: to our perception it appears physical and solid, yet in reality it is all energy and energies interact. When you interact in your environment you are both absorbing and sending energy at the same time.

You are familiar with terms such as "good vibes" and "bad vibes". These are the waves at which we are all vibrating. We are all energy. The energy in your body is reflecting the energy around you because the atoms in your body are not only giving off energy, they are absorbing energy.

Every living organism communicates with these vibrations. Animals communicate with plants and with other animals. Shamans talk to plants with vibrations. If you are sensitive to the differences between "good" and "bad" vibrations, you would always be leading yourself to places that would encourage your survival, your growth, your love, etc. and staying away from situations and places that would take advantage of you or cancel who you are.

When we are not paying attention to our vibrational energies, we are missing the most important readouts from our environment. Understanding of the new physics says that all energies are entangled and interact with each other. Therefore, you must pay attention to these invisible forces that are involved with what's going on in your life. While doctors aren't trained to recognize that energy is part of the system, they very easily adapted to using the new scan systems to determine what's going on inside the body. It is humorous that they read their scans as "maps", but do not have the fundamental understanding that their maps are direct readouts of the energy present in the body.

For example, in a mammogram revealing a cancer, you are visualizing a characteristic emission of energy distinctive of a cancer. Rather than cutting out the cancer, what if you applied an energy that, through interference patterns, would change the energy of those cancer cells and bring them back to a normal energy? Presumably you would get a healing effect.

This would make sense out of thousands of years of what's called "hands-on healing." The recipient is getting an energy that is interacting with their body through interference and through that interference, changing the character of the energy reflected in the physical matter because the matter is the energy.

This is the future of medicine - although we are not quite there with it right now.

Bruce Lipton is a cell biologist, former college professor, lecturer, and author. I highly recommend his latest book “Biology of Belief”. His website, www.brucelipton.com has a number of excellent articles he has written; the one on “Conscious Parenting” is recommended reading for everyone.

Personal Message from Zoere’:

I would like to have your feedback about the content of the newsletter and welcome ideas for future issues. I invite you to email me for more information on any of the subjects you want to explore further. Please share the information in this newsletter with your friends and family.

Products and Lab Tests Mentioned in the Newsletter:

All products mentioned in the newsletter are available only through Health Professionals and are not “over-the-counter” items. The lab tests have to be ordered by a qualified Health Professional or your Physician. I will be happy to order the products or arrange lab tests for you and/or provide any additional information you may require.

Please Note:

The information and/or products mentioned in this newsletter are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Nor is it intended to replace your medical care or treatment.