November 1, 2007
Contents:
- EDITORIAL: Are You Coming to Our AGM - Nov 5th?
- FEATURE: Flu Pandemic
- FEATURE: Where Did You Learn To Do Stress?
- ALERT: USDA Says Foods Labeled as 'Raw' Can Be Pasteurized
- STATS: Canadian Aquaculture 2006
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EDITORIAL: Are You Coming to Our AGM - Nov 5th?
by Lorna HancockDear HANS Members and Friends;
Raise your hand if you're coming to our Annual General Meeting next Monday, on November 5th at the Burnaby Public Library (6100 Willingdon Ave). Great, so we'll see you all there then!
Okay, seriously, why not come and learn about how our non-profit organization actually works, then whip out that pen and take notes as naturopathic physician and Professional HANS member Brian Martin, ND, talks about the importance of digestion.
Digestive issues are undiagnosed epidemic, actually. Most people suffer from them, yet don't even realize it. Dr. Davies is a colleague of Vancouver naturopath, Dr. Jonn Matsen, author of the brilliant books
Eating Alive: the Secrets to Great Health and
Eating Alive II: Curing the 'Incurable'.
Did I mention the AGM and Dr. Davies' talk next Monday is free? Yes, free, and exclusive to HANS members. If you can make it, please RSVP so we know how many of you can attend by calling Pauline at 604-435-0512.
Oh, and one more thing that we at HANS are absolutely thrilled to announce: the expanded services of our Debby Boyes reference library!
In addition to phoning us with your questions (604-435-0512) or e-mailing (library@hans.org), you can now come in and do our own research. We're open to HANS members every Tuesday and Thursday, 10:30 am to 4:30 pm, with an information clerk available to help get you started. We've got thousands of books and files just waiting to be read.
Warm Regards,
Lorna
Executive Director and Founding Member
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FEATURE: Flu Pandemic
by Marilyn ZinkIn the television series
SurvivorI, the person who wins immunity is protected from being voted off the show.
With the latest threats of avian bird flu, West Nile virus, Norwalk virus and other superbugs, wouldn't it be nice to win immunity protection for your health?
A group of leading physicians, immunologists, naturopaths and infectious disease control experts recently tackled that subject in the Immunity Challenge: Surviving and Thriving with Evidence-Based Natural Approaches to Immune Health, a day long educational event at the University of Toronto.
Three deadly flu pandemics occurred in the 20th century. The Spanish Flu killed 21 million people worldwide in 1918-19, the Asian flu killed about 3 million in 1957 and the Hong Kong Flu of 1968 is estimated to have killed more than a million people.
The headlines can be alarming and the threat is there. Public health officials are warning that we are overdue for another flu pandemic.
"We should all be concerned, but not frightened," says Dr. Neil McKinney, a Victoria naturopath.
But there is much that can be done to pro-actively strength your health, prevent allergies and lessen the annual winter misery of colds and flus.
Herbs and Vitamins
"The things that help the immune system most are Vitamin A, Vitamin C and zinc," says McKinney. He says those are the most fundamental nutrients to nourish the thymus glands. They encourage the body to produce more T-cells and then you have better immune resistance."
A variety of herbal medicines can also support the body during cold and flu season. Some popular herbs are Echinacea, Reishi mushroom, Glycyrrihiza (licorice), garlic, goldenseal and oil of oregano.
Greens in the diet are also an important part of building immunity. Greens such as algae, spirulina and chlorella as well as the dark leafy greens that contain important nutrients to help nourish the body.
McKinney says there isn't an effective vaccine yet for a possible flu pandemic caused by bird flu. "The bird flu is the most dangerous to young people because it causes lung inflammation. It's fatal because of the lung inflammation," says McKinney.
He says elderberry extract has been shown to inhibit the neuraminidase enzyme. This enzyme is "one of the unique features of bird flu. The elderberry blocks that," says McKinney. "Elderberry extract has been shown to inhibit this type of virus so you get a measured response. I now there is solid research with elderberry."
He says the bird flu affects people who have too many T-cells reacting, so they need to balance this immune system with herbs such as the Reishi mushroom and astragalus.
Probiotics
Probiotics such as acidophilus and bifidus can help build the immune system as well.
Most viruses must cross the mucosal membrane to cause an infection. The mucosal membranes of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tract provide the first line of barriers to infection. These barriers function with some degree of "intelligence" and tolerate the presence of beneficial substances but react appropriately to potentially harmful substances.
McKinney says 80 percent of the body's immune cells are located around the gut, which is known as the Gut Associated Lymphoid Tissue (GALT). The immune cells are located in the lymphatic tissue of the intestines. This might explain why people feel nauseous when they get sick with the cold or flu virus.
"We believe all auto-immune disease starts in the GALT area," says McKinney. "One of the ways to repair this is to take probiotics. Good probiotics restore the flor and fauna in the gut."
A lack of good probiotics in the gut can help explains why some people pick up every virus that goes around.
While we're talking about the gut, people need to consider what they are eating. The North American diet, with its influence on sugar, particularly during holiday times, creates stress on the body and weakens immunity. It literally paralyzes immune cells (see sidebar).
Homeopathy
People in North America aren't as familiar with homeopathy as Europeans, however homeopathic preparations can have amazing effects in supporting the immune system.
Records by homeopathic physicians during the Spanish influenza of 1918 showed dramatic responses. In the 24,000 recorded flu cases treated by conventional physicians in the U.S., the death rate was 28.2%, as compared to the fatality rate of 1.05% for the 26,000 cases using homeopathy.
Article courtesy of Marilyn Zink, publisher.editor of The Herbal Collective magazine promoting herbs and holistic health, www.herbalcollective.ca.
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FEATURE: Where Did You Learn To Do Stress?
by Monty RitchingsLike any of the events that continually recur in life, stress has an unconscious basis. The truth is though, it is our reaction to stress, not the stress itself, that has been learned and repeated over again and again that we suffer from.
Stress, in itself, is a natural condition that occurs in every situation in life. While you are reading this article, you are causing stress in your eye muscles and in your brain as you strive to interpret the symbols on this page. When you move, stress is necessary to cause specific muscles to engage that enables your body to carry out motion.
The stress that occurs in difficult situations is also naturally occurring. The difference for each person lies in how they have learned to react to stress. Have you ever noticed how one person will not react to a certain situation when another person will almost need to be anaesthetized? The difference is based in the way they have learned to react to related situations.
Since most of the patterns we have learned in life originated in our first seven years, it is likely that the outcome from the stimulation we refer to as stress was also learned during this time.
Have you ever watched a father and son walking? More often than not, their gait is very similar. Wouldn't it hold true that if that is where the child learned his walking patterns, couldn't he also have learned how to deal with stress in the same way?
So where did you learn to do stress? I will leave it up to you to answer that one.
One of the great and very important aspects of being human is that we have great capacity for changing how we live our lives, including how we handle stress. How we deal with it can be changed.
Author Monty C. Ritchings, a long-time HANS member, has published two books in the past year. The first was
Embracing The Blend: What Your Mom And Dad Didn't Know They Were Teaching You and most recently,
Stamp Out Stress (both available in the HANS library).
Monty contends that people are born with free will and the innate ability to change their lives. The challenge lies in being able to effect permanent change at will. Getting past the belief systems and old habits that drive a person's life forward in a repetitive pattern requires being able to turn off old habits and replace them with more functional patterns.
Monty has developed some very unique, simple and innovative techniques that allow the user to stop ineffective beliefs and undesirable memories in their tracks by a process he calls re-framing. It is a system of mind management that can permanently disengage limiting patterns. No special skills are required.
On November 8, Monty will be presenting a workshop based on his book
Stamp Out Stress. It will be held at the Metrotown Hilton Hotel (6053 McKay Ave. Burnaby) from 7 to 10 pm. Advance seats can be purchased by credit card through Dreamchaser Books 604-941-3755 for $35 or cash at the door $45.
Monty says, "Give me three hours and I will show you how to virtually eliminate stress from your life!"
For more information, call Monty at 604-218-5993.
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ALERT: USDA Says Foods Labeled as 'Raw' Can Be Pasteurized
by Organic Consumers AssociationDespite a negative backlash from almond producers, retailers and consumers, the US Department of Agriculture has implemented its ruling to require that all raw almonds sold in stores must be pasteurized. The rule went into effect on September 1st, 2007, and since then, all retail outlets have been forced to remove true raw almonds from store shelves. Consumers will be misled by this action as there will still be almonds on store shelves labeled as "raw", but they will actually be pasteurized.
One of the Food and Drug Administration-recommended pasteurization methods requires the use of propylene oxide, which is classified as a "possible human carcinogen" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer and is banned in Canada, Mexico, and the European Union.
Since the decision about the rule was made, Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Johanns, has stepped down. He is temporarily replaced by Chuck Conner. This may provide a new opportunity for reversal.
Take action at
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/642/campaign.js...__________
STATS: Canadian Aquaculture 2006
by Statistics CanadaThe operating revenues generated by Canada's aquaculture industry in 2006 were at an all-time high for the second consecutive year in the wake of increased production and exports.
The industry reported record revenues of $968.7 million, up 24.7 percent from 2005.
Finfish sales, which accounted for 89.5 percent of total operating revenues, increased 26.2 percent to $867.2 million. Revenue from molluscs increased 4.1 percent to $71.7 million.
Nationally, product expenses grew 5.6 percent to $590.4 million in 2006. These consist of the costs of products and services purchased from other businesses, excluding capital and labour costs. Feed costs, which account for over 50 percent of all product expenses for finfish producers, increased 19.6 percent from $252.6 million in 2005 to $301.9 million.
More at
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/071031/d071031c....