Women need more Choline

Another must have to reduce the effects of aging.

-- Women need more choline (a nutrient that is
needed for cell membrane formation and to make
the neurotransmitter acetylcholine necessary for
brain function) after menopause or are at risk
of liver and muscle damage.

from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition May 2007

Disturbing news on the cervical cancer front.

Pre-cancerous lesions of the cervix risk developing into tumours more than 25 years after treatment, according to a study published online Friday by the British Medical Journal (BMJ). The Swedish study followed women with severe dysplasia or CIS of the vagina and found they were nearly seven times as likely to have cancer as the general population, but this risk decreased to less than threefold, 25 years after treatment.

Women with cervical lesions were more than twice as likely to develop invasive cancer of the cervix as the general female population, and the risk rose with the age at diagnosis, especially among women aged more than 50, the paper says.

The good news in all of this----If you make it past the 25 year mark your odds for avoiding cancer go up. Lets look at this from another angle. We know that stress, life style, eating habits and exercise go hand in glove with cancer.

If you have experienced a CIS diagnosis then you need to revamp your life style to avoid a more sever diagnosis in the future.

Women spend their entire adult life cycle taking care of things; other people, multiple jobs, children, a home, the yard, pets in all shapes and sizes. The stress level can be killing level high.

Women teach other women to sacrifice their own health and well being for others. It doesn't have to be that way. Letting your children stand on their own feet is a good thing. Encouraging a mate to help with chores and responsibilities is a good thing.

Ladies -- if you have always taken care of everything to the detriment of your own health ---- what happens when you get really sick and can't take care of things. Who will have the knowledge to step into your shoes?

Lets end this on a lighter note, after all humor is the best medicine in your life.

LOVE IN A MENTAL HOSPITAL

Jim and Edna were both patients in a mental hospital. One day while they were walking past the hospital swimming pool, Jim suddenly jumped into the deep end. He sank to the bottom of the pool and stayed there. Edna promptly jumped in to save him. She swam to the bottom and pulled Jim out.

When the Head Nurse Director became aware of Edna's heroic act, she immediately ordered her to be discharged from the hospital, as she now considered her to be mentally stable. When she went to tell Edna the news she said, "Edna, I have good news and bad news. The good news is you're being discharged; since you were able to rationally respond to a Crisis by jumping in and saving the life of another patient, I have concluded that your act displays sound mindedness.

The bad news is, Jim, the patient you saved, hung himself in the bathroom with his bathrobe belt right after you saved him. I am so sorry, but he's dead."

Edna replied, "He didn't hang himself, I put him there to dry. How soon can I go home?"

Got this joke from my favorite EFT site. If you are looking for a good place to start improving your life, please check out EFT.

until next time smile
Sharon

Fasting - The Secret to Brain Health

In the beginning people fasted because they couldn't find any food that day.

All of the world's religions have a tradition or commandment to fast one day a week.

Our enlightened society here in the US and in other more "advanced" cultures, we have given up this practice.

Perhaps we need to rethink this. In a report from Dr Blaylock one of the tips to remaining young was fasting.

12. Once a week, you should fast at least until dinner. Fasting once a week has been shown to dramatically slow brain aging and accelerate repair of this essential organ. Experiments have demonstrated that fasting causes the brain to generate growth-stimulating chemicals (brain growth factor and epithelial growth factor) that promote healing of damaged neurons.

Remember on the day that you fast - you must drink lots of water. You may have tea without sugar. You can also have a couple of cups of coffee but no creamer and no sugar.

Artificial creamer has some really bad stuff in it that promotes weight gain and inflammation. We all know that we consume too much sugar. And definitely stay away from that chemical sugar - that just kills your brain. Try experimenting with honey and stevia. The taste is different and takes some getting used to but once you become adjusted you are just adding to the ability of your body to remain healthy.

The entire list is posted at Tips to Stay Young

For a different list check out Fruits and Vegetables and What They Protect You From

The Dark Side of Colon Cleanse

The advantages of a good colon cleanse are very apparent. You feel lighter, brighter, your skin looks better, joints don't ache and basically you feel younger.

The why is easy. Clean out the colon and rid the body of toxins that do more than their share of contributing to a sick bloated aching body.

Remember the last time you had the flu. The diarrhea and vomiting emptied your stomach, intestines and bowel. When the symptoms were gone you felt great. Getting over being sick is almost like being reborn. You just did a nature induced colon cleanse. Part of the reason you feel so good after the flu is gone is that clean colon. You got rid of the toxic waste being stored there.

Can you go your whole life without a colon cleanse - sure. Will you still be feeling as good as you do today. Sure. But the problem is - while we are slowly falling into a diseased state we generally don't recognize that there is a problem or that we don't feel good. The process is so gradual that it becomes normal.

When I had my gall bladder surgery 30 years ago (after the initial recovery from the surgery pain) I was amazed to find how good I felt. My constant pain had become normal.

That brings us to the down side of a colon cleanse. Doesn't matter if it is a natural herbal colon cleanser or an enema you picked up at the pharmacy. Use it and suddenly you feel better. That bloated fat belly becomes almost flat. ------- And you think, if one is good two is better. You do another enema or colon cleanser and lose a few more pounds. A week later you are having problems having a bowel movement and hey just take another colon cleanser.

You can see where this is going. If you deprive the colon of its natural ability to move waste out of the body, you are going to become dependant on an artificial method. It really doesn't matter if you used a natural herb product or a prescription. The point is that your body needs to function using its own resources.

You need to improve your diet and you have to move your body to help your colon move. The elderly most often suffer from constipation because they do not move. They may be weak or even unable to stand. When the bowel function fails it is truly the beginning of the end. The toxic build up will be fatal. Bowel waste can be pushed back up and find an outlet in vomit.

The other side of the colon cleanser coin is diet change. During your colon cleanse you need to be on a fast. Not a do not eat fast, but a fruit fast. For a couple of days you eat nothing but apples and drink water. This is best on a weekend or when ever you are not obligated to be at work or in the public. You will be spending a lot of time in the bathroom and you may suffer cramping or gas. You may feel lethargic at times.

Apples are the best for fasts, in my opinion. The apple peel literally scrapes away waste from the bowel and allowes it to be moved out with the colon cleanse. With the current pesticide scares, some doctors are recommending that you peel your apples before eating. If you can't find organic apples, wash your apples. In fact wash all fruit even if you are going to peel it. Get the pesticide off before cutting into the skin or rind as you will drag the pesticide into the fruit with the knife. Drinking plain water just helps your body. Your liver and kidneys will have enough to do during the colon cleanse.

That diet change needs to continue after the colon cleanse. You must make sure to include raw vegetables and fruit daily and reduce the red meat intake - the most common stored waste product.

Take more time when you are eating. Chew your food to mush. That will give your body a fighting chance to absorb the nutrients. Today with fast food and fast life style we zip through a hamburger in 3 minutes and a slice of pizza is 5 bites. That eating style is just inviting problems.

Eating too fast leads to a stuffed overworked stomach, decreased absorption of food from the intestines and large chunks of food compacting in the bowel.

Watch a child eat. They dawdle and talk. Parents are constantly reminding them to eat or demanding that they hurry up. No wonder we learned to inhale our food.

Take a walk every day. It does not have to be 5 miles. Just go around the block twice or go walk in the mall.

Because the desired result is to clean out the colon, you will be removing all the good bacteria as well. Easy to fix with probiotics which are available at any health food store.

Do I recommend a colon cleanse - a most definite yes. Do I think this should be a weekly thing - a most definite no.

This subject is important. Colon Cleanse is back in the news as a way to lose weight and that is not the purpose. It can be a side effect. I am doing a series of articles on the pros and cons and the right way to do a colon cleanse. Please check the website for more information.
Colon Cleanser

until next time smile
Sharon
(c)AnswersForYourHealth

Sick - been there done that

After several weeks of "rest" I am attempting to return to some of my old schedule. It is difficult to write a health column when you are sick.

There are two important reasons why writing about health becomes almost impossible when you are sick. The first is the obvious -- you don't feel good and you are tired all the time. the second is a mental attitude.

If I write about being healthy and living a healthy lifestyle, then it follows that I must walk the talk. I should be healthy.

Just like too many people, I work too much and rest too little. I generally get my 6-8 hours of sleep but my waking hours are filled with too many need to do things.

When I was attacked by allergies, something I almost never have to deal with, my sinuses became clogged and my sleep suffered. If you can't breathe and you wake up coughing, you are not getting restful healing sleep. That started a down hill spiral. I was still trying to do all the so called necessary things every day - and failing. that leads to guilt and that leads to worry and that leads to even less restful healing sleep.

We had our vacation scheduled for the last 2 weeks of September. We have a time share condo in Ruidoso New Mexico. We have not been there in the last 12 years because we have either traded it out or rented it out.

So poor sick me, feeling sorry for myself and feeling guilty, took off for the mountains. Shock -- I have become a flat lander and going to an elevation of 7000 feet really put my ability to breathe on challenge mode. I found myself walking much slower. My by now sinus infection left me breathing through my mouth and sleeping on a concrete hard bed reduced my sleep time to about 3 hours total.

For the first 3 days, I fretted. I had nothing to do with my hands, I had no computer. I had the constant nagging feeling that I should be doing something.

A mountain hike that once took only 30 minutes doubled in time and effort. I could see all those around me having the same problem, but some how felt I should be different.

I love the mountains and the smell of pine. Our condo is at the very top of a mountain and when it storms as it did one night, the clouds come right to the deck. That was the only time I could smell the pines. We went from a climate that is normally 60% humidity to one that was less than 10%. Seems like everyone was suffering from dry nose.

After stopping for a few days with relatives in New Mexico we are home. Thank God for my water bed and a return to a good nights sleep. Being back to my normal elevation of 800 feet has almost returned my breathing to normal. Still struggling with the allergies and my sinus infection.

For the last week, I have not made a daily to do list. I have gone to work as required but that is the only thing I have made myself do. I am so far behind I will never catch up --- so the only thing to do is not try to catch up.

I am not starting over, I am just living today and doing what I can do today. Yesterday I moved some furniture around and last night when my husband got home from work he remarked that I must be feeling better.

Today I will put in my shift at the store and when I get home, if I am exhausted, I will rest not force myself to do housework or yard work. I hope this allergy season will soon pass and that the next one will not be a bother to me. I have a deeper appreciation to how my husband and so many people I know suffer from allergies.

And I have come to terms with writing about health when my own health is not optimum. I am living proof that doing all the right things sometimes cannot keep you healthy. I have not had a cold in years. But the body changes every 7 years and I will now have to deal with allergies at some times.

I will continue to live my life changing and modifying what I do to cope with the changes in the environment around me. And I will continue to write about health. I will continue to read and share with you what I learn, what I know from personal experience, and what I question in mainstream medicine.

When my head finally clears up and my old energy is back, I will probably return to trying to do to much. I hope not, I hope I have learned to just take some time and do nothing.

until next time smile
Sharon
(c) Answers For Your Health