Free Radicals Cause Our Bodies To Rust

Free Radicals - The Enemy of Youth
Oxygen is needed for every cell in our bodies and, of course, we need it to breathe. If we stop the cells from breathing, they die. However, this friend also carries another role — it attaches to iron (iron oxide) causing us to rust. The process consists of attaching to the blood cells that are largely made up of iron. If this process goes on uncontrolled, we hasten the aging and disease process.
The bad news is that free radicals don’t stop with blood cells. They will also attack other unprotected cells and even disturb the DNA activity, stagnate and become sites for cancer and other chronic conditions.
As we age, our body’s ability to sweep up these free radicals diminishes. In some, it does so at a faster rate because our body’s natural control mechanisms, antioxidants and pH get out of balance. You’ve seen how quickly cosmetic producers have added antioxidants to protect skin from aging.
The good news is that keeping your ant-oxidant levels up can actually slow and even reverse the effects of aging internally, as well as externally.
Antioxidants are anything that prevents oxidation or rusting. Powerful antioxidants are Vitamin C, Vitamin E, selenium, and OPCs (oligomericproanthocyanadins).
OPCs, more commonly known as pycnogenol, are 20 times stronger than Vitamin C and 50 times stronger than Vitamin E as free radical scavengers. They are so powerful that they are used in some countries as a cancer treatment. OPCs also perform other functions including super oxygenation of the cells and perform double duty in the entire enigma of aging.
OPCs are found naturally in deeply colored fruits and vegetables such as blueberries, cranberries, beets, raspberries, blackberries, etc. The problem is that you would have to eat large quantities of these fruits and vegetables because some of the OPCs value gets lost in the digestive process. Some of the miracles of OPCs are:
* Acting as a superior antioxidant, protecting cells in the body against free radical destruction of cells.
* Lowers LDL, cholesterol levels and reduces chemical alteration of LDL’s, thus reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease.
* Reduces platelet aggregation, thus reducing the risk of atherosclerosis.
* Increases the strength and elasticity of blood vessels, protecting against rupture, leakage and degeneration.
* Enhances the ability of collagen to repair itself, thereby protecting against age-related and degenerative processes.
* Inhibits swelling (edema) and inflammation.
* Relieves functional problems of varicose veins.
* Reduces discomfort associated with PMS and menopause.
* Reduces tendency toward diabetic retinopathy.
* Improves skin health by reducing damage, increasing nutrient supply and improving elasticity.
* Reduces the effect of allergies.
* Improves joint flexibility.
This is only a partial list. "In 50 years of research, dosages as high as 50,000 mg per day showed no side effects whatsoever," Maria Tarnev - H.D. said in her article from the December 2005 issue of After 50. She practices holistic health and can be reached at:

(716) 913-3017 or at her website, www.YourNaturalDoctor.com

She is a graduate of Buffalo State College (my alma mater) and earned her Diploma of Homeopathic Medicine from Ontario College of Homeopathic Medicine, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Barley, A Natural Grain, Chili Recipe

Barley - A Natural Whole Grain
Barley is a low fat, saturated fat-free, sodium- free and cholesterol- free food. Barley is also a good source of fiber and niacin. New recipes make the nutritional benefits of barley as easy as they are delicious. Best of all, it is no more complicated to cook with Barley than with rice or pasta. So the next time you think you are making a soup or some dish that you would use pasta or rice — try using Barley instead. And taste how much better this healthy alternative can be.

Barley contains soluble fiber. This type of fiber does not break down in the stomach or intestines, but when mixed with water in the body it forms a gel, which not only helps keep your digestive system "moving" but also helps lower cholesterol levels. The addition of barley or other fiber-rich foods to your diet may prove to be an easy and effective way to lower your bad cholesterol: Barley to Lower LDL Cholesterol
The ratio is 4 cups of water to 3/4 cup of Barley with a dash of salt. Stir barley and salt into briskly boiling water. Then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the heat, let stand 5 minutes. Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week.
CHICKEN BARLEY CHILI
The great taste of chili with an unexpected healthy twist.
1 (14.5 oz.) Can of diced, undrained tomatoes (can be seasoned)
1 (16 oz.) Can/jar Salsa or tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz.) Can Fat free chicken broth
1 cup Medium Barley
4 cups water
1 tablespoon Chili Powder
1 teaspoon Cumin
1 teaspoon Coriander
1 teaspoon Allspice
1 (15 oz) can of Black beans, drained and rinsed.
1 (15 1/4 oz.) Can of whole kernel corn with peppers, undrained.
3 cups Chicken breast, cooked, and cubed (about 1 ½ lbs)
Reduced or no fat cheddar cheese (optional) or Pecorino Romano
In a 6-quart saucepan combine first 10 ingredients. Over high heat, bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add beans, corn and chicken; increase heat to high until chili comes to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 5 minutes, or until barley is tender. If upon standing the chili becomes too thick, add more chicken broth or water until chili is desired consistency. Top with grated Pecorino Romano Cheese (optional).
Makes 11 one cup servings
Nutrition information per 1 cup serving: Calories: 268, Fat 3.6 g, Calories from fat 32, % calories from Fat 12%, Cholesterol 59.6 mg., sodium 698 mg, Carbohydrate 27g, Dietary Fiber 4.7 g, Protein 32g.
HEARTY VEGETABLE BARLEY SOUP
½ pound lean ground beef
½ cut chopped onion
1 clove minced garlic
7 cups water
1 (29 oz.) Can of crushed unsalted tomatoes, undrained
½ cup medium barley uncooked
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup sliced carrots
2 beef bullion cubes
½ teaspoon dried, crushed basil
1 bay leaf
1 (package) Frozen Mediterranean Vegetables
In a four quart sauce pan, brown meat, add garlic and onion; cook until tender. Drain. Stir in remaining ingredients except frozen vegetables. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 50 - 60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add frozen vegetables; cook about 10 minutes or until tender. Additional water may be added if mixture becomes too thick, upon standing. Yields twelve one cup servings.

Mum loved the Vegetable-Beef-Barley Soup. She is 91 and loves to eat food that is easy to chew and has all the vegetables she needs. She grew up in England, surrounded by Salmon and food from her parents' vegetable garden. Porridge was one of her staples. The best compliment she can offer is that the porridge, I make, is every bit as good as her mother's. Whether it is oatmeal or barly, it's whole grain and very healthy food. We sang carols and mum joined in. She went from being melancholy to being filled with joy and laughter. The snow was gently falling when we arrived to take her back to the nursing home. She was laughing and in good-humor when we settled her in for the night. Love is food for the spirit. We know that she looks forward to each opportunity to be with us. Good food, story-telling and those precious historical tidbits that will not be lost thanks to staying in touch and caring.

Xylitol - Nasal, Sinus, Ear Infections and Asthma

Especially at this time of year, we need an arsenal of remedies to address these problems. Nasal xylitol addresses the source of sinus and ear infections, allergies and asthma. These problems all begin with either infections or irritants that are in the back of the nose.
What is xylitol? It occurs naturally in a number of fruits and vegetables and is a normal constituent of a human metabolism. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol, obtained commercially from wood sugar, xylose. It is a natural substance that occurs in the body. The body makes about 10 grams every day. It is not a drug. It is commonly used as a sugar substitute in many foods, especially chewing gum, because such use prevents tooth decay. Most people are not aware of this benefit because such a claim classifies xylitol as a drug, crossing a boundary not allowed by the Food and Drug Administration. Freedom of speech does allow us to discuss the truth as we see it and I choose to present information based on research.
The nose is a nidus—a nest where problems begin. The fine hairs in the nose act as filters and collect many contaminants and prevent their entry into the sinuses and lungs. However, like any filter, it requires maintenance and that is where xylitol comes in. The fact that we move about 3,000 gallons of air through the nose and into the lungs every day opens it to all kinds of pollution. Harmful bacteria living there move into the ear canal or the sinuses to cause infections and irritants there are the most common causes of allergies, colds, infections, nasal drip, and asthma. Stop the problem at its source and you are doing what good hygiene requires us to do when we wash our hands before eating. We all have a means of cleansing these harmful substances that reduce the chance of getting ill.
Now, there is a way to help this natural process. Cleaning this nest regularly helps to remove infection causing bacteria as well as the irritants that trigger allergies and asthma, a running nose and the complications that follow. The body attempts to wash out the irritant and your nose runs and the fluid settles in the throat. You cough in an attempt to expel and clear the throat. The continued existence of the moisture, warmth and then bacteria, begin to slowly move into the lungs and wreak havoc there, as well.
Winter puts us at additional risk, especially with forced hot air pushing dust and unseen particles in our furnace ducts into the air we breathe. Humidifiers and air cleaners, filters on the furnace and even the new HEPA filters help. Ionizers that charge the particles of dust and allergens so that they cling to a strip of metal are now becoming a necessity for many Americans, especially in the northeast, where we deal with the emissions of industry and the confinement in work places and our own homes.
Xylitol allows us, in spite of all the above, to clean this nest regularly. Some experience appears to indicate that it is all we really need. Just as we cannot prevent our hands from getting dirty — we cannot prevent contaminants from entering the nose and sinuses. As we travel through so many different settings: home, work, church, malls, funeral homes, parties, weddings and meetings (and that includes the confined areas in planes or cars), we shake hands, people cough and sneeze, and the dust particles become airborne. There are three reasons that xylitol, in a nasal spray, works to clean one of the most important orifices in the human anatomy. This is what it does:
* Xylitol decreases the adherence of harmful bacteria to the cells in our nose and selects for bacteria that cause fewer infections.
* The concentration of xylitol stimulates our own defensive washing of the nose.
All of these are totally new concepts in medical practice. But they are concepts whose time has come because they provide a safe and reasonable option to some of the major health problems that we now face with infections and allergies.
Why Nasal Xylitol Works on Infections
The most commonly accepted way of dealing with bacteria is to kill them with antibiotics. But we have to use the more expensive and potent newer antibiotics because the bacteria have become resistant to the earlier generations of antibiotics. The more antibiotics we use, the more problems we have with resistant bacteria.
This is one of the biggest problems facing us today as we deal with infections. We need other options—and we have them, but they don’t make money for our profit oriented health care system so there is no motive for studying them and few people know about them.
Before bacteria can cause an infection, it has to be able to attach to our body. It holds on to specific sugar complexes that are on the surfaces of our cells. Putting these sugars, or other similar looking sugars, in with the bacteria fills up their binding sites and decreases the ability of bacteria to hold on to our body cells. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol that does this for several problem-causing bacteria.
Feeding xylitol, regularly, to the bacteria that normally live in the back of our noses reduces their numbers and has actually been shown to tame some bacteria so that they cause fewer problems. Taming bacteria is a better idea than killing them. Allergies and asthma begin from irritants in the nose. Why not help wash them out?

THE PROBLEM WITH SALINE
Covering the cells in our airways, underneath the mucus, is the airway surface fluid. For places where the mucus is not present, or not working adequately, there are several substances in this fluid that, separately and together, work against bacteria. These substances are salt-sensitive; that is, the higher the salt concentration, the less they work. Salt dries up the fluids and hinders the natural washing mechanism of the body. The University of Iowa is looking at what xylitol does to help this process.
The concentration decreases the concentration of salt in the airway surface fluid, which helps our own antibiotic substances there to be more effective. The problem with saline is, it works against the substances that are protective to our natural defenses.
IF IT’S THAT GOOD, WHY DON’T MORE PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT IT?
This product was recently named (April 2004), the number one new product in health food stores in the United States. That’s not bad for the fourth year of business with no media advertising — thanks to those users who have spread the word. The spray is not a drug, anymore than soap is! It cleans your nose, and the benefits come from a clean nose. The only way people will learn about this practical and sensible way to help the immune system wash pollutants from the back of your nose, is by word of mouth. The results, people who use it experience, is the best route. Education is the way to learn good hygiene and it’s importance in "keeping your nose clean."
Now, I have to admit that I have often times promoted the use of the "Netty pot" and a saline solution. I was wrong, and I heard from many of my friends about the ineffectiveness of the saline solution. When my research leads to answers which are new and totally opposite to what I believe—I need to approach it with an "open mind." This body of knowledge makes sense. A runny nose on a cold day cleared my stuffed nose and I returned from sledding feeling better. I have be plagued with these related problems of colds, flu, stuffy nose and asthma for many years. This is music to my ears and I have been using this product for the past year with excellent results.
If you want more information on the subject, simply insert "Xylitol" in your search engine and read on. You can be part of the solution and avoid the root of the problem by reading the evidence and deciding for yourself whether it works or not.