Dont Be Afraid Of Silence

In any conversation with two or more people, there is a tendency to want to talk all the time to fill any awkward silences or gaps that appear in a conversation.

However, if you think of the conversations that you have with your closest friends or family, you will notice that there isn't the same need to fill these gaps, as silences between you are comfortable. This is generally because you know the other person and the type of character that they are.

Making the Deal: Women as Negotiators

Negotiating is no game. It is not for the weak or the fragile. It takes assertiveness and someone who feels comfortable in the mano-a-mano world of business. Can women negotiate the deal as well as their male counterparts? Absolutely! In some cases, they may even do a better job. Women have a definite edge at the negotiating table because of their instincts and natural power of persuasion.

Women usually look for a win/win in negotiations. In Getting to Yes, the classic book on negotiation by the Harvard Negotiation Project, it was reported that the win/win strategy work best in negotiations. In order to avoid future resentments, all parties should come away feeling good about the resolution of a problem.

10 Killer Ways To Sell Your Back-End Products

A back-end product is a product you attempt to sell your customers after they have recently purchased a related product from your business.

If you're not trying to sell back-end products to your customers, you're making a big mistake. It is easier to sell to existing customers than it is to sell to new ones who don't trust your business yet.

MLM Recruiting Training - The 10 Questions about Your Network Marketing Recruiting Presence

MLM Presence.

Does yours work FOR you, or AGAINST you?

Purposeful Web Site Planning - Dont Get Started Without Goals

It seems like everyone has a web site these days. And those who don't have one are probably thinking about one. If you're in the thinking stage, congratulations! Having a web site is a fantastic way to grow your business by making you more visible to the world. But before you jump on the web site bandwagon, ask yourself this question: "WHY do I want a web site?" The answer is NOT, "Because everyone else has one."

When I first developed my web site four years ago, I just knew I wanted a web presence. But I didn't put much thought into why I wanted one. So I created some web pages that seemed to make sense, sat back, and enjoyed my (smallish) hit counts. But after a couple of years, I knew something was missing... my web site wasn't meeting my needs, because it wasn't created with intention! So I went back to the drawing board and starting writing down goals. Now that my business is three- fold (organizing, coaching, and selling products), my goals had to reflect those new revenue streams. So my primary web site goals became:

MLM Training: The Network Marketing Success Secret of Knowing Your REAL Inventory in MLM

Let me ask you a very simple question:

What is your inventory in MLM?

7 Common Internet Home Business Mistakes

Many Online Gurus often tell you what you should do online with your internet home business websites but many do not tell you what not to do which is as important. In this article we will highlight the seven most common internet home business mistakes that internet home business owners commonly make.

Over optimize website

Follow-Up with Your Contacts

What happens when you meet a potential client at an event and you do not follow up?

So now the event is over and you have collected a number of business cards, taken notes on the best prospects, divided the cards into Y(es), N(o), and M(aybe), now what? It is time to follow up. The best follow-up is immediate - they will remember you best if you go home that night and enter their information into your database and send a personal email or hand-written note. E-mail is much faster and you will be surprised at the fast response you get. This gives you instant contact and you can then ask how they felt about a certain event. You are sure to get a response. This gives you an immediate relationship with the individual.

It Pays to be Friendly

Most small business people do not take advantage of human relationship issues. They do not understand that being nice and friendly, out going and enthusiastic pays high dividends. When you are out and about in public you should always wear a smile, wave, honk and have a positive displacement. Such a public image makes people wish to do business with you, it is a good thing.

Waving

How to Keep from Sounding LIKE Totally Stupid

June is reality check month. Lots of the resolutions have been made and most are already broken. It's time to take a hard look at where you are going in 05 and beyond. One of the most important things you can do for yourself is to update all your personal credentials including your bio & your resume.

Have you done your spring cleaning (professional) yet? Do you have solid career plans for the balance of 05? Why are you waiting to get started improving your career?

Ask yourself these questions:

How dated is the material that you have been using to present your skill sets? Is the language professional? Are you using current, contemporary lingo in your materials? When was the last time you spent time assessing your personal portfolio? I know it's hard to think about those aspects of your career, but believe me its time well spent.

Look at your resume, does it seem "dated." The resume today is nothing like those of the past. So if it's not current, it will immediately present a negative connotation about your "contemporary-ness"

Have you ever seen a celebrity on TV who sounds illiterate? They are stars, so people over look how dumb they appear to be. That is not going to work for you. You will be evaluated by both your verbal and written skills. Can you put together a coherent sentence without using the word LIKE? If not, you better begin to practice your pitch. Start with a written a paragraph about what you have accomplished, what do you have to offer. Write it down and then read it over and over. Does it make sense? Does it grab your attention? Does it compel people to ask more?

If not, try different version, substitute words, refine and hone down your core message so you sound credible and believable. Action words are really important you want to convey an image. If you need help, get a thesaurus and look for synonyms of the words you plan to use in your pitch. Tip: If you never use big or unusual words, don't start now.

Are you good at small talk? This is a great way to open a dialogue or keep one going. The best method for small talk is to find something in the news (not political), but something that has a broad based appeal. Look for a topic that will elicit a response. Just pull a few ideas from recent news: spelling bee winner, final episodes (TV). Get the picture?

First impressions count! Have you heard someone speak that you thought was a total dork? What turned you off? Did they look slovenly or unkempt? Were they dressed appropriately? Did they sound incoherent with poor speech patterns? Appearance is one benchmark that will immediately determine how receptive the listener is to what you have to say. Do you have colleagues and associates that either turns you off or on when they speak? Pay attention to their style of speaking and mannerisms. What attributes do you like? Are they funny? Humor always has a way of breaking the ice or diffusing an uncomfortable moment.

If, in a chance meeting, you run into someone you consider to be important, do you sound like a bumbling fool? It's easy to prepare yourself to put your best foot forward. All it takes is practice. If you are not sure how professional you will seem, practice now. Find a friend or colleague and engage in dialogue. Don't talk to them about work, but in general conversation ask them to critique what you said. Were you interesting? Were you engaging? Did you talk too long or sound boring? Did they want to keep the conversation going? Establish a comfort level with your words and speaking style. Adapt it to what you are like and don't imitate anyone. Create you own unique personal speaking style.

JoAnn Hines' specialty is PACKAGING PEOPLE. Whether you want to be paid more, you just lost your job, or you want to progress in the one you have, Ms. Hines advice and expertise can help you transform your personal brand. She can show you how to package yourself and make your brand a hot commodity. It's easy once you know the ropes and begin to utilize her insider's secrets. She shows you step by step how to increase your visibility, credibility and marketability with easy to use tutorials and templates.

It is time to get started "Packaging Yourself."

Email me the Chief People Packager @ pkgcoach@aol.com

The Secrets to Networking Success

Recently I was interviewed for a book on networking. My first response was, "Hey, I don't network. I hate that stuff."

In other words, you won't catch me dead shaking hands and passing out business cards at a local Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting. Nor do I cold call. Nor do I wander around conferences with my hand thrust out saying, "Hi, my name is Nick Usborne." It's just not part of my character.

I guess that was my view of "networking".

But as I started writing, answering each of the interview questions, I realized that I network as much as the next person. I just go about it a different way.

The more I think about it, we all network, one way or another. If you think this doesn't apply to you, just make a quick mental tally of the people you know in your industry. People you have worked with, exchanged emails with, met somewhere.

Have a look at your address book. If you have more than the names of your personal friends and family, you're already networking.

>> Why this is important

Whether you are employed right now or a freelancer, networking is essential to your future. Nothing happens without knowing other people. None of us advance in our careers in blissful isolation.

We get a job offer because someone knows about us. We pick up a new client for our freelance business because someone referred us to someone else. We are asked to write articles because an editor or webmaster read something else we had written.

Every step forward we take can usually be traced back to knowing someone.

>> Different Networking strokes for different folks

Some people seem born to walk up to strangers and introduce themselves. If that sounds like you, then you already know how to expand your current network of contacts.

But if, like me, you're not an outgoing person who loves to get out and meet people, you need to find other ways.

For me, my network has grown almost entirely through people contacting me after reading an article I have written, reading my book, or listening to me speak at a conference.

In other words, I network by making myself visible through writing and speaking. My network grows as more and more people get in touch with me.

>> A key to successful networking

Whenever I am offered a speaking or writing project that I feel might be "beyond' me, I jump at it. Why? By stretching myself I not only get my name and talents exposed to a new audience, but I also get in front of an audience that is a little higher up on the food chain.

Let me explain. If I was asked to speak at a local Chamber of Commerce meeting, I would find myself in front of a group of local business people. For me, that's not a good audience.

But last year when I was invited to do a half-day seminar for the senior editors of the world's Number One web site, I jumped at it. Why? Because I would get to stand up in front of some very influential people in the online industry.

The higher I aim, the more influential and better connected my network becomes.

Whatever method works for you, don't confine your network just to "people like you". Try to expand your network vertically, to include people who are more successful, more influential and better connected than you.

Do that, and in time some exciting new opportunities will start presenting themselves.

To find out more about networking for success, read my review of this guide, Networkaholics Revealed.

Nick Usborne is a freelance copywriter, author and speaker. For more articles and resources on making money as a freelance writer, visit his site, http://www.FreelanceWritingSuccess.com.

Networking: Is Your Approach Too Self-Centered?

It's a classic mistake by networkers: their approach is focused on their own needs rather than on the needs of their contacts.

Fortunately, a popular new book by Bonnie Lowe makes it easy to solve this problem. The book, "Networkaholics Revealed! True Confessions From People Who Networked Their Way to Success (And How You Can Do the Same)," provides strategies and success stories from 49 master networkers.

Many of those strategies focus on how networkers can benefit from being selfless instead of selfish.

The goal is happier contacts, which ultimately translates into long-lasting, mutually beneficial relationships.

"It's natural for people to look out for their own self interests when they start any important activity," Lowe said. "So many people focus their networking efforts on obtaining things they want (more leads, referrals, sales and business).

"But the best networkers know this is a huge mistake. While those desired outcomes are shared by all networkers, people who put others' needs before their own will reap far greater rewards."

According to Lowe, the first and most important step when striving to build a meaningful network is to consciously suspend your self interest.

Then follow these three steps:

1. Ask yourself, "How can I help them?" (instead of "How can they help me?"). Give a lot of thought to what you can offer them, such as:

Something they cannot do.

Something they will not do.

Something they do not want to do.

"If you can do any of those three things, you immediately have value," said Chip Tarver, author of First Contact Secrets. "If you have value in a stranger's eyes, he/she will think you're worth getting to know. If you don't have value, why would they care about you? Your goal should be to help others. If your only goal is to help yourself, you're not going to be much of a networker, because you'll become known as a 'taker,' not a 'giver.' Givers have the greatest networks and they typically give out of a heart of giving, not out of selfishness to enrich themselves."

Dr. Harlan Kilstein, CEO of Overnight Copy, offers this strategy: "The best thing you can do, well before you meet with people, is find out about them, their businesses, their products, etc. Give them positive feedback. Most importantly, find out what you can do for them. That's the true definition of networking."

Ken McCarthy, Founder of Amacord, Inc., said, "Never look at people as a means to an end. I know a lot of people do that and become successful that way, but they flame out as people around them realize, 'This guy is totally in it for himself; he doesn't care about me.' People figure that out eventually. But if you offer service and are truly helpful to someone, then all doors open to you."

2. Be kind.

"One of my favorite bumper stickers is 'Practice Random Acts of Kindness,'" Lowe said. "That applies perfectly to networking."

Helena Bouchez, Owner of Lenalinks Creative Technical Writing & Consulting, said, "Acts of kindness have tremendous impact and create instant rapport. People do not expect it. You become top-of-mind for the person you help. It's not a linear process. All help given comes back multiplied ? but not necessarily from the person you helped! A lot of people don't understand this and get very fixated on 'score keeping' and extracting something from the person they gave something to. That's not how it works. Generosity creates a positive vibe, and is a magnet for good situations."

3. Be patient.

Some benefits of your generosity will be immediate, but not all.

David Garfinkel, Founder of World Copywriting Institute, suggests, "Take a long-term view about 'getting yours.' Things can happen in a flash, but often you'll help someone and years later, just when you need it, people in your network will be there for you in ways you never could have anticipated."

In Summary

"All business is ultimately about people and relationships," said Lowe. "We all feel better doing business with people we like. When you are generous to others and genuinely care about helping them, they will naturally like you and want to help you in turn."

Giving first also invokes the universal law of reciprocity. In other words, if you do something for someone else, that person feels obliged to return the favor and do something for you.

The end result of all this generosity? Long-lasting, mutually beneficial relationships!

Bonnie Lowe is author of the popular book, "Networkaholics Revealed! True Confessions From People Who Networked Their Way to Success (And How You Can Do the Same)." For more information about this helpful networking resource, go to http://www.Networkaholics-Revealed.com

The Fountain of Youth - Right in Front of Us All This Time!

Can we really stop the aging process, slow it down, or even reverse the effects of aging on our skin and body? It is an enigma for which so many have searched the answers to for years. Now, with advanced modern science making breakthroughs and discoveries every day, the answers have become apparent to the age-old quest for the proverbial fountain of youth.

In large part, your everyday lifestyle choices contribute to the way you age, and at what rateyour body ages. Diet, environmental factors, exercise and the topical skincare products and skin care regimen you choose, all affect the way you are going to appear now and ten, twenty, and thirty years down the road. It's no surprise your lifestyle plays a pivotal role in how your body and skin age over the years, since we've always known diet and exercise affect our energy levels, appearance, moods, and fitness level.

However, several key foods have been found to be very effective weapons not only against aging in general, but also against skin disorders ranging from acne, rosacea, thin skin, and photo aging (sun damage). These foods can even help reverse and repair sun and other environmental damage done to theskin. This powerful weapon is a goup of chemical compounds called antioxidants, and what they accomplish in high doses, along with adequate exercise, can mimic a surgical facelift over a relatively short period of time!

Think about all of the damage your skin is exposed to on a daily basis. It is your largest and most vulnerable organ, exposed to toxins and other damaging elements, like the sun, every day. These elements will actually accelerate the aging process by producing harmful compounds called free radicals, which can damage cells and in turn damage the skin. Antioxidants actually fight free radicals, and reverse some of the damage already done by them in the body.

Precautions to be taken to prevent these nasty little free radicals from wreaking havoc on your skin include wearing sunscreen every day, getting regular moderate exercise, using preventive skin care (cleansers, lotions, gels, creams, etc.) formulated with powerful antioxidants like Vitamin C and Alpha Lipoic Acid, and making sure your get an abundance of antioxidants in your every day diet. Some examples of foods high in antioxidants include berries (strawberries, bluberries, raspberries, etc.),citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruits, etc.), and vegetables rich in color, such as broccoli, zuccini, spinach, and summer squash.

Green tea is also agreat source of antioxidants, not to mention a better choice than coffee for a pick-me-up. See the following links for more information on where to find these anti-aging priciples: http://www.cosmeticsgalore.com/best-weightloss-supplements-reviews.html/

While there are many foods to be enjoyed while living by the "anti-aging" diet, there are also foods that need to be either avoided all together, or strictly minimized. These are refined sugar, caffeine, and all starchy and white flour products. The resulting surge of insulin created by these foods produces more free radicals and breaks down the cell's defenses against damaging elements, leaving you wide open to more skin damage (ie. wrinkles, skin disorders, and other premature aging effects).

These foods are highly inflammatory by nature, and while they may taste good going down, know that they are destroying good cells and allowing for future damage by weakening the cell's defenses further. Eating these foods results in less tone and definition. The skin "droops", hence the creation of fine lines, wrinkles, and dull color. You will know a person that has a high sugar and high carb diet by looking at their face. They may have almost a "doughy" appearance to their skin, lacking the sharp definition and tone enjoyed by those who follow a healthy diet based on the anti-aging principles.

So, there you have it, some of the core concepts that will get you started to minimizing and even reversing the affects of aging. This is really just the tip of the iceberg. There is actually a lot more information on these concepts available that would be well worth your time to learn. What you do with these principles is up to you, it's just a matter of making some minor changes for a longer, happier and healthier life. I'd say that is definitely worth the investment!

Danna Schneider is the webmaster of the beauty and makeup product review and advice website CosmeticsGalore.com http://www.cosmeticsgalore.com - providing reviews and research on everything from natural breast enhancement products and cellulite treatments to self tanners, acne treatments, and makeup.

She is a cosmetics and beauty product researcher and enthusiast.

Missing Link to the Immune System

For decades science has been looking for the answers to our health problems in proteins and fats. Carbohydrates have long been overlooked - thought just to be energy or calories and play no other significant role.

But recent science has found eight super carbohydrates that are essential for the production and proper function of glycoproteins. Glycoproteins or GPs are the communication mechanism the cells use for everything from cell differentiation in embryonic development to distinguishing healthy cells from pathogenic invaders, to constructing immune factors and calling them to a needed area. This new science is just coming out in physiology and biochemistry books now, like Harper's Biochemistry 1996 edition. If these eight essential saccharides are not available in adequate amounts, these and many other systems in the body may be impaired. Since only one or two of these super carbohydrates are obtained in our modern diets, supplementing the diet with all the essential saccharides is the best way to insure optimal health and immunity.

This new field of glyconutrition is attracting the attention of the medical and scientific communities as the greatest breakthrough in the understanding how to activate the immune system as well as many other processes. It has become the new buzz in the scientific community and is sending shock waves throughout the medical industry. Continuing Education Courses are being taught on the subject and there are medical conventions held totally on this subject.

One of the recently discovered functions of GPs is in the development of babies during pregnancy. GPs are what allow the body to know when to stop making one type of tissue, like liver, and begin making bone or kidney. Some believe this may be an answer to preventing many birth defects. There also have been studies showing the body's inability to respond effectively to viruses, bacteria, and even genetic impairment as a result of a deficiency of the essential saccharides. Numerous medical studies on a variety of health problems have been and continue to be published.

This is the most exciting discovery ever regarding the immune system. The scientists and doctors who originally developed and standardized the active ingredient in aloe vera (one essential saccharide called mannose), have now through scientific advancements found natural sources of the other 8 known essential (mono)saccharides. This glyconutrient complex provides not just one, but all the essential components making the 8 or more major components and minor critical components that when deficient may prevent proper function of GPs, cells and genes. Mannose from the gel in aloe vera's inner leaf is only one component. Other components include: Arabinogalactan (Larix decidua), gum ghatti, & gum tragacanth.

Now that it is known that there are at least 8 or more essential saccharides and 75 critical components; the standerdized glyconutrient complex makes other aloe products obsolete. Who would ever want to buy and use any aloe product or other plant with only one of the saccharides in adequate levels when you can have them all? Now scientists have found proprietary methods to optimally blend and deliver the components of GPs in high enough concentrations in a way that they can be utilized in the body. And still maintain the natural live food form.

New radioactive tracking studies show that individual saccharides are digested directly, absorbed and formed into GPs. A whole new level has been reached with this product. One & only one company has a proprietary blend with all the needed precursors. They have the complete vehicle containing all the essential parts, not just one part like other products. Not just a wheel or motor but it is the complete vehicle. It is the cell communication system.

The same patent holding doctors & scientific team, that in early stages developed and patented the saccharides from aloe, are now furthering their research by developing the ultimate glyconutrient blend. Dr. McAnalley brought his scientific team works with him to this end. They not only have the ability to do what was done before, but they are developing far beyond the limits of Aloe alone. Originally, all they knew about or had was the one component from Aloe. Now they have gone on to discover a proprietary way to provide all the necessary components into a powerful food. The patent is actually for all known essential saccharides. So as more are discovered and proven to be essential they will be added into the patent protection belonging to Dr. McAnalley's team. Special patents called "Composition of Matter" patents have also been applied for on the technology so even if someone else was able to design a way to make them bio-available the special "Composition of Matter" (COM) patents prevent it. Only in cases of an exceptionally important and unique discovery are these COM patents granted. Due to work by this scientific team, they now have combined all that is in aloe along with the new discoveries into the glyconutrient complex. The scientific team found proprietary sources to obtain these substances and they are not disclosing the sources to prevent copying. But they are all plant sources. Obviously this blend of the saccharides is more effective than any one saccharide would be if taken individually. You want them all in your diet because if you are deficient in any one, your system may not be able to perform many essential tasks.

Since most of these super carbohydrates are missing in our diet, the body may try to synthesize them if possible. This is very difficult requiring, in some cases, hundreds of enzyme reactions. This obviously is not occurring as it should in most of us, if in anyone, due to deficiencies of enzymes and nutrients, or toxins, in our food and environment. It is evident proper GP production is not occurring. GPs are the letters that cells spell with to communicate. When the body is deficient in the saccharides cells can not produce GPs or communicate with other cells or the immune system. Not only are the cells not communicating and receiving immune help as they should but the pathogens, the bad guys, also are deficient in these saccharides and therefore are not communicating their identity. This causes them to be invisible to the immune system. One of our major problems has been that our immune factors have just not been able to identify the pathogens; so it has been impossible to eliminate them. Once these glyconutrients are added into the diet the viruses, bacteria, or yeasts start communicating and our immune factors can detect them. So not only are the good cells now able to call for help; and the immune factors now functioning optimally; but greatest of all, the pathogens are no longer able to survive by being unidentified.

Therefore as expected, now that the lights are turned on for these hidden pathogens, the immune system goes into high gear destroying them and discharging them from the system. This may be observed by mucous discharges from lungs or sinuses or by skin rashes and acceleration of other elimination systems. This is exciting to see our bodies finally able to rid themselves of these toxins that would otherwise continue to build up in the body diminishing good health and longevity. And no more auto-immune aggression to good cells that previously could not say, I'm OK; I'm you, don't destroy me.

Glucose, or regular sugar, is already excessive in our food, so the glyconutrient blend does not need to contain extra glucose that may be a problem for diabetics or those on calorie restrictive diets. There are trace amounts of Glucose naturally in the sources which the other monosaccharides are derived. The other saccharides, (which in chemistry are referred to as sugars), are in a cell food state and do not stimulate insulin production, or need insulin to digest them. They are not a problem for diabetics like sugars that reduce to glucose & fructose. Since they are basically in a digested cell food state already they can be used directly by the cell and are not like sugar as we think of it.

Foods are digested down to saccharides for use by cells. The particular plant source they originated from is irrelevant and won't cause allergy reactions. The monosaccharides are from all non-animal sources. Regardless of what some may say who have not yet learned this science or who do not know how the product is made, it really does work. The science is available in peer reviewed journal articles, unlike other products which may only have clinical trials.

Don't you think any Dr. who does not know of the science of Glycobiology that has won the Nobel Prize in Medicine 5 out of the last 8 years is unreliable? This netraceutical won the American Naturapathic Medical Association's biochemical breakthrough of the year award also in 1996.

With the amazing scientific developments of Dr.'s McAnalley, Dr. McDaniel and the rest of the scientific teams, they are continually advancing products for optimal health, immunity and leading the glyconutrient field.

Zach Thompson works internationally as a Glyconutritional Consultant. He lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of rural Virginia. He serves primarily the USA, Canada, the UK, Australia, & New Zealand. His clients range from Professional & Olympic Athletes to those with auto-immune disease & children with Learning Disabilities. He uses exclusively Pharmaceutical-Grade Glyconutritonals, & Dietery Supplements that meet or exceed the criteria set forth by The Council for Responsible Nutrition in his practice. The consumption of Organic & chemical-free foods along with a low-glycemic diet plan is an integral part of of his clients path to wellness. You can get more information at: http://www.myglyconutrientstore.com .

Toxic Metal Removal Through Restored Protein Anabolism. Focus: Mercury Toxicity

Toxic metals exist in our environment as pollutants in our air, soil, water and consequently our food supply. We face the added challenge of the toxic metals in our fillings (silver/mercury amalgams) and the thimerosol mercury compound that has been used as preservative for over half a century in our vaccinations. These metals build in our tissues causing our systems to malfunction on many different levels

Mercury has basically two forms: Organic and inorganic, and both are toxins. Inorganic mercury is found in or near: thermometers, barometers, dental fillings, batteries, electric wiring and switches, fluorescent lights, pesticides, fungicides, vaccines, paint, skin-tightening creams, spills, antiseptic creams, pharmaceutical drugs and ointments. Organic mercury becomes methyl mercury when combined with carbon by water or soil organisms. It can bioaccumulate and pass up the food chain. This occurs in marine life and can be found in farm animals and produce. Humans can convert inorganic to organic forms. The concentrations in the body are highest in the brain and kidneys. It has also been reported in the red cells, liver, muscle tissues, and gall bladder.

The current main treatments for toxic metal removal are IV chelation with artificial compounds EDTA, DMPS and DMSA. Only EDTA is FDA approved. Interestingly EDTA (Edetic Acid) says on its International Chemical Safety Card: "EFFECTS OF SHORT-TERM EXPOSURE: The substance irritates the eyes, the skin and the respiratory tract. The substance may cause effects on the kidneys." And, "??Do NOT let this chemical enter the environment."

There are various alternative methods with substances that have mixed success with oral chelation. Because all of these current methods use standard evaluation methods; urine, feces, blood, and hair, they are limited to collected specimens and do not evaluate the tissues involved directly. SuperNutrient Corporation adds another dimension in testing for imbalances, metal toxicity and the effects of oral chelation of toxic metals through protein anabolism. Our methods of kinesiology (particularly Applied Kinesiology), and EAV (Electroacupuncture According to Voll) brought us into the use of the meridian (acupuncture) channels and points that had specific meaning diagnostically. Dr. Voll identified the protein, carbohydrate, and fat enzyme production points of the pancreas. Dr. Vickery then identified the cause of the pancreatic malfunction in enzyme creation and supplied the answer with SuperNutrient's essential amino acids formulas.

The Vickery-Voll Test revealed that nine out of ten patients in clinical practice had a positive test meaning varying degrees of inadequate dietary protein digestion from a pancreas that was literally in deficit production of necessary enzymes. This was later named the alpha xP Factor. Years of clinical testing revealed that the best approach was the use of an optimal formula of free form essential amino acids. Most enzyme formulas and amino acids that had many non-essential amino acids did not work as well or stopped working after various lengths of time. The Vickery formula seemed to help the individual synthesize their own particular enzymes better than enzymes from beef, swine or fungi.

Cells can destroy their own proteins to fulfill the essential amino acid production requirement, but ultimately this is exhausted. Normal healthy metabolism demands the constant influx of essential amino acids to maintain homeostasis. These are derived from the dietary protein intake with the aid of a balanced blend of essential amino acids.

As the scope of the protein deficiency and its impact on human health was observed daily in clinical practice, it became apparent that this nutritional crisis was the core problem underlying the many common health issues we see today including hypoglycemia, spinal disk lesions, osteoporosis and fibromyalgia. With essential amino acid therapy our patients have shown spinal disk degeneration (the basic cause of back pain) reversal in ten hours as well as rapid heavy metal detoxification.

Mercury, lead, aluminum, cadmium and arsenic readily are removed from the body as seen in fibromyalgia and other patients. Major detoxification mechanisms work in the cells and primarily the liver. Sulfation, in which the key player is glutathione, removes excess hormones such as estrogen, adrenaline, and testosterone. Stress raises the levels of production of these hormones and increases the need for glutathione. Metallothionein, a newly discovered enzyme works closely with glutathione in metals removal: MT lll is found in the brain and MT l and ll are found in the rest of the body. Glutathione is a tripeptide containing cysteine, essential,(sulfur bearing), glutamic acid, and glycine. MT (again sulfur bearing) has methionine and cysteine making up 1/3 of the chain which is 1/2 essential amino acids.

Platinum Plus Essential Amino Acid formula was specifically designed to enhance the phase ll detoxification of the liver with the additions to the original Essential Amino Acid formula of 200 mg of MSM sulfur and 30 mcg of molybdenum which are essential. Phase ll wraps up the heavy metals so that they may be eliminated from the body. If this is not accomplished they will remain in the fat tissues, brain, nerve sheaths of the body. In all of the cases of Fibromyalgia there was complete elimination of the five metals tested.

It should be readily apparent that the limiting factor in maintaining adequate supply of the body enzyme systems which control function, and structure is availability of that essential amino acid needed for synthesis of the enzymes and other proteins necessary for health and longevity. The point of this information is simple. Lack of digested complete dietary protein is causing degeneration and disease. SuperNutrient Corporation's, http://www.supernutrient.com, balance essential amino acid formula is designed to correct this critical metabolic malfunction.

Dr Vickery, edited Nina Stout

That Cookie Might Kill You!

Chances are you may have had a food product that contained Trans Fatty Acids. What's the danger you ask? I 'm about to share with you just a little of the hidden dangers and certain death that some of the most popular foods you eat can cause.

Do you eat foods such as, vegetable shortenings, margarine, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked goods, and other processed foods made with Trans Fatty Acids with are hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils? Well if you do you are putting yourself and your family at risk for very serious diseases like Alzheimer's, Coronary Heart Disease and Type 2 Diabetes!

What are Trans Fatty Acids? These are hydrogenated oils that are created by fusing gas and oils together with what's called a metal catalyst. The catalyst is made of, nickel, aluminum or cobalt. The oils and hydrogen are fused together in temperatures reaching over 400 degrees, thereby changing the molecular structure of the oil.

Keep in mind that the metals that are used in the process of hydrogenation arehighly toxic to your body with prolong use, which to me is bad enough, but the real culprit is the fact that the hydrogenated oils are "altered" and "unnatural" so your body cannot eliminate them naturally. Aluminum by itself has been shown to cause Cancer and Alzheimer's disease!

Kraft Foods, whom by the way is owned by Phillip Morris (the tobacco company) manufacturers everything from cheese to nutritional bars admits on their official website that and I quote "Consuming Trans Fatty Acids is directly linked to Coronary Heart Disease." They also say that the use of TFA (hydrogenated oils) improve the "texture" and "freshness" of certain products.

The fact is that companies use these oils because the cost is cheaper, the oil does not go rancid and quickly and they get more volume from the hydrogenation process thereby allowing them to sell more of it! Did you know this??

The FDA states that food manufacturers can list their products as, 0 Trans Fat on their labels if the amount of Trans Fat is less than (0.5 grams) per serving.

Now how many of you eat The Suggested Serving Size that's on the packaging?????

The New England Journal of Medicine -- June 24, 1999 -- Vol. 340, No. 25, states," product labeling is not enough because fast foods contain high amounts of trans fatty acids and are exempt from labeling regulation". They also state, "Changing the use of hydrogenated oils to un-hydrogenated oils would substantially reduce the risk of coronary heart disease."

So with all this knowledge, what are your alternatives? Mono or polyunsaturated fats that are found in Olive and Peanut oils are the best oils to use. These oils do not clog your arteries but you should still use them in moderation. Please stay away from anything pre packaged and don't fry your foods, bake them instead. Start cooking "real foods" again!

In closing, please take care of yourself. Do not think because you may be young, physically active or even "vegetarian" that you cannot fall victim to the deathly additives in food products today. Read labels! With every meal you consume, you are either poisoning or your nourishing your body!

Salkis Re is a cosmetologist licensed in both New York and Georgia and a member of the American Cancer Society Look Good Feel Better program. She started her crusade to uncover the dangers of foods after the death of her own father to the disease of diabetes.

For more information on food dangers and natural alternatives please email her at naturesbesinc@aol.com

Death, Aging, Rejuvenation (Part 1)

I would like to raise a question: Is Rejuvenation possible and how to approach it? This is just my own opinion about possible procedures. I used certain techniques based on a theory. As strange as it sounds some of those techniques and procedures might actually worked.

There are several hundreds theories of aging. New and old ones. Different authors classify them differently.

I would divide all those theories into 2 groups :

1. Theories of Deterioration from external cause. "Wear and tear". Theory of free radicals damage is most fashionable at present time. Antioxidants are considered a cure. Benefits of caloric restriction are often explained by that theory. The theory has good objective support in scientific literature. Other theories of this group included changes of bacteria in the gut, radiation and accumulation of mutations during life of an individual, etc. - many more of those theories were discussed in the XX century. 2. Internal clock - theories.

I would divide the "internal clock" theories into 2 more subgroups: 1. Internal clock on the level of cell. Telomeres shortening is the most discussed in literature at present. 2. Internal clock on the level of organism. Growth hormone changes was a recent example of discussion.

Authors are usually very cautious and objective in scientific literature. Telomeres are usually discussed in connection with "immortal" cancer cells. Caloric restriction is discussed as a mean of longevity (not rejuvenation per se). Level of growth hormone (GH) or insulin-like growth factor drops in aged persons.

Mass media speculates wider: telomeres restoration - possible immortal life, growth hormone will rejuvenate you, etc.

Original scientific studies usually do not speculate about this. In no way for example drop of GH level in elderly means that just giving it back will make you young again.

Scientific literature rarely discuss "Rejuvenation" as it is. Authors mostly talk about "longevity". This is very different story. Longevity in a wheelchair is very distinct from a youth playing soccer. One proven method to reach longevity is caloric restriction. Often they say it is the only proven technique. Using antioxidants as a method to prolong life is in the same category. To put simple, the Theory says: nutrition produce products of oxidation - peroxides, etc. These products damage DNA, proteins, etc. Cell ages. Caloric restriction switches metabolic pathways. There are less free radicals. Hence longevity. Antioxidants work in similar way - they remove free radicals. Another speculation is that caloric restriction starting at young age delays reproductive age in animals and this slows down biological clocks and prolongs life until an environment with high nutrition supply is found. Animals look small and undeveloped.

Caloric restriction significantly (25%-100% and more) prolonged life in worms, flies, spiders, rats, mice, etc. Experiments on monkeys and humans are under way and will take decades.

Well, it is all good in experiments and theories. Some argue: why in this case prisoners of concentration camps do not live longer. Another example came from "Scientific American" - a person had caloric restriction of something 20 years or more - no effect - he just looks like very thin undernourished person of 50 years. Examples of opposite opinion also exist (tribes or groups with low food consumption or high antioxidants consumption have more centenarians than general population). Maybe you really need to start at 10 years of age, look malnourished and weak for the whole life and live to 100 years, getting to your puberty at 25. Antioxidants also bring many controversy. Vitamin E did not show many benefits though it was a big hope for prevention of many diseases of old age. And so on. Today there are big trials that disprove the theory. Tomorrow - great experiments that confirm the theory, at least partially. Many big trials and experiments are published in leading journals - Science, Nature, PNAS, New England JM, JAMA, etc.

One bias for caloric restriction experiment in my opinion is following. Rats live in cage 30cmX60cm for their whole life. There are at least five rats or 20 mice. They live couple years and die. During the experiments they are celebrities when they live 5 years - some lucky ones. The Food is a balanced mixture of nutrition. Caloric restriction is - 60% of their regular meal. They practically don't move - there is no space in cage. Mostly they sleep whole day. Sometime they fight and mate. They live in those conditions at Yale, at Med U of South Carolina, at Russian State Medical University and I think everywhere else. To compare our fellow humans we would place 10 people on area of 20 square metres (200 sq. feet) for 50 years in a row, feeding them with what they want but all the same - let say junk food from McDonalds.

I remember my cat (who was partially wild) stole meat and ate until it started to vomit. He repeated it many times when he was able to steal some steak or whatever. The same happens in wild - lions have maybe one successful hunt out of ten. When they catch a prey, they eat like crazy. Much more than they can digest at the moment. So it looks like there is an instinct. Eat as much as possible. This is not a joke - 60% of people in western countries are overweight. Abundant high calorie food and lack of activity. It does not seem that for these people any internal mechanism restricts food consumption. Applying this back to rats, we can see that what is considered normal consumption - "ad lib" - maybe actually big overfeeding of the animals in these cages.

In this case 60% of caloric restriction would be just what rats need, just what the calories they spend in lazy, uneventful daily life. So called "control", "normal" rats - that fed as they usually fed might be compared for fat overweight humans. They consume junk food. They prone to the bunch of diseases of obesity and low activity. Heart diseases, strokes, variety of cancers, arthritis, etc.

In this case all the hype about caloric restriction would just be brought to the business of mere balancing diet and activity in so called "calorie-restricted animals". I haven't seen any discussion of this problem. I might be wrong. This is why I use caloric restriction for myself. I did not work with worms and spiders. But my guess would be that they all are also in artificial standardized conditions. "Control" worms might be also overfed. To put rats into bigger cages (to increase activity in control group and balance calories and catabolism) would be incredibly expensive.

Even at present conditions because of "animal lovers" and bunch of other regulations and considerations (e.g. sterile conditions), the price of animal housing is sky-high.

You would say animals in wild would live longer because they balance activity and consumption. Well, recently I read that life span of animals in wild is shorter than animals in captivity. Correct me if I am wrong: pandas live 15-20 years in nature and 20-30 in zoos, bears 20-25 in nature and 30-40 in captivity. Civilization has certain benefits - vaccinations, good medical care, more or less good hygiene. So just moving into wild conditions wouldn't make you younger or allow to live longer.

Now, to discuss rejuvenation procedures, I would need to talk about aging first. In this case Rejuvenation could be considered as reversal of aging (deterioration). Longevity is different story - it is prolonged life span. Rejuvenation supposedly should lead to longevity. But longevity is not equal to Rejuvenation. Aging leads to Death eventually. It is easier to discuss from that end.

All written here is just plain speculation, take it with a grain of salt.

- continued in Part 2

About The Author

Aleksandr Kavokin, MD,PhD

http://www.geocities.com/aging_rejuvenation/

http://www.geocities.com/usmle_test

aging_rejuvenation@yahoo.com

Pineapples: The Healing Fruit Of The Tropics (Includes A Recipe For Pina-Banana Orange Smoothie)

For a natural and tasty way to improve your health and boost your healing capacity, add fresh pineapple and pineapple juice to your diet. Pineapples are nutritionally packed members of the bromeliad family. This delightful tropical fruit is high in the enzyme bromelain and the antioxidant vitamin C, both of which plays a major role in the body's healing process.

Bromelain, a natural anti-inflammatory with analgesic properties, encourages healing, promotes well-being and has many other health benefits. Bromelain is very effective in treating bruises, sprains and strains by reducing swelling, tenderness and pain. This powerful anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect can also help relieve osteo- and rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and reduce postoperative swelling. Additionally, bromelain can relieve indigestion. The enzyme contained in fresh pineapple helps break down the amino acid bonds in proteins, which promotes good digestion.

Pineapples also provide an ample supply of vitamin C, a commonly known antioxidant that protects the body from free radical damage and boosts the immune system. Vitamin C helps build and repair bodily tissue and promotes wound healing. The body uses vitamin C to help metabolize fats and cholesterol, absorb iron, and synthesize amino acids and collagen. Collagen is one of the primary building blocks of skin, cartilage and bones. Vitamin C also decreases the severity of colds and infections.

Furthermore, due to its high vitamin C content, pineapples are good for your oral health as well. Recent studies have found that vitamin C can reduce your risk of gingivitis and periodontal disease. Besides increasing the ability of connective tissue to repair itself, vitamin C also increases the body's ability to fight invading bacteria and other toxins that contribute to gum disease. Periodontal disease, which destroys gum tissue and underlying jaw bones, has been linked to heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.

So if you are searching for a natural way to enhance your body's healing mechanisms, promote overall good health and tantalize your taste buds, pineapples are the way to go. Choose the fresh fruit because it has the most healing properties. Unfortunately, most of the bromelain in canned pineapple is destroyed due to the heat used in the canning process.

When choosing a fresh pineapple, do not judge ripeness solely based upon color. There are several varieties on the market that range from green to golden yellow. The most important factor in determining ripeness is smell, let your nose help you decide. Ripe pineapples give off a sweet, fresh tropical smell. Avoid pineapples that give off an unpleasant odor or have any soft spots or areas of dark discoloration. Once home, let the pineapple sit on your counter at room temperature until ready to use. This will preserve its sweet and tangy flavor.

To prepare pineapple, you need to peel it, remove the eyes (the thorny protrusions within the puffy squares of the skin) and the fibrous center. One way to do this is to remove the top of the pineapple with a sharp knife. Then cut the pineapple lengthwise into 4 wedges (quarter it) and place each pineapple wedge horizontally on a cutting board. Carefully cut the fruit from the outer skin, and cut out the eyes and fibrous center core.

Another way is to cut off the top and bottom of the pineapple, place the pineapple vertically (upright) on a cutting board and carefully slice off the outer skin. With a sharp paring knife or the end if a vegetable peeler, remove the eyes. Don't cut too deep, just enough to lift out the section that contains the eye. Then, slice the pineapple crosswise and remove the fibrous core individually with a cookie cutter.

Once the fruit is prepared, it can be diced and eaten fresh, added to salads and entrees for an exotic flavor, or made into tasty tropical drinks and smoothies.

To get you started, try Monique N. Gilbert's delicious, nutritious, cholesterol-free smoothie recipe. It's high in bromelain, vitamin C, beta carotene, potassium, thiamin (vitamin B-1), riboflavin (vitamin B-2), iron, fiber, omega-3 fatty acids and soy isoflavones.

Pina-Banana Orange Smoothie

__________________________________________

1 frozen banana

1 cup fresh pineapple

1/2 cup soymilk

1/3 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon canned pumpkin

1 tablespoon ground flax seeds

1 tablespoon honey (optional)

__________________________________________

Place all of the above ingredients in a food processor or blender. Blend for 1-2 minutes, or until smooth and creamy. Makes about 2-3/4 cups (2 servings)

Copyright (c); Monique N. Gilbert - All Rights Reserved

Monique N. Gilbert, B.Sc. is a Health, Nutrition, Weight-Loss & Lifestyle Coach; Certified Personal Trainer/Fitness Counselor; Recipe Developer; Freelance Writer and Author of Virtues of Soy: A Practical Health Guide and Cookbook. http://www.MoniqueNGilbert.com

She has offered guidance in natural health, nutrition, fitness, weight-loss and stress management since 1989. She has received international recognition for helping people get healthy, manage stress, lose weight and keep it off. Through her coaching program and writings, Monique motivates and teaches how to improve your well-being, vitality and longevity with balanced nutrition, physical activity and healthy living. For more information, visit her website.

Aspartame -More Dangerous Than High Fructose Corn Syrup

It's really hard to believe that something could be worse than the intense sugar loads from high fructose corn syrup and sucrose. But, Aspartame ( Equal, Nutrasweet, Equal Measure, Spoonful, Canderal) is even more dangerous to your health.

Aspartame, was first discovered in 1965 when Searle chemist Jim Schlatter, who was developing this drug for another purpose, accidentally licked some from his finger and found it to be sweet tasting. The ingredients in aspartame are phenylalanine(50%), aspartic acid (40%) and methyl alcohol(10%).

Aspartame Approved by the FDA in January 1981

Even after about eight years of steadfast refusal by the FDA to approve this dangerous drug for human consumption, Searle tried one more time, the day after the inauguration of the President in 1981. The previous commissioner of the FDA had been "removed" and a new one installed. Despite an FDA agency investigation into this "approval by political triage," the drug has not been removed from the market and the investigation was, in essence, abandoned.

Why get embalmed before it is absolutely necessary?

Methyl alcohol, also known as "wood" alcohol breaks down in the body to formaldehyde and DKP(diketopiperazine). Formaldehyde, as many of you probably already know, is embalming solution and highly toxic to the central nervous system. Why get embalmed before it is absolutely necessary? Methyl alcohol causes blindness and if the dose is large enough, it can cause liver and kidney failure. DKP is a known carcinogen and causes brain tumors. According to the National Cancer Institute there has been a 10% increase in primary brain tumors since 1985. There has also been an increase in brain tumors in children whose mothers consumed aspartame throughout pregnancy.

Phenylalanine and Aspartic Acid

These are both amino acids that are normally supplied by the foods that we eat. However, when they are isolated and supplied in very high concentrations, they are toxic to the central nervous system causing headache, mental confusion and memory loss, balance problems and seizures. These ingredients have been classified as excitotoxins.

Excitotoxin Damage

Excitotoxin damage usually takes weeks to months to years to become clinically apparent. Excitotoxins are also strong generators of free radicals thus accelerating aging of most organ systems, significantly the vascular system, immune system compromise inducing cancer and the musculo-skeletal system resulting in arthritis. Joint pain is one of the chief complaints of those with aspartame poisoning.

The Blood-Brain Barrier

Aspartame is especially dangerous to those who already have disease, the unborn and those less than one year old. Diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking and aging compromise the blood-brain barrier. This barrier in the fetus and neonate is not well developed. These groups are especially sensitive to the damaging effects of aspartame since the barrier that would keep the excitotoxins out of the brain is either compromised or not developed yet. No wonder birth defects are also associated with Aspartame.

Formaldehyde (besides embalming)

It is known that formaldehyde accumulates in the areas of the brain that correspond to the neurodegenerative symptoms of Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's disease. Aspartame has also been shown to cause seizures in susceptible people, even with no prior history.

Aspartame and Pilots

When I was a Flight Surgeon in the Air Force we were always concerned about any alcohol ingestion 24 hours before flying. Now, pilots have to be concerned about aspartame ingestion before flying, since it can induce vertigo / disorientation and seizures. If you are flying commercial, hope that your pilot isn't drinking diet soda.

Visual Impairment

During the years of prohibition there were many cases of blindness due to consumption of methyl alcohol, since ethanol (the typical alcohol of most drinks, beers etc) was banned. Today we have an ophthalmologist in West Palm Beach, Florida Dr. H.J. Roberts, who has treated hundreds of aspartame victims. One quarter of his patients have experienced blindness. According to Dr. Roberts "optic nerve swelling, retinal degeneration and visual impairment, that is associated with heavy aspartame use, is identical to the pathology observed in recorded cases of methanol toxicity from drinking wood alcohol throughout the days of prohibition." This gets especially problematic since the American Diabetic Association still recommends aspartame. What is frequently misdiagnosed as diabetic retinopathy is often aspartame retinopathy.

Below is a partial list of other diseases that aspartame toxicity can mimic or worsen. The list currently totals about 92 symptoms and diseases.

Multiple Sclerosis

Parkinson's Disease

Lou Gehrig's disease

Diabetes

Hypertension

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Obesity ... yes, aspartame can actually cause weight gain.

Phenylketonuria (PKU)

Phenylketonuria is a rare inherited (genetically recessive) metabolic disease that can result in mental retardation and other neurological problems if treatment is not started in the first few weeks of life. The defect is either complete or partial absence of the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase that metabolizes phenylalanine to tyrosine. In view of the fact that aspartame is 50% phenylalanine, it is an absolute contra-indication for anyone with PKU. Carriers for the trait are also at risk for problems with aspartame. There are over 100 different genetic mutations with enzyme activities from zero to normal. For more information on aspartame and phenylketonuria follow the link below:

http://www.sweetpoison.com/phenylketonuria.html

Michael J. Fox, Aspartame and Parkinson's Disease (or) "Diet Pepsi Rots Your Brain"

Michael J. Fox developed Parkinson's at age 30. He was at one time a spokesman for Diet Pepsi and was known to be addicted to Diet Pepsi. Follow the link below for more on this:

http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=684893

To see a very interesting movie about "political triage" and the eventual "approval" of aspartame by the FDA follow the link below:

http://www.soundandfuryproductions.com/Pages/Rumsfeld.html

For more on the dangers of aspartame follow the links below:

http://aspartamekills.com http://dorway.com

Today's Health Tip

Avoid aspartame completely. If you must drink sodas, you are better off to drink the non-diet variety. It is much easier to lose a few pounds of fat, than be treated for a brain tumor, Parkinson's disease or blindness.

Read labels very carefully. Aspartame is in, at last count, over 7000 foods, beverages including beer, sports nutrition drinks and bars and even vitamins.

If you are going to drink diet sodas, make sure to keep them cool, as the breakdown of aspartame (which proceeds unchecked even still in the can) is temperature and age dependant. The higher the ambient (storage) temperature, the more methyl alcohol and formaldehyde will be present in your soda. Also, the older the can of aspartame laden diet soda, the more methyl alcohol and formaldehyde will be present in the can.

Reference:

Stryer Biochemistry Fourth Edition

Could There Be Evils Lurking In Aspartame Consumption? By Christine Lydon, MD http://www.aspartame.com/lydon.htm

The MericleDiet makes it easy to get off of all sweeteners, sodas, candy and sports nutrition. It also makes it easy to get off of any packaged or processed foods that may contain or hide aspartame.

Thanks for your attention.

Copyright (c); John Mericle M.D. 2005 All Rights Reserved

To signup for Dr. Mericle's Newsletter or visit the MericleDiet please click on the link below.

http://www.DrMericle.com

http://DrMericle.com is devoted to achieving optimal health and peak performance through diet and lifestyle change. Dr. Mericle brings together a unique blend of formal training in organic chemistry and biochemistry, medical education, 29 marathons, 3 Hawaii Ironman competitions and a lot of practical real life experience.

What on Earth is an Enzyme?

Enzymes are the workers in our body that make everything function, by enabling chemical reactions. All living cells contain enzymes. They are hard to visualize, since they are not something tangible, but they are essential to our bodies and our lives depend on them.

There are many kinds of enzymes, and they do everything from helping us breath to helping begin life at conception. Eighty percent of our DNA code relates to enzymes. But the kind of enzymes discussed here relate to our digestion and the food we eat.

In the process of digestion, the digestive enzymes in our bodies break down food into tiny microscopic parts that the body can use for fuel, growth and repair. One food may take hundreds of different types of enzymes for the body to digest.

Food is naturally filled with enzymes, called ?food enzymes?, that help us to digest that food. The problem is that when we cook or process it, we kill those enzymes. Temperatures over 118 degrees will destroy the enzymes. A good example of this is pineapple, which has some very powerful digestive enzymes in it. These enzymes work so well that when added to gelatin (like Jello), the enzymes won't allow the gelatin to thicken. So they only kind of pineapple you can add to gelatin is canned pineapple, which has been cooked and processed so that all the enzymes have been destroyed. It is now safe to add to gelatin, but not as good for your body.

Our body can manufacture enzymes, called digestive enzymes, in the pancreas. But when we eat a diet that is filled with mostly cooked and processed foods, depleted of enzymes, the pancreas is forced to work much harder than it was meant to, manufacturing the enzymes the body needs to digest these foods.

So the pancreas ends up overworking, and the body spends much needed energy and resources on digestion instead of important things like boosting the immune system, growth, repairs in the body and fighting disease. Even worse, if the pancreas becomes so overworked that it shuts down, then bits of undigested food start floating around the body in the bloodstream, causing all kinds of trouble.

The pancreas can be healed in time, with a diet of raw foods filled with enzymes. This same kind of diet, filled with raw fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts, will keep the pancreas from getting that bad to begin with, and will enable the body to spend it?s energy on more important processes like boosting the immune system and fighting disease.

This is why it is so vital that we eat a diet containing lots of fresh enzyme filled raw foods. Especially in the world we live in today, where we are surrounded by poisons and things that cause cancer. We need these wholesome foods now more than humans ever have in the past, to help our bodies stay disease free and functioning properly.

By Dianne Ronnow, (c); 2005 Mohave Publishing. All rights reserved. This article can be found at the Enzyme Health web site at Enzyme-Health.com.

Dianne Ronnow's best selling book reveals how thousands of people are losing weight and getting healthier adding coconut oil to their diets. To find out what the secrets of coconut oil are, Check out her site at: Coconut-Oil-Diet.com. Get the book now and start losing weight today!

Adding to Your Level of Health is the Key

Here is a continuation of the light and darkness metaphor: a bucket of water. The bucket represents you. The water represents your level of health. What happens is that we all come into life with unique buckets. Written on the inside of your bucket is a list of all the symptoms and diseases that you are predisposed to.

When you were born you had a certain level of water in your bucket. Any symptoms or diseases that are written on the inside of your bucket above your water level, are the symptoms and disease you express.

Almost every one has symptoms that are above the water level of health: like fatigue, bad eyesight, low energy, allergies, headaches, and other minor symptoms. Many of these symptoms that you express are symptoms that you ignore because you think they are just part of life.

What you and most other people have done up until now is to take a symptom that is written above the water-line in the bucket and move it down below the water-line. And magic, no more symptom. The symptom was treated and now it is gone. What happened to the water level in the bucket when you treated the symptom and moved it lower in the bucket? That's right, nothing. Nothing happened to your level of health.

After a while the symptoms get all crowded and nudge around to make more room, and end up pushing some other symptom or disease above the water level on top because all the symptoms below need more space. This is why people who treat their symptoms are constantly having new symptoms they need to treat. Whether they treat their symptoms naturally, or with drugs and surgery, they are constantly treating their symptoms, and more keep coming.

What happens in life is that we also put holes in our bucket. As the water leaks out, more and more symptoms and diseases come up above the water level. We express more and more symptoms.

Some common examples of "holes in the bucket" are drinking alcohol, eating sugar, taking drugs (both prescription and over-the-counter), taking street drugs, experiencing stress, putting poisonous chemicals like pesticides, herbicides, and other things into our body from the food we eat, smoking, mis-perceptions from faulty belief systems, etc.

Many people in the natural health care field got smart, and figured out that if you get someone to quit putting holes in their bucket, the water level in the bucket will go up. Because the body is always striving to be healthy.

But most people are either treating the symptoms or plugging the holes.

Up until this point, most people have not even considered anything outside of this paradigm of treating symptoms. They believed that treating symptoms was what you did to help people heal. Whether you treated symptoms naturally, or with drugs and surgery, all there really was to do was to treat symptoms. I mean, what else is there?

How about putting a hose in the bucket and turning it on? Turn the hose on full force. This will increase the water level in the bucket dramatically.

Adding water to the bucket is what no one has even considered as an option, let alone figured out how to do it. Well, I have done both, and that is what I will share with you, how to add to your health in a later lesson

Again, symptoms and disease are what is written on the inside of your bucket. When your health gets low, you begin to express symptoms and disease. If you add health to your bucket, your body will heal, and you will express fewer symptoms and disease.

You can treat the symptoms and you can plug the holes in your bucket. And you can put a hose in your bucket, and turn it on, thus increasing the level of your health.

When you treat or fix some symptom or disease in your body, although the symptoms or disease may be gone, you have done nothing to improve your health. Health is the thing to be added to. Health is the physical existence. And when you add to the bucket of health, the body naturally heals symptoms and disease.

Learn how the "cause" of symptoms and disease is completely and totally irrelevant. How you do not need to know the "cause" in order to heal and be healthy. This and this article are Part of a Free e-Course on Dieting and Eating Healthy. Go to http://www.bazuji.com/ecourse to sign up for the free e-course. Do you want to be Sexy, Slim, Slender and Healthy for Life. Dr. Jamie wants to help give you this with his "non-diet." He is also giving you dozens of valuable free gifts to "ethically bribe" you into helping him make his new book, "The Ultimate Non-Diet" a #1 best seller. For details go to: http://www.TheUltimateNonDiet.com/free

The 9 Most Common Mistakes to Avoid When Reading a Food Label

Nutrients

Fat, Sugar, Sodium and Carbohydrate

The sections on a food label shows the name of a nutrient and the amount of that nutrient provided by one serving of food. You may need to know this information, especially if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or are eating a diet that restricts certain nutrients such as sodium or carbohydrates.

Food labels also include information about how much sugar and protein is in the food. If you are following a low-sugar diet or you're monitoring your protein intake, it's easy to spot how much of those nutrients are contained in one serving.

Vitamins, Minerals and Other Information

The light purple part of the label lists nutrients, vitamins and minerals in the food and their percent daily values. Try to average 100% DV every day for vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and fiber. Do the opposite with fat, saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol. Try to eat less than 100% DV of these.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Reading a Food Label

Until you become accustomed to reading food labels, it's easy to become confused. Avoid these common mistakes when reading labels:

-A label may say that the food is reduced fat or reduced sodium. That means that the amount of fat or sodium has been reduced by 25% from the original product. It doesn't mean, however, that the food is low in fat or sodium. For example, if a can of soup originally had 1,000 milligrams of sodium, the reduced sodium product would still be a high-sodium food.

-Don't confuse the % DV for fat with the percentage of calories from fat. If the % DV is 15% that doesn't mean that 15% of the calories comes from fat. Rather, it means that you're using up 15% of all the fat you need for a day with one serving (based on a meal plan of 2,000 calories per day).

-Don't make the mistake of assuming that the amount of sugar on a label means that the sugar has been added. For example, milk naturally has sugar, which is called lactose. But that doesn't mean you should stop drinking milk because milk is full of other important nutrients including calcium.

Reading Label Lingo

In addition to requiring that packaged foods contain a Nutrition Facts label, the FDA also regulates the use of phrases and terms used on the product packaging. Here's a list of common phrases you may see on your food packaging and what they actually mean.

No fat or fat free - Contains less than 1/2 gram of fat per serving Lower or reduced fat: Contains at least 25 percent less per serving than the reference food. (An example might be reduced fat cream cheese, which would have at least 25 percent less fat than original cream cheese.)

Low fat - Contains less than 3 grams of fat per serving.

Lite - Contains 1/3 the calories or 1/2 the fat per serving of the original version or a similar product.

No calories or calorie free - Contains less than 5 calories per serving.

Low calories - Contains 1/3 the calories of the original version or a similar product.

Sugar free - Contains less than 1/2 gram of sugar per serving.

Reduced sugar - at least 25% less sugar per serving than the reference food.

No preservatives - Contains no preservatives (chemical or natural).

No preservatives added - Contains no added chemicals to preserve the product. Some of these products may contain natural preservatives.

Low sodium - Contains less than 140 mgs of sodium per serving.

No salt or salt free - Contains less than 5 mgs of sodium per serving.

High fiber - 5 g or more per serving (Foods making high-fiber claims must meet the definition for low fat, or the level of total fat must appear next to the high-fiber claim).

Good source of fiber - 2.5 g to 4.9 g. per serving.

More or added fiber - Contains at least 2.5 g more per serving than the reference food.

With a little practice, you will be able to put your new found knowledge about food labeling to work. Reassess your diet and decide what needs to be changed. Start by eliminating the foods that don't measure-up to your nutritional wants and needs, and replacing them with more nutritional substitutes.

And while you're at it, visit the FDA website and learn about the new labeling requirements, including those for "trans" fat. Like saturated fats, trans fats can raise levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and increase your risk of heart disease. The "Nutrition Facts" panel on food packaging must provide this information beginning January 1, 2006, but most manufacturers will start providing it sooner.

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any health care program.

Emily Clark is editor at Lifestyle Health News and Medical Health News where you can find the most up-to-date advice and information on many medical, health and lifestyle topics.

WLS Patients Feeling Gassy & Bloated? Sugar Alcohol May Be To Blame

Sugar intake is a real concern for people who've had gastric bypass, in fact most patients fear sugar. The foremost fear isn't weight gain, it's dumping. Foods containing sugar pass too quickly through the small pouch, they are rapidly absorbed and cause insulin levels to drop resulting in dumping.

Very unpleasant. Instead of taking chances with sugar many of us reach for "sugar free" sweets or diabetic candy to satisfy our sweet tooth. Many of these products contain sugar alcohol, a natural sweetener derived from fruits and berries. Unlike artificial sweeteners that contain no calories, sugar alcohol has about half the calories of sugar. Diabetics are able to have food with sugar alcohol because it's converted more slowly to glucose and require very little insulin to be metabolized.

While sugar alcohols are low in calories and slow to convert to glucose, the down side is they can cause gas, bloating and diarrhea. I learned this the hard way. One day that devil we call temptation seduced me into buying a bag of sugar-free jelly beans. Jelly beans are dangerous because they are little bites of soft food which means a gastric bypass patient can eat too much volume. I ate the entire bag in about an hour (true confessions of the closet snacker). I soon became uncomfortable with a small tummy ache. The tummy ache turned to bloating, cramping and gas. Extreme cases of all three symptoms. Painful "take me to the hospital I think I'm gonna explode" symptoms. It took a couple of days for my body to return to normal, a couple of stressful and uncomfortable days.

The jelly beans I ate contained Mannitol, a common sugar alcohol extracted from seaweed. I know they contained Mannitol because I read the package mid-way through the crisis. The package contained this warning, "Warning: excessive consumption can cause a laxative effect" Fine time to be reading labels I told myself! Mannitol is found naturally in pineapples, olives, asparagus, sweet potatoes and carrots. It's about 60% as sweet as sugar, so more product is needed to replicate the sweetness of sugar. "Mannitol lingers in the intestines for a long time and therefore causes bloating and diarrhea." Yup! That's exactly what happens all right.

What other names are sugar alcohols called?

Sorbitol is found naturally in fruits and vegetables. It is manufactured from corn syrup. Sorbitol has only 50 percent of the relative sweetness of sugar which means twice as much must be used to deliver a similar amount of sweetness to a product. It has less of a tendency to cause diarrhea compared to mannitol. It is often an ingredient in sugar-free gums and candies.

Xylitol is also called "wood sugar" and occurs naturally in straw, corncobs, fruit, vegetables, cereals, mushrooms and some cereals. Xylitol has the same relative sweetness as sugar. It is found in chewing gums.

Lactitol has about 30-40 percent of sugar's sweetening power, but its taste and solubility profile resembles sugar so it is often found in sugar-free ice cream, chocolate, hard and soft candies, baked goods, sugar-reduced preserves and chewing gums.

Isomalt is 45 - 65 percent as sweet as sugar and does not tend to lose its sweetness or break down during the heating process. Isomalt absorbs little water, so it is often used in hard candies, toffee, cough drops and lollipops.

Maltitol is 75 percent as sweet as sugar. It is used in sugar-free hard candies, chewing gum, chocolate-flavored desserts, baked goods and ice cream because it gives a creamy texture to foods.

Hydrogenated starch hydrolysates (HSH) are produced by the partial hydrolysis of corn. HSH are nutritive sweeteners that provide 40 - 90 percent of the sweetness of sugar. HSH do not crystallize and are used extensively in confections, baked goods and mouthwashes.

Should Gastric Bypass Patients indulge their sweet tooth with sugar alcohol?

The American Diabetes Association claims that sugar alcohols are acceptable in a moderate amount but should not be eaten in excess. In addition, weight gain has been seen when these products are overeaten. Personally, I'm not dipping my sticky fingers into sugar-free candy again. For gastric bypass patients generally the key, as in all eating, must be moderation, not a full bag of jelly beans. And of course, we can always rely on the old advice of conventional dieters, "Hungry for something sweet? Reach for a piece of fruit."

Kaye Bailey is a weight loss surgery success story having maintained her health and goal weight for 5+ years. An award winning journalist, she is the author and webmaster of http://www.livingafterwls.com and http://www.livingafterwls.blogspot.com

LivingAfterWLS is a no-nonsense resource for people Living After Weight Loss Surgery. Our community is growing in numbers even as we are shrinking in pounds. Together we support one another in this lifestyle, that it turns out, is NOT the easy way out.

Fresh & insightful content is added daily, check in often. To subscribe to the LivingAfterWLS monthly newsletter "You Have Arrived" click on http://www.livingafterwls.com and enter your details in the subscription box.

Beans - The Perfect Food?

Beans. Legumes. Pulses. Whatever you call this plant group, they are all edible seeds in a pod. The majority of them are packed with complete plant protein and contain almost no fat. They are also a good source of healthy complex carbs.

Beans helped me turn the corner with my illness, the worst part of which was actually when I was on the mend - though it certainly didn't feel like I was mending at the time.

I was following Robert Young's program. Since I had an urgent need, I skipped the Transition period and went straight to Step 2 - the Cleanse - which should only last a week and should be supervised. In my wisdom (ahem), I decided this wasn't really necessary and got on with it on my own, but when the end of the week came I was having such a strong 'healing crisis' that I was unable to move on to the next part of the program. I was eating a quarter of a tomato a day and stuggling to keep that down. The smell of cucumber turned my stomach. I was eating nothing when I should have been eating dark green veg, sprouts, seeds, grains, nuts and EFAs. But it all made me feel sick - I was desperately weak. I pulled out all my health related books looking for an answer and then I read the following paragraph from Gillian McKeith's You Are What You Eat:

"If you don't eat enough good carbohydrates, you will feel ill. All my patients who stopped eating carbohydrates became weak, constipated, gaunt, irritable and depressed. It's like playing Russian Roulette with your body. I agree that it's a good idea to cut out the bad refined carbohydrates such as cakes, cookies, biscuits and sweets. But the message here needs to be very clear: complex carbohydrates, such as beans, are essential for good health! Eat them regularly."

Other than constipation, I had all the other symptoms. I had lost over a stone in 2 weeks. I knew I had to eat. I could only stand for a couple of minutes at a time, but that was long enough to put a pan of brown rice on the hob, with some cream of coconut, some herbs and a can of kidney beans. Within 30 mins of eating a portion of Jamaican 'Rice n Peas', the nausea had gone, the headache was lifting and I felt nourished and in an altogether better mood. That batch lasted me a couple of days and gave me the strength I needed to start fixing myself more balanced meals.

I continue to eat beans on a regular basis and I promise you that if the rest of your diet is healthy, bottom burps are not an issue!!

Beans can lower cholesterol, prevent heart disease and are great for weight loss. I am eating more now than ever before and yet the excess weight is still coming off - but in a much more gradual and therefore safe and healthy way. Aduki beans are reportedly the best of weight loss. The Japanese use them to treat kidney and bladder infections. They contain very high levels of fibre, vitamin B Complex, iron, manganese and zinc. Their diuretic properties relieve the body of excess fluids and rid it of undesirable toxins and mucus. They burn fat and help balance metabolism.

And so to Haricot beans. There's a lot of talk around at the moment about the Glycemic Index or GI of foods. The GI is a measurement of the quality of carbohydrate in a particular food. It represents how quickly 50g of a given carb will raise blood glucose levels as it's digested. The slower the better basically and the carbs in Haricot Beans have a GI of 38, rated low. So besides being great for metabolism and regulation of your blood sugar levels, they also support kidney-adrenal function, provide an excellent source of protein and fibre and contain those vital B vitamins - great for your nervous system and more help with weight management.

Haricot beans are the beans you find in a can of Heinz Baked Beans. You'll also find a load of sugar, salt and modified cornflour. But there is no reason why you should stop eating Beans on Toast and once you've tried my recipe, there'll be no going back, I'm sure. You'll find the recipe on my blog at http://claireraikes.blogs.com/claires_blog/2005/07/healthy_beans_o.html

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Claire Raikes is a Wellbeing Coach, Speaker and Writer who 'cured' herself of a chronic, disabling and potentially life-threatening bowel condition without the use of steroids, surgery or any other traditional medical intervention. She now shares her passion for natural and vibrant health through coaching, speaking and writing about the importance and power of a truly healthy diet.

She publishes a free weekly eZine, In Essence and is compiling an eBook of Healthy Fast Food with 25% of the proceeds going to The Cancer Project, a charity set up by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and nutritionists to educate the public on the benefits of a healthy diet for cancer prevention and survival. If you have a recipe you would like to submit, visit http://www.LiveInEssence.com for further details. To book Claire to speak at your event, email her at Claire@LiveInEssence.com.

The History of the Acai Berry

The acai (ah-sigh-ee) berry has been around for thousands of years and not until the 1990's was it introduced to the western world. The acai berry was found to possess tremendous health properties. The acai berry was first used by the tribes of the Amazon jungle as a cure for various ailments. It is estimated that the indigenous tribes people routinely use up to 2,000 of the 3,000 known rainforest fruits for medicinal purposes.

The Amazon borders eight different countries and has the world's largest river basin. Not only does the Amazon supply one fifth of the worlds freshwater, it has the highest diversity of birds and freshwater fish. The Amazon is the largest rainforest in the world where one third of all animal and plant species live. The acai berry is just one of these fruits that has been discovered in this vast region. The Shuar tribes are one of these Amazonian tribes that have for centuries, through tradition, kept the use of plants (acai berry) for medicinal purposes.

Shuar medicine men or women are called uwishin (oo-wee- sheen') a healer that works with medicinal plants, somebody who knows all the secrets of the rainforests. Uwishin, have a great deal of knowledge of medicinal plants and their cures, they learn from others, and through experiments from the plants themselves. One plant removes snakes venom from the body. It is the work of the uwishin to research and find solutions to illness.

The acai berry was discovered to have natural antioxidant properties, as well as being a natural cholesterol controller. When eaten it helps reduce the bad cholesterol in our blood and increases the good cholesterol. The tribes of the Amazon knew of these properties and found out that it helped build the immune system, fight infection, protect the heart, and control prostate enlargement (nature's viagra). It was a great energy food for the tribes-people. The acai berry, which is a palm fruit, was traditionally pulped to make wine that was rich in minerals. The acai berry was also discovered to fight schistosomosis, which is transmitted by snails. Schistosomosis affecting more than 10 million Brazilians. The aca¨ª berry is also used to produce an antibiotic that helps to fight against 'Staphylococcus aureus,' a common infection contracted mainly in hospitals. A berry so useful but only known to the traditional tribes men and woman of the Amazon, a lost secret.

The aca¨ª berry comes from a palm that has a long thin trunk up to 25m high with a group of branches at the top from which hangs ribbon-like leaves. Aca¨ª berries hang from these branches in clusters that look like groups of bluebottles. Traditionally the acai berries would be picked by hand and the tribe's men would shimmy up the tree and cut the branches from the top of the palm tree rich in acai berries. Now that the acai berry has been discovered as a highly sort after crop by the population of Brazil it is mass produced, as it only has a 24 hour life span in which the properties of the juice are still active. The acai berries must be loaded into baskets and onto boats soon after picking. To get it to the markets in Belem's they would have to transport the acai berries over night.

Each acai palm tree produces round about 20 kg of fruit per year and the wine produced by this fruit has become the most important product in terms of finance after wood forest products. Belem in Brazil now employs over 30,000 people on a daily basis to keep up with its enormous demand.

So we know where it comes from, what about it's recent history? After being introduced into the western world it was realised by the modern beach going Brazilian surfer as a natural way to regain energy. The acai berry was pulped and frozen to keep it fresh and became a natural additive to the smoothies drunk along the beaches of Brazil. It was known to help your prostate and was seen as a natural viagra for the boys of the beach. It soon became a drink for the trendy, for the sand and surf brigade.

The researches soon got hold of this magic acai berry and realised that it would be of great importance in the well-being and health of the western world, our diets are often over filled with fat and fast food, acai is naturally full with energy, it has a vibrant taste of berries with a hint of chocolate, is rich in proteins, fibre, vitamin E, minerals and essential Omega oils to reduce our bad cholesterol caused by our western diets. The acai berries fatty acid ratio resembles that of olive oil this is thought to be a contributing factor to low incidence of heart disease in Mediterranean populations. The acai berry contains similar properties as red wine in controlling fats in the blood and is a fair contributor to go up against the wine diets of the Mediterranean people.

Known as the miracle fruit, acai berries also helps in preventing cancer due to it's antioxidant properties that are five times more potent than gingko biloba, a commonly used herbal therapy product.

Acai berry juice has been introduced into other products like bars and health snacks to be sold at gyms and health spars. It's history is important as by studying the effects that the berry has had on the tribesmen in the Amazon we have discovered that it's traditional use as an energy booster for hunting and good libido has lead to acai berry juice to being a very commercially viable product.

It's most recent history is that it has been endorsed by such talk show hosts as Oprah Winfrey and has been seen as a feature on her show, a berry with star success. So lets say good bye to guranum and hello to the acai berry.

Todd Levering is a raw organic health food advocate and owner of several health clubs around Seattle, WA. He's mostly known for promoting the health benefits of the Acai berry for it's natural antioxidant properties and the powerful beverage Xocai, which contains Acai. To learn more from Todd about this amazing new beverage, please visit: http://acaipro.com