David Bunnell

Tim O'Connor: Let's Take BPA out of Canned Foods

20 people. 5 families. Fresh food intervention. How low can their BPA levels go?

It sounds like the premise for a reality show. But there are no over-the-top TV antics here. Last week, the Breast Cancer Fund and Silent Spring Institute released a study which tested the levels of the toxic chemical BPA for five families.

Like many average families across America, these families were regularly exposed to BPA in their day to day lives through pretty normal activities: eating canned foods and beverages, eating in restaurants, using polycarbonate water bottles, and/or microwaving in plastic. 

To see if their BPA levels could be lowered, these families were given a fresh food intervention: three days’ worth of freshly prepared organic meals, no canned food, and using only glass storage containers. The results were astounding: When the families took BPA out of their diets, they decreased the amount of BPA in their bodies by 60 percent on average in just three days!

Everyone should be able to be BPA free, but not everyone can because of its pervasive use by major corporations in our nation. 

Now is the time to bring our voices together and to use our collective consumer power, to make sure all families can reduce their levels of toxic BPA.

Our voices are needed because BPA is one of the most pervasive toxic chemicals in our modern lives With 2 billion pounds of BPA produced annually in the U.S., it's no wonder that over 90% of Americans have detectable levels of BPA in their bodies.[2]

Removing BPA from canned foods is a great first step in reducing our nation’s BPA exposure.

Tell major food manufacturers Campbells, Del Monte, and Progresso that enough is enough! We know BPA is dangerous, and we want it out of our food and packaging!

http://action.momsrising.org/sign/BCF_BPA1/?referring_akid=.207249._7z4s5&source=taf

Women make the majority of purchasing decisions, so when we bring out voices together to contact corporations, we can have a powerful impact. And our powerful impact is needed now because laboratory studies link BPA exposure to breast cancer, infertility, early onset puberty, ADHD, and obesity.

Children, whose brains and organs are constantly developing, are particularly at risk and are exposed to more BPA for their size than adults. 

There are ways we can personally work to protect our families from some BPA exposure.

Suggestions from the Breast Cancer Fund and Silent Spring Institute for reducing exposure to BPA and DEHP include cooking at home with fresh foods and making some changes in the kitchen, such as avoiding canned foods, choosing glass and stainless steel food and beverage containers, and not microwaving in plastic. 

But unfortunately, these personal changes are not enough.

We can't avoid canned goods even if we have resources and the time for a pantry overhaul.

Think a canned-foods-free pantry is keeping you BPA-free? Think again.

Restaurants frequently use canned and packaged foods as an ingredients. So even if you've sworn off canned soup, BPA from canned foods is so omnipresent that it can show up on your plate at the local pizza joint, at a five star restaurant, in your children's school, or at the local food bank. 

Like all moms, we're worried about the health and safety of our families. And like all moms, we're busy. That's why we want to make sure that when companies remove BPA from their canned goods, they aren't wasting time by replacing BPA with another toxic chemical.

We're asking Del Monte, Campbells, and Progresso to take BPA out of their foods, and to also be transparent about their next steps for replacing BPA. 

While we start making changes in the kitchen, lets work together to make a big change for the country. Ask America's top canned food manufacturers what they’re doing to get rid of BPA in their products!

http://action.momsrising.org/sign/BCF_BPA1/?referring_akid=.207249._7z4s5&source=taf

Together we can build a safer and healthier nation for all of our children. 

Thank you! 

Tim O'Connor

ronoco55@yahoo.com

Dr. Mercola: What the TSA is NOT Telling You about Full Body Scans

There are about 350 full-body scanners being used in close to 70 U.S. airports, and that number is expected to increase to 1,000 scanners by the end of 2011.

Dubbed "naked" scanners because they give a graphic image of your body, including genitalia and other personal effects like sanitary napkins, the devices are raising privacy and health concerns among frequent travelers and pilots groups alike.

The alternative is also causing outrage. Those who opt out of being scanned must now submit to a far more intrusive form of pat-down, and a large number of horror stories have already surfaced, where people of all ages have been humiliated, or worse, during these 'enhanced' pat-downs.

Ten of the most outrageous ones can be found here.

Are Full-Body Scanners an Invasion of Privacy?

Increasing numbers of people are expressing their outrage over being submitted to full-body scanning. Already the U.S. Travel Association has received hundreds of e-mails and phone calls from angry travelers who say they will stop flying until the scanners are no longer in force.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) has also sought a court order to stop the use of the scanners, citing privacy and health risks and calling for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to conduct a public rule-making to assess the safety and security issues.

Marc Rotenberg, president of EPIC, wrote on CNN.com:

"The courts give the government a great deal of latitude in airports, but it is not unbounded, and the current screening procedures -- the digital X-ray cameras called "body scanners" and the genital-groping searches called "pat-downs" -- have never been reviewed by a court.

Is a court really prepared to say that in the absence of suspicion, these search procedures -- which the law would otherwise treat as sexual battery -- are "reasonable"?

… No other country in the world subjects its air travelers to the combination of screening procedures that Americans are being asked to endure."

Pilots' unions for US Airways and American Airlines have also urged their pilots not to submit to Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) screening due to potential health risks and privacy issues.

Grassroots efforts are also underway, with one online group at the Web site WeWontFly.com likening the scanners to a strip search.

They say:

"We are opposed to the full-body backscatter X-ray airport scanners on grounds of health and privacy. We do not consent to strip searches, virtual or otherwise. We do not wish to be guinea pigs for new, and possibly dangerous, technology. We are not criminals. We are your customers. We will not beg the government anymore. We will simply stop flying until the porno-scanners are history."

There are also concerns that the images from the scanners could be saved, an assertion the TSA denies. However, reports have already surfaced of workers saving such images and using them to humiliate colleagues.

Should TSA Agents Be Allowed to Sexually Violate Passengers?

You can opt out of the full-body scans at this time, but doing so means you will be subjected to an "enhanced physical pat-down" during which TSA agents use open hands and fingers to search your body physically, including your breasts and genital area. Previously, agents would use only the backs of their hands during pat-downs.

Some of the horror stories now emerging are causing a fury, and rightfully so.

Is there no limit to how far TSA agents can go when frisking passengers?

Take the case of a female flight attendant who was forced to pull out her prosthetic breast, for example. Several other women have reported feeling shocked by what they call "sexual violations," including having their labia groped without warning. TSA agents have even been accused of treating young children in such a way that they'd be brought up on child molestation charges had it not occurred in an airport.

The following video contains several examples of such outrageous cases.

There are stories of all sorts of inhumane treatment, such as the one from Tom Sawyer, a bladder cancer survivor whose urostomy bag was ruptured by an unconcerned TSA agent, leaving him covered in his own urine. In an interview with MSNBC.com, Sawyer said:

"I am a good American and I want safety for all passengers as much as the next person. But if this country is going to sacrifice treating people like human beings in the name of safety, then we have already lost the war."

According to Jeffrey Goldberg, a national correspondent for The Atlantic, these 'enhanced' tactics are purposely designed and intended to be intimidating and humiliating, in order to stop you from opting out of the scanner!

Need to Fly? Submit to Humiliation or Face $11,000 Fine

Making matters even worse, not to mention bizarre, once you're at the security check, there's no turning back; you have no choice but to submit to either, or both, of the new and enhanced security techniques, according to the TSA.

"The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is warning that any would-be commercial airline passenger who enters an airport checkpoint and then refuses to undergo the method of inspection designated by TSA will not be allowed to fly and also will not be permitted to simply leave the airport," the Sun Sentinel reports.

"That person will have to remain on the premises to be questioned by the TSA and possibly by local law enforcement. Anyone refusing faces fines up to $11,000 and possible arrest."

Airports Can Opt Out of TSA Screenings

It's a little-known fact that airports are not required to use TSA screenings at all. They can opt-out of such programs altogether – including the body scanners and "enhanced pat-downs" -- and hire private screening agencies instead.

As Byron York, chief political correspondent with the Washington Examiner, recently wrote:

"… With the TSA engulfed in controversy and hated by millions of weary and sometimes humiliated travelers, Rep. John Mica, the Republican who will soon be chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, is reminding airports that they have a choice.

Mica, one of the authors of the original TSA bill, has recently written to the heads of more than 150 airports nationwide suggesting they opt out of TSA screening.

"When the TSA was established, it was never envisioned that it would become a huge, unwieldy bureaucracy which was soon to grow to 67,000 employees," Mica writes. "As TSA has grown larger, more impersonal, and administratively top-heavy, I believe it is important that airports across the country consider utilizing the opt-out provision provided by law.""

Many airports choose not to hire private screeners out of liability concerns if a terrorist managed to get through, and there's no way to know right now whether such changes would make airport screening any safer or less intrusive. Still, it's an option that many do not realize exist.

Some airports in Florida may ditch TSA. According to Larry Dale, president of the Sanford Airport Authority in Orlando, says the change to a private screening company was approved on Oct. 5, CNN reports.

However, security contractors must still follow TSA security guidelines. According to TSA spokesman Greg Soule:

"All commercial airports are regulated by TSA whether the actual screening is performed by the TSA officers or private companies. The TSA sets the security standards that must be followed and includes the use of enhanced pat downs and imaging technology, if installed at the airport."

Private contractors may, however, be more careful about the professionalism and courtesy of their employees, compared to TSA. According to Larry Dale, "research shows that using a private security screening company would be more efficient and more enjoyable to the public."

Airport Scanners May Cause Cancer

The other glaring issue posed by the TSA scanners has to do with your health and their use of controversial backscatter technology, which projects an X-ray beam onto your body.

As WeWontFly.com stated:

"Backscatter X-ray uses ionizing radiation, a known cumulative health hazard, to produce images of passengers' bodies. Children, pregnant women, the elderly, and those with defective DNA repair mechanisms are considered to be especially susceptible to the type of DNA damage caused by ionizing radiation. Also at high risk are those who have had, or currently have, skin cancer.

Ionizing radiation's effects are cumulative, meaning that each time you are exposed you are adding to your risk of developing cancer. Since the dosage of radiation from the backscatter X-ray machines is absorbed almost entirely by the skin and tissue directly under the skin, averaging the dose over the whole body gives an inaccurate picture of the actual harm."

Scientists from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) sent a letter to the White House Office of Science and Technology echoing the concern that radiation from the scanners could damage skin and underlying tissue, potentially leading to skin cancer.

The White House Office responded that the technology had been tested extensively for safety, but the scientists noted numerous flaws in the response and are currently preparing a rebuttal.

Because the radiation beam from the scanners concentrates on your skin, researchers believe the dose may be up to 20 times higher than is being estimated.

As Mail Online reported, Dr. David Brenner, head of Columbia University's center for radiological research, also noted that about one in 20 people, including children and people with gene mutations, may be at increased risk as they are less able to repair the DNA damage caused by the x-ray scan.

Even the U.S. Airline Pilots Association (USAPA) recognized the potential risks, especially from frequent exposure. As CNN reported, Capt. Mike Cleary, president of the USAPA wrote:

"Based on currently available medical information, USAPA has determined that frequent exposure to TSA-operated scanner devices may subject pilots to significant health risks."

Scanners Use Harmful Ionizing Radiation

Some of the TSA's full-body scanners subject your body to small doses of ionizing radiation.

Ionizing radiation creates charged ions by displacing electrons in atoms, even without heat. Examples are radiation emitted from radioactive substances in rocks and soil, cosmic rays of the sun, and radiation from man-made technology such as x-ray machines, power stations, and nuclear reactors.

A host of epidemiological studies have strongly suggested that x-rays and other ionizing radiation are a cause of most types of human cancer. X-rays may even be responsible for most of the deaths from cancer and ischemic heart disease, according to John Gofman, MD, PhD, a professor at U. C. Berkeley and one of the leading experts in the world.

Ionizing radiation is a uniquely potent mutagen due to its ability to wreak havoc upon your cells and their genetic code.

Your cells are unable to repair the very complex genetic damage done by x-rays. Some of the mutated cells die, but others do not, and the cells that go on living have a proliferative advantage -- giving rise to the most aggressive cancers.

Unlike some other mutagens, x-rays have access to the genetic molecules of every one of your internal organs, if the organ is within range of the x-ray beam. Even a single high-speed, high-energy electron, set into motion by an x-ray photon, can bounce around and cause you irreparable damage.

That is why there is no safe dose of x-rays.

Further, the effects of radiation are cumulative, which means that every time you walk through an airport scanner, you're adding to your dose. If you fly frequently or you're exposed to other forms of radiation through CT scans, mammograms and other medical procedures, you could easily be on radiation overload.

Fears of Radiation Exposure May Be Overblown...

It is important to place this radiation exposure risk in its proper perspective.

Let's look at the reported numbers.

Screening at an airport x-ray scanner produces .02 microsieverts of radiation. But REMEMBER you are only getting them because you are going on a flight. Nearly everyone forgets that when you fly there is also ionizing radiation exposure. In fact on a typical transcontinental flight at 30,000 feet you will be exposed to 20 microsieverts of radiation.

That is one THOUSAND times the dose you receive from the scanner.

So if you are willing to accept the risk of air travel radiation how could you possibly justify concern about these scanners?

However, having said that this past year I became aware that the way to reduce your air travel radiation by 99 percent is to fly at night. Just as it is impossible to get a suntan at night, you will avoid virtually all of the radiation when you fly at night.

That is why I nearly fly exclusively at night now, or as far away from noon as practically possible.

I also take 2 mg of astaxanthin every day, which is believed to radically limit damage from ionizing radiation.

But please understand the main point of this article: the REAL health danger is from CT scans, which is FIFTY THOUSAND times the radiation dose of one of these scans. You would have to have one scan every day for 136 years to equal the radiation of one CT scan.

The issue of whether or not the alternative – being groped and potentially humiliated during an 'enhanced' pat-down – is warranted, or even legal, is another issue altogether…

Analysis Only Works if We Aren't Being Lied to

Please understand that this calculation and risk proposal is based on the reported radiation levels. If we are being lied to then all bets are off and we need to reanalyze, but if the numbers are accurate you would have to have to have 100 scans to equal the radiation exposure of one daytime flight.

Radiation is NOT the Only Health Hazard of Full-Body Scanners

That said, "the radiation dose is likely the least of the problems with airport screening," according to Dr. Jane M. Orient, M.D. In her article for the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), she details what the medical community considers to be the REAL health hazard of full-body scanners, namely the use of low-energy backscatter technology.

Dr. Orient explains:

"They use an ingenious low-energy backscatter technique, which is apparently wonderful for identifying explosives in cargo. Since the radiation doesn't penetrate far, it wouldn't affect an unborn baby. But it does concentrate the dose in the skin.

Some scientists warn that this effect has not been properly studied, and one nuclear medicine expert told me that he is going to opt out of the scan. I think this much is clear: if you had a deadly disease, and the scanner were an FDA-regulated device that might save your life, your doctor wouldn't be allowed to use it, because of inadequate study."

Likewise, two scientists who recently spoke with CNN point out the potential for backscatter technology to cause fatal skin cancer. CNN reports:

"The risk of harmful radiation exposure from backscatter scans is very small, according to David Brenner, director of the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University and a professor of radiation biophysics.

But he said he is concerned about how widely the scanners will be used.

"If you think of the entire population of, shall we say a billion people per year going through these scanners, it's very likely that some number of those will develop cancer from the radiation from these scanners," Brenner said.

Skin cancer would likely be the primary concern, he said. Each time the same person receives a backscatter scan, the small risk associated with the low dose of radiation is multiplied by the number of exposures.

... The TSA says each backscatter scan emits radiation equivalent to just two minutes of cosmic radiation at altitude.

Peter Rez, a professor of physics at Arizona State University, disagrees. Rez has independently calculated the radiation doses of backscatter scanners using the images produced by the machines.

"I came to the conclusion that although low, the dose was higher than they said," he said.

Based on his analysis, Rez estimates each scan produces radiation equivalent to 10 to 20 minutes of flight.

... The probability of dying from radiation from a body scanner and that of being killed in a terror attack are roughly the same, he said. About one in 30 million.

"They're both incredibly unlikely events. These are still a factor of 10 lower than the probability of dying in any one year from being struck by lightning in the United States."

Who Stands to Gain Financially from Full-Body Scanners?

As in so many other instances, our legal and civil rights system is being willfully manipulated and trampled for the sake of private and corporate profits.

In this case, the former homeland security chief and co-author of the PATRIOT act, Michael Chertoff, is now the primary promoter of full-body scanners, and is a paid consultant for the companies that sell them!

As Dr. Orient said in her AAPS article:

"… if your doctor had an ownership interest in the scanner, he might go to federal prison for referring you for a scan. These anti-kickback laws, however, do not apply to the influential government cronies who stand to make a fortune from the scanners."

It's just the latest in a very long line of blatant conflicts of interest and corporate agendas that have, and continue to, erode our personal freedoms in the name of "security."

What Can You do if You're Planning to Fly?

As for the level of health hazard, I sincerely believe the most significant risk you have when flying is due to ionizing radiation but NOT from these scanners; it is from actually flying at 35,000 feet. We were never meant to be living this high above the ground

So what can you do?

The simplest solution is to fly at night or at least avoid flying from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with noon being the worst. If you fly at night you can reduce your radiation risk by 99 percent because nearly all of the radiation from the sun is being blocked by the earth.

If you are unable to fly at night for whatever reason the next best solution I have found is to use the most potent lipid-soluble free radical antioxidant I know of, which has been shown to virtually eliminate the risk of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. It also helps prevent sunburn. 

And just what antioxidant would that be?

It is astaxanthin, which is carotenoid extracted from a marine algae. The typical dose is 2 mg, but the key is that it needs to be taken for about three weeks before your radiation exposure.

This is not only helpful for exposure to high-altitude radiation but any radiation from the airport scanner or even CT scans, which are 10,000 times stronger.

If you opt for the pat-down, keep hygiene in mind.

Dr. Orient also brought this issue up in her AAPS article:

"… what about the transmission of scabies, crab lice, bedbug larvae, and all manner of germs by TSA gropers? Do they change gloves and wash their hands between subjects, as hospital personnel must do?"

According to eye-witnesses, TSA agents do not routinely change gloves between each passenger… So, the obvious remedy would be to insist the agent puts on a fresh pair of gloves before touching you and your child.

As for the humiliation factor that these enhanced TSA security checks present, I would encourage you to contact your local government officials and state representatives, or join the "We Won't Fly" campaign.

The campaign site also lists 24 additional ways you can make your voice heard on this issue.

My Wellness Coach: Top 12 Places You Risk Getting Infected

Germaphobia, anyone? 

1. Your kitchen sink: With more dirt than a typical bathroom, and over 500,000 bacteria per square inch in the drain, your kitchen sink basin and faucet are teeming with germs.

2. Airplane bathrooms: Never mind the fecal bacteria that’s commonly found on door handles and faucets, the worst part is the tornado of germy particles that’s spewed into the air when you flush the toilet.

3. Wet laundry (even after it’s been washed): A dirty pair of underwear contains about a gram of fecal matter, and this gets spread around the entire load of laundry very quickly. It’s not until you dry the clothes that the germs are destroyed.

4. Drinking fountains: All public drinking fountains are loaded with germs, but those in schools -- which contained anywhere from 62,000 to 2.7 million bacteria per square inch of the spigot -- were the worst.

5. Shopping cart handles: While you’re innocently shopping for groceries, your hands are grasping a handle covered in saliva, bacteria and fecal matter from dozens of people.

6. ATM buttons: Think about how often these buttons are touched everyday. Now think about how often they’re cleaned. This explains why one study found an average of over 1,200 bacteria on the average ATM key.

7. Your handbag: Women, your purse is likely overrun with thousands, and even millions, of bugs like salmonella, E. coli, staph bacteria and more. Makes you think twice about putting your handbag on the floor, and then plopping it down onto your kitchen counter, doesn’t it?

8. Playgrounds: Your typical children’s playground is covered in bodily fluids like blood, mucus, saliva and urine.

9. Mats and machines at health clubs: Yoga mat? Elliptical machine? Think bacteria factory. Such mats and cardio machines have been found to contain antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria and more.

10. Your bathtub: Bathtubs contain more than 100,000 bacteria per square inch, some of which you have just washed off your own body.

11. Your office phone: Phones get coated with germs from your mouth and hands, to the tune of over 25,000 germs per square inch.

12. Hotel-room remote control: This little remote has been used by hundreds of other people, and likely wasn’t thoroughly disinfected in between.

9 Tips to Optimize Your Glutathione Level--

Glutathione has been called "the mother of all antioxidants," because it is a master detoxifier and because it has great power to reinforce your immune system. Some say it is the secret to prevent aging, cancer, heart disease, dementia and pretty much whatever else might ail you.

Your body produces its own glutathione, but most people still are deficient because it is depleted by poor diet, stress, toxins, pollution, etc. Unless you take glutathione intravenously, as a supplement, is doesn't absorb into the body.  In other words, you can't just take a pills.

But, there are some things you can do. Here's a list from Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D.--

9 Tips to Optimize your Glutathione Levels

These 9 tips will help you improve your glutathione levels, improve your health, optimize your performance and live a long, healthy life.

Eat Foods that Support Glutathione Production

1. Consume sulfur-rich foods. The main ones in the diet are garlic, onions and the cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, kale, collards, cabbage, cauliflower, watercress, etc.).

2. Try bioactive whey protein. This is great source of cysteine and the amino acid building blocks for glutathione synthesis. As you know, I am not a big fan of dairy.  But this is an exception -- with a few warnings. The whey protein MUST be bioactive and made from non-denatured proteins ("denaturing" refers to the breakdown of the normal protein structure). Choose non-pasteurized and non-industrially produced milk that contains no pesticides, hormones, or antibiotics. Immunocal is a prescription bioactive non-denatured whey protein that is even listed in the Physician's Desk Reference.

Exercise for Your Way to More Glutathione

3. Exercise boosts your glutathione levels and thereby helps boost your immune system, improve detoxification and enhance your body's own antioxidant defenses. Start slow and build up to 30 minutes a day of vigorous aerobic exercise like walking or jogging, or play various sports. Strength training for 20 minutes 3 times a week is also helpful.

Take Glutathione Supporting Supplements

One would think it would be easy just to take glutathione as a pill, but the body digests protein -- so you wouldn't get the benefits if you did it this way. However, the production and recycling of glutathione in the body requires many different nutrients and you CAN take these. Here are the main supplements that need to be taken consistently to boost glutathione. Besides taking a multivitamin and fish oil, supporting my glutathione levels with these supplements is the most important thing I do every day for my personal health.

4. N-acetyl-cysteine. This has been used for years to help treat asthma and lung disease and to treat people with life-threatening liver failure from Tylenol overdose. In fact, I first learned about it in medical school while working in the emergency room. It is even given to prevent kidney damage from dyes used during x-ray studies.

5. Alpha lipoic acid. This is a close second to glutathione in importance in our cells and is involved in energy production, blood sugar control, brain health, and detoxification. The body usually makes it, but given all the stresses we are under, we often become depleted.

6. Methylation nutrients (folate and vitamins B6 and B12). These are perhaps the most critical to keep the body producing glutathione. Methylation and the production and recycling of glutathione are the two most important biochemical functions in your body. Take folate (especially in the active form of 5 methyltetrahydrofolate), B6 (in active form of P5P) and B12 (in the active form of methylcobalamin).

7. Selenium. This important mineral helps the body recycle and produce more glutathione.

8. A family of antioxidants including vitamins C and E (in the form of mixed tocopherols), work together to recycle glutathione.

9. Milk thistle (silymarin) has long been used in liver disease and helps boost glutathione levels.

Here's Why Americans are FAT

Via: Online Schools

Dr. Mercola: Average American Drinks 60 gallons of Soft Drinks Each Year

How many sodas have you had today? How about your kids? As of 2005, white bread was dethroned as the number one source of calories in the American diet, being replaced by soft drinks.

The average American drinks more than 60 gallons of soft drinks each year, but before you grab that next can of soda, consider this: one can of soda has about 10 teaspoons of sugar, 150 calories, 30 to 55 mg of caffeine, and is loaded with artificial food colors and sulphites. Not to mention the fact that it’s also your largest source of dangerous high-fructose modified corn syrup.

Let’s take a look at some of the other major components of a can of soda:

• Phosphoric Acid: Which can interfere with the body's ability to use calcium, leading to osteoporosis or softening of the teeth and bones.
• Sugar: It is a proven fact that sugar increases insulin levels, which can lead to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, weight gain, premature aging and many more negative side effects. Most sodas include over 100 percent of the RDA of sugar. Sugar is so bad for your health in so many ways, I even created an entire list outlining 100-Plus Ways in Which Sugar Can Damage Your Health
• Aspartame: This chemical is used as a sugar substitute in diet soda. There are over 92 different health side effects associated with aspartame consumption including brain tumors, birth defects, diabetes, emotional disorders and epilispsy/seizures.
• Caffeine: Caffeinated drinks cause jitters, insomnia, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, elevated blood cholesterol levels, vitamin and mineral depletion, breast lumps, birth defects, and perhaps some forms of cancer.
• Tap Water: I recommend that everyone avoid drinking tap water because it can carry any number of chemicals including chlorine, trihalomethanes, lead, cadmium, and various organic pollutants. Tap water is the main ingredient in bottled soft drinks.

Clearly, the over-consumption of sodas and sweet drinks is one of the leading causes fueling the world-wide obesity epidemic.

One independent, peer-reviewed study published in the British medical journal The Lancet demonstrated a strong link between soda consumption and childhood obesity.  They found that 12-year-olds who drank soft drinks regularly were more likely to be overweight than those who didn't. In fact, for each additional daily serving of sugar-sweetened soft drink consumed during the nearly two-year study, therisk of obesity jumped by 60 percent.

Here’s another sobering fact if you’re struggling with weight issues: Just one extra can of soda per day can add as much as 15 pounds to your weight over the course of a single year!

Other statistics on the health dangers of soft drinks include:

• One soda per day increases your risk of diabetes by 85 percent

• Soda drinkers have higher cancer risk. While the federal limit for benzene in drinking water is 5 parts per billion (ppb), researchers have found benzene levels as high as 79 ppb in some soft drinks, and of the 100 brands tested, most had at least some detectable level of benzene present

• Soda has been shown to cause DNA damage – courtesy of sodium benzoate, a common preservative found in many soft drinks, which has the ability to switch off vital parts of your DNA. This could eventually lead to diseases such as cirrhosis of the liver and Parkinson's

If you are still drinking soda, stopping the habit is an easy way to improve your health. Pure water is a much better choice, or if you must drink a carbonated beverage, try sparkling mineral water with a squirt of lime or lemon juice.

There is absolutely NO REASON your kids should ever drink soda. None, nada, zip, zero. No excuses. The elimination of soft drinks is one of the most crucial factors to deal with many of the health problems you or your children suffer.

If you struggle with an addiction to soda, (remember, sugar is actually more addictive than cocaine!) I strongly recommend you considerTurbo Tapping as a simple yet highly effective tool to help you stop this health-sucking habit. Turbo Tapping is a simple and clever use of the Emotional Freedom Technique, designed to resolve many aspects of an issue in a concentrated period of time.

Related Links:

  The Amazing Statistics and Dangers of Soda Pop 

  Soft Drinks: Disease in a Can 

  Turbo Tapping: How to Get Rid of Your Soda Addiction 

Dr. Mercola: Soda Shipments to U.S. Schools Cut 95%

Soda has no place in a school setting, and it’s encouraging that shipments to U.S. schools are down 95 percent. The reduction is the result of voluntary guidelines instituted in 2006, which called for the removal of full-calorie soft drinks from school cafeterias and vending machines.

Now, instead of slurping down a can of liquid candy, your child can choose from other “healthier” beverages like artificially sweetened diet sodas, artificially flavored waters, fructose-laden juices and hormone-ridden pasteurized milk.

Ok, well I’m being sarcastic. It’s no secret that most schools have a long way to go when it comes to providing students with truly healthy food and drinks … but I digress.

The fact that sugary sodas are no longer front and center in school cafeterias and hallway vending machines is a step in the right direction. Now, if we can get kids (and their parents) to ditch the sodas at home too, we’ll be making real progress, as clearly this is the primary reason why two out of three people are overweight.

Staggering Soda Statistics …

Taking soda out of schools is important and necessary, but for real health improvements to occur, soda consumption needs to go down immensely.

As it stands, soda is actually the number one source of calories in the United States!

Further, this alarming graphic shows just how out of control soft drink consumption has become:

• Americans drink nearly 50 billion liters of soda a year
• 1 billion Coke products are consumed every day
• 21 percent of all the sugar in the average American diet comes from soft drinks

Why Soda Should Not be on Your Grocery List

There is absolutely NO REASON you or your kids should ever drink soda. If you were stranded in the middle of a desert with no other fluid available, then maybe, but other than that … none, nada, zip, zero. No excuses.

What you need to realize is that for the fleeting amount of pleasure you may get from downing a can of soda, serious damage is occurring within your body.

As the Nutrition Research Center reported, within the first 10 minutes of drinking a soda, 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. This is 100 percent of your recommended daily intake, and the only reason you don’t vomit as a result of the overwhelming sweetness is because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor.

Phosphoric acid, it should be noted, can interfere with your body's ability to use calcium, leading to osteoporosis or softening of your teeth and bones.

Within 20 minutes of your last sip, your blood sugar spikes, and your liver responds to the resulting insulin burst by turning massive amounts of sugar into fat.

It’s no wonder soda has been implicated as one of the key factors in the obesity epidemic.

Soda: Disease in a Can

Drinking soda can not only make your fat, it can increase your risk of many chronic illnesses.

One independent, peer-reviewed study published in the Lancet demonstrated a strong link between soda consumption and childhood obesity. They found that 12-year-olds who drank soft drinks regularly were more likely to be overweight than those who didn't.

In fact, for each additional daily serving of sugar-sweetened soft drink consumed during the nearly two-year study, the risk of obesity jumped by 60 percent.

Here’s another sobering fact if you’re struggling with weight issues: Just one extra can of soda per day can add as much as 15 pounds to your weight over the course of a single year!

Other statistics on the health dangers of soft drinks include:

• One soda per day increases your risk of diabetes by 85 percent and your risk of metabolic syndrome 44 percent

• Soda drinkers have a higher cancer risk. While the federal limit for benzene in drinking water is 5 parts per billion (ppb), researchers have found benzene levels as high as 79 ppb in some soft drinks, and of the 100 brands tested, most had at least some detectable level of benzene present

• Soda has been shown to cause DNA damage – courtesy of sodium benzoate, a common preservative found in many soft drinks, which has the ability to switch off vital parts of your DNA. This could eventually lead to diseases such as cirrhosis of the liver and Parkinson's

Another Reason to Avoid Soda: Fructose

The primary sweetener used in soda is high fructose corn syrup, and fructose is, hands down, one of the worst sweeteners you can consume (and is a leading cause of obesity).

Let me clear up any confusion here, as fructose is the primary sugar in most fruits. It isn’t that fructose is intrinsically evil -- it is just the MASSIVE DOSES you and your family are exposed to that makes it dangerous. Because it is so cheap and makes foods taste so much better, it is added to virtually every processed food … including soda.

There are two overall reasons fructose is so damaging:

1. Your body metabolizes fructose in a much different way than glucose. Fructose is broken down in your liver just like alcohol and produces many of the side effects of chronic alcohol use, right down to the “beer belly” Most of the fructose you eat is converted directly to fat unlike glucose where most of it is converted to energy.

2. People are consuming fructose in quantities that are 400-800 percent higher than they were 100 years ago due to its pervasive presence in just about all processed foods

The fructose in fruits and vegetables is also not the same fructose molecule you’ll find in synthetic high-fructose corn syrup, which is manufactured in the lab. Naturally occurring fructose comes along with fiber, enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, whereas fructose sweeteners have no nutritional value.

Additionally, the fructose in fruit is actually attached to other sugars and molecules and needs to be broken down before it is absorbed, which limits the damage it causes. In HFCS it is a free fructose molecule, just as the glucose.

Because these sugars are in their free forms their absorption is radically increased and you actually absorb far more of them than you would if they had been in their natural joined state, which would cause a higher percentage of the fructose to pass to the intestine unabsorbed.

So, I highly recommend you keep all fructose under 25 grams per day (and this includes fruits). You can use the table below to get an idea of how much fructose is in your favorite fruits. Most processed food is loaded with fructose and is best avoided. For instance, there are about 40 grams of HFCS per can of soda!

Fruit Serving Size Grams of Fructose Limes 1 medium 0 Lemons 1 medium 0.6 Cranberries 1 cup 0.7 Passion fruit 1 medium 0.9 Prune 1 medium 1.2 Apricot 1 medium 1.3 Guava 2 medium 2.2 Date (Deglet Noor style) 1 medium 2.6 Cantaloupe 1/8 of med. melon 2.8 Raspberries 1 cup 3.0 Clementine 1 medium 3.4 Kiwifruit 1 medium 3.4 Blackberries 1 cup 3.5 Star fruit 1 medium 3.6 Cherries, sweet 10 3.8 Strawberries 1 cup 3.8 Cherries, sour 1 cup 4.0 Pineapple 1 slice (3.5" x .75") 4.0 Grapefruit, pink or red 1/2 medium 4.3

Fruit Serving Size Grams of Fructose Boysenberries 1 cup 4.6 Tangerine/mandarin orange 1 medium 4.8 Nectarine 1 medium 5.4 Peach 1 medium 5.9 Orange (navel) 1 medium 6.1 Papaya 1/2 medium 6.3 Honeydew 1/8 of med. melon 6.7 Banana 1 medium 7.1 Blueberries 1 cup 7.4 Date (Medjool) 1 medium 7.7 Apple (composite) 1 medium 9.5 Persimmon 1 medium 10.6 Watermelon 1/16 med. melon 11.3 Pear 1 medium 11.8 Raisins 1/4 cup 12.3 Grapes, seedless (green or red) 1 cup 12.4 Mango 1/2 medium 16.2 Apricots, dried 1 cup 16.4 Figs, dried 1 cup 23.0

Tips for Breaking Your (and Your Kids’) Soda Habit

If you are still drinking soda, stopping the habit is an easy way to significantly improve your health. Pure water is a much better choice, or if you must drink a carbonated beverage, try sparkling mineral water with a squirt of lime or lemon juice.

If you struggle with an addiction to soda, (remember, sugar is actually more addictive than cocaine!) I strongly recommend you consider Turbo Tapping as a simple yet highly effective tool to help you stop this habit.

Turbo Tapping is a simple and clever use of the Emotional Freedom Technique/Meridian Tapping Technique (EFT/MTT), designed to resolve many aspects of an issue in a concentrated period of time.

Related Links:

  10 Diseases Linked To Soda

  Drinking Soda Can Paralyze You

  What Happens to Your Body Within an Hour of Drinking a Coke

Beating Diabetes--One Book at a Time

If you are diabetic or know someone who it, this book could be a real life-saver. I have several diabetics in my family. I know from first-hand experience how very hard it is for them to lose weight. And yet, losing weight, could be the very best thing someone could do to keep their diabetes in check or even to reverse it.

Dr. Fred Vagnini, one of the world's leaders in alternative medicine, has been working with diabetics for many years. As a result of this work, "Dr. V," as he is know by his patient and many followers, has come up with a innovate five-step plan. Perhaps better than any approach preceding it, his plan helps diabetics and even pre-diabetics lose pounds without having to resort to drastic diets or bypass surgery.

Dr. V's five steps are simple, easy to understand, and they work. After years of struggle, my aunt Elizabeth lost 30 pounds on this system, and has stopped taking insulin for the first time in 25 years. What better endorsement could there be?

Even though I don't have diabetes, I'm worried myself about metabolic syndrome so I read this book and found it chalk full of great information. Herein lies novel insights from a doctor who obviously cares deeply about getting to the root of diabetes and doing something to eradicate it.

This is so refreshing because it seems to me so many other doctors are only interested treating diseases and profiting from them.

I took the self-assessment lifestyle test and discovered a couple things I can do differently that should keep me from becoming pre-diabetic. One has to do with consistency in my exercise program and the other has to do with eating out too often. So, now I'm jogging more, and I'm avoiding the barbeque restaurant I used to visit 3 times a week.

And I can't believe this, but Dr. V has motivated me to eat more salad and raw vegetables, both of which I never thought I would do.

Least my experience be miss-leading, Beating Diabetes is easy to understand but it is not a simplistic "lifestyle" book--it has real depth and plenty of information which I for one was not aware of. For instance, if you take any of the medications that diabetics take, you will find a very important chapter on side effects and how not to mix your meds with the wrong supplements or foods.

Well over 200 pages, there is a lot of "added value" information in the form of charts, lists and self-tests. I found the "week of meals" chart very useful--not that I could exactly follow it, but that it gave me ideas about portions and about interesting and tasty ways to approach meal planning.

The writing style is clear and all the medical terms are defined. Dr. V doesn't speak down to you, nor does he assume you already know the terminology. He has a real knack for educating people by talking (and writing) directly to them.

I totally recommend this book. You can order it from Dr. V's Amazon bookstore. To learn more about Dr. V, visit is website: vagnini.com

A Fool Speaks OUT on Safety of H1N1 Vaccine

If you are against getting the H1N1 vaccine or won't do this for your kids, then you're in the company of fools.  Here's a fine example:

Download the poster, "How NOT to Get the Flu" for tips and advice for avoiding infection, building your immune system AS WELL AS getting your shot. Look for this on right-hand column of my homepage.

How NOT to get Swine Flu

Because there is no vaccine for swine flu, the best protection you can have is to avoid being contaminated in the first place. 

The flu is contagious one day before symptoms appear and up to five days afterward.  Droplets from the mouth and nose spread influenza, so when an infected person sneezes, coughs, or touches any surface, the virus is spread.

In addition, viruses can live on a cold surface for three days. 

Follow these guidelines to reduce your risk of infection:

Wash Your Hands Frequently.

• If you are unsure about how long is "long enough," wash your hands for the length of time it takes to sing "Happy Birthday" twice. 
• Make sure to wash your hand before eating, after sneezing or coughing, after shaking someone's hand, and after touching anything at all that could possibly be contaminated. 
• To get maximum benefit from hand-washing, use hot water, soap, and a follow-up hand sanitizer such as Purell.

Avoid Touching Anything that could be Contaminated.

• Be somewhat obsessive about not touching contaminated surfaces. 
• Try not to touch things that are frequently used by others such as doorknobs, handrails, "community" keypads or pens.
• Consider wearing gloves when pushing a shopping cart, or using a paper towel to open the door of a public restroom after you have washed your hands.
• Try to avoid shaking hands with others, or kissing them on the cheeks.
• Carry a hand sanitizer with you.
• Most of all, train yourself not to touch your nose, mouth or eyes.

Avoid "Droplets."

• Avoid crowds, if possible, and stay away from people who are coughing or obviously sick.
• Try to fly less frequently, as one sick person on an airplane can infect all passengers.

Buy a "N95 certified" Flu Mask or a "NanoMask."

• In case the Swine Flu epidemic hits your neighborhood, be prepared.

Please send the following url to the people you care about!!

http://www.my-wellness-coach.com/2009/04/how-not-to-get-swine-flu.html