The Bitter Truth…

Well, you’ve asked for it and NaturalCures.com has done it!

The NaturalCures.com team has written a no-holds barred, in-depth, special 130-page exposé on the deadly artificial sweetener, aspartame, and it is on sale now.

The report, Aspartame, The Bitter Truth tells you all you need to know about this dangerous ingredient, which is added to everything from soda to chewing gum.

The NaturalCures.com team of writers have collected some pretty explosive research and articles, and have brought them all together in one great publication. Once you’ve read it, we’re confident you won’t need any more convincing why everyone should cut aspartame out of their diet.

Sweet Poison

We know aspartame is a subject close to your hearts – because it is to ours. The NaturalCures.com team has been doing a bit of research into the topics that interest you the most and they’ve discovered that aspartame is 8 times more searched for on the NaturalCures.com website than any other illness, disease or condition – including cancer, diabetes or Alzheimer’s.

This report is more than 130 pages long and tells you all you need to know about the killer substance the FDA just won’t ban.

Read about the disturbing side effects, which include depression, brain tumors, migraines and seizures, weight gain, gastro-intestinal problems and in severe cases, even death.

Discover how it is more toxic for men than women, its links to blood cancer, and the shocking story of how it became legal, despite damning research about its toxicity. This is one report you can’t afford to be without.

If you have ever consumed aspartame at some point in your life – either knowingly or unknowingly – the NaturalCures.com team will tell you how to cleanse and detox your body from its unhealthy side effects.

This report really is a one-stop shop for all things aspartame, highlighting the harmful effects of the sweetener and laying out a number of interesting viewpoints. Care about your health? Are you still giving soda containing aspartame to your kids? Discover why you should ditch the sweetener today.

Click here to order YOUR copy of Aspartame, The Bitter Truth.

Artificial Meat Not Without Health And Liberty Concerns

February 23, 2012

Activist Post

By Keelan Balderson

“This simple solution to concerns over meat and animal welfare is to become a vegetarian – problem solved.”  –KTRN

Although news that scientists are beginning to develop artificial meat might be considered a step in the right direction for animal welfare, the concept is not without potential health and liberty concerns.

Debate aside about whether eating meat is right or wrong, the fact is people do eat a lot of meat, some 275 million tons in 2007 [1]. The problem, however, is people are eating a lot of bad meat…cows raised on unnatural corn, instead of grass; animals locked in dark cages and pumped with steroids, instead of wandering around in the grass or mud; cloned animals instead of nature’s natural way. This has produced meat that is considerably higher in fat, considerably lower in nutrition, and an attitude considerably lacking in empathy.

A factory-farmed chicken in 2004 for example, contained more than twice as much fat as free range chicken in 1940 [2]. Farming has degenerated, not improved. On top of this we also have a food processing culture that takes this tortured sub-par meat and strips it even further of any healthy contents; mixing it with artificial flavors and preservatives, packing it with salt and sugar, until it’s no longer recognizable as the fresh food our grandparents once ate.

As the disastrous health effects of this frankenfood become more apparent, slowly we’re beginning to see a resurgence of good organic production methods. It’s a renaissance.

Whole Foods is booming in America and moving to the UK. Major supermarkets are being forced to offer organic free-range alternatives. Communities are having grass-fed beef and organic vegetable boxes delivered from local farms. Things are starting to feel natural again, and with innovation of sustainable farming, or, more accurately, fine tuning of farming to the ecosystem, there’s no need to destroy the earth.

Take the Polyface method [3], where the natural instincts and digestive needs of the animals are combined to create an efficient system where the cows eat the grass, then the chickens are moved in to scratch the dung and peck at the dropped grains and new grass sprouts, then their dung fertilizes the soil, and the pigs plow the soil in to fertile compost. All of it in tune with nature.

Click here for the full report.

Many Processed Foods Are Made With A Coal Tar Derivative Chemical That Causes Hyperactivity In Children

February 17th, 2012

 

Natural News

 

By: Mike Adams

 

Would you knowingly feed your children an ingredient derived from coal tar? That’s exactly what you may be doing, if you let them eat any orange or yellow artificially-colored products including sodas, cheese-flavored products, flavored chips, pickles or a myriad of other foods and beverages. The industrial waste-derived coloring chemicaltartrazineis a common ingredient in all these foods, underscoring the need to read food labels religiously. (Why would anyone put artificial colors into pickles? Read the labels, and you’ll see!)

Tartrazine, also known as E102 or Yellow #5, was one of the colorings linked to childhood hyperactivity in a landmark 2007 study conducted by the United Kingdom’sFood Standards Agency. As a consequence, products containing it must carry a warning label anywhere in the European Union.

Not surprisingly, the United States has no such law — even though the coloring has been linked to asthma, migraines and cancer. But since when the FDA ever bother warning the public about dangerous chemicals in their food anyway? After all, aspartame, MSG and sodium nitrite are all legal — so why not add a little food coloring poison to the cocktail and call it “nutrition?”

For The Full Report Go To Natural News

Natural, Herbal, and Alternative Treatments for ADD/ADHD

October 19, 2011

Off The Grid

By Sarah

Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD) are behavioral conditions characterized by a short attention span, which may be accompanied by hyperactivity. Approximately 5 percent of Americans have ADD/ADHD and half to two thirds of children diagnosed with it will carry it into adulthood. Children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD may also have various learning disabilities and may be disruptive in school and other public places.

More boys than girls are afflicted with this disorder. Many are rightly diagnosed with these maladies, but there are those who have been so “branded” just because they are very active, rambunctious children—again boys more often than girls. Just because a school psychologist or other doctor has told you your child’s overactive behavior is ADD/ADHD, it may not be true. Some teachers and school administrators don’t want to have to deal with disciplining active children, so they have them diagnosed and medicated. For peace of mind, get more than one opinion. You may want to have two other doctors, who aren’t connected to the school district, check out your child(ren).

More than 2 million children with ADD/ADHD are being treated with drugs that are equivalent to “legal speed”— stimulant drugs by prescription. There are concerns with this type of treatment. The first is that stimulants can suppress their growth. Next, the side effects they carry and their addictive nature are troublesome. There is also the possibility that those that have these prescriptions may not be taking them, but passing them on to their friends for the “high” that most people get from stimulants.

Dietary Changes:

Once you have determined if you or your child has ADD/ADHD, you will want to choose how to treat it without drug therapy. The first thing to try is changes in diet. Some people are sensitive to refined white flours and sugars. Others are sensitive to chemical additives in food. Before making any dietary changes, talk with your healthcare provider. Among the usual dietary suspects are:

Any artificial flavorings
Any artificial colorings (yellow, green, and red are the worst offenders)
Chemical additives and preservatives (like BHA and BHT)
Milk
Chocolate
Eggs
Wheat
Bleached/Refined Sugar and Flour
Gluten
Foods containing salicylates (chili powder, apples and cider, cloves, grapes, oranges, peaches, peppers, tomatoes, plums, prunes, and all berries)

An elimination diet is the best option to start with. In brief, eliminate the above usual suspects from your diet. Continue this way for several weeks before adding them back in. If there are no behavioral changes, good or bad, you will want to try something else. If behavior improves, then you can begin adding allergens to the diet one at a time. Eat that one allergen, in small quantities, once a day for two or three days. If behavior doesn’t change, you may add another possible allergen and continue in this manner until you have found if any trigger the ADD/ADHD symptoms and behaviors.

Feingold Diet – A type of elimination diet that is well known for its use among ADD/ADHD patients. It eliminates all chemical additives and all foods containing salicylates. It requires vigilant control over the sufferer’s eating habits. It also prohibits aspirin, as it contains salicylates. There has been some successes reported by patients who have tried it, but it would be hard to compel one to stick to it. In any case, it is wise to avoid foods with artificial flavors, colors, and chemical additives in order to ensure a healthy, natural diet.

Essential Fatty Acids – Omega-3 fatty acids found in fatty fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel) and certain vegetable oils (flax seed, hemp seed) are essential to proper brain function. These may also be beneficial to those with ADD/ADHD. But it is not clear if docosahexaenoic (DHA) and eicosapentaneoic (EPA) are advantageous.

Zinc – This mineral is essential for proper metabolism of certain neurotransmitters that have a role in ADD/ADHD. Deficiencies have been found in some with this disorder. However, long-term use of zinc can cause anemia and other side effects in those without deficiencies. Zinc also has no effect on ADD/ADHD in those patients. But testing for trace minerals, like zinc, is not typical when assessing those who are suspected of having this disorder.

Feedback Approaches:

Biofeedback and auditory feedback have shown some success in increasing the attention of children with low academic performance levels.

Neurofeedback – An approach that uses electronic devices to help patients (usually children) control their own brainwave activity. Electrodes are pasted to the head and pick up signals from the brain. Patients watch images, like moving graphs, on a computer monitor reflecting patient’s brain wave activity. Patients are taught certain high-level mental activities when screen images show that they are fully concentrating. Treatment typically recurs in fifty-minute sessions twice a week. Some studies report significant improvement in attentiveness, response time and less impulsiveness.

Interactive Metronome/Musical Therapy – This therapy uses feedback from sound to improve the patients’ attention, motor control, and some academic skills. Patients wear headphones as well as sensors on the hand and feet. They perform various exercises to a rhythmic computer beat. Sessions continue for three to five weeks. Some studies report improvements. Also, parents of some with ADD/ADHD report those who learned to play musical instruments significantly helped.

Non-Drug Treatments:

Some with mild ADD/ADHD symptoms have tried daily massage therapy. This can improve mood and attentiveness and reduce hyperactivity. Some may find relief with relaxation training, prayer and meditation, and music therapy.

Herbs and Supplements – Some find relief with one or a combination of these herbal remedies instead of prescribed drug treatments. Check with your healthcare provider as some do not recommend these for children.

St. John’s Wort
Ginko Biloba
Panax Ginseng
Melatonin
Pine Bark Extract
Listol, a combination of:
Vitamin B6
Iron
Magnesium
Copper
Phosphatidlserine
Di-Methyl Glycine
Glycine
GABA Powder
DMAE Bitartatrate
Huperzine A Extract

As with all alternative health treatments, you should always check with your doctor or healthcare practitioner before starting treatment for any condition.

Click Here For The Full Report From Off The Grid

Processed Foods Linked To Increase In Obesity And Cancer

September 19th, 2011

Natural News

By: Shona Botes

When processed food comes to mind, many people think they are safe because of the fact that they do not consume takeouts or eat at restaurants. The truth is that any food or food product found on grocery store shelves in bags or boxes is in fact processed, as it is not in its natural form. Many of the ingredients in processed foods such as artificial colourants, preservatives and nitrites have been linked to the skyrocketing amount of obesity and cancer among the population today.

Any food which has been canned, frozen, boxed or bagged is classified as processed food. Studies have shown that close to 90% of an average American’s food budget is spent on these frankenfood items. Ingredients found in these foods which should be avoided include colourants, emulsifiers, preservatives, artificial sweeteners, stabilizers, texturizers and even bleach products.

A seven year study done by the University of Hawaii revealed that people who consume processed meat products had a 67% higher risk of falling prey to pancreatic cancer than those who ate few to no processed meat products. According to the World Health Organization, the amount of processed foods that are consumed these days are responsible for the increasing levels of obesity and even heart disease. One of the reasons for this is the high salt, sugar and fat content that is present in these foods.

Most processed foods also contain Trans fats, which are known to increase LDL (bad) cholesterol levels.
Another study found that the consumption of refined carbohydrates such as sugar, high fructose corn syrup and white flour was also linked to various forms of cancer. A study involving 1800 women in Mexico revealed that those who consumed a diet consisting of 57% refined carbohydrates were 220% more likely to suffer from breast cancer than those who ate a balanced and more natural diet. Because of the high quantities of high fructose corn syrup and sugar found in processed foods, they are also linked to increased cases of diabetes and even liver damage. Close to 75% of processed foods contain genetically modified products such as canola, soybean or corn products.

Consuming processed foods can alter your taste buds to the point that you get used to strong tastes and flavours. This results in you wanting to add salt or sugar to alter the taste of whole foods because you can’t seem to `taste` them properly. Another downright shocking fact is that most processed meat or food products contain animal body parts such as eyes, ears, snouts and oesophagi. If anything, this should be enough to put a person off of wanting to consume any processed food or meat products.

Click here for the full report from Natural News

Why ’100% Orange Juice’ Is Still Artificial

August 4th, 2011

The Huffington Post

File this one under “things we always sort of knew, but wish we didn’t.” All that “100% orange juice, not from concentrate” stuff you’ve been drinking? Technically, it’s “not from concentrate,” but it’s not really 100% orange juice either, a report at Civil Eats details.

The process is rather depressing. Gizmodo explains part of the process:

Once the juice is squeezed and stored in gigantic vats, they start removing oxygen. Why? Because removing oxygen from the juice allows the liquid to keep for up to a year without spoiling. But! Removing that oxygen also removes the natural flavors of oranges. Yeah, it’s all backwards. So in order to have OJ actually taste like oranges, drink companies hire flavor and fragrance companies, the same ones that make perfumes for Dior, to create these “flavor packs” to make juice taste like, well, juice again.

Any taste difference in say Minute Maid versus Tropicana is therefore due to the specific flavor pack the company uses. Since these flavor packs are made from orange byproducts, they don’t have to be considered an ingredient, and therefore are not required to appear on food labels. This is despite the fact they are chemically altered.

Perhaps its time to take the juicer out of that dusty corner in the garage.

UPDATE: Karen Mathis, the Public Relations Director of the Florida Department of Citrus wrote HuffPost Food the following letter that offers the citrus industry’s description of the process, without disputing any of the above:

Dear Ms. Polis,

On behalf of the Florida Department of Citrus, I am writing in response to the article on HuffPost Food, entitled “Why 100% Orange Juice is Still Artificial.” Please allow me to share further information.

Purchased by nearly 70 percent of American households, people choose 100 percent orange juice for its great taste and nutrition benefits. Both “from concentrate” and “not from concentrate” orange juice are healthy options that provide a variety of nutrients. By utilizing state-of-the-art technology, Florida is able to provide a consistent supply of high quality, nutritious orange juice year round.

By law, 100 percent orange juice is made only from oranges. The basic principle of orange juice processing is similar to how you make orange juice at home. Oranges are washed and the juice is extracted by squeezing the oranges. Seeds and particles are strained out. Orange juice is pasteurized to ensure food safety.

During processing, natural components such as orange aroma, orange oil from the peel, and pulp may be separated from the orange juice. After the juice is pasteurized, these natural orange components may be added back to the orange juice for optimal flavor.

Please visit www.OrangeJuiceFacts.com for more information about orange juice.

Please feel free to contact me if you’d like to discuss in more detail. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Karen Mathis

Click here for the full report from The Huffington Post

Ben & Jerry’s ‘Natural’ Ice Cream Filled With Unnatural Ingredients

August 20th, 2010

Natural News

By: Ethan A. Huff

Consumer watchdog group Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is calling out popular ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s for using artificial and chemically-altered ingredients in its “All Natural” premium ice creams. According to CSPI at least 90 percent of the flavors used in “All Natural” Ben & Jerry’s ice cream are not actually natural.

Some of these ingredients include corn syrup, alkalized cocoa, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, vanillin, maltodextrin and dextrose, all of which involve some type of chemical processing or are simply artificial. Alkalized cocoa, for instance, involves a chemical process that changes cocoa’s natural flavor, texture and chemical structure, as well as eliminates some of its acidity and healthy antioxidant content. And vanillin is just an artificial version of vanilla.

“Ben & Jerry’s sylvan labels notwithstanding, these ingredients come from the factory, not the farm. And slapping an ‘all natural’ label on the products certainly implies that the products are top quality and deserve to fetch a higher price,” said Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of CSPI. “It’s a stretch to call any of [these ingredients] ‘natural’.”

CSPI has been after Ben & Jerry’s, which is now part of the consumer product conglomerate Unilever, since 2002 over deceptive labeling. After bringing these problems to the attention of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at that time, CSPI has watched the quality of Ben & Jerry’s products get even worse

So now the group is now urging Ben & Jerry’s to clean up its act and fix its deceptive labeling or else face legal charges to be brought before both the FDA and state attorneys general.

Click Here For The Full Article

Watch What You Eat This Holiday Weekend

As the July 4th weekend is just days away, most of us will be surrounded with great weather, fireworks, and a feast of delicious foods. With that said, here are some foods that we all need to watch out for…

Canned Tomatoes
Resin linings of the tin cans contain BPA, which is a synthetic estrogen. It’s been linked to reproductive problems, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, obesity, depression and mental disorders. The acidity in the tomatoes, particularly, cause the BPA’s to leach into the tomatoes. Studies show that BPA in most people’s bodies already exceed the amount that suppresses sperm production and causes chromosome damage to the eggs in women. Americans sare the most infertile people on the planet and it’s caused by things such as these BPA’s. The solution is to choose tomatoes in glass bottles.

Corn Fed Beef
The problem here is that cattle evolved to eat grass, not grain-like corn. But cattle ranchers today feed cows corn and soy beans. Most importantly, these rangers feed the cows genetically modified corn and genetically modified soy beans specifically designed to increase the fat in the animal artificially. The ranchers also feed the cows ground up diseased and dead cows, pigs, horses, chickens and goats. Now, why do they do this? Because it makes them more money. However, that means that the cows are less nutritious and are loaded with toxins and poisons and disease. A recent comprehensive study conducted by the USDA and researchers from Clemson University found that when you compare corn fed beef with grass fed beef the difference is dramatic. The grass fed beef is higher in beta-carotene. It has all types of nutrients, including vitamin E, very healthy omega 3s, and much higher levels of CLA, which is good for your heart, your health, your brain function, your mood and burns fat. Grass fed beef also is much higher in calcium, magnesium and potassium. Grass fed beef also has lower amounts of omega 6s which cause inflammation, like gout. Grass fed beef is also lower in saturated fats and doesn’t have pesticides or antibiotics in them. The solution is real simple, always buy grass fed beef from GrassLandBeef.com. The quality, the taste is absolutely mind blowing and is so much healthier for you.

Microwave Popcorn
Chemicals in the lining of the bag of the microwavable popcorn are part of a class of compounds that are linked to infertility in humans. That was a study conducted at UCLA. The chemicals in the microwave popcorn also caused liver, pancreatic cancer and testicular cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize and migrate into the popcorn. They stay in your body for years and accumulate there over time. What’s the solution? Old fashioned natural non-genetically modified popcorn kernels and pop it the old fashioned way. I’ll give you my little technique. First, I have my grass fed raw butter and my sea salt. Then I get my non-genetically modified, all organic popcorn kernels. I get a stainless steel mixing bowl, I grab some tongs and add a little bit of olive oil or peanut oil to the bottom. I then add my kernels and put some tin foil across the top. I take a fork and pump a couple of holes in it for a little bit of steam because I don’t want the popcorn to steam. And then I put it over the heat and I shake until they stop popping. Then I take my butter, which I’ve melted and I pour it over and throw some salt on there and it is delicious and nutritious.

Non-Organic Potatoes
The problem is that the root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides and fungicides that wind up in the soil. In the case of potatoes, the nations most popular vegetable, they’re treated with fungicides during the growing season then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the vines before harvesting. After they dig up the potatoes, they are treated again to prevent sprouting. Try this experiment. Buy a conventional potato in the store and try to get it to sprout. It won’t. Never eat non-organic potatoes. Always eat 100% organic potatoes. They are slightly more expensive, but they taste better, they’re denser, they’re more nutritious and you’ll eat less.

Farmed Salmon
David Carpenter, medical doctor and director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University of Albany, New York, published a major study in the journal Science on Contamination in Fish. Here’s what the problem is folks, nature didn’t intend salmon to be crammed into pens and fed soy, poultry litter and hydrolyzed chicken feathers, which is what farm raised salmon get fed. These cesspools that the farm raised fish are in, are also loaded with other toxic chemicals and growing agents, as well as, drugs. The results mean farm raised fish have low levels of Vitamin D and are incredibly high in major poison containments, including carcinogens, which are agents that cause cancer. This particular doctor says that you could eat one farm raised fish dinner every five months and still increase your risk of cancer.! So, what’s the solution? When you go to a restaurant, any fish on the menu, ask them if the fish is farm raised. If it’s farm raised, do not eat it. If the package says ‘ Fresh Atlantic.’ It’s still farmed. They lie. There are no commercial fisheries left for Wild Atlantic Salmon. It has to be Alaskan, Norwegian or Tasmanian salmon.

Milk Produced With Artificial Hormones The problem is that milk producers treat the dairy cattle with bovine growth hormone, which is BGH and sometimes called BST. It’s designed to boost milk production so they can make more money. It increases, unfortunately, udder infections and even puts puss into the milk. It also leads to higher levels of a hormone called insulin like growth factor in the milk. Basically, high levels of this growth factor can contribute to breast, prostate and colon cancers in human beings. This is a big problem here. The solution is to always check for BGH or BST-free, produced without artificial hormones, or organic milk.

Conventional Apples
Apples, pears, peaches are loaded with artificial hormones. Like I always say… ONLY BUY ORGANIC!

Folks, have a very safe and happy 4th of July weekend!

Yours in Health,
KT

Chocolate Milk A Better Muscle Recovery Than Sports Drinks

June 17, 2010

Natural News

By S.L. Baker

(NaturalNews) After an intense workout, instead of downing a commercial sports drink loaded with artificial colors and sugar, you’d be better off just having a glass of chocolate milk. That’s the conclusion of two studies presented at the recent American College of Sports Medicine’s 57th Annual Meeting held in Baltimore. It turns out that chocolate milk offers a distinct recovery advantage to help repair and rebuild muscles when compared to widely hyped commercial carbohydrate sports drinks.

William Lunn, Ph.D., worked on both research projects, which were conducted in the lab of University of Connecticut nutrition scientist Nancy Rodriguez, Ph.D. The first study involved eight male runners in relatively good training shape who completed two runs over the course of two week. Each run lasted 45 minutes and involved running at 65 percent of the men’s maximum levels. During this research period, the runners ate a balanced diet that had been matched to their individual needs.

Click here for the full report.

Scientists Create Artificial Life

May 21, 2010

BBC News

By Victoria Gill

The researchers constructed a bacterium’s “genetic software” and transplanted it into a host cell.

The resulting microbe then looked and behaved like the species “dictated” by the synthetic DNA.

The advance, published in Science, has been hailed as a scientific landmark, but critics say there are dangers posed by synthetic organisms.

Some also suggest that the potential benefits of the technology have been over-stated.

But the researchers hope eventually to design bacterial cells that will produce medicines and fuels and even absorb greenhouse gases.

The team was led by Dr Craig Venter of the J Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) in Maryland and California.

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