De-Toxifying Your Experience

http://www.naturalnews.com/019434.html

Good Day Everyone,

Today I'm going to talk to you about detoxifying your life. As I've discussed in past blogs, the cumulative effect of toxins in our lives has made us sick to the breaking point. The most important way this is experienced is in the increased dis-eases in our immune systems. More and more folks are coming up with autoimmune diseases such as MS, fibromyalgia, etc. I am including a link to the book, The Hundred Year Lie, by Randall Fitzgerald, his site as well as a site from an interview with Mr. Fitzgerald in Natural News. Read them both, get the information and take action.

The first place you might notice a weakened immune systems is that you are getting colds and flu easily and they are lasting a longer time. A good cold now and again gives your immune system a good work out. Gets the gang going and pumps up their strengths. But when it takes too long to recover and you find a viral infection going into a bacterial infection and you need antibiotics, your immune system is compromised.

The immune system is the body's natural way of fighting dis-ease. It - the body - knows how to be well. But in these times, after a life time of Western culture and industry and medicine, we are experiencing something that no other culture has before: the build up and cumulative effect of toxins in the body which are weakening our immune systems.

These toxins are everywhere, of course. Toxins are in the water, in the soaps, in the foods, in the cosmetics, in the personal care products, in the upholstery, in the air.

So to begin to give your body and your immune system a break takes some deliberate thought and conscious attention. Take notes and then get busy cleaning up and limiting your exposure.
Toxins are synthetic chemicals that are used in just about everything from your food to your tires to "make life better." We'll skip that part, as it is a useless debate. We're getting sick and having a poorer quality of life as a result of the pervasiveness of these chemicals. Period.

So. First thing you need to do is go through the inventory of the foods you eat and as best you can switch over to organic and certified organic foods. And perhaps the other "first" thing you need to do is stop purchasing and consuming all prepared foods, packaged foods, processed foods as these almost assuredly have chemical preservatives. You want to go to whole, fresh and organic foods as much as possible and where ever possible.

Secondly, you must take an inventory of the personal care products you are using. I can tell you that unless you are using certified organic personal care products you ARE consuming more toxins. The worst of these are the preservatives and enhancers that are formulated into the products. The preservatives, of course, are placed there to give them a longer shelf life and to prevent the growth of mold and bacteria. The enhancers are really dangerous, as they open up the skin pores so that the chemicals can penetrate more deeply, and thus the absorption of the chemicals is more efficient into the body. This makes the product more 'effective'. Say no more.

Thirdly, you must look at the items around you in your environment: fabrics, cleaning products, laundry soap and dryer sheets, carpeting and floor coverings, paint and laminates. Anything NOT 100% natural is comprised of chemical alterations that impart to you and yours - the baby crawling on the floor. A side note here is that using all these anti-bacterial cleaning agents actually diminishes your immune system's ability to fight these bugs. Anti-bacterial soaps and cleaning products like too much antibiotics in the body debilitate your own body's ability to produce the required antibodies to naturally fight off sickness and remain well. Once you enter that abyss of antibiotics to get well, it's a hard road back to relying on your own body to do its job. This is where you will need to consume probiotics.

Fourth, you need to realize that it is the "synergy" of the chemicals that cause the havoc. All these free and loose chemicals coming in from such diverse directions into the body is akin to a chemical lab where there are uncontrolled reactions happening. Chemicals that shouldn't mix are being joined together in your body. For example: drinking a cola and eating Frito's creates benzenes in your body - carcinogens. So it's not just the single chemical from this and that, but the combinations and their reactions with resulting new chemicals within the body, as well.

Fifth, start using your good Common Sense. If it's not natural, it's probably not good for you.
But simply do the very best you can and STOP worrying about it. Just the chemical load that you consciously remove from your experience, your body will reward you with a giant sigh of relief and thanks for lightening the burden. Trust your body, because its natural state is well and balanced. It is always striving to regain that healthful balance. Always.

Sixth, and perhaps most importantly, is to rid your mind of toxic thoughts. Focus yourself on creative and life-giving images, ideas and activities. Cut loose toxic, negative people, news casts, thought forms and experiences. You don't have to consume those things into your mind, either.

Seventh, find trusted suppliers for all your consumptions: food, cosmetics, personal care products, water, clothes, carpet and ideas - including television shows, radio shows and newscasts, love and friendship. If it doesn't FEEL good, it's toxic.

Thanks for reading!


Kath

What's Lurking in Your Sunscreen?

Hello Everyone,

Just off the presses at Naturalnews.com are the latest findings regarding the threat to your health from your sunscreen.

Just today I was out in the garden planting a few veggies for later on this summer and found myself working up a sweat. Almost instantly I thought, perhaps I should get my hat on. The sun is hot even though it's only 72 degrees.

What the Center for Disease Control has related is that 97% of Americans are contaminated with
oxybenzone, a widely used chemical found in sunscreens. Oxybenzone is a penetration enhancer which is present to help other chemicals penetrate the skin. Thus far oxybenzone has been linked with allergies, hormone imbalances, low birth weight in babies whose mother's have used it. When exposed to sunlight, oxybenzone forms free radicals which cause aging and cancer. So the topical sunscreen you're using is actually promoting your skin's aging. How's that for irony.

Thanks once again to the Food and Drug Administration for being so watchful for us, once again.

Folks, you cannot count on "them" any longer, but you must begin trusting your own good sense and knowing.

Some brands that are known to contain oxybenzone are: Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic and Coppertone as well as many, many facial moisturizers.

Read those labels! And make sure you're using something that is absolutely pure, safe and beneficial from the get go. Cast your votes with your dollars.

Thanks for Reading!

Healthy Skin Begins with Healthy Mind

http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/features/mind-skin-health-connection

Good Day All!

Here she goes again. I can just hear all the groaning going on out there. Well, just don't shoot the messenger. I am here to tell you that your internal state has a direct bearing on the health of your skin. In Psychology Today, Elaine Zablocki talks about the Mind-Skin-Health Connection. I've provided the link here so you can go and read for yourself the veracity of this phenomenon. http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/features/mind-skin-health-connection

This shouldn't be startling news to you. It's more like something you say to yourself, "easier said that done." True. But, none the less true. And today is a good day to change this, right now.

Where do you think all those wrinkles come from? Stress. I used to watch my Mom screw up her face in concentration. Always the same face, deepening those same lines. And my Dad would get the same lines when he got angry - deepening those lines over and over again.
I used to get hives, always when I was nervous or upset. The emotional condition inside has a direct bearing on the skin. Sometimes it's immediate; sometimes with practiced responses, over time the results are evident. Want more first hand evidence? I have had a set of twins in my life since the 4th grade. One twin is happy go lucky and handles things in an even way. The other twin is negative and greedy and mean. After I hadn't seen them for about 4 years, I chanced on them and was shocked. The first twin looked as lovely and twinkly as ever. The second twin looked like the witch in the Wizard of Oz - you know, the one the house fell on! Identical twins and their internal states of being were etched on their faces. One beautifully, the other hideously.
Both were choices. I might add here that the second twin has spent quite a fortune in plastic surgery in order to erase the damages of her "negative internal state."

It is imperative that one gets a handle on their emotional state. Perhaps your motivation is you want to look younger, get rid of that eczema, or you want to be beautiful at any age. I'm rooting for the last one; beauty at every age. But no matter what your motivation is, you will always be led back to your responsibility for managing your internal self.

In stress the human mind is believing something that it thinks is real. So we have a response in fear or anxiety or rage or whatever. This internal response to the external situation produces a chain of chemical reactions in the body. Repeatedly over a lifetime, this takes it toll. Since in this blog we're focused on skin care, we'll stick to that. So wrinkles, excessive flight or fight responses diminish the quality of the skin - elastic and suppleness. We tend to hold our breath, and deprive the skin of oxygen and nutrition. The skin begins to look sallow or dry. These are all responses to internal stress. And, overtime, they take their toll. Left unaddressed, the habituated pattern leaves its marks.

So, what to do? Well, make a decision to begin handling these mental ideas that cause you to respond with a stressful response (fear, shallow breathing, anger, etc.) to begin handling them, even seeing them with a different view. Instead of being afraid, I'll take a deep breath and remind myself that it's never over til it's over...and there's always more. I'll change my response to laughing. I'll be mindful when I'm in anxiety and take a giant break from what I'm pushing at.
I'll take my yoga practice into work or home or the board room.

Getting a handle on stress means you've decided to take a giant step towards being the deliberate designer of your own life and skin. Say yes to all the laugh lines. Bring on all the joy creases! Celebrate all the facial tracks of ecstasy. Point your intention towards giving up stress and embracing the adventures of life. You'll be gorgeous.

Thanks for reading!

Kath

Whole Grains and Great Skin

http://thestar.com.my/health/story.asp?file=/2008/3/18/health/20404047&sec=health
http://www.clevelandclinic.org/health/health-info/docs/3300/3350.asp?index=11373

Hello Everyone,

Well, seems I can't escape this concept that beautiful, healthy skin is directly related to the food you eat. So we're going to continue to talk about healthy food today, specifically whole grains.

If you'll recall, I've stated in past blogs that the more processed your food is, the less nutrients are left in it for your body. Not only that, there are "fillers" added to processed foods that now makes it a "food product" rather than food. These fillers can be preservatives which are almost always toxic, not to mention just not good for you. I just don't understand how a commercial bread can contain over 30 ingredients. Back in the day, and even now, when I go to make a loaf of bread it has flour, eggs, milk, yeast, and maybe some oil or butter. Expanding on that I might add another flour, some seeds, but how to get it up to 30 ingredients is beyond me.

The whole idea of "no carbs" is probably one of the sickest ideas that has come down from the
eating disorders of America. Carbs provide some of the most vital nutrients for good skin, a good digestive tract and sustained energy. I'll say it again and will continue to do so over and over again, it is the processing that has caused us all the trouble - ill health and extra weight. Of course this means we ought to be leading a balanced life. Daily walks, take the stairs, park far away in the parking lot, don't move your car once you've parked it - walk to your other errands.
Go outside and play catch with your kid or your dog. Haul wood. Just move around in balance with the time you spend sitting.

While I'm on the soapbox, turn off the computer and the TV. Take an evening stroll. Enjoy the night sky. Think a quiet thought.

I've included two links at the top of this blog. Both will give you new evidence that whole grains are vital to healthy skin, strong elastin and general good health. One source is the Cleveland Clinic and the other a study that showed by eating whole grains, people not only lost weight, but they lost it around the middle and they experienced significant reduction in the inflammation in the arteries and capillaries - reducing risk of stroke and high blood pressure and heart disease.

My personal take on this: inflammation is resistance; resistance is your reaction to stress; when you eat something that tastes delicious and is full of LIFE and nutrients, you're reconnecting yourself back to God, Life, Source. And that folks, is home and where we all ought to be living each day, in intimate connection with Life.

So stop feeling guilty. Just insist on whole foods, whole grain (rice, barley, couscous, whole wheat, etc) and enjoy partaking in Life while watching your skin get healthier. It's all around a much happier way to , well, live.

Thanks for reading!

Kath

What's Corn Have to Do With It?

Good Day Everyone!

A few posts back I talked about an amazing book I had just read, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. During the past week I've been reading his next book, The Omnivore's Dilemma. I strongly urge everyone these two great reads.

We cannot discuss healthful good skincare without addressing diet and food, as they are inexorably linked. What is coming into focus for me is that we are, as a nation, very poorly nourished. This seemed odd to me, at first, because I live out in the back country and don't watch commercial television. As a result, I'm really not in tune with what is being "marketed" to consumers on a daily basis. Now I do get New York Times online everyday, and frequently cruise BBC or Washington Post, etc. But the point here is that my consumption of information is discreet and selective.

I began reading Pollan's first book, In Defense of Food, because I love to grow things and was told it was "my kind of book". I truly enjoyed it; but even more it was enlightening to me that the way I think of food had become, well, obsolete. And that now more than ever, the organic food industry was becoming the fastest booming industry in America. I was pretty astonished, as I've always been "green" and "organic". So that I who had once been derided as "hippie" "earthy" and "way out there" was now "IN"....well, you can only guess my astonishment.

What I have always just thought of as common sense is now trendy and a movement. I guess if you live long enough you see things come back around. But I do have to confess that over the years as more "fast food" and "packaged" foods found their way to our shelves, I found that I was no longer going to grocery stores like Safeway, Albertson's or Vons. There was nothing there that "enticed" me, not to mention that I found it really odd that to get the best prices you had to "join up" and swipe your name into their data banks. It was just off-putting to me so I didn't participate.

But I grew up in Ohio and PA in a time where local farms were plentiful, and no one thought twice about what kind of corn or what kind of fertilizer they used. There was nothing else except the natural kind. When corn came in, we went to the farm stand and bought it. We purchased raw milk from the local dairy where you could see the cows out at real green pastures - well, gee, where they might be expected to be. (Where else?) We'd go to a tree farm in spring and get our maple syrup where they were tapping the trees. I still remember the aroma in the air. No one bought store eggs, they were at that farm where you could also purchase chicken. This is the picture of Real Food that I grew up with, and thus carry with me when I'm selecting food to cook and consume. As a result, over these last 30 years I just noticed that less and less was I "intuitively" attracted to what was offered in the stores. I can honestly say that it wasn't an intellectual decision, but rather - I'd go to shop and be kind of put off, and walk out without the "usual purchases". Little did I realize that this was indicative of a huge food revolution going on in America's heartland.

This brings me to Pollan's most recent book, The Omnivore's Dilemma. I congratulate him on the title, as I actually found myself in a food dilemma. Nothing looked good to eat or felt good to eat. I don't know if I would have noticed this if I still lived where local farmers were growing food, but since I live in San Diego County where water is such an issue, local farms are not on a small scale, producing food to take to market. My little garden produced some wonderful tomatoes and eggplant, but again, water being such an issue, this is kept to the bare minimum. I recently purchased a pork loin from Costco, came home, stuffed it with lots of garlic, cooked it off and when I went to take a bite, once again, something in me warned me off it.
I froze it. It's still in the freezer, as my head is arguing with me about throwing it out. Still, there is something going on.

Pollan is exposing how we are systematically being led to eat what industrialized farming, Monsanto, Cargill and the USDA want us to eat. It's been carefully constructed over the last 30 years so that even cows, who ought to be eating grass that is fueled by sunshine, are now being forced to eat corn, which is fueled by oil. It's been an economic construct that has resulted in the poorest nutrition for Americans in all of our history, the greatest amount of illnesses, and disgusting treatment of our beloved animals.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080218/ap_on_bi_ge/slaughterhouse_abuse

I guess what I really can't understand is how an individual can go along with these types of decisions whether it is in the FDA (who keeps loosening the standards to accommodate agra-business or the genetic scientist who works for Monsanto who is systematically making us into a mono-culture of corn and soybeans). It's like planning for the disease and destruction of your fellow man. And this is for money?

I truly can't wrap my mind around making choices like that as an individual or as a corporation, when you know it's got such far reaching consequences for so many. To me it is on par with being a traitor to your country. Whether you sell secrets for money or plan the poisoning of it's people, it's all the same.

The weirdest part is that it is so anti-common sense. It makes absolutely no sense to me to turn a perfectly working system (sun, grass, cattle, people) - a naturally occurring sustainability into something that is artificially supported. The hubris to think that man can possibly improve on Nature only indicates to me that we (humans) now think we are separate and not a part of nature. When we alter our food to this extent, we must think that we can outsmart the perfect wisdom of IT, Nature, God. What stupendous folly, which I had no idea was happening behind the scenes.

I'm not sure what recommendations I can make to you at this point, except to say that it is imperative that you consult your internal Self when you consume anything whether it's food or a cosmetic application. In one way, I find it a good thing, as we are being returned to our very own Knowing - our Common Sense - not theirs.

Stay tuned, for I know that one wonderful thing happening is that slowly these notions of Natural and Common Sense are returning to the farmers in America's heartlands - Ohio, Iowa, Kansas. And it will turn on them, which way America's food supply, our health, our beauty goes.
We can support our local farmers to change over those vast fields of black earth from GMO crops to grasslands to feed the animals that feed us. And we can do this by NOT buying what is in the store called USDA Choice (UGH)...and supporting those farms that only raise grass fed pork, chicken, beef. Buy direct. Thank heaven for the internet, because I suppose this is how it happened, when we really couldn't communicate with each other so directly and immediately.

It's equally interesting to realize, full circle, that our government has not had our best interests at heart even to the level of our food supply.

On this score, I can only tell you to trust your intuition, your Knowing and if you are looking for organic, then the best you can do it look for certified organic.

In the end this is about Conscience and Consciousness. And it will be and is up to us, the consumers to lead the way back to Common Sense, Conscience and a government that is truly "for the people". We must create it from the ground up. It is clear to me that it is now up to us.

Thanks for reading!


k

Grassroots Change

Hello Everyone,

Today I had a lovely conversation from a young lady named, Jill, who was calling me on behalf of the Organic Consumers Fund. "OCF is focused on grassroots lobbying and legislative action to promote organic and sustainable food and farming, health, peace, justice, sustainability, and democracy." http://organicconsumersfund.org

Jill was doing prospecting calls and asked me if I had a minute. I did and we ended up having a 20 minute conversation about the Renaissance going on in America.

What Renaissance you might ask? It's the Renaissance coming about as the result of the last period that I refer to as the Dark Ages. When "they" knew what was best for us. When we believed that "they" knew what was best for us. Like chemicals in the food, ground, water and air. Like genetically modified foods. Like synthetics in our personal care products. Like toxins in our food; synthetic medicines that make us sicker. And all the while we, like sheep and lemming, giving over our knowing and authority to "them" as willing, naive and gullible participants.

This is all coming to an abrupt halt. John and Jane Doe are asking really dangerous questions!
Why does my tomato taste like cardboard? What exactly is in my deodorant? What do you mean children are being born with DDT in their bodies and it has been banned for years? We are slowly exchanging substance for shallow; quality for quantity; real for Real and I know what's best for me rather than you know what's best for me.

Why is this on this blog for honestskincare? I keep telling you, I can't separate out honest skin care from these larger issues. And I suppose that it's part of my joy to notice this Renaissance and cheer it on with all my heart.

Things are not so disconnected and compartmentalized as "they" would have you think, but rather it is all interconnected like dominos. How exciting is it that our farmers - according to Jill who lives in Lincoln, Nebraska - are starting to return to organic farming, and that even there, the demand at the Organic Markets is outstripping the supply. One of those farmers is going to start growing organic herbs. And somebody is going to start formulating skin care products made from these organics. And voila, a new economy is happening in America.

This is the grassroots, John and Jane Doe America where the power lies, always has and always will be. This is Us! And we will change the face of America by simply asking the question, "How could we do.....? And then moving towards that with singular focus knowing that WE CAN.

Promise next blog will be about products and or information!

Thanks for reading,


Kath

In Defense of Your SKIN: Eat Real Food

Hello Everyone,

I know, I know, I know. I'm supposed to be talking about your skin and aging and healthy personal care products.

Well, I am. And the more I read, the more I know that it all begins with what you're putting in your mouth! And on your skin.

Ok. Today discussion is based on the writings of Michael Pollan. I've just finished his latest book: In Defense of Food. Funny title you might think. Why would food need defending? Because so little Real food is available these days. Slowly and gradually over the last 30-40 years beginning with the industrialization of farming (movement from small local farms to large industrial farms), the food supply in America has been seriously altered by genetic modification, synthetic pesticides and herbicides. We now have really cheap food and we're all really sick. Well done indeed.

Now. Before I go any further, I don't deal in fear, so this is not to scare you, but to inform you.
I can't help but think than anyone over 40 has noticed that weird things have been appearing in food to the point that you might wonder if it is, indeed, Real food or "engineered food products".

Listening to Pollan's book today, he recites the ingredients in a loaf of Sara Lee White Bread. It's baffling. When I was growing up bread had: flour, yeast, eggs, milk, and salt. That's 5 whole ingredients. Just five. That's it. It took about 2-3 hours to make a batch of bread without a machine. And it was immensely pleasurable in the making, in the baking and in the eating.
This loaf of Sara Lee bread had about 36 ingredients in it, many of which, unless you were a chemist, you wouldn't be able to pronounce let alone be sure what it was.

What I don't understand is this: wouldn't you think 5 ingredients would be a lot less trouble and cost than "manufacturing" a loaf of bread? It hardly makes any sense to me.

Enough about the bread. The point is that so many things are going into "food products" that they can scarcely (and should not be) categorized as food any longer. Thanks of course to the FDA, they get away with it. These "engineered food products" are such that they have replaced and supplanted Real nutrition. And Real Nutrition can only be found in Real food.

You might ask why? Because anything whole, natural and Real from nature is complete as it was intended for it to be. Whilst the "engineered food products" are composites of single nutrients extracted and they added back in. It's kinda like a Real Whole Food is a winning Team. It has all the players in it that make it a great Team: the defense, the offense, the cheerleaders, the front office, the back office, the stadium, the whole package. And the sum of the parts (everybody involved) is greater than the individual parts. A single quarterback, for example, couldn't make a touchdown without the line and the blocking. But there wouldn't be a game if there were the owners and the stadium.) Oh, please let me stop with this football thing. But you get the picture.

Engineered Food Products are like taking one or two players and a couple of the seats from the stadium and putting those only into the product. All the synergies are lost. Maybe it's the cheerleaders that turn on the power of the lineman? Or perhaps it's the fans in the seats that trigger the owners. There are a zillion interactions in the chemistry of food that rely on the presence of the other nutrients. In Engineered Food Products, those critical interactions are lost, and therefore the nutrition is lost to our bodies.

How many extra supplements are you taking now to replace the missing nutrition that you're not getting from your food? And it takes a wide variety of foods to give you the wide variety of nutrition and synergies that your body (all of it, skin included) needs.

So here's some reading for you to do: In Defense of Food, The Omnivore's Dilemma; and the Biology of Desire. All three are written by Michael Pollan and I promise you no dry reads, either. He's entertaining and practical and wise all in one. He even suggest a way out of the tyranny of nutritionism (his word) and back to the enjoyment (ye gads) of food once again and restored health....and beauty. Truly a bold idea.

Thanks for reading!

Kath