Healthy Vitality Starts with the Foods You Grow and Purchase in Your Supermarkets and Staying Away From Food Additives

""A class of food additives used in nearly all processed foods may be partially to blame for inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as Crohn's disease, and may also lead to obesity and diabetes, according to a study conducted by researchers from Cornell University, Emory University, Georgia State University and Bar-Ilan University in Israel, and published in the journal Nature on February 25.

The study was funded by the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America and the National Institutes of Health.

The researchers found that emulsifiers, detergent-like additives used to improve the texture of food and lengthen its shelf life, alter the composition of the gut's microbiota. This change leads to an increase in inflammation that has been linked with various health conditions.

"These results ... suggest that the broad use of emulsifying agents might be contributing to an increased societal incidence of obesity/metabolic syndrome and other chronic inflammatory diseases," the researchers wrote.

The importance of gut bacteria

The human gut is home to roughly 100 trillion bacteria of a wide variety of different species, collectively known as the microbiota or microbiome. The microbiome is known to play a key role in metabolism and immune function, and prior studies have shown that a disturbed microbiome could play a role in certain chronic inflammatory diseases. Studies have also shown that people who suffer from both IBD and metabolic syndrome have abnormal microbiota.

"A key feature of these modern plagues is alteration of the gut microbiota in a manner that promotes inflammation," said researcher Andrew T. Gewirtz.

Metabolic syndrome is a group of symptoms (such as central obesity and high fasting blood sugar) associated with an increased risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and liver disease. It has been linked with high levels of systemic inflammation. IBD, which includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is a chronic and often debilitating inflammation of the digestive tract that can have serious health consequences. Both conditions have increased in prevalence dramatically since the middle of the 20th century.

"The dramatic increase in these diseases has occurred despite consistent human genetics, suggesting a pivotal role for an environmental factor," researcher Benoit Chassaing said. "Food interacts intimately with the microbiota so we considered what modern additions to the food supply might possibly make gut bacteria more pro-inflammatory."

Disrupted bacteria actually produce overeating

The addition of emulsifiers to foods roughly corresponded with the increase in both conditions. In addition, prior studies have shown that, by dissolving the mucus layer that covers the intestinal wall, emulsifiers can allow gut bacteria access to the epithelial cells lining the intestine - an area that they are normally kept out of. This bacterial migration could in turn produce inflammation of the gut.

To test this idea, the researchers fed mice the common emulsifiers polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulsose at doses comparable to those found in processed foods. They found that as expected, the microbiota of the mice changed to a more pro-inflammatory makeup. In addition, the microbiota gained an increased ability to digest and penetrate the mucus layer of the intestine, and produced more pro-inflammatory chemicals.""

http://www.naturalnews.com/049229_microbiome_obesity_additives.html

2015 Spring Time Means Time to Grow Some Mushrooms with Healthy Quantities of Mycelium for Healing the Body

""I’ve been growing mushrooms outdoors on logs for about 20 years. I’ve done this by inoculating logs with little wooden plugs called plug spawn that I purchased and inserted into holes I drilled in the logs. Then I let them develop in the shade of a hemlock tree where they generally produce mushrooms in a year or less. Pretty easy. The best time to cut logs for growing mushrooms is late winter or early spring when the sap begins to run, so I am thinking about getting some logs soon and starting another batch. After all, there isn’t much else I can do in the garden for months.

The first step in the process of growing mushrooms is finding logs that are appropriate for the mushrooms you want to grow. I have used oak and poplar for growing shiitake mushrooms, but according to Paul Stamets’ book, "Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World," almost any deciduous tree species is fine for shiitakes, the mushrooms I have grown in the past. Pine, hemlock and other conifers are not recommended.

The logs you plan to use to raise shiitakes or other mushrooms need to be fresh. If you were to go in the woods and find a downed tree, it probably would already have fungi growing in the wood (mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of fungi). So you need to cut down a living tree (or better yet, have a person skilled with a chain saw cut it down for you). Or call up someone who sells firewood and explain what you want: logs 3 to 4 feet long and 4 to 8 inches in diameter that are freshly cut.

In the past I have most often inoculated poplar logs because the trees are fast growing, and I always have some ‘volunteers’ that need to be removed. Oaks are the species most commonly colonized by shiitakes in their native habitat of Japan, and produce for a longer time than poplar, but take longer to produce their first flush of mushrooms — up to 14 months. And they are a tree species I value, so it’s harder to sacrifice one.

I learned from "Mycelium Running" that not just shiitakes can be raised on logs. These species will also work, and are available from Stamets’ web site, fungi.com: Reishi, Maitake, Lion's Mane, Pearl, Blue and Phoenix Oyster, Chicken of the Woods and Turkey Tail.

So how do I inoculate my logs? Using a 5/16-inch drill bit, I drill lines of holes about 8 inches apart from one end to the other. Then I drill another row of holes 4 to 6 inches from the first row. I stagger the holes so they don’t line up next to each other, from row to row. Then, with a hammer, I tap in the spore plugs that I have purchased. The holes should go a bit deeper into the wood than the length of the plug.""

Eat Well:

http://www.providencejournal.com/article/20150307/ENTERTAINMENTLIFE/150309678/13922/LIFESTYLE 

How to Achieve Permanent Healing Through Reiki?: Modern Day Reiki Appeals to Larger Western Populous Demographic this Century

How to achieve permanent healing through Reiki?

By AnninditaRoy  |  Posted December 20, 2014  |  Atlanta, Georgia

I have been a Reiki Master in several different Reiki styles which includes the traditional Usui Reiki and some non-traditional styles such as Celtic Reiki, Celtic wisdom Reiki, Self Love Reiki, Abundance Reiki, Bear Reiki, Excalibur Reiki and a few more. I have worked on many people during this time including my mother who was suffering from chronic arthritis pain, my sister suffering from piles, another sister severe neck and shoulder pain, my aunt suffering from spondylitis and myself suffering from asthma and allergies. I have been successful to a great extent in providing permanent relief in most of these cases. However, it would be incorrect to say that all of the healings that I have performed have been permanent. Many times I have had people ask me what I think is the secret to achieving permanent cure through Reiki or any other alternate healing modality for that matter. The answer to this may not be a straight forward one as there are several factors responsible for causing disease as well as for achieving permanent healing. 

The human body comprises not just of the physical body but it also includes the mind and spirit. A lot of new age writers talk about this. They call it the mind-body-spirit connection or even refer to it as the holy trinity i.e Father-Son-Holy Spirit. What we need to understand is this that health is our natural state of being and it is not normal to be unhealthy no matter how old we are, or what diseases run in our family. Disease occurs when the mind, body and spirit stop working together in a unified way. In our modern societies, it is a common norm to feel a certain way and say something else, while intending something else and doing a totally different thing altogether. In fact, from a very early age, our parents or caregivers start teaching us how we should and shouldn't be feeling and how to suppress any emotions that may be considered inappropriate or negative and instead say something else that would be pleasing or acceptable to the listener. As a result, as adults, such children have a difficult time expressing their true selves. This kind of suppression of the natural human emotions and labeling them to be good or bad can sometimes cause major damages to a person's psyche, leading to mental, emotional and psychological issues. 

While this is just one of the ways in which our society teaches us to ignore our true emotions and to deal with them in a healthy way, there are many other ways in which mental, emotional and spiritual growth is suppressed amongst individuals. This causes the mind, body and spirit connection to weaken or even become non-existent. When this happens and continues for a prolonged period of time, the body goes out of whack and problems now start manifesting in the physical realm. All diseases start in the non-physical realm i.e they may start at the emotional, mental or spiritual level. And then they begin to show up in the physical body in various ways, shapes and forms. 

Reiki utilizes non-physical energy for bringing about health and healing. It is this non-physical energy which our universe is made up of. As energy is non physical in nature, there is no physical intervention required with Reiki. It is a non-invasive, non-touch alternative healing modality wherein the Reiki practitioner channels vital life force energy into the recipients body. Reiki energy starts working on all levels, especially, on the energetic levels i.e mental, physical and emotional levels. Now, this energy is very powerful and can definitely bring about complete healing. However, the extent to which the healee/receiver will be healed would depend a lot on the extent to which the person is ready to be healed. Also, we must keep in mind that sometimes healing is not just about keeping the person alive but also providing the space for the person to transition in peace. If the receiver feels that he/she deserves to be sick or unhealthy or feels that nothing can help his/her condition or that it is hereditary and therefore they are destined to have the ailment anyways, then the healing sessions may not provide a permanent cure but just temporary relief. Because while on one hand the Reiki energy is working on all levels trying to bring the mind, body and spirit back into a state of balance and harmony, the receiver is actively, through his/her belief system short circuiting this connection. 

Hence, no one can predict or guarantee in advance the extent to which a Reiki session would help you in eliminating/treating your ailment successfully. However, it must be added that the sole responsibility of your healing doesn't lie in the hands of your Reiki practitioner. In fact it is a 3 way process wherein you-the receiver, the universe and the practitioner are involved. The practitioner is just the medium/channel through which the healing Reiki energies are brought forward and transferred to the recipient. The Universe is the source from which this energy is coming forward. The rest is in the receivers hands. It is the receivers responsibility to ensure that they are doing their best to transmute any negative thoughts or feelings associated with their ailment and be as positive as possible and come to the session with an open mind. It could also be beneficial to learn about the Reiki principles and to attend a Reiki session with an attitude of gratitude.

Source Page:

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1199219?ref=feeds%2Flatest