Health-Essentials.info Newsletter | June 2008

Greetings from Lincoln, Nebraska.  I hope that you are well and enjoying the summer.  For me, besides updating my Anson Aromatic Essentials website and starting a new site for dōTerra Aromatics, I bought a push reel mower to do the lawn and have been helping my dad rebuild a retaining wall in our back yard.  Lots of fun and some good, honest work.

I have some things in this — and hopefully an upcoming — newsletter that I hope will make your summer even better.

 

---

Pain is big business

The December 2006 issue of Chiropractic Economics had an article entitled, "Pain is big business" (from the source, Kalorama Information).  In it, the author noted that, as the world population ages, chronic pain becomes more and more of an issue.  In 2006, people spent approximately $26 billion on pain remedies, and that amount is expected to increase to $33 billion by 2010.

Although this article cited cancer pain treatments as the largest segment of this cost, anybody who is paying attention will readily grasp the fact that, everywhere you look today, people are hurting.  In America, more than $3 billion are spent every year on over-the-counter (OTC) pain medications, such as aspirin, Tylenol, Advil and Aleve.  My parents, who are 81 years old, are met with totally incredulous looks whenever they mention that they very rarely have a need for pain medication.  It's just assumed, by the majority of people today, that pain — and pain killers — are part of normal life.

Although it must seem counter-intuitive not to accept this as reality, the mind-set that accepts pain as "normal" comes with some significant costs — beyond the $3 billion spent on OTC medications:

1. The use of OTC pain medications kills about 40,000 Americans every year (the figure varies, depending on your source).
2. Even taken as directed, OTC pain medications are very toxic to your liver and kidneys.  And, with the general belief that these medications are entirely safe, and with products like Tylenol included in the formula of many other OTC medications, the incidence of inadvertent overdose is quite high — often, with tragic results.
3. These medications are very hard on the gut mucosa, and can lead to leaky gut syndrome, food allergies, asthma and a host of other problems.  One common result of this is more generalized pain.  It's a vicious circle.
4. OTC pain medications, like their prescription counterparts, may relieve pain, in the short term; but, in the long term, they often cause the deterioration of joints, leading to more pain and the need for more significant interventions.
5. By treating symptoms, while leaving the root cause unaddressed, OTCs leave the body in a chronic state of inflammation.  This inflammation, besides being linked to pain itself, is a primary contributor to almost all degenerative diseases, from heart disease to diabetes to lupus or Crohn's disease to Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease to cancers.

The simple fact is this: Pain is not a disease to be treated; it's a symptom of something else.  And, to treat it as a disease, while ignoring its root cause(s), is something akin to insane.  But, with yearly sales of $3 billion at stake, I wouldn't count on a paradigm shift in the medical community any time soon.

Looking for a solution to pain:

Generally speaking, when you think of pain, you should think of it in terms of inflammation.  So, anything you do to relieve that pain must address the inflammation, or you're just making matters worse (in the long term).  But, what causes inflammation?

Inflammation comes from many sources.  Some of them include:

• Oxidative stress (free radical damage), resulting from too low an intake of the right antioxidants, while dealing with stress, pollution and other factors that increase free radicals,
• LDL and oxidized cholesterol,
• Homocysteins, produced from the metabolizing of meats without sufficient intake of B vitamins,
• Poor digestion and leaky gut syndrome,
• Parasites in the gut,
• Carrying a systemic toxic load,
• An overloaded liver, that cannot perform its metabolic tasks adequately,
• Chronic infections, either viral or bacterial/fungal,
• pH imbalances, often resulting from sugar intake, eating processed foods (with their food additives) and stress,
• Insufficient intake of systemic enzymes, and
• Chronically elevated cortisol levels.

So, following a cleansing protocol, supplementing the diet with plenty of antioxidants, B vitamins, probiotics and digestive/systemic enzymes, reducing stress (or learning how to deal with it, like with tai chi), eliminating sugar and food additives from the diet (some experts would add eliminating grains to that list), addressing any chronic infections and avoiding exposure to synthetic chemicals would go a long way toward relieving any pain issues.  There are also homeopathic remedies that can address inflammation very effectively, without any of the side-effects associated with OTC medications.

Fluoride and chlorine: Majors causes of pain

However, another powerful source of pain is the ubiquitous presence of fluoride and chlorine in our environment.  I was very surprised to read (see www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/fluoride.htm) that the fluoride and/or chlorine in our municipal water can often cause symptoms of Fibromyalgia, a pain syndrome that has become very common in America today.  I have Fibromyalgia, but I live relatively free from pain — unless I take a shower.  Then, I feel like I've done 10 rounds with Mike Tyson.  It's a neurological response to the toxic effects of the fluoride and chloromines in the water.  But, simply by filtering the water used for bathing, drinking and cooking, finding non-fluoride dental products and following a detoxification protocol has done wonders for many pain sufferers.

Essential oils: Powerful pain relief without the side-effects

Of course, there will likely be times when you still need something for occasional pain.  In such situations, essential oils can be of tremendous benefit.  Oils like peppermint and wintergreen can have very soothing effects; and, the essential oil blend of Deep Blue can offer powerful pain-relieving benefits. dōTERRA^® has also released an essential oil supplement called MJ Assist, formulated as a safe and effective alternative to OTC pain medications.  (I'll keep you posted on that.)

So, please: Don't fall into the trap of thinking of pain as normal — or inevitable.  It's simply your body's way of trying to get your attention.  So pay attention, and learn to live pain-free — naturally.

 

---

Essential Oils: An amazing solution to honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder

A member of my mailing list forwarded an article to me about research being conducted, at the University of West Virginia, on a natural solution for the troubling phenomenon of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD).

With CCD, once thriving bee hives are quite suddenly vacant.  No bees, no bee carcasses — not even the queen.  This is a very serious matter, since a significant percentage of our food — and the food of things we eat — is dependent upon the pollination affected by honeybees.  In fact, bee keepers can earn up to $250,000 per farm for hauling their hives to location, to allow the bees to do their thing.

In this article, a 3-step protocol is given, using the essential oils of spearmint and lemongrass, that kills off the mites believed to be a large part of the cause of CCD, as well as boosting the immunity of the bees against the pathogens carried by these mites.

It's an interesting article, and you can read it here.

 

---

TerraShield™ Repellent Blend: The DEET-free solution for biting insects

dōTERRA^® has just released a wonderful new essential oil blend that provides you with a non-toxic, DEET-free alternative to commercial insect repellents.  Research demonstrates that it's more effective than DEET at repelling biting insects, yet is gentle and safe enough for use by the whole family.  It's effectiveness lasts for up to six hours — and it smells great.

Get the whole story here.

 

---

The importance of connectedness for the health of future generations

In my last newsletter, I wrote about the importance of sitting around the (metaphoric) campfire, sharing in the wisdom of our elders.  Part of that story was how it helps people maintain their memories — their personal stories — as they age; but, part of it was about how it creates a sense of being grounded and connected to something larger than yourself.  You can read about it here.

Related to that is an article I read at BodyEcology entitled, "Women: Here's How You are More Responsible for Your Granddaughter's Health Than You Know".

The main point of this article is how studies into how the fetus develops show that the health of a new-born child is determined, not so much by the diet and health of the mother, as by the maternal grandmother.

How is that?

Because, the ovaries of a developing female form at a very early stage of gestation, and the eggs are in place shortly thereafter.  Consequently, the health of the new-born girl is dependent, to a large degree, on the health of the egg her mother developed from, which is determined in large measure by the health and diet of her mother's mother.

It's all very interesting, and I encourage you to read the article here.

But, something else pointed out in this article is, based on studies into how the fetus develops, the importance of personal connectedness to health.  You see, a baby's ability to take in nutrition and to sense its environment starts within the first 4 weeks of pregnancy.  We now know that a baby will start tuning in to her mother's vibrations, even before the mother knows she is pregnant, sensing whether she is happy or sad, agitated or calm.  In essence, the baby feels what the mother feels, and eats what she eats.

If you sit back and think about this for a moment, the implications are incredible.

The basic idea is this: Life has a deeper meaning than most of us recognize, as we chase after our personal goals and fry our sympathetic nervous systems (in our fight-or-flight mode).  And, that meaning has a lot to do with connectedness.  There is also a link between our digestion and our sense of surroundings.  When we eat a more natural diet, our nervous systems moves into a parasympathetic mode, allowing us to rest and digest — and heal.  But, this healing isn't just physical; you begin to feel more grounded, more balanced.  Many feel more connected, and begin to follow their hearts, and not just their heads.

The point is this: Just as we should take the time to tell the stories of "us" around the evening campfire, we should begin the practice of taking the time to cook together, to share delicious recipes and encourage one another through the difficult times, and realize our connectedness to one another.

Now is also the time to nourish our digestive tract and your nervous systems by creating balance … with your food choices and your lifestyle.