Coconut Oil – Why we need to pay attention – It’s good for you !!!
Hello all,
I have attached a few interesting links explaining why we should all be using Coconut oil in our food preparation and cooking. It is the only “safe to heat” oil in the kitchen!
Please have a read of: www.coconutoil.com
Also I have been buying and using the following for a while with great success! It is a wonderful Natural, cold-pressed Coconut Oil – 440ml tub – Tastes great (Most coconut oils taste quite revolting – I spent 2 years trying to find a really tasty one that was not too strong in flavour) and I buy these at wholesale price!
Price for everyone is AUD $ 14.75 plus postage. (Post $5.95)
If you wish to purchase one or more let me know by e-mail or phone (Australia only) 02-8002-0002 any time.
Cheers all!
Pete Shandley
MTEX Health
orders@mtex.com.au
Coconut Oil Summary
Subject: Cold Pressed Virgin Coconut Oil
Reportedly used by the likes of Jennifer Aniston and the England rugby squad for its metabolism-boosting qualities, coconut oil has long been recognised as a healthy nutrition option and is equally kind to the outside of the body as a skin or hair conditioner.
Coconut oil is about 50% lauric acid. The only other abundant source found in nature is in human breast milk. Dr. Jon J. Kabara, PhD and Professor Emeritus of Michigan State University says, “Never before in the history of man is it so important to emphasize the value of Lauric Oils. The medium-chain fats in coconut oil are similar to fats in mother’s milk and have similar nutraceutical effects.”
by Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., F.A.C.N.
“Coconuts play a unique role in the diets of mankind because they are the source of important physiologically functional components. These physiologically functional components are found in the fat part of whole coconut, in the fat part of desiccated coconut, and in the extracted coconut oil. Lauric acid, the major fatty acid from the fat of the coconut, has long been recognized for the unique properties that it lends to non-food uses in the soaps and cosmetics industry.
More recently, lauric acid has been recognized for its unique properties in food use, which are related to its antiviral, antibacterial, and antiprotozoal functions. Now, capric acid, another of coconut’s fatty acids has been added to the list of coconut’s antimicrobial components. These fatty acids are found in the largest amounts only in traditional lauric fats, especially from coconut. Also, recently published research has shown that natural coconut fat in the diet leads to a normalization of body lipids, protects against alcohol damage to the liver, and improves the immune system’s anti-inflammatory response.
Clearly, there has been increasing recognition of health- supporting functions of the fatty acids found in coconut. Recent reports from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about required labelling of the trans fatty acids will put coconut oil in a more competitive position and may help return to its use by the baking and snack food industry where it has continued to be recognized for its functionality. Now it can be recognized for another kind of functionality: the improvement of the health of mankind.”
Coconut oil is great for cooking due to its high smoke point.
Further Reading
Dr Ray Peat http://www.efn.org/~raypeat/
Thought of the week
“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.” – Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), Austrian neurologist and Founder of psychoanalysis.
Water – Nature’s Medicine?
A year ago, 88-year-old Jean Lavender used to find walking any distance a struggle. Now she is keen to get outside for a walk most days. And she puts the transformation down to the most simple of medicines – water. She is one of a group of residents at a care home in Suffolk who have been encouraged to increase their intake of water. And they have all reported dramatic results.
Jean says she feels 20 years younger. “I feel more alert – more cheerful too. I’m not a miserable person, but it’s added a sort of zest.” Staff at The Martins care home in Bury St Edmunds started a “water club” for their residents last summer. Residents were encouraged to drink eight to 10 glasses of water a day, water coolers were installed, and they were each given a jug for their room. They report significant improvements in health as a result – many fewer falls, fewer GP call-outs, a cut in the use of laxatives and in urinary infections, better quality of sleep, and lower rates of agitation among residents with dementia.
Doctors have long highlighted the risks of dehydration for elderly people. It can cause dizziness and potentially serious falls, constipation, and confusion. While most people’s systems can adjust to insufficient water, frail old people are far less equipped to cope. So when Wendy Tomlinson, a former nurse, took over the management of the charity-run home, she suspected that drinking more water might help the residents feel better. Even she has been surprised by how much difference it’s made, though. “It’s been fantastic,” she said. “The whole home buzzes now; there isn’t that period after lunch when everyone goes off to sleep.”
For Baroness Greengross, a cross-bench peer, it reinforces a conviction she has had for some time now – that many old people simply are not drinking enough, and it is harming their health. She wants to see tougher regulations in care homes across the UK, so that staff have to make sure residents drink enough. “We hear a great deal about malnutrition among old people,” she says. “But we forget about the need for them to have enough water. It shouldn’t be very difficult to change the habits of care staff.”
Source: Jane Hughes, Health correspondent, BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk
Food Matters – a great site for information relating to out food chain & great video
A very interesting site all about our food.. What are we really eating?
Thought of the week…
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe it can achieve”.
* How do you direct your thoughts?
* What do you think about most of the time?
* What is your very first thought when you wake up every morning?
What do you think about most of the time? – Napolean Hill
Tip of the day
You’ll never know what your real power is until you take on something risky.
Health – Indian Curry Spices Explained
(NaturalNews) While some Indian spices are commonly found on the home spice rack, few understand just how powerful these spices are in their freshest form. Understanding the health benefits of each ingredient is key to optimizing home cooked meals for the particular needs of the family. This article will summarize the medicinal properties of the top five spices used to prepare Indian Curry.
Belly Fat Doubles Death Risk
Increase in Death Risk Not Limited to Overweight, Obese
See link:
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20081112/belly-fat-doubles-death-risk
Tip of the day
I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody. ~Bill Cosby
Tip of the day
Success is often the direct result of insults, humiliation and discouragement from someone you care about.
Tip of the day
You know you’re getting good as a writer when you become interested in reading and appreciating what you’ve just written.
Are You Getting ‘Enough’ Sun? Vitamin D & Sunlight:
Very interesting article, have a read.. http://www.healthspeaker.com.au/articles_vitaminDandsunlight.php
Tip of the day
The more people you get involved in a decision you want to make, the more likely it will never be made.
Tip of the day
Pauses can get you into trouble. They convey weakness and a lack of knowledge on your part that inevitably lead to unwanted questions.
Jaguar XK8 – 2006 model – Very nice!
Jaguar XK8 - 2006 model - Very nice!
Vitamin D may boost heart health during weight loss
Vitamin D may boost heart health during weight loss: Study
By Stephen Daniells, 22-Apr-2009
Supplements of vitamin D may improve cardiovascular health during weight loss, without impacting on how many pounds are shed, suggests a new study.
Writing in this month’s issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, German researchers report that a daily dose of vitamin of 83 micrograms per day had lower levels on triglycerides and markers of inflammation like tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha).
“The results indicate that a vitamin D supplement of 83 micrograms/d does not adversely affect weight loss and is able to significantly improve several cardiovascular disease risk markers in overweight subjects with inadequate vitamin D status participating in a weight-reduction program,” wrote the authors, led by Armin Zittermann from the Clinic for Thorax and Cardiovascular Surgery in Bad Oeynhausen.
With obesity rates still high – not only in developed countries but also, increasingly, in newly wealthy emerging markets, there is considerable attention to ways to trim down waistlines. The results of the new randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial indicate that vitamin D supplements may be useful as a means of boosting heart health during weight loss.
The details on D
Vitamin D refers to two biologically inactive precursors – D3, also known as cholecalciferol, and D2, also known as ergocalciferol. The former, produced in the skin on exposure to UVB radiation (290 to 320 nm), is said to be more bioactive.
While our bodies do manufacture vitamin D on exposure to sunshine, the levels in some northern countries are so weak during the winter months that our body makes no vitamin D at all, meaning that dietary supplements and fortified foods are seen by many as the best way to boost intakes of vitamin D.
In adults, it is said vitamin D deficiency may precipitate or exacerbate osteopenia, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, common cancers, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases. There is also some evidence that the vitamin may reduce the incidence of several types of cancer and type-1 diabetes.
Study details
Zittermann and his co-workers recruited 200 healthy overweight people with average 25(OH)D levels of 30 nmol/L (12 ng/mL) and randomly assigned them to receive either placebo or vitamin D for one year. All the subjects also participated in a weight-reduction program.
At the end of the study, 25(OH)D levels increased in the D group by 55.5 nmol/L, but by only 11.8 nmol/L in the placebo group. Furthermore, a 26.5 per cent reduction in levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) were observed in the D group, compared with 18.7 per cent in the placebo group. “High blood concentrations of parathyroid hormone […] are considered new cardiovascular disease risk markers,” explained the authors.
Improvements in triglycerides levels were also observed in the vitamin D group, with a 13.5 per cent decrease noted compared with a 3.0 per cent increase in the placebo group.
Finally, levels of the marker of inflammation TNF-alpha decreased by 10.2% per cent following vitamin D supplementation, compared with 3.2 per cent in the placebo group.
“The beneficial biochemical effects were independent of the loss in body weight, fat mass, and sex,” noted the researchers.
On the downside, the researchers noted that participants receiving the vitamijn D supplements did experience an average 5.4 per cent increase in their levels of LDL-cholesterol.
Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
May 2009, Volume 89, Pages 1321-1327, doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.27004
“Vitamin D supplementation enhances the beneficial effects of weight loss on cardiovascular disease risk markers”
Authors: A. Zittermann, S. Frisch, H.K. Berthold, C. Götting, J. Kuhn, K. Kleesiek, P. Stehle, H. Koertke, R. Koerfer
Low vitamin D linked to female infections
Low vitamin D linked to female infections: Study
By Stephen Daniells, 29-Apr-2009
Low vitamin D levels may increase the risk of bacterial vaginosis, a common vaginal infection linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes, suggests a new study from the US.
In a study with 469 women participating in a pregnancy cohort study, vitamin D levels below 20 nmol/L were associated with a 34 per cent increase in the prevalence of bacterial vaginosis compared to women with vitamin D levels over 80 nmol/L.
According to researchers led by Lisa Bodnar from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health a potential protective effect of vitamin D may be due to the vitamin’s influence on the immune system.
The findings are published online ahead of print in the Journal of Nutrition.
The study adds to an ever growing body of science supporting the benefits of maintaining healthy vitamin D levels.
In adults, it is said vitamin D deficiency may precipitate or exacerbate osteopenia, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, common cancers, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases. There is also some evidence that the vitamin may reduce the incidence of several types of cancer and type-1 diabetes.
The new study represents the first report linking vitamin D status with the incidence of bacterial vaginosis, according to PubMed.
Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a highly prevalent vaginal infection that affects about 30 per cent of women between the ages of 14 and 49. It is caused by changes to the normal chemical and biological balance of the vaginal microflora.
While antibiotics are usually prescribed to treat the condition, there is evidence that probiotics may prevent the condition. Extensive research by Gregor Reid from the Canadian R&D Centre for Probiotics at the Lawson Health Research Institute, and The University of Western Ontario, led to the conclusion that the combination of two particular strains – GR-1 (Lactobacilli rhamnosus) and RC-14 (Lactobacilli reuteri) – provide the greatest benefit for the relief and prevention of bacterial vaginosis.
New data
Bodnar and her co-workers examined the pelvises of 469 pregnant women before week 16 of their pregnancy. Blood samples allowed for the quantification of serum levels of 25- hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), the non-active ‘storage’ form.
According to the Journal of Nutrition, 41 per cent of all the women had BV, and 52 per cent were classed as vitamin D deficient, equivalent to 25(OH)D levels below 37.5 nmol/L.
Women with BV were found to have a lower average 25(OH)D levels (29.5 nmol/L) compared to women free of BV (40.1 nmol/L), said the researchers. Looking at the same issue from another angle, 57 per cent of women with low 25(OH)D levels lower than 20 nmol/L had BV, while BV was diagnosed in only 23 per cent of women with a 25(OH)D levels over 80 nmol/L.
“Compared with a serum 25(OH)D concentration of 75 nmol/L, there were 1.65-fold and 1.26-fold increases in the prevalence of BV associated with a serum 25(OH)D concentration of 20 and 50 nmol/L, respectively,” wrote the researchers.
“Vitamin D deficiency is associated with BV and may contribute to the strong racial disparity in the prevalence of BV,” they concluded.
The study does not prove causality, and further studies are required to add support to the observation that vitamin D levels may be associated with the incidence of bacterial vaginosis.
The details on D
Vitamin D refers to two biologically inactive precursors – D3, also known as cholecalciferol, and D2, also known as ergocalciferol. The former, produced in the skin on exposure to UVB radiation (290 to 320 nm), is said to be more bioactive.
While our bodies do manufacture vitamin D on exposure to sunshine, the levels in some northern countries are so weak during the winter months that our body makes no vitamin D at all, meaning that dietary supplements and fortified foods are seen by many as the best way to boost intakes of vitamin D.
Source: Journal of Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, 8 April 2009, doi:10.3945/jn.108.103168
“Maternal Vitamin D Deficiency Is Associated with Bacterial Vaginosis in the First Trimester of Pregnancy”
Authors: L.M. Bodnar, M.A. Krohn, H.N. Simhan
Peroxide vs. Bleach (thank you Birgit – DK)
This was written by Becky Ransey of Indiana (a doctor’s wife), and I want to share it with you. She was over recently for coffee and smelled the bleach I was using to clean my toilet and counter tops. This is what she told me:
“I would like to tell you of the benefits of that plain little ole bottle of 3% peroxide you can get for under $1.00 at any drug store. What does bleach cost? My husband has been in the medical field for over 36 years, and most doctors don’t tell you about peroxide.
“Have you ever smelled bleach in a doctor’s office?
NO!!! Why?
Because it smells, and it is not healthy! Ask the nurses who work in the doctor’s offices, and ask them if they use bleach at home.
They are wiser and know better!
“Did you also know bleach was invented in the late 40′s? It’s chlorine, folks! And it was used to kill our troops.
“Peroxide was invented during WWI.
It was used to save and help cleanse the needs of our troops and hospitals. Please think about this:
1. Take one capful (the little white cap that comes with the bottle) and hold in your mouth for 10 minutes daily, then spit it out. (I do it when I bathe.) No more canker sores, and your teeth will be whiter without expensive pastes. Use it instead of mouthwash.
2. Let your toothbrushes soak in a cup of peroxide to keep them free of germs.
3. Clean your counters and table tops with peroxide to kill germs and leave a fresh smell. Simply put a little on your dishrag when you wipe, or spray it on the counters.
4. After rinsing off your wooden cutting board, pour peroxide on it to kill salmonella and other bacteria.
5. I had fungus on my feet for years until I sprayed a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water on them (especially the toes) every night and let dry..
6. Soak any infections or cuts in 3% peroxide for five to ten minutes several times a day. My husband has seen gangrene that would not heal with any medicine but was healed by soaking in peroxide.
7. Fill a spray bottle with a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water and keep it in every bathroom to disinfect without harming your septic system like bleach or most other disinfectants will.
8. Tilt your head back and spray into nostrils with your 50/50 mixture whenever you have a cold, plugged sinus. It will bubble and help to kill the bacteria. Hold for a few minutes, and then blow your nose into a tissue.
9. If you have a terrible toothache and cannot get to a dentist right away, put a capful of 3% peroxide into your mouth and hold it for ten minutes several times a day. The pain will lessen greatly.
10. Put half a bottle of peroxide in your bath to help rid boils, fungus, or other skin infections.
11. You can also add a cup of peroxide instead of bleach to a load of whites in your laundry to whiten them. If there is blood on clothing, pour it directly on the soiled spot. Let it sit for a minute, then rub it and rinse with cold water.
Repeat if necessary.
12. I use peroxide to clean my mirrors. There is no smearing, which is why I love it so much for this.
“I could go on and on. It is a little brown bottle no home should be without!
“With prices of most necessities rising, I’m glad there’s a way to save tons of money in such a simple, healthy manner!”
This information really woke me up. I hope you gain something from it, too..
Pass this on …. and on …. and on!
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