Research Ties Diabetes Drug to Heart Woes

By GARDINER HARRIS

Published: February 19, 2010 - New York Times

Hundreds of people taking Avandia, a controversial diabetes medicine, needlessly suffer heart attacks and heart failure each month, according to confidential government reports that recommend the drug be removed from the market.

The reports, obtained by The New York Times, say that if every diabetic now taking Avandia were instead given a similar pill named Actos, about 500 heart attacks and 300 cases of heart failure would be averted every month because Avandia can hurt the heart. Avandia, intended to treat Type 2 diabetes, is known as rosiglitazone and was linked to 304 deaths during the third quarter of 2009.

“Rosiglitazone should be removed from the market,” one report, by Dr. David Graham and Dr. Kate Gelperin of the Food and Drug Administration, concludes. Both authors recommended that Avandia be withdrawn. 

The internal F.D.A. reports are part of a fierce debate within the agency over what to do about Avandia, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline. Some agency officials want the drug withdrawn because they believe there is a safer alternative; others insist that studies of the drug provide contradictory information and that Avandia should continue to be an option for doctors and patients. GlaxoSmithKline said that it had studied Avandia extensively and that “scientific evidence simply does not establish that Avandia increases” the risk of heart attacks. 

The battle has been brewing for years but has been brought to a head by disagreement over a new clinical trial and a Senate investigation that concluded that GlaxoSmithKline should have warned patients earlier of the drug’s potential risks. 

Avandia was once one of the biggest-selling drugs in the world. Driven in part by a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign, sales were $3.2 billion in 2006. But a 2007 study by a Cleveland Clinicheart attack but recommended that it remain on the market, and an F.D.A. oversight board voted 8 to 7 to accept that advice. cardiologist suggesting that the drug harmed the heart prompted the F.D.A. to issue a warning, and sales plunged. A committee of independent experts found in 2007 that Avandia might increase the risk of 

Hundreds of thousands still take the medicine, although some top endocrinologists say they have sworn off the drug.

Since 2007, more studies have been done. In a December 2009 internal memorandum, Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the F.D.A.’s drug center, wrote that “there are multiple conflicting opinions” about Avandia within the agency, and she ordered officials to assemble another advisory committee, expected this summer, to reconsider whether the drug should be sold.

“I await the recommendations of the advisory committee,” the agency’s commissioner, Dr. Margaret Hamburg, said Friday night. “Meanwhile, I am reviewing the inquiry made by Senators Baucus and Grassley and I am reaching out to ensure that I have a complete understanding and awareness of all of the data and issues involved.”

The bipartisan multiyear Senate investigation — whose results are expected to be released publicly on Monday but which were also obtained by The Times — sharply criticizes GlaxoSmithKline, saying it failed to warn patients years earlier that Avandia was potentially deadly. 

“Instead, G.S.K. executives attempted to intimidate independent physicians, focused on strategies to minimize or misrepresent findings that Avandia may increase cardiovascular risk, and sought ways to downplay findings that a competing drug might reduce cardiovascular risk,” concludes the report, which was overseen by Senator Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat, and Senator Charles E. Grassley, an Iowa Republican.

Mr. Baucus said of the report, “Patients trust drug companies with their health and their lives, and GlaxoSmithKline abused that trust.”

In response, GlaxoSmithKline said that it disagreed with the Senate investigation’s conclusions. The company said that it could not comment on internal F.D.A. documents but that “the official ruling from F.D.A. is that Avandia remain on the market.” 

In the wake of the controversy, agency officials ordered GlaxoSmithKline to undertake a study comparing how many heart attacks, strokes and heart-related deaths occur among patients given either Avandia, Actos or a placebo. Studies suggest that Actos, made by Takeda, lowers blood sugar as well as Avandia but without hurting the heart as much. 

But Dr. Graham and Dr. Gelperin, working in the F.D.A.’s office of surveillance and epidemiology, argued in two separate internal reports that the new GlaxoSmithKline study, called TIDE, is “unethical and exploitative” because patients given Avandia face far greater risks than those given Actos, with no promise of any additional benefit. The trial may include patients who have had heart attacks or chest pains even though some foreign drug authorities have warned against Avandia’s use by precisely such patients, the reports note.

“Although the proposed TIDE trial is motivated by a desire for definitive answers regarding the cardiovascular safety of the drug rosiglitazone, the safety of the study itself cannot be assured and is not acceptable,” one of the reports concludes.

These concerns, in internal reports dated October 2008 but not made public until now, were later overruled by other agency officials, and GlaxoSmithKline is currently enrolling patients in the TIDE trial. The trial is not expected to be completed until 2020, although the company is hoping to report some results to the F.D.A. by 2014. The company’s patent on Avandia expires in 2012, and generic versions will probably swallow most remaining profits.

I love myself

Don't know who wrote this, but I absolutely LOVE it!

I love myself the way I am, there's nothing I need to change.
I'll always be the perfect me, there's nothing to rearrange.
I'm beautiful and capable, of being the best me I can.
And I love myself, just the way I am.

I love you the way you are, there's nothing you need to do.
When I feel the love inside, it's easy to love you.
Behind your fears, your rage and tears, I see your shining star.
And I love you, just the way your are.

I love the world the way it is, cause I can clearly see.
That all the things I judge are done, by people just like me.
So 'til the birth of peace on earth, that only love can bring.
I'll help it grow, by loving everything.

I love myself the way I am, and I still want to grow.
But change outside can only come, when deep inside I know.
I'm beautiful and capable, of being the best me I can.
And I love myself, just the way I am.

There simply is NO excuse

I am suffering from a terrible attack of post-birthday blues today.

Sitting here on my own with a steaming cup of tea and scanning my past year, I am left with a feeling of total and utter sadness for all the dear friends I had to say goodbye to - forever.

And my heart goes out again to my dear fiend Patrick.  "Darling" my daughter and I called him jokingly, because he was the only man who always consistantly called me "darling".  He thought the world of me.  At that time I was in my early fourties and him being 16 years my elder was not how I saw my "ideal dream relationship".  So I pushed him away.  He was polite but persitant :-)  Over the years we managed to stay friends, much to the dislike of his new girlfriend.

We only say each other occasionaly but that did not matter.  Our mutual love for Scotland and whisky proved a bond time nor place could break.

At the end of last year he collapsed of a stroke - ended up in hospital.  A few weeks later "darling" left this world.

By that time my dad was already in hospital.

My dearest darling friends.  The TIME we are to spend on this planed is limited. 

The past few weeks I have talked about death a lot.  I also have asked friends and patients that if they had a linited amount of time to live ... how they would spend it?

If you had a limited amount of time to live... what would you do?

One customer told me:

Wouldn't it be better if we would mourn before death?  What I mean, is that we should embrace one another, as if it were our last day, to openly, earnestly, express the love we hold for that person.

It saddens me to see the lack of recognition we show to our families, friends, pets, etc, as if they do not exist.  We, or the 'me' seems more important.

It is for this reason, that death seems so difficult.  It reminds us that we have neglected, to love that person, as we would have wanted to.  It is like a remaining 'guilt'.  

Every single reaction I received talked albout Love - spending time with the people wa care about - enjoying nature - making love ...

Surprisingly no one told me thay would go out and buy a new car - attend a last business meeting - works harder and longer ...

Dear friends, we all --have a limited time to live, on this earth.  Yes, we all die.  Death is a certainty.  We cannot avoid it.

Found this text on the Daily Motivator website: 

Losing someone we love in this life serves to remind us that we ourselves will at some point pass away as well.  We are reminded that we have a limited amount of time in which to love and live life to its fullest.  Life is too short for feeling sorry for ourselves, becoming mired in worries, or even to be inactive.  Life is meant to live, to be happy right now in this moment, to be present for all of life's offerings.  Beauty and love and happiness are all around us, yet we can become so caught up in our day-to-day existence that life just passes us by.  When we argue with someone, is it that important to be right?  When we worry about our finances, are we being present to our loved ones?  When we say to ourselves, maybe next year...?  What if next year never comes?  What if today were the only day you had?  Would you live life differently?

~Nicole Nenninger

Please share with me: What if next year never comes?  What if today were the only day you had?  Would you live life differently? 

Best Poem Ever - Maya Angelou

I have placed a post about MAYA  ANGELOU before.  Just wanted to share this with you too!   Thank you Jeanne for sending it!

 
A  WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...   
enough money within her control to move out  
and rent a place of her own,  
even if she never wants to or needs to...   
something perfect to wear if the employer,  
or date of her  dreams wants to see her in an hour....  



A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...    
a youth she's content to leave behind....   
a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to   
retelling it in her old age....  
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill   and a black lace bra...   one friend who  always makes her laugh... and one who lets her cry...  



A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...    
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family....  
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems,  
and a recipe for a meal,  
that will make her guests feel honored...  



A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ..    
a feeling of control over her destiny...   
how to fall in love without losing herself..  



EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...    
how to quit a job,  
break up with a  lover,  
and confront a friend without  
ruining the friendship....  


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW......    
when to try harder...and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...    


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...    
that she can't change the length of her calves,   
the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents..   
that her childhood may not have been perfect...but it's over...   



EVERY WOMAN  SHOULD KNOW...   
what she would and wouldn't do  or love or more...  
how to live alone... even if she doesn't  like it...  



EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.. .    
whom she can trust,  
whom she can't,   
and why she shouldn't take it personally...  



EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...    
where to go...  
be it to her best friend's kitchen table...  
or a charming inn in the  woods...  
when her soul needs soothing...  



EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...    
What she can and can't accomplish in a day...   
a month...and a year...  

These are sentences actually typed by Medical secretaries in NHS Greater Glasgow

May 19  thanks to BarryDanser for posting them on his blog

I don't know if these are true but they are hilarious! Have a nice weekend

1. The patient has no previous history of suicides.
 
2. Patient has left her white blood cells at another hospital. 

3. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only a 40 pound weight gain in the past three days.
 
4. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.
 
5. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.
 
6. On the second day the knee was better and on the third day it disappeared.
 
7. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed.
 
8. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.
 
9. Discharge status:- Alive, but without my permission.

10. Healthy appearing decrepit 69-year old male, mentally alert, but forgetful. 11. Patient had waffles 
for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.
 
12. She is numb from her toes down.
 
13. While in ER, she was examined, x-rated and sent home.
 
14. The skin was moist and dry.
 
15. Occasional, constant infrequent headaches.
 
16. Patient was alert and unresponsive.
 
17. Rectal examination revealed a normal size thyroid.
 
18. She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life until she got a divorce.
 
19. I saw your patient today, who is still under our care for physical therapy.
 
20. Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.
 
21 Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.
 
22. The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.
 
23. Skin: somewhat pale, but present.
 
24. The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.
 
25. Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.
 
26. Patient has two teenage children, but no other abnormalities
 
27. When she fainted, her eyes rolled around the room.
 
28. The patient was in his usual state of good health until his airplane ran out of fuel and crashed.
 
29. Between you and me, we ought to be able to get this lady pregnant.
 
30. She slipped on the ice and apparently her legs went in separate directions in early December.
 
31. Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Smith, who felt we should sit on the abdomen and I agree.
 
32. The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a stock broker instead.
 
33. By the time he was admitted, his rapid heart had stopped, and he was feeling better.

Expensive tic tacs?

Had to share this article written by

By Sharon Begley | NEWSWEEK

Published Jan 29, 2010

Almost daily I meet people in my practice who take anto depressants and ... are still depressed.

So please read.  

It is a pretty long article so at the bottom I have added the link to the website, for you to continue reading.

 

Although the year is young, it has already brought my first moral dilemma. In early January a friend mentioned that his New Year's resolution was to beat his chronic depression once and for all. Over the years he had tried a medicine chest's worth of antidepressants, but none had really helped in any enduring way, and when the side effects became so unpleasant that he stopped taking them, the withdrawal symptoms (cramps, dizziness, headaches) were torture. Did I know of any research that might help him decide whether a new antidepressant his doctor recommended might finally lift his chronic darkness at noon?

The moral dilemma was this: oh, yes, I knew of 20-plus years of research on antidepressants, from the old tricyclics to the newer selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) that target serotonin (Zoloft, Paxil, and the granddaddy of them all, Prozac, as well as their generic descendants) to even newer ones that also target norepinephrine (Effexor, Wellbutrin). The research had shown that antidepressants help about three quarters of people with depression who take them, a consistent finding that serves as the basis for the oft-repeated mantra "There is no question that the safety and efficacy of antidepressants rest on solid scientific evidence," as psychiatry professor Richard Friedman of Weill Cornell Medical College recently wrote in The New York Times. But ever since a seminal study in 1998, whose findings were reinforced by landmark research in The Journal of the American Medical Association last month, that evidence has come with a big asterisk. Yes, the drugs are effective, in that they lift depression in most patients. But that benefit is hardly more than what patients get when they, unknowingly and as part of a study, take a dummy pill—a placebo. As more and more scientists who study depression and the drugs that treat it are concluding, that suggests that antidepressants are basically expensive Tic Tacs.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/232781

Cracking your knuckles

Cracking your knuckles does not actually hurt your bones or cause arthritis. The sound you hear is just gas bubbles bursting.

Cracking your knuckles (or any of your joints) can have therapeutic benefits. When you crack one of your joints you are pulling the bones that are connected at the joint apart from each other. This process stimulates your tendons, relaxes your muscles, and loosens your joints. Chiropractors do this for spinal joints when your back is sore and stiff, but you can do this on your own for your knuckles, toes, knees, neck, etc.

Unfortunately, there can be too much of a good thing. Cracking your knuckles will never lead to arthritis (despite what your mom keeps telling you), but scientists have discovered that it can cause tissue damage in the affected joints. Knuckle-cracking pulls your finger bones apart which stretches your ligaments. Too much stretching of your ligaments will cause damage to your fingers akin to the arm injuries sustained by a baseball pitcher who throws too many pitches. In addition to making your hand really sore, this ligament damage can also result in reduced grip strength.

How does this work? Your joints, the places in your body where you can bend, are where your bones intersect and are held together by ligaments. These joints are surrounded by a liquid called synovial fluid. When you stretch your ligaments by pulling the bones apart to crack your knuckles a gas in the synovial fluid escapes and turns into a bubble. This process is called cavitation. Cavitation ends when the bubble eventually bursts, producing that popping sound we know and love. After that, your joints won't be able to crack for another 25-30 minutes while the gas gets reabsorbed into the synovial fluid

Aphrodite Urania

By Eileen Ramage ©1996

Am I Aphrodite? Goddess of true love?

Look now into my eyes. I have awakened once again!

If your mind is fertile then you are ready to conceive

Intellectual passions, stellar levels of Affection

And my Spiritual Embrace!

I am the catalyst, returned from times past.

Let me awaken you to the intense passions

To Live, Love and Learn beyond your wildest dreams!

Reach out and touch my Soul! Step through the door of Love,

The passage to unleashed life. Let the fire within me

Ignite within you a flame to lead you out of darkness.

You are of such Greatness! More beauty has not been seen

Nor Spiritual intensity. It‘s time to turn the key.

Step through to a new Reality!

You can be a Magician or anything you choose.

Your potential has no limits!

Your Love has no bounds!

I have great desires for all of Mankind.

Awaken!

Feel the Joy of Life!

Cellphone brain cancer link still open question

The question of whether cellphone use causes brain tumours remains unsettled after the results of a major study on almost 13,000 cellphone users over 10 years.
The World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer study called INTERPHONE found most cellphone use didn't increase the risk of developing meningioma — a common and frequently benign tumour — or glioma — a rarer but deadlier form of cancer.

 
Handsets and texting have changed how people use cellphones, which are now less often held against the head. (CBC) "I think the results are tantalizing in the sense that overall we're not seeing evidence of an increased risk," said Prof. Daniel Krewski of the University of Ottawa, a Canadian member of the study group. "But … in this one exposure group, the 1,640-plus cumulative call hours, a possible increased risk in glioma."
"We're not sure about the significance of those results because some of the people in that category reported usage levels which were somewhat improbable."

P.O.V.:

Cellphone risk: Will you change your habits?

The overall findings are "comforting" from a public health point of view, but the possible increased risk of glioma among heavy users talking for more than 30 minutes per day on the same side of the head warrants a closer look, Krewski said.
The authors noted that "biases and error prevent a causal interpretation" that would directly blame radiation for the tumour.
The paper, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, was compiled by researchers in 13 countries including Britain, Canada, France, Germany and Japan. The study looked at almost 13,000 participants, including 2,409 meningioma cases and 2,662 matched controls of the same age, gender and location, and 2,708 glioma cases with 2,972 matched controls.
It takes 10 to 20 years for many tumours in the head and neck areas to develop, which is why the study was designed to follow so many users.

Difficult to interpret

The potential effects of using hands-free devices during calls or the risk of having cellphones nearby, such as in a pocket, were not examined. Researchers mainly relied on people to recall their cellphone use. For some groups, cellphone use appeared to lessen the risk of developing cancers, which the researchers called "implausible."

 
A separate study will look into the effects of cellphone use on children. (David Kohl/Associated Press) One explanation is that cellphone users may be healthier, but a more likely reason is people showing manifestations of neurological disease use cellphones less, Rodolfo Saracci of Italy's National Research Council and Jonathan Samet of the University of Southern California's department of preventive medicine said in a journal commentary accompanying the study.
"For the time being, INTERPHONE’s findings, interpreted in the context of prior studies, tells us that the question as to whether mobile phone use increases risk for brain cancers remains open," Saracci and Samet wrote.
"The tired refrain 'more research is needed' fully applies in this instance: without more research the public's question about the acceptability of cancer risk from mobile phones will remain unanswered."

Texting changes cellphone usage

Last month, European scientists launched what will be the largest study into the long-term effects of cellphone use. The study aims to track at least a quarter of a million people in Europe for up to 30 years in real time. A separate study will look into the effects of cellphone use on children, who are believed to be more susceptible to the effects of radiation.
"It's kind of embarrassing as a scientist to say we've just spent 12 years and 20 million euros and we think there's not much of a risk there, but we're not entirely sure," Krewski acknowledged of the research so far, which included almost $2 million in Canadian funding.
At this point, researchers don't have a plausible biological mechanism by which radio frequency fields could increase cancer risk in humans, said epidemiologist Dr. Mary McBride of the B.C. Cancer Agency, another Canadian member of the study.
"The way in which people use cellphones today and the number of users has certainly changed since the study data were collected," said McBride. "In particular the exposure levels by using handsets and by texting are less than by holding the phone up to one's ear."

Precaution options

Both the study's authors and the International EMF Collaborative, which wrote a counterview to the study, pointed to flaws in the research.
"When randomly selected controls are asked if they would like to participate in a 'mobile phone' study, they are far more likely to agree if they use mobile phones than if they don’t, and if they do not use a mobile phone, they are likely to refuse participation," the counterview said.
The counterview authors also noted the study did not consider other sources of radio frequency radiation such as cordless phones, calling the five-year results "woefully inadequate as a gauge of risk today."
“Four billion people own mobile phones worldwide; many of those users are children," said Eileen O’Connor, director of the Radiation Research Trust and member of the International EMF Collaborative.
"Responsible governments must advocate for public transparency of risks so that an informed public may have more options to exercise precaution," O'Connor added in a statement.
The Mobile Manufacturers Forum welcomed the study.
"The INTERPHONE project is the biggest study of its kind ever undertaken in this field and provides significant further reassurance about the safety of mobile phones," said Michael Milligan, secretary general of the Mobile Manufacturers Forum, which provided partial funding for the study along with the GSM Association, European Commission and national research funding bodies.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2010/05/17/cellphone-brain-cancer.html#ixzz0oGMKn9er

Poem

Only as high as I reach can I grow, 

only as far as I seek can I go, 

only as deep as I look can I see, 

only as much as I dream can I be.

Blood test on newborns could prevent disability, say scientists

 

A blood test to assess the risk of brain damage in vulnerable newborn babies could save lives and prevent disability, scientists say. The test, carried out on blood taken fr......om the umbilical... cord immediately after birth, measures its acidity (the pH level). Blood with a low pH (more acid) indicates a lack of oxygen at birth, which is the commonest cause of brain damage, cerebral palsy and death. Current guidelines suggest that measuring the pH level of umbilical cord blood is worthless as a predictor of how the baby will fare, because the association is inconsistent. But doctors based in Birmingham reviewed 51 studies involving almost 500,000 babies and found a low pH in the cord blood was strongly linked with serious outcomes.

Based on their findings, published in the British Medical Journal, they call for increased surveillance of babies born with low cord blood pH and for further research to explore the cost effectivenees of doing the test on all babies.

In an accompanying editorial, James Neilson, professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the University of Liverpool, said: "We should aim to reduce the number of babies born with a low cord pH, without increasing unnecessary obstetric intervention."

Andy Shennan, professor of obstetrics at St Thomas' Hospital in London welcomed the study into the relationship between low pH and future health. "Lack of oxygen to the baby during labour will result in a low pH in the umbilical cord," he said. "If it is prolonged, irreversible neurological damage can occur, although this is rare."

Article by Jeremy Laurence, Health Editor - The Independant

:-)

How to Make Fresh Nut Milks in Your Blender

I'd like to share an article by Karen Knowler

Nut milks. Oh, how I adore thee : )

Nut milks are what I consider to be a raw food classic. They're quick, easy - fun, even. And they taste jolly good too. In fact, if you know what you're doing they taste superb, and anyone - young or old - would love them given half a chance.

What follows is the why, what and how of nut milks together with a few hints and tips for making good ones greater. So even if you already consider yourself to be a Nut Milk Maestro, the following article may just help elevate your status to Nut Milk King or Queen!

Shall we get started?

Why nut milks?

Nut milks are packed with nutrition owing to the fact that they contain a fairly significant amount of nuts (1 measuring cup typically). However, with that does come the fat of course, but much less than usual as all of the fibre is removed if you choose to strain, and therefore a significant amount of the fat is left behind too as it remains in the fibre. This way you get all of the taste, none of the bulk and most of the nutrition (all nuts are typically high in zinc, magnesium, iron, protein, some B vitamins and manganese though it does differ from nut to nut). Blended and strained nuts are much easier to digest than when eaten dry and whole and therefore are much easier on the system.

And although they are fibre-free, because they are so nutrition-dense they make for a very filling drink or snack, or even meal depending on your appetite - but without giving you the full feeling of a meal. In the past I would quite often have a nut milk for supper if I wasn't hungry earlier on in the evening but wanted something an hour or so before bed. And sometimes only a nut milk would do!

What are nut milks and what can be done with them?

• Nut milks are a delicious and fresh alternative to dairy milks and are not to be confused with any other kind of milk you may have come across. This includes non-dairy milks such as soya and commercially produced almond milk, all of which are heat-treated.
• Nut milks are so-called because of their white dairy-like appearance and their similarity in taste to cow's milk, especially cashew milk which is the most similar and in raw food recipes is most commonly used as a dairy replacement.
• Fresh raw and unflavoured nut milks consist solely of raw nuts and water - nothing else.
• Nut milks taste fresh and creamy and leave you feeling refreshed and satiated, whereas dairy milks tend to leave a mucousy after-taste and you feeling a bit "gunky."
• Nut milks are delicious drunk either as is, or with sweeteners or flavourings added to them.
• Nut milks are great replacements for people with dairy intolerances.
• Nut milks are more commonly known about than seed milks, but all of the nut milk information given below (apart from that relating to ice-cream) can be applied to seed milks - i.e. milks made from using seeds such as sesame, sunflower, pumpkin or hemp, as opposed to nuts.

How to make a nut milk

To make a nut milk you will need a blender (or Vita-Mix) and something to strain the milk with. A "nut milk bag" is ideal for this but you can use a fine mesh sieve to good effect - but it must be fine mesh as anything bigger will not work and you will get lumps or fibre in your milk.

Step 1: Go nuts!
To get started you'll need some good quality nuts to work with. The best ones to start with are usually almonds as these are easy to find, easy to use and most people seem to love them. Whatever nuts you choose these will ideally be organic and with no broken bits or chips and will be raw - not salted or roasted! Other good ones to start with are cashews or hazelnuts.

Step 2: Get blending
To make enough nut milk for 1 large serving place 1 measuring cup of your chosen nut into your blender with 3 cups of pure water. Blend until all the nuts have been broken down and no bits care remaining. You should be left with a "milk" that has no bits rattling around inside it, although if you've used almonds there will be bits of brown skin showing up in the mixture - this is fine, we'll get rid of these next.

Step 3: Take the strain
Next, prepare to strain your milk by getting a jug or bowl to collect it in and your strainer in hand. Pour your milk through the strainer and into your jug or bowl. My own personal preference is to use a nut milk bag and a tall jug as the bag sits nicely around the top of the jug making it much easier to pour the milk into.

Step 4: Milk it to the max You'll want to get as much milk from your mixture as possible, so you'll need to make sure you have strained it well. If you've used a nut milk bag to strain, continue squeezing the bag until no more milk can come out. If you're using a sieve use a spoon to swirl and press the nut milk and pull around until all the liquid has come through.

Step 5: Drink now - or flavour?
Your milk will now be "fizzing" with life and completely clear of any bits of pulp or fibre as you've strained it. At this point you can drink your milk simply by pouring it into a glass and serving, or you can choose to sweeten it or flavour it according to your own preferences. (Be sure to rinse the blender jug well first). I personally like to sweeten my nut milk a little, which I usually do with a Medjool date or two, or a tablespoon of agave nectar - I think this one simple addition takes the milk from a "7" to a "10" and most people who try them both and then compare agree (unless they have a low sweetness threshold!). If you'd like to flavour yours, read on for a range of ideas of what you can do with your lovely fresh nut milk, but bear in mind these ideas are just for starters!

Top nut milk facts & tips

• Nut milks will keep for several hours in the fridge with negligible loss of taste and nutrition. This only applies to pure nut milks - not those which have had anything added to them which will tend to ferment quite quickly and should be drunk ideally within the hour.
• To make a raw ice-cream with a nut milk base start your experiments with cashews or almonds. Cashew is the nut most like cow's milk in taste, but some people aren't so fond of cashews. But almonds are always a winner!
• To make a nut milk even more quickly AND avoid all the straining (of all kinds!), use 1 Tablespoon of nut butter instead of the 1 cup of nuts. Simply blend the butter with the water and hey presto! Instant milk.
• You can add fruit to nut milks, but bear in mind that it's not a great combination as far as food combining goes (when eaten together fruit and nuts tend to ferment in the stomach). However, because the nuts are not whole but in a milk form and therefore fibre-free this is much less likely to happen, or at least will be much less intense. Almond and strawberry is a great-tasting combination!
• Some great ingredients to try adding to your nut milks (in moderation!): Maca, mesquite meal, coconut butter, cacao beans or powder, vanilla pod or essence, cinnamon, dates, agave nectar, carob.

Nut milks for maestros

• If you make nut milks regularly but would rather not faff about with a sieve or bag and you're a gadget fan, you might consider investing in a nut milk maker. These machines are really rather groovy-looking and retail at around £59.99. The make I own is the Yaoh which is brilliant.
• If you're ready to get more out of your nut milks then consider making shakes, ice-creams, soups and dressings from them. The only difference between them all is the flavourings you choose to add and the temperature at which you serve them. But all equally lovely!
• If you've always stuck to almonds or the same nut for your nut milks, try something different. Some are bound to taste better than others, but you could always mix two or more to create something very special!

Influenza vaccine sends children into convulsions

(NaturalNews) Influenza vaccines have sent 57 children into life-threatening convulsions, reports The Age out of Australia. These influenza vaccines were being give to children under five to "protect" them from seasonal flu, but after receiving the shots, these children started going into convulsions.

An investigation has revealed that there is no quality control problem with any particular batch of influenza vaccines. They all pass quality control, in other words, so the convulsions are being caused by what is intentionally put into the vaccines, not by some mistaken chemical contaminant.

This, of course, baffles conventional doctors who have all been told that vaccines are perfectly safe and could never harm anyone. So rather than pausing to consider what might be contained in the vaccines that's causing children to go into convulsions, they charge ahead with the recommendation that even more people should get vaccines.

Alan Hampson, chairman of Australia's Influenza Specialist Group, "...advised young, healthy people anxious to get the flu vaccine to consider having the swine flu vaccine" reports The Age. There is no amount of real-world evidence, you see, that can break the mythological stranglehold that vaccines have over the minds of mainstream physicians. Even if children start dropping to the floor and convulsing right in front of them, they will continue to push vaccines on even more children.

The illusion of vaccine efficacy

Vaccines are based on a scientific-sounding mythology that is widely believed by gullible physicians and scientists who simply believe what they are told rather than what's real.

This mythology is based on the belief that injecting foreign matter into the human body will cause the immune system to adapt to the weakened foreign matter by creating antibodies that fight off future infections. This explanation, however, is pure mythology. In reality, an immune system can only invoke an adaptive response when it is properly nourished with vitamin D. And if the patient has enough vitamin D, they need no vaccine because vitamin D protects them from seasonal influenza in the first place.

Thus, vaccines only "work" in those people who don't need them. People who have the least protection against influenza due to their vitamin D deficiency also have the weakest immune response to vaccines. The vaccines, in other words, just don't work on them.

Children with particularly weak neurology are highly susceptible to neurological damage from vaccines. This damage may take the form of a coma, convulsions, autism or being partially paralyzed. Some children given vaccines soon find themselves in wheelchairs, unable to walk even though previous to the vaccine they were star athletes.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Editor of NaturalNews.com

How To Spot A Masturbator

 

I just had to share this article -  May 9, 2010 by Stephenson Billings   

Masturbation is a serious issue facing families today but most parents are just too embarrassed to talk about it with their teens. Heed Colossians 3:5: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” If the sins of lust, covetousness, immoral thoughts, and pornography are forsaken and overcome, teen masturbation is a small offense that can be dealt with in the privacy of your own home. But when this self-indulgent practice becomes an addiction, it poses genuine health and spiritual risks, and also threatens workplace safety and the overall productivity of our economy. 

It is vital for parents to personally prepare their teens for puberty. This can be an overwhelming and frightening time for children. Their bodies change in painful and unexpected ways. Leviticus 22:4 states, “If a descendant of Aaron has an infectious skin disease or a bodily discharge, he may not eat the sacred offerings until he is cleansed. He will also be unclean if he touches something defiled by a corpse or by anyone who has an emission of semen.” The danger this passage suggests has been proven by contemporary medical science, not just with the spread of STDs, but also because masturbation is directly connected to yeast infections in women and prostate cancer in young men (see “Masturbation May Cause Cancer”). In extreme cases, it has been known to lead to such dire scenarios as retarded ejaculation, urethral trauma and penile fracture.

“Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so he put him to death also.” –Genesis 38:9-10

For adults, masturbation exhausts. It can make one groggy and unfocused. It has a steamrolling effect, encouraging individuals to think more about sex and less about their work at hand. The connection to workplace safety is evident, particularly with men operating heavy machinery or dangerous equipment. These are the very sorts of people who need to be completely focused and when their distractions and fatigues take over, the productivity of our workplaces suffers. In offices, internet porn is the most common cause of procrastination and another drain on the economy.

Despite the warnings of doctors and religious scholars, masturbation still remains very popular in America. As a society, this degree of self-manipulation goes too far in familiarizing men and women with their bodies. These people become less active in their communities and begin to see themselves as sexual predators whose sole purpose is to climax at the end of the night. Masturbation has had a ruinous effect on the institution of marriage. Countless couples have been destroyed by porn addiction, many other men have just given up on the idea of marriage because they prefer to pleasure themselves whenever they choose, free from the interruptions of family life.

 

LOVING VIGILANCE: WHAT TO LOOK FOR

To help turn the tide on this crisis, it’s important for parents and work supervisors to be able to spot a chronic or even just a casual masturbator in their midst. Maternal wisdom has long stated that oversleeping, locked doors, avoiding eye contact, messy beds, fear of clean underwear, long steamy showers and a pungent bleach-like odor on one’s bedsheets are all red flags of masturbation invasion. One trick passed on to me is that you can press your nose to a young man’s mattress, inhale deeply and (irregardless of the smell) announce, “That smells like semen.” If the boy’s face turns red and he runs from the room, the evidence is clear. The internet also makes it much easier for parents to identify a child’s masturbation habits. For health and safety, every adult should read the article “Protecting Our Children” from Christian Assemblies International about monitoring your kid’s web browsing history. Another helpful suggestion is to avoid laptops and keep the family computer in a public space like the TV room where web surfing can be watched closely. For a good discussion on the topic, read Amber Cooper’s article, “Is It Ok For My Christian Daughter To Masturbate?”

Do Some People Have an Instinct For Spotting Masturbators?

There are people who claim they can identify a masturbator with one glance. It’s not magic, but solid human observation. Up to a half an hour after the act, the perpetrator’s face has several telltale signs. Facial muscles are far more relaxed than they normally are, minimizing the depth of creases and fine lines. On the other hand, the flesh of the cheeks and forehead is puffy and pink, flush with heightened circulation. There is evidence of fatigue everywhere, from a low hanging jaw to glassy eyes. This is compounded by a general guilt or nervousness as seen in the eyes and posture. It is the apparent contradiction of these characteristics– physically relaxed but psychologically bubbling with a shameful secret– that is the greatest indicator that someone has just masturbated.

The images below will help you spot the masturbators in your daily life. The first is a simple display of the most common post-ejaculative face types. These boys can be first-time offenders and admonished privately by their parents in the privacy of the home.

The graph below is a detailed exploration of the habits and appearances of the addicted self-abuser. This young man is putting his future at risk by devoting more time to masturbation than to looking for employment, socializing within his community and preparing himself for marriage. If pushed, he will lie, cheat and steal to support his habit. Many college students fall victim to this lifestyle.

Exhibits A & B: Can you spot what makes a masturbator in these famous faces?

http://www.howtostopmasturbating.com/

'Starving yogi' astounds Indian scientists

 

An 83-year-old Indian holy man who says he has spent seven decades without food or water has astounded a team of military doctors who studied him during a two-week observation period.

Prahlad Jani spent a fortnight in a hospital in the western India state of Gujarat under constant surveillance from a team of 30 medics equipped with cameras and closed circuit television.

During the period, he neither ate nor drank and did not go to the toilet.

"We still do not know how he survives," neurologist Sudhir Shah told reporters after the end of the experiment. "It is still a mystery what kind of phenomenon this is."

The long-haired and bearded yogi was sealed in a hospital in the city of Ahmedabad in a study initiated by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the state defence and military research institute.

The DRDO hopes that the findings, set to be released in greater detail in several months, could help soldiers survive without food and drink, assist astronauts or even save the lives of people trapped in natural disasters.

"(Jani's) only contact with any kind of fluid was during gargling and bathing periodically during the period," G. Ilavazahagan, director of India's Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences (DIPAS), said in a statement.

Jani has since returned to his village near Ambaji in northern Gujarat where he will resume his routine of yoga and meditation. He says that he was blessed by a goddess at a young age, which gave him special powers.

During the 15-day observation, which ended on Thursday, the doctors took scans of Jani's organs, brain, and blood vessels, as well as doing tests on his heart, lungs and memory capacity.

"The reports were all in the pre-determined safety range through the observation period," Shah told reporters at a press conference last week.

Other results from DNA analysis, molecular biological studies and tests on his hormones, enzymes, energy metabolism and genes will take months to come through.

"If Jani does not derive energy from food and water, he must be doing that from energy sources around him, sunlight being one," said Shah.

"As medical practitioners we cannot shut our eyes to possibilities, to a source of energy other than calories."

Article with thanks to Yahoo.

Happy Mother's Day!

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

"Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile at you all day. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."

"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?"

God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray."

"Who will protect me?"

God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking it's life."

"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore."

God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name."

"You will simply call her, 'Mom.'





For all of you sisters, who are celebrating mothers' day this weekend, hope you like this. It was sent to me by San Rossi.

Christian The Lion

I suppose some of you have already seen this video, but no matter how many times I viewed it, it always brings a tear to my eye.  Enjoy, after all it is almost the weekend.

Somebody Loves You

SOMEBODY LOVES YOU
By: Joseph J. Mazzella

 

When my children were young I used to read to them every evening before bed. One of their favorite stories was called, "Somebody Loves You Mr Hatch" 

Mr. Hatch was a lonely man living a lonely life. He never smiled. He walked alone to work everyday and ate his lunch alone in a corner. He never talked to anyone on his way home either. In the evening he would buy a newspaper, read it after supper, and go to bed early.

His life changed, however, on Valentine’s Day when he got a heart shaped box in the mail full of candy and a note that said, "Somebody loves you." At first he couldn't believe it but as he let the message sink in he began to laugh and dance around. That single message had opened his heart to the power of love. Soon he found himself sharing his smile and laughter with others. He became a joy at work and began to help out people in the neighborhood. As the days and weeks went by his laughter, smiles, kindness, caring, happiness and love touched the hearts of everyone in his community.
 

Later Mr. Hatch found out that the candy heart had been delivered to him by mistake. He felt crushed and began again to withdraw from the world. When his neighbors found out, however, they were determined not to lose the light he shared. They surprised him with a party and a huge banner that read: "Everybody Loves Mr. Hatch." Mr. Hatch cried when he realized that somebody loved him after all.

Then he laughed, smiled, and rejoined his friends.


I think that we all have a tiny bit of Mr. Hatch in us. At times we all feel unloved and unlovable. Somebody does love us, though. And we can love each other as well. It is what we are here for. It is what we were meant for.

May the pages of your life story be full of love then.

Brown Rice May Prevent High Blood Pressure

May 3, 2010

Natural News

By S. L. Baker

The rate of cardiovascular disease is much lower in Japan than in the U.S. and now scientists at the Cardiovascular Research Center and Department of Physiology at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia think they know why. People in Japan eat rice virtually every day and rice — especially the brown and only partially “polished” varieties — contains a natural compound that appears to guard against high blood pressure and heart disease. 

Brown rice is already well known as a healthy food choice because it’s a good source of fiber, B vitamins and other nutrients. But new research just presented by Temple University researcher Satoru Eguchi at the American Physiological Society’s Experimental Biology conference held in Anaheim, California, reveals another powerful health benefit. A specific natural compound found in a layer of tissue surrounding grains of brown rice inhibits an endocrine protein known as angiotensin II. In excess, angiotensin II can trigger serious cardiovascular problems.

This is enormously significant news because angiotensin II is a well documented culprit in the development of hypertension and atherosclerosis. Angiotensin II constricts arteries, increases blood pressure and forces the heart to work harder. It also thickens and stiffens the walls of the heart and blood vessels.

Big Pharma has created a huge industry producing angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) — prescription drugs that lower blood pressure by putting the brakes on angiotensin II. Sold under brand names such as Atacand, Teveten, Avapro and Cozaar, the medications are designed to block angiotensin II, thereby relaxing blood vessels so blood pressure is lowered.

But the side effects of these drugs can be serious and even deadly. They include fetal harm (possibly death) if the drugs are taken during pregnancy, dizziness, blurred vision, fainting, decreased sexual ability, infection, chest pain, swelling, trouble breathing and more.The new discovery about rice indicates brown rice or even half-milled rice could be a natural, side-effect free angiotensin II blocker.

Dr. Eguchi, an associate professor of physiology, and his colleagues investigated the subaleurone layer of Japanese rice. Located between the white center of the grain and the brown fibrous outer layer, this sub-layer of rice is loaded with oligosaccharides (complex carbohydrates known to benefit the digestive system) and dietary fibers. But when brown rice is polished to turn it into white rice, this subaleurone layer is ripped off, taking away some of the nutrients. However, the subaleurone layer is preserved not only in brown rice but also in two types of rice popular in Japan — half-milled (Haigamai) rice or incompletely-milled (Kinmemai) rice.

The Temple research team, working with conjunction with scientists at the Wakayama Medical University Department of Pathology and the Nagaoka National College of Technology Department of Materials Engineering in Japan, removed subaleurone tissue from Kinmemai rice and ran a variety of lab tests that demonstrated the components of this rice layer inhibited angiotensin II activity in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells. Bottom line: the subaleurone rice layer could offer powerful protection against high blood pressure and atherosclerosis by blocking the endocrine protein that can trigger those conditions.

“Our research suggests that there is a potential ingredient in rice that may be a good starting point for looking into preventive medicine for cardiovascular diseases,” Dr. Eguchi said in a media statement. “We hope to present an additional health benefit of consuming half-milled or brown rice (as opposed to white rice) as part of a regular diet.”

Lucky Dog

Lucky Dog....

Anyone who has pets will really like this. You'll like it even if you don't and you may even decide you need one!

Mary and her husband Jim had a dog named 'Lucky.' Lucky was a real character. Whenever Mary and Jim had company come for a weekend visit they would warn their friends to not leave their luggage open because Lucky would help himself to whatever struck his fancy. Inevitably, someone would forget and something would come up missing.

 

       

Mary or Jim would go to Lucky's toy box in the basement and there the treasure would be, amid all of Lucky's other favorite toys Lucky always stashed his finds in his toy box and he was very particular that his toys stay in the box.

It happened that Mary found out she had breast cancer. Something told her she was going to die of this disease......in fact; she was just sure it was fatal.

She scheduled the double mastectomy, fear riding her shoulders.  The night before she was to go to the hospital she cuddled with Lucky. A thought struck her....what would happen to Lucky? Although the three-year-old dog like d Jim, he was Mary's dog through and through. If I die, Lucky will be abandoned, Mary thought. He won't understand that I didn't want to leave him!  The thought made her sadder than thinking of her own death.

The double mastectomy was harder on Mary than her doctors had anticipated and Mary was hospitalized for over two weeks. Jim took Lucky for his evening walk faithfully, but the little dog just drooped, whining and miserable.

Finally the day came for Mary to leave the hospit al. When she arrived home, Mary was so exhausted she couldn't even make it up the steps to her bedroom.  Jim made his wife comfortable on the couch and left her to nap..

Lucky stood watching Mary but he didn't come to her when she called.  It made Mary sad but sleep soon overcame her and she dozed.

 

When Mary woke for a second she couldn't understand what was wrong.  She couldn't move her head and her body felt heavy and hot. But panic soon gave way to laughter when Mary realized the problem. She was covered, literally blanketed, with every treasure Lucky owned!  While she had slept, the sorrowing dog had made trip after trip to the basement bringing his beloved mistress all his favorite things in life.
He had covered her with his love.

Mary forgot about dying.  Instead she and Lucky began living again, walking further and further together every day. It's been 12 years now and Mary is still cancer-free. Lucky still steals treasures and stashes them in his toy box but Mary remains his greatest treasure.

Remember.....live every day to the fullest. Each minute is a blessing from God/Goddess. And never forget....the people who make a difference in our lives are not the ones with the most Credentials, the most money, or the most awards.  They are the ones that care for us.

If you see someone without a smile today give them one of yours! Live simply.. Love seriously. Care deeply. Speak kindly.