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Tylenol and Motrin Total Recall

admin — Mon, 10 May 2010 19:17:37 +0000

If you’re a parent or grandparent, you’ve hopefully heard of the massive recall of children and infant medications from pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson earlier this month. As a father of 8, it certainly caught my attention.

According to the related FDA news release, medicines involved may have too much of the active ingredient, inadequately tested inactive ingredients, or even foreign particles which don’t belong in there at all.

All this on the heels of another major recall of 21 types of infant’s and children’s liquid Tylenol last September due to bacterial contamination and another recall of Tylenol Arthritis Pain in November due to a chemical contaminant. Clearly children and adults alike have been put at risk in the past several months.

So what’s a health conscious citizen to do? According to the big pharma influenced FDA, buy generic. Um, were they manufactured in the same plant? No word on that.

I have a better proposal. Stop using all forms acetaminophen and ibuprofen altogether regardless of manufacturer. And yes, I’m serious.

The real dangers of acetaminophen and ibuprofen

Regular acetaminophen use has been directly attributable to 8% to 10% of the estimated 50,000 annual cases of end stage renal disease in the United States. The more of it you use, even as prescribed, the greater the odds you’re going to die of kidney failure.

According to an article on acetaminophen toxicity by Dr. Susan Farrell, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, acetaminophen is one of the most common pharmaceuticals involved in both intentional and accidental poisonings. In the United States, toxic effects of acetaminophen overdose is now the most common cause of acute hepatic failure and the second leading cause of liver failure requiring transplantation.

While only about 1 in 50 overdose patients die or require a liver transplant, an overdose can occur by taking less than double the daily recommended maximum dose. Is this really a substance you want to keep around the house, much less feed yourself and your kids?

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) including ibuprofen are no bastion of safety, either. In fact, they’re probably worse. Including both prescription NSAIDs and over-the-counter varieties like Motrin and Advil, over 30 billion doses are taken each year just in the United States. This number on the rise. So are related hospitalizations and deaths.

Every year in the U.S. over 100,000 people are hospitalized and over 16,000 will die from NSAID use and misuse. According to one study, 1 in every 1,200 people who take an NSAID for at least two months will die from related gastrointestinal complications. That doesn’t count those with adverse effects who survive.
Fortunately, there are safer alternatives for Tylenol, Motrin, and their generic equivalents.

Natural remedies for fever reduction, pain relief and inflammation

The most common reasons over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen are taken include fevers, general aches and pains, and to reduce inflammation. Each of these have much healthier alternatives in the world of natural medicine.

Fever

Remember, first of all, that a fever is your body’s defense mechanism. Infants under 3 months with a fever should always see a doctor right away. Otherwise, here are some simple techniques helping you or your child remain comfortable and reduce fevers:

Wear loose-fitting cotton clothing to allow your body to breathe. Keep the upper body covered to help prevent chills.
Take a lukewarm bath (sponge bath for infants). Hot water will be clearly counterproductive, but so will cold water as it causes your body to work harder to stay warm, therefore raising your internal temperature.
Drink lots of cool fluids. This helps prevent dehydration and cools the body down. Some herbal teas with licorice root or echinacea can help reduce fevers too.

Pain Relief

Ask any parent the most common cause of infant pain and they’ll
likely respond either tummy aches or teething pain. Here are some
great natural ways to ease infant teething and gas pains:

Teething pain can often be helped by massaging your baby’s gums with your finger or allowing them to chew on a cooled pacifier or teething ring.
Apply clove oil very lightly directly onto baby’s gums to reduce pain (older children and adults can get a similar effect for a sore tooth by holding a whole clove against it with their tongue).
Let baby chew on a natural herbal (not candy) licorice stick. Besides numbing baby’s gums, licorice also has natural anti-inflammatory properties and can ease stomach irritations.
Another great combined teething pain reliever and stomach soother is pure vanilla extract (real vanilla, not the artificial stuff). Similar to clove oil, apply by rubbing a tiny bit on baby’s sore gums.
Infants with upset stomachs, gas pains and colic can often get relief using all-natural ingredients as well. One product I like, Gentle Naturals Tummy Soother, uses chamomile and ginger – both well known for anxiety reducing and stomach soothing properties.
For general aches and pains, children (over 2 years old) and adults alike find the arnica, MSM, and menthol in Rub On Relief pain cream are work just as well as ibuprofen at relieving pain. Those with arthritis will especially love Rub On Relief for the Celadrin found in it, clinically proven to help reduce pain and increase flexibility and mobility in 100% of those who tested it.

Inflammation

Most children really don’t have a problem with inflammation. It’s when we get older that our bodies stop producing most of the proteolytic enzymes which signal our body to end its inflammatory response to injuries. That’s why it takes so much longer for something as simple as a sprained ankle to heal as an adult compared to when we were children.

Fortunately the solution is simple: supplement with the proteolytic systemic enzymes your body doesn’t make enough of. This allows your body to naturally fight inflammation. Other beneficial side effects of these enzymes are they also clean our blood, fight off viral and bacterial infections, and break down excess fibrin which leads to scar tissue inside our bodies.

In the end, there really are much healthier natural alternatives to drugs like Tylenol and Motrin. We just need to break our collective habit of reflexively taking drugs as our first response to pain.

Related references

Perneger
TV, Whelton PK, Klag MJ. Risk of kidney failure associated with the
use of acetaminophen, aspirin, and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory
drugs. The New England Journal of Medicine. 1994 Dec
22;331(25):1675-9.

Farrell S. Toxicity, Acetaminophen. Medscape. 2009 Sep 23.

Frech E, Go M. Treatment and chemoprevention of NSAID-associated
gastrointestinal complications. Therapeutics and Clinical Risk
Management. 2009; 5: 65–73.

Singh G. Recent considerations in nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug
gastropathy. The American journal of medicine. 1998 Jul
27;105(1B):31S-38S.

Tramèr MR, et al. Quantitative estimation of rare adverse events which
follow a biological progression: a new model applied to chronic NSAID
use. Pain. 2000 Mar;85(1-2):169-82.

Widrig R, Suter A, Saller R, Melzer J. Choosing between NSAID and arnica for
topical treatment of hand osteoarthritis in a randomised,
double-blind study. Rheumatology International. 2007
Apr;27(6):585-91.

Fat Loss Quickie

admin — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 03:17:04 +0000

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Hypnosis: Changing Your Mind About Weight Loss

The Secret to True Health and Wellness

admin — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 00:26:17 +0000

The “Western” approach to health care and medicine is truly pathetic once you know better. And boy will you know better once you watch these videos we’ve put together for you!

Discover how to stop treating just the symptoms and how to identify and address all of the hidden causes and contributors to your pain, sickness or dis-ease.

After watching these videos you will literally know more about health and wellness than most doctors – no joke here folks!

I truly hope you enjoy these videos and more importantly, that you use what you learn to become as healthy and happy as you possibly can

Acute Inflammation vs. Chronic Inflammation

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:12:05 +0000

Short-tem, or acute, inflammation is one of your body’s most powerful defense mechanisms. Swelling from increased fluids protects injured areas from further harm while the body goes into overdrive to fend off bacteria, viruses, and even parasites. It not only kills off the invaders, but damaged tissue as well, until your body eventually wins the battle.

Once inflammation has served its purpose to eliminate the external nasties the healing process can begin. Sometimes though, the body fails to end the inflammatory cycle and systemic chronic inflammation results.

While acute inflammation can save your life, chronic inflammation may help end it. When chronic inflammation becomes systemic the body actually turns on itself. It leads to an increased risk of heart attack or stroke, magnifies the harmful effects of Alzheimer’s, and even promotes an internal environment favorable for cancer.

While many drugs will decrease inflammation in the body, they are not safe to consume for extended periods of time. These drugs themselves have been linked to heart attacks, strokes, and blood clots. They can also damage your kidneys and other vital organs, lead to internal bleeding, and even death.

What is needed is a safer approach to reducing both localized and systemic inflammation in the body. Fortunately there are several options. And they can be used interchangeably. The four most recommended natural methods for reducing inflammation are:

Ice and heat

other foods reduce inflammation

systemic proteolytic enzymes

end the stress

This short video on fighting inflammation introduces these options.

Is Your Pain All In Your Mind?

admin — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 07:30:20 +0000

If you want to get someone suffering from pain angry in a hurry, just tell them their pain is all in their mind. “Baloney!” (or some stronger word) might be their response.

Saying pain is all in someone’s mind is tantamount to claiming their pain is imaginary. Clearly pain is real to any person suffering with it. However, the cause of pain very well may be from their mind.

Pain often has a musculoskeletal source. But one very common factor behind many types of pain does originate in your mind, namely stress. Even when stress isn’t the primary cause of pain, it can exacerbate existing pain from musculoskeletal causes leaving you feeling even worse.

Stress is directly related not only to pain but also numerous illnesses with no apparent biological cause. Fibromyalgia, chronic headaches, and insomnia are often tied to high levels of stress. Stress also causes our bodies to release adrenaline which is critical for responding to genuine “fight or flight” situations. Chronically high levels of adrenaline caused by repeated unresolved stress – even from situations as benign as sitting in traffic, missing a deadline, etc. – can lead to trigger pain from anxiety, muscle tension, digestive disorders, and even lead to long-term biological damage.

As a result, if you or someone you love suffers from pain, eliminating stress can play an important role in your search for lasting pain relief and better health. Here are several proven ways to reduce stress and stress-related pain:

Physical activity, especially rhythmic exercises like bicycling or swimming, helps burn off stress chemicals and has been proven more effective than Prozac for treating depression. Targeted exercise itself can even help relieve pain.
Real hypnosis (not the stage act kind!) can be very effective at eliminating stress, reducing anxiety, and improving your health.
Herbs such as ginseng, Rhodiola rosea, chamomile, Siberian ginseng, cordyceps, and ashwagandha are known for their ability to reduce stress and anxiety.
Heat therapy like a hot bath or sauna works wonders at helping your body relax. Localized heat treatments can help reduce specific areas of pain, stress and tension. Far infrared heat is a form proven safer and more effective than traditional heating pads.
Use mind/body approaches such as tai chi to take a multi-disciplinary approach to eliminating stress and pain.
Get actively involved in a community. Building a network of friends brings with it powerful allies in helping you cope with the day to day stressors of modern life.

Alkaline Diet Benefits

admin — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 21:12:32 +0000

“Imagine a Diet So Simple,
It Makes You Feel Incredible
In Just 3 Days!”

Hello, my name is Michael Murray. Back in the summer of 2002, there wasn’t one day where I didn’t ask myself, “Can I ever stop feeling so sick and tired?”

That was how I felt pretty much every morning at age 32!

Every joint and muscle in my body hurt as I spent hours in the gym sweating. Sure, I lost a few pounds and felt a little better… But it wouldn’t last very long. And I still felt tired every morning and afternoon, and couldn’t get myself to do anything at all when I got home from work.

I had tried everything to get back into shape. I had made drastic changes to my lifestyle to feel better and to lose weight. And I had nothing to show for it other than the emotional pain and financial waste of yo-yo dieting.

Then I went to a Tony Robbins seminar. It turns out I was not alone with how I was feeling. A serious problem common to so many people…

Most People Don’t Feel Anywhere Near As Good As They’d Like To

In fact, the vast majority of people feel that their lack of health and energy is just part of the aging process.

The Dangerous Myth That’s Eating Away At Your Life

The funny thing is, so many people I know have nagging health problems. They’re baffled why they no longer feel as good as they did when they were a child.

In fact, they haven’t got a clue. And that really makes sense when you consider the types of foods they’re eating day-to-day, and the dangerous, often toxic, medications they’ve used throughout life.

But let me ask you something: Do you think medication is the answer to health problems?

Of course not. If medication or a magic pill was the real answer, then you’d already feel as good as you want to be.

The Secret To Abundant Energy and Vibrant Health

Although for many years mainstream medicine ignored the role that diet can play in both health and disease, more recently it, too, began emphasizing the need to eat healthfully for keeping illness at bay.

In truth, the light came over the horizon more than a hundred years ago. But the radical work of some great pioneering scientists has been overlooked by a mainstream model so deeply involved in it’s own myths that is was blind to larger truths. Until now.

Recently, one of the most exciting discoveries has been the effect some foods have on the body’s acid-alkaline pH levels when digested.

A Slightly Alkaline Body Is Crucial For Good Health

Regardless of how much you work out and try to eat right, if you can’t balance the acids in your body, you’ll never feel as good as you’d like to be.

The problem is, on a whole, the average western diet is acid-producing. And when acidic wastes accumulate, they can cause organs to malfunction and break down.

We are forcing our bodies to work with less than optimal inner terrain. This creates a fertile breeding ground for various forms of chronic illness that are now experienced by more than half the population. An alkaline diet delivers so many benefits… less aches and pains, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, more energy and on and on and on…

If you often feel tired, it’s a safe bet that you are overly acidic. The simple fact is, most people are.

Click here to learn more about how an alkaline diet can dramatically improve your health

Stress and Back Pain

admin — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 03:37:37 +0000

Don’t Let Stress Keep You in Pain

Stress can do far more damage to your health than just make your shoulders and upper back tight. Few people realize that stress can not only cause many different health ailments like back pain, but it can also keep you in pain and prevent your body from healing.

Our thoughts, emotions and beliefs literally dictate whether we are going to be sick or healthy… so if you are serious about getting rid of your pain, I urge you to learn more about the mind-body connection.

Listen to the audio interview below to learn more about stress

After listening please post your feedback (no stupid comments, please).

Hope you find this helpful

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