Uh….that would be the environment of your body!  What’s the difference between an acidic and an alkaline environment?  Well first and foremost, if your body is highly acidic, cancer cells can thrive.  And, it’s not just about the food that goes in that effects your body’s pH balance….it’s about everything that goes in, on, and comes out of or comes near your body.  Stress, toxins…both can make the body more acidic.  Check out the previous blog about keeping toxins out of your body. A healthy pH is about 30% acid and 70% alkaline.  Processed and cooked foods, meat, cheese, caffeine, [...]

I talked a little in my last blog about how we absorb toxins through the skin, the largest organ in the body.  Anything you put on your skin, will get into your body.  A general rule would be…if you can’t eat it, don’t put it on your body.  The FDA warns you of chemicals that are for external use only.  So yes, I wouldn’t eat it, but even if we put these toxins on our skin, they will enter our bloodstream.  A Swiss study concluded that five of the most common chemicals in sunscreen cause cancer.  Several other studies actually [...]

Everyone is reading their food labels and that’s great!  But are you looking at the label of your make-up, your hand and body lotion, your toothpaste?  Let’s look at a few ingredients in many popular health and beauty products.  This is just a small example of what is in some products.  Just to give you an idea.  Start researching what you put on your body.  These products are absorbed into the skin and some of them, when high levels are reached in the body, can be very toxic. A product can be considered toxic when it is absorbed into the [...]

The chemical bisphenol A (BPA) is widely used in products like food, water and milk container linings, including baby bottles, water pipes, and even dental sealants. Tests have concluded the finding of toxic levels of this chemical in “microwave safe” packaged containers also.  This chemical, since 1936, has been known to mimic estrogens, and also disrupt the effects of estrogen in the developing brain at low doses.  BPA is also implicated in disease and developmental problems, including an increase in breast cancer cell growth and also an increase of some prostate cancers.  Recent studies have linked BPA to heart disease and diabetes. Dr. Belcher, [...]

If you are a teeth clincher or a grinder, listen up.  If you don’t have some sort of jaw problem like TMJ (temporomandibular joint syndrome)yet, great.  Hopefully some of these ideas will stop you from wearing away tooth enamel, increasing your teeth’s sensitivity, causing loose teeth, morning headaches, sore jaw muscles and painful chewing.  My experience? I’ve had it all.  When I was in my teens, my jaw started popping and clicking.  Eventually I was evaluated by a dentist and I started wearing a night guard. I’m sure it protected my teeth, but it also made me clench harder.  Eliminating or avoiding [...]

Are you prone to canker sores? Rejoice, friends – we’ve got some natural solutions for preventing and healing these pesky, painful little things. What are canker sores? Canker sores are small surface abrasions found on the inside of the mouth that can occur several times a year. They come and go within a week or so, on average. Canker sores can be brought on by fatigue, stress, fever, menstrual cycles, nutritional deficiencies and sensitivity to certain foods. They can be as small as a BB, or as large as a quarter, but they usually feature a white, fleshy, sensitive center [...]

Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep?  These problems could be short term, lasting for less than 3 weeks, or a chronic condition.  Insomnia could be due to anxiety, mental stress, nutritional deficiencies, poor sleep habits, physical disorders like sleep apnea (a breathing problem), or a reaction to medications.  A good night’s sleep consists of four or five 60-90 minute cycles, REM (rapid eye movement) and four stages of light-to-deep non-REM sleep, in order to achieve physical and mental well-being. Here’s something I didn’t know, minimum daily requirements for sleep are genetically determined.  Your sleep pattern will stabilize [...]

I know…it’s hard to talk about, but it’s actually one of my favorite subjects.  Poop and the inability to poop.  Let’s face it guys, EVERYONE POOPS!  Whether it’s infrequent or difficult to pass, in order for your body to eliminate waste materials (that which it does not need), you must have a regular bowel movement.  One to three bowel movements a day is normal.  If that is just not happening for you….then let’s talk about getting things moving and why they don’t move. Food sitting too long in the stomach and moving too slowly through the large bowel are the [...]

Do you get a burning sensation in your stomach before or after eating? Tried everything and still can’t stop the pain of heartburn or “acid stomach”? According to James Balch, M.D. in his book Prescription For Nutritional Healing ,“….heartburn often occurs when hydrochloric acid, which is used by the stomach for digestion, backs up into the esophagus.” It causes a backflow through the sphincter (ring of muscle) separating the stomach from the esophagus. If this muscle isn’t closing after food flows through, gastro esophageal reflux, or heartburn as you and I know it, can occur. Heartburn can also be caused [...]

Last night I made my first ice cream of the season.  The temps here in Vermont are in the 30′s and that means one thing to me…Spring is coming!  Ok, I’m stretching that a bit, but you have to when you’ve lived through over 20 Vermont winters.  Here’s what I made and then we’ll talk more about the Champion Juicer. Raw Maple Walnut Ice Cream 2 frozen bananas, 1/2 cup soaked walnuts(about an hour), 1/4 cup maple syrup.  Put all through the Champion using the blank screen.  It will come out like a cremee.  If you want harder ice cream, [...]