Category: Alternatives

Life, Death and a Genius Called Steve Jobs

October 12th, 2011 · · Alternatives, Environment, Health, Opinion No comments - Tags: , , , , , ,

My friend Peter Pure from the Raw Food Party recently started a conversation after mentioning that Steve Jobs’ death was a call for us all to take greater personal responsibility. I agree that we need a higher standard for ourselves yet I’m not convinced that that was the issue with Steve Jobs and I emailed Peter to say so. Here’s the conversation summarised again by Peter:

Where do you stand?

Another friend of mine too, has recently passed, via cancer…
Here’s where I suggest that we might all stand philosophically and with our actions…

There are no guarantees of anything, and anyone who says otherwise, I would say that’s an irresponsible message.
But it is a proven fact that YOU CAN MASSIVELY stack the odds in your favour for a long, healthy, happy life!
And it is also a proven fact that you can MASSIVELY stack your odds against disease.

Further, I personally take a very conservative approach towards my health and that is to MEASURE all of my most important health parameters once or twice a year, to make sure that I’m on track with my health goals, and not slowly being derailed in any measurable health parameter that would otherwise put me in a risk factor category.
I consider it an M.O.T. on my body, and I suggest you do the same.
Further, I continue to educate myself, (and educate others) about what we can personally do, that is PROVEN to make a difference.
(in that regard, check out my SuperHero training – the most in depth study of how to look after your body for the rest of your life).

So whilst there can never be any guarantees of anything, I would say it behooves each of us that are serious about living life to the full to:
1, Thoroughly educate yourself about what makes a difference in your health, longevity, physical and mental performance.
2, Consistently (at the greatest speed of change that you can manage) to incorporate those learnings into your life.

As a friend of mine recently said (the President of the London Anti-Aging Medical Conference)
“If you think prevention is expensive – try disease!”

To the living!
Shine On!

A couple of my subscribers have sent in a couple of notes on some of Steve Job’s lifestyle choices (I make no claim for their accuracy, but find it interesting enough)

Simon Tolhurst-Simms sent in this message:

“Steve Jobses Food Habits:

Ever since his teenage years, Steve had been a militant vegan. When he was 19 in Reed College, he started exploring diets which would allow him to eliminate all mucus and therefore the need to shower. He also started a habit he kept a very long time: that of fasting. He was convinced digestion was burning too much of his energy, the energy he needed at work when he stayed up several nights in a row.

Nevertheless, Steve was a strict vegan all of his life, like his wife Laurene. He was known for lecturing his guests about eating meat. One of his favorite meals was known to be raw carrot, without any dressing. A journalist invited at his home described the meal he was served: “We dine as the Jobses always do: both are strict vegans, eating no meat products, dairy products, eggs or honey. Dinner is pasta with raw tomatoes, fresh raw corn from the garden, steamed cauliflower and a salad of raw shredded carrots. While the adults eat, their six-year-old son picks lemon verbena and other herbs in the garden for the after-dinner tea.” He bought his organic vegetables from the Palo Alto Whole Foods Market, where he is often seen walking barefoot.”

Peter says: If this is true (and I understand that there is some truth to this), what can we learn?
First off, some people say things like “see, you can do good, and still bad things can happen to you!” – I say: do good anyway. It makes a difference.
Most importantly, here’s what I believe is the key, It is not sufficient to do “good”, we must do what is NECESSARY. There’s a huge difference between the two approaches, and one where having an annual full medical exam and assessing that with someone who actually knows what parameters are OPTIMAL (as opposed to what is average, which is what mainstream medicine sorts for) SEPARATES, those of us who are SERIOUS about getting great results for our health and our life, and those who only dabble.

- If you wish to find out about what to have measured in a full medical examination, and how to be optimal in every area that you could be tested in – contact us – we have a program for this.

Misae sent in this message:

Did you know he was a vegan and at times raw foodist? Frederic Patenaude seemed to connect with him and from the guys I’ve know who’ve worked at Apple they have a far higher standard in the canteen than Microsoft’s pizzas. This was all Job’s doing as was Pixar’s “leave on time policy because you can’t make family movies if you don’t see yours”.

I suspect it’s not just bad choices on an individual scale anymore. It’s systemic polution on a global scale.

Peter says: right on about pollution! The U.S. Centre of Disease Control (CDC) states that humans have now successfully polluted this planet with over 85,000 never before seen man-made chemicals, many of which have been proven to contribute to cancer, birth defects, hormonal problems, nervous system disorders. The CDC tested americans for only a few thousand of the 85,000, and found that the average american had around 700 of the chems tested. They’re in the air that we breathe, and the water that we drink. There is no turning back time now, the need for DAILY personal chemical detoxification is critical now, and for the rest of our lives. More on this coming your way soon, stay tuned!

My original message:

Can Steve Jobs assist us in re-evaluating our values?

Even if you have never heard of Steve Jobs, the co-founder and driving force behind Apple , his work has undoubtedly touched your life, and even the future lives of babies being born today, if nothing else, through his competitors and emulators.

With sadness comes reflection, 56 is way too early for anybody to die. And it was way too early for the legend of the magnitude of Steve Jobs. Steve, your contribution will be sorely missed.

Even with my extensive network of friends and associates who comprise the medical elite of the world, I haven’t heard of anyone I know of who was working with Steve. So who knows what factors were at play in his untimely demise.

But I feel there is a major lesson to be learned,

In the year 1900, 1 in 500 deaths were due to cancer. Today it is 1 in 3. That’s not genetic. We’ve got to wake up to what we are doing to ourselves. Cancer is not contagious. Cancer is a product of thousands of poor personal choices stacked on top of each other over decades. And we need to take personal responsibility for that because good people who are casual about their health are unwittingly becoming casualties.

Now is the time to re-assert the most fundamental value that we desperately need right now: placing our personal health and wellbeing at the top of our list of pursuits and values for our life. For if you don’t look after yourself to the best of your knowledge, your capacity to live your life to the full and contribute to others can be hugely disrupted, and even cut short.

Live life to the full.

Let it not be said that you died with your greatness still in you.

Care for your life to the full.

Let it not be said that you died way before your time due to factors which are to the largest extent under your personal control .

Steve Jobs, the planet has lost one of the greatest men in history, rest in peace

I can but echo Peter’s words about Steve Jobs; a truly great inventor and businessman. More importantly it does underline the need for greater control on pollution and toxicity and both an individual and international level. Steve Jobs was a smart guy. One of the smartest of our times. He had all the money he needed to access the very best equipment, facilities and thought leaders in any subject and by all accounts led a way better life style than most. Yet still he passed at 56.

Realistically, we should consider that his lifestyle was probably what kept him going. From surviving cancer in 2004 to last another 7 years is very rare. To be at the top of your game and revolutionizing technology and communication all around the globe at the same time is unheard of. Only Jobs has ever done it.

I know of another lady who had a similar life style and also passed of cancer. She was a Canadian with a hugely positive outlook, a largely raw vegan diet and who grew much of her own food on her farm. She didn’t drink or smoke, slept in circadian rhythm and still passed to cancer.

It would be easy to throw your hands up in the air and say “I give up; we just don’t know enough”. Don’t. We know enough about what supports health. It’s eating the right foods, exercising, cultivating the right lifestyle and emotions. It’s not that we don’t know enough about that. We know fully that these things help. Centres like The Hippocrates Institute turn lives around with this and Steve Jobs burned so brightly as a wonderful example of it.

What we don’t know enough about are the effects of all the chemicals being released into the world. Each year more are introduced and infect the water supply. More bombs are let off. More fossil fuels are dug up and released. Fukushima’s radiation spreads out over a wider area.

These are the things you need to throw your hands up in the air about! We don’t know enough to tell if that new non-stick pan coating is safe for 30 years of exposure. We don’t know if that new cook-in-the-plastic packaging is safe. And we don’t know what the thousands of industrial, medical and commercial chemicals created each year do, nor what they do in combination.

Steve Jobs lasting as long as he did under the amount of stress he was under was a miracle and a testament to the quality of the man’s spirit and lifestyle. We’d all enrich the world more by taking from his example. And yet I can’t help but feel just individual responsibility alone is enough. If only we could get Steve Jobs to redesign the way chemicals are created and let loose; maybe it’d finally start to accord with what our intuition has been telling so many of us for so long.


Flower Remedies – Just a Beautiful Idea or Seed of Substance?

October 1st, 2011 · · Alternatives, Health, Opinion No comments - Tags: , , , ,

The idea that the essence of flowers can assist in easing the mind and help balance human emotion is certainly something that is both beautiful and remarkable in its own way. Skepticism can sometimes come about when explaining that a flowers scent can help put everything back in motion. So I attended the Eterno Naturals seminar and spoke to Gerard Wolf – President of LES FLEURS DE BACH – to get the ultimate insider scoop on Bach Flower essences, their history and use and why so many people are reaching for the power of these natural remedies to restore their emotional well-being.

Discovered in the 1930’s by Dr Edward Bach an English physician,he identified 38 flowers and plants that had the ability to heal the emotional imbalances of the body resulting in an overall equilibrium of the mind.  Dr Bach then went on to create a ‘Rescue Remedy’ using the flower essences particularly from the Rock Rose flower – a small yellow flower that was designed to ease fear and anxiety it became an instant success among its users worldwide. Gerard Wolf went on to explain that “if a fear is not cured it can turn into a disease”.

Gerard Wolf’s story came to life when he explained the first time he used a Bach Flower remedy and how he came about to appreciate the Bach Flowers. He picked up a Rescue Remedy at a local health store after having an argument with his business partner. He couldn’t sleep for 15 days straight due to the constant anger he felt. He later realised that he had purchased the Rescue Remedy earlier and used it after 15 sleepless nights. That night Gerard had overcome with a sense of relief and slept for the first time with no trouble. If you’re anything like me hearing that story would have put these natural remedies into a new and personal perspective.

Gerard Wolf went on to create LES FLEURS DE BACH using the same principles as Dr Bach, “this extensive and award winning range of beauty and well-being products influences the body, mind and spirit”, they are the first to combine Bach Flowers and Aromatherapy which allows the remedies to benefit from both.

How are Bach Flower remedies made you ask? There are two main methods that are used to naturally create the Bach Flower remedies:

  • The Sun Method
  • The Boiling Method

Les Fleurs de Bach have produced Elixirs using up to seven Bach Flower essences chosen carefully for each to have its own effect on everyday challenging situations of the mind.

  • Communication
  • Concentration
  • Confidence
  • Conflicts
  • Decision
  • Dependence
  • Depression
  • Exhaustion
  • Fears
  • Letting-Go
  • Libido
  • Senior
  • Sleep
  • Stress
  • Urgences/Urgency
  • Female Issues

But it doesn’t stop there. The range also includes Treating Fragrances that can be sprayed for Conflicts, Stress and Urgency. Spray it directly on the skin for immediate effect or it can be sprayed around the home or office. As well as an Anti-Stress Skincare range that is both revolutionary and unique, using natural ingredients that blends flower essences with an anti-stress combination. The range covers Face and body.  It is designed to create a unique experience of beauty and inner peace.

My favourite products of the range you ask? Would have to be the Eau de Parfum that recently graced the market in 2005. As soon as I sprayed the perfume called Présence(s) de Bach I was immediately hooked on the harmonious smell of wild rose and crab apple that worked together beautifully to create calm and peace. The second perfume is called Vivacite(s) de Bach that is essentially used to uplift your senses and confidence.

Gerard Wolf won me over with his honesty. When asked why they work he simply nodded, smiled and said with such poise “It is a fantastic mystery, not even science has the tools to measure. It is not a scientific proof that you can weigh on a scale and figure out the outcome”.

Bach Flower remedies have since pushed the envelope in developing natural remedies which complement other forms of healthcare. They have a shelf life of 5 to 10 years due to being preserved in organic alcohol. The remedies can be used in numerous ways by applying it on the skin such as the wrists or neck, a few droplets into the mouth or why not try it in your favourite massage oil or even diluted in water. Whether you still have a sense of scepticism what would you really be loosing out on if you were to try any Flower Bach remedy? There is no age restriction on who can use these remedies and it has no negative effect whatsoever so what do you have to loose? Could you really put a price on peace of mind?


Chlorella and Spirulina – a Guide to What’s What

August 21st, 2011 · · Alternatives, Health, Opinion, Reviews No comments - Tags: , , , , ,

Chlorella and Spirulina are superficially similar, being that both are types of algaes that are bursting with nutrients. Yet there are significant differences between each. There are times where it may be best to focus on one as well as times you’ll want to mix both. Whilst we often summarise by saying that Spirulina has the most rebuilding qualities and Chlorella the most for detoxification, there’s a whole load more to find out about each.

Mike Adams, also known as The Health Ranger, put together a great ebook that’s he’s allowing free access to and we highly recommend downloading it. Mike has many great points of view and having interviewed so many health pioneers and experts for his websites, make a great source of information on the subject. Download the Chlorella and Spirulina ebook here.


Chlorella me baby!

July 1st, 2011 · · Alternatives, Health, News, Opinion, Product Launches No comments - Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

So is the reason why Japanese people look younger than Westerners because they take more Chlorella per capita than Westerners take Vitamin C?

In my quest for Elitest health and my determination to look as young and vibrant for as long as possible, here are some of my finds on Chlorella to share with all of you who share my passion for health and beauty.


Natural & Organic Products Show 2011

April 11th, 2011 · · Alternatives, Environment, Events, Reviews No comments - Tags: , , , , , ,

Every year we always call by the Natural and Organic Products Show in London to see what’s new in the industry, to catch up with our colleagues and friends and to seek new ways of supporting our customers. And with all the doom andf gloom in the news, it was going to be interesting to see! Would exhibitor numbers be decimated? Would lots of last year’s smaller companies be gone? We were eager to find out.

Held in London’s Olympia Exhibition Centre, it was reassuringly full. The Grand Hall was packed out and although the rafters weren’t opened there were great sections going on including:

  • Soil Association Organic Pavillion
  • International Organic and Speciality Foods
  • Beauty & Cosmetics
  • Wellbeing & Health Products

Once again we said hi to Robert Redfern and his wife and team from Good Health Naturally who were once again promoting their products including the ever popular Blockbuster AllClear. Understandable really. Robert seems at least 10 years younger than he is if not more.

As happy as that was, a more passioned moment came whilst talking to Lee Holdstock of The Soil Association. Lee was there to raise awareness of The Soil Association’s work with textiles and the fashion industry and that purity of farming meant safer clothing. It soon got hit a nerve. We’ve been considering taking more food supplements onboard as we know some of you would really benefit however the cost of having it certified organic was really bumping the prices up. I had to tell Lee how I felt.

“Why is it that food grow in it’s original state has to be certified pure? Why do we have to pay more to know that nobody has done anything to it? Why isn’t it the other way around? I mean, if you add salt or e-numbers to food you have to label that. Surely farmers that want to add pesticides, fungicides and the like should certify that they have done that? They should bear the cost of certification not the farmers who haven’t done anything wrong!”

Lee did a good job of listening and cluing us in to some really great speakers on the subject. Hopefully if enough of us can make ourselves heard, we can usher in a new age of sanity within agriculture and food production.

Elsewhere there were some trends that were upcoming:

  • More organic overseas food such as organic fresh Thai coconuts and cooking sauces (no msg either!)
  • More raw snack foods for those on the go
  • A big interest in seaweeds – no surprise post Fukushima as Iodine protects against radiation
  • An emphasis on great value basics rather than luxury touches within both foods and cosmetics

There was still plenty of enthusiasm and the show was well turned out. Jason Vale gave a talk on juicing (well what else would The Juice Master talk about?!) and at the end gave away copies of his new book which resulted in quite a frenzy!

Jason Vale book giveaway frenzy!

Jason Vale book giveaway frenzy!

I’ll leave by saying thanks to everyone who was part of a great day and with a quote handed over by Jason Vale:

If you don’t look after your body, pretty soon you’ll have nowhere left to live.


Takeda Discontinue Dasen Enzymes

February 22nd, 2011 · · Alternatives, News, Opinion One comment - Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Takeda are the biggest pharmaceutical company in Japan and on the 21st February they voluntarily withdrew their Dasen® anti-inflammatory enzyme product from the market in Japan. In the official press release it says:

Osaka, Japan, February 21, 2011 – Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (“Takeda”) announced today its decision to voluntarily recall Dasen® 5 mg tablets, 10 mg tablets, and 1% granules (generic name: serrapeptase), anti-inflammatory enzyme preparations sold in Japan, starting on February 21.

In the double-blind studies that have been conducted to compare Dasen with placebo (“Studies”), no statistical significant differences were found. Based on the results of the Studies, the Committee on Reevaluation of the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council (“Committee”) of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan (“MHLW”) held a meeting on January 19, 2011 in order to discuss the possibility of categorizing Dasen as the product for the future reevaluation with additional studies to be conducted, including the contents of such studies if that is the case.

As a result, the Committee pointed out the necessity of conducting additional studies in a manner that reflects current clinical treatment practices, and to prove the efficacy of Dasen. In accordance with the instruction of the MHLW, Takeda has been studying the feasibility of conducting such studies. Takeda believes that the efficacy of Dasen would be confirmed through additional clinical trials with a revised study design, however, it has reached a conclusion that it would be difficult to conduct additional studies as requested.

This clearly illustrates the difficulty of producing laboratory style results using natural ingredients as Takeda believes their serrapeptase product works but that it’s extremely costly to verify this to clinical standards. Factors like diet do alter results as enzymes taken on an empty stomach by a raw food vegan will have less inhibiting factors to contend with than those consumed near breakfast by someone on a meat eating diet with lots of fried and diary foods.

One other factor that’s well worth noting is dosage. Vitamin C was well documented to have a different action at high dose by multiple Nobel prize winner Dr Linus Pauling. Robert Redfern, who had similar advice to that we gave earlier regarding diet inhibiting function when we spoke last May, was quick to point out today that the Dasen product was always a  light activity formula with only 10,000IU compared to BlockBuster AllClear and SerraZyme‘s 80,000IU of serrapeptase. Robert Redfern emailed us stating that he has criticized Dasen’s activity level as too low previously and that he has popularised serrapeptase after over 100,000 users reported positive results. Results that came from the 80,000iu formulation include: lung conditions, arteries, colon, MS, pain, morton’s neuroma, inflammatory problems, ENT problems, cysts, and uses on dogs, cats and horses. One of the most miraculous stories came from a cerebral palsy sufferer, Mike Tawse who continues to vocal about his results.

I don’t know Mike Tawse personally and have never met him face to face. I certainly wouldn’t bet my life on the effectiveness of serrapeptase enzymes as an anti-inflammatory. However I have used this enzyme myself as part of a recovery process. I used it first after I gave up smoking and eating meat and I did find my circulation much improved. I’ve also used in frequently as a means of speeding recovery from sports injury – I like to train martial arts so big bruises and sprains are a fairly common part of my life. It’s easy for me to test how quickly I recover with and without serrapeptase. I’ve also personally known others who’ve used serrapeptase as part of their recovery from surgeries including a hernia, a broken leg and uterine fibroid removal by myomectomy. In all cases the serrapeptase user felt they recovered faster than they expected with less pain than they anticipated.

As always my advice is to take good care of yourself! Whilst there are some arguments going on about whether one natural remedy is more useful than another, one thing we know all scientists, doctors and nutritionists agree on is that fried foods and smoking are bad for you! I believe if you approach serrapeptase from this angle, viewing it as a useful supplement to your self-care programme rather than a medicine you can turn to (it isn’t), then you’ll enjoy a lot more healthier days than you’ll suffer ill ones.

Serrapeptase enzymes are useful for detoxing parts of the body that it’s hard to clean through abstinence alone. Raw food educator, David Wolfe, uses serrapeptase as part of a protocol to combat nano-bacteria in conjunction with MSM and a highly alkaline diet. Dr. Billie J. Sahley, Ph.D says serrapeptase may positively benefit inflammatory health conditions like arthritis, headaches, bronchitis and sinusitis. Dr Hans Nieper says may serrapeptase help remove arterial plaque, reduce the chance of stroke and open constricted arteries. So whilst the Japanese may not be able to find a way of economically proving Takeda’s Dasen serrapeptase formula, there still are plenty of health educators and authorities standing behind serrapeptase enzyme use and consensus of opinion is that high activity levels are what counts.


Why So Many Different Enzymes?

February 8th, 2011 · · Alternatives, Health, Opinion, Reviews No comments - Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Enzymes are often described as the catalyst of life and their role as the enabling agent should not be underestimated. Whilst the body uses enzymes for a myriad of different functions there are two types which are used therapeutically:

  1. Systemic Enzymes
  2. Digestive Enzymes

Systemic Enzymes

Systemic enzymes are those that support the functioning of the body’s systems, although the term isn’t used to describe those that aid the digestive system. Systemic enzymes can do many things in the body such as reduce inflammation and fibrin, dissolving blood clots and clearing out old and dying tissues. This process would be carried out by the body’s own enzymes normally. In poor health, the pancreas can be slow to function reducing the amount of available enzymes and factors like poor diet and toxin ingestion can overwhelm the body’s ability to produce sufficient enzymes to mop up these problems. Supplementing reduces the burden on the body and frees up vitality to work on other tasks.

Favourite Systemic Enzyme formulas include Serrazyme which has high levels of the serrapeptase enzyme in it. This makes it suited for supporting the health where inflammation is a problem such as arthritis or sports injuries. There’s also Blockbuster Allclear, a formula which mixes Serrapeptase with Nattokinase, digestive enzymes, Seaprose and co-factors. It’s well known as being a great supplement for cardiovascular health, helping you keep your veins, arteries and capillaries well.

Digestive Enzymes

If you look at the nutrition information on a food you can see it’s made up of lots of different things – carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. When it’s in it’s original state it’s all one lump. Digestive enzymes are what breaks down food when you eat it and converts it into the various forms your body can use. Creating digestive enzymes takes quite a lot of the body’s energy – that’s why we feel tired after a heavy meal like a roast dinner – and we don’t always produce enough to deal with out food properly. Gas is one unpleasant symptom and there are many others. Some people are unable to digest dairy products, something that’s very common, especially amongst orientals. It may cause an excess of phlegm, mucus, runny nose as well as gas and this is all caused by the body not producing sufficient enzymes to break down the proteins in milk. These proteins are called lactose and people who don’t produce the lactase enzyme to digest it are called lactose intollerant.

The situation gets more complicated when we eat different food types together. Bread, potatoes or rice are predominantly carbohydrates and they digest easiest on their own. Meat, eggs, beans and nuts are mostly proteins and proteins are easiest digested when eaten on their own. Yet when humans eat – unlike any other creature on earth! – we want to mix bread with eggs, or meat with potatoes, fish with rice or eat beans and pulses with rice. This makes it hard for our stomach’s own enzymes to fully digest the food and supplementing digestive enzymes makes this easier on us.

Why Do We Stock So Many Enzymes?

This is an interesting point and there are two main reasons. Firstly, enzymes occur naturally and most foods have them in. However heating the food destroys the enzymes. This principle is one of the core foundations of the raw food lifestyle who’s followers generally enjoy better than average health simply by not cooking their food.

Enzyme therapy supplements are slightly different. The vast majority of enzyme therapy supplements available on the market use enzymes that are created in laboratories rather than extracted from food. Not all manufacturing processes are created equal, in my opinion! If the enzymes are exposed to heat at any time during the manufacturing process then their strength my be reduced. A capsule that claims to be, for example, 10,000IU may in reality only contain the strength of 1,000IU if it has been through a poorly designed manufacturing process. My own personal experience of taking enzymes at high doses was that some brands simply failed to live up to what one would expect of them. Needless to say, we don’t stock any enzyme therapy brands that we ourselves feel are poor – we take our own choices ourselves!

An easy way of seeing if a digestive enzyme is strong is to open the capsule and spread it onto some food. I do this if I’m trying to make a banana smoothie and I’ve found that the bananas are slightly unripe. If they’re still in that slightly green, starchy phase before going sweet they’ll make a smoothie that sets hard – not much fun to drink! If that’s the case I’ll empty one or two Digestive 150 Digestion Enzyme capsules into my blender. The smoothie will become runnier and more liquid as the enzymes break down the excess starches in the bananas.

The second reason for stocking several choices of the same product is because everyone is different. You have your own physiology. Out of the enzyme therapy brands that have passed our quality standards, some may work better for you than others. An example here is that of Angela. She’ll take Digestive 150 Digestion Enzymes if they are blended into a smoothie as described above but finds that taking two capsules with a meal is less comfortable for her than taking Lifegive HHI-Zyme Digestive Aid Digestion Enzymes. It may be more important to you to have the highest possible strength enzymes or you may find that one which does the job as gently as possible gets your vote. It’s an individual choice as to which is right for you.

Lastly do know that both Pineapple and Papaya are great sources of enzymes. Wherever possible we recommend that you support your health with wholesome, natural, organic foods, fresh air and water, sunshine and exercise. The combination makes all these elements and enzyme supplements more effective.


dotActivist – a conference for those using hi-tech for good

July 26th, 2010 · · Alternatives, Events No comments - Tags: , , ,

Tickets are now on sale for dotActivist – a new online campaigning conference. Seven inspiring speakers, and plenty of time to talk about the ideas that arise. Join web activists of all stripes, to share tactics and explore exciting new ways of changing the world.

The conference will be at The Hub, King’s Cross on 7th August. There are a range of ticket options for different budgets, starting at £15. This is the official trailer:

We’re not affiliated with or endorsing this event in anyway, yet we’re sure there’ll be plenty of our readers who are attending or who know those attending! Registration is at http://dotactivist.eventbrite.com. Maybe we’ll see you there?


How Can You Use Less Oil?

July 9th, 2010 · · Alternatives, Environment, Opinion No comments - Tags: , , , , , , , ,

I got this email from Greenpeace UK today and loved it so much I thought I’d share – practical tips for us to minimise our impact on the Earth:

In the wake of the ongoing catastrophe of the Gulf oil spill, lots of people have been asking us how they can reduce their oil consumption in their daily lives. Here’s our top ten:

1. Carpool, cycle or use public transport to go to work.

2. Choose when possible products packaged without plastic and recycle or re-use containers.

3. Buy organic fruits and vegetables (fertilisers and pesticides are based on oil more often than not).

4. Buy beauty products (shampoo, soap, make-up) based on natural ingredients, not oil.

5. Choose when possible locally produced products (less transport involved).

6. Buy clothes made out of organic cotton or hemp – not from oil derivatives.

7. Use non-disposable items in picnics and summer festivals.

8. Quit bottled water.

9. Fly less.

10. Demand that your government encourage renewable energy instead of oil.

(11. Register at our new website and add to this list, then forward it to a friend.)


What You Put Down The Drain Comes Back To Haunt You

July 6th, 2010 · · Alternatives, Environment, Health, Opinion No comments - Tags: , , , , , ,

There’s only so much water on Earth and we’re taught from school how to evaporates to form rain that then falls on the Earth and flows back to the seas. So what happens when you add millions of humans dumping their waste into that system? Marine biologist Stephen Palumbi shows how toxins at the bottom of the ocean food chain find their way into our bodies, with a shocking story of toxic contamination from a Japanese fish market in this fascinating and compelling TED talk:

The most obvious place for us to start is cleaning up our own waste. We can look to use ecological alternatives at home such as replacing bleach with a bio-degradable alternative. There are lots of ethical cleaning products available so it’s not much of a chore to find them and prices are continuously getting better as more and more consumers support the movement towards sanity in sanitation.

If you are finding that your body has become weakened then taking a detoxification course can be highly beneficial. The most important places to begin your cleanse are the colon followed by the liver and in that order. Why? The colon is the primary route by which toxins are released from the body. If it’s fully functioning, it’ll help deeper cleansing so a colon cleanse using either Oxy-powder for a gentle programme or bentonite clay for a more involved and deeper detox is the foundation.

The liver is one of the places the body is fond of holding toxins since here it can hold them without letting the body be overcome. Of course it typically is at great cost and lowers the energy levels of the host whilst opening the doorway for further problems to enter. One way of cleansing the liver is to use coffee enemas. These cause the liver to purge out toxins which are then released along with the liquid down the toilet and many people note a big shift in energy levels after completing a coffee enema detox.

Naturally, in order to do a coffee enma liver detox, the colon needs to be clear, hence the reason we recommend a colon detox first.

The most important thing is not to give up trying. Pollute less, avoid sources of contamination and take regular detoxes and you’ll soon realise why a clean life is too good not to not be fighting for.



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