Apr

18

Put This Food on Your Hair for a New Level of Luster

Filed Under Main Content, Other News | Leave a Comment

By Dr. Mercola

Did you know one of the best personal care products you'll ever find may be sitting in your kitchen cupboard right now?

I'm talking about coconut oil, which is equally beneficial externally as it is taken internally, and can be used for both skin and hair.

The featured coconutoil.com article written by Brian and Marianita Shilhavy discusses several of the lesser-known benefits of coconut oil for your hair.

According to one study, which compared mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil as possible products for nurturing and conditioning hair, coconut oil was the only oil that reduced protein loss for both damaged and undamaged hairi .

These findings were true when used as either a pre-wash or post-wash grooming product, but coconut oil achieved the greatest results when used as a pre-wash treatment.

Part of the reason for this is because coconut oil is hydrophobic, meaning it repels water.

So when applied as a pre-wash conditioner, it inhibits the penetration of water into each strand, which would otherwise cause the cuticle, or surface of the hair shaft, to rise, making it prone to damage and breakage.

Furthermore, when applied as a pre-wash treatment, a small amount of the coconut oil is able to penetrate deeper into the hair shaft during the wash, when the hair fiber swells slightly.

This can also explain why so many rave about the oil's ability to prevent "the frizzies" in humid weather?this is another feature of its hydrophobic activity.

According to the study, which was published in the Journal of Cosmetic Scienceii :

"The findings clearly indicate the strong impact that coconut oil application has to hair as compared to application of both sunflower and mineral oils. ...

Both sunflower and mineral oils do not help at all in reducing the protein loss from hair. This difference in results could arise from the composition of each of these oils. Coconut oil, being a triglyceride of lauric acid (principal fatty acid), has a high affinity for hair proteins and, because of its low molecular weight and straight linear chain, is able to penetrate inside the hair shaft.

Mineral oil, being a hydrocarbon, has no affinity for proteins and therefore is not able to penetrate and yield better results. In the case of sunflower oil, although it is a triglyceride of linoleic acid, because of its bulky structure due to the presence of double bonds, it does not penetrate the fiber, consequently resulting in no favorable impact on protein loss."

More porous types of hair may find coconut oil particularly beneficial, such as African- and chemically treated hair. The featured article on coconutoil.com includes a couple of videos demonstrating how some people are using the oil for hair care.

Can Coconut Oil Successfully Treat Head Lice?

Another interesting study relating to the use of coconut oil on hair was published in the European Journal of Pediatrics two years agoiii . Here, the researchers compared the effectiveness of a coconut oil and anise spray versus the commonly prescribed permethrin lotion for the treatment of head lice.

According to the authors:

"We designed a randomized, controlled, parallel group trial involving 100 participants with active head louse infestation to investigate the activity of a coconut and anise spray and to see whether permethrin lotion is still effective, using two applications of product 9 days apart.  The spray was significantly more successful (41/50, 82.0%) cures compared with permethrin (21/50, 42.0%...). Per-protocol success was 83.3% and 44.7%, respectively. Thirty-three people reported irritant reactions following alcohol contact with excoriated skin. We concluded that, although permethrin lotion is still effective for some people, the coconut and anise spray can be a significantly more effective alternative treatment." [Emphasis mine]

Isn't it wonderful to see how nature provides us with the answers to so many of our ills? And does so in a way that is oftentimes more effective than our chemical drug concoctions! 

Another anecdotal Hawaiian head lice treatment from a woman named Linda (quoted in the featured article by Brian and Marianita Shilhavyiv ) is to first soak your hair in vinegar and leave it in to dry (don't rinse). Next coat your hair with coconut oil over night. I'd recommend sleeping with a shower cap to protect your bedding. The following day the nits reportedly comb out easily.

Yet another anecdotal head lice treatment was received from one of my own readers, several years ago, named Patty. She suggests just using a nit comb in lieu of toxic chemical treatments like Kwell and Nix. However, in order to be really effective it's best if you can pull the comb through your or your child's hair quickly and smoothly. To address tangles, she suggests using two tablespoons of baking soda in a quart of water. Rinse your hair with the solution after shampooing and leave in, which reportedly leaves your hair silky smooth and easy to comb through.

Coconut Oil as a Skin Moisturizer

One of the core principles to remember when it comes to skin care is that whatever you slather onto your skin will absorb into your body and enter your bloodstream. This is why it's so important to avoid personal care products containing questionable chemicals! Your skin is an excellent drug delivery system, so you should be just as careful with what you put on your skin as you are with what you eat, if not more so, as your gut actually helps protect you against some of the toxins you ingest by filtering them out...

I've long advocated using plain organic coconut oil for your skin care needs.

It's been used for decades by professional massage therapists to knead away tight stressed muscles, and coconut oil is well-known for its skin care benefits. It helps protect your skin from the aging effects of free radicals, and can help improve the appearance of skin with its anti-aging benefits.

In fact, physiologist and biochemist Ray Peat, Ph.D. considers coconut oil an antioxidantv , due to its stability and resistance to oxidation and free radical formation. Plus, he believes it reduces our need for the antioxidant protection of vitamin E. Like Dr. Peat, many believe coconut oil may help restore more youthful-looking skin. When absorbed into your skin and connective tissues, it helps reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles by helping to keep your connective tissues strong and supple. It also aids in exfoliating the outer layer of dead skin cells, making your skin smoother.

A Most Beautiful Food...

Clearly, if you're looking for an alternative to toxic personal care products, it doesn't get much better than an otherwise health-promoting food. The naturally-occurring saturated fat in coconut oil has many amazing health benefits, including:

Promoting your heart healthvi Supporting your immune system healthvii Providing you with an immediate energy sourceviii
Aiding weight loss, when neededix Supporting a healthy metabolismx Supporting the proper functioning of your thyroid glandxi

 

Part of the "secret" that makes coconut oil such a healthful oil is its high lauric acid content?about 50 percent of coconut oil is lauric acid. This fat is quite rare in nature, and has a unique set of health promoting properties. For example, your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties,xii which may also help explain its potent healing powers when used topically for skin and scalp issues. Capric acid, another coconut fatty acid present in smaller amounts, has also been found to have antimicrobial activity.

Monolaurin (converted from the lauric acid in your body) is potent enough to destroy lipid-coated viruses such as:

  • HIV, herpes
  • Measles
  • Influenza virus
  • Various pathogenic bacteria
  • Protozoa such as giardia lamblia

Feeding Your Skin from the Inside Out

Ideally, you'll want to avoid toxins and feed your body with proper nutrition both inside and out. If your diet and overall lifestyle is poor, it tends to be reflected in your skin and hair.

For example, if the skin on the top of your hand is not smooth as a baby's behind, it's a strong indication that your body is deficient in omega-3 fats. I believe most people need to be taking a high quality omega-3 supplement as omega-3 deficiency is as rampant as vitamin D deficiency. My favorite is krill oil, as its overall health benefits surpass that of regular fish oil, largely because it is far more bioavailable, better protected with antioxidants and therefore not rancid, and far more sustainable than fish oil.

Krill oil also naturally contains another excellent skin benefactor, namely astaxanthin?a potent antioxidant that has been identified as being beneficial for your complexion. Not only can astaxanthin give your skin an attractive glow, it may also help prevent wrinkles from the inside out, and can help protect your skin against a variety of radiation, both from medical scans and harmful UVA sun rays. Yes, it actually works like an internal sunscreen!

Get Your Glow On!

One of the most profoundly effective ways to improve your complexion is by consuming vegetables and fruits that are high in carotenoids. Carotenoids give red, orange and yellow fruits their color, and also occur in green vegetables. Astaxanthin, which is also part of the carotenoids family, is produced only by the microalgae Haematococcus pluvialis. It is what gives shrimp and flamingos their pink color, courtesy of the astaxanthin in the algae that is part of their staple diet.

Studies have shown that eating foods with these deeply colored pigments can help make your face actually look healthier than being tanned. In one study, the more red and yellow tones found in the person's skin, the more attractive they were found to bexiii. The redder tones are caused when people are flushed with blood, particularly if the blood has lots of oxygen in it. Dr. Stephan found that, given the choice between skin color caused by suntan and skin color caused by carotenoids, people preferred the carotenoid skin color, so if you want a healthier and more attractive skin color, you are better off eating a healthy diet.

I'm also convinced that astaxanthin can be a profoundly beneficial supplement for most people, much like omega-3 fat, because of its multi-varied health benefits.

Not only is it a potent antioxidant, but it is probably the most potent natural anti-inflammatory we know of, and it is likely to help prevent cataracts and macular degeneration, the most common cause of blindness in the US. While krill oil contains astaxanthin naturally, it does not contain what is now believed to be therapeutic amounts, so I recommend taking a separate astaxanthin supplement for most people. Studies suggest the ideal dose is around 10-12 mg per day for clinically relevant benefits.

References:

  • i Rele AS, Mohile RB. "Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage." Journal Cosmetology Science 2003 Mar-Apr;54(2):175-92
  • ii Rele AS, Mohile RB. "Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage." Journal Cosmetology Science 2003 Mar-Apr;54(2):175-92
  • iii Burgess IF, Brunton ER, Burgess NA. "Clinical trial showing superiority of a coconut and anise spray over permethrin 0.43% lotion for head louse infestation" European Journal Pediatrics. 2010 Jan;169(1):55-62
  • iv Brian and Marianita Shilhavy, CoconutOil.com, Coconut Oil Hair Benefits: How to Use Coconut Oil for Natural Hair Health, April 2, 2012  
  • v Raymond Peat Newsletter - Unsaturated Vegetable Oils Toxic, 1996 edition, p.2-4. Daneil R. Doerge, Hebron C Chang "Inactivation of thyroid peroxidase by soy isoflavones in vitro and in vivo", Journal of Chromotography B, September 2002; 777(1,2);25:269-79.
  • vi Dr. Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., F.A.C.N. Source: Coconut: In Support of Good Health in the 21st Century, part 2.
  • vii Dr. Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., F.A.C.N. Source: Coconut: In Support of Good Health in the 21st Century
  • viii Bruce Fife, ND. Coconut Oil and Medium-Chain Triglycerides
  • ix Assun

    Mar

    29

    Father and Daughter Acoustic Cover

    Filed Under Main Content, Other News | Leave a Comment

    The song is ?Home? by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.





    Related Articles:

     Comments (17)

    Mar

    19

    One of the Worst Ways to Eat Eggs

    Filed Under Main Content, Other News | Leave a Comment

     

    By Dr. Mercola

    The definitions of "free-range" are such that the commercial egg industry can run industrial farm egg laying facilities and still call them "free-range" eggs, despite the fact that the birds' foraging conditions are far from what you'd call natural.  

    True free-range eggs are from hens that roam freely outdoors on a pasture where they can forage for their natural diet, which includes seeds, green plants, insects, and worms.

    Large commercial egg facilities typically house tens of thousands of hens and can even go up to hundreds of thousands of hens.

    Obviously they cannot allow all of them to forage freely.

    These confined animal feeding operations, also known as CAFO's, are where the vast majority of commercially available eggs come from.

    But while flimsy definitions of "free range" allow such facilities to sell their products as free range, please beware that a hen that is let outside into a barren lot for mere minutes a day, and is fed a diet of corn, soy, cottonseed meals and synthetic additives is NOT a free-range hen, and simply will not produce the same quality eggs as its foraging counterpart...

    Free Range Eggs are More Nutritious

    Mother Earth News' 2007 egg testing project clearly demonstrated the nutritional differences between eggs from free-range pastured hens and commercially farmed hens. This difference is not an occasional fluke?it's the natural and inevitable result of the diet of the hen laying the egg.  Compared to official U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrient data for commercial eggs, eggs from hens raised on pasture may contain:

    1/3 less cholesterol 2/3 more vitamin A 3 times more vitamin E
    1/4 less saturated fat 2 times more omega-3 fats 7 times more beta carotene

     

    Where and How to Find High Quality Free Range Eggs

    Your best source for fresh eggs is a local farmer that allows his hens to forage freely outdoors. If you live in an urban area, visiting a local health food store is typically the quickest route to finding high-quality local egg sources. Your local farmers market is another source for fresh free range eggs, and is a great way to meet the people who produce your food. With face-to-face contact, you can get your questions answered and know exactly what you're buying. Better yet, visit the farm and ask for a tour. Most will be eager to show off their operation, as long as they've got nothing to hide. Your egg farmer should be paying attention to proper nutrition, clean water, adequate housing space, and good ventilation to reduce stress on the hens and support their immunity.

    Cornucopia.org offers a helpful organic egg scorecard that rates egg manufacturers based on 22 criteria that are important for organic consumers. According to Cornucopia, their report "showcases ethical family farms, and their brands, and exposes factory farm producers and brands in grocery store coolers that threaten to take over organic livestock agriculture."

    Besides that, you can tell the eggs are free range by the color of the egg yolk. Foraged hens produce eggs with bright orange yolks. Dull, pale yellow yolks are a sure sign you're getting eggs form caged hens that are not allowed to forage for their natural diet.

    How to Eat Your Eggs for Maximum Health Benefits

    The CDC and other public health organizations will advise you to thoroughly cook your eggs to lower the risk of salmonella, but eating eggs RAW is actually the best in terms of your health. While this may sound like a scary proposition for many, it's important to realize that salmonella risk comes from chickens raised in unsanitary conditions. These conditions are the norm for CAFO's, but are extremely rare for small organic farms. In fact, one study by the British government found that 23 percent of farms with caged hens tested positive for salmonella, compared to just over 4 percent in organic flocks and 6.5 percent in free-range flocks.

    So, as long as you're getting fresh pastured eggs, your risk of getting ill from a raw egg is quite slim. According to a study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, of the 69 billion eggs produced annually in the United States, some 2.3 million are contaminated with Salmonella?equivalent to just one in every 30,000 eggsi.

    While eggs are often one of your most allergenic foods, I believe this is because they are typically cooked too much. Heating the egg protein actually changes its chemical shape, and this distortion can easily lead to allergies. If you consume your eggs in their raw state, the incidence of egg allergy virtually disappears. I also believe eating eggs raw helps preserve many of the highly perishable nutrients such as lutein and zeaxanthin, which are powerful prevention elements for age-related macular degeneration, which is the most common cause of blindness.

    Fresh raw egg yolk actually tastes like vanilla, in my opinion. The egg white is usually what most people object to when they say they don't like the texture of raw egg.  If this is an issue, consider discarding the egg white, or simply blend the whole raw egg into a shake or smoothie. Personally, I eat just the raw egg yolks?I have four nearly every morning. I remove the whites because it's just too much protein for my challenged kidneys. Beware of consuming raw egg whites without the yolks as raw egg whites contain avidin, which can bind to biotin. If you cook the egg white the avidin is not an issue. Likewise, if you consume the whole raw egg (both yolk and egg white) there is more than enough biotin in the yolk to compensate for the avidin binding.

    If you choose not to eat your eggs (or just egg yolk) raw, soft-boiled would be your next best option. Scrambling your eggs is one of the worst ways to eat eggs as it actually oxidizes the cholesterol in the egg yolk. If you have high cholesterol this may actually be a problem for you as the oxidized cholesterol may cause some damage in your body.

    Cautionary Note for Pregnant Women

    Please beware there's a potential problem with consuming the entire raw egg if you are pregnant. Biotin deficiency is a common concern in pregnancy and it is possible that consuming whole raw eggs might make it worse. If you are pregnant you have two options:

    1. Measure for biotin deficiency. This is best done through urinary excretion of 3-hydroxyisovaleric acid (3-HIA), which increases as a result of the decreased activity of the biotin-dependent enzyme methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase
    2. Alternatively, take a biotin supplement, or consume only the yolk raw (and cook the whites)

    Eggs Won't Harm Your Heart

    There is a major misconception that you must avoid foods like eggs and saturated fat to protect your heart. While it's true that fats from animal sources contain cholesterol, this is not necessarily a health hazard. As I've discussed on many occasions, your body actually requires cholesterol, and artificially driving your cholesterol levels down is nearly always doing far more harm than good. Every cell in your body needs cholesterol. It helps to produce cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D and bile acids that help you to digest fat. Cholesterol also helps in the formation of memories and is vital for your neurological function. In other words, dietary cholesterol is your friend, not your enemy.

    Besides, numerous studies support the conclusion that eggs have virtually nothing to do with raising your cholesterol anyway. For instance, research published in the International Journal of Cardiology showed that, in healthy adults, eating eggs daily did not produce a negative effect on endothelial function, an aggregate measure of cardiac risk, nor an increase in cholesterol levels.

    REFERENCES



    Sources:


    Related Articles:

     Comments (268)

    Feb

    18

    These Foods Have ‘Invisible Thorns’ Which Can Rip Apart Your Insides

    Filed Under Main Content, Other News | Leave a Comment

    By Dr. Mercola

    "You are what you eat" is one of the most profound and instructive sayings ever to be passed down to us through the ages, and thanks to an explosion of exciting new research into the way that food directly affects your genes, it can no longer be written off as merely a metaphorical expression. 

    In fact, food provides far more than just the material "building blocks" and "fuel" for the 'body-machine; it is also a source of genetic information, which is capable of informing the cells and processes within your body, for better or for worse.

    What is quite amazing is the difference in biological response when comparing the right and wrong types of foods.

    In fact, new research has revealed that eating the wrong plants can actually directly alter your genetic expression, which can lead to a myriad of diseases.

    Micro-RNA Molecules from Your Food May Control Up to 30 Percent of Your Genes

    Groundbreaking new research shows that microscopic RNA in the plants you consume enters your body and is actually capable of affecting the expression of up to 30% of your genes!

    Never before could it have been imagined that your "genes" could be so profoundly affected by things you eat.

    There is also the field of lectinology, which has opened our eyes to how plants ? particularly grains and legumes ? have a set of defenses, not unlike "invisible thorns," which can cause direct, non-immune mediated harm to a wide range of tissues and organs within your body.

    Medical science is beginning to awaken to how profoundly food is intertwined with health and disease, and how nutrients affect genes, and how our genes respond to nutrients. This, in fact, is the field of study known as Nutrigenomics ? something, I believe, you will be hearing far more about as the science begins to gain wider appreciation. It is a burgeoning new field, in fact launched soon after the completion of a working draft of the Human Genome project (2003), which failed to provide the long sought after "holy grail" of modern biology.

    In a nutshell, the project failed to identify one gene for every one protein in the human body, forcing researchers to look to epigenetic factors --  namely, "factors beyond the control of the gene" ? to explain how the body is formed, and how it works.  What is the most important factor beyond the control of the gene? Diet.

    Eating the Wrong Plants Can Mess With Your DNA Expression

    Chances are you've never heard of micro RNA (miRNA) ? but that doesn't mean it hasn't already been impacting your health ?  RNA is one of three major macromolecules, like DNA. Micro RNA are basically small pieces of RNA that interact with your genes, essentially stopping certain genes from being expressed.

    MiRNA exists in human body fluid naturally; for instance, researchers have detected high expression levels of immune-related miRNAs in breast milk, particularly during the first 6 months of lactation. It's thought that this genetic material is transferred from mother to baby to help modulate the development of the infant's immune system. Cow's milk also contains miRNA, which is currently being explored as a possible new standard for the quality control of raw milk.

    However, micro RNA also exists in plants, and for the first time research has shown that eating the wrong plants may transfer this plant miRNA  to humans -- with potentially devastating implications.

    The study, published in the September 2011 edition of the journal Cell Research, determined that microRNA from cooked plant foods like rice, wheat and potatoes can in fact collect in your blood and tissue, leading to a number of potential health problems.

    The study further revealed that microRNA remains completely stable after not only cooking, but through the digestion process as well. Most importantly, the researchers found a significant quantity of microRNA in the human body, concluding that:

    " ? plant miRNAs are primarily acquired orally, through food intake."

    So whenever you eat rice and certain other plant foods, including potatoes and wheat, you are ingesting genetic material that may turn certain genes "off." To date, microRNA has been implicated in a number of diseases ranging from cancer and diabetes to Alzheimer's disease. But what exactly is microRNA, and why is it so important?

    "Gene Regulators" in Your Rice, Wheat and Potatoes

    MicroRNA has been widely shown to alter many critical biological processes, including apoptosis ? the process of programmed cell death and DNA fragmentation. As a result, the dysregulation of microRNAs has been linked to cancer and various other diseases. However microRNA are also responsible for regulating your genes on a very large scale. As mentioned, it has been estimated that miRNAs account for less than 1% of genes in mammals, but that up to 30% of genes are regulated by them.

    Amazingly, microRNAs are known to regulate the flow of genetic information by controlling the translation or stability of something known as messenger RNAs, which is a molecule of RNA that carries valuable genetic coding information within your body.

    What's more, this plant miRNA has been shown to interfere with human microRNA by mimicking it and binding to the receptors. In the study, researchers examined the two highest levels of these microRNAs in human participants, and found that it is shockingly prevalent among many dietary plant staples.

    As results of the study show, three microRNAs were detected in rice and other foods including Chinese cabbage, wheat, and potato. Of course these are all highly common food staples for many families not only in the United States, but around the world. This means that you may be unknowingly consuming plant microRNAs that could be increasing your risk of cancer and other disease. Even more concerning is the fact that the study authors observed this effect in both healthy men and women, reporting:

    "Upon investigation of the global miRNA expression profile in human serum, we found that exogenous plant miRNAs were consistently present in the serum of healthy? men and women."

    What you eat, therefore, is who you are in the most literal sense possible.

    This fact, while often overlooked, is fundamental in understanding how to optimize your health. If you eat the right foods, you thrive; eat the wrong foods, and you suffer. The problem is the field of nutrition is infused with the same intensity of impassioned debate and confusion as religion and politics ? and rarely, only rarely do you get a clear picture of what is good for you, as an individual.

    It can take a lifetime to figure out how to perfect a diet, particularly one suitable for you as an individual. The good news is that modern research is beginning to make headway in figuring out what is good for virtually all humans, at least in most cases. Certain foods appear to be problematic for many ? and most grains continue to be at the top of this list.

    Lectins: "Invisible Thorns" of the Plant Kingdom

    MicroRNAs are only one component of plant foods that stretch beyond the scope of vitamins and minerals ? Did you know, for instance, that many of the plants we consume for food, particularly grains and legumes, contain chemical and physical defenses that protect against being eaten?

    These include anti-nutrients that interfere with the digestion of starches (anti-amylase), proteins (protease inhibitors), minerals (phytate), and many other similar molecules. Sprouting, fermentation, cooking and processing can sometimes reduce and/or eliminate these substances, but not in all cases.

    There is one category, of particular interest, known as lectins. Lectins get their name from the Latin word legere, from which the word "Select" derives ? and that is exactly what they do: they select (attach to) a very specific number of biological structures.

    Lectins are capable of disrupting the health of the creatures that consume them, often piercing through the protective coating of their digestive tracts, and gaining entry into systemic circulation.

    Wheat, for instance, contains an exceptionally small lectin known as wheat germ agglutinin or WGA, which is capable of attaching to the surface proteins of nearly all of its natural predators, from bacterial to fungi, worms to insects, mice to men.

    Because all of the these creatures are composed, in part, of the biopolymer n-acetyl-glucosamine, and because WGA is designed to attach ? exactly and exclusively ? to this glycoprotein (part sugar, part protein), it is Nature's ingenious way of saying: "Hey, back off!" ? at least when it comes to eating excessive amounts of the seed storage form of the mature grass plant, e.g. cereal grains.

    In an article published on GreenMedInfo.com, Sayer Ji describes lectins as "invisible thorns," explaining:

    "Nature engineers, within all species, a set of defenses against predation, though not all are as obvious as the thorns on a rose or the horns on a rhinoceros. Plants do not have the cell-mediated immunity of higher life forms, like ants, nor do they have the antibody driven, secondary immune systems of vertebrates with jaws. They must rely on a much simpler, innate immunity.

    It is for this reason that seeds of the grass family, e.g. rice, wheat, spelt, rye, have exceptionally high levels of defensive glycoproteins known as lectins. These  'invisible thorns' are an ingenius means of survival."

    Lectins were first discovered in castor bean casings, which contain the lectin ricin. Ricin is so toxic that only a dose the size of a few grains of salt can kill an adult if injected or inhaled. In fact, the US military investigated it for potential military use in the First World War.  Like micro RNA, lectins are capable of directly affecting gene expression within cells.

    The Very Real Danger of Genetically Engineered Foods

    Given the fact that research now shows microRNA are appearing in humans who eat rice, it brings up many questions about the way the food we eat interacts with our physiology. While the Cell Research study had nothing specifically to do with genetically modified foods, the implications have everything to do with them.

    MicroRNA appears to have dangerous implications for human health, so it stands to reason that genetic modification, which by definition involves organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered, may too. Further, it brings up a whole new way by which GM foods might harm human health, considering researchers have been using genes very similar to micro RNA to "turn off" certain plant genes.

    As reported in The Atlantic:

    "Researchers have been using this phenomena to their advantage in the form of small, engineered RNA strands that are virtually identical to miRNA. In a technique called RNA interference, or RNA knockdown, these small bits of RNA are used to turn off, or "knock down," certain genes.

    RNA knockdown was first used commercially in 1994 to create the Flavor Savr, a tomato with increased shelf life. In 2007, several research teams began reporting success at engineering plant RNA to kill insect predators, by knocking down certain genes. As reported in MIT's Technology Review on November 5, 2007, researchers in China used RNA knockdown to make:

     ' ...cotton plants that silence a gene that allows cotton bollworms to process the toxin gossypol, which occurs naturally in cotton. Bollworms that eat the genetically engineered cotton can't make their toxin-processing proteins, and they die.'

    And:

    'Researchers at Monsanto and Devgen, a Belgian company, made corn plants that silence a gene essential for energy production in corn rootworms; ingestion wipes out the worms within 12 days.'

    Humans and insects have a lot in common, genetically. If miRNA can in fact survive the gut then it's entirely possible that miRNA intended to influence insect gene regulation could also affect humans."

    The research on micro RNA also has implications on the very doctrine by which biotech companies make claim to GM food safety: substantial equivalence (the idea that there is no difference between GM and non-GM crops). There is obviously much left to be discovered about how DNA and RNA interacts with human beings ? and it is becoming increasingly clear that plants with altered DNA cannot be "substantially equivalent" to their natural counterparts. The Atlantic continues:

    " ? if companies like Monsanto want to use processes like RNA interference to make plants that can kill insects via genetic pathways that might resemble our own, some kind of testing has to happen. A good place to start would be the testing of introduced DNA for other effects -- miRNA-mediated or otherwise -- beyond the specific proteins they code for. But the status quo, according to Monsanto's website, is:

    'There is no need to test the safety of DNA introduced into GM crops. DNA (and resulting RNA) is present in almost all foods. DNA is non-toxic and the presence of DNA, in and of itself, presents no hazard.'

    Given what we know, that stance is arrogant. Time will tell if it's reckless. There are computational methods of investigating whether unintended RNAs are likely to be knocking down any human genes. But thanks to this position, the best we can do is hope they're using them. Given it's opposition to the labeling of GM foods as well, it seems clear that Monsanto wants you to close your eyes, open your mouth, and swallow."

    How Can You Eat to Optimize Your Genetic Expression?

    Given the knowledge that the food you consume ultimately becomes the life source of your entire body, it is important that you eat well not only to utilize vital nutrients but also to optimize your genetic expression.

    This is cutting-edge information, but it is becoming very clear that there is far more to "food" than vitamins and minerals. Research has only scratched the surface into micro RNAs and their impacts on human health, but the preliminary research suggests they may provide one more method by which grains may harm your health.

    For most, it appears healthy eating entails limiting carbohydrates from grains and potatoes, and instead focusing on carbs from vegetable sources. This is in line with the "Paleo" way of eating, which involves focusing on foods that are in line with your genetic ancestry, such as vegetables, nuts and grass-fed meats, while limiting sugars and grains. Cereals, potatoes and bread were non-existent prior to the dawn of agriculture, and there's reason to believe these foods are discordant with our ancient genome. We need to relearn what foods are ideal for our bodies not just to live on, but to thrive on.

    You can find more information about how to eat to support positive genetic expression in my nutrition plan. Also keep in mind that your diet is but one way to influence your genetic expression. Your emotions, pharmaceutical drugs, exposure to pollutants, and even exposure to sunlight (vitamin D) and supplements like curcumin play a role in how your genes are expressed.



    Sources:


    Related Articles:

     Comments (102)

    Feb

    4

    Organize Your Mind to Organize Your Life

    Filed Under Main Content, Other News | Leave a Comment

    An organized mind can enable you to fully engage in a health-giving lifestyle. And the reverse is also true -- the symptoms of a disorganized mind, such as impulsivity, chronic negativity, high stress and multitasking, all correlate with higher weight.

    Writing for CNN, Dr. Paul Hammerness and Margaret Moore, co-authors of "Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life," list six ways to attain a calm, wise, positive, strategic perspective.

    1. Tame your frenzy: Before you can focus your attention, you need to take charge of your worry, anger, sadness, and irritation.
    2. Sustain your focus: Once your mind is calm, identify one task and one task only.
    3. Apply the brakes: Your focused brain also needs to be able to stop when necessary.
    4. Access your working memory: Accessing your short-term memory helps you problem-solve and generate new ideas and insights.
    5. Shift sets: When you focus on a new task, move all of your attention to it and give it your undivided attention.
    6. Connect the dots: Put all of these rules together to change not only your habits of attention, but the way you look at your life.

    To read more, you can click on the link below.



    Sources:


    Related Articles:

     Comments (26)

    ← Previous Page — Next Page →