SOURCES OF GLUTEN

Picture source: wikipedia/Gluten

What is gluten?

Gluten is a complex protein molecule, forming both strong and elastic material, which is a natural part of many grains. It is found in grain endosperm, starchy middle part of the seed, where it forms the water-insoluble protein portion.

The major part of wheat gluten consists of gliadin and glutenin, rye gluten is mostly formed by secalin and in barley it is called hordein. Maize contains zeins which evolutionary developed separately from other grains and usually do not cause problems. Similarly, avenins in oats can be eaten safely by about half of celiac patients – the problem is usually due to contamination of oats by other grains.

The most suspicious in causing health problems is wheat gluten – gliadin – often classified as cytotoxic protein. If not digested properly, it can be harmful to both coeliac and non-coeliac people.

Gluten in wheat flour is very desirable for baking – it helps bread, rolls and cakes to rise and keep them light, airy and soft. This is the main reason why the commercial bread making and baking industry requires flour with high gluten content. New wheat hybrids were therefore over decades designed to have much higher content of gluten than older versions.


Gluten sensitivity and Coeliac disease (US spelling celiac)

Gluten sensitivity (also called non-coeliac gluten intolerance/sensitivity, NCGS) is a different type of problem than coeliac disease but both seem to be on the rise. This is very likely due to frequent use of modern wheat products (see the table below) but other causes, such as use of herbicide glyphosate (also known as RoundUp) for drying the crops, are not excluded.

 Wheat flour seem to be on the menu more-less all day, every day - toast for breakfast, croissant for snack, sandwich for lunch, biscuits with tea and pizza or pasta for dinner. Most of soups, sausages and batters are wheat based too. Such diet can trigger series of troubles, even if we do not have coeliac genes (and such genes are found only in about 80% of coeliac patients). Moreover, wheat proteins are present in many ‘healthy’ bars and drinks, cosmetics and soaps and even medical plasters and tablet coatings. This is because modified hydrolysed protein is easily soluble in water, it’s cheap and have many practical uses in both food and non-food industries.

Undigested parts of gluten can irritate delicate lining of digestive tract and cause reactions of various severities. Some people can experience only temporary inflammation and slight discomfort, others can develop coeliac disease. Symptoms can be very similar, and blood test for gliadin antibodies and other markers (TTG, DGL, EMA) do not always show presence of typical coeliac disease. This is usually diagnosed only after the lining of the intestine is already badly damaged (stage Marsh 3-4).

The main difference between coeliac disease and non-coeliac gluten intolerance is the fact that full-blown coeliac is autoimmune reaction, where presence of gliadin switches on the immune reaction against its own cells and tissues. Certain type of immune reaction can also happen in non-coeliac gluten intolerance, but its character and immune cells involved are completely different. The reactions can also happen in other parts of body tissues, i.e. skin exposed to cosmetics with wheat protein as an ingredient.

Symptoms

As mentioned before, both coeliac disease and non-coeliac gluten intolerance are able to cause inflammation. Inflammation of intestine can lower the ability to absorb nutrients from food. Typical coeliac disease completely destroys intestinal lining and the ability to absorb nutrients becomes very low. The early symptoms can vary depending on which nutrients become depleted first.

Digestive symptoms – intestinal cramps, pain, discomfort, diarrhoea or constipation, lactose intolerance, dairy protein intolerance, bloating, dysbiosis

Neurological symptoms – dizziness, pins & needles, headaches, migraines, brain fog

Skin & mucosal symptoms – hives, swellings, itchiness, aphtous ulcers in mouth, dermatitis, hayfever and sinus blockage

Other – fatigue, anaemia, loss of weight in children, lethargy, inflammation, muscle pains, period pains, low immunity, thyroid problems, and depression

Long term complex problems – CFS, Crohn’s disease, diverticulitis, osteoporosis

If you suspect possibility of gluten connected to your health problems, try to avoid it for a short period (3 days – 1 month) to see any improvements. It can take different amount of time for different people.

However, if you suspect full-blown coeliac disease, for example you also have a family history of coeliac, it is best to do all the tests before starting gluten-free diet. Otherwise the markers for coeliac may not get detected in your blood and this could postpone possible diagnosis.

Avoiding gluten does not need to be as hard and inconvenient as it seems at first. Try to look at the situation from different perspective – take it as a chance to enrich your diet, add more nutrient-dense foods (not calorie-dense), more taste, try new foods and gluten-free grains you would otherwise ignore or return to traditional wholefoods our ancestor eat and thrived on.

SOURCES OF GLUTEN

Wheat – white/plain flour, wholemeal flour Bread and other bakery products (cakes, biscuits, croissants, rolls, pastries…) Older types of wheat: Spelt, Kamut, Einkorn, Emmer, Dinkle, Bulgur Monoccum and Faro has shown the least harmful effect. Semolina Pasta (including egg pasta) Cous cous Rye – flour and products Barley - including beer and malt, malt extract Oats - contaminated by other grains Seitan – vegetarian meat replacement Spirits – here it depends greatly on their purity Foods containing „protein isolate“ Soy sauce (unless gluten free such as Tamari) Sauces – ready made, tinned, most from restaurants Soups – ready made, tinned, most from restaurants Meat products – sausages, ham, salami, most crab meat, some fish fillets, fast food meats

Chewing Gums (Wrigley, Orbit, Winterfresh are without gluten according to manufacturers, with other gums it is recommended to ask the manufacturer) Protein bars Muesli bars Ice-cream (with emulsifiers and stabilisers) Spices (ground with anti-caking agents) Milk replacements Rice and soy milk (unless gluten free – NOTE : these often contain damaging vegetable oil, soy milk is not healthy for other reasons) Modified starch Modified protein Hydrolysed vegetable protein (these can be from wheat) Coffee – flavoured, cereal NON- FOOD Cosmetics and soap with wheat protein Postal stamps  and envelopes Coating on some sweets and tablets Emulsifiers – some are made of gluten Dog & cat food Cigarette filters Adhesive tapes including medical plasters Some textiles and leather

Sources:

www.celiac.cz/?article=24www.glutenfreediet.ca
www.celiac.com
Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity
The Oslo definitions for coeliac disease and related terms
Environmental factors of celiac dise... [J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2007] - PubMed - NCBI
Wheat gluten in food and nonfood systems

Raw Vegan Pesto

Ingredients:

1 cup (150ml) soaked raw cashew nuts
1 bunch of fresh Basil herb with stems
2 cloves of garlic 
6 tbsp virgin olive oil
Himalayan salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

The amount of pesto you can process can be limited by the size of your food chopper – in a larger bowl you may need to use more nuts; otherwise it can be difficult to blend them properly. The above amounts were processed in approximately 1l large chopper bowl. 

Method:

1. Soak cashews several hours (up to half a day) beforehand. Change water few times. This step not only softens the nuts but also neutralises anti-nutrients, present in dormant seeds. 
2. Rinse Basil and chop the stems to 2-3 parts to make it easier to mix.
3. Chop or grate the garlic to tiny pieces and leave to stand 5 minutes to activate health promoting compounds. 
4. Put all ingredients into the chopper and process until even mixture is formed. 
5. Eat fresh and if need to store, place into glass jar, add more olive oil to cover the top and close tight. 

Variations:
Instead of cashew try to use pine nuts, walnuts, almonds, Brazils... Add different herbs in smaller amounts (together with Basil).

Serving suggestion:
Instead of usual pasta, this pesto tastes great with steamed cauliflower. You can use whole pieces of cauliflower or put them into the chopper (no need to wash after making pesto) to make mash (see picture). If you prefer something slightly more similar to traditional pasta/pesto, use buckwheat instead and add lots of fresh tomatoes, avocado and instead of cheese try to grate couple of Brazil nuts on the top.

UPDATE
I tried to use walnuts and sunflower seeds, soaked for half an hour, but this combination did not taste as good as cashews. The quality was more greasy and thicker, closer to shop-bought product than fresh home-made.

This can be due to higher amount of fat in sunflower seeds and walnuts. Cashews have more carbs and taste sweeter rather than fatty.

100g sunflower seeds - fat 51g - carbs 20g - protein 21g
100g walnuts - fat 65g - carbs 14g - protein 15g
100g cashews - fat 44g - carbs 33g - protein 18g

Free vitamin D is best !

Spring in the mountains

Who is at risk of low vitamin D?

• Children born to mums with low level of vitamin D. 
• People with darker skin tones – pigment melanin stops UVB rays penetrating the skin and this is needed to make vitamin D. 
• People who avoid sun exposure or those who do not have time to get outdoors often enough. 
• People who do spend enough time outdoors but 

• cover up their skin with UV filters, also found in most ‘anti-ageing’ moisturisers and make-up 
• cover up most of skin with clothes 
• after each sunbathing wash most of their skin with soap 
• usually wear sunglasses – it is thought that there is some connection between light frequency signal in the eye and formation of vitamin D

• People with an excess weight. Fat cells can soak up the fat-soluble vitamins and keep them locked, while there is less available in blood stream.
• People with absorption problems such as those with Coeliac or Crohn’s disease, cystic fibrosis and also during long term stress, which lowers excretion of digestive juices including bile, crucial for fat emulsification.
• People with kidney disease have problem to convert inactive D from food or supplements to active form. 

Signs and symptoms of vitamin D deficiency

•  The most extreme form is rickets, softening of bones. It is known mostly as malnutrition disease from the past but in recent decades we can see rickets returning and number of cases rising. Although vitamin D is the main missing vitamin, forming of healthy bones also depends on other nutrients such as another fat-soluble vitamin K2, minerals in food, mainly magnesium, silica, boron and organic forms of calcium.

•  Immune system malfunction – from frequent colds and flu, asthma, eczema, to autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and multiple sclerosis and even cancer.

• Osteoporosis and osteopenia – vitamin D is known to help absorption and processing of minerals such as magnesium and calcium, important for bone building.

• Low vitamin D is a risk factor in heart disease and diabetes. Also, there is a connection with low thyroid hormones – vitamin D is more hormone-like substance and any low hormone can skew up the rest of hormonal balance.

Vitamin D as immune balance regulator

A 2010 study on 400 school age children has shown that those who took 1200 IU of vitamin D3 during the flu season (December-March) had 42% less cases of flu virus (8).

In 1994 study 20,000 people were followed during 6-year period and respiratory problems (such as cough and cold) were observed. It was found that low level of vitamin D in blood correlated with more respiratory problems. 24% of people with level of 25(OH)D below 10ng/ml had respiratory infections, while those with level of from 10-30ng/ml had respiratory infections in 20% cases and those above 30ng/ml had problems only in 17% of cases. It would be interesting to see, if even higher level of 25(OH)D would manage prevent infection even further.

netterimages.com

Th1 and Th2 are types of lymphocytes, also called T-cells and T-helper-cells, lying on the opposite ends of ‘immune swing’. T-cells are responsible for cell-mediated immunity (unlike different type, "antibody-mediated" immunity).

If the amount of one type of T-helper cell increases, the amount of other type automatically drops. Examples of situations when Th1 are called upon are during fighting off intracellular bacteria, mycotoxins or cancer cells. Th2 fight bacteria and parasites outside of cells and in the blood stream.

If Th2 become too active, this results in increased allergic reactions, asthma, eczema and systemic autoimmune diseases. Other side of immune swing - Th1 – drops in amount and this can cause less active natural killer (NK) cells, resulting in increased risk of infection in the internal cell environment (bacterial, viral, fungal).

If Th1 become too active, the result is autoimmunity of specific tissues (rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, thyroid autoimmunity, Crohn’s disease, psoriasis, lupus...). However, these are often situations which can have paradoxically dominant Th2. Therefore it is important to communicate with doctors and request special tests for various types of lymphocytes. This can be very helpful in choosing the right diet, as there are some common foods and herbs which are known to support only one side of immune balance (i.e. Echinacea, green tea, quercetin).

In contrast with some other nutrients, vitamin D can balance Th1/Th2 depending on actual needs and it does not specifically support one side of immunity only. This way it has ability to influence many health problems.


What to look at when reading vitamin D tests


1. Units used – several types

· nmol/l

· ug/l (can be written as mcg/l)

· ng/ml ( ug/l = ng/ml )

· pg/ml a pmol/l – used for 1,25(OH)2D


2. Forms of vitamin D

· D2 (ergocalciferol)

· D3 (cholecalciferol)

· D2 + D3 = total D

D3 – is made from cholesterol in the skin on exposure to sunlight. This is an active form of the vitamin. Tests for total D give us useful information about serious deficiency but they do not tell us exactly how much of usable form of vitamin we have and if we already reached the optimum level.

· 25 hydroxyvitamin D - 25(OH)D

· 1,25- dihydroxyvitamin D - 1,25(OH)2D

25(OH)D is a form of vitamin D considered most accurate for testing in majority of people. Exceptions are blood samples of people with osteoporosis – they do not seem to convert enough D to 1,25(OH)2D form. It is thought this is due to deficiency in magnesium and boron. Their test can therefore show as false negative for existing deficiency.

1,25(OH)2D is a part of active form with very short half-life of only 14 hours. This amount can artificially increase in case of very low level of D – when activation of PTH (parathyroid hormone) happens and rises conversion 25(OH)D to 1,25(OH)2D.



3. Values for deficiency, normal and optimum


TOTAL 25(OH)D – differences in literature

	nmol/l	ug/l = ng/ml
Deficiency (4)	<50 nmol/l	<20 ng/ml
Deficiency (3)	<63 nmol/l	<25 ng/ml
Normal (4)	>50 nmol/l	>20 ng/ml
Normal (3)	>63 nmol/l	>25 ng/ml
Normal (2)	97-250 mmol/l	39-100 ng/ml
Optimum (1)	>75 nmol/l	>30 ng/ml
Optimum (3)	80-120 mmol/l	32-48 ng/ml
Optimum (2)	175-250 mmol/l	70-100 ng/ml

TOTAL 25(OH)D - table by Nutri (6)

	nmol/l	ug/l = ng/ml
Deficiency	<50 nmol/l	<20 ng/ml
Below normal	52-72 nmol/l	21-29 ng/ml
Optimum	75-150 nmol/l	20-60 ng/ml
Toxic	>374 nmol/l	>150 ng/ml

Reference tables for D3 are not available as each laboratory has its own ranges which they consider normal.


Why there are such large differences in recommended values?

Many recommended values for vitamin D (both daily intake and blood levels) were taken from historical information based on the lowest amount of vitamin needed to prevent the most serious symptom – rickets.

It is now known that vitamin D functions in more similar way to our hormones, rather than the vitamins. It helps to keep immune balance, mineral absorption balance and can also directly interfere with our genes. Optimal levels of cholecalciferol (D3) were shown to reduce risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis and cancer.

It is becoming more widely accepted today that rickets is not the only problem caused by low blood levels of vitamin D and therefore the recommended values have been accordingly adjusted by some medical establishments around the world but not by all.

It is also important to realise that ‘normal’ values just mean prevention of known illnesses but ’optimal’ values can actually mean more than just prevention. Absence of symptoms does not necessarily mean that our health is optimal. Many problems develop slowly over the years, such as in cases o many cancers, where it can take decades for any symptoms to show up.

Sunset near Ullapool

Free vitamin D is the best !

As I mentioned before, vitamin D is known to act more like a hormone rather than a vitamin. Too much of hormonal action is not always the best but once depleted, it is very hard to get the levels up.

The best source of vitamin D is sunlight on the skin, which should not be covered by clothes or skin products with UV filters. Formation of D in this way is self-regulating and body stops producing it when there is enough. We also need to have sufficient levels of cholesterol and sulphur in our skin to produce vitamin D from light. About 20-30 minutes daily over the Summer months is enough for most people. For the Winter months and for people living in colder darker regions of the world, the nature offered sources of D in form of fish liver (we polluted it to the extreme its not completely safe any more) and animal foods such as butter, meat and eggs. However, if the animals are farmed and kept inside, the amount of D they produce may not be sufficient.


Supplements

D3 – cholecalciferol (not D2 - ergocalciferol) is direct active form. The best form is sublingual spray, tablets or drops as these are not affected by absorption in digestive tract and get into the blood by absorption through the mucosa of the mouth. If taking ordinary tablets, it is important to have them with food which contains some fat.

Amount needed is individual and depends on existing blood levels, personal risk factors, time of the year and climate. Therapeutic levels need to be taken along with other nutrients. Vitamin D will increase absorption of minerals such as calcium, and this may not be desirable in some case. Always test and speak to an experienced health professional.

SOURCES

1. http://www.powerofvitamind.com/diagnosis_of_vitamin_d_deficiency.html
2. J.E.Williams, K.Gianni - How to Read Your Blood Tests. Renegadehealth.com (2010)
3. Nutri Clinical Application Series (2011) Immune System Balance / Lecture Notes
4. http://www.vitamindtest.org.uk/vitamindbackground.html
5. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2088672-overview
6. Nutris Guide to Vitamin D Range – Clinical Guide Series
8. Urashima, M et al (2010) Randomized trial of vitamin D supplementation to prevent seasonal influenza A in schoolchildren, American Society for Nutrition.
9. Ginde AA, Marshbach JM, Camargo CA (2009) Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(4):384-390

Are you still using microwaves?

flickr.com

Microwave ovens emit certain electromagnetic frequencies, in a similar way as do mobile phones, TVs, PC screens or satellites. The major difference is – we use these frequencies to heat our food - which is often immediately after heating put inside our bodies.

In this way, we introduce to our body nothing else than a matter, which has been unnaturally re-organised on subatomic scale. Remember, all things around us, including us, are based on constant vibrations of elementary particles. Every time we are exposed to unnatural frequencies, it causes changes in vibrations of matter we are made of and this way it directly affects us.

We cannot ignore the fact that heating by microwave frequencies also has other effect on our food than just making it warmer. The heat does not come from heat source, such as in conventional ovens. It comes from frequencies which make some particles vibrate to the point of releasing heat, as it happens to water molecules.

But what else happens here? What happens, for example, to sensitive molecules, which are going to circulate in our blood and renew our cells or form our DNA? 

STUDY - Effects of microwave radiation on anti-infective factors in human milk

Scientists from the Department of Pediatrics of Stanford University School of Medicine have tested 22 frozen human milk samples for lysozyme activity, total IgA, and specific secretory IgA to E coli.

Lysozymes are enzymes which destroy gram-positive bacteria by digesting their cell walls. They were discovered accidentally by Alexander Fleming in 1922, when nasal drippings (rich in lysozymes) stopped bacterial growth in his Petri dish. Lysozymes are found in tears, mucus, saliva and human milk. 

IgA is an immunoglobulin (antibody) which plays important role in immunity of mucosal membranes, where it protects us from pathogens and exotoxins. Specific sIgA to E.coli is an antibody which destroys this bacterium. 

The samples of milk were heated by microwave for 30 seconds at a different power settings. To each was added 1 mL of diluted E coli suspension. E coli growth was determined after 3.5 hours of incubation at 37C.

1. Microwaving at high temperatures (72 - 98 C) markedly destroyed anti-infective activity of the milk. At 98C and above, E coli spread 18x faster than in non-microwaved human milk. 
2. Microwaving at low temperatures (20 -53C) significantly decreased activity of lysozyme and specific IgA to E coli serotype 06. 
3. Even at 20 - 25C, E coli spread 5x faster than in non-microwaved human milk. 

Conclusion: Microwaving appears to be contraindicated at high temperatures, and questions regarding its safety exist even at low temperatures.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/89/4/667.abstract
http://lysozyme.co.uk/
http://www.nature.com/mi/journal/v1/n1/full/mi20076a.html

The Swiss clinical study (shortened version)

Dr. Hans Ulrich Hertel, who is now retired, worked as a food scientist for many years with one of the major Swiss food companies.
In 1991, he and a Lausanne University professor published a research paper indicating that food cooked in microwave ovens could pose a greater risk to health than food cooked by conventional means. An article also appeared in issue 19 of the Journal Franz Weber in which it was stated that the consumption of food cooked in microwave ovens had cancerous effects on the blood.

Dr. Hertel was the first scientist to conceive and carry out a quality clinical study on the effects microwaved nutrients have on the blood and physiology of the human body. His small but well controlled study showed the degenerative force produced in microwave ovens and the food processed in them.

The scientific conclusion showed that microwave cooking changed the nutrients in the food; and, changes took place in the participants' blood that could cause deterioration in the human system. Hertel's scientific study was done along with Dr. Bernard H. Blanc of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the University Institute for Biochemistry.

In intervals of two to five days, the volunteers in the study received one of the following food variants on an empty stomach:

1. Raw milk  & The same raw milks cooked in a microwave oven

2. Pasteurized milk & The same milk conventionally cooked

3. Raw vegetables from an organic farm
& The same vegetables cooked conventionally
& The same vegetables frozen and defrosted in a microwave oven
& The same vegetables cooked in the microwave oven

People eating microwaved foods had some significant changes happening in their blood

•  a decrease in hemoglobin values 

• decrease in the ratio of HDL (good cholesterol) and LDL (bad cholesterol) 

• lymphocytes (white blood cells) showed a more distinct short-term decrease following the intake of microwaved food than after the intake of all the other variants 

• luminescent bacteria exposed to blood serum from people who ate microwaved food had significantly higher luminous power, depending on amount of microwave radiation received 

How microwaves work

Technically produced microwaves are based on the principle of alternating current. Atoms, molecules, and cells hit by this hard electromagnetic radiation are forced to reverse polarity 1-100 billion times a second. There are no atoms, molecules or cells of any organic system able to withstand such a violent, destructive power for any extended period of time, not even in the low energy range of milliwatts. Of all the natural substances - which are polar - the oxygen of water molecules reacts most sensitively. This is how microwave cooking heat is generated - friction from this violence in water molecules. Structures of molecules are torn apart, molecules are forcefully deformed, called structural isomerism, and thus become impaired in quality.

This is contrary to conventional heating of food where heat transfers convectionally from without to within. Cooking by microwaves begins within the cells and molecules where water is present and where the energy is transformed into frictional heat. 

In addition to the violent frictional heat effects, called thermic effects, there are also athermic effects which have hardly ever been taken into account. These athermic effects are not presently measurable, but they can also deform the structures of molecules and have qualitative consequences. For example the weakening of cell membranes by microwaves is used in the field of gene altering technology. 

Because of the force involved, the cells are actually broken, thereby neutralizing the electrical potentials, the very life of the cells, between the outer and inner side of the cell membranes. Impaired cells become easy prey for viruses, fungi and other microorganisms. The natural repair mechanisms are suppressed and cells are forced to adapt to a state of energy emergency - they switch from aerobic to anaerobic respiration. Instead of water and carbon dioxide, the cell poisons hydrogen peroxide and carbon monoxide are produced." 

Microwave oven manufacturers insist that microwaved and irradiated foods do not have any significantly higher radiolytic compounds than do broiled, baked or other conventionally cooked foods. The scientific clinical evidence presented here has shown that this is simply a lie. 

In America, neither universities nor the federal government have conducted any tests concerning the effects on our bodies from eating microwaved foods. Isn't that a bit odd? 

Full Swiss clinical study is available at
http://www.health-science.com/microwave_hazards.html 
http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/health-hazards-to-know-about/microwave-ovens-the-proven-dangers

Changes in chirality of molecules 

If you like good chicken soup or bone broth, do not spoil this great food by defrosting it or heating up by microwave oven. Gelatin part in good meat stock is mostly made of amino acids proline and glycine.

According to a letter published in The Lancet, microwaving converts L-proline (Levo, left) in food to D-proline (Dextro, right), forming an unnatural isomer (twisted molecule). Glycine is symmetric, therefore has no chirality. Conversion of molecules to other isomers in living body is thought to be hazardous to health. Example of such molecule is our DNA, where subunits only exists in one type of chirality. Incorporating amino acid of other chirality (isomer) would not produce functioning DNA.

If wrongly twisted molecules become incorporated into our body, it can lead to structural, functional and immunological changes.

D-proline formed during microwaving food has been found to be 

• neurotoxic (neural pathways, mental health) 

• carrying a risk of nephrotoxicity (damaging kidneys) 

• carrying a risk of hepatotoxicity (damaging liver)

What is worse, there is no reason to think that proline is the only one amino acid molecule subjected to this kind of destruction, and it is likely that other amino acids and molecules in microwaved food would be similarly affected.

Sources
http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/why-broth-is-beautiful
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1968186
http://www.simsoup.info/Origin_Issues_Homochirality.html 

FAIRLY TOXIC PLASTIC

7 MINUTES VIDEO

highly recommended to watch if you

• wish to lower the risk of cancer - both you and your present or future family
• are planning to get pregnant, expecting or have small children
• have endocrine (hormonal) problems such as thyroid problems, PMS, oestrogen dominance and low energy
• have been experiencing emotional turmoil
• have been trying to lose weight - remember that most toxins are fat soluble and body is protecting you by storing them away
• have had unexplained health problems

How much caffeine is in your diet?

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When we have imbalanced blood sugar levels, we often wake up in the morning with not enough energy to start the day. Another drop is often experienced between 2-4 pm. To get moving, both in the morning and afternoon, we start to reach for a cup of coffee and addiction occurs.

Caffeine, and similarly smoking and sugar, makes us feel good, because it raises blood sugar levels.

Constant rising and dropping of blood sugar and using stimulants to overcome tiredness can be very dangerous for some of us. It may take several years to show but slow depletion of adrenal reserves can lead to abnormal fatigue, often this happens after we experience some stressful event.

Adrenal glands produce hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which are helping us to get on with everyday life and stress. Stress can be anything like cold weather, hot room, too much toxins, noise, or emotional stress.

Overusing stimulants such as coffee, chocolate, Coke or smoking can cause exhaustion of adrenal glands and this can lead to

• depression, anxiety, chronic fatigue and impaired stress hormone production 
• headaches, migraines, dizziness, insomnia, irritability, nervousness 
• poor mental performance

Each of us has own limit, which for some could be just 1 strong cup of tea a day. If you have sleep problems, even this could be too much. Tea (black, decaf and green) and chocolate also contains theobromine, another potent stimulant.

1 cup of ground coffee	115mg
1 large bar of dark chocolate (125g/4oz)	80mg
1 cup of instant coffee	65mg
2 painkiller tablets	60mg
1 cup of tea	50mg
1 can of cola	40mg
1 large bar of milk chocolate (125g/4oz)	20mg
1 cup of drinking chocolate	3mg
1 cup of decaf coffee	3mg

Source of table 1: M Glenville "Natural Solutions to Infertility"

COFFEE
Brewed (8oz/240ml)	95-200mg
Instant (8oz/240ml)	27-173mg
Espresso (1oz/30ml)	40-75mg
Decaf Espresso (1oz/30ml)	0-15mg
Decaf (8oz/240ml)	0-15mg
TEA
Black (8oz/240ml)	14-61mg
Green (8oz/240ml)	24-40mg
Black decaf (8oz/240ml)	0-12mg
SOFT DRINKS
Diet Coke(355ml)	38-47mg
Pepsi (355ml)	32-39mg
Diet Pepsi(355ml)	27-37mg
Coca Cola(355ml)	30-35mg
Dr Pepper(355ml)	36mg

Source of table 2: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeine/AN01211

CHOCOLATE
Dark  70-85% (100g)	80mg
Milk (100g)	20mg
Cocoa powder (1 TBSP)	12mg

Source of table 2: USDA database

WHAT ARE ALTERNATIVES?

Tea 

- most herbals

- Roiboos (red bush)

- use one bag of ordinary (black or green) tea per litre of water, not per cup

Coffee 

- Caro and other chicory and grain based

- powdered mushrooms (Chaga with Reishi tastes great)

Drinks 

- molases cola (mix with lemon, stevia to sweeten and mineral sparkling water),

- filtered tap water with lemon

- pure mineral water

Chocolate
- Carob powder
- mushroom powders (1/4tsp of strong Chaga + 1 tsp of Reishi per cup tastes like Moca)