CNN reports that the tapeworm newly discovered in Alaskan salmon is named Diphyllobothrium nihonkaiense, also known as the Japanese broad tapeworm. This species accounts for the most infections in humans, in contradiction to the previous belief that the dubious distinction went to the most common fish tapeworm, Diphyllobothrium latum. A team of scientists found four species of Pacific salmon known to carry the Japanese tapeworm: chum salmon, masu salmon, pink salmon and sockeye salmon. These fish are caught and then shipped worldwide, so the infection may occur in humans anywhere on the planet. (RELATED: Stay informed about the health risks of food ingredients at Ingredients.news)

Tapeworms, including the Japanese version can grow to 30 feet inside a human digestive tract. Infestation often goes undetected, because symptoms may often be mild, with symptoms largely attributed to other conditions by medical practitioners. When fish are commercially caught worldwide, they are placed on ice for the journey to port. But this does not freeze the fish, it only refrigerates them. To kill the possibly present parasite worms, the fish need to be frozen. Salmon sushi at a restaurant or store can be assumed to be an unsafe commodity unless you know it has been frozen or you freeze it yourself. Additionally, the fish can be sufficiently cooked for assurance of safety against parasitic infection.

Jayde Ferguson, a scientist at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game believes, “The tapeworm itself is probably not new — it’s just that more skilled parasitologist started looking for it. Identifying these parasites is challenging. This was simply a more detailed evaluation of the Diphyllobothrium that has occurred here for over a millennium.”

Professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Dr. William Schaffner stated, “Because we do things that we haven’t done before, now, we have these fresh caught fish that can be transported anywhere and eaten raw. … I am sure we will be on the lookout for this kind of tapeworm going forward.”

Parasitic worms – an under-recognized epidemic

Naturopath Marijah McCain is a widely experienced healer who apprenticed with a parasitologist and knows firsthand about these disgusting critters and how to rid the body of the menace. Though rare, various helminths (worms) such as the tapeworm can find a home in your brain with grave consequences. Quoting Marijah:

“Myself and a handful of others, like Dr. Hulda Clark, have spent years trying to bring the parasite issue to the forefront of preventative & curative medicine. The good news is the medical field is slowly training their doctors once again on the health risks of parasites… Most Americans carry parasites and this is currently a serious health issue. Parasites are not meant to kill you, they just sit inside you and steal your nutrition. But, when a person gets weakened from another ailment the parasites can take hold and become life threatening. This is why EVERYONE with any health disorder should do an anti-parasite program at least once a year. Twice a year if you live with animals. People interested in maintaining good health should also do routine parasite cleansing…”

Marijah says that symptoms caused by parasites include gas, diarrhea, chronic constipation, bloating, fatigue, skin rashes, mood swings, insomnia, nail biting, dry skin, weight gain, bad breath, brittle hair, hair loss, and muscle cramping. Because parasites can invade any tissue in the body, symptoms can occur anywhere. Dr. McCain states that parasites are a contributing factor in conditions such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, diabetes, some heart disease, arthritis, asthma, as well as others. She points out that in the US, the medical system is in denial about the health risks of parasitic infections, and doctors make a huge blunder when they fail to recognize the role that parasites play in disease. “Parasites are the cause of hundreds of misdiagnosed ailments,” she claims, and recommends natural anti-parasite formulas in lieu of conventional toxic allopathic medications.

Sources:

CNN.com

HerbalHealer.com

Because there is no cure for arthritis, the condition is typically treated with over-the-counter or prescription painkillers and anti-inflammatories (underlying health conditions, such as autoimmune disorders, may have their own treatments). But as with all pharmaceuticals, these drugs can carry side effects or even serious risks, particularly if used long term.

But, there is a natural alternative. If you suffer from stiff, inflamed or painful joints, try the following essential oil treatments, and see if they are able to offer you relief. (Also, stay informed about natural remedies at Remedies.news)

Which oils to use

Many essential oils have overlapping effects, so you can either choose the oil that you best like the smell of (or that is least expensive or easiest to find), or you can combine multiple oils to boost their effectiveness, or both.

Eucalyptus oil is a natural topical analgesic, which is why it is included as an ingredient in many medicated chest and muscle rubs. Part of its painkilling power may come from its effect of dilating blood vessels and increasing circulation — which also promotes the body’s natural healing processes.

Peppermint oil contains menthol, another common ingredient in medicated chest and muscle rubs. Menthol and other peppermint oil components are anti-inflammatories, thus helping bring down the pain and swelling associated with arthritis.

Rosemary oil combines many of the properties of eucalyptus and peppermint oils. It is an analgesic, anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic that also helps improve circulation.

Birch oil is also anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic. It also contains the painkillers methyl salicylate and salicylic acid, chemicals closely related to aspirin. Like most essential oils, birch is also a potent antiseptic.

The final oil on the list is not a painkiller or anti-inflammatory, and is better known for its effects on mood: lavender. But like eucalyptus and rosemary oil, lavender oil helps increase circulation, which leads to improved healing and reduced pain. Lavender’s ability to promote calm, relaxation and sleep also help mobilize your body’s natural healing abilities.

How to use essential oils for arthritis

With only a very few exceptions, essential oils should never be applied directly to the skin. Instead, they should be mixed with a “carrier oil” such as jojoba, sesame, olive or sweet almond. These can be food-grade oils from your grocery store, or cosmetics-grade oils purchased from a natural health or grocery store.

One of the best essential oil treatments for arthritis is a full-body bath soak. This consists of taking a few drops of essential oils, mixing them into a small amount of carrier oil, then pouring the entire mixture into a bathtub full of hot water. If you want, you can also add 2 to 3 cups of Epsom salts for added effectiveness.

If you want a more focused treatment on a particular part of your body, you can simply use your essential oil-carrier oil blend (about 10 drops essential oil per ounce of carrier oil) as a massage oil, and apply it directly to the troublesome spot. Or you can mix 4 drops of essential oil directly into a pint of either hot or icy water, to use for a hot or cold compress. Soak up the water-oil blend with a small towel, then apply the compress to the painful area for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the compress has reached body temperature.

Heat is recommended by most health professionals for maximum promotion of blood flow and the body’s natural healing processes. Cold, however, can provide more short-term relief by temporarily reducing pain and swelling. To get the benefits of both, you can alternate between hot and cold compresses.

Because essential oils are biologically active, it is possible for them to interact negatively with certain pharmaceutical drugs. If you are taking any arthritis medication, consult with a qualified health professional before mixing pharmaceutical and essential oil therapies.

See more news about natural medicine and natural cures at CURES.news.

Sources for this article include:

EnjoyNaturalHealth.com

HealthyAndNaturalWorld.com

Arthritis.org

MayoClinic.org

Recently, however, this traditional culinary staple is gaining recognition for its amazing health benefits.  Some 7,000 studies have been conducted, and much of the research shows that turmeric is a powerful healing agent with a wide variety of applications. Antibacterial, antimutagenic, antifungal, anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties are just some of the things that make turmeric so special. It’s also loaded with micronutrients like vitamins C, E and K, and minerals such as calcium, zinc, iron and magnesium.

(Related: Learn more about nutrient-rich superfoods at Fresh.news)

Research demonstrates the power of turmeric

Several studies have shown that turmeric even has the ability to help fight against certain types of cancer. For example, a 2015 review published by the journal Molecules states that curcumin — a key component of turmeric — can inhibit the initiation, progression and metastasis of a number of different kinds of tumors. The review authors also note that curcumin halts disease progression by inducing apoptosis, or cell death.  The team notes that at the time their review was completed, some 6,850 studies of turmeric had been published, noting that many of these were indicative of the spice’s potential health benefits.

In their conclusion, the authors write, “A plethora of in vitro and in vivo research together with clinical trials conducted over the past few decades substantiate the potential of curcumin as an anti-cancer agent.” The team notes that curcumin is limited by its bioavailability, but states that regardless of potential draw backs, curcumin is a “safe and promising molecule for the prevention and therapy of not only cancer but also other inflammation-driven diseases.”

Another recent study, also published in 2015, was indicative of curcumin’s anti-cancer effects. (Discover more news about natural cures at Cures.news.) The study was conducted by a team of researchers from Emory University’s Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, and was published by the joural, PLOS One. The team sought to investigate how curcumin exacts its apoptosis-inducing effects in cancer cell lines of the upper aerodigestive tract, which refers to the lungs and bronchus, larynx, pharynx and oral cavity. After treating cancerous tissue samples with curcumin, the team examined the effects. From their findings, the team surmised that curcumin’s apoptosis-inducing effects were prompted by its ability to simultaneously turn on a tumor-suppressor gene and down-regulated anti-apoptotic proteins.

Essentially, this means that their data indicate curcumin turns on cancer suppression, and turns off the production of proteins that prevent cell death. Together, these effects result in cancer cell apoptosis.

Other health benefits

Fighting cancer, of course, is not the only benefit that turmeric can provide — though it surely is an impressive one. For example, a randomized double-blind, placebo controlled study found that turmeric supplements could help support a more balanced mood. The study, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, found that just eight weeks of turmeric supplementation boosted participants’ scores on depression and anxiety tests. All of the participants in the turmeric group exhibited substantial improvement compared to the placebo group.

Studies have also indicated that turmeric can help to relieve physical discomfort, too. A 4-week study published in the Journal of Clinical Interventions in Aging found that turmeric worked as well as ibuprofen at relieving osteoarthritis pain — and that it worked even better than the pharmaceutical when it came to relieving joint stiffness. A previous study, published in 2011, also found that turmeric helped to relieve pain. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study published in Surgical Endoscopy found that turmeric supplements relieved post-operative discomfort in gallbladder surgery patients better than placebo. In 3-week intervals, patients taking the supplement reported significantly less pain and discomfort than the placebo patients.

Turmeric has many other health benefits. It has been used to promote wound healing, soothe tissue irritation, relieve stomach aches, and boost heart health. Turmeric is truly a miraculous substance that continues to astound researchers across the globe.

Sources:

DietOfLife.com

MDPI.com

Journals.PLOS.org

The GRAS label tends to give us a false sense of safety, when in reality, it just means that this food additive was in use when the Food Additives Amendment of 1958 was put into place. MSG, and many other additives, were “grandfathered in” and subsequently escaped having to undergo the FDA approval process. But, the term still invokes a feeling of security, and it makes food taste good — so what could go wrong, right? (Related: Learn more about the FDA at FDA.news)

Fortunately, there are plenty of people who remained skeptical of it and continued to question the ingredient’s safety. While the MSG controversy is far from over, there is no shortage of research to suggest that the compound is not as innocuous as it has been made out to be.

Indeed, research indicating the potentially harmful nature of MSG dates back to the 1960s. Research published by Science in May 1969 found that young mice treated with the substance were prone to developing brain lesions, obesity and other abnormalities, including stunted bone growth and sterilization in females. The study also found pathological changes in organs related to the endocrine system.

Subsequent studies have showed similar findings. A 2008 study published by the journal Experimental Neurology found that the age at which MSG exposure was perpetrated had a substantial impact on the overall effect of the compound. In the group 1 mice, which were exposed to MSG between the ages of 1 and 5 days old, very severe hypothalmic lesions were present. The group 2 mice, which were exposed between the age of 6 and 11 days old, presented with less severe hypothalmic lesions. The research team also found that 92 percent of the group 1 mice were overtly obese by the time they were 15 weeks old. About 22 percent of the mice in group 2 became obese. Comparatively, only 3 percent of the mice in a control group — where there was no MSG exposure — were obese at the same age. The research team surmised that the severe brain lesions were related to the onset of obesity.

Because glutamate plays an important role in the hypothalmus, it is not necessarily surprising that monosodium glutamate is prone to causing abnormalities in this region of the brain — but it is nonetheless very alarming.

A 2009 study, published by the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine found that MSG actually causes brain cell swelling and death. Mature neurons were most susceptible to the toxic effects of MSG, while younger cells were much more resilient. The team posits that this finding may explain why children appear to be less effected by the substance when compared to adults. In their experiments, the team found that injury was specific to neuronal cells, and that glial cells seemed to remain unaffected by MSG. They also found that boiling MSG did not diminish its toxic effects on mature neurons.  Additionally, the researchers did discover that vitamin C may be useful in mitigating the harmful effects MSG has on the brain.

Subsequent research has suggested that mice who are made obese via MSG consumption are prone to developing diabetes and insulin resistance. In a Brazillian study, scientists found that glucose uptake was 4 times slower in MSG-obese mice than the control group.

And as for its effect on humans? Well, a 2008 study of the effects of MSG on humans also found that MSG consumption correlated with an increased risk of being overweight or obese, independent of other factors like activity level and calorie intake.

To put it simply, there is no shortage of reasons to be wary of MSG in your food. Stay informed about more food science news at Scientific.news.

Sources:

FoodRenegade.com

ScienceDirect.com

NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov

LiveScience.com

China seems to have a lower cultural standard for business ethics. News accounts abound of dangerous Chinese products in the US marketplace. Examples include toxic lead paint on children’s toys, deadly melamine in pet food, and human feces used as fertilizer for rice and farmed fish. (RELATED: See more news about questionable food ingredients at Ingredients.news)

A minefield of quality

True Activist reports that the Chinese government has no system in place to determine what is organic, and that Chinese food exporters have taken to using the organic label as a means of circumventing US Customs inspections, “especially those foods that appear dirty or unusual.” The report also notes that “US Customs personnel often reject entire shipments of food from China due to the addition of dangerous and unsavory additives, the presence of drug residues, mislabeling, or the poor hygienic state of the food.”

“Even if ‘organically grown’ food from China was in fact that, the quality of the water used in the production of food intended for export is so contaminated that a person could fall ill just by handling it. Much of China’s industrial-scale agriculture is found along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers, both of which are extremely polluted. This is because thousands upon thousands of Chinese factories also line these same rivers, adding their chemical waste to the same water used to irrigate the country’s food supply.” In a recent example of this behavior, a chemical plant along one of the tributaries of the Yangtze river was found to have dumped an excessive amount of ammonia into the water, and even after over 100 tons of dead fish were removed from the poisoned water, the water itself remained in use for many reasons, including agriculturally.

True Activist continues that the Chinese products to avoid, those most likely to be contaminated, are fish, chicken, apples, rice, mushrooms, green peas, black pepper, and garlic.

What’s in a name?

Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, stated in a previous Natural News scathing expose, that despite the USDA legal standard, which specifies the methods employed to produce the food, it still allows for any amount of toxins in the end product. In other words, if a chemical lab analysis were to find unacceptable levels of mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic,  aluminum, PCBs, BPA and other synthetic chemicals, then that is still acceptable under the organic label, as long as the grower did not add the “pesticides, herbicides, petroleum-based fertilizer, metals or synthetic chemicals to the crop.”

Mike continues, “the environment in which organic foods are produced is critical to the cleanliness of the final product.” China is a country almost entirely lacking in any environmental standards, and it is therefore a land incredibly polluted and ruinous. Regarding organic food grown in the US and Europe the word has integrity, and consistently is shown to contain less toxins than conventionally grown food. The Health Ranger makes clear the point “China is a culture of corruption, deception and exploitation.” Cheap foods from China end up on the shelves of American retailers such as Whole foods for no reason other than greater profits. The Health Ranger Store sells nothing from China except for Goji berries, which Mike Adams has tested and found to be clean. He further points out that the climate of dishonesty in China stands in contrast to the integrity of the organic label for food grown in the US and European nations such as Germany, The UK, and the Netherlands.

What can you do?

If you purchase organic food because you want to eat healthfully, you must be ever vigilant about the source. You can demand from your local retailer that the source country be listed for all organic products. Lamentably, Chinese agricultural commodities are at times sold to a buyer in a third country and when exported to the US, the country of origin is hidden. This would not matter if Chinese food exports were safe, but they are not. Consider growing your own organic garden, that you know is safe.

Read Metals.news to stay informed about toxic heavy metals in your food.

Sources:

TrueActivist.com

NaturalNews.com

USDA.gov

Some news outlets are calling it India’s “rice revolution” — a unique method of growing this long-prized grain that involves using variant planting methods and less water. Farmers like Sumant Kumar, who was recently featured in a piece published by the The Guardian, have been utilizing this novel technique to grow rice in relatively small land plots without pesticides, herbicides, or other synthetic additives — and you wouldn’t believe how much they’re producing.

Kumar, who cultivates rice in India’s poorest state, Bihar, is reportedly able to produce an astonishing 22.4 tons of rice per season on just one hectare (about 2.5 acres) of land, using only manure that he gathers from his farmyard. This exceptionally high volume is a world record, topping even the most “advanced” growing methods touted by international international humanitarian organizations as producing the highest yields. (RELATED: Learn more about how to grow your own food at home naturally.)

“It beat not just the 19.4 tonnes achieved by the ‘father of rice,’ the Chinese agricultural scientist Yuan Longping, but the World Bank-funded scientists at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, and anything achieved by the biggest European and American seed and GM companies,” wrote John Vidal for The Guardian.

Growing crops naturally is the best way to produce the highest yields of healthy food

Fortunately for India, Kumar isn’t alone in his endeavors. Many of his friends, neighbors, and even rivals in nearby states are adopting the natural growing methods that he uses after observing their success, which is unmatched by anything else in modern agriculture. Numerous other farmers have reported yields topping 17 tons of rice per hectare, which in some cases is more than double what they were producing using other methods such as biotechnology.

Kumar’s successes have been so great that he’s on occasion been accused of “cheating.” Even the state’s head of agriculture, a rice farmer himself, had his doubts — he actually came out to Kumar’s village to personally verify that he had, indeed, produced the 22.4 tons of rice on one hectare that he’d claimed.

The process Kumar and his friends are using to grow rice with this high level of success is known as the System of Rice (or root) Intensification, or SRI. It is being used to grow not only rice, but also wheat, potatoes, sugar cane, yams, tomatoes, garlic, aubergine, and a host of other crops at yields far higher than anything biotechnology or so-called “Golden Rice” has to offer.

“Instead of planting three-week-old rice seedlings in clumps of three or four in waterlogged fields, as rice farmers around the world traditionally do, the Darveshpura farmers carefully nurture only half as many seeds, and then transplant the young plants into fields, one by one, when much younger,” The Guardian explains about how it works.

“Additionally, they space them at 25cm intervals in a grid pattern, keep the soil much drier and carefully weed around the plants to allow air to their roots. The premise that ‘less is more’ was taught by Rajiv Kumar, a young Bihar state government extension worker who had been trained in turn by Anil Verma of a small Indian NGO called Pran (Preservation and Proliferation of Rural Resources and Nature), which has introduced the SRI method to hundreds of villages in the past three years.”

Sources:

WakingTimesMedia.com

TheGuardian.com

Benefits of this naturally healthy remedy

The combination of the three ingredients yields specific advantages to anyone who mixes then drinks them. It can help to prevent and treat gastrointestinal symptoms such as indigestion, and it has also been shown to ward off weight issues like obesity. With the obesity rate climbing ever higher, having people take a few minutes to prepare this drink can certainly provide a solution to a growing problem.

Taking a look at the benefits of the three individual ingredients gives some clues as to what makes them so powerful when combined:

• Garlic is high in allicin, which is anti-inflammatory and anti-aging. It offers a world of miraculous benefits, and when taken internally, it can be helpful for treating all sorts of infections.
• Honey contains high levels of vitamins, minerals and enzymes, and it’s an excellent antiseptic.
• Apple cider vinegar may provide the secret sauce in the garlic, honey and apple cider vinegar combination because of the sour-tasting liquid’s anti-obesity and indigestion-fighting properties.

You can imagine what a powerhouse you are creating when you combine the three items, in light of their individual properties and benefits even when used alone. (RELATED: Learn more news about the healing power of superfoods at Superfoods.news)

How to make this powerful mixture

Preparing for yourself a healthy drink of these three wonderful ingredients could not be easier or quicker. Simply measure out one cup of apple cider vinegar, one cup of honey and ten cloves of freshly minced garlic. Thoroughly combine the ingredients in a blender, and pour the mixture into a glass jar. Refrigerate that. Take two tablespoons of the mixture each day in the morning, before eating or drinking anything. The mixture keeps for five days, and after that it will not provide the same powerful benefits. If you would like to improve the flavor some, add a small amount of water or organic juice such as apple juice.

Tips for maximum effectiveness

To get the most healing power out of the garlic, honey and apple cider vinegar mixture, make sure you follow certain rules. First, preferably use only organic ingredients. Also, garlic should be as fresh as possible or even grown in your own garden. Avoid using garlic that feels spongy or has dried out. Honey needs to be raw and preferably local, and avoid at all costs the “fake” honey that has become more prevalent in recent years. It is a “mystery” concoction of additives masquerading as a healthy food. Use raw apple cider vinegar that contains particles, also known as the “mother,” that settle to the bottom of the bottle. Before pouring out some vinegar, shake the capped bottle vigorously to thoroughly mix the particles in with the liquid.

Additional benefits include reduced cholesterol and blood pressure, cancer treatment and diabetes improvement. What if one of the cures for those dreaded ailments is right in your kitchen? So cheers to your health, and enjoy the rewards that come from setting aside a few minutes daily to take care of yourself by drinking this remedy.

Learn more about natural remedies at Remedies.news.

Sources:

PinoyHealthGuide.com

SteptoHealth.com

LPI.OregonState.edu

FoodSafetyNews.com

FoodRenegade.com

In response, the sugar industry created advertisements that maintained no singular food is fattening, and so the mantra was born: a calorie is a calorie. The ads declared that there was no difference between calories from steak or sugar. There is a degree of truth to that: if you were to eat a surplus of calories daily for a sustained period of time, you would gain weight — even if all you were eating was steak or vegetables. Calories are, at their core, a unit of energy.

However, what those calories are comprised of can have very different effects on your body. (RELATED: Learn more about harmful food ingredients at Ingredients.news)

What actually happens when you eat sugar

So when you eat sucrose, also known as table sugar, your digestive tract breaks it down into fructose and glucose. It is then transported directly to the liver via the portal vein. Fructose (and high fructose corn syrup) are especially problematic for the body: your liver will keep absorbing the fructose, even when its energy stores are full. This leads to fat deposits in the liver, and more fat circulating in your bloodstream — which raises triglycerides and cholesterol, and in turn, raises the risk for conditions like heart disease and type-2 diabetes.

Liver fat may also decrease insulin’s ability to do it’s job, which increases the risk of diabetes. And when insulin isn’t working well,  the amount of fat the liver sends out into the blood also increases. It creates a rather vicious cycle where the more sugar you eat, the sicker you become — and the less capable your body is of recovering from it.

(Related: Learn more about what you’re eating at Fresh.news)

Countless studies have pointed to sugar intake as a means of developing insulin resistance. For example, a 2007 study that was published in The Journal Of Biological Chemistry found that sucrose-sweetened water induced insulin resistance, exacerbated memory deficits and increased amyloid plaque formation in mice with Alzheimer’s disease. The team noted that their research indicated that dietary sugar plays a plausible role in the development of Alzheimer’s.

Another study found that feeding sucrose to normal, healthy rats caused a significant loss of insulin sensitivity. And you can bet there are more; decades of research have shown that sugar can, and is, harmful. As The New York Times reports, “By the 1960s, researchers in these fields had clearly demonstrated that different carbohydrates, like glucose and fructose, are metabolized differently, leading to different hormonal and physiological responses, and that fat accumulation and metabolism were influenced profoundly by these hormones.”

The detrimental health effects of sugar consumption

In spite of the understood biological processes involved that clearly demonstrate at least one pathway for sugar to cause insulin resistance and other health issues — the industry, and even the American Diabetes Association (ADA) — are clutching their pearls of denial closer than ever. A 2014 article from the ADA even went so far as to declare that there is no evidence to suggest that “any dietary or added sugar has a unique or detrimental impact relative to any other source of calories on the development of obesity or diabetes.” This sentiment is echoed throughout the nutrition industry: a calorie is a calorie. And yet, actual biology dictates that this sentiment is a fallacy.

Research links sugar consumption to everything from to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and even Alzheimer’s disease. This is not new, and the research has been going on for decades. But, there is always someone you can pay off.

In the 1970s, Fred Stare — founder of the Harvard School of Public Health — was paid off by the sugar industry to sing the praises of sugar and absolve the substance of its health crimes in a lengthy journal supplement.

In 2016, it was revealed that the last five decades of research on sugar have largely been influenced by — you guessed it — the sugar industry. Internal documents revealed that industry big-wigs were paying off scientists to play down the ill effects of sugar all the way back in 1967.

The food industry’s hold over nutrition science continues to persist to this day, preventing real research from being conducted and encouraging the consumption of a substance they know is harmful.

Sources:

ITechPost.com

NYTimes.com

YouTube.com

HealthyEating.sfgate.com

NYTimes.com

The issue is only increasing in relevance as consumers continue to turn to organic rather than conventionally produced foods. From 2014 to 2015, the amount consumers spent on packaged organic products went from $12.8 billion to $13.4 billion. That doesn’t include sales of organic produce, bulk dried goods, meat, or meals at organic restaurants.

Yet you’ll still hear certain scientists, along with pesticide and GMO company spokespeople, claim that organic food is no better for you than “conventional” food. What’s the truth? (RELATED: Discover more news about healthful vs. harmful food ingredients at Ingredients.news)

Dramatically higher antioxidant content

The evidence for organic foods’ superior nutrient content just keeps getting stronger. In 2011, the journal Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences published what was, at that time, one of the most sophisticated analyses of the prior research comparing nutrient content of organic and conventional foods. They found that in general, organic foods tend to be higher in antioxidants (including vitamin C) and phenolic acids, but may be lower in protein and vitamin A.

They hypothesized that the main difference between the foods is the excessive use of synthetic fertilizers in conventional agriculture, which adds much more nitrogen to the plants’ diets. This leads to a reduction in stress, causing the plants to produce fewer defense-related secondary metabolites, such as vitamin C and other antioxidants. But it may cause the plant to accumulate more nitrogen in the form of protein, and to increase the content of secondary metabolites unrelated to defense, like vitamin A.

The researchers found that the levels of secondary plant metabolite-based nutrients in organic fruits and vegetables were about 12 percent higher in organic than in non-organic produce. Defense-related secondary metabolites in particular were 16 percent higher.

“This subset encompasses most of the important, plant-based antioxidants that promote good health,” the researchers wrote.

In 2014, an even more comprehensive analysis reviewed the findings of 343 prior peer-reviewed studies on the same topic. This paper, published in the British Journal of Nutrition, was the largest such analysis ever performed.

The researchers found much stronger results than the analysis from three years prior. They found that the antioxidant content of organic fruits and vegetable was between 19 and a shocking 69 percent higher than that of non-organic produce. This difference was large enough that shifting to an all-organic diet could provide the same nutritional benefit as eating an extra two servings of fruits and vegetables daily.

Organic food lower in poisons

Higher nutrient content isn’t the only reason that organic food is better for your health, of course. Organic food is guaranteed free of GMOs, which have been linked to organ and reproductive problems.

It is also free from the residue of dangerous pesticides that have also been linked to problems across the health spectrum.

According a study published in the journal Environmental Research, switching to an organic diet can reduce an adult’s overall pesticide exposure by 90 percent. Another study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, showed the same effect over the long-term. It found that study participants who reported eating a higher proportion of organic produce showed evidence of significantly less organophosphate pesticide exposure than participants who ate mostly conventional produce.

This translates into real health benefits. According to a letter published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, you can reduce your pesticide-related health risk by 94 percent just by eating only organic forms of the top six most pesticide-intensive fruits (currently strawberries, apples, nectarines, peaches, grapes and cherries).

Despite the growing popularity and increasingly strong case for organic foods, farmers have been slow to convert their farmland to organic production. Several major food companies are now offering monetary incentives to help farmers make the switch.

Sources:

Collective-Evolution.com

NaturalNews.com

NaturalNews.com

NaturalNews.com

EWG.org

The community-supported Ethos Health agricultural program Weiss has founded is based on the principle that food is medicine, and that diet can be more effective than pharmaceutical drugs in the prevention and treatment of disease. (RELATED: Read about food as medicine to prevent disease at Prevention.news)

“Plant-based whole foods are the most powerful disease-modifying tools available to practitioners — more powerful than any drugs or surgeries,” Weiss told NJ.com. “I am talking about treating and preventing chronic disease — the heart attacks, the strokes, the cardiovascular disease, the cancers … the illnesses that are taking our economy and our nation down.”

The 348-acre ‘farmacy’ feeds 90 families

Weiss’s undergraduate degree in botany has no doubt come in handy in setting up his “farmacy.” And with the assistance of two local farmers, the project is now producing fresh organic fruits, vegetables and herbs for 90 families.

In turn, the families pay a membership fee and perform volunteer work on the farm, such as picking produce or pulling weeds. This helps people take a greater interest in the foods they eat – an awareness that is the foundation of good health, according to Weiss.

“Human health is directly related to the health of the environment, the production of food and how it is grown,” Weiss said. “I see this farm as an opportunity for me to take everything I’ve done all my life, all the biology and chemistry of plants I have studied, and link them to the human biological system.”

Although many mainstream medical practitioners continue to express skepticism regarding the “food as medicine” philosophy, there’s a growing body of evidence suggesting that it really works, and some of Weiss’s patients are good examples.

‘More than a miracle’

For instance, 90-year-old Angelina Rotella was able to recover from chronic heart disease and diabetes by switching to Weiss’s plant-based dietary prescription.

Rotella was confined a wheelchair and suffering from congestive heart failure when she first visited Dr. Weiss. Eight months later, after changing her diet, she had lost 40 pounds and was able to get around without the wheelchair.

Her daughter, Angie Rotella-Suarez, called it “more than a miracle,” and after witnessing their mother’s dramatic improvement, Rotella-Suarez and her sister also switched to Weiss’s vegan diet plan, enabling them both to also lose 40 pounds and reverse their pre-diabetic status.

Weiss is encouraged by those within the medical profession who advocate a plant-based diet, such as Kim A. Williams, former president of the American College of Cardiology, who has written essays on the subject and spoken out about his own experiences. Williams has said that he succeeded in lowering his cholesterol levels on a vegan diet after failing to do so on a low-fat diet.

Other health experts remain critical of the concept, labeling all-plant diets as “still experimental.”

Whether or not a strict vegan diet is superior to one that includes some protein obtained from meat is open to debate, but what does seem clear is that primarily consuming fresh organic fruits and vegetables is the true prescription for good health.

It doesn’t take a medical degree to understand that what you put in your body not only affects but actually determines your state of health – and in fact, a conventional education in medicine tends to steer people away from that realization.

One of the reasons that plant-based medicine is still considered “fringe” appears to be that the medical establishment feels threatened by an approach that might put them out of business.

Big Pharma and the cancer industry would simply cease to exist if plant-based therapies and remedies became mainstream. Stay informed about the healing benefits of fresh foods at Fresh.news.

Sources:

HealthyHolisticLiving.com

NJ.com

AltHealthWorks.com