INFRARED SAUNA
Detox Tips 21: Infrared
Sauna heat therapy is excellent for increasing
blood circulation to the skin, which is essential for beautiful,
youthful, glowing skin! A new "inner Glow" as the
skin is free of accumulated dirt and dry skin cells, due to
deep cleansing of impurities!
· Open wounds heal quicker with reduced scarring
· Help acne, eczema, psoriasis, burns and any skin
lesions or cuts
· Removes roughness, leaving skin baby smooth and soft
again
· Firms and improves skin tone and elasticity
Scars
Scars fully formed, even keloids, may be gradually softened.
Burns and other wounds or incisions may heal with significantly
reduced scarring.
The more I study nutrition, the more I am convinced that
we need to eat raw uncooked unprocessed food. In 1970, Americans
spent about $6 billion on fast food. In 2000, they spent more
than $110 billion.
In 1968, McDonald's had one thousand restaurants. Today McDonald's
has about 30,000 restaurants and opens about 2,000 new ones
each year. I recommend the book "Fast Food Nation"
by Eric Schlosser for a better understanding of what has happened
to the American diet in the last few decades.
It is becoming increasingly clear that one of the major reasons
vegetable juicing works is that it is living raw food. I am
confident that most of us would notice significant improvements
in our energy and health if we increased the amounts of living
raw foods in our diet. If you juice vegetables on a regular
basis, it is quite easy to consume over 50% of your foods
as raw.
The enzymes in raw foods are destroyed by heat
Most raw food, like our bodies, is very perishable. When
raw foods are exposed to temperatures above 118 degrees, they
start to rapidly break down, just as our bodies would if we
had a fever that high. One of the constituents of foods which
can break down are enzymes. Enzymes help us digest our food.
Enzymes are proteins though, and they have a very specific
3-dimensional structure in space. Once they are heated much
above 118 degrees, this structure can change.
Once enzymes are exposed to heat, they are no longer able
to provide the function for which they were designed. Cooked
foods contribute to chronic illness, because their enzyme
content is damaged and thus requires us to make our own enzymes
to process the food. The digestion of cooked food uses valuable
metabolic enzymes in order to help digest your food. Digestion
of cooked food demands much more energy than the digestion
of raw food. In general, raw food is so much more easily digested
that it passes through the digestive tract in 1/2 to 1/3 of
the time it takes for cooked food.
Eating enzyme-dead foods places a burden on your pancreas
and other organs and overworks them, which eventually exhausts
these organs. Many people gradually impair their pancreas
and progressively lose the ability to digest their food after
a lifetime of ingesting processed foods.
The effect of raw food versus cooked food on the immune system
In 1930, under the direction of Dr. Paul Kouchakoff, research
was conducted at the Institute of Clinical Chemistry in Lausanne,
Switzerland. The effect of food (cooked and processed versus
raw and natural) on the immune system was tested and documented.
Dr. Kouchakoff's discovery concerned the leukocytes, the
white blood cells.
It was found that after a person eats cooked food, his/her
blood responds immediately by increasing the number of white
blood cells. This is a well-known phenomena called 'digestive
leukocytosis', in which there is a rise in the number of leukocytes
- white blood cells - after eating.
Since digestive leukocytosis was always observed after a
meal, it was considered to be a normal physiological response
to eating. No one knew why the number of white cells rises
after eating, since this appeared to be a stress response,
as if the body was somehow reacting to something harmful such
as infection, exposure to toxic chemicals or trauma.
Back in 1930, the Swiss researchers at the institute of Chemical
Chemistry made a remarkable discovery. They found that eating
raw, unaltered food did not cause a reaction in the blood.
In addition, they found that if a food had been heated beyond
a certain temperature (unique to each food), or if the food
was processed (refined, chemicals added, etc.), this always
caused a rise in the number of white cells in the blood.
The researchers renamed this reaction 'pathological leukocytosis',
since the body was reacting to highly altered food. They tested
many different types of foods and found that if the foods
were not refined or overheated, they caused no reaction. The
body saw them as 'friendly foods'. However, these same foods,
if heated at too high a temperature, caused a negative reaction
in the blood, a reaction found only when the body is invaded
by a dangerous pathogen or trauma.
The worst offenders of all, whether heated or not, were processed
foods which had been refined (such as white flour and white
rice), or pasteurized (a process in which milk is flash-heated
to high temperatures to kill bacteria), or homogenized (also
seen in milk where the fat in milk is subjected to artificial
suspension), or preserved (chemicals are added to food to
delay spoilage or to enhance texture or taste).
In other words, foods which were changed from their original
God-given state.
Raw foods and digestive enzymes
Let's get back to enzymes. Raw foods are rich in enzymes.
Enzymes are needed for the digestive system to work. They
are necessary to break down food particles so they can be
utilized for energy. The human body makes approximately 22
different digestive enzymes which are capable of digesting
carbohydrates, protein and fats. Raw vegetables and raw fruit
are rich sources of enzymes.
While all raw foods contain enzymes, the most powerful enzyme-rich
food is sprouted seeds, grains, and legumes. Sprouting increases
the enzyme content in these foods enormously.
Lack of digestive enzymes can be a factor in food allergies.
Symptoms of digestive enzymes depletion are bloating, belching,
gas, bowel disorders, abdominal cramping, heartburn and food
allergies.
All of us loose our ability to produce concentrated digestive
enzymes as we grow older. In cases where age is a factor,
or where lack of digestive enzymes causes food allergies,
supplementation may be helpful. You may also want to explore
food combining.
The following digestive enzyme supplements aid digestion:
· AMYLASE works to breakdown carbohydrates i.e.
starches, sugars
· BROMELAIN taken from pineapple plant, helps break
down proteins
· HCL hydrochloric acid stimulates pancreatic secretion,
activates pepsin and sterilizes the stomach from bacteria
and parasites
· LACTASE needed to break down lactose found in
milk products
· LIPASE works to break down fats into fatty acids
and glycerol
· OX BILE improves fat digestion, stimulates bile
flow, aids gallbladder
· PANCREATIN contains protease, amylase, and lipase,
functions in the intestine and in the blood
· PAPAIN extracted from papaya fruit, aids in protein
digestion
· PEPSIN breaks down proteins, function depends
on availability of HCL
· PROTEASE works to breakdown protein into amino
The more food that you can eat raw, the better.
If you do cook your food, the best way to cook food is to
lightly steam, stew, or use a slow crock cooker. Eat as few
over-processed and over-cooked foods as possible. The body
has a difficult time digesting fried, pasteurized, barbecued,
dried, and other over-processed and over-cooked foods which
you find in boxed and processed foods.
I would encourage you to consume at least 50% of your food
as uncooked. A good vegetable juicing program will easily
put you over that volume.
Vegetable juice is a great breakfast when balanced with
some essential oils and a bit of chlorella. Please remember
that vegetable juice and fruit juices are two completely different
substances in terms of nutrition. I am confident that fruit
juices should be avoided. Although vegetable juice is processed,
it doesn't raise insulin levels like fruit juice. The only
exceptions would be carrot and beet juice (and most vegetables
that grow underground), which function similarly to fruit
juice.
When you juice, you will produce pulp. What should you
do with it? It's best to mix it in with the juice and consume
it. In my experience when I first started juicing, I would
juice every day, and my stools would frequently become loose.
Once I started adding the pulp fiber back into my juice, this
problem went away. There is a benefit to eating the fiber,
as it serves as fertilizer for the good bacteria in the colon.
Eating the pulp increases the time it takes to consume
the juice, but it is healthier. One can gradually add the
pulp back in over time to get used to it. If you add the entire
pulp back in, the mixture becomes almost like a green vegetable
porridge that can be eaten with a spoon.
The method I currently use is to drink about 75 percent
of the juice and then pour the other 25 percent of the juice
back into the pulp. I add some ground seeds into the mixture,
stir it up and eat it like porridge.
Try it both ways. Listen to your body and see what works
best for you.
Step 1: Now
that you're ready for the benefits of vegetable juice, you
need to know what to juice. I recommend starting out with
these vegetables, as they are the easiest to digest:
- Celery
- Fennel (anise)
- Cucumbers
These aren't as beneficial as the more nutritionally
intense dark green vegetables. Once you get used to these,
you can start adding the more nutritionally valuable, but
less palatable, vegetables into your juice.
Vegetables to avoid include carrots and beets. Most people
who juice usually use carrots. The reason they taste so good
is that they are full of sugar. I would definitely avoid all
vegetables that grow underground to avoid an increase in your
insulin levels.
If you are healthy, you can add about one pound of carrots
or beets per week. I do believe that the deep, intense colors
of these foods provide additional benefits for many that are
just not available in the green vegetables listed above.
Step 2: When
you've acclimatized yourself to juicing, you can start adding
these vegetables:
- Red leaf lettuce
- Green Leaf lettuce
- Romaine lettuce
- Endive
- Escarole
- Spinach
Step 3: After
you're used to these, then go to the next step:
- Cabbage
- Chinese Cabbage
- Bok Choy
An interesting side note: Cabbage juice is one of the
most healing nutrients for ulcer repair as it is a huge source
of vitamin U. The "Eat Right for Your Type" approach
does not support lectin compatibility for blood type A individuals
like myself and so I avoid it.
Step 4: When
you're ready, move on to adding herbs to your juicing. Herbs
also make wonderful combinations, and there are two that work
exceptionally well:
You need to be cautious with cilantro, as many cannot
tolerate it well. If you are new to juicing, hold off. These
are more challenging vegetables to consume, but they are highly
beneficial.
Step 5: The
last step: Only use one or two of these leaves, as they are
very bitter:
- Kale
- Collard Greens
- Dandelion Greens
- Mustard Greens (bitter)
When purchasing collard greens, find a store that sells
the leaves still attached to the main stalk. If they are cut
off, the vegetable rapidly loses many of its valuable nutrients.
One important note: I prefer to juice my vegetables at
room temperature. I leave my vegetables out overnight, or
for at least one hour in the morning, as I do not enjoy drinking
cold fluids, especially when it is cold outside.
Balance your juice with protein and fat. Vegetable juice
does not have much protein or fat, so it's very important
for you to include these fat and protein sources with your
meal.
- Use eggs. Eggs will add a significant amount of
beneficial fats and protein to your meal. An egg has about
8 grams of protein, so you can add two to four eggs per
meal.I suggest that you add the whole eggs, raw, into the
vegetable pulp (not the juicer). The reason I advocate this
is because once you heat the eggs, many of their nutrients become
damaged. If you are concerned about salmonella, purchase organic
eggs; it's unlikely you'll have any problems. Additionally,
if you are not sensitive to milk, you can add some raw milk
cheese, as it will improve the flavor.
There is a potential problem with using the entire raw
egg if you are pregnant. Biotin deficiency, a common concern
in pregnancy, could be made worse by consuming whole raw
eggs.
Please read my recent article, Raw Eggs for Your Health -- Major Update, for further
information on consuming raw eggs.
·
Incorporate
seeds. Raw seeds, freshly ground and alternated regularly,
are another great addition to the pulp. The simplest way to
grind the seeds is to use an inexpensive coffee grinder. The
seeds are full of protein and essential fatty acids that bring
a juice into balance beautifully. I recommend pumpkin and
flax seeds. If you use flax seeds, please note my special caution.
- Use chlorella. Chlorella is an incredibly powerful
nutrient from the sea and is a form of algae. I use it quite
a bit for mercury detoxification as it binds very strongly
to mercury to eliminate it from the body. The normal dose
is one teaspoon in the juice. However, about 30 percent
of people cannot tolerate the chlorella, so if it makes
you nauseous you should definitely avoid it.
- Is a useful source of chlorophyll.
- Adds magnesium and protein.
- Binds to heavy metals and pesticides.
If you have high iron or vitamin D levels you will want
to avoid chlorella though as it is loaded with both of these
nutrients.
- Add spirulina. Spirulina is another algae that
has many similar benefits and is a good balance to chlorella.
However it does not bind to heavy metals like chlorella.
- Consider a protein powder. While protein powders
are convenient, I believe them to be far inferior to whole
food choices like eggs or chlorella. If you can't tolerate
eggs or chlorella you can consider them. Glutamine is an
amino acid and the majority of our skeletal muscle is made
of it. You can obtain glutamine powder and add one teaspoon
into your drink for a very effective healing addition. You
can also use protein powders. My two favorites are whey
and rice protein. Some people are concerned about my milk
avoidance suggestion and taking whey protein. Although whey
protein is from milk, most people tolerate it quite well
as the major protein in milk that causes an allergy is casein.
I would strongly advise against the use of soy protein
powders.
- Add some garlic. Don't worry; this won't give you
"dragon breath." I like to add one to two cloves
of garlic in my juice, as it incorporates the incredible
healing potential of fresh garlic.
I strongly advise you to do this regularly to balance out
your bowel flora. The ideal dose is just below the social
threshold where people start to notice that you have eaten
garlic. One large clove, two medium cloves or three small
cloves is the recommended dose.
- Add oil. But not just any oil! I highly recommend
cod liver oil for the winter months and fish oil for the
summer months. If you live in a primarily sunny climate,
however, I wouldn't advise taking cod liver oil. The reason
for this is that cod liver oil has a level of vitamin D
that can prove toxic to those in very sunny climates. If
you are at all unsure of your vitamin D levels, please get
yourself tested at your doctor's office.
The reason why fat is important is that green vegetables
contain vitamin K, which is very important for gluing the
calcium into your bone matrix. Additionally, new research
suggests that vitamin K significantly reduces calcification
in the arteries. However, vitamin K is not absorbed very well
unless there is some fat. Additionally, the vitamin D in the
cod liver oil will work with the vitamin K to increase calcium
absorption and build stronger bones. The dose for cod liver
oil or fish oil is one teaspoon for every 25 to 40 pounds
of body weight. Please be sure to read my comprehensive explanation
on sunlight and vitamin D testing, and please review my updates
on vitamin D information.
Adding raw egg yolks, as described above, will also help you
to absorb all the vitamin K from the juice. You could also
use flax as a source of omega-3 fat, but many people have
problems digesting it.
If you would like to make your juice taste a bit more
palatable, especially in the beginning, you can add these
elements:
- Coconut: This is one of my favorites! You can purchase
the whole coconut or use shredded coconut. It adds a delightful
flavor and is an excellent source of fat to balance the
meal. Coconut has medium chain triglycerides, which have
many health benefits.
- Cranberries: You can also add some cranberries
if you enjoy them. Researchers have discovered that cranberries
have five times the antioxidant content of broccoli, which
means they may protect against cancer, stroke and heart
disease. In addition, they are chock full of phytonutrients
and help many women avoid urinary tract infections. Limit
the cranberries to about 4 ounces per pint of juice.
- Lemons: You can also add half a lemon (leaving
much of the white rind on). If you are a protein Metabolic
type you will not want to use lemons as they will push your
pH in the wrong direction.
- Fresh ginger: This is an excellent addition if
you can tolerate it. It gives your juice a little "kick"!
Juicing is a time-consuming process, so you'll probably
be thinking to yourself, "I wonder if I can juice first
thing and then drink it later?" This isn't a great idea.
Vegetable juice is very perishable so it's best to drink all
of your juice immediately. However, if you're careful you
can store it for up to 24 hours with only moderate nutritional
decline. To store your juice:
1. Put your juice in a glass jar with an airtight lid
and fill it to the very top. There should be a minimum amount
of air in the jar as the oxygen in air (air is about 20 percent
oxygen) will "oxidize" and damage the juice.
2. Wrap the jar with aluminum foil to block out all light.
Light damages the juice.
3. Store it in the refrigerator until about 30 minutes prior
to drinking, as vegetable juice should be consumed at room
temperature.
Most people juice in the morning, but if that does not
work out well for your schedule please feel the freedom to
choose whatever meal works out best for your lifestyle.
We all know that if a juicer takes longer than 10 minutes
to clean, we'll find excuses not to do it. I find that using
an old toothbrush works well to clean any metal grater. For
the Omega 8003, the whole process takes about 5 minutes. Whatever
you do, you need to clean your juicer immediately after you
juice to prevent any remnants from contaminating the juicer
with mold growth.
Warning: Don't
follow the juicing recommendations that come with the juicer,
as they most often emphasize carrot and fruit combinations.
© Copyright 2004 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.
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based upon the opinions of Dr. Mercola, unless otherwise noted.
Individual articles are based upon the opinions of the respective
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this website is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship
with a qualified health care professional and is not intended
as medical advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge
and information from the research and experience of Dr. Mercola
and his community. Dr. Mercola encourages you to make your
own health care decisions based upon your research and in
partnership with a qualified health care professional.
Eating more vegetables is as central to a healthy nutrition
plan as lowering/eliminating grains and sugars, drinking more
water, or consuming omega-3. But while almost all vegetables
are good, some are clearly far better from a nutritional standpoint
than others. The general rule is, the greener the better (though
a few vegetables make that are not green make the best-of
list below).
At least one-third of all the food you eat should be
raw, as cooking and processing can destroy essential micronutrients.
Vegetables are an easy and obvious choice to enjoy raw. While
vegetable juicing is an essential part of my nutrition
plan at the advanced level, even beginners will find that
it is a highly enjoyable and easy way to consume your raw
vegetables on a daily basis. If you are searching for a juicer,
read about the juicer I use and highly recommend, which includes
a link to my juicer comparison table.
Finally, if at all possible, always try to buy organic
vegetables. If no organic vegetables are available, carefully
wash your foods and remove peels and cores to minimize your
exposure to pesticides and other chemicals.
Highly Recommended Vegetables
Asparagus
Escarole
Avocado (actually a fruit)
Fennel
Beet greens
Green and red cabbage
Bok Choy
Kale
Broccoli
Kohlrabi
Brussel sprouts
Lettuce: romaine, red leaf, green leaf
Cauliflower
Mustard greens
Celery
Onions
Chicory
Parsley
Chinese cabbage
Peppers: red, green, yellow and hot
Chives
Tomatoes
Collard greens
Turnips
Dandelion greens
Spinach
Endive
Zucchini
Use sparingly due to high carbohydrate levels
Beets
Jicima
Carrots
Winter Squashes
Eggplant
Vegetables to Avoid
Potatoes
