One of the most alarming statement was: ” Sugar is far from “empty calories” that make people fat. At the levels consumed by most Americans, sugar changes metabolism, raised blood pressure, critically alter the signaling of hormones and causes significant damage to the liver”!!

I KNOW that sugar is bad for you but who knew it could damage your liver just like alcohol!!!!

All I could think of was Super Size Me. From that experiment, we learned just how fat could damage the liver and NOW…take a look at SUGAR!

If adults are eating 22 teaspoons of sugar daily…yes daily…..can you imagine how much our children are eating. The last I had heard, we are feeding our children 5 POUNDS of sugar WEEKLY!

What do you think we should do about sugar?

This is a great article by Dr. Mitra Ray that talks about what are healthy fats for your body.

Q and A: What are the Healthiest Fats?

Dear Dr. Ray: I keep hearing that I should be taking a fish oil supplement, and that there are healthy fats that are important for me to consume. Which fats are these? How much should I be getting each day?

Dear Reader: The shortest answer I can give you is that the only healthy fats to consume are those found in whole foods. This means raw nuts and seeds (whole – not the oil from those nuts and seeds), avocados, coconuts, etc. And even these should be eaten sparingly, treated as condiments for the most part.

 And here’s a longer answer:

If you look at the main function of the small intestine, and the whole purpose of eating for that matter, you realize that it is all about the absorption of nutrients: 17-35 feet of tubing dedicated to absorbing phytonutrients, essential fats, amino acids, and carbohydrates, so you can live a healthy and vital life.

And the surface is not smooth, but rather covered with thousands of villi in order to maximize the surface area for absorption. As the villi are delicate, they are constantly being replaced. This repair and maintenance is expensive for the body in terms of utilizing available water, carbohydrates, protein, and important fats. Yet the body chooses this expensive repair of the villi constantly as it is a priority for the body to absorb nutrients from the food we eat. Are the food choices we make in alignment with this priority?

Indulge me for a second and imagine the grease on your on a pan after a particularly fatty meal preparation. Also imagine what would happen if you never used soap and a scrub brush to wash it off, but let it pile up each time you cooked.

Okay, each time you eat isolated fat (butter, butter substitutes, fish oil, flax oil, olive oil, coconut oil, DHA, EPA, you name it), these oils begin to coat those precious villi and there is no soap or scrub brush to wash it off. To make matters worse, other poor food choices (such bits of sticky food made from flour, chips, crackers, cheese etc.) pass by this grease coating. Now you literally have tar build up totally blocking the villi, and the body cannot absorb nutrients efficiently at all through the tar layer.

This is the exact predicament that causes everything from aging skin to serious illness. This is what I work on at the retreat to dissolve. This is also the major reason some people cannot make the transition to a healthy diet simply by a change of food choices. They become convinced they are carnivores because they feel better when they eat meat, and they think it’s because they need protein. Since calorie per calorie, plants provide the same amount of protein, that assumption is wrong. The main reason is a twisted one: the meat causes constipation as it slows down the rate at which food travels through the intestine, and this allows the body to absorb some nutrients. However, creating constipation is not a good long term solution to the real challenge at hand. We have to eliminate the tar as well. This is why I talk about the importance of enemas in my book. At my retreat, we work to dissolve this tar layer. A healthy body does not produce hard stools, which are an indicator of constipation, whereas smooth, easy bowel movements are a good indicator of a functioning digestive system.

Consider this: does a Giraffe coat the leaves he is eating with olive oil for better health? Why do we ruin a perfectly good plate of leafy greens with a coating of oil which will also make it difficult for digestive enzymes to recognize the food for what it is?

Whole food is the key. Isolated fats are just that: isolated. Just like we understand that isolated sugars are not a good thing, we will slowly come to understand that isolated fats are not a good thing either. Nor are isolated proteins but that is the topic of another newsletter.

Finally, here’s a link to my 2008 article about good fats vs. bad fats, which contains some additional information.

Excerpt from Terri Luongo:

I believe in the universal principle that when you give you receive. That what you focus on expands. The past few months have been a challenge for me. I vacationed in Bali over the holidays and returned with parasites. It has been a struggle, in fact, it has been the dark night of the soul. I have stomach cramps unbelievable rounds of diarrhea and iv treatments. I am tired of telling this story,,, I am tired of my focus being on me and my health challenge. Time to tell a new story and time to focus on others…

What I’d most like to receive:

To achieve better health but also to create a heart that is open to receiving all the God and universe has waiting for me.

About me:

I am the mother of three grown boys,, live in Texas,, am a successful National Marketing Director in the Juice Plus corporation. Have reverse a series of auto immune challenges with Love,,, nutrition ,, and life style. I am committed to helping to turn around the epidemic of disease in the world esp as it applies to children. I am mission minded and service oriented. Love life..

I don’t know who could watch this DVD and not feel compelled to MOVE!

These are amazing men and women how truly are in inspiration to everyone who meet them. I was not only privileged to hear their unbelievable story in person but to experience their 4 Desert Race through the DVD.

This idea of living life to the plus, at any age is thought provoking, stimulating, and challenging all at the same time.

There are those myths out “there” that certain people, at certain ages, “should” be doing “certain” things. WHEW! The 4 Desert Runners, and so many others PROVE to us that we can, be, or do ANYTHING we THINK we can do.

We can change our vision of ourselves and our limitations….we can change our physical health….our emotional health…..spiritual health……and mental health……..by living life to the plus!

http://www.livelifetotheplus.com/index2.html

What would you do if someone told you that eating more fruits and veggies DAILY would help prevent periodontal disease and strengthen the connective tissue of your teeth?

Would you tell your dentist about it?

Of course you would want to know more! You want to keep ALL your teeth don’t you?

We keep hearing about eating MORE fruits and veggies (and eating them raw is best) and it sounds so simple. But when it gets right down to it, it isn’t simple at all. We all have good intentions of eating healthier but it isn’t as easy as it sounds.

Now we hear eating more fruits and veggies will not only keep us healthier but it will also help us protect our teeth.

With the price of food going up, how are you going to eat more fruits and veggies for health and wellness?

Did you know that the suggested fruits and veggies servings for kids is 7-8 a day and MORE is better?

I don’t know if I am the only person out there that KNOWS that most kids are not going to eat that many fruits and veggies daily. But I do know where you can go to get some facts about how to bridge that “gap”.

Check it out and see if it makes as much sense to you as it did to me.

www.JuicePlusChildrensFoundation.org

Imagine…trying to catch up to our Standard American Diet and life-style; fast food; in-activity; processed foods; over working; lack of sleep; stress! Did I mention dehydration?

China is one of the countries working hard to achieve the Standard American Diet and Life-style. Guess what? They are achieving their goal… at the expense of their health.

There are 92 million Type 2 adult diabetics in China and counting according to AP medical writer, Margie Mason. 1 in 10 adults already have the disease and another 16% are well on their way to developing it. They have almost caught up to us…11% of Americans are on their way to developing Type 2 diabetes. WOW! China has certainly been working hard to achieve their goal!

Type 2 diabetes is preventable… and certainly is reversible. How many times have we heard it said, eat a rainbow of color of fruits and veggies DAILY (9-13 servings!); move your body at least 30 minutes daily; drink plenty of water; get 7-8 hours of sleep nightly; and don’t forget the stress reduction.

Do the recommendations sound difficult? They sound EASY but doing them is the difficult part!

Shouldn’t we be setting a new example for the world?  Wouldn’t it be great if we could teach the world  to reverse and prevent disease! That would be something to envy! 

Do you think you already know the answer to the question?

We know the “secret”… and it sounds so easy. Every time we hear the “secret”, we roll our eyes, shake our heads, and say, “DUH! I KNOW THAT!”

Well, here we go…the answer to the question…drum roll please. WE NEED TO EAT MORE FRUITS AND VEGGIES!

I know…you already know that! BUT, do you know why?

It boils down to simple PH…remember back in science class when you learned that our bodies function best at a PH of 7? Most of us have forgotten that information.

Let’s do a bit of a review. If we go to far to the left of “center (PH 7) our bodies will be too acidic. If we go to far right of “center” our bodies will be too alkaline.  Neither are a good place to be…we want balance in our body for it to function properly.

The only way we can get sick, have tooth decay, create disease is to create an acidic PH. How do we do that? Through the foods we eat… and don’t eat. The more sugar we eat, colas and coffee we drink, meat we consume, and the less fruits and veggies we eat….the more acidic our body.

The ONLY way to keep our body in a healthy state is to eat more fruits and veggies to counter act all the acidic food and drinks we consume.

If you DON’T want to be sick…eat MORE fruits and veggies…starting TODAY!