Use natural substances such as spring water, whole fresh foods and spices to strengthen your body

Scientists Tracking Path Between Emotions and Health It's interesting to see that the concepts of Chinese medicine -- in particular the interplay of mind, body and spirit (emotion) and their role in health as well as disease -- are beginning to seep into mainstream medicine. Here in the Western world, physicians have been trained to separate mental, physical and emotional symptoms. In contrast, Chinese medicine views the patient as a whole, with each part intimately connected. Now, here in the US, an increasing number of studies tie emotional health with physical ailments, in particular heart disease, cancer and autoimmune disorders... a step in the right direction, even though the scientific community continues to focus on finding the physiological "root" of illness as they apply their cause-effect mentality in an attempt to identify, isolate and manage "the problem." But the Chinese take a very different approach, looking to the whole body system and the concept of balance in every aspect, including between emotions and the physical self. THE CHINESE VIEW OF THE WORLD I spoke with Jeffrey Zimmerman, OMD, doctor of Chinese medicine, practitioner of acupuncture and founder of the OptiMotion system of body alignment, who explained that in Chinese medicine, feeling any emotions intensely is considered an imbalance. When there is balance among the mind, body and spirit, everything that happens, good and bad, is processed naturally, in a fluid way. It's all experienced as normal, without great intensity. Getting "stuck" in emotions is what blocks energy, inviting or creating an opportunity for illness and unrest. Chinese medicine asserts that each organ has an emotional spectrum. A Chinese medicine practitioner asks a patient about his/her state of mind and identifies relationships between the responses and the internal organs. The concept is that when one emotional state dominates, smooth flow of energy (known as qi) to specific organs is impeded, so the emotion and the organ must be treated concurrently. FEAR: The kidneys and the work they do, including elimination of waste, are associated with strength and willpower -- and on the negative end of the spectrum, with fear. GRIEF: The lungs and respiratory system are connected to our sense of order and can move along to perfectionism and, at the opposite end, grief. ANGER: The liver, which filters toxins, supports planning and decision-making -- the skills needed to manage life well. At the far end of the spectrum, the liver is connected to anger. SADNESS/JOY: The heart is the center of the body and soul and not surprisingly, is connected to sadness as well as to joy. WORRY: The stomach/spleen, responsible for digestion, can be the source of sympathy on one end, worry on the other. CONNECTING THE DOTS: EMOTIONS AND ILLNESS The emotional-physical ties are not as direct and simplistic as Westerners would like them to be, but the dots can indeed be connected. To better understand how, I spoke with Kathryn White, PhD, LAc, a practicing psychologist and acupuncturist who is the president and chief academic officer, American University of Complementary Medicine (Beverly Hills, California), which focuses on what she calls Chinese Classical Medicine (CCM), one of many different forms of practicing the ancient art. She told me that at the heart of CCM is the concept that all disease has roots in a need to change in one of three basic aspects of life -- physical, emotional or lifestyle -- that comes up against an inability or unwillingness to do so. Sickness can be an expression of these conflicts. One simple illustration: Chinese medicine respects the body's natural ability to expel toxins by vomiting them up, sneezing them out or through urination or defecation. Medicine that treats the symptoms gets in the way of this natural process, sending the toxins from the now-suppressed symptoms into the body's energy channels where ultimately they can get stuck and cause serious disease. Treatment must address the entire person, not just the symptoms. LESSONS FROM CCM Both Dr. White and Dr. Zimmerman have suggestions for using these basic concepts to promote personal health and well-being and eliminate toxicity that intrudes on our mind, body or spirit. Here are some of their tips... Live in harmony with the seasons. The winter months can be valuable for rest and rejuvenation... in the spring, you can ramp up activity. Summer is the time to expand and expend the most energy in many activities, while in autumn we can benefit by slowing down and retreating from all that busyness. Follow the light. "In the old days people got up with the sun and went to bed soon after it set," says Dr. White. "The instinct to follow light is a good one -- it both increases longevity and protects health." One idea she suggests is to become aware of your mental and physical posture throughout the day and learn to use it consciously. To gear up for productivity at work in the morning, for example, many people strike the type-A jutting-chin, fast-talking, vigorous-thinker posture... which can be physically, mentally and spiritually exhausting if maintained all day. Make an effort to ease into a more relaxed posture, slowing down your speech, thoughts and pace when you go home at night. By the time you are ready for bed, you should have relaxed and slowed to the point that you are truly ready for sleep... if so, it will come easily to you. When illness sets in, respect your body and mind -- take time off to heal. Within reason, it's a good idea to "tough it out" if you have a cold, for instance -- let the cough and congestion run their course untreated by drugs, so your body can rid itself of the pathogen. Use natural substances such as spring water, whole fresh foods and spices to strengthen your body and provide the resources required for recovery. Recognize that your disease may be happening for a reason. Perhaps you are working or playing too hard (or both) which is putting your body out of balance or maybe you are not taking proper care of yourself. Review and readjust for a better balance. Remember, true healing always involves increasing your awareness. Any illness is a call and an opportunity to evaluate your internal state. Are you heartsick about something... suffering from anxiety... in a troubled relationship? This is your chance to sort through the problems that are creating toxicity for you and figure out what might help you heal, in every way. Use daily reflection as a conscious tool for balancing your energy. "Think about what things are truly important to you and how you are using your chi (spiritual and physical energy) to work toward those goals," suggests Dr. White. "Ask if you are getting caught up in a spiral of need for things that don't really matter." The principles of Chinese medicine should not be understood to mean that having physical, emotional or lifestyle problems indicates you are doing something wrong. Life, it teaches, is school and it gives all of us the lessons we need to learn. Deal regularly with your issues and be willing to confront whatever comes your way. This will make you less likely to have pathology and more likely to obtain real and deep meaning from your life. Source(s): Kathryn White, PhD, LAc, a psychologist and acupuncturist, is the president and chief academic officer, American University of Complementary Medicine, Beverly Hills, California.  Jeffrey Zimmerman, OMD, once a classical musician and now a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, acupuncturist, martial artist and Qigong master in Westport, Connecticut. www.jeffreyczimmerman.wordpress.com/.

Master Cleanse Recipe

Master Cleanse Recipe: "For a single or a glass of the master cleanse, the recipe require that you have 10 ounces of filtered water, two table spoon of maple syrup, two tablespoon of lemon juice and 1/10 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. If you wish to make a daily servings of 60 ounces at one go then you will need 60 ounces of filtered water, 12 tablespoon of maple syrup, 12 tablespoon of lemon juice and ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper. But remember when you are preparing the master cleanse, you must use freshly squeezed lemon juice. This is because canned or processed juice already has lost much of its benefits.

Another factor to note is that you must use organic grade B maple syrup and not sugar filled syrup. And although the Cayenne pepper looks as if it can be excluded, it is actually very important. The cayenne actually helps to break down the mucus and promote a healthy blood flow. Beside this, it is also a rich source of Vitamins B and C. If you wish to add flavor to the lemonade, just use decaffeinated tea because caffeine constrict the blood vessels. During the master cleanse, we actually wishes to promote a good flow of the blood so that the waste and toxin can be easily removed from the body."

Death In The Air

Death In The Air: "HIV/AIDS may have been man-made, a concern currently being considered by the U.S. General Accounting Office in response to requests made by Ohio attorney Boyd Ed Graves and Democratic Congressman, James A. Traficant, Jr. His investigation involves the theory that HIV emerged from laboratory experiments conducted during the 1960s and early 1970s when biological weapons contractors intermingled immune-suppressive viruses during a “Special Virus Cancer Program” administered by the National Cancer Institute."

Leonard Horowitz

Leonard Horowitz: "Ebola-Nature, Accident or Intentional?, Viruses: AIDS and Learn about the ancient, newly discovered 'healing codes' that can repair DNA. Find out who hid these codes in the Bible and using them today for good and evil. Rejoice in the discovery of the electro-magnetic sound frequencies for creation, destruction and miracles. Learn everything you need to know about vaccines that could have given rise to cancer, chronic fatigue, MS, ADD, Autism and other immune system disorders. Learn about the documented evidence from a leading vaccine developer who states that vaccines had been heavily contaminated with cancer viruses. Learn what you can do to protect yourself and your family."

Namaste March 09 | Chopra Center

Namaste March 09 | Chopra Center:

In addition, here are 7 empowering steps you can take in your life right now:

1. Develop a meditation practice today. Start with one of our guided meditations or find a PSM teacher in your town. Or you can learn to meditate at a Chopra Center workshop or retreat.
2. Take the dosha quiz and understand your mind-body constitution to bring balance into your life.
3. Experience nature – touch a natural body of water, walk on grass, sit under a tree, stand in the rain.
4. Write a poem about how great you are.
5. Commit one act of love today – make amends to someone you’ve hurt; forgive someone who hurt you (in person, on the phone, or in writing).
6. Take a step toward clarity by making one powerful decision right now – it can be a baby step . . . throw something out that no longer serves you, wash your car, get rid of paper congestion, clean a closet, a room, or even a drawer. Give away an item of clothing.
7. Perform a vital physical practice – go to a yoga class, learn pilates, go for a vigorous walk, practice deep breathing for 15 minutes, nourish yourself with a massage treatment.

Compassion Meditation Research

The Power of Compassion Can good thoughts for the well-being of others also keep you healthy? For centuries people have turned to various forms of meditation to quiet their minds, improve their concentration, decrease anxiety, soothe pain and facilitate healing. Research led by a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and an American physician adds yet another benefit to that already impressive list -- their study found evidence that practicing a particular kind, called compassion meditation, may help reduce the type of inflammatory responses to stressful interpersonal situations that have been linked to the development of both mental and physical diseases. People who practiced compassion meditation regularly also had less distress and anger in response to stress. CHANGING THE WAY WE SEE OTHERS At Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, 61 healthy students were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group participated in six weeks of twice-weekly classroom training in a non-religious version of compassion meditation while the other group (the control group) spent a similar amount of time in health discussions. Meditation teacher Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, director of the Emory-Tibet Partnership and a study author, explained that lojong (as the meditation practice is called) means training or transforming the mind. Where we're all conditioned to identify certain people as friends and others as enemies, lojong teaches us to challenge those assumptions. "It helps us see that others are no different from ourselves, that all people have the same problems and common aspirations," he explained. "It has a cognitive component that teaches us to reshape our relationships with ourselves and others to better connect each of us to all of humanity." To perform lojong meditation, students first learned how to do "meditative concentration" on their breathing, which helps stabilize the mind and refines their attention. Next they practiced mindfulness and meditation, to train them to increase their non-judgmental awareness of thoughts and bodily sensations and were instructed to focus on the universal desire of all people to be happy and avoid suffering. Finally, the students sent out their desire for happiness in a circle that expanded outward... first on themselves... then on loved ones... then to strangers... and finally, to those whom they disliked. They were instructed to concentrate on generating compassion for all people. These students were also given a CD to use to help them practice compassion meditation at home daily, keeping online records of when they meditated and for how long. A control group spent classroom time in group discussion about issues related to the physical and mental health of college students. Topics included stress management, substance abuse, sexual behavior and health, and depression and anxiety. This group also participated in role-playing exercises and mock debates on the topics they studied. As a way to maintain an equal time requirement with the meditation group for at-home participation, students in the control group were asked to write weekly opinion papers, two to three pages in length, on self-improvement topics. Study participants were recruited from their Emory University health education class and randomly assigned to either the meditation or the control (health discussion) group. A SURPRISING OUTCOME At the end of the study, students in both groups were asked to participate in a "stressful task" based on a widely used laboratory psychosocial stress test. Researchers measured their biological responses, including blood levels of the stress hormones cortisol and  interleukin 6 (IL-6), which is a marker of inflammation. The researchers anticipated a difference between the meditators and the control group, but that actually turned out to be insignificant, said Charles Raison, MD, assistant professor in Emory's department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and senior author of the study. What was significant, however, was a reduction in inflammatory markers that correlated with how frequently subjects meditated. The more often subjects practiced compassion meditation, the lower the levels of inflammation in their blood after the stress test. WHY THE RESULTS MATTER We know that inflammation puts wear and tear on the body and that has a cumulative negative effect on health. Dr. Raison called it "promising" to see that engaging in a discipline that helps retrain the mind to be more compassionate not only makes people kinder, but also healthier. His co-author Dr. Negi agrees, noting that by teaching a broader acceptance of others, this type of compassion meditation can be "an instrument of health that might be of benefit to people in all walks of life." For more information on how to do a lojong practice, look for books including Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living (Shambhala Library), by Pema Chödrön... Emotional Awareness: Overcoming the Obstacles to Psychological Balance and Compassion (Times), by the Dalai Lama and Paul Ekman, PhD... and Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation compiled by Susan Piver (Shambhala). Source(s): Charles Raison, MD, is an assistant professor, department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, Emory University School of Medicine. Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, (also known as Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi) is senior lecturer in religion and director, Emory-Tibet Partnership.

Don't Believe Everything the Media Says

Medical Studies: Don't Believe Everything the Media Says JoAnn E. Manson, MD, DrPH Harvard Medical School hen the media reports on medical news, complex research gets reduced to sound bites -- which may be misleading. Find a full account of the study (try www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus) and ask... Are this study's results consistent with other evidence? Accuracy usually involves consistent results from different researchers... using different types of studies... and involving different people. Example: The link between smoking and lung cancer that has been seen in so many studies. Is it an observational study or a randomized clinical trial? An observational study tracks behavior and health outcomes without intervening in participants' lives. This can uncover "associations" but cannot prove a cause-and-effect link. Example: The apparent health benefits of vitamin supplements seen in observational studies simply may reflect that people who choose to use such supplements tend to have more healthful habits overall. In a randomized clinical trial, researchers actively intervene by assigning participants at random to receive treatment or a placebo -- making this the "gold standard" of research. Is it an animal study? Animal studies allow far greater control than human studies -- but results from other species may not apply directly to people. How many participants were there? The larger the study, the less likely its findings are due to chance. How long did the study last? A long-term study may detect risks or benefits that go unnoticed in shorter studies. Example: Hormone therapy using estrogen plus progestin increases risk for breast cancer -- but only after four to five years. A two-year study would not uncover this relationship. Did the study look at actual disease outcomes? Because it takes years for certain diseases to develop, many studies examine "markers" of disease. Example: Lower cholesterol levels suggest a reduced risk for heart disease -- though cholesterol reductions do not always lead to actual decreases in heart disease risk. Research looking at concrete outcomes, such as the occurrence of heart attacks, is more reliable. Who were the participants? A study is less valid if participants are not typical of the people who use the therapy. Example: The first clinical trial of estrogen therapy to reduce heart disease was done on men, not women! What does increased risk really mean? It is scary to hear that a risk factor (such as exposure to a toxin) increases risk for a certain disease by, say, 50%. But suppose that two cases of disease normally occur per 10,000 women who haven't been exposed to the toxin. In that case, a 50% increase would mean that toxic exposure leads to three cases per 10,000 women -- which isn't so scary. Bottom Line/Women's Health interviewed JoAnn E. Manson, MD, DrPH, a professor of medicine and women's health at Harvard Medical School and chief of the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, both in Boston. She is one of the lead investigators for two highly influential studies on women's health -- the Harvard Nurses' Health Study and the Women's Health Initiative. Dr. Manson is the author, with Shari Bassuk, ScD, of Hot Flashes, Hormones & Your Health (McGraw-Hill).