Category Archives: Water

Albuquerque, NM, 32nd Largest US City, Ends Water Fluoridation

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By: Ethan A. Huff
Source: NaturalNews.com

A major health victory has been achieved in New Mexico where officials in the state’s largest city, Albuquerque, have made the historic decision to stop artificially fluoridating the municipal water supply. This means that more than half a million local residents will no longer be forcibly medicated with a toxic byproduct of the phosphate fertilizer manufacturing industry, and the city itself will save hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars a year in the process.

KOB News 4 in Albuquerque reports that, after much deliberation, officials from the Albuquerque Water Authority decided that it is no longer necessary to fluoridate the city’s water supply. Since some naturally-occurring fluoride is already present in the Albuquerque water supply, the city will instead “err on the side of caution,” to quote the words of the Water Authority‘s David Morris.

And why, exactly, is the city employing “caution” in the matter? First, the fluoride that continues to be added to many water supplies across America is not actually fluoride at all. It is either sodium fluoride, sodium fluorosilicate, or fluorosilicic acid, all of which are highly-toxic, industrial waste byproducts with no scientifically demonstrable health benefits.

In fact, these poser fluoride compounds have been shown in many recent studies to cause severe health problems, including tooth decay. Synthetic fluorides are also responsible for causing developmental problems in children, brain damage, lowered IQ, thyroid disorders, bone damage, hormone disruption and cancer (http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoride-dangers/health/index.aspx).

According to Shane Ellison, M. Sc., also known as The People’s Chemist, fluoride directly attacks the structural integrity of the body, including collagen, a vital protein in the body that composes connective tissues like tendons, bones, cartilage, blood vessels, and even gut lining. Fluoride has also been shown to be mutagenic, which means it damages DNA and can lead to the development of cancer.

The foundation of oral health is not found in ingesting fluoride, in other words, but rather in maintaining optimal nutrition and oral health. Avoiding refined carbohydrates like processed sugars and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), for instance, which easily ferment in the mouth and cause tooth decay, is a practical, sensical way to stave off cavities.

Regular consumption of raw, grass-fed butter and dairy products can also help prevent the development of cavities, according to research conducted by the late Weston Price, a dentist whose nutritional protocols have helped many people improve their health and mitigate disease.

You can proactively help to get fluoride removed from your own town or city by learning more about fluoride, and using this information to educate your friends, neighbors, and local officials about its many dangers:
http://www.fluoridealert.org

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Having Water with Your Meals Impairs Digestion

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Hello, this is Andreas Moritz, and today I would like to discuss the importance of not drinking water or other beverages during your meal. And this is something that is extremely important because it will determine whether you are able to digest your food properly or improperly.

Improperly digested food becomes a source of contamination in our intestines and absorption of toxins into your blood and lymph, which can cause multiple problems throughout the body.

So it is a very essential part of our health to not drink large quantities of water or other beverages during the meal for reasons as I will explain now.

One of the principle reasons is that when you drink large amounts of fluid with your meal, you dilute the digestive secretions including hydrochloric acid, the bile. Bile is necessary to digest fats and the bile that is secreted or discharged by your gallbladder is highly concentrated where almost all the water has been withdrawn and it’s a very, very sticky, thick substance that needs to stay that way, otherwise it can… it’s unable to help digest the fats, emulsify the fats, and interfere with the digestion of proteins and other foods. So it is essential that we don’t dilute our digestive secretions during the meal.

What you can do is to make sure that you stay well hydrated before you actually eat your meal and you do that drinking like a glass of water, an eight ounce glass of water, up to 20 minutes or 15 minutes before your meal, ideally about half an hour before your meal and this will ensure that your digestive secretions are plentiful and that also means that you will be able to digest your food properly and efficiently.

Also, when you drink a glass of water that time before, like half an hour or 20 minutes before your meal, then your blood will become enriched with that water and any kind of thickness in the blood will be diminished, and your blood consistence is normal. This allows the uptake of nutrients from your intestines into your blood to be much more effective as well. This means the nutrients applied to the cells of your body will be efficient.

The other reason why it’s good not to drink large amounts of fluids, more than a couple of sips which is absolutely fine during the meal to dilute some of the food that you have eaten, particularly if it’s very dry food like rice and potatoes and beans, you may want to take a couple of sips throughout the meal to help make the food more digestible but drinking a large amount of water will basically  flush down the food like in the toilet using water to flush down waste, which is not very conducive to the digestive process but makes it much more difficult for the body to later on properly digest the food and take up nutrients from that food.

So, when you also drink cold beverages, which is very common in this country, the United States, and also throughout Europe, when you use ice-cold water, something else happens. There is a certain temperature environment that is needed for enzymes, digestive enzymes, that are released by the pancreas and by the small intestine to properly and effectively digest the food. Once you change that temperature, you drop it suddenly, when you drink an ice-cold beverage that will immediately change the temperature environment and prevent these enzymes from becoming activated and to act on the food that you have eaten. That means you leave behind a large amount of undigested food.

So drinking large amounts of water and drinking cold beverages during the meal will severely interfere with the digestive process and it also prevents you from properly masticating the food. It’s almost like you wash down the food instead of masticating and mixing the food with digestive enzymes that are secreted from the mouth in the form of salivary enzymes. Salivary enzymes are needed to predigest about 80 % of the carbohydrates that we have eaten, such as in vegetables and grains and other plant-based foods.

So it’s very, very important that we not drink a lot of fluid during the meal. We can drink half an hour before a meal and once again at least wait for one hour after having eaten the meal, particularly a large meal, wait for an hour or one and a half hours before you drink anything.

This is a very simple advice, anyone can do that, but it’s going to make a huge difference for your digestive system and your ability to make use of the food that you have eaten and to help nourish your body in a very efficient manner.

Thank you and have a beautiful next meal.

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This Food Blasts Your Body With Up to 180 Times the Fluoride in Drinking Water

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By: Dr. Mercola
Source: Mercola.com

Jeff Green has been an activist in the movement to eliminate a toxic fluoride from your water supply for the past 15 years.

With more than 60 percent of U.S. water supplies currently fluoridated, chances are you’re one of the 170 million Americans who drink fluoride on a daily basis.

In a previous interview, Green delved into the sordid history that made water fluoridation a reality in the first place.

If you missed it, I highly recommend taking the time to watch it now.

But fluoridated water is not the sole source of harmful fluoride. Here, the discussion focuses on some of the lesser known sources of fluoride exposure.

A Primary Source of Fluoride: Your Food!

While toothpaste and drinking water would appear to be the leading sources of fluoride exposure, probably  the most common source of exposure is actually non-organic foods! The reason for this is because of the widespread use of fluoride-based pesticides.

According to Green, non-organic food could account for as much as one-third of the average person’s fluoride exposure!

This is important, as many people are under the mistaken assumption that by avoiding fluoridated water, they’ve eliminated the primary source of fluoride. But if you’re still eating conventionally-farmed foods, your fluoride exposure is still likely very high.

“Cryolite is actually sodium aluminum fluoride… This sodium aluminum fluoride is especially effective at killing bugs,” Green explains. “It’s also very sticky, so when they spray it, it’s more likely to stick on your produce, unless you’re… really working at trying to get it off of it. As time has gone on, and… everybody said fluoridation must be really great, they ramped up the amount of residue [allowed on food] from these fluoride-based pesticides. They have petitioned the EPA to be able to allow it, and they come out with larger and larger [allowable] amounts.”

Amazingly, based on the assumed safety of such fluoride-based pesticides, iceberg lettuce can now contain a whopping 180 parts per million (ppm) of fluoride—that’s 180 times higher than what’s recommended in drinking water!

“The assumption is that on a head of lettuce, you’re going to peel off those outer layers and you’re not going to eat much of that. Whether you do or not; that’s up to you… Romaine lettuce and what we call leaf lettuce are allowed to have 40 ppm, with the assumption that it’s down inside there and you’re going to have to do more cleaning. But because it’s so sticky, it’s almost impossible [to wash off] unless you go back to the old ideas of the Fuller brush… produce brushes that you… scrape this stuff off with. The majority of people don’t make that extra effort to be able to take it off.”

Citrus fruits are allowed to be contaminated with 95 ppm’s of sodium aluminum fluoride. Potatoes may have 22 ppm’s on the outside and up to two ppm’s on the inside. Raisins can have up to 55 ppm’s. But of all the foods, grapes are perhaps one of the foremost sources of fluoride exposure.

Bet you would not have guessed that!

Grapes are a major source of fluoride because, first of all, they’re heavily sprayed with cryolite, and second, white grape juice is typically used as the base, or filler juice in all sorts of juice drinks. So if you drink any kind of juice on a regular basis, you’re probably getting hefty doses of cryolite, i.e. fluoride-based pesticide… Cereals, mechanically deboned meats, and black or green tea are a few other sources that may surprise you.

“Wheaties for example was measured at 10 parts per million,” Green says. “Shredded Wheat: 9.4 parts per million. Why is it so high? One, they use pesticides on the grains. Two, they use [fluoridated] water… So you actually have higher concentrations than you ever found in the water where it was being made.

As for mechanically deboned meats, the source of the fluoride is the animal itself, which is exposed in the same manner as humans—through feed and water—which then comes out during the manufacturing process. Black and green teas are naturally high in fluoride, even if organically-grown without pesticides. This is because the plant readily absorbs fluoride thorough its root system, including naturally-occurring fluoride in the soil. According to Green, there are reports of people who have developed crippling skeletal fluorosis from drinking high amounts of iced tea alone.

Is Bottled Water More Pure than Tap Water?

Besides food though, drinking water is certainly a primary source of fluoride exposure. Many mistakenly believe that bottled water is the answer, but this is a serious misconception.

As a general rule, I don’t recommend or encourage using bottled water on a regular basis—for a number of reasons. Not only does it contribute to profound amounts of environmental pollution, but a variety of toxins can leach from the plastic, contaminating your water. Not to mention the fact that you’re not guaranteed a more pure product to begin with. An estimated 40 percent of all bottled water is just bottled tap water that may or may not have received additional water treatment. No, buying bottled water certainly is not a guarantee of getting either pure or fluoride-free water!

For pure drinking water, your best bet, from a practical perspective, is to filter the water coming into your own home. Unfortunately, fluoride can be quite difficult to remove from the water once added in. Reverse osmosis systems have typically been recommended to remove fluoride, but according to Green, many home systems may not be very efficient at this task. Commercial systems are typically much better, as they have redundancy features not found in smaller-scale residential models.

“[Y]ou’ve got to remember that the free fluoride ion, which is the part that we are concerned with… is smaller than the water molecule. You can’t… “filter” it out. You can’t screen it out because of the size, obviously… If you look at what the literature tells you, when you’re looking at reverse osmosis, they almost always say that if you had eight parts per million of fluoride [which is eight times higher than recommended]… they could bring it down to 0.9. So you get a 90 percent reduction.

But nobody says take your 0.9 and take it down to 0.1. Because what it’s basically doing is it’s taking out the fluoride compounds, which is still a good thing in some ways, especially if you had eight parts per million in it… but you’re still not getting out that free fluoride ion.”

To Distill or Not to Distill… That is the Question…

Distillation is another alternative. However, while distilled water is very clean, it also lacks structure and minerals, which is inadvisable for long-term daily use as it can deplete your body of essential trace minerals. Distilled water can be quite useful for short-term detoxification though.

Despite these drawbacks, Green prefers the distilled water over reverse osmosis, primarily because the amount of water that is wasted with the reverse osmosis (R/O) filtration systems. A reverse osmosis system can use anywhere between three to eight gallons of water to create one gallon of drinkable water.

I disagree with Green’s recommendation as the example he gave is quite skewed. The typical level of fluoride in most fluoridated municipal water supplies is about one part per million, not eight, like the example he gave. So if you reduce that by 90 percent with an R/O system you are in relatively safe range of 0.1 parts per million. You can use distilled water to remove nearly all of it, but the distillation process is a form of more severe processing than R/O and it is more difficult to restore the water minerals and structure.

Add Fluoride, and Other Chemicals Become More Dangerous…

Interestingly, not to mention importantly, fluoride has the ability to affect other toxins and heavy metals; in some cases making them even more harmful than they would be on their own. For example, when you combine chloramines with the hydrofluorosilicic acid added to the water supply, they become very effective at extracting lead from old plumbing systems—essentially, together; they promote the accumulation of lead in the water supply!

“In fact the two of them have been combined, and I believe patented to be put together so that they could extract lead,” Green says. “… In fact, you’ve seen from reports in Washington D.C. about the lead content [in the local water] that this combination can have tremendous effects.”

Studies have also showed that hydrofluorosilicic acid increases lead accumulation in bone, teeth, and other calcium-rich tissues. According to Green, this is because the free fluoride ion acts as a transport of heavy metals, allowing them to enter into areas of your body they normally would not be able to go, such as into your brain.

“Industry prizes what we call fluoride compounds,” Green says. “What’s amazing is there is so much [information] out there that’s never explained to the general public. But [fluoride] is… the most aggressive seeker of another electron. It’s the most electromagnetically negatively charged element in the entire world. It basically is the most interactive of all the elements… It will give up whatever it’s with to be with something else…

So it’s prized by industry because it actually disrupts molecular bonds… Industry also wants it because it creates tighter molecular bonds. So Scotchgard, Stain Master, Gore-Tex, ski gear… These are all fluoride-type compounds as well because they actually make it a tighter molecular bond that is more impervious to penetration.

… By the time you get to the enzyme activity, and knowing what it can do to disrupt enzyme activity, the effects are so widespread, it’s just amazing… Once [people] learn the nature of fluoride, they would never want to put it in their water.”

Are Health Epidemics Spurred by Water Fluoridation and Pesticides?

While fluoride has been linked to a long list of health problems, two that are currently epidemic are thyroid disease and neurodegenerative diseases.

“I think the important thing is to realize that fluoride affects your endocrine system,” Green warns. “… [I]n December 2006… the National Academy of Sciences… came to the unanimous conclusion that the levels of fluoride thought to be the maximum contaminant level and was safe to be in the water, weren’t protective of human health at all… and that the places where you could see that very dramatically would have to do with the endocrine system.”

Fluoride also calcifies your pineal gland, which can lead to a number of health problems, from precocious puberty to cancer—both of which are also burgeoning epidemics… So, what, if anything, can you do to protect your health if you suspect you’re getting too much fluoride?

One early sign of over-exposure to fluoride is dental fluorosis, which typically begins as white specks on your teeth, which then progress to more unsightly yellow and brown mottling of the enamel. At the first signs of dental fluorosis, if you haven’t done so already, you’ll want to immediately eliminate as many sources of fluoride as possible.

But, according to Green, you also need to make sure you have certain nutrients in your system. These three will help bind the free fluoride ions, allowing it to be excreted from your body more effectively:

  • Magnesium
  • Calcium
  • Vitamin C

Join the Fight to Get Fluoride Out of Drinking Water

In summary it would seem like most rational people would conclude you should avoid using fluoride for its “preventive” benefits. You can easily choose not to take fluoride supplements or buy fluoride-free toothpaste and mouthwash. You can also dramatically reduce your fluoride exposure by opting for organic foods, on which fluoride-based pesticides are not permitted to be used. However, you’re still going to be stuck with whatever your community puts in the water, and as discussed, it’s very difficult to filter out of your water once it’s added. Many do not have the resources or the knowledge to do so.

It’s really time to stop the archaic practice of water fluoridation.

Earlier this year I joined forces with Dr. Paul Connett to help put an END to water fluoridation in the U.S and Canada. The Fluoride Action Network has a game plan to do just that. Our fluoride initiative will primarily focus on Canada since 60 percent of Canada is already non-fluoridated. If we can get Calgary and the rest of Canada to stop fluoridating their water, we believe the U.S. will be forced to follow. I urge you to join the anti-fluoride movement in Canada and the United States by contacting the representative for your area below.

Contact Information for Canadian Communities:

  • If you live in Ontario, Canada, please join the ongoing effort by contacting Diane Sprules at diane.sprules@cogeco.ca.
  • The point-of-contact for Toronto, Canada is Aliss Terpstra. You may email her at aliss@nutrimom.ca.
  • The point-of-contact for the Peel region in Ontario, Canada is Rob Brewer. You may email him at FluorideFreePeel@ymail.com. Also see Fluoride Free Peel’s Facebook page.

Contact Information for American Communities:

We’re also going to address three US communities: New York City, Austin, and San Diego:

  • New York City, NY: The anti-fluoridation movement has a great champion in New York City councilor Peter Vallone, Jr. who introduced legislation on January 18 “prohibiting the addition of fluoride to the water supply.”A victory there could signal the beginning of the end of fluoridation in the U.S. If you live in the New York area I beg you to participate in this effort as your contribution could have a MAJOR difference. Remember that one person can make a difference.

    The point person for this area is Carol Kopf, at the New York Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation (NYSCOF). Email her at NYSCOF@aol.com. Please contact her if you’re interested in helping with this effort.

  • Austin, Texas: Join the effort by contacting Rae Nadler-Olenick at either: info@fluoridefreeaustin.com or fluoride.info@yahoo.com, or by regular mail or telephone:POB 7486
    Austin, Texas 78713
    Phone: (512) 371-3786
  • San Diego, California: Contact Patty Ducey-Brooks, publisher of the Presidio Sentinel at pbrooks936@aol.com.

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Why More Thyroid Cancer? Fluoridated Water, X-Rays, and Radiation are all to Blame

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By: Ethan A. Huff
Source: NaturalNews.com

According to a recent report in USA Today, cases of thyroid cancer have risen 6.5 percent over the past several years, and many medical experts are at a loss for explaining why this is occurring. But mainstream science is ignoring all the most obvious factors that contribute to the disease — fluoride chemicals added to drinking water; excessive medical x-rays; and radiation from cells phones, computers, naked body scanners, and nuclear disasters like Fukushima.

Perhaps one of the most misunderstood organs in the body, the thyroid gland purifies the blood and detoxifies the body by taking up iodine nutrients and using them to cleanse the blood, which in turn lowers the amount of toxins run through the liver. But the thyroid gland’s iodine receptors also take up harmful radiation like the kind emitted from modern communication devices, x-rays, and nuclear accidents, as well as toxic fluoride chemicals added to drinking water supplies across the country.

The causes of thyroid disease are all around us

It is truly amazing, in the most negative sense, that the medical profession is unable or unwilling to properly connect the dots between thyroid disease and these toxic factors. Fluoride chemicals, for instance, have been shown to impair thyroid function by replacing iodine in the body. Fluoride, after all, comes from the same chemical family as iodine.

X-rays, and particularly dental x-rays, are another major factor in thyroid problems that most in the medical community fail to address. Most dentists, for instance, will not provide their patients with neck shields while administering dental x-rays. The thyroid gland is located in the neck area, and every time this area is blasted with ionizing radiation, the thyroid gland absorbs it.

Then, there are the more obvious sources of radiation exposure like the Fukushima nuclear disaster, which sent plumes of deadly radiation across the globe. Fukushima emitted one toxic radionuclide in particular, iodine-131, that is known to absorb directly into the thyroid gland. This is why many experts recommend taking high doses of nutritive iodine during a nuclear emergency in order to displace radioactive iodine in the thyroid gland.

Mobile phones, laptop computers, compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs, and now US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) naked body scanners are all daily radioactive threats as well. It is more than likely that regular and repeated exposure to these smaller doses of radiation is also contributing to thyroid cancer.

This sampling of thyroid cancer contributors just goes to show that modern medicine, which denies any awareness of what could be causing an uptick in thyroid cancer, has its head in the sand about this important issue. But the question still remains whether this denial is deliberate and willful, or whether it is birthed out of pure ignorance.

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How Women May Be Contributing to Men’s Rising Cancer Rates

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By: Dr. Mercola
Source: Mercola.com

Many conventional health experts believe the hormone testosterone causes prostate cancer — but research actually suggests that estrogen may be the more likely culprit.

Like women, men also make estrogens such as estradiol, although (usually) in much lower amounts than women.

Even the characteristically “male” hormone testosterone can be converted into estradiol via the hormone aromatase – which is found in higher concentrations in fat tissue.

While this process of testosterone-to-estrogen conversion is necessary for proper bone density and quality in men, for instance, it may also contribute to prostate growth and malignancy.

Fortunately, testosterone is also antagonist to estrogens like estradiol, which may explain why men with low testosterone are at greater risk of prostate cancer.

It may be, also, that men are being exposed to hidden sources of estrogen from the environment.

Estrogen-mimicking chemicals such as bisphenol-A, PFOA and phthalates are disturbingly widespread; as are soy foods that contain high levels of phytoestrogens, which are capable of mimicking estrogens and/or disrupting their cellular receptor sites.

Not only that, but a wide range of heavy metals have been identified to have powerfully estrogenic properties.

These “metalloestrogens,” as they are called, include aluminium, antimony, arsenite, barium, cadmium, chromium (Cr(II)), cobalt, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenite, and tin.  Recently, an interesting new theory has been proposed that suggests another route of estrogen exposure in men: water contaminated by women’s birth control pills. Could this be the culprit in the rising number of prostate cancer cases?

Drug Residues Common in Drinking Water

Many waterways in the United States contain residues of birth control pills, antidepressants, painkillers, and many other chemical compounds. This has been known for many years now.

Most of them enter water supplies from human and animal waste that enter rivers from sewage treatment plants, leach into groundwater from septic systems, or run off into groundwater. Even drugs thrown into the trash can wind up in your drinking water, as when it enters a landfill its contents can and do mingle with other trash and its surrounding environment, including water supplies.

The drug industry, while admitting that pharmaceuticals are clearly contaminating water supplies, maintains that the levels are too low to cause any harm. Yet, it’s known that drugs in waterways can harm fish and other aquatic species, and laboratory studies show human cells do not grow normally when exposed to even trace amounts of certain drugs.

Many drugs in the water supply are known to have dangerous side effects when taken in normal prescription doses, not to mention that some people are now exposed to traces of multiple drugs at one time, in addition to other harmful metals and chemicals in their water. Further, people are now being exposed to combinations of drugs that should never be combined, leading to unknown consequences.

Birth Control Pills in Water Supply Linked to Men’s Prostate Cancer

Using data from the International Agency for Research on Cancer and the United Nations World Contraceptive Use report, which spanned 100 countries, researchers analyzed rates of prostate cancer and prostate cancer deaths, as well as oral contraceptive use among women.

The report concluded that the areas with a high rate of oral contraceptive use also had a high rate of prostate cancer. In addition, the researchers speculated that higher environmental levels of estrogen — and by implication, higher cumulative estrogen exposures in men — may be to blame.

In the United States alone, over 82 percent of women aged 15-44 have used oral contraceptives, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Typically, hormonal birth control methods like The Pill work by releasing estrogen and progestin into a woman’s body, preventing her ovaries from releasing eggs.

While it’s argued that only a small amount of additional estrogen is excreted by a woman using this form of contraception, this “small amount” is compounded by millions of women, many of whom use the pill for long periods of time. Also, synthetic estrogen and progesterone (progestin) – being unnatural – does not biodegrade as rapidly and is far harder to remove through conventional water purification systems – resulting in greater accumulation in the environment.

While this latest study did not prove cause and effect — that is, it did not prove that environmental estrogen from women’s oral contraceptive use causes prostate cancer in men — it did find a significant association between the two that deserves further investigation, especially in light of estrogen’s well established role in a wide range of cancers.

Estrogen Already Proven to Cause Breast Cancer

The guidelines for preventing and treating prostate cancer are almost identical to those for treating breast cancer (more on those shortly), which is why it’s worth noting that causative factors — like estrogen — may also be similar. It is, in fact, already known that breast cancer is closely tied to estrogen exposure.

According to a study published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer rates for women dropped in tandem with decreased use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which exposed women to synthetic estrogen. In Canada, between 2002 and 2004 HRT use dropped by 7.8 percent. In fact, it was no coincidence that, during that same time, breast cancer rates also fell by 9.6 percent.

However, after remaining stable at around 5 percent between 2004 and 2006, breast cancer rates then began to rise again, even though HRT use remained lower. The researchers claim this is an indication that HRT simply speeds up tumor growth, as opposed to directly causing it.

It’s also important to consider that you are exposed to a large number of estrogen-like compounds daily, called xenoestrogens. Estrogen pollution is increasingly present all around you, from plastics to canned food and drinks, food additives, household cleaning products, and pesticides. And estrogen levels are rising in our waterways, not only as pollution from birth control use but as a result of the runoff from confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs).

So whether it’s a promoter or a causative factor (likely it’s both), there’s a wealth of evidence supporting excess estrogen exposure as a risk factor for cancer.

What’s All the Buzz About Saw Palmetto and Prostate Cancer?

As we age, testosterone levels decline. One reason why this occurs is because of the overexpression and/or overactivity of an enzyme known as 5-alpha reductase. This enzyme converts testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a process which simultaneously lowers the amount of testosterone in the body and contributes to both the benign (BPH) and malignant (cancer) growth of the prostate gland.

While the pharmaceutical companies have already capitalized on this biological fact by producing a class of drugs which inhibit 5-alpha reductase activity, thereby blocking the conversion of testosterone to DHT, these drugs come with a significant set of risks, including –  no joke! – increasing your risk of developing prostate cancer.

Unlike the laughably inept pharmaceutical approach, which typically creates greater malignancy than improvement in the organ it is “treating,” i.e. suppressing symptoms in, natural substances like saw palmetto provide a viable alternative. It is, in fact, through this same mechanism of DHT inhibition that saw palmetto works and can make a big difference in your cancer risk.

According to Dr. Rudi Moerck, drug industry insider and an expert in chemistry, the medical literature contains as many as 100 clinical studies on saw palmetto. (One of the first prostate drugs on the US market was actually saw palmetto, released by Eli Lilly Company back in the early 1870s.)

He says:

“The mechanism of action of saw palmetto is not fully clear. We are certainly not making any drug claims, but the anecdotal evidence suggests that there is a reduction in the conversion of testosterone into the dihydrotestosterone, and therefore, men that take saw palmetto will have slightly higher levels of testosterone in their body…That’s a good thing…

It turns out that if you don’t have enough testosterone in your body it can cause all kinds of problems like gaining weight, breast enlargement in men, and problem with urinating. So saw palmetto alone, or with pumpkin seed or lycopene is an interesting proposition … It’s something that you should definitely try.”

Additionally, research sourced from The National Library of Medicine shows that saw palmetto may have therapeutic benefits over pharmaceutical 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, alleviating symptoms far beyond that of simply an enlarged prostate:

  • Androgenic Alopecia (Hair Loss)
  • Prostate Cancer
  • Low Testosterone
  • Chronic Prostatitis

Beyond taking saw palmetto, another thing you may want to do is to have your testosterone levels checked to ensure they’re in a healthy range. For an interesting article that contains more elaborate information on this topic, read Dr. Morgentaler’s report Destroying the Myth About Testosterone Replacement and Prostate Cancer. It explains how unfortunate assumptions have led to a dogmatic belief that testosterone replacement increases your risk of prostate cancer — a belief that may be preventing many men from optimizing their health. If you are indeed low in testosterone you may want to consider trans rectal DHEA cream. I personally use about 50 mg twice a day, and it has done wonders to optimize my testosterone levels, as DHEA is converted to testosterone in your body.

Smart Solutions for Prostate Cancer Prevention

Like virtually all cancers, your risk of prostate cancer can be influenced by lifestyle changes, with diet having a huge impact on prostate health.

Given the potential risk of drug-contaminated drinking water, filtering your water is a smart choice. The best solution would be to install a whole house water filtration system. This not only protects your body (inside and out, from drinking water and exposure during showers), but also your appliances as well. There’s just one water line coming into your house. Putting a filter on this is the easiest and simplest strategy you can implement to take control of your health by ensuring the water in your house is as clean as possible.

I recommend systems that use at least 60 pounds of filter media and can produce eight or more gallons a minute. When you are running two different showers, the dishwasher and the kitchen sink at the same time, you’ll find out why these minimum levels are so important. This recommendation covers a home or apartment up to 3200 sq./ft. If your home is larger than that, you may need two whole house water filtration systems.

I also recommend looking for a whole house water filter that has three separate stages of contamination removal:

  • Stage one removes sediment
  • Stage two removes chlorine and heavy metals
  • Stage three should be a heavy-duty carbon filter for removing hormones, drug residues, chemicals, pesticides, and herbicides

You want to look for granular carbon in the carbon filter, not a solid block of carbon. The granular carbon allows for better water flow, which translates to more water pressure and better filtering properties as well.

Next, you’ll want to eat as much organic (preferably raw) food as possible. Foods that support prostate health include vegetables and fruits rich in vitamins, carotenoids, and lycopene (animal studies have shown that of all the carotenoids, lycopene accumulates in the prostate of male animals, and this likely holds true for humans as well).

One 2009 study identified the following foods as being particularly beneficial against prostate cancer:

  • Tomatoes (including unsweetened organic tomato sauce)
  • Cauliflower
  • Broccoli
  • Green tea

Other nutrients that have been found to offer significant protection against prostate cancer are animal-based omega-3 fats and vitamin K2. For more information about K2, please refer to this previous article. Although I don’t typically recommend many supplements, animal-based omega-3 fats and vitamin K2 are two of the supplements you may want to seriously consider because many people don’t get nearly enough of them on a daily basis through the foods they eat.

Limiting carbohydrates like sugar, fructose, and grains as much as possible is also important to maintain optimal insulin levels, which will help reduce your cancer risk in general. Highly processed or charcoaled meats, pasteurized dairy products, and trans fats correlate with an increased risk for prostate cancer as well, and should also be avoided.

For more research on the dietary aspects of prostate cancer prevention GreenMedInfo.com contains a list of over 150 natural substances with potential value, backed by solid clinical research. Other important factors include:

1. Optimizing your vitamin D levels

Evidence suggests that vitamin D may be one of the most potent variables associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer.

Thankfully, vitamin D’s impact on your cancer risk is becoming increasingly well-documented, and there are now well over 800 scientific studies confirming the link between vitamin D deficiency and multiple types of cancers, including prostate cancer.

For example, according to a 2005 study, men with higher levels of vitamin D in their blood were half as likely to develop aggressive forms of prostate cancer as those with lower amounts. Another study published two years ago found that men with higher levels of vitamin D in their blood were seven times LESS likely to die from prostate cancer than those with lower amounts.

Testing your vitamin D levels is done by a simple blood test. Anything below 20 ng/ml is considered a serious deficiency state, which will increase your risk of breast and prostate cancers, as well as autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. In most cases, the OPTIMAL value that you’re looking for is between 50-70 ng/ml; however, maintaining a slightly higher level of 70 ng/ml may be ideal for cancer prevention.

The best way to get vitamin D is by exposing your bare skin to natural sunlight on a regular basis. If you can’t get regular sun exposure, you may want to consider using a safe tanning bed or, as a last resort, an oral vitamin D3 supplement. However, be aware that when using a supplement, recent research suggests most adults need 8,000 IU a day to maintain therapeutic levels.

2. Exercising

Exercise is another important factor for prostate health. You need to exercise, especially as you get older, and this includes not only high-intensity exercises like Peak Fitness but also using physical intimacy to exercise your prostate directly.

Dr. Moerck advises:

“… have sex on a regular basis, which involves exercising your prostate. It’s a difficult thing to talk about… [and]  in older people [it can] become an issue because of lack of a partner and those things. But it’s something that every man should think about… I recommend sex on a regular basis… No matter what your age. My recommendation is a minimum of once a week. Probably two times a week for older people.”

One of the reasons for why regular sex promotes male health is that not only does it exercise the prostate, but when a man does not have regular sexual activity, the sperm and other fluids must be reabsorbed into his body. Eventually, that can cause certain immunological issues.

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in U.S. men, but it is a disease that can be managed and oftentimes prevented … if you make the appropriate lifestyle modifications. Ideally, you’ll want to pay close attention to your prostate health early on — avoid waiting until you’re in your 60′s, because even though you may be able to reverse damage that’s been done, ideally you’ll want to prevent these problems from occurring in the first place.

Women, Looking for Alternative, Drug-Free Contraceptive Options?

While women’s use of birth control pills may indeed be contributing to growing prostate cancer rates in men, there are other reasons why artificially controlling your menstrual cycle with synthetic hormones may not be a wise option.

In exchange for the convenience of preventing pregnancy (which you can do naturally just as well, and I’ll explain how below), you are putting yourself at risk of:

In fact, the biomedical literature bears testimony to over 25 adverse effects associated with the use of oral contraceptives.

Many women opt for hormonal contraceptives not simply because they’re unaware of the health risks, but because they are unaware of the other effective birth control methods out there. The following options, which include both natural family planning and barrier methods, are effective ways to prevent pregnancy without damaging your health.

  • Male condoms: Condoms have a 98 percent effectiveness rate when used correctly. A water-based lubricant will increase the effectiveness; do not use an oil-based lubricant, however, as they break the latex and often contain harmful petrochemicals.
  • Female condoms: These thin, soft polyurethane pouches fitted inside the vagina before sex are 95 percent effective. Female condoms are less likely to tear than male condoms.
  • Diaphragm: Diaphragms, which must be fitted by a doctor, act as a barrier to sperm. When used correctly with spermicidal jellies, they are 92 to 98 percent effective.
  • Cervical cap: This heavy rubber cap fits tightly against the cervix and can be left in place for 48 hours. Like the diaphragm, a doctor must fit the cap. Proper fitting enhances the effectiveness above 91 percent.
  • Cervical sponges: The sponge, made of polyurethane foam, is moistened with water and inserted into the vagina prior to sex. It works as a barrier between sperm and the cervix, both trapping and absorbing sperm and releasing a spermicide to kill them. It can be left in for up to 24 hours at a time. When used correctly, the sponge is about 89-91 percent effective.

Aside from these barrier methods, there are also natural family planning (NFP) tools that a woman can use to track her ovulation. Many women feel empowered by NFP because it allows them to get in touch with their fertility cycle.

Some of the most popular NFP methods include:

  • Calendar Method: Abstention from sex during the week the woman is ovulating. This technique works best when a woman’s menstrual cycle is very regular. However, it may not work very well for couples who use it as the sole means of contraception, as its success rate is only around 75 percent. You can boost its effectiveness by combining it with the temperature and mucus methods described below.
  • The Temperature Method: This is a way to pinpoint the day of ovulation so that sex can be avoided for a few days before and after. It involves taking your basal body temperature (your temperature upon first waking) each morning with an accurate “basal” thermometer, and noting the rise in temperature that occurs after ovulation.Beware that illness or lack of sleep can change your body temperature and make this method unreliable by itself, but when it is combined with the mucus method, it can be an accurate way of assessing fertility. The two methods combined can have a success rate as high as 98 percent.
  • The Mucus Method: This involves tracking changes in the amount and texture of vaginal discharge, which reflect rising levels of estrogen in your body. For the first few days after your period, there is often no discharge, but there will be a cloudy, tacky mucus as estrogen starts to rise. When the discharge starts to increase in volume and becomes clear and stringy, ovulation is near. A return to the tacky, cloudy mucus or no discharge means that ovulation has passed.

As you can see, there are many alternatives to The Pill and other hormonal contraceptives out there, and my advice to women is to seriously evaluate the risks versus benefits — not only for yourself but potentially for the environment as well — before taking any type of birth control pill.

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