Thursday, April 14, 2011

Protect against radiation safely and naturally with purple dulse

by Donna Rae

With the facts about the severity of Japan's 2011 Fukushima nuclear plant explosion beginning to trickle in, more people around the world are becoming concerned about nuclear fallout protection. While some experts, such as the Center For Disease Control and Prevention, cautiously recommend potassium iodide (KI) for radiation exposure, others state that potassium iodide may present more risks than benefits. In addition, a University of California at Davis study raises some concern over kelp ingestion. As a possible safe alternative, one naturally-occurring herb to help protect the body against radiation exposure is the sea vegetable, purple dulse.

Medical Concerns Over the Use of Kelp For Iodine Support

Some medical doctors have concerns about using kelp as a primary source for iodine. These concerns may be warranted. A 2007 study done at the University of California Davis showed that eight out of nine random samples of kelp supplements purchased at local health food stores tested positive for elevated levels of arsenic. People desiring to use kelp for protection against possible radiation exposure should purchase this sea vegetable from a highly reputable source.

When, and When Not to Take Potassium Iodide For Radiation Fallout Exposure

The Center For Disease Control has published a reference on potassium iodide on its website. It states that potassium iodide (KI) should only be used by people who are in direct or imminent danger of high levels of radiation exposure. Potassium iodide protects the thyroid from radioactive iodine, but it does not protect the rest of the body from radiation exposure. It does not protect the body from other elements in radioactive fallout, such as cesium. Taking high dosages of potassium iodide may be poisonous, and even lethal.

Purple Dulse, An Overlooked Sea Vegetable For Protection Against Radiation Fallout Exposure

Purple dulse is a cold water sea vegetable that looks similar to purple cabbage when harvested. Dulse is often used in traditional herbal recipes for constipation, to relieve scurvy, and as a mild aid for parasite removal. However, purple dulse is also chock-full of phytochemicals, which stimulate thyroid hormones within the human body.

Purple dulse is a bio-available and easily assimilated, completely natural, plant form of iodine and other trace minerals. It is considered a "superfood." This means that dulse is a whole food, rather than a synthetic, isolated supplement or drug. Superfoods contain an entire array of health benefits, and they usually do not upset the natural balance of the human body.

Dulse has 72 mcg/g of natural iodine in the form of iodide. By comparison, kelp has an average of 1542 mcg/g iodide. According to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, the adult recommended dietary allowance for iodine, in both males and females, is 150 mcg/day. So, just two grams, or approximately one-half teaspoon of purple dulse taken on a daily basis, is enough to overcome iodine deficiency in the average adult body.

Sources:
Center For Disease Control and Prevention.gov, "Emergency Preparedness and Response: Potassium Iodide (KI)" http://emergency.cdc.gov/radiation/ki.asp
Mountain Rose Herbs.com, "Scrumptious Seaweed: Nutritious, Medicinal, and Delicious!"
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/newsletter/08/March/seaweed.html
Iodine4Health.com, "Foods With Iodine"
http://www.iodine4health.com/research/iodine_in_food_table.htm
Environmental Health Perspectives. "Case Report: Potential Arsenic Toxicosis Secondary To Herbal Kelp Supplement," Eric Amster, et al. http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info:doi/10.1289/ehp.9495
Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University.edu, "Iodine" http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/iodine/#rda
National Institute of Health.gov, "Comparison of Iodine Content of Seaweed By Genus, Geographic Location, and Study," Teas et al., and Lee et al. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2006 June 21(6). C11-C14. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1924637/table/tbl3/

Original posting: http://www.naturalnews.com/032032_purple_dulse_radiation.html

About the author
Donna Rae is a freelance writer and herbalist. She owns a SEO copywriting business, Donna Rae Online Writing Services (http://www.donnaraeonline.com/), and niche writes regularly in the alternative health care and education industries. Donna's weekday blog for homeschooling, Donna Rae At Home.com (http://www.donnaraeathome.com/) is based on 25 years as a veteran home educator. Featured weekly is a post called "Healthy Home Schools," where Donna teaches about herbs, fitness, and natural venues for family health.

Made in Japan?

by Randall Neustaedter OMD

Hold onto your chelators folks. And watch out for those Made in Japan labels on products. Are you worried that your seaweed may be radioactive? Should you eat that shrimp at the gourmet restaurant? Take that krill oil supplement? Start bowing to colleagues rather than shaking hands? Carry a Geiger counter?

Fish and other imports from Japan are now showing varying levels of radiation.

We are entering a strange era where Japanese products will all be suspect, and food manufacturers will add the label Not Made in Japan alongside the Non-GMO label. The nuclear disaster in Japan has us all worried about radiation exposure. Just look at the rate that potassium iodide pills were snatched up on the internet.
What should you do? Watch the news for actual levels of radioactivity in food products. Do not believe the mainstream media or the government.

Here is a map you can use to check gamma radiation emissions data near you in the US.

http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html

Start taking supplements now that protect you from the effects of radiation. That includes chelating agents like chlorella, powdered fruit pectin (modified citrus pectin), or powdered zeolite. Then protect your liver with glutathione support by taking reduced liposomal glutathione, n-acetylcysteine, or milk thistle. Take antioxidants in the form of vitamin C, D, and E, Antarctic krill oil, grape seed extract or resveratrol, and others. And support digestive function and removal of toxins with a multi-vitamin supplement and probiotics.

Original Posting: http://www.naturalnews.com/032034_Japan_products.html

About the author:
Dr. Randall Neustaedter, OMD, has practiced and taught holistic medicine for more than thirty years in the San Francisco Bay area, specializing in child health care. He is a licensed acupuncturist and doctor of Chinese medicine, author of The Holistic Baby Guide, Child Health Guide and The Vaccine Guide. Visit his website, http://www.cure-guide.com/, to register for a free newsletter with pediatric specialty articles and follow him on Facebook, at Dr. Randall Neustaedter, OMD.

Radiation Protocols and Detoxification

by Sherry L. Ackerman, Ph.D.

I was having a bowl of miso and dulse soup the other night with my friend, Susan. We were talking about all of the other protocols that we, as West Coasters, were practicing to protect ourselves from any potential radiation toxicity that might incur from Fukushima. I am a long-time raw food vegan, so the new protocols haven't really triggered any radical detoxification. Susan, on the other hand, has been eating a standard American diet. So, it suffices to say that the new protocols have sent her into a tailspin. She had never heard of a healing crisis, or Herxheimer Reaction -- but she was having one!

After talking with Susan, it occurred to me that perhaps other prevention-oriented West Coasters were also experiencing Herxheimer Reactions -- and had no idea what was happening to them. A Herxheimer Reaction is a detoxification reaction in the body. As the body detoxifies, it is not uncommon to experience flu-like symptoms including headache, joint and muscle pain, body aches, sore throat, general malaise, sweating, chills, nausea or other symptoms. This is a normal reaction to the toxins that are released when large numbers of parasites, fungus, viruses, bacteria or other pathogens are being effectively killed off and the body does not eliminate the toxins quickly enough. The important thing to note is that worsening symptoms do not indicate failure of the protocol in question; in fact, usually just the opposite. Although the experience may not make you feel particularly good, the Herxheimer Reaction is a sign that healing is taking place.

The healing crisis is the result of every body system, in concert, working to eliminate waste products through all elimination channels and set the stage for regeneration. The end result: old tissues are replaced with new. When any cleansing program causes a large scale die-off, a significant amount of toxins are released into the body. The more toxins present, the stronger the cleansing reaction. The current radioactivity protocols are custom-made detoxification programs. As well as protect against fugitive radiation, they chelate heavy metals, eliminate toxins and flush the body of other unnatural elements that have accumulated over years of living in a compromised environment.

Smart moves for negotiating a healing crisis include drinking plenty of fresh water, juices, and herbal teas to flush the body of toxins. Other ways to speed the detoxification along include saunas, hot-baths and massage. If the Herxheimer Reaction is especially strong, colonics might be a good idea. The idea is to get the toxins, which have been released by the protocols, out of the body. Faster is better. You don't want to release toxins from the tissues and then have them still circulating in the body, looking for an exit. Create exits! The faster the toxins exit the body, the less intense the healing crisis, as the Herxheimer Reaction is caused from a die-off of toxins still trapped in the body.

So, while West Coasters are ramping up on radioactivity protocols in response to the Fukushima crisis, they are also, in effect, detoxifying. My friend, Susan, reported refreshed energy levels and a more optimistic outlook, in spite of her uncomfortable healing crisis. If others, like her, can just make it through the discomfort of the Herxheimer Reaction, they may experience a whole new level of health and well-being. Fukushima continues to be a disaster and a grave health risk for the whole world. If, however, it facilitates a move toward detoxification, then there is a small silver lining in an overall grim situation.

Original posting: http://www.naturalnews.com/032046_radiation_detoxification.html

About the author:
Sherry L. Ackerman, Ph.D., is a socially engaged philosopher and cultural sustainability advocate. Her new book, The Good Life: How to Create a Sustainable and Fulfilling Lifestyle explores critical issues from this perspective. At the end of each chapter is a list of things that you can do to create a more sustainable, healthier lifestyle. For more information: http://www.sherryackerman.com/

Europeans warned to avoid drinking milk or eating vegetables due to high radiation levels

by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger

The radiation risk from Fukushima is "no longer negligable," says CRIIRAD, the French research authority on radioactivity. It is now warning expectant mothers and young children to avoid drinking milk or rainwater. They should also avoid certain types of vegetables and cheese due to the dangerously high levels of radiation they may contain thanks to the radioactive fallout spreading across the globe.

CRIIRAD now says that eating these items qualifies as "risky behavior." And yet, in practically the same sentence, the organization claims there is "absolutely no need" for anyone to take iodine tablets.
That's right: There's so much radiation in the food that you probably shouldn't eat it. But all that radiation is so harmless that you don't need to protect yourself from it with iodine. It's amazing how these people think they can have it both ways.

The institute goes on to say that drinking rainwater might be dangerous, but standing in the rain is perfectly safe. There's actually some sense to this, as ingesting radioactive water is indeed far more dangerous than merely being drenched in it. But U.S. nuclear authorities make no such distinction, by the way.

Here comes the mass irradiation of the food supply

Despite these warnings, the real issue that few are willing to acknowledge so far is that Fukushima fallout will continue for many more months. And during this fallout, there will be a cumulative load of radiation raining down upon the grasses, fruits and vegetables that make up the global food supply. How high those levels get is anyone's guess, and those animals that feed upon those grasses -- such as cattle, goats and sheep -- will tend to further concentrate the radioactivity, producing milk and meat products that are far more radioactive than the grasses upon which they fed.

This is a very sad circumstance, of course, because it means that the corn-fed, factory-farmed cattle will probably be LESS radioactive than the open-range grass-fed cattle whose beef products are usually far better for you. Although I'm not personally someone who consumes beef, I'm a big supporter of those who choose grass-fed beef over the corn-fed factory farmed beef.

Bring your Geiger counter to the fresh produce section

What I'm beginning to wonder in all this, however, is how high the radioactivity of the entire food supply is going to become. Are we looking toward a day when we have to being Geiger counters to the grocery store?

Will we soon have two bins of apples at the store called "Pre-Fukushima" and "Post-Fukushima?"
And for all those people who have already stored food, good for you! All the food you stored before Fukushima is obviously not radioactive, and there may come a day when non-radioactive food commands a huge price premium.

For those still looking to acquire and store non-radioactive healthy foods, check out http://www.storableorganics.com/ where you can find organic foods and superfoods sealed in steel cans for long-term emergency preparedness. The entire inventory there is "Pre-Fukushima," by the way.
For those who haven't stored any food, you might start thinking about what you're going to eat if Fukushima suffers yet another explosion and a massive cloud of radioactive isotopes gets dropped onto the food production lands of the world. This situation will only get worse before it gets better.

And sadly, even growing your own food is no solution to all this, because your own gardens are just as susceptible to radiation fallout as commercial crop lands. Only those who grow food in greenhouses will be largely protected from the fallout. Maybe it's a good time to buy some sprouting seeds, too, because you can sprout seeds in your own kitchen and grow them free of radiation. In just 3 days, you can turn a pile of seeds into a nutritious sprout salad. Add some avocado and balsamic vinegar and you have a delicious lunch!

Original posting: http://www.naturalnews.com/032050_radioactive_food_nuclear_radiation.html

About the author: Mike Adams is a natural health author and award-winning journalist with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He is a prolific writer and has published thousands of articles, interviews, reports and consumer guides, impacting the lives of millions of readers around the world who are experiencing phenomenal health benefits from reading his articles. Adams is a trusted, independent journalist who receives no money or promotional fees whatsoever to write about other companies' products. In mid 2010, Adams produced NaturalNews.TV, a natural health video sharing website offering user-generated videos on nutrition, green living, fitness and more. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also the founder of a well known HTML email software company whose 'Email Marketing Director' software currently runs the NaturalNews subscription database. Adams also serves as the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a non-profit consumer protection group, and regularly pursues cycling, nature photography, Capoeira and Pilates.