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Monday

9 Reasons To Stop Drinking Any Kind of Pasteurized Milk


Raw milk contains vast amounts of nutrients including beneficial bacteria such as lactobacillus acidolphilus, vitamins and enzmes, and only a very modest source of calcium (if left unpasteurized).
To understand what heat does to a good bacteria, we need to know about its structure. A bacterium is a single-celled organism. Think of it like a studio apartment, one room containing all the things a person needs to live: food, water, air. The walls of the apartment enclose the electrical wiring and gas pipes that deliver energy, along with the sewage pipes that get rid of waste products. In contrast to the size of this single-celled organism, even an animal as small as a mouse would be like a huge city with thousands of buildings and extensive infrastructure to keep it “alive.”
When the temperature gets hot enough, the enzymes in the bacterium are denatured, meaning they change shape. This change renders them useless, and they’re no longer able to do their work. The cell simply ceases to function.
Heat can also damage the bacterium’s cell envelope. Proteins and fatty acids making up the envelope lose their shape, weakening it. At the same time, fluid inside the cell expands as the temperature rises, increasing the internal pressure. The expanding fluid pushes against the weakened wall and causes it to burst, spilling out the guts of the bacterium.
Pasteurization constitutes one of the milder forms of thermal processing. Ultra-high temperature and sterilization methods kill all microorganisms in the food, while milder heat treatments like thermization and pasteurization only kill some of them. Why not use a higher temperature if it will kill more pathogens? The answer is that higher temperatures change the characteristics of the food.
At higher temperatures, as with Ultra High Temperature Pasteurization, several things happen to milk that make it less desirable to consumers:
High-Temp Pasteurization - Milk is heated to 161F for 31 seconds in order to sterilize the milk. The problem is that this also kills enzymes, much of the healthy microorganisms, and more importantly it denatures the proteins. Essentially, high-temp pasteurization kills the milk and makes it much more difficult for your body to digest. This can typically lead to inflammatory bowel disease, among others.
Ultra-Pasteurized - This is the majority of our milk today, what you would typically find in a grocery store. Ultra-pasteurization heats the milk to 280F for only a few seconds. The reason for using ultra-pasteurization is because it kills everything. Ultra pasteurization not only kills potentially harmful bacteria in the milk, but also damages all of the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients originally contained in the milk. This process also kills the healthy enzymes which help your body digest the milk, and drinking it without the enzymes can lead to lactose intolerance.
Low-Temp Pasteurization - Milk is only heated to 145F. This is significant because it’s below the temperature that kills most of the beneficial enzymes and the proteins remain in-tact. The main downside to low-temp pasteurization is that some of the enzymes and probiotics can be damaged. But, by culturing (fermenting it with good bacteria) this dairy and making yogurt, kefir or amasai, many of those probiotics are added back. This also improves the digestibility of the dairy. Low-temp is the closest to raw milk products most of us in the US can get.
Most cow’s milk has measurable quantities of herbicides, pesticides, dioxins (up to 200 times the safe levels), up to 52 powerful antibiotics, blood, pus, feces, bacteria and viruses.

9 REASONS TO STOP DRINKING PASTEURIZED MILK

1) Pasteurization Used To Mask Low-Quality Milk

Heat destroys a great number of bacteria in milk and thus conceals the evidence of dirt, pus and dirty dairy practices. It’s cheaper to produce dirty milk and kill the bacteria by heat, that to maintain a clean dairy and keep cows healthy. To combat the increase in pathogens milk goes through ‘clarification’, ‘filtering’, ‘bactofugation’ and two ‘deariation’ treatments. Each of these treatments uses heat ranging from 100-175 degrees Fahrenheit. Dairies count on many heat treatments to mask their inferior sanitary conditions: milk filled with pus, manure and debris. Consumer Reports found 44% of 125 pasteurized milk samples contained as many as 2200 organisms per cubic centimeter (fecal bacteria, coliforms)

2) Pasteurization Destroys Nutrients

It destroys vitamin C, and damages water soluble B vitamins diminishing the nutrient value of milk. Calcium and other minerals are made unavailable by pasteurization. The Maillard reaction, a chemical reaction between proteins and sugars, occurs at higher heats and causes browning, discoloring the milk.

3) Pasteurization Destroys Enzymes

Milk enzymes, proteins, antibodies as well as beneficial hormones are destroyed by pasteurization resulting in devitalized ‘lifeless’ milk. Milk enzymes help digest lactose and both enzymes and milk proteins help to absorb vitamins. Protective enzymes in milk are inactivated, making it more susceptible to spoilage.

4) Causes Asthma

Pasteurized milk causes asthma, and as a result doctors prescribe a diet without pasteurized dairy products. Milk triggers asthma by destabilizing MAST cells, which release histamines that cause inflammation, mucus production and bronchial spasm. Pasteurized milk is a partial food product that is missing digestive enzymes and nearly all of its beneficial bacteria. Pasteurized milk (with rare exceptions) comes from cows fed a ration based on corn and soy rather than pasture and forage. Pasteurization warps and distorts fragile proteins, making them allergenic. Unpasteurized milk is the opposite and heals and prevents asthma by stabilizing MAST cells and reducing inflammation as shown by dramatic lowering of C-reactive protein levels. Unpasteurized milk rebuilds immunity by allowing the safe consumption of biodiversity in our diets. These bacteria then re-colonize the gut and become our immune protective and digestive ecosystem armies.

5) Allergenic and Disease Causing Food

Cow’s milk is the number one allergic food in this country. The milk of each of the over 4,700 mammals on earth is formulated specifically for that species. There are special lactoferrins and immunoglobulins (cow specific immunizing stuff) that in humans serve as allergens. It has been well documented as a cause in diarrhea, cramps, bloating, gas, gastrointestinal bleeding, iron-deficiency anemia, skin rashes, atherosclerosis, and acne. It is the primary cause of recurrent ear infections in children. It has also been linked to insulin dependent diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, infertility, and leukemia. The protein lactalbumin, has been identified as a key factor in diabetes (and a major reason for NOT giving cows milk to infants). 89% of America’s dairy herds have the leukemia virus. Cows diagnosed with Johne’s Disease have diarrhea, and heavy fecal shedding of bacteria. This bacteria becomes cultured in milk, and is not destroyed by pasteurization. Occasionally, the milk-borne bacteria will begin to grow in the human host, and the results are irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn’s Disease.

6) Kills Bone Density

The dairy industy has been hard at work the last 50 years convincing people that pasteurized dairy products such as milk or cheese increases bioavailable calcium levels. This is totally false. The pasteurization process only creates calcium carbonate, which has absolutely no way of entering the cells without a chelating agent. So what the body does is pull the calcium from the bones and other tissues in order to buffer the calcium carbonate in the blood. This process actually causes osteoporosis. Pasteurized dairy contains too little magnesium needed at the proper ratio to absorb the calcium. Most would agree that a minimum amount of Cal. to Mag Ratio is 2 to 1 and preferably 1 to 1. So milk, at a Cal/Mag ratio of 10 to 1, has a problem. You may put 1200 mg of dairy calcium in your mouth, but you will be lucky to actually absorb a third of it into your system. Over 99% of the body’s calcium is in the skeleton, where it provides mechanical rigidity. Pasteurized dairy forces a calcium intake lower than normal and the skeleton is used as a reserve to meet needs. Long-term use of skeletal calcium to meet these needs leads to osteoporosis. Dairy is pushed on Americans from birth yet they have one of the highes risk of osteoporosis in the world. The test for pasteurization is called the negative alpha phosphatase test. When milk has been heated to 165 degrees (higher for UHT milk) and pasteurization is complete, the enzyme phosphatase is 100 percent destroyed. Guess what? This is the enzyme that is critical for the absorption of minerals including calcium! Phosphatase is the third most abundant enzyme in raw milk and those who drink raw milk enjoy increased bone density. Several studies have documented greater bone density and longer bones in animals and humans consuming raw milk compared to pasteurized.

7) Antibiotic Effectiveness

Pasteurization killed antibiotic effectiveness for all of us. By creating a commodity dairy market system that relies heavily on antibiotics fed to heifers and dry cows at CAFO (Confined Animal Feeding Operation) mega dairies to support massive milk production, the antibiotics now used in American hospitals for humans no longer work. Tens of thousands of Americans now die each year because of superbugs created by CAFO antibiotic abuse. MRSA and VRA drug resistance is now a major cause of death and there are fewer and sometimes no antibiotics left to kill the bad bugs and save human lives. FDA has conceded antibiotic use in farm animals must be phased out but refuses an outright ban or limit of the use of antibiotics in CAFO feed and instead testifies in defense of antibiotic use by the CAFO industry.

8) Cancer Fuel 

Of the almost 60 hormones, one is a powerful GROWTH hormone called Insulin- like Growth Factor ONE (IGF-1). By a freak of nature it is identical in cows and humans. Consider this hormone to be a “fuel cell” for any cancer… (the medical world says IGF-1 is a key factor in the rapid growth and proliferation of breast, prostate and colon cancers, and we suspect that most likely it will be found to promote ALL cancers). IGF-1 is a normal part of ALL milk… the newborn is SUPPOSED to grow quickly! What makes the 50% of obese American consumers think they need MORE growth? Consumers don’t think anything about it because they do not have a clue to the problem… nor do most of our doctors.

9) Forces Cows Out Of Green Pastures And Into Diseased World\

Pasteurization kills cows on green pastures. Seventy-five years ago there were friendly cows on green pastures all over America. Pasteurization has effectively paved the pastures and now forces the cows to be fed soy protein concentrates and forty pounds of grain per day, along with antibiotics and hormones. These CAFO dairy feeds increase milk production to numbers never seen before in the history of earth. It is not uncommon for some CAFO dairy cows to produce twenty gallons of milk per day and be crowded into pens deep in manure with thousands of other cows. The stress of being milked up to four times per day and lying on artificial rubber beds shortens their lives to just forty months. A cow on pasture will produce much less milk (four to five gallons per day) and easily live ten years or more in true happiness and health.
Try Coconut Milk
Compared to cow’s milk coconut milk is easier to digest because the body uses 3 less enzymes for its digestion as opposed to cow’s milk. It also contains a high level of omega 3, 6 and 9 fats along with high amounts of amino acids. This excellent combination of fats and amino acids make it a complete meal in and of itself.
The high level of omega 3, 6 and 9 fats and protein in this milk are more bio-available to humans compared to all other animal fats and most vegetable fats. This bio-availability results in the body’s ability to assimilate all its nutrients.
It’s very healing to the digestive tract and even heals damage done to the system in cases of IBS, Crohn’s disease and severe malnutrition.
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Saturday

5 Signs You’re in a Toxic or Draining Relationship


“Trust your own instinct. Your mistakes might as well be your own, instead of someone else’s.” ~Billy Wilder
I call these relationships toxic because our authentic self is withered away into someone or something else—forgetting all that was natural to you in the process.
Little do we know that our desire to be agreeable and accepted is inhibiting the natural process of growth.
While some difficult relationships can open our eyes to new perspectives and expand our awareness, some obviously shut us in and hinder our development. Our intuition will alert us one way or the other. It tells us, change and growth should feel good!
It’s important to know when you’re in a toxic relationship so you can choose something better for yourself.
When I was in my toxic relationships, I ignored my intuition in favor of my logical mind, which told me that losing that person was worse than having him/her around.
But our intuition knows best; unlike our mind, its only motive is our happiness.
“Toxic” doesn’t only entail obvious damage like physical abuse, stealing, or name-calling. It also represents all the internal turmoil that results from an unhealthy relationship. I’d like to share how I learned to recognize when I was in a relationship that was not suitable for me.
These are 5 signs that you are in a typical toxic relationship:

1. It seems like you can’t do anything right.

The other person constantly puts you down as not good enough. They mock your personality, and you feel ashamed most of the time. You only feel pardoned when you take on the traits of the person doing the condemning or judging.

2. Everything is about them and hardly ever about you. 

You have feelings, too, but the other person won’t always take time to hear them deeply. You’re unable to have a genuine two-sided conversation where your opinion is heard, considered and respected. Instead of acknowledging your feelings 100%, they find a way to turn it around and make it about themselves. It seems these people particularly value having the final say.

3.  You find yourself unable to fully enjoy good moments with this person.

Every day brings another challenge. It seems as though they are always raising gripes about you or someone around you. Their attempt to control your behavior is an attempt to control your happiness and sometimes ultimately to gain a deeper hold on your willpower.

4. You’re uncomfortable being yourself around that person.

You don’t feel free to speak your mind. You have to put on a different face just to be accepted by that person. You realize you don’t even recognize yourself anymore and may even find yourself saying and doing things you don’t fully agree with just so you can not create issues with this person.

5. You’re not allowed to grow and change.

Whenever you aim to grow and improve yourself, the other person responds with mockery and disbelief. There is no encouragement or support for your efforts. Instead, they keep you stuck in old judgments insisting that you may not be able to do things on your own or with success.
If you’re experiencing even just one of these signs, check in with yourself to see if the relationship is doing more damage than good. Evaluate the relationship and what it’s worth to you.
Embrace the answers that come from your intuition, as it wants the best for you—and this relationship might not be it.
Take deliberate action according to your gut feeling. You won’t be sorry.
Maybe you choose to talk about your feelings with the other person, or you decide to put more space between the two of you.
It’s important that if you’re feeling uncomfortable or unsettled in the relationship that you not wait around until the effects of the misery settle into depression. Taking any action is the best medicine.

6 Ways to Naturally Relieve Joint Pain and Inflammation


Joint pain is typically caused by inflammation and can be severely debilitating. Here are some herbs that you can use to reduce painful joint and improve mobility.
Joint inflammation can occur as a result of having a fever, gout, suffering from fatigue, having an injury or in more severe cases if you are suffering from osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. There are several herbs which can be used to treat inflammation of the joints effectively in addition to cleansing the blood and generally improving strength.
Rheumatoid arthritis in particular is a result of an over active immune system and can be extremely disabling in chronic cases and often patients who follow mainstream medical treatments find little relief.
One of the important ways that herbs heal our bodies is by removing metabolic waste products and toxins from within our bodies. Herbs boost the cleansing abilities of our large intestines and kidneys as well as helping in lymph drainage and increasing blood flow within our organs. If these toxins are allowed to build up and circulate they can be a major cause of inflammation leading to a range of health issues of which joint pain is a major one.
Here are some natural herbs and remedies that can relieve joint pain and stiffness:

1. TURMERIC

Turmeric (also known as curcuma) is a super herb and has many health boosting properties(i) and is very effective in reducing inflammation of all kinds throughout your body. It is also a good source of pain relief.
Curcumin is believed to be the main active pharmacological agent in turmeric. In many studies, curcumin’s anti-inflammatory effects have been shown to be comparable to the potent drugs hydrocortisone and phenylbutazone as well as over-the-counter anti-inflammatory agents such as Motrin. Unlike the drugs, which are unsurprisingly associated with significant toxic effects (ulcer formation, decreased white blood cell count, intestinal bleeding), curcumin produces no toxicity in our bodies.
Additionally turmeric is recommended to people suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, cancer, and cataracts.

2. GINGER

Ginger is another potent anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic agent commonly used in Ayurvedic medicine. Studies have shown that it actually blocks the activation of inflammatory agents within the body and surpreses the important inflammatory prostaglandin E2 pathway (ii).
Other research has shown ginger can have a significant effect on reducing symptoms of osteo arthritis of the knee (iii).
(Turmeric and ginger can have a thinning effect on the blood so patients taking blood thinning medicine should first check with their health practitioners).

3. FLAX

Flaxseed is an excellent source of Omega-3 and is suitable for vegans. This is important as people with arthritis can suffer increased inflammation by eating certain animal fats. Flaxseed also boosts the immune system in turn fighting inflammation.
Do not heat or cook the seeds or the oil, as this will damage the Omega-3 and reduce it’s effectiveness. Try adding 2 tablespoons of flax seeds to your diet daily.
(Patients who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome should only use the flaxseed oil, and not the seeds themselves).

4. LICORICE

Licorice mimics your body’s own natural corticosteroids, which reduce inflammation.Glycyrrhizin is the active compound which inhibits any inflammation. Research has shown that glycyrrhizin supports the body’s natural release of cortisol, which in turn suppresses the immune system and eases pain and frequency of arthritis flare-ups (iv).
It can be taken effectively in supplement form or as a tea or tincture. Licorice is not recommended for people with high blood pressure however.

5. BURDOCK ROOT

Essential fatty acids are a great way of relieving joint pain. Burdock root is a rich source of a range of fatty oils making it an efficient anti-inflammatory treatment. Studies have shown its effectiveness as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibacterial agent (v).
It can be taken as a pill based supplement, made into a tea or tincture.

6. ANTI-INFLAMMATORY FOODS

Many common foods can be effective in the reduction swelling and joint inflammation. Regular consumption of omega-3 rich foods such as nuts and fatty fish, such as salmon, can significantly help reduce symptoms. Additional anti-inflammatory foods are onions, garlic, kelp, parsley, mustard, horseradish, blueberries, watercress, celery and lemons.
Many essential oils can also be used to reduce joint pain and inflammation and careful low impact excercise can help also.
via naturalcuresnotmedicine

Friday

9 Quick Tips on How to Play Poker

Poker is currently undergoing a surge in popularity, due in part to its prominence on television and popularity with celebrities. Want to join the fun? It's easy to get started. Here's an approachable overview of how to play 5 Card Draw, Texas Hold'em, and some basic strategies you can use. Once you get the hang of it, you can easily adapt to playing other variations (described below) and improve your poker skills through practice.
1
Understand the basics of poker. Poker is usually played with a standard 4-suit 52-card deck. The ace normally plays high, but can sometimes play low. A joker or other wild cards may be added. At the showdown, those players still remaining compare their hands according to the hand rankings. Suits are not used to break ties, nor are cards beyond the fifth; only the best five cards in each hand are used in the comparison. In the case of a tie, the pot is split equally among the winning hands.
  • Wild cards introduce an additional hand, five of a kind, which normally ranks above a straight flush. When a joker is in play, it usually can only be used as an ace or to complete a straight or flush. It cannot be used as a true wild card.
2
Become familiar with poker hand variations. The person who wins is the person with the highest-valued hand. You can't win if you don't know which hands will take the pot. If two players have hands with the same value (e.g. two full houses) or no one has a winning hand, then the player with the highest value card in their hand wins (Ace is highest). Print out a ranking of the poker hands and memorize the hands.
3
Chip in. Place an "ante" (pronounced ant-ee) or "token bet" (pronounced token bet) into the pot (usually a spot at the center of the table, although you can use a pot if you wish). Every player places an equal amount of whatever your currency (poker chips, nickels, bills, car keys...). Whoever wins takes it all.
4
Deal or be dealt with. After shuffling (showing off) the dealer distributes the cards face down starting with the player to his or her immediate left and continuing clockwise, one card at a time, until everyone has five cards. The deck is placed in the middle of the table.
5
Look at your cards while everyone else looks at theirs. This is the time to evaluate how strong your hand is. Beginner players usually end up showing how strong their hand is with what is known as a tell. Some tells include; shallow breathing, lack of or too much eye contact, facial muscle flexes, etc. Trying to reduce these tells will give you a better chance. Keep your "poker face".
6
Take turns. The first person to make a call is usually the player on the dealer's left (who was dealt the first card). That player can open (place the first bet) or check(pass the decision onto the next player). Once the pot is opened, meaning that a player bets a certain amount (e.g. places a nickel in the pot), all of the people who already had their turns have two options:
  • See or call - Stay in the game by putting the equivalent amount in the pot.
  • Fold - Quit the game by putting your cards face down on the table; whatever you put in the pot stays in the pot.
  • After they've made their choices, everyone who still has a turn will have those options, plus an additional one:
  • Raise - Stay in the game by putting more than the last person put in the pot.
  • If someone raises, then everyone who already had a turn must see or fold again. Then the next person has their turn.
7
Draw. Once everyone has had a turn (even if everyone checked) get rid of up to three cards you don't want and have them replaced. This is done in turns, again beginning with the player on the dealer's left and going clockwise. Choose the cards that you don't think will help you gain a winning hand. You might get rid of three cards, or you might keep them all. If you do get rid of cards, put them face down on the table so no one sees what you had.
8
Go through another round of betting. As before, the first player can either open or check, and the checking can continue until someone opens, after which players can see, raise or fold. More people will start to fold once they realize their weak hand isn't worth the bet.
9
Expose your cards. Everyone turns their cards over to see who has the winning hand. Winner takes all