New Kind of Gardening Technique

Good Morning! I was just doing some morning reading when I came across a website that details a new kind of gardening which provides greater yields and is more eco-friendly! It is called Forest Gardening. Now, it is still new to me, but it looks like it is a great form of gardening.

If we really want to help the environment, I think it is imperative that a large portion of people begin, sustainable, natural home gardening. I think Forest Gardening can provide just that! It is supposed to work by mimicking the ecosystems of forests, but since I am new to the system, I will give you the definition of forest gardening the website gives:

Edible forest gardening is the art and science of putting plants together in woodlandlike patterns that forge mutually beneficial relationships, creating a garden ecosystem that is more than the sum of its parts.

I plan on thoroughly perusing the website and maybe buying the books to better educate myself and you, the reader, about this form of gardening and how it can effect you, your offspring, and the environment.

But for now, I have learned one tip that will help Gardeners everywhere get better plants. Dissolve sea salt or Himalayan salt in pure water(maybe spring water) in a glass jar, and keep adding salt until it just barely dissolves --with a few salt crystals floating. And then, feed it to your plants, that will help restore minerals to the plants and soil.

Evironmentally Friendly Products

Recently, I have come across a product that I think will be helpful in being environmentally friendly. Now don't get me wrong, I do not hold to the Global Warming ideology; however, I do think it is important to be clean living and to be environmentally friendly.

Before I tell you about this product, I just want everyone to know that I am not, have not, and will not be payed or reimbursed for blogging about this or any other products. I am blogging about it because I think it is important to promote such a product to help people live more healthfully and environmentally friendly.

The product is the eco-friendly Bodhi Soap Nuts. This is a ground-breaking new way to get clean laundry, naturally, without the harsh chemicals. These nuts have been used in India for hundreds of years for the expressed purpose of getting naturally clean clothes. It comes from a tree known as the Chinese soapberry tree, it is bio-degradable (you can simply throw it on your compost heap after your done with them), and best of all it does not have carcinogens, skin irritation chemicals, or any such harmful chemicals that are harmful to the body and the environment. I have not tried them yet, but from what I have read, they seem to be the real deal. Mike Adams of Truth Publishing wrote a good review of Bodhi Soap Nuts, and from other reviews, this product seems great! I think this is a must in every household, and it would help the environment and preserve health.

Food prices

I was watching a commercial advertising a Big Mac for about 59 cents, and frankly, I was disgusted. Not the burger drizzled in trans fats, or the unhealthy bun, or the unholy amount of calories in the meal. What disturbed me the most was the idea that such un-nutritious can be so cheap.

Fast food and processed food of this kind are so inexpensive and available to the public at large that I think it is unfair. It makes the food in local co-ops or at Whole Foods seem like it isn’t worth the money! It also makes making wise food choices next to impossible – with such low prices, why buy organic alternatives? It sets the poor and uneducated up with poor health, keeping the cycle of obesity and health problems at their current and distressing position.

I am against senseless litigation, unfair law, and all that, and I feel this society is entirely too litigious, but I think it should be illegal to make these kinds of foods (and I use that term loosely). It’s unfair that you can get two burgers at some seedy fast-food joint for less than a dollar, yet healthful foods such as raw milk, organic fresh vegetables and fruit, organic whole grains, etc. are comparatively very expensive.

It just doesn’t seem right.

Featured Website of the Week

I did a post a week or so ago about my new-found respect for Traditional Chinese Medicine and medicinal Chinese herbs. So it seems only natural that I post as my featured website of the week the website, Plant Cures.

I have been trying for months to find a non-conventional method of getting rid of uterine fibroids for a friend. The conventional method (hysterectomy) was very troubling to me because I know that method would cause undue hormonal imbalances. I also learned recently that hysterectomies contribute to osteoporosis, so I definitely did not want my friend to got through that kind of heartache.

I was so elated to find this website! It has so much wonderful information, and a lot of good herbs that help with many problems. I am especially interested in the He Shou Wu, because it helps get rid of gray hairs and generally makes you healthier.

I hope you, the reader, finds this website useful to your many needs, it certainly has helped me.

I knew it!!

photo by Mike Adams of http://www.naturalnews.com
photo URL: http://www.naturalnews.com/cartoons/wheel-of-salmonella_600.jpg

Whilst perusing the articles on Natural news, I came across Mr. Mike Adams latest satirical drawing (very entertaining by the way) which I have posted above. The ensuing commentary beneath the cartoon struck me the most. It solidifies a long held fear that this whole tomato-salmonella non-sense was merely an attempt by FDA big-wigs to push food irradiation (which is essentially the process of nuking your food).

They create a problem (or simply not reveal the true source of the problem), make people sick, people demand something be done, the FDA mandates all produce be irradiated, and thus ends any semblance of health this nation once had.

I think people need to get over their fear of germs and bacteria. We live in an environment that is teaming with bacteria and viruses, there is no way to escape it! If you isolate yourself from all the germs, all you are going to end up with are immensely sick people. That is what is happening in the United States, I believe. I used to be a huge "germophobe", but I have since changed my ways and adopted a more mature relationship with bacteria. Bacteria is not bad if your Immune System is good, and your Immune System will not be good unless you expose yourself to bacteria and viruses.

More importantly than the general public resolving their fear of bacteria and germs, the Health Organizations need to wake up, or stop their fear-mongering, or some combination of both.

All in all, I had a stinking suspicion about the motives behind scaring the public into a tizzy about salmonella poisoning, and though there haven't been any admissions or calls for massive food irradiation, I think that in the coming weeks, we will see more of that.

New Poll

Since the poll, 'Would (Do) You Drink Raw Milk', has concluded, with most (57%) of the 66 people who voted choosing drinking raw milk over not drinking raw milk, I am going to take that poll down and put up a new one.

The next poll is entitled, 'What is Your Favorite Form of Exercise?', and in this poll you will be able to select more than one answer. I came up with this poll because I am going to be emphasizing the importance of diet and exercise, a combination that often gets overlooked. So I want to get your opinion on what you like to do for exercise.

Have at it!

Update on Poll

Well everyone, the poll is just about to close and the results are still showing favor towards drinking raw milk, with the numbers showing 57% for drinking raw milk, 42% against drinking raw milk. 66 people weighed in on the subject.

The poll will close in approximately 32 minutes.

More later...

Chinese Herbs

For a while now, I have been trying to shy away from herbs because like many, I thought that herbal medicine is just some form of quackery. But lately, I have been reversing my position.

I read this article on Natural News that peaked my attention. First, I was reading about the Schizandra Berry and its many "adaptogenic" effects. I can't really with any intelligence begin to describe the ins and outs of this herb, but from what I've read, it is very potent and can help with most problems.

I also have been reading about how Chinese medicine has been far ahead of Western Medicine for centuries.

I will bring more information as I get it, so stay tuned...

Featured Website of the Week

This week, I have selected a website that is very relevant to one of the main health concerns in the United States: vaccination. I personally don't approve of vaccination, especially of newborns, and I thought this website would be very informative and helpful to any and all struggling with whether or not to vaccinate there children. It takes a lot of courage and questioning, especially since you may encounter hostility from your pediatrician/doctor, but it is well worth it -- your life and the lives of your children are far more important than the snippy remarks of any doctor/pediatrician.

Anyway, here is the web address: http://www.vaclib.org/dd

As I have begun to learn, vaccines are responsible for far more than just Autism, they are responsible also for SIDS(Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), behavioral problems, learning disabilities, and some times death. This website shines a light on these and other effects of vaccines and it would be wise to peruse all of its insightful articles. Enjoy!

The Worst Part About the Natural Health Movement

It was 4 years ago when my entire view of health, nutrition, and medicine turned around. Before 2004, I could eat anything and not think twice about; I could just not have to worry too much about reading labels. Before that time, I knew next to nothing about natural health, good nutrition, and frankly, I shared the same prejudiced and biased view of those in the natural health community - that they were all a bunch of quacks who were just trying to stir things up. Before that fateful year, when everything was so uncomplicated, high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, GMO's, pesticides didn't exist or matter, that was for other people to debate about - not me.

Who knew a simple 30-minute infomercial could change a whole life? It was a Sunday, at around 8am, before Meet the Press, I saw with my brothers and dad an infomercial about a new and controversial book: Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You To Know About by Kevin Trudeau. Its amazing that before that very moment, I was as ignorant and unknowing as the next person. It made me see life as it was then, and life as it could be.

After watching the infomercial, buying and reading the book, I was able to see this whole new world of health that offered more answers than I could imagine. The book made me research, it made me want to learn, it made me grow. But it also made me stressed, and it made me worry about things that I could change. I began to worry about everything: how many vegetables me and me family were not eating, how little nutrients we actually were getting, the almost non-existent exercise I was getting. Everything was magnified, and every thing that went into my mouth came under intense scrutiny. Whether it was pizza, ice cream, cookies: whatever it was, it received a lot of attention and a lot of thought. Even today, thoughts of the unfair treatment the natural health movement has received in the media - from snide episodes of Seinfeld to the propaganda of main stream media - can keep me up for hours at night and keep me from sleeping.

The unending stress and worry the I feel is well worth it, however. I have learned so much in my 4 years of study, and I was really blessed by God to have been able to learn the things I have, done the things I have done, and been able to help myself and my family to become healthier and ultimately, happier. I now know how to keep my future family happy and healthy, and I am still learning about that every day. But I have developed a deep love for learning all about true health and nutrition, and not just what I see on The Today Show. I hope I am able to spread the word as much as I can about natural health, and I hope to join the many natural health practitioners myself by becoming a naturopathic nutritionist, so in the end, all the stress, all the hardship, all the heart ache was well worth it.

Since the book was published, many have sought to discredit it and make it seem like Kevin Trudeau is a fraud. As if all the things he said in the book were false. Whether or not he is a fraud, I cannot judge; however, I can discern that most of what he said was true, and that he did a good work by exposing millions to the world of Alternative Medicine, offering many answers that conventional medicine has suppressed and kept from the public. So what is the worst part about the Natural Health Movement? -- the stress that comes with being so health-conscious, but being so health-conscious is also what makes it great because you reap the benefits of your concern.

At any rate, I want to say once more that I am so very grateful to God and all the answers he has given and also for all of his wonderful creations.

Featured Website of the Week

This week's featured website is really a series of websites which I think are really important. These sites give gardeners tools to grow natural, bio-diverse foods. Reading through these websites and looking at all of the plants their seeds produce was truly fascinating! I never knew there were so many varieties of corn, tomatoes, broccoli, pumpkins, cucumbers, beans, etc. So I am really excited to blog about these sites because it is truly educational to discover just how many varieties of plants there are, and how we are missing out by buying the conventional versions of these plants. Furthermore, I think that with websites like these, we can fight back at companies like Monsanto by simply growing our own healthy, non-GMO foods; preserve the environment; and retain the bio-diversity of our favorite vegetation.

These Foods are:
1. Seed Savers Exchange
2. Amishland Heirloom Seeds
3. Heirloom Acres Seeds
4. Victory Heirloom Seeds

All of these websites supply a wide variety of different seeds and different kinds of plants, mostly organic. As an aspiring gardener, I will definitely utilize these sources for getting organic, truly non-GMO plants more so than the conventional seeds sold in stores.

These next few websites are really just for those who get these seeds and need to save them for the next season and to preserve this unique type of plant. This seed saving advice doesn't seem too difficult and it is very much worth it.
1. International Seed Saving Institute
2. Healthy & Green Living

I like to look at these websites, and those like them, as tools to better then evironment and improve health. Who knows what little wonders lie in the different variations of our favorite vegetables? Or even what different, more bio-available variations of vitamins and minerals are in these kinds of vegetables? Forget conventional seeds! Go with Heirlooms!

Update on Poll

As the days get closer to the closing of this poll, I just wanted to keep all abreast of how it is coming along. 58% out of 51 votes has come down in favor of drinking raw milk. There are only 19 days remaining in this poll, so I hope everyone will express their opinions and put their two cents in.

Whether you agree with it or not, I'd still like to hear what's your take on raw milk.

Lately, I have been reading the many benefits of raw milk, and many are hailing it as the perfect food. It contains most, if not all, of the essential nutrients required for life, provides a favorable balance between the Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids, has lots of good protein, and supports a healthy lifestyle. It also contains very important friendly-bacteria that facilitates gastrointestinal health and basically keeps your gut feeling healthy.

I know this isn't stone-cold science, but from my personal experiences, raw milk has helped greatly improved my gastrointestinal health. I used to have these monster stomach aches like 3-4 times a week, leaving me bent over and needing to lie down (I suspected that I may becoming lactose intolerant or may have even had ulcerative colitis). Ever since I began drinking raw milk, I haven't had those pains since, so it gets my stamp of approval!

Additionally, raw goats milk, and possibly raw sheep milk, can be a healthy alternative to dangerous soy formulas when breast feeding is just not possible or practical. Since raw goats milk is more similar to human milk, babies can better tolerate it than raw cows milk and the conventional varieties. (see this article for some evidence http://www.mybodyhistemple.com/mbht/atn/babies.html)

With these facts in mind and my little anecdote, just keep these themes in mind.