Where have I been?/Make friends with your breasts!

Hi everyone, I've been away, well not really. The lazy bug bit me and as you see I haven't posted since January.  But fear not, I'm in the laboratory concocting my Herbal Breast Massage Oil and working on a new label. I also have a few other things in the works. I've gotten a new resolve to continue on with this blog as well as my work  with Holistic Breast Health and Other Self Care Techniques. My heart has been burdened with all of the challenges that women face when it comes to their breast health and just health in general.

So here's a video from Dr. Tenpenny. She's a foremost authority on holistic health, and has extensive information on vaccine awareness. Get a pen and paper. She gives us a short list of supplements that target breast health.

I had my mammogram and thermography info

So I had my mammogram. Just the thought of this machine gives me the "hebbie jebbies"! But I got through it and received my letter five days later saying they were pleased to inform me that the results of my mammogram exam were normal. Whew! There's got to be a better way....well actually there is. I don't know about better, but another way. A way not  invasive, FDA approved, and can detect breast cancer up to 10 years before a mammogram can. Of course your insurance probably won't pay for it  (that's another discussion). I'm thinking though....maybe it will qualify under your flexible spending account and you could be reimbursed for it that way. Thermography, is digital infared imaging  based on detecting the heat produced by increased blood vessel circulation and metabolic changes associated with a tumor’s genesis and growth. Here's a link to the breast thermography website. It will lead you to a thermograpy center hopefully close to you. My goal is get to the thermography center in 2011.

Toxic Cleaning Products and Breast Health

There have been studies and growing concerns over toxic chemicals in our cleaning products and the links to breast cancer. Of course any time you hear the word  toxic you can translate that to poison. Ok, so I can point you to pages and pages of information about chemicals in the products we use and what they do to the body. Any of us in our right mind, if we really pay attention to what we have in our cabinets and use on a regular basis and line it up with the safety data we can only draw one conclusion. All of this "stuff" is bad! Some people are more sensitive than others and get reactions right away, and some don't. Those that get reactions most of the time don't realize what is causing the problem and go to the doctor with ailments and conditions and are given medication ('cause what else can a doctor do?).

Here’s a scenario, you get up in the morning, brush your teeth with toothpaste that has a warning label that reads and I quote..”If more than used for brushing is accidentally swallowed get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away”
Did you realize that the toothpaste you use says that? Did you tell your children to let you know if they swallow some because it could be poisonous? You may use mouthwash because that’s going to really get your breath springtime fresh.  Then you wash your face with soap or some sort of cleansing cream with a few ingredients you can’t pronounce or now come to realize is on the list of toxic chemicals. Use a moisturizer (chemicals), makeup, face, eyes, and lips. Then you look down and realize the sink and the toilet need cleaning right quick, so you do that with your favorite cleaners, spray with a nice air freshener and you inhale because it smells sooo good! I could go on and on, but if you go through your day and think about all of the products and chemicals you are exposed to, you will come to realize that it’s a whole heck of a lot of chemicals! And we haven’t even talked about food yet!

So back to the issue of breast health. There was a study done by The Silent Spring Institute on the use of household chemicals and the incidence of breast cancer. I want you to look all over this website. The gist of the matter in simple terms is that there are lots of chemicals that mimic estrogen (xenoestrogens) in the body. ***Estrogen is a naturally occurring female reproductive hormone. Before the body can use estrogen, it must bind to proteins called estrogen receptors.  One of the jobs of estrogen is to stimulate cell growth in breast tissue. Estrogen receptors are located there. When the estrogen fits into the estrogen receptor, the estrogen signals the cells to divide and multiply.  The estrogen cannot tell the difference between healthy cells and cancerous cells and attaches to estrogen receptors in both types of cells.  Cancer cells can multiply very rapidly and they are stimulated even more by estrogen. An over abundance of estrogen results in hormonal disruption. Then you have your breast cancers, uterine cancer, fibroid tumors, endometriosis, fibrocystic breasts, children reaching puberty too soon (you’ve seen them), decreased sex drive, foggy thinking, memory loss…the list goes on and on.

When you hear the words eco-friendly products and you think that’s just for health nuts. You may want to consider that you may not just be doing something good for the environment, but more importantly your health and the health of your loved ones.

Once upon a time it used to be expensive to buy eco-friendly cleaning products Since being “green” is like the coolest thing you can be, Clorox and companies that made the really bad stuff  have suddenly jumped on the bandwagon and and now produce non toxic cleaners as well. You can be industrious and make some of your own. There are plenty of blogs out there like Healthychild.org that can share safe, easy options for cleaning your home

Dr Oz on D

Vitamin D, Vitamin D, Vitamin D

A couple of years ago, I first learned the importance of vitamin D. The sunshine vitamin.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that promotes absorption of calcium and phosphorus

Very few foods in nature contain vitamin D. The flesh of fish (such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel) and fish liver oils are among the best sources. Exposure to the sun at least 15-60 min depending on your skin tone is the most natural way to absorb vitamin D. Come to find there are a lot of people that are low in D and come to find out I was one of those people. I asked my doctor to test me and he did without question.  My level was 25 ng/ml. It should be between 32-100ng.ml. With supplementation my last reading was 39ngml. I'm sure any doctor would say that I was within the normal  guidelines. I want mine to be optimal, so I'm striving for at least 50 ng/ml or a bit higher.

According to  health and wellness expert, Dr Christine Northrup, a study conducted by Cedric Garland and other prominent vitamin D researchers determined that women with vitamin D levels above 52 ng/ml have half the risk of developing breast cancer as those with 13 ng/ml! Someone I love dearly had thyroid cancer and her vitamin d level was 12ng/ml. That was a convincing correlation for me to take this thing seriously. Increasing Vitamin D to optimum levels can:

• Improve bone health and prevention of osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and rickets.
• Reduce risk of heart disease, stroke, and breast, colon, and other cancers.
• Alleviate skin disorders.
• Decrease risk of autoimmune disorders, including multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes mellitus, and rheumatoid arthritis.
• Enhance mental health and lessening symptoms of seasonal affective disorder, premenstrual syndrome, and depression.

There is speculation that more cancers, autoimmune disorders etc are on the rise because of the new standards set for staying out of the sun. I'm not going to make myself an expert on how much you should take. I'll leave that to you and/or your doctor. As part of your self care, you want to make it your business to know your D levels. You will want to get vitamin d3 (cholecalciferol). I'm not going to tell you how much I take only because I don't want any flack. I will tell you that I order it from Vitacost . Do your research. I hope you look at the video above this post from one of America's favorite doctors, Dr Oz on the subject.

My Warrior Tee is In !!

As promised here is a picture of me wearing the Ford Cares Warrior in Pink Tee Shirt. I purchased a medium and although I am a medium, it's actually slightly big. I like the stretch but for those who like a tighter fitting tee shirt, you'd want to go down a size smaller than what you are. The signature pink Warrior heads are featured over a pattern of hearts across the chest, while the Symbol of the Heart is highlighted on the right arm. Made of supersoft raisin-colored jersey with the worn in texture of Burn-out material.

Sleeve copy reads: "Heart. Represents those who stand strong with loved ones who battle the disease."

With shipping and handling I paid $27.95 .$11.73 each goes to Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. They also sent me a nice bookmark, which I think I'll have laminated.

Olivia Newton John Her New CD and LIV

Grammy and Emmy award winner, Olivia Newton John has been a breast cancer "thriver" for 18 years. She credits conventional medicine and herbs, meditation and other holistic therapies for her health. Her mission is to bring awareness to breast cancer and breast health. Her website shares information about her product that helps women with their at home self breast exams. It's a device called the  LIV (be sure to click on the video link at the bottom of the page on the right to see how to use it).  She also has a new cd, Grace and Gratitude Renewed. The lyrics acknowledge a variety of belief systems including, Tibetan chants, prayers from Judaism and Islam, and a poem from St. Francis of Assisi. I'm going to buy this cd today! From what I've heard so far it's absolutely beautiful. I so appreciate the soothing, spiritual nature of the music all sung from the heart.