Man blowing his nose, fighting off Spring Allergies

Spring Allergy Guide

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allergy pic

SPRING ALLERGY GUIDE

If you suffer with seasonal allergies you know springtime brings challenges!  Sneezing, itchy eyes, congestion, and fatigue during the spring are symptoms many allergy sufferers are familiar with.  They are also signs that your body could use support as allergies are a barometer for the overall strength of your immune system.  The heavier the immune burden, the more “allergic” a person tends to be and more strongly they may experience the symptoms.  Working on up regulating the immune system will help to build strength and decrease a person’s sensitivity to their natural environment.   Additionally, since the liver is responsible for clearing histamines in the body, eating foods that support the liver will increase your ability to clear out the histamines and offer symptom sufferers the relief they so desire.  Here are some tips to help you through allergy season.

  1. Avoid over the counter allergy medications.  They suppress symptoms instead of addressing the root cause of the problem.
  2. Avoid pro-inflammatory foods.  Major culprits are dairy, sugar, gluten, and refined carbohydrates.
  3. Increase anti-inflammatory foods.  Ex: foods high in omega 3 fatty acids, leafy greens, blueberries, fermented vegetables, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and green tea.
  4. Incorporate local honey in to your diet all year long.
  5. Eat an overall diet that includes protein with each meal and good fats such as olive oil, coconut oil, butter, seeds, and nut butters.
  6. Reduce stress and increase rest.
  7. Minimize exposure to known allergens.  Avoid mold and mildew.  Shower after being outdoors on high pollen days.
  8. Stay hydrated. Drink half your weight in ounces per day.
  9. Talk with Dr. Shaw about whole food and homeopathic supplement options.

 

SUPPLEMENT OPTIONS:

Dr. Shaw likes to use Antronex, Allerplex, and Allergy homeopathy spray for patients suffering with allergy symptoms.  Talk with her today to see what she would recommend for you.

 

Photo of water bottles

Think Before You Drink…Fiji Water

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I am not a fan of plastic bottled water as a rule for several reasons:
1) Cost
2) There are no purity standards
3) Plastic leaches into the water and contributes to the severe hormonal imbalances found in a majority of Americans
4) The enviromental impact of bottling and shipping water all over the world
5) It is one of the major contributors (plastic bags being the other) to the plastic waste problem that the world is facing along with the Eastern Garbage Patch that is already the size of Texas found in the Pacific Ocean

Now I have one more to add after reading this article on the irreparable damage that the Fiji Water Company is doing to the island of Fiji, the people and the environment.

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/24/tale-of-fiji-water-too-familiar-sounds-like-industrial-colonial/

A good way to make sure that you and your family have clean, environmentally responsible drinking water is distillation. You can find countertop distillers on Amazon.com or Gaiam.com. They require a investment of $200-$400 which is easily made back with avoiding plastic bottled water.
Distillaton removes

  • Bacteria, viruses & other microorganisms
  • Fluoride, sodium, nitrates and other soluable inorganic salts
  • Organic chemicals like pesticides, PCBs, THMs
  • Radionuclides
  • Heavy metals such as lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, etc.
  • Soluable minerals such as calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, etc.

What distillation does not remove are gases and volatile organic compounds but this is easily remedied by incorporating a carbon filter which most countertop distillers have.
It is important to note that most distillation does require electricity so a easy way to minimize your electric bill is to run it over night. Using glass or stainless steel bottles to store the distilled water in the refrigerator allows for busy families to grab and go.

The controversy that is brought up over distilled water is that is devoid of minerals…which is true but the claim that ingesting distilled water will leach minerals out of the body is false. Once distilled water hits our stomach it mixes with our stomach juices and immediately loses its leaching abilities.

An easy solution to make your distilled water into absorbable mineral water…a few grains of brown rice in your water bottle!

 

If we are going to claim to be “GREEN”, we have start speaking with our money and skipping the bottled water, especially Fiji Water, is a good start.

The Problem with Plastic Bags

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The plastic bags we get at the grocery store, office supply store, electronic store, etc., will exist on earth for 1,000 years before decomposing. The bags’ petroleum-based plastic contaminate the environment and the food chain.

-September 2007 San Francisco banned plastic bags

-July 2010 Los Angeles will ban plastic shopping bags from stores

-China put a nationwide ban on plastic bags beginning June 1st, 2008 saving China 37 millions barrels of oil a year

-Bangladesh already bans plastic bags along with 30 remote Alaskan villages

-South Africa, Ireland & Taiwan tax shoppers or charge fees on companies that distribute plastic bags

Not only do plastic bags cause environmental dangers and use valuable oil, they are dangerous to our bodies. Exposure to plastics whether it is through the food chain or in our environment, is disruptive to our hormones acting like estrogen in our bodies. Estrogen-like compounds called xenohormones are one of the main reasons for the high numbers of breast & prostate cancer, infertility, PMS, precocious puberty, and problems with gall bladder, thyroid and adrenal glands.

You can make a big impact on your health and your environment by getting plastic bags out of your life