A Day in the Life of Jami: Thanksgiving, Viruses, Earaches, and Preventive Health Care

Sooo it's been nearly a month since I've posted.  I've wanted to, trust me, but finding the time to has been next to impossible.  I got both the boys in bed right now without passing out myself, though, so here I am.  I'm going to catch up.  I've got so much catching up to do I don't even know where to start...

In fact, I have so much to say, I think I'll break this post into two parts.  The first on being an update on life, the second one being my Paleo Thanksgiving.

So, first of all, I can say that this fall/entering into winter has not been kind to us.  We've been sick enough, and I'm sick of it!  Okay so it could be worse - Harlee is the only one who got sick this month, the rest of us are hanging in there.  But we've all had our turns!  Wednesday Harlee woke up in the middle of the night/early morning with a 101 fever and a headache.  We put a cold washcloth on his head and rubbed a bit of peppermint oil on his temples and within minutes he said his head felt better and he went back to sleep.  The next morning the fever was still there, so I gave him a FluGuard tablet (homeopathic remedy) but wasn't real sure if that would do the trick - usually those homeopathic remedies have to be used right at the first sign of symptoms.  I made up a remedy cocktail blend in his juice for him consisting of:
Childlife Multi Vitamin & Mineral
Childlife First Defense
Colloidal Silver

He will not take chewable vitamins.  I've tried all kinds, he won't do it.  So I've turned to liquids and I've been thrilled with the Childlife brand.  This was my first time trying the colloidal silver, though.  Silver is naturally antibacterial.  It's pretty amazing, really.  Have you ever heard of the Norwex cleaning products?  Their cloths have silver imbedded into the fibers.  I had a Norwex party a couple weeks ago - she smeared raw chicken on my counter.  Yeah.  Then swabbed it with a sanitation test swab from the health department to show it was, of course, unsanitary.  Then wiped it down with the cloth - no chemicals, just wet with water - and then swabbed it again: sanitary.  Amazing.  So colloidal silver is silver particles suspended in water, so you can get those same antibacterial affects internally.

I went to work and instructed Justin to dilute some oregano oil and rub it on his chest and rub Thieves oil on the soles of his feet.

On my lunch break I ran over to the Healthy Nut and bought some liquid Olive Leaf Extract (seriously everyone needs to own this stuff (though I prefer capsule form) - it's so amazing) to add to Harlee's juice and boost his system even more.

Justin and I started taking more olive leaf extract ourselves, along with Young Living's Inner Defense capsules, added to our regular daily supplements (which includes Juice Plus).  So far we've been in the clear!

Well, either it was a short-lived virus, or all the stuff I gave Harlee worked, because by evening he was all better and the next morning he was ready for Thanksgiving!

It snowed Wednesday, so I snapped a picture of our winter wonderland ♥

We went to my parents' house for an afternoon meal.  I stuffed myself like I do every year...

I was feeling crafty!

Dad and Harlee selfie

Opa and Elliot

Oma and Elliot

No tryptophan crash for us!!

Then Justin had to go to work :-P.  Yeah, gotta love his line of work.  He's a boilermaker, and basically the hall calls him whenever jobs come available and he can either take them or turn them down.  So a job came up this weekend, Thursday through Sunday, night shift, and it's kinda hard to turn that down with that kind of pay soooo he packed up the leftovers and headed out.  Same thing the next day - had dinner with his stepdad's family and headed out again.

Made one for Grandma and Papa too

Harlee playing with Cousin Claire and Uncle Kirk

He discovered the carrot cake...

Elliot getting some love from Grandma and Great-Grandma

Chilling with Great-Grandpa

By the way, Justin is prone to sinus infections and he seems to get one almost every time he starts a new job on nights.  He was hacking and carrying on Friday morning so I loaded him up with even more olive leaf extract, vitamin C, and inner defense.  I also diffused Thieves oil in the bedroom while he slept.  The hacking has since subsided and there are no signs of a sinus infection.  Horray!
 
My friend Rachael came over to keep me company Friday night, which is always fun!  Saturday my friend Kim celebrated her 30th birthday and annual chicken soup gathering, which was conveniently moved to the afternoon so Justin got to go, although it was only for a short while.  I could have blogged that night... The boys both passed out and I honestly thought about sitting down to write but found The DaVinci Code on tv and decided to watch that instead because I love that movie.

I was determined to write tonight, though.  Today (Sunday, which is now yesterday to you readers) was a rather productive day.  Justin came home around 9am and went to bed, I dropped Harlee off with Grandma, and Elliot and I went to town to pick up a few things for dinner that night.  I decided to have Paleo Thanksgiving with Rachael and Cassie after our Sunday workout, and I was super excited!  Picked up Harlee and headed back home where I managed to get a few loads of laundry done, cleaned the bathrooms, swept and mopped the floors, got all the dishes loaded in the dishwasher, vacuumed the rug, tidied up Harlee's playroom, PLUS got the chicken marinading, peeled and cut up a butternut squash, trimmed and prepped green beans, got my vegan pumpkin "cheese"cake started, all while being mom to a 3-year-old who needs help going potty, needs a toy fixed, needs the channel changed, etc., etc., AND a 4-month-old who happens to have the remains of an earache and wants to be held constantly.

How the heck I pulled all that off I have no idea.  But I got pretty much all of that done before Justin woke up at 2:30.

Earache - yeah, not fun.  Elliot had been a bit fussy for a few days and then I noticed he was rubbing his fist on his ear.  I poked around it and he fussed some more, so I put a homeopathic earache drop in it and he settled down right away.  Got him in to see our pediatric chiropractor and she looked in his ear and confirmed that yes, it was a bit red in there.  I started rubbing lavender oil around his ear (not in it - don't do that) and kept up with the homeopathic drops as well as adding in homeopathic Pulsatilla.  Within a couple days he was back to himself again and caught up on sleep.  Then I guess it must have crept back in because he was back to fussing this morning (which, again, to you readers was yesterday morning) and rubbing his ear again.  This time I texted the chiropractor and asked what else I could do and she said put a little breastmilk in his ear.  I had heard of that before... and I had heard of it actually working... so what's the harm?  I'd give it a try.  I syringed a little in his ear from what I had pumped the other day, diluted some Thieves oil and rubbed it around his ear and on the bottoms of his feet, and he was pretty content after that.  I let him play on the floor while I got a few things done (see list above), then when he fussed again I'd hold him, put lavender around his ear, and he'd fall asleep, which is when I continued on with the above list.

Cassie was kind enough to bring over a bottle of wine this evening.  As I recap my day I am amazed that I completely forgot to pop it open and toast my productivity and the fact that my sanity is still in tact...  How did I forget about it??  Crazy.

Unfortunately Rachael wasn't feeling well so she backed out, but Cassie came over with her two kids and we got in a somewhat successful workout!  By somewhat I mean we had to take a break for her son to go potty and for me to call Santa because my son was NOT behaving.  Not sure what his deal was my holy moley he was crabby.  So I got Santa on the phone and told him to put Harlee on the naughty list.  I thought that would work better than it did... no, Harlee continued on with his meltdown so we continued on with our workout and let him be.  With Elliot being fussy with his ear and wanting to be held constantly, we incorporated him into our workout and did:

5 Rounds
20 squats holding Elliot
10 burpees
10 lunges each leg holding Elliot
10 deadlifts (90lbs)


Basically we passed him back and forth - she held him and did squats while I did burpees, I held him and did lunges while she did deadlifts, so on and so forth.  All that up and down motion must have been pretty soothing to him because it lulled him to sleep, which worked perfectly - at the end of the workout I transferred him to his swing and we got on with dinner!

Cassie and I chatted about the whole Paleo thing, and our conversation gave me some ideas of what I can talk about here on the blog.  I started writing my ideas tonight, but it got so long I decided to write a separate post just for that topic!

So that's a wrap for this post.  Hope you learned something from my story about Harlee's bug and Elliot's earache!  Can't imagine rushing my kids to the doctor over things like that and possibly getting drugs to treat them.  Obviously that's necessary in some cases, but I feel like pharmaceuticals are way over-used in today's world.  Being able to treat my kids with natural remedies that don't cause harmful side-effects is definitely something I am very grateful for!

And on that note, hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

A Day in the Life of Jami: My Medicine Collection

So I was all excited about this new series... And now it's almost been a month and I haven't written another post in it.  That's what I get for being busy I guess.  I should try to schedule blogging into my day.  It can't be that hard, can it? I mean, I schedule my clients at certain times on certain days of the week, I schedule appointments for the family on my days off, I schedule working out every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday (and add in work-outs as the opportunities arise). That's just how things get done, it's scheduled in.  Aaaaand that's why my laundry piles up... Because I don't schedule it in... But we won't go there.

Justin got sick a couple days ago.  Pretty sure my mom shared it, because she had the same symptoms.  Nothing major like the virus we all got hit with awhile back, but still no fun.  He was tired and achy and whatever this was attacked the digestive system.  So that was no fun.  I got him taking homeopathic FluGuard, which I had never tried before so he was kinda my guinea pig with that one, he was taking shots of oregano (see his strep throat adventure to learn more about that), and I upped his olive leaf extract, vitamin c, and echinacea/goldenseal (good for the immune system - I should probably write a post about those). He also had a low sugar intake, as I've been trying my best to be more strict with Paleo cooking at home, and I know that helped.  Sugar weakens the immune system - it heightens your body's inflammatory response so it more or less steals all the attention from your immune system, which isn't good when you've got a bug or virus needing attention first.  I believe he recovered quicker than my mom did, and I'm fairly certain diet played a big role in that... But I pester my mom enough about needing to form clean eating habits so I won't drag it out here ;-).

In the meantime, I was diffusing Thieves oil all over the house, rubbing it on our feet each night, plus I made a cleaner in a spray bottle - I put half witch hazel and half hydrogen peroxide (I would have used rubbing alcohol but we seem to be out) with several drops of Thieves, Purification, and Oregano and sprayed it all over everything - the furniture, the bed and bedding, pillows, rugs, surfaces, everything.

All has been well.  Until Harlee and I got hit by allergies.  Our noses are like faucets, ugh it's awful.  My throat is getting scratchy because of the drainage too.  And speaking of sugar earlier, I've been bad and stole more than my fair share of Halloween candy... so I'm really not giving myself the best chance at recovering quickly.  Harlee's been good and drinking more water than juice, plus I rub RC and Raven oil blends on his chest and that seems to help clear him up.  I'm sitting here with a cup of hot jasmine green tea with honey and lemon oil.  It's my fourth cup this morning.  I've been using lavender around my nose, which seems to help but goodness gracious does it make me sleepy... I also rubbed oregano oil around my nose (diluted with coconut because it burns) to help dry things up, which also seems to help.  I'm trying to talk myself into gargling a bit of oregano oil in a shot of my tea, but I haven't done it yet.  It's horrible.  Well, it's horrible for like two minutes, then after the hellfire in your mouth and throat wears off it turns out to be a fantastic resolution to a sore throat.  And that's what I need right now.  It's getting past the hellfire part that has me stuck...

All this excitement made me decide this is a good opportunity to share my medicine drawer contents with you.  I also got several requests for that since I posted that picture of my special delivery on Facebook.  A couple weeks ago my iHerb order came in -  I swear I get way too excited about that.  I usually try to place a big bulk order every so often - all our vitamins, immune boosters, general supplements, etc.  Then when it arrives I feel like Christmas came early.

So in this box I got cod liver oil, which is a great source of Omaga-3s and DHA.  Oscillococcinum (don't ask me how to actually pronounce that) which is a great homeopathic remedy for the onset of the flu, as is the bottle of FluGuard, and after our recent bout of that I decided I should be armed in case we ever get hit again.  I also ordered some colloidal silver, which needs a post all its own.  It's a natural antibiotic, again, a great thing to have on hand in the event of a nasty virus.  There's a bottle of vitamin C, a few bottles of liquid vitamins for Harlee (he will not take chewables or gummies for some reason, so instead I put these in his cup of juice or whatever hes drinking and it's been working great.  There's also a bottle of Echinacea/Goldenseal for immune support and pau d' arco, which is also great for the immune system.

All this got added to my medicine drawer:

I'm super proud of this drawer.  It's so much easier to locate different things than it was when I used to have everything in a cabinet, but best of all it's becoming quite full with a great variety of remedies!  I've got my growing supply of essential oils in the bottom left corner (and that's not even all of them - my most frequently used ones are in the diaper bag), my most commonly used homeopathic remedies in the bottom right corner, then throughout the middle-right I've got a bunch of herbal remedies, vitamins, etc like olive leaf extract, vitamin c, echinacea, vitamin d, and so on.  I've got things in here in place of common conventional medicine cabinet items like papaya instead of Tums or Rollaids (and it works way better and tastes better, too), homeopathic eye drops and ear drops, and the multitude of essential oils play roles like lavender for wound healing (to replace Neosporin), peppermint for headaches (although we do have ibuprofen in there, that's the only conventional medicine we've got I think) and also for digestive upset for cases beyond the scope of papaya, Purification oil in place of anti-itch cream, the list goes on and on, and continues to grow as I learn more and find more!  In the back I've got replacement bottles of things like my Juice Plus and olive leaf extract and cod liver oil - basically the things I take daily as a supplement, plus the things I don't want to run out of like Harlee's vitamins and elderberry syrup, which I add in with his vitamins if it seems like he might be coming down with something or if he's been around other people who were sick.  I'm currently giving that to him with his vitamins.  The temporal thermometer is in there, a tub of coconut oil for diluting essential oils, and a bottle of witch hazel for mixing up cleaners, bug sprays, etc.  Oh I also have Little Remedies fever reducer, too, just in case.  Little Remedies seems like a good brand of products for conventional medicines without the conventional additives, so in the event of a high fever striking that my natural remedies aren't strong enough for, I've got a safe alternative.  Luckily we haven't really needed it though, as peppermint has always helped keep fevers from creeping up too high.

Ta da!  That's my collection so far!  I'll say it again, I'm quite proud of it.  It just makes me feel really good that I've got plenty of things to help us stay healthy or recover if we do get sick, while at the same time not pumping us full of harmful chemicals or risking the side effects of conventional drugs.  Justin's learning his way around the drawer too, which is great.  I'm so glad he's open to learning more about alternative medicine, and I've enjoyed watching his trust in it grow as everything we use continues to work.  We're definite in the same boat as parents - we want to keep our kids and ourselves healthy in the safest ways!

I should get back to work now - I'm off on Fridays so this is when I try to get things caught up like laundry, cleaning, and obviously blogging :) (which obviously doesn't always happen).  Have a great weekend!

Depression - Addressing it Naturally

This is a topic I've wanted to talk about for quite some time, especially considering the fact that I've dealt with it first-hand and have interacted with people dealing with it themselves.  It's not a pleasant thing to deal with, and it gets overlooked or not taken seriously enough way too often, in my opinion.  It's complex, too, making it even more difficult to try to address for the person dealing with it.

Supposedly one in 20 Americans are depressed, and about 230 million prescriptions for antidepressants are filled each year.  The depression rates don't seem to be changing though - every year, about 750,000 people attempt suicide, and sadly, about 30,000 of them are successful.

Are these drugs working?  Apparently not, in fact, it seems as though the placebos - the sugar pill - in research seem to work better than the drug itself - both drugs work because of the placebo effect, but the drug itself has adverse reactions.  Ever notice at the end of antidepressant drug commercials that the spokesperson mentions the drug may increase thoughts of suicide?  Why take a drug that could possibly increase your risk of something you're trying to prevent in the first place?

Interestingly enough, psychiatric drugs claim the lives of 42,000 people each year.  Do the math - that's 12,000 more than those who successfully commit suicide because of depression!  That is definitely a problem.

There are a lot of theories out there about what might cause depression, including environmental factors, genetic factors, and physical factors.  Here's an interesting list of  physical causes of depression:

• Nutritional deficiencies
• Lack of exercise
• Lack of sunshine
• Hypothyroidism
• Hyperthyroidism
• Fibromyalgia
• Candida (yeast infection)
• Poor adrenal function
• Other hormonal disorders including:
• Cushing’s Disease (excessive pituitary hormone production)
• Addison’s disease (low adrenal function)
• High levels of parathyroid hormone
• Low levels of pituitary hormones
• Hypoglycemia
• Food Allergies
• Heavy metals (such as mercury, lead, aluminum, cadmium, and thallium)
• Selenium toxicity
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Sleep disturbances
• Dental problems
• TMJ (Temporo Mandibular Joint) Problems
• Infections including:
• AIDS
• Influenza
• Mononucleosis
• Syphilis (late stage)
• Tuberculosis
• Viral hepatitis
• Viral pneumonia
• Medical conditions including:
• Heart problems
• Lung disease
• Diabetes
• Multiple sclerosis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Chronic pain
• Chronic inflammation
• Cancer
• Brain tumors
• Head injury
• Multiple sclerosis
• Parkinson’s disease
• Stroke
• Temporal lope epilepsy
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Liver disease

• Drugs including:
• Tranquilizers and sedatives
• Antipsychotic drugs
• Amphetamines (withdrawal from)
• Antihistamines
• Beta-blockers
• High blood pressure medications
• Birth control pills
• Anti-inflammatory agents
• Corticosteroids (adrenal hormone agents
• Cimetidine
• Cycloserine (an antibiotic)
• Indomethacin
• Reserpine
• Vinblastine
• Vincristine

That's a lot to take into consideration!  Another interesting factor is genetics, which is still being researched but supposedly genes have been found linking to hereditary depression, but only in the sense that these genes need to be "turned on" or "activated" for the person to actually become depressed.  Meaning, the person may have inherited the gene, but depression will only set in if he or she experiences a trauma or major illness or loss - something to "switch on" the gene.

I've shared my story, or pieces of it, throughout different blog posts here, but to recap, depression hit me after the birth of my first son, Harlee.  It does run in my family, by the way, ranging from chronic sadness and pessimism/defeatist attitudes, to emotional abuse towards loved ones, to successful suicidal attempts, so I take the genetic theory seriously.  In my case I had a lot of physical factors influencing me as well, including poor diet, lack of exercise, hormonal imbalances, candida, adrenal issues, etc.  I was emotionally unstable anyway from the pregnancy, considering I got pregnant way before I was ready to embark on that journey in life, and ended up letting myself get swallowed into my desires to have a natural, out-of-hospital birth experience.  Well, things went the exact opposite of how I had hoped, resulting in an emergency c-section, followed by an extended hospital stay due to a fever that wouldn't leave me alone, followed by taking home a colicky baby that prevented us from ever getting any kind of decent sleep again, and down I was driven into my dark hole of postpartum depression.  I felt like a failure after the birth, I was hormonally compromised from it anyway, I was sleep deprived, I was overweight and not eating right, and I'd say from all that my depression gene got switched "on".  I cried a lot, I had violent thoughts toward myself and my loved ones, I resented and eventually began to feel a level of hatred towards my husband, I had intruding visions of gruesome situations throughout the day, sometimes involuntary and sometimes brought on by simple tasks like using a knife in the kitchen, and it was everything I could do to get through the day.  Luckily I had enough shreds of strength left in me to recognize that I didn't want to be like this, and that I needed help, so I sought out a counselor specializing in postpartum depression and began seeing her on a weekly basis for a few months.  It helped to talk about it, but wasn't really getting me where I thought I needed to be.  I brought Justin in for some couple's therapy, since we were having major issues at home brought on by my crazy hormonal imbalance and his inability to really know what to do with me or how to handle it, and she successfully helped us patch up our problems, making life at home much easier and thus pointing me in the right direction for healing.  Unfortunately the intruding visions weren't leaving me, and when I told her this she suggested maybe I try Zoloft (I think that's the drug she suggested...), which really caught my attention.  Turning to psychiatric drugs was the LAST thing I wanted to do, and if she thought I was bad enough to need them, then I needed to do something quick.  Thank goodness I didn't take her up on the suggestion, now that I've researched how ineffective and potentially harmful they are.  I stopped seeing her and instead started changing different elements of my life.  I took up running with Harlee in the jogging stroller.  I experimented with eating low-carb and in turn discovered Paleo, which led to weight loss and better health overall.  I turned to supplements and remedies to help me along, as well.

Natural Treatments for Depression:

One great supplement is St. John's Wort, which studies have shown may be equally effective as TCAs (tricyclic antidepressants) and SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants for mild to moderate depression.  Well, it's definitely worked for me!  It takes a couple of weeks before seeing significant changes, but once it kicked in I began referring to it as my "happy pills", and so did Justin!  Be aware, though, that St. John's Wort can end up having negative effects if taken while on pharmaceutical antidepressants, so be careful if you're already taking drugs for depression.  Also, this is not safe to take while pregnant.  If you are pregnant and want to support your mental/emotional health, try oat straw tea - I brewed it and red raspberry leaf tea (for uterine support) by the gallon and drank a glass every day.  It made a big difference, as I was feeling thrown off balance in my first trimester with Elliot - feeling nauseous was preventing me from sticking with exercise and cravings/aversions were preventing me from eating right, and that combo was having some negative affects on my moods.  A few days after starting the oat straw tea, I was already feeling much better emotionally!

I've heard great things about another supplement called 5-HTP, which is the precursor to the neurotransmitter serotonin.  I tried it and unfortunately didn't have a good experience, but do your own research regardless - I've heard people swear by it the way I swear by St. John's Wort, so it seems as though it works or doesn't work depending on the individual.

I also took the homeopathic remedy Sepia, which, in a nutshell, can aid in just letting go - a good treatment for depression or anxiety.  I took it postpartum after Harlee's birth, and I also took it around 7-8 months pregnant with Elliot as I drew nearer to the due date and the scary, great unknown of birth.  It helped, which was very welcome while at the same time very surprising at how effective it was!  I had very little anxiety, and what fears I did have about the upcoming birth weren't bad enough to interfere with my daily life.  I found it easier to be present, to feel good about myself for all the work I had done to ensure a positive birth outcome, and to just trust that no matter what, everything was going to be okay.  Instead of feeling sick or shaky when I found myself getting caught in conversation about birth amongst other women like I used to, I was able to listen passively, without any fears or ill feelings surfacing.  That was huge for me.

Homeopathic Chamomilla was also helpful postpartum with Harlee, and it also helped him with his colic, too.  It gave me a sense of peace and well-being as I worked toward recovery of postpartum depression.

Supplementing with DHA/Omega-3 fatty acids is also beneficial.  It is found primarily in fish and krill oil, and your brain greatly depends on it.  Low DHA levels have been linked to depression, memory loss, Schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease.

Of course I love essential oils and have to share some suggestions in that category to support mental and emotional health.   Coriander, ylang ylang, bergamot, jasmine, geranium, chamomile, lavender, frankincense, clary sage, and citrus oils like lemon, grapefruit, orange, lime, and tangerine are great.  Since Elliot's birth I've made a sitz bath (filled the tub with warm water enough to just cover my hips) at least every other night with lavender, frankincense, and clary sage essential oils and it's helped with healing and swelling and has definitely lifted my spirits too.  Highly recommend for the postpartum momma!

Exercise is very important.  I've found it to be a key factor in managing my stress levels and overcoming depression.  Here's a list of awesome benefits of exercise from an article by Dr. Mercola:

It reverses the detrimental effects of stress. Exercise boosts levels of soothing brain chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. Exercise may actually work on a cellular level to reverse stress's toll on your aging process.

It lifts depression. Sustained, sweat-inducing activity can reduce symptoms of depression about as effectively as antidepressants.

It improves learning. Exercise increases the level of brain chemicals called growth factors that help make new brain cells.

It builds self-esteem and improves body image. Even simply seeing fitness improvements, like running a faster mile or lifting more weight, can improve your self-esteem and body image.

It leaves you feeling euphoric. High-intensity exercise can leave you with a feeling of euphoria. Try running, biking, or swimming as fast as you can for 30 to 40 seconds and then reduce your speed to a gentle pace for five minutes before sprinting again.

As I mentioned before, Diet is another big factor in managing or preventing depression.  Turning to a more Paleo lifestyle has helped me the most, as avoiding sugar and grains helps balance insulin and leptin levels.  Sugar causes chronic inflammation, which can really mess up your immune system and in turn be very harmful to your brain.  And, if you read my post about the Science of Healthy Eating, you'll know that all carbs convert to sugar in the body, which is why avoiding grains, not just those containing gluten, is beneficial to cleaning up any inflammation in your body and supports overall health, including mental.

Sunlight - getting sufficient vitamin D, is also very helpful..  Studies have shown that people with low levels of vitamin D are more likely to become depressed than those who don't get enough.  So either supplement with a good vitamin D3, or go outside and play!

Don't underestimate the effectiveness of talk therapy, either.  The above suggestions should help tremendously, but sometimes the feeling of releasing your problems verbally can make all the difference.  I took a hiatus from counseling after my first therapist suggested I get on Zoloft, thinking talk therapy wasn't very effective and probably more or less just a gimmick.  But, thankfully, I gave it one more shot by going to see a gal that really meshed well with my personality, and that made a huge difference in my healing.  She helped me see things in a different light, helped me learn to let go, helped me learn to problem solve on my own, and overall just helped me grow as a person.  Because of her I began keeping journals, which I was skeptical of at first and was something I pretty much had to force myself to do, but it eventually became hugely cathartic as I wrote out all my thoughts and feelings and was able to overcome any issues I was having and quickly come to healthy conclusions for them the more I wrote.

Journaling, meditating, yoga, or talking with a good friend are all very helpful on your journey out of depression. Journaling was my "drug" of choice, but everyone is different and can benefit just as well from the other suggestions.

The important thing is to just start somewhere.  Pick something and go with it.  No time for exercise?  Start changing things about your diet.  Don't know where to begin with diet?  Start out with some of the supplements I mentioned until your mind feels stable enough to address diet and exercise.  Force yourself to write out your thoughts before going to sleep, or to take five minutes or so to do some guided meditation (there are plenty of tracks you can listen to on YouTube!).

In conclusion, I'd like to share the end of the Dr. Mercola article I read about depression:

As Davis suggests in his article, "Think twice, be skeptical, and question a simplistic diagnosis you might receive after discussing your condition for a short time with a rushed practitioner."

This is sound advice indeed. 

It is easy to become seduced into thinking a pill might relieve your pain, especially when it comes with the endorsement of your physician. Feeling depressed is never pleasant, and you naturally want to escape it as quickly as possible. 

But drugs should always be your last choice, and antidepressants are no exception. 

There is a better way! You wouldn't want to expose yourself to the enormous risks these drugs present, especially for so little gain. Hang in there, and if you implement the healthy strategies above, I bet you'll soon find yourself feeling better.

I am happy to say that today I am a far better person than I ever thought I could be, having made a greater recovery than I ever imagined I would.  I am SO eternally grateful I never gave in to the suggestion of trying a psychiatric drug years ago, and that I tried the suggestions I shared with you instead, and with great success.  I am determined to help anyone dealing with depression to find healthier ways to overcome it, after having experienced it first-hand.  I hope this article helps.



http://www.suicide.org/suicide-faqs.html
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/03/07/reversing-depression-without-antidepressants.aspx
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/04/06/frightening-story-behind-the-drug-companies-creation-of-medical-lobotomies.aspx
http://www.alternativementalhealth.com/articles/depression.htm
http://jonbarron.org/article/genes-and-depression-again#.U_zBc2O8A5c
http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/st-johns-wort/background/hrb-20060053
http://naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2011-10/many-uses-5-htp
http://abchomeopathy.com/r.php/Sep
http://abchomeopathy.com/r.php/Cham
http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2010/07/24/5-mindblowing-benefits-of-exercise.aspx

The Best Dietary Supplement (In My Opinion!)

Let me get this out of the way now: I'm not out to push a product here - there are no kickbacks for me by sharing this post with you.  While I would like to become a distributor someday, I'm currently not - I'm simply a consumer and a firm believer in this product and I am only passing along the information I have and encouraging everyone to give it a try simply because it works!

I'm talking about Juice Plus.  I never really knew anything about it before I was introduced to it - I honestly just thought it was just another pyramid scheme product that encouraged people to "work from home" and "earn money on their own schedule" and I lumped it into the category of all the other home sales companies out there like Pampered Chef or Thirty-One.  And I love me some Pampered Chef and Thirty-One and have bought plenty of products from those parties that I've come to love and use frequently, so I figured it was probably a good product like those were, and probably did have health benefits like they claimed to have, but on top of that I also assumed it was probably something the company tries to hook you on and convince you that you need to take this product forever for it to actually work, and really, who wants to do that?  I used to sell ItWorks! body wraps, and I got out of it for that reason - the product worked, but I felt like the only way to see continuous results was to use it forever, and therefore keep forking over more and more money on their products, and I didn't feel good about that.  Added to the fact that it seemed to encourage people to bypass the fact that you need a healthy lifestyle to attain results in weight loss and body tone, thinking this magic wrap will solve everything, but I digress.

Turns out, Juice Plus isn't like that.  However, I encourage taking it forever, just like the company does!  But it's not because they're out to scam money out of you.  I think this stuff is for real and from personal experience, it works.

Here's why I believe in it, and why taking it forever isn't a bad idea:  All it is is fruits and vegetables.  Picked at their peak time, immediately dehydrated so that all that's left is the nutrients and antioxidants, and encapsulated, so all you're consuming is fruit and vegetable nutrition in capsule-form.  Why?  First of all because we don't eat enough of that stuff.  I know I don't, and I have a fairly healthy diet to begin with - certainly not perfect, but what I would consider above average for the Standard American Diet (aka SAD).  So if I'm not, I'm sure most everyone else isn't either.  So we have to come up with ways to make sure our bodies get proper nutrition.  You can supplement with vitamins, but unfortunately those are ususally either synthetic (which can end up having the opposite effect you're going for and be very detrimental to your health) or isolated - vitamins need to work together with other nutrients to be the most effective.  The best way to get vitamins into your body is through whole food sources - the fruits and vegetables from which they originated.  That's why it's so important to eat plenty of it, but, like I mentioned before, it's hard.  Another option a lot of people have turned to is juicing - load up a bunch of fruits and veggies and blend it down into a liquid and drink it.  It's an awesome option for sure, and a very easy way to get good nutrition.  But one problem I find is that it still contains the excess sugars and calories, if weight loss happens to be one of your goals, and also the convenience factor is tricky, which can be a hindrance for people with busy, on-the-go lifestyles.  I personally don't juice for that very reason - loading up my blender with fruits and vegetables after cutting them to size, coring, seeding, peeling, whatever, then making sure I clean the blender right away because dried fruit leftovers is not fun to clean off later - it can take a chunk out of your morning and if you're wrangling kids and have places to be, that can be tricky.  On top of that, if you're going to juice regularly, you're going to go through a lot of produce, and if you want to do the absolute best for your body, organic is the best way to go, and we all know that gets pricey.  Even just regularly buying local produce can get pricey.  And if you're going to juice for your whole family?  Whew...

Consuming plenty of fruits and vegetables and the nutrients they have in them is only going to increase your health - boost your immune system, prevent or even reverse diseases, and ward off cancer.

I think I made a few good points.  So back to Juice Plus.  It's just healthy, whole fruit and vegetable nutrition in capsule form.  That's pretty crazy easy, if you asked me.

I got started on it when I was pregnant with Harlee.  I was still learning, still a bit uninformed when it came to what constituted "healthy" in terms of supplements and diet, and like probably most women, got talked into going to the pharmacy to fill a prescribed prenatal "vitamin".  Hello morning sickness like I never could have imagined.  I can't remember what prompted me to stop taking the vitamin to reduce morning sickness, maybe it was my mom telling me that sometimes multi-vitamins make her sick, but either way I quit taking it and felt much better.  Morning sickness tapered off to a mild unsettled feeling in the morning and I could finally function again.  Unfortunately I wasn't taking anything anymore, and I do think it's important to get the additional nutrition to support the little person you're growing.  Then one day, I was working the front desk at the local YMCA at the time, one of the members (and now a friend of mine) came in and we got to talking about morning sickness and prenatal vitamins and she told me she took Juice Plus throughout her pregnancy as her prenatal vitamins, and maybe I could look into that.  She started selling it because of the great results she saw from it, so after reading up on it and learning more about it, I decided to give it a shot.  Besides, the price it was to take the supplements wasn't really any different than what I would be spending on extra fruits and vegetables anyway.  Well, it wasn't long before I started seeing results - my system was feeling regular, I felt like I could function better, my energy levels felt more balanced, it was great!  Since then I've gone to several seminars and listened to speakers discussing the health benefits of Juice Plus, or just eating more fruits and vegetables in general, and it's really amazing what this product offers.  When I found out I was pregnant this time around, I took Juice Plus as well as an omega-3, vitamin D, and then added in an all-natural prenatal, but still had some pretty decent morning sickness.  Not as bad as with Harlee, but still lots of violent vomiting in the mornings and feeling very unstable throughout the day.  I ditched the prenatal and stuck to only the Juice Plus and omegas and vitamin D, and my morning sickness lessened.  I think it's unavoidable - the huge hormonal shift your body goes through only makes sense that it would cause you to have some sort of side effects, but it sure is nice to not have to suffer SO much.

Now, I have tendencies to be inconsistent with taking supplements regularly, so for awhile there I'd completely forget to take anything at all.  At one point I noticed I was getting hit with horrible fatigue in the middle of the day, and it was during my second trimester too, when you're supposed to feel your best.  It dawned on me that I had forgotten to take my supplements for about a week and a half at that point.  Wondering if that was the culprit, I started immediately taking it again, and wouldn't ya know, no more fatigue!  I went back to enjoying normal energy levels (which is pretty necessary when raising an almost 3-year-old and wanting to maintain a workout routine as well as manage everything else going on in life).

I've read a little more about the benefits of Juice Plus in pregnancy, and one bit of information I liked was shared by an OB, Dr. Doug Odom, who conducted his own small study on how Juice Plus affected pregnancies.

Over time, Dr. Odom and his nursing staff noticed that with the Juice Plus+® moms, they were seeing fewer Caesarean deliveries (“Csections”), fewer premature deliveries, and a lower incidence of preeclampsia – a condition of late pregnancy that is  characterized by high blood pressure and that can be potentially lifethreatening
to both mother and baby. They also noticed that the newborns of these moms tended to have higher birth weights, fewer admissions to neonatal intensive care units, and a lower incidence of respiratory distress syndrome.

 This is an awesome supplement for anyone, no matter what stage in life you're in.  And there's a ton of research to back it up, which you can read for yourself here.  It benefits your oral health, skin health, heart health, all the way down to the health of your DNA.  And it makes sense - fruits and vegetables are what nature put in place for us to consume to nourish our bodies and keep us healthy inside and out, so it's no wonder these clinical research studies are coming back with so much positive proof that our bodies greatly benefit from getting more fruit and vegetable nutrition.  And being able to get solid nutrition in capsule form only makes it that much better - or at least I know it does for me and my busy lifestyle!

If you want to learn more, I purchase my Juice Plus supplements through Jennie Walker and have been for the past 3+ years since the day she mentioned it to me early in my pregnancy with Harlee.  She can be reached at jen_g80@hotmail.com or on her cell at (618) 593-4900.  I encourage you to get in touch and ask more questions and learn more about the great health benefits (and the great convenience) of Juice Plus!

Sinusitus and Strep Throat - Winning the Battle, Naturally!

Oh what a week it's been.  Ya know, I must commend Justin for stepping up to the role of SuperMom pretty much the entire month of January and up until he got called back on night shift mid-February.  My life has been super stress-free regardless of the loads of stuff on my plate that I have to take care of.  Quite often I'd think, "Wow, I really married myself a good one... I need to figure out a way to do something special for him to pay him back for all he's done for the family lately."

His coming down as the sickest I've ever seen him in the whole six years I've been with him is not what I had in mind.

But, it is what it is, and it provided us with a great learning experience and a little test of strength.  And reminded me of my faith in natural healing and how amazing Mother Earth's remedies can be.

So let me tell you the story!

Usually when Justin gets called back to work after a decent lay-off (in this case he was laid off for a little over a month and a half) his immune system gets tested.  Especially on night shift, when his sleep is not the greatest and vitamin D is hard to come by.  Added to the work environment, which isn't all that clean, and boom, sickness.  I've only ever seen him deal with sinus issues, every great once in awhile it's turned into a sinus infection but I've been able to help him beat those naturally.  This time was different.

It doesn't help that crap is going around anyway.  Good lord, this has been one of the worst winters I've seen in my adult life in our area.  The snow and ice is one thing, and hasn't seem to be TOO bad as our road crews have done well to keep us moving, but we've definitely gotten a lot more of it than we're used to.  But the illnesses, holy cow, it's insane what people have been dealing with!  Pneumonia, strep, sinus infections, ear infections, stomach bugs of all varieties, not to mention the flu - influenza A, influenza B, H1N1, the works.  (How's that flu shot working out for everyone?)

Knock on wood, our family has gotten off with only having to deal with small, easily treatable things.  Just a short-lived cold here and there, Harlee had a little bug with a fever that only lasted not even a full day, and also got pink eye not long ago (shortly after one of his check-ups at Children's Hospital for his broken arm - I figured being in a hospital with god-knows-what floating around, especially this time of year, would more than likely send us home with something, so fortunately it wasn't anything worse than pink eye).

But then Justin got called back on nights, and for a few nights wasn't getting decent sleep as he adjusted to the new schedule, and wound up with his traditional sinus issues for a few days.

It didn't pass this time though.  A few days later it grew into a sinus infection, complete with intense pressure and a fever.  I got him on olive leaf extract right away, along with vitamin C and some supplements I get through Young Living Essential Oils, called Inner Defense (which is a soft gel containing the strongest immune-boosting, illness-fighting essential oils).  I also took my Thieves oil and diluted it with some coconut oil (otherwise it would burn the skin) and worked it into his sinus areas - along his forehead above the eyebrows, alongside his nose and nostrils, across his cheeks and under his cheek bones, and also around his ears, throat, and base of the neck.  The pressure was gone when he woke up, and the fever was broke.  Horray!

But his throat was sore.  So I had him try the Thieves lozenges as well as some slippery elm lozenges I picked up at the health food store in town.  I kept up with the Thieves oil, knowing how powerful it is.  By the weekend, his throat was swollen to the point that he couldn't speak clearly, and it was too painful to swallow food and drink.  Sunday was the worst (and of course everyone is closed on Sunday).  He was miserable, wanted to sleep all day, his entire mouth was swollen and disgusting, I couldn't even see into his throat, he was producing mucus and saliva constantly, and had a fever coming and going.  I figured it was strep throat, but wasn't certain since I'd never experienced it before.  He asked me to try to get in touch with Dr. Stratton in Waterloo, who had done acupuncture for me before when I had sinus pressure and needed to just drain (and it worked wonders!), hoping that acupuncture would help him drain all the mucus.  I tried getting in touch with her, regardless of it being Sunday (and apologizing for that), but she wasn't available until the next morning.  I got in touch with a friend of ours who also does acupuncture, but he was also unavailable.  I encouraged Justin to drink some hot green tea with honey and lemon, along with some peppermint oil which is good to help break up mucus, hoping that would soothe his throat and be easy enough to get down through the swelling, as he needed to consume something.  I tried to get him to keep up with the supplements too, but it was just too painful to swallow.

This was the tricky part.  I knew it had gotten pretty bad, but I was so scared of antibiotics... I felt like we might be getting to the point where we needed to look into them, but my gut and my heart were saying to just hold out until we see Dr. Stratton tomorrow.  I trust her opinion on these matters - if she didn't think acupuncture would even help at this point or if she didn't have a natural suggestion for us, she'd tell us to go get antibiotics.  Here's my issue with antibiotics: read this post.  I've had horrible experiences with them that resulted in years of chronic yeast infections and a compromised immune system, all because I didn't realize the repercussions of taking antibiotics and that they kill off everything your body needs to fight illness off on its own.  And that's what I was afraid of for Justin - everything would get killed off, he'd had nothing left of his immune system, he'd go right back to the same work environment, lacking sleep and vitamin D, breathing in all that crap and everyone else's germs, and start back at square one.  Sure I could try to build him up again, but that's hard to do after everything's been destroyed - it takes some time.  But I know you can't rule out antibiotics completely - infections can travel and affect important organs and turn into life-threatening situations if you're not careful.

We decided to hold out until Monday morning and see what Dr. Stratton said.

Well, she definitely agreed it was bad, but luckily she repeated everything I had said the day before - antibiotics are not something you just want to rush right into taking, and for the exact reasons I had said - that they kill off everything you need to have a strong immune system, and he runs the risk of contracting the infection again because of it.  She suggested to try the acupuncture, and to give it a day.  If it's not better Tuesday, then we should look into getting him some antibiotics.

I'm going to have to write a separate post about acupuncture, it's a very fascinating subject and it's pretty interesting how it works.  But wow does it work.  I've had some pretty awesome experiences with it myself - it rid me of my heartburn when I was pregnant with Harlee, and then like I mentioned before, I had it done for my own sinus issues and I drained out like crazy immediately after.

So he sat there with needles in his face and hands and rested, and when we left... well... it was kinda disgusting, let's just put it that way.  But that's a good thing for him, just not for me to listen to... haha.

Dr. Stratton had mentioned to us that one very effective treatment is oregano essential oil - as that's one of few things that will actually kill the strep bacteria.  I happened to have some, but for some reason didn't think of using it - I was too busy using the Thieves like crazy!  It helped keep it at bay, I'm sure, but apparently we needed that oregano.

We stopped at my office to grab my bottle, and dripped some in Justin's mouth when we got home.  It looked like a pretty horrible experience... poor guy, I wasn't sure if he was going to cry or scream, but he said it burned pretty bad.  But, that's the infection being targeted, so it's a good thing.  Thank goodness Young Living oils are therapeutic grade, meaning they're so pure they can actually be ingested.  He let it run down his throat to get it all back there, and then went straight to sleep.  That evening we tried squirting it in the back of his throat with a syringe, hoping to bypass the taste buds at least, but it was still pretty painful.  He was starting to feel a little better since starting the oregano and getting the acupuncture, and realized he was hungry - I guess so, since he hadn't eaten all this time since it was too painful!  Still having difficulty with chewing or swallowing, I made him a smoothie with whatever I could find in the fridge that seemed like it would taste good - an apple, a carrot, blueberries, strawberries, and spinach.  He enjoyed the taste, but it was still a little sore getting it down.  Then he went to sleep again and slept until morning.

I looked into his mouth the next morning, and holy. crap.  I was beyond amazed.  His mouth went from looking like a swollen, gooey swamp to a perfectly normal, healthy mouth - the only abnormality being the greenish coat on his tongue.  He felt quite a bit better, but there must have still been some swelling in his throat as it was still a bit difficult to talk and swallow, but not nearly as bad.  Wow.  Just, wow.

He squirted the oil again with the syringe, struggled through the burn, and we went back to see Dr. Stratton again for another acupuncture treatment.  She was impressed with the turn-around too, saying she was afraid it had gotten so bad the oregano wouldn't even work, but it certainly did!  She said he probably wouldn't get to go back to work quite yet, but by the way things were looking he should be able to the next night - Wednesday night.  She applauded him for putting up with the awful taste and burn of the oregano oil, but we were all certainly happy he did.  She encouraged him to continue getting enough sleep, and to avoid things like sugars and alcohol.  Oh what he'd give for a beer at that point, he said.  To which she replied, "Well... I guess I could add that whiskey is another thing that'll kill strep..."  He liked that idea!  She said if he could stand it, he needed to get it and some more oregano along his teeth and tongue, as the bacteria is still collecting in those areas.

Lots of hideous drainage happened after the acupuncture again... and when we got back home and he tried swishing with some Crown Royal he had in the cabinet.  From the looks of his expression, I don't think that was quite as enjoyable as just shooting it or enjoying it on the rocks with some 7up.  He also tried a drop of oregano with the Crown and swished that.  Ugh, what a trooper.  But after the huge turnaround he experienced, I'm pretty sure he was sold on this remedy too and was glad to finally be feeling better.  Since he was able to swallow again, he got down some more olive leaf extract as well as vitamin c and garlic soft gels (garlic is a great immune booster and infection-fighter too), another Inner Defense soft gel and some probiotics.  He went back to bed to sleep it off some more.  I went back to work for some afternoon clients, and came back to find him feeling much better, and actually able to speak clearly again!  His jaw was still a little sore, so he had another smoothie since swallowing was much easier.  Swished with some Crown and oregano, took his vitamins and supplements, and went back to sleep for the night.

One more acupuncture treatment on Wednesday, the next day, and he was good to go.  He could speak as clear as day again, his color was normal, the swelling was gone, and he felt energetic and healthy again.  Whew!  He got the go-ahead to return to work, and I must say I was more than thrilled to get back to some sort of normal life.  I threw the bed sheets in the wash and made up a solution of oregano, thieves, and rubbing alcohol and sprayed it all over the couches, pillows, mattresses, carpet - everything that he was in contact with.

Oh, by the way, I kept Harlee and I boosted as well.  Strep is contagious, and I sure as heck didn't want either of us to come down with it!  I mixed a drop with a bit of coconut oil and rubbed it all over his chest and throat as well as mine, and continued to diffuse Thieves in the air while we slept.  I tried diffusing the oregano, but found that's a bad idea - it dries things out!  Great for Justin's excessive mucus problem, but not good for those of us not dealing with issues.  My nose was so dry the next morning that it bled... not good!  I'll just stick with the Thieves for breathing in!

Taking care of sick people takes a LOT out of the caretaker.  Wow, that was a tough week!  Keeping up with regular life - Harlee, business, household chores, cooking and cleaning - then on top of making sure Justin's comfortable and taken care of, keeping up with the new house and decisions out there without his help, and making sure Harlee and I don't get sick... it's exhausting.  Several times I hoped more than anything that I'd get to my office to find a beach and a palm tree waiting for me... no such luck though.  So I continued to go to Flex to stay on top of exercising, drank plenty of water, and did my best to remember to take my own immune-boosting supplements.  Fortunately, Harlee and I remained in the clear.  Thank goodness.

And that's my story!  We successfully beat a sinus infection and strep throat with herbal remedies and essential oils!  I'm stocking up on oregano now, so if anyone wants some for their own medicine cabinet just let me know!  Obviously, I highly recommend it!  But remember, do NOT take essential oils internally unless they are clearly labeled that they're therapeutic grade and safe for consumption.  A lot of oils on the market say they're 100% pure, but only by the FDA's guidelines (which turns out isn't exactly 100%).  You'll notice those oils warn that they're for external or aromatherapy use only.  Be careful what you use - that's why I use Young Living oils - they're totally safe and, after this week's experience, obviously very effective!!

How to Choose a Vitamin

I’ve been asked for advice before on how to choose vitamins and supplements – which brands are better for you, and which ones should you avoid?  That’s a good question, and I’m glad people are asking because it’s an important thing to pay attention to – remember my post about vitamin E?  In its synthetic form, it’s been proven in several studies to cause certain kinds of cancer.  Definitely a vitamin you want to be sure you get from nature, not from a factory…

I know cost is usually something people pay attention to when buying vitamins.  It sure is convenient to be able to go to Wal-Mart and grab a $6 bottle off the shelf rather than spending $12 for the same bottle of a better brand.  But when it comes out in the wash, you may be wasting your money anyway.  The health benefits of the cheaper brands are not nearly as great as those of the better quality brands, and, like in the case of vitamin E, you could be setting yourself up for trouble later on if you load your body up on synthetic, chemical-laden “vitamins”.  I know science has done some pretty incredible things through the years, but messing with our nutrition is not one of their better accomplishments, or wisest ideas.  When it comes to nourishing our bodies, it’s best to let Mother Nature be in charge.  She’s been in charge from day one, after all, and we’ve survived for thousands of years simply relying on the food from her table.  And seeing all the diseases and problems people are facing now, maybe it’s a good idea to turn back to Mother Nature – get back to our roots and undo some of the damage.

Expecting our digestive systems to know how to process stuff that doesn’t occur in nature is maybe asking a bit much…  This is how we pack on extra pounds, why we don’t feel the greatest, or why diseases start to crop up – our digestive systems don’t know how to process what we try to send through it and the whole works gets confused and backed up.  Not good!

So now that you’re a little more educated on vitamins after the series I just posted, and you’ve got an idea of what your body may need a bit more of, let’s focus on how to choose the right brands so you’re not going to do more harm than good to your body.

In my research I found this great article.  Rather than molding it into my own words, I figured I’d just copy and paste it onto here for you to read too.  It’s got some good stuff in it!

Step 1

Search for words listed in the ingredients that begin with “dl.” When a word contains “dl” in the prefix, it is an indication that the vitamin is synthetic. As an example, “dl-alpha tocopherol acetate” and “dl-alpha tocopherol” are synthetic forms of vitamin E.

Step 2

Find words that end with “ate” or “ide” in the list of ingredients. These words indicate that the manufacturer used synthetic materials for increasing the vitamin’s potency and stability. Some words to look for include nitrate, acetate, sodium ascorbate, sodium benzoate, chloride, hydrochloride, silicon dioxide and titanium dioxide.

Step 3

Find the synthetic form of the vitamin listed under the ingredient list. Natural vitamins come from natural food sources. If you see the vitamin listed as the vitamin itself, such as “vitamin D,” then it is sure to be the synthetic version, according to Dr. Ben Kim, a Canadian chiropractor and radio show host. Look for food sources such as “citrus” instead of “vitamin C” or “parsley” instead of “vitamin K.”

Step 4

Identify the words “natural” on the vitamin bottle. If the bottle says, “100 percent natural” the vitamin supplement does not contain synthetics. On the other hand, a label that says, “natural,” might have at least some synthetic components. According to Earl Mindell’s “New Vitamin Bible,” only 10 percent of the product must come from natural food sources in order for a company to claim “natural” on the product’s label. If the product label does not say “100 percent animal-based” or “100 percent plant-based,” the supplement is synthetic.

Step 5

Look for the vitamin potency listed on the product’s label. According to the Organic Consumers Association, if the vitamin supplement has a high or otherwise unnatural potency, the product is synthetic. For example, a product that provides 1,000 percent of vitamin C is unusually high. This is ten times the amount you need daily, and an amount that even a healthy diet — consisting of natural, whole-food sources — cannot provide.

From what I’ve found, the following are safe brands to choose from:

• JuicePlus
• Young Living Essential Oils
• The Synergy Company
• MetaOrganics
• Raw Source Organics
• Frontier Herbs
• Host Defense by Fungi Perfecti
• Mountain Rose Herbs

Also, my naturopathic doctor informed me that Nordic Naturals, Solgar, Mega Foods, New Chapter, and Garden of Life are all reputable brands for all-natural, whole-food-based vitamins and nutrients.  From my personal experience, I LOVE JuicePlus and Young Living, and I and my family have had great benefits from using Nordic Naturals and Solgar.

What to avoid?

Centrum

Rite Aid

21st Century

Kroger

Equate

And please do not give your kids Flintstones (they contain not only synthetic ingredients but also artificial colors and sweeteners, trace amounts of lead, and gluten.  Not the best items for the healthiest start to your child’s life…)

Normally if the product is super cheap in price, it’ll be super cheap in health benefits.  Definitely purchase natural, whole-food-based fat soluble vitamins.  Those are the ones that can collect in your cells and if they’re synthetic they can cause some significant damage.  Water soluble vitamins do get flushed out of your system easier, but getting those in their whole-food-based form is obviously best regardless.

Vitamins were meant to be consumed through our diet.  Just by eating healthier and including more fruits and vegetables in your diet can normally give your body the nutrients it needs, especially if they’re not genetically modified (GMOs are usually lacking in nutrients).  But if you need to get them in supplement form, now you have a better idea of how to find them!

http://www.naturalnews.com/036650_synthetic_vitamins_disease_side_effects.html#ixzz2PoeKLKDM

http://www.organicconsumers.org/nutricon.cfm

http://www.healthsachoice.com/childrens-health/what-is-wrong-with-giving-my-kids-flintstones-vitamins/