Researchers in Tel Aviv have discovered that cranberry juice can do a lot more than prevent urinary tract infections.  It has a compound that is called "non-dialyzable material (NDM)."  This NDM makes a slick "teflon-like" coating on cells so that bacteria can't hang on and create infection.  Since we've discovered that h. Pylori causes some stomach ulcers, heart disease and who knows what else, it makes sense to start drinking that tart little berry's juice.  But wait, what about all those high-priced juices from around the world like Acai and Noni?  Ah, that's a good question!  Do these juices have great benefits?  You bet they do.  Are they worth the premium price?  I don't think they necessarily warrant spending 20 times their wholesale cost.

There has been an amazing success story built around the fruit juice business over the past few years.  Products from all over the world are bottled in expensive-looking containers and promoted as the next great "cure-all."  It's not that they're not great, it's just that it requires a huge mark-up to get them to market.  That's why you see these fruit juice mixes at Costco for a fraction of the price of the original product.  They are essentially the same thing as the heavily marketed multilevel product, but the "secret process" for extracting the juice isn't the selling point.  I think cold-pressing (low heat and NO chemicals) is the optimal way to extract juice from anything.  There are special methods that could possibly improve freshness or purity to some degree but I don' think it would ever warrant spending many times as much for the same product.  Your body's just too good at working with raw materials.

I bring up the cranberry juice research because tart cherries are great against arthritis (I think they fight infection in the joints).  Grape juice helps fight heart disease.  Orange juice reduces viral infections.  I could go on but I think you get the idea.  We don;'t need an exotic juide from deep in the darkest jungles to get a benefit.  We need whole foods in abundance and a clear focus on the power of God's creation in making health a reality.  Exotic products are wonderful as a novelty, but I'll take a good cold glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice to support my immune system anyday.  Don't fall for the pitch that "This is the only juice that has such an amazing anti-oxidant profile."  It's just a way to get you to part with your money wihtout any great difference in outcomes.  Look for fresh juices in your favorite flavors. Fresh-squeezed, expeller-pressed or blended into a smoothie............. you can't go wrong when you stick with God's cocktail selections!

The latest greatest study in the Journal of Pediatrics concludes that thyroid problems don't siginificantly contribute to weight problems.  WHAT?  That's the conclusion the authors came to when they treated kids with the least effective thyroid treatment available (levothyroxine).  Not only did they use the thyroid least likely to produce results, they didn't use anything but the TSH level to determine the effect of their care.  THe TSH level is useful in some cases to follow the course of treatment but always needs to be seen with the free T3 and free T4 components in the blood as well.  The TSH can be completely "out-of-whack" if the brain is not optimally functioning and can be very misleading in terms of creating a normal thyroid state.  If the researchers had used the TSH, free T3 and free T4 they would have had a more reliable method for deciding whether or not the thyroid treatment had a beneficial effect.  I have to suppose they are heading down this path because it's what they've always done.

The poor kids haven't gotten the benefit they could have if they were taking amixed natural thyroid like Westhroid or Armour. The only conclusion I can make is that levothyroxine doesn't benefit kids just like it doesn;t benefit adults.  I could've saved them a couple of bucks had they asked.  Bad science is just a bummer!

I just finished speaking with my office staff about a phone call with a mom whose little boy is recovering from autistic spectrum problems.  She told my staff that she has been looking for 4 years for someone to talk with about "eliminating the causes of autism."  The problem she has faced is that the medical professionals she has spoken to are all cut from the same traditional cloth (probably the same kind that goes into manufacturing white coats).  She has been told that all of her efforts to improve her child's nutrition are worthless.  When she asked a recent "new doctor" what she should plan on, he said "There's a list of special homes at the reception desk that may be good resources."  That makes me sick to my stomach!

The research on autism isn't complete but the fact that autism is treatable has been thoroughly developed.  The DAN (Defeat Autism Now) protocol has helped thousands of children to recover some or all of their capabilities to lead healthy and meaningful lives - even when they started out profoundly autistic!  It just doesn't make any sense that doctors can't consider something as simple as detoxification and nutrition as a small portion of therapy.  This is especially frustrating when the outcomes can be so profound and the risks are so miniscule.

Traditional medical care has little to offer the autistic child (and his/her heartbroken parents) except more immunizations and antibiotics that may actually be contributing to the problem in these particular little people.  When parents become better able to heal their children than the doctors who serve them there is little doubt that the medical profession is getting what it richly deserves as the profitability of medicine dissipates like morning mist.  It's hard enough to have an autistic child without having to hear ignorant and poorly-informed practitioners drone on about futility and hopelessness.  There is hope.  It looks an awful lot like conscientious parenting and doctoring.  That may be why it's so hard to come by. 

Autism is hard enough already.  If the DAN protocol helps some children, just imagine what we could do if ALL doctors acknowledged that God made us to receive miracles and be healed from every illness (including cancer, AIDS and autism).  There is always hope.  Sometimes the odds of a miracle are greatly increased by excellent parenting.  Sometimes the odds are improved by excellent eating and exercise.  In almost every situation I have ever seen, HOPE makes the difference between hearty success and stumbling, grueling, painful defeat.  Never settle for less than complete victory in every area of health.  Never settle for less.