Blog# 169 Low Toxicity and High Nutrients Support Health

A good diet, involving low toxicity and high nutrition will support health and lower the probability of disease onset.  There are so many approaches to health, potentially almost as many as there are living humans (animals and plants, too).  Recently, several articles about these topics have appeared in publications I have recently read.  Various cancer therapies or other therapies, such as the Gerson therapy, aimed at helping overcome degenerative illness also contain this information.  Many of you may consider this article’s title obvious, but there are many things that we may not consider toxic, such as meat cooked at high temperatures, almost all nut and seed oils, and some foul odors.  

Meat, especially when grilled at high temperatures, produces heterocyclic amines (HCA’s) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH’s), both of which are more likely than many other substances to contribute to cancer development. Solutions to this problem are to cook meat at low temperatures for longer periods of time, to clean off all the darkened areas of the meat, eat meat raw or almost raw – if taken from healthy animals raised and killed in sanitary ways and eaten fresh, this is reasonably safe.  Some people enjoy sushi; others enjoy meats or fish preserved with heavy salting, vinegar, or even fermented and dried shark – this last, called hakarl, is a staple in Iceland and is perfectly safe to eat, but is an acquired taste.  Yet another solution is to become a vegetarian or vegan, or to have a vast majority of the diet plant-based and unprocessed.

Most seed, nut and other oils, such as corn, soy, and peanut, and processed foods, such as margarine, all are high in linoleic acid (LA), which is pro-inflammatory.  LA is beneficial in very small quantities, since linoleic acid helps support the integrity of skin and hair.  Excess consumption can help promote the development of illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and dementia.  Solutions to this problem is to avoid consuming these oils and to not use them for cooking or salad dressings.  Blending avocado with apple cider vinegar is one of many ways to make LA-free salad dressing.  Avoiding cooking with these oils and instead using coconut, avocado and algae oils.  Lard, ghee (clarified butter), grass-fed butter, and grass-fed beef or bison tallow are other alternatives, all preferable to LA.  Since most restaurants cook using oils high in LA, eating at home for a majority of meals is best.  

Surprising to some is that odors from rotting foods, sewage, or even just the public bathrooms can carry bacteria and/or viruses, which sometimes can enter through respiration into the nostrils, sinuses and even the lungs.  Once in the lungs, if the body is not able to fight the microorganisms off, they may become established and even spread;  diseases can follow.  Avoiding foul-smelling areas as much as possible, wearing high quality protective masking (N95), and using a nebulizer that dispenses a properly formulated solution of one of several substances, such as iodine or hydrogen peroxide after exposure is another way.  The solution must be properly diluted to be safe and effective; otherwise tissue damage may occur.  Spending time outside in the clean, fresh air, especially first thing in the morning, is another way to help detoxify from some of these odors.  It is also important not to re-expose your respiratory tract to these toxins. 

Important in detoxification from harmful substances is the consumption of a clean, preferably organically-grown diet.  A plant-based diet often is helpful.  Sometimes, people just eat apples, tea and water daily for three to five days.  Some people who prefer a carnivore diet may go on a very restricted mono diet for several days, consisting of three tins of sardines in unsalted water or extremely high quality raw meat or fish, or even yogurt.  And some people go on a water fast, but this should be supervised.  The very frail or elderly usually should avoid this type of detoxification diet.  Knowing the source of your foods is best.  If you are fortunate enough to grow your own food, this is best of all.  Being in contact with the earth is energizing and healing.  Growing food can take a lot of time and work, so adapt nutrition and detoxification to your lifestyle.  As long as you don’t have skin cancer, getting daily sunlight is important.  In areas where sunlight is not always plentiful, nutritional supplements may be especially important.  The older and more frail a person is, the more they are likely to benefit from nutritional supplements, such as vitamins D3 and K2, high quality algae, Magnesium, the B vitamins, and more.  Fermented foods, such as sauerkraut, kimchi and kefir are other foods that can help balance the body and help with detoxification.  

I hope this will give you at least a new idea or two.  Also, since Mail Chimp seems to no longer be distributing these blogs reliably, I suggest you look for my monthly blogs on EWagnerHolisticHealth.Org (my website).  I also plan to start mailing out blogs to people who tend to open the blogs I send out.  Wishing you a happy Spring.  May the world be a place of Peace and Honesty, Health and Joy, and the sooner the better.  We can hope, anyway, and keep strong to face any challenges that might come our way.

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