PESTICIDES: WHICH FRUITS AND VEGGIES HAVE THE LEAST? (ISSUE 103)

By Diane Gold

Pesticides: which fruits and veggies have the least?

The Environmental Protection Agency (epa.gov) regulates pesticides, but the amounts it allows in our fruits and vegetables is not so easy for the lay person to evaluate. Partly because we don’t have the time to look up the more than 1055 approved pesticides in use in the US and partly because the EPA is not offering the easiest chart for consumers.     Agricultural Pesticides

The first sentence on the EPA website says,

“Laboratory studies show that pesticides can cause health problems such as birth defects, nerve damage, cancer  and other effects that might occur over a long period of time. However, these effects depend on how toxic the pesticide is and how much of it is consumed. Some pesticides pose unique health risks to children.”

To the average consumer, you and me, this is far from helpful. The EPA mentions lots is serious ailments that “can” be caused by pesticides “that might occur over a long period of time” [… depending] “on how toxic the pesticide is and how much of it is consumed.”

Well, that’s noncommital.

 

 

 

 

We want simplified facts that will help us understand the pesticide discussion.

ARE WE FOCUSING ON THE WRONG THING?

There’s a parallel between what’s happening in the pesticide discussion and what’s happening in GMO (genetically modified organism) discussion. We are looking at whether or not to label that GMOs are present, rather than discussing how they are harmful to us or the environment, why not to use them at all and how we are going to do definitive research on what damage they do to whom. Instead of labeling THAT there are GMOs present in a product, a more appropriate warning label similar to that previously used on cigarettes, might be introduced, saying,

“Genetically modified organisms may be hazardous to your health.”

The food industry would not like that, so they are happy to debate about whether or not to put the disclosure label on the product, defocusing the unsuspecting.
How many remember the days when cigarette labels said,

“Smoking may be hazardous to your health?”

And now?

“Smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema and may complicate pregnancy.”

With pesticides, we are boasting how legitimate the pesticide approval process is and listing which pesticides are present in which food. What would be more beneficial to our health and future generations would be to talk about methods of farming without toxins and educating people on the huge presence of pesticides and avoidance techniques.

WHAT WE WANT TO KNOW ABOUT OUR FOOD

We, as consumers, want useful information in qualitative numbers we can understand. We want to see how much of what food will hurt us.

Whatsonmyfood.org gives us some excellent information about the presence of pesticides on foods. It takes its info from the US Department of Agriculture, Pesticide Data Program, currently using 2005 data. For example, it lists that blueberries have a particular percentage of all blueberries in the US, on average, have pesticides A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z, AA, BB, CC, DD, EE, FF, GG, HH, II, JJ, KK, LL, MM, NN, OO, PP, QQ, RR, SS, TT, UU, VV, WW, XX and YY present. It would be great if we could easily find a table showing the EPA tolerances (amount of pesticides that are permitted to be present and still be safe for consumption) for each of those pesticides.

HOW WE GET EXPOSED

Before we get to the special charts that help us decide what to buy, let’s look at the fact that there are more than 1055 (EPA) pesticides approved in the US. We ingest them, we inhale them, and we can absorb them through our skin. Just think of all the places they are used: in our homes to prevent mold or mildew, on our pets to prevent fleas, on our lawns or golf courses, on our roadways for maintenance so we can see the signs and road, around entertainment areas so they are manicured. Some farmland pesticides make their way into our drinking water, and, of course they are on our foods. If our occupation is picking fruits or veggies, our exposure is massively multiplied, and side effects are more obvious.

GROUNDWATER DETAIL

Because of the abundance of cows used in agriculture and no sewage system for their waste, groundwater contamination has been found. Even if workers use manure as fertilizer or dig a hole for what they can’t use, some of the bad bacteria live on in some water supplies.

THE GOOD NEWS

The Environmental Working Group has created a consumer guides that lists which top fruits and veggies have the most and least pesticides so that we can choose how to spend our money and ingest fewer pesticides. This group is the environmental health and advocacy organization whose work resulted in the Food Quality Protection Act in 1996.

They have researched and created the consumer guides, DIRTY DOZEN PLUS and CLEAN 15. The first lists fruits and vegetables that have high pesticide content and, when possible, organic produce is recommended. The second list contains produce that, on average, has fewer residual pesticides and can be bought conventionally. It’s always best to buy organic produce, but these guides can help us make educated choices should we need to spend less than an all-organic purchase would cost.

DIRTY DOZEN PLUS, 2013, from ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP
APPLES

CELERY

CHERRY TOMATOES

CUCUMBERS

GRAPES

HOT PEPPERS

KALE/COLLARD GREENS

NECTARINES, IMPORTED

PEACHES

 

POTATOES

SPINACH

STRAWBERRIES

SWEET BELL PEPPERS

ZUCCHINI

CLEAN 15, 2013, from ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP

ASPARAGUS

AVOCADO

CABBAGE

CANTALOUPE

CORN (almost all corn is grown from genetically modified seeds to resist pests, so pesticides are not necessary, but what are we really eating?)

EGGPLANT

GRAPEFRUIT

KIWI

MANGO

MUSHROOMS

ONIONS

PAPAYA

PINEAPPLE

SWEET PEAS, FROZEN

SWEET POTATOES

CONCLUSION

Pesticides are here, both on organic and conventional produce. Synthetic pesticides can burn the mouth, lungs, the respiratory system, cause nerve damage, cause skin to peel or change color, cause temporary blindness when exposure is high. Hopefully, we are never exposed to enough at once to cause anything like this. But it makes us think about how safe pesticides are in smaller quantities on our food.

Thanks to the two guides we have presented, Dirty Dozen Plus and Clean 15, we can begin to integrate this information into our buying power and our lives.

ACTION STEPS

1) Be aware of the information presented in the lists starting now and every time you go to the store.

2) Be diligent about avoiding the purchase of those on the list.

3) If purchasing all organic produce is not possible financially, make adjustments based on the lists to maximize it. This is a good way to save on the correct foods.

4) Check the Environmental Working Group every year, since they have been publishing yearly guides.

5) Now that we have outlined the prevalence of pesticides, make other sacrifices so that you can give yourself the gift of great food.

6) Be healthy, and reach out if you need  me.

 

 

 

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

Pesticides are always a concern. She says,

“Although organic farmers can use a variety of possibly unhealthy pesticides, I would rather eat those than the petrochemicals used in conventional produce. Plus, I would probably not be getting GMO seed-produce with organic food. At least, that’s what ‘they’ say.

“The list of ‘to buy’ nd ‘not to buy’ produce is pretty interesting. It makes sense that pesticides would remain in leafy green veggies and would not enter inside the skin of avocado or grapefruit.

“Certainly, I will get to know the list, especially since I always buy conventional products that are waxed, unless the distributor has personally told me beeswax is not used on waxed organics.

“I’ll be washing my cucumbers more diligently, and I will be on the lookout for an organic farmer who does not wax her cukes.

“I am grateful for the produce guides. They will help many people, including me.”

THE HABIT OF GRATITUDE AND 100 WAYS TO FEEL IT! (ISSUE 100)

By Diane Gold

The habit of gratitude can be an acquired taste. Some of us naturally feel love and happiness with each positive occurrence. We also may have the temperance to quell the urge for revenge in negative events. Others of us train ourselves to jump-start the love through various means, even though we get angry. And then there are most of us who can develop this habit through the study of philosophy, through the inspiration of a teacher, the appreciation for a second chance or the lessons that experience brings.

Whether it is innate from an early age or we work on its cultivation, isn’t is glorious to feel exuberant throughout the day from the power it gives? And for those of us who have no interest in gratitude; most of the time, it will show up when we least expect it, and we’ll wonder why we did not prioritize it.

Because this is the 100th Issue of WarriorsOfWeight.com, our main essay will be a little different. We have compiled a list of things that are worthy of gratitude that might inspire the idea in others. Before that, we have our action steps, so that we can get our gratitude engines fired up before reading. They are entertaining to do and useful.

ACTION STEPS TO GRATITUDE CULTIVATION

1) Squeeze the fists tightly, but keep the neck relaxed.

This builds power in the hands as the fist fill with blood.

2) Raise the fists in the air with elbows slightly bent, and say,

“Woo hoo!”

3X.

What this does is starts to vibrate the chest cavity so that we get the chi moving.

3) Jump up and down 5X.

This gets the heart and blood going and prepares the body.

4) Say a gigantic, voluminous

“Yes.”

You know how we like social proof, where we believe because we see others acting on that belief? This affirmative sound psychologically prepares us for positive thanks.

5) Read the list below and imagine yourself in the context of what is listed.

NOTE

This step is to be completed after reading the list, if you can wait. Steps 1 through 5 prime you to experience gratitude from the read. Step 6 will pop out of you. Here it is.

6) Make a list of 3, 5, 10, 25, 50 or 100 items for which you are grateful. As you have new experiences, know that many go on the list.

THE LIST

1) What about the joys of having children? This refers to biological ones or children you take/took care of.

 

 

2) What about the joy of taking care of your elders? Not only is it giving them solace, but, if we’re looking, there’s a lot to learn.

The task is difficult, yet it means we have had elders we can call ours.

3) What about the joy of taking care of a kitten, cat, puppy or dog? Their friendship is worthy of the time we take to care for them.

4) What about getting a phone call from a friend at the very time you needed one? It’s great to have a friend, and they mean a lot.

5) What about a friend’s offering the very thing you wished for without your having to ask? This happened to me when my close friend suggested my pets could stay with her while I traveled. If you’ve ever had a pet, you know how important it is to feel secure with the people who are taking care of them.

6) Did you ever have to go for a medical test that seemed like torture, and then it was over? That happened to me twice this week. Now, that’s gratitude.

7) How many of you have given birth? How about when the contractions are over and you’re finished? Of course, the birth is a magical experience, but the fact that the pain is over is pretty spectacular.

8) What about being at war and doing your duty and, subsequently, getting home safely? Others say that is huge, although I have not served in that way.

9) How about answering a question at school where everyone laughs at you? People point fingers for the rest of the day. And then you go into school the next day, and no one remembers the incident? That calls for gratitude.

10) What about when you start a new school in the middle of the year and don’t know anyone? And, for the first week, no one will sit with you? And then, someone invites you to sit together? That’s a good one, too.

11) What about if you become dizzy and can’t lift your head? It’s pretty horrible. And then it goes away? Since I spent a whole week feeling dizzy and nauseated a week ago, every day that I am not like that, I am consciously grateful.

I had a student who had chemotherapy and an MRI every two weeks. He used to share his gratitude that the chemo didn’t give him worse side effects. So, of course, it’s all about perspective. I was grateful he used the kung fu, tai chi and meditation I had taught him so that his MRIs were places to meditate during what is always very loud, unpleasant beeping, whirring, grinding metallic noise.

12) What about seeing your first lizard sunning on a rock on a normal day in the tropics? What a trip to see these animals in all shapes and sizes. Good to be part of it.

13) How about going to the beach and smelling that delicious salt smell? It is healing. wonderful and a big gift.

14) What about  the first time you move your arms and legs in the water and they hold you up, meaning you are swimming? Not everyone gets this opportunity, so consider being grateful if you swim.

15) Here’s a good time to be grateful if you read. Yes, it is common, but it is a gift that not everyone has. A great way to show gratitude for this one is to teach one person to read.

There used to be a sign in the NYC subway that said,

“If you can read this, thank a teacher.”

16) What if you live in the smallest house on the block? And then you move to an even smaller apartment? Many have no shelter, so it’s great to be grateful for what you have.

17) What if someone in your life passes away? Although the experience can be paralyzing, you are lucky to have known this person and have her bring her influence or love to you.

18) What about rectifying your differences with someone who passes away? I am so grateful for becoming best friends with my ex-husband before he passed. This was a gift.

19) Did you ever write a song? It’s amazingly cool. Having the creativity and drive to do it is great. If it has words and music, some write the words first. Others write the music first. Others write instrumentals. I am so grateful for the songs I have created.
If you’ve never done it and want to do it, write a poem first. If you need help with the music, you can ask us, and we will help.

20) Ever go skiing? Gliding down a hill of white weather is totally enjoyable? Or what about rolling in the snow? It’s the gift of weather. Don’t forget it on your list.

21) What about wanting to go out with someone and then that someone asks you out? This little occurrence is a gift, and gratitude is in order.

22) This could be considered silly, but no feelings are silly, so here it is: being able to print my documents on thick enough paper where the paper felt creamy and looked good. I know this luxury deserves gratitude.

23) What about having running water? Now that I have an awareness of how many people go to the river or water location daily to get water for the house, I am super grateful. I also know that 783 million do not have access to clean water; many are bringing home contaminated water. I also know that, if we reduced our bottled water intake by 1/3, we could fund a project to fix the dirty water issue.

24) What about loving your toilet? It’s great that we have one. 2.5 billion of our world do not. I know it seems so far away to those of us who have always had one. But it is a big issue. Not having a toilet means lack of sanitation which means disease.

25) Being able to have wheatgrass juice in the morning is something for which I have gratitude. It is a gift that I can access it. I was also fortunate to receive a wheatgrass extractor from a friend. Big time gratitude.

26) Having pure organic vegetable juice is a big gift. You can feel the ingredients cleansing and nourishing like little workers inside the body. Gratitude for my juicer, twice as nice because it was given by a friend.  gave me her juicer.

27) What about having a cellular phone? Very convenient, and the only option for some locations. Yes, everyone in certain locations has one, but think of it as a gift and conjure gratitude.

Did you know that more people have cell phones than toilets?

28) How about the way a food or drink calms the spirit from tension or anxiety? I’m remembering mouthwatering organic apple cider that hit the spot after one of those awful medical tests last week. It calmed my system but mostly my mind. It was like magic elixir to take away the psychological trauma from the sounds of a magnetic imaging machine.

29) What about the delight of going to a movie, the theater, a concert you said yes to because your friend wanted to go turning out to be unbelievably great? That’s a gift.

30) What about being recognized for doing what you love to do, such as playing the piano, writing, lecturing, developing solutions for people? That’s the way to live. Be grateful for it.

NOTE

The next 70 ways to feel gratitude will be part of my list. Please comment should you recognize any or want to share yours.

31) My own orchid blooming.

32) My children’s first step and word.

33) My cats’ coming home after I let them out alone for the first time in a new location.

34) Having body pain go away.

35) Not making too many mistakes when playing the piano recital.

36) The thrill of playing a piano for the first time and all the cool times after that.

37) Being able to forgive myself for an action where I made a bad choice that I can’t change.
39) Being able to talk about the bad choices I have made with friends who accept me anyway.

40)  Doing free dance and 5Rhythms dance.

41) Knowing how to do and teach tai chi.

42) Having changed people’s lives through my work.

43) Having eaten some delicious fresh organic fruits.

44) Loving the seeds I eat daily.

45) Being loyal to others.

46) Being so lucky as to have people in this world that I love and love me.

47) Seeing pygmy marmosets at the Bronx Zoo exhibit.

48) Experiencing Hawaii and our friends with my grown up kids.

49) Doing tai chi to dj music and dancing at Ultra Music Festival.

50) Having a strong body.

51) Having a balanced approach to life.

52) Having not worn glasses for the first 46 years.

53) Remembering phone numbers without looking.

54) Having had a rich experience coming of age in New York City.

55) Living 1/2 a block from the door to undergraduate and graduate university.

56) Having had a super musical and understanding principal at one of the schools where I taught who allowed me to buy turntables and teach mixing.

57) Having easy access to computer technology.

58) Understanding how to make a few kinds of websites and use basic html. (Yes, I’m grateful since I love code.)

59) Having experienced lots of desserts of many flavors.

60) Having done turntable mixing with vinyl records. Yippee!

61) Having a great relationship with my kids.

62) Having respect for my kids and getting respect from them.

63) Living within 2 minutes of the ocean.

64) Being from New York.

65) Having had a strong and courageous mother.

66) Having had a loving father who taught me algebra, sports and small boat stuff.

67) Being proud to be my parents’ daughter.

68) Being happy to be gathering information on corporate customer service flaws.

69) Being thrilled to be compiling fitness books for different target markets.

70) Being thrilled  to be offering one-minute exercises for habit change.

71) Being happy that someone invented an internet radio station based upon musical characteristics and that I can access it.

72) Being grateful that I can watch movies on a big screen, thanks to my kids. It really changes the perspective.

73) Having had piano lessons with Sanford and Norman.

74) Having the locational and financial opportunity to be vegan.

75) So grateful that I can minimize killing by being vegan.

76) Loving the food that I eat as a vegan.

77) Having listened to some of the greats in jazz every night during the 70s including Bill Evans, my hero, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett & the band, Chick Corea & Return To Forever.

78) Having the doorman of my NYU owned apartment find my cat who fell off the 4th floor terrace, alive, with only a broken leg.

79) Having a cohesive family unit as a child.

80) Having a loving uncle, like a second father, who came to visit every Sunday.

81) Having a special toy closet that my grandfather kept for me. He used to go to second hand shops and get second hand toys and games, all of which were a thrill to me since I never knew what would be in there.

82) Eating raspberries and blackberries from my grandmother’s bushes.

83) Having experienced the love of all the pets I have been fortunate enough to have had.

84) Having the ability to walk, talk, see, taste, sing, smell, hear.

85) Having a continuing true connection to my late ex.

86) Being so fortunate as to watch my children become adults and be on their paths in life.

87) Grateful to love music.

88) Being able to work without equipment.

89) Happy to have given up package vegan food for freshly made food.

90) Having shells of all sizes and shapes that have added beauty to my life. Of course, it is important to see that no animal is living in a shell before it is moved.

91) Being able to enjoy 80 degree weather on a regular basis.

92) Having ice skated in the little pond next to my elementary school.

93) Having breathed out in the winter and seen my breath.

94) Having jogged in the winter to have icicles form on my eyelashes.

95) Having had the same chipmunk come up on the deck for one whole season.

96) Feeling positive about my accomplishments.

97) Having the skills to change habits successfully using a simple systematic approach.

98) Having the skills to teach others how to change habits successfully using a simple systematic approach.

99) Feeling grateful for the time I have had so far.

100) Waking up one more day.   

 

CONCLUSION

We hope this list will inspire thoughts that will help develop a personal list for which to be grateful.

ACTION STEP

Every day is a good day to look to find one more thing to add to the list.

The best of love and health in life. We are pleased to celebrate this anniversary because of you.

SPECIAL ATTENTION BELOW TO GET YOUR ANNIVERSARY GIFT

OUR ANNIVERSARY GIFT TO YOU ~ OUR ANNIVERSARY GIFT TO YOU

Would you like to help others by telling your story? Write to us so we can let others know about you. All brave ones who do this will get an evaluation and a three-step personal action plan for your effort.

OUR ANNIVERSARY GIFT TO YOU ~ OUR ANNIVERSARY GIFT TO YOU

____________________________________________________________________
FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She believes in gratitude. She says,

“It is a skill like any other. Sometimes, it’s more natural than at other times. But, everyone can learn to cultivate gratitude.

“Be patient, make your list and be glad for one thing today. That’s a great start. When you awaken tomorrow, there’ll be one more thing for which to be glad.”

3 HABIT CHANGES THAT TURN SICKNESS INTO HEALTH! (ISSUE 99)

By Diane Gold

We are often not aware of sickness habits or wellness habits. For the most part, when we’re sick, we are consumed with feeling sick. Hopefully, you can’t relate to this feeling, but most of us can and do. And when we are well, we are not thinking about sickness.

When sick, we can be dizzy, nauseated, have pressure in our head, be too hot, too cold, be perspiring, achy and itchy. Along with that, we are often anxious that we are sick,  especially if we and our health professionals cannot diagnose us.

So far, the only times I have been sick have happened in the past couple of years since I turned 60. And both times, my “specialist” physicians could give me no definitive cause for what I was feeling. That did prompt me to pine for a non-fiction version of Dr. House, MD, the TV series diagnostician, extraordinaire and gave me a bit of anxiety. I even wrote an article about it which you can access at the end of this article.

HABIT A) DROOPING HEAD

When we are sick, we are hiding from the world; light may hurt our eyes. We, like toddlers, think that if we are not looking up, the sickness we are experiencing will disappear. When we’re dizzy, as I have been for a good five days, we’re looking for some relieving position. So, anything goes. Or does it?

When we drop the head, we may cause the airway (the trachea) to become compressed, although, the cartilage around it ultimately protects it. The neck becomes strained because the head is not being supported correctly by the neck muscles, and the head is weighty.

ONLINE RESEARCH

I discovered a video this past week when, not being able to get an appointment with an ear, nose and throat specialist, I needed a do-it-myself how-to video on the repositioning technique for dizziness.

The maneuver, specifically for the diagnosis, Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, BPPV, with which I have not been diagnosed (yet), requires the patient to turn the head in a specific way for a few minutes and then keep the head straight, in one position, for 48 hours.

What I realized immediately was that the position of the proposed 48-hour position of the head was the suspended head position we teach in tai chi that brings stability to the region, allows the most oxygen to freely flow to the lungs, taxes the neck less than any other position and allows the most alertness and focus. It maintains tai chi principle by keeping the bones and body in proper alignment. It turns out it also helps to alleviate dizziness.

What did I realize? That because I was sick, my head was drooping in that “woe is me” posture and causing more sickness than health and maneuver immediately brought more air flow to me through realignment.

Picture a bobblehead on a dashboard in a 1960’s movie. In the old days, the head would be able to vibrate because a very springy wire connected the head to the body. Now, more durable plastic is used, and there’s less visible separation between the head and the body. But the trachea of this imaginary bobblehead person was never compressed because the head could not tilt forward. The spine of this imaginary person could not be compressed because the head could not tilt backwards. It could only maintain one position, that of maximum alignment and the most stability to the neck region. I stayed in the position for at least four hours and felt good, realizing that drooping my head had been slowing my healing.

ACTION STEPS

1) Aim the top of the head toward the ceiling, and keep it there throughout these steps.

2) Pull the head back from the lower hairs of the rear of the neck without tilting the head as if avoiding a sharp object pointed at the front of the center of the neck.

3) Notice how that position feels good.

4) Notice a freedom of the circulation of air in the body.

5) Notice whether quick turns add to discomfort, and be slow.

6) When you find you are slumping the head, go back to placing the head in the suspended head position again. Be diligent.

HABIT B) NOT EATING OR DRINKING

When we are sick, we may be nauseated, and we may not feel hungry. If we don’t eat, unfortunately, we will deplete our body nutrients.
Many people who want to lose weight think that during sickness is a fabulous time not to eat because the body will consume less calories and come out skinnier. Sounds like a plan, but no, it is not a good one.

The body needs what it needs. Feeling or not feeling like giving nourishment to it has nothing to do with the fact that the body needs what it needs. Yes, our bodies are sensitive if we feed them well; and the body may tell us when it demands less. But, when we feel sick, our immune system is telling us to maintain foods that enhance it, like green leafy, alkalizing wheatgrass and cruciferous veggies, citrus fruits, antioxidants, vitamin E, zinc, echinacea, tea and good, old carbs for fuel.

Reduction dieting is best during wellness.

ACTION STEPS

1) Drink one glass of water every hour or so. If it is difficult to get it down, keep drinking as much as possible. Hydration helps the body heal Keep it to a minimum of one glass every three hours, if you are having trouble with the recommended amount.

2) If you have the energy, eat normally. It’s easier if you have someone who will provide food for you while you rest. It may be necessary to purchase or have someone purchase foods that are partially or fully prepared for you, if getting up to prepare food is not an option. If you’re on your own, make sure to eat two pieces of Ezekiel bread with olive oil on them, if possible. Accompany this with at least one full glass water. Two is better if you can handle it.

HABIT C) SHOULDER SLUMP

When we are sick, we tend to slump. We may feel we don’t have the energy to hold ourselves up. This is because we are expending our energy on the pain, suffering, oddness we feel and posture is our last concern.

This results in back strain as we are folding in our spine. A bigger result is that our oxygen flow is limited. Of course, the stronger our lungs are, the better our air will circulate. But, if we are crunching up the body, we are making it harder for our lungs to do their job. Though we may think it’s the most relaxed position, it’s not the most healthy.

ACTION STEPS

We’ve all seen those distinguished grannies and gramps who we know are sick but show the picture of health so as not to worry the young ones or be a burden.

1) Be those distinguished figures: not for the purpose of making impressions for the sake of others. No, when you’re sick, it’s about getting healthy. And it’s about healing by taking on the persona of those who have gone before.

2) Straighten that spine, even if you’re doing so in bed. I have taught many people who could not get out of bed. It’s a great place to work out, whether it’s physical or mental. Picture that the more you stretch it, the more you will heal yourself. It’s true.

CONCLUSION

Hopefully, we will be more healthy than sick. There is a vast amount of digital research available to us that might be beneficial to review. Discussing what we find with a medical professional is always preferable, if possible, but, until that time, reading information may offer relief, as it did with me.

The habit changes are not new revelations. However, when we are feeling off, sick, terrible, pain or dizzy; we may forget the body principles we know to be healthy for us.

We know to keep our head in an erect position. We know to nourish and hydrate. We know to maintain a straight spine. During times of body stress, such as sickness, we need to train ourselves to be conscious of these things. Probably every time we are sick, we must be aware, since the discomfort will pull us away from what we know to be healthy.

May we all have more healthy days than sick, and may we take responsibility for turning sickness into health.

As promised, here’s the link to the article Looking For Dr. House: http://snurl.com/dr_house, for your information.

____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She believes it is our responsibility to act on behalf of our own health. She says,

“Whether we have the best medical professional or not, unless we pay for concierge medical service, we do not have instant access to her/him. When we become sick, it’s our duty to ourselves to work on our own behalf. There are many things we can do to help ourselves. It’s our responsibility to do them.

“When we wait, we should develop the ammunition of knowledge necessary to protect our bodies as best we can on our own. Posture and nutrition are always a part. Hopefully the three simple habit changes mentioned here can impact the way we treat ourselves and inspire us to turn our sickness into health.”

SOCIAL INFLUENCE, HABIT CHANGE AND WHAT’S MISSING! (ISSUE 98)

By Diane Gold

What is it with social influence and habit change? For habit change, it seems very obvious that people like support. And that more people change a habit using a buddy system or enlisting an accountability partner or group. This article will focus on what about groups helps us and what’s basic to success.

THE MOTIVATION WE GET FROM GROUPS

When thinking about social influence and habit change, I think of doing physical fitness like tai chi, going to the gym, going to a weight watch group, going to a rehab center. The function of each of these group activities is motivation of some kind. Let’s look at how the group motivates us.

1) We are social creatures and can enjoy being in the company of others.

2) Because we are the ultimate creatures of habit, a new group setting can be a safer environment than one we have been around when acting out our old habit.

3) We can get courage from hearing that someone else understands us, whether we are talking about drugs, weight loss or anything else.

4) Being with others is a big distraction that can assist us when breaking in a new habit. After all, when we are alone, we are our sole distraction, and the only person on whom we rely; but, in a group setting, we have more social influence keeping us on track.

5) Because we are so impressionable, for the most part, we pick up the habits of others. Therefore, if we are around people who are productive, we will be more inclined to be productive.

AUTHOR’S NOTE

We should note that the group experience is not everyone’s preference. If we look at how Americans spend their time, according to the America Time Use Survey, done by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, a similar percentage of people work out alone as together. But this statistic is not specifically for habit change activity, so I would suspect if there were a time use survey done for people who are changing a habit, there would be more groupies than soloists.

SUCCESS RATE

When we look at the amount of people who go back to their old habits after six months, a year, five years; it can be disheartening. There’s an interesting statistical article from 2004 about how treatment doesn’t work at:
http://www.soberforever.net/currenttreatdoesnt.cfm.

Unfortunately, after writing about how treatment doesn’t work, the article’s publisher contradicts itself by saying its treatment facility has a success rate 30% higher than anyone else.

It is fairly accepted that most people who become residents in rehabilitation centers succeed between 3% and 10% of the time to maintain their habit change. The data at centers is usually compiled without scientific method, and, because individuals only answer survey questions to arrive at conclusive data, it is extremely difficult to maintain study integrity.

SIDEBAR

This fact reminds me of another modality whose studies are sporadic, don’t always use scientific method and are small. It’s how tai chi, which saves lives, does its magic. Studies that involve mind-body answers and compare one’s lifestyle before and after are very expensive. To conduct a nice-sized primary study (one that uses fresh data to arrive at conclusions vs. a secondary study that analyzes and interprets a primary study), it can cost $250,000 and that would be for a small mind-body study.

WHAT’S MISSING?

So, what’s missing from all these programs that include one-to-one therapy, group therapy, peer group therapy, tai chi, chi kung, yoga, massage, sauna, meditation, organic vegan food and more?

I’m going to repeat what makes up a habit: a cue, a behavior and the resulting reward. This habit model doesn’t change. So what are we shooting for?

When we go into a program and do all the therapies mentioned above, we have one purpose. It is to change a habit. This requires that a new system be put in place. To build this, we must change the mind and develop skill and build our foundation. After all, we need to have something to hold on to when our urges show up in order to direct us to execute our new behaviors we have developed.

BUILDING FOUNDATION

Let’s use how tai chi changes us since I have seen it first-hand in many hundreds of people. Any mind-body work or other creative discipline can do it as long as the instructor understands how foundation is built and instructs it starting with the basics.

People think tai chi is for exercise or defense, alone. It’s really for perception change. By doing a powerful exercise as tai chi is, we learn a systematic approach to movement. This system gives us tools to use in everyday life. As we acquire the patience to endure tremendous body exertion, we are learning a tool that works with anything in life. We have the understanding to know that the physical exertion and mental concentration needed to physically execute the movement is teaching us to follow through. And it is showing us we can do it.

This type of training gives us a foundation of skills that can be used to change a habit. They are self-esteem, pride, temperance, patience, tolerance, strength, balance and many more. These are the traits needed for habit change. If a rehab program misses teaching these skills through some type of system, the program participant is left in relatively the same condition as when s/he arrived, only learning a few rote skills which usually fade away, exposing the old habit.

CONCLUSION

We are socially influenced in many ways. When we see lots of people doing the same thing, we are more inclined to do that same thing. I always give the example of helping a fallen woman on the sidewalk. If no one has stopped to help, we are less likely to stop. If someone has already stopped to help, we will be more likely to inquire if we can help (unless we are public servants or feel like public servants and believe it is our duty to protect).

It’s the same if we surround ourselves with people who do not take drugs or drink or overeat or gamble. We will be more likely to accept behaving in a similar fashion, especially if they know we are working on habit change. If we keep repeating a new behavior in place of the old habit at the same time as building a personal foundation, we will succeed. And what’s missing at the start will no longer be missing. We will have developed, not only new behaviors, but a structure within ourselves that will sustain the way we wish to live.

ACTION STEP SEQUENCE

In order to see how easy it is to reach out to another, meaning, to form a group, here’s an action that might be helpful.

1)  Approach someone who is in your life or just someone you meet at the library or supermarket.

2)  Tell her (him) you are doing an experiment and that you need help one time between 6 pm and 7 pm one night this week. (It can be a different time.)

3)  Tell the person that, when you call, you will ask her to tell you how important you are to your mission.
_________

Let us know how it goes.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She has been influenced by group dynamics and seen how others sometimes get trapped. She says,

“Fortunately, I was raised to be very independent. But groups still influence me. Whether we are helped by the group or our own personal way, the one that works is the right one for each of us.

“As for building a foundation, there’s only one way to go about it: one step at a time. Slowly, with consistency and follow-through. As we begin to build upon ourselves, we become very strong. Then we become the social influencers, and nothing more is missing.”

THE ONE SECRET TO HABIT CHANGE: GET IT AND USE IT! (ISSUE 97)

By Diane Gold

There is one secret to habit change. We don’t need to be college-educated to understand it. We don’t have to have been brought up in a wealthy home to use it. It is the same in every country. It applies to every habit. We all know the concept as it applies to daily life. Yet, it’s still a secret.

Before we spell it out for you, let’s look at the characteristics of habit change. We have three ingredients: the URGE, which is the itch or cue that we want to experience a particular pleasurable feeling; the ACTION, which is whatever is done in response to the urge; and the REWARD, which is the glorious feeling of pleasure we get from the action we chose to take after we had the urge.

In order to hear it, we must be ready at this very moment to realize its truth; and that if we don’t make it a priority in our lives, we will go another way. Easiest is best, and that’s upon what this secret is based.

Are you ready? Here it is.
In order to eliminate lots of wasted time from roller coaster habit change work, act within 5 seconds of feeling the urge. And you will have the easiest road ahead. I’m not saying it’s easy, but I am saying this method makes it easier. Simple, right?

Let’s look at a few examples.

Picture the situation where we get an urge to eat cake. We are on a strict regimen not to include cake in our food plan. If we don’t act with instant motion within five seconds of the urge, we have already given ourselves time enough to plan which way we will walk to the cake store, passing an Automatic Teller Machine along the way, since we keep no cash with us to avoid running out to buy food. Oops, we forgot about the ATM card. Or figuring out how to run up an account with the local grocer if we have no cash, if we have remembered not to have an ATM card around.

[Note to self: if not already done, place the ATM card in the safety deposit box.]

If we do act within five seconds, we can dissipate our urge and have one more experience of staying within our food plan.

Here’s another.

Imagine it’s the end of the work day, we are closing up our store and start getting the urge to join all our buddies across the street and drink alcohol. Yet, we know, at this time, we have decided to abstain from alcohol because it does not support us. So, when we feel that craving, we have a choice: we can act within 5 seconds and take a new action that does not involve alcohol OR wait and go drink alcohol, a behavior we already know is not working for us. If the people at the pub are really our buddies, we will see them later, not in the bar.

This urge and this situation have happened to me more times than I can count. My live-in boyfriend had left work early and was always at the bar. So, my mind did its jealousy dance about his having alcohol and fun without me or having more alcohol than I was having. Crazy, right, that I would be jealous of someone else’s having more substance than I? Crazy, but true. Vividly, jealousy green, true.

The only way for me to replace this cycle was for me to act IMMEDIATELY before I thought about alcohol, jealousy, whatever else my crafty mind came up with. If I didn’t act quickly, I’d be sucked into the old habit behavior.

And finally, a last example follows.

Let’s say I had stopped smoking cigarettes for a year. And no one smoked around my job or house. One day, I was taking a walk in the metro area, and someone who was smoking passed me by. I got a whiff of smoke and instantly wanted to smoke. Without instant action, I would be urged to bum a cigarette from that very person. That would start the old familiar cycle of smoking which was the familiar behavior I knew that satisfied the craving for smoking. When I moved quickly and took a different action, I learned how to create new rewards with my different actions, and the urge to smoke went away again.

CONCLUSION

We have a very short window of opportunity in which to execute the one secret to habit change. It’s usually in that five second range that we must act. If we don’t take a new action within that time, we will habitually do our old behavior. And changing our habit will wait on the sidelines another day.

Think about it. What happens when we procrastinate? Nothing new. If we do nothing new to change our habit, we will gravitate toward what we know: our old habit. Most of us know our old habit with our eyes closed because we have repeated it so often.

It requires focus to take a new step. The more we take that step, though, the more it replaces our old action. If we do it once, it’s a novelty. If we do it twice, we see its merits. If we carry it out a third, fourth, fifth time; it becomes more natural, although usually it requires 21 days for the mind to accept the new behavior as becoming a possible replacement.

ACTION STEP

The one action we will take when we feel an urge works for all kinds of habits. It can’t hurt us either. It can only help.

We will drink water, two glasses, eight to twelve ounces each, as soon as we feel our urge to fulfill our old craving, no matter what it is. The act of drinking water dissipates any of the oral addictions biologically, such as eating, alcohol drinking, drugging, smoking. It has the following effects on all habits.

1) It physically dilutes the blood so that the usual amount of substance (food, alcohol, drug) cannot produce the same reward.
Perspective

2) It changes our mental perspective so that we are no longer focused on whatever we were focused on before we drank the water.

3) It changes our emotional status because it has a calming effect.

4) It teaches us a technique we can use almost anywhere), at any time, as long as we are in a place fortunate enough to have freely running water.

5) It is our first habit change buddy, always loyal, never a flat leaver, always faithful.

Do it. It is massively impactful, requires little activity, not much effort other than the effort of doing magic on or tricking one’s own mind. And it works on all the urges to a large degree.

May the change be with you!

____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She has used the one secret to habit change many a time and would like to see it go public. She says,

“Habits are learned by repeating one behavior, over and over again. If we were Vulcans (from Star Trek) and had no emotions, we’d have no trouble taking the secret step at any time and adjusting our behaviors.

“Because we are not Vulcans and are so attached to our emotions, cravings, urges, desires, passions; each behavior is motivated by many emotions. Thus, we need boldly to move ourselves to the new behavior, whether our emotions agree or not. This takes focus. If we put on horse blinders, we would have an easier time. Although the very idea might diminish our self-esteem, another important emotion; so we don’t use them.

“The secret to habit change is water, two glasses. Let’s make an effort to drink it as a technique of change. It works and empowers, all by itself. Consider it. There’s nothing to lose.”

THE 5 BIGGEST MISTAKES OF HABIT CHANGE (ISSUE 96)

By Diane Gold

What if we could boil down the 5 biggest mistakes of habit change? Could we use them to make changing habits easier? And out of them create the 5 Commandments Of Habit Change?

Everything we read, hear, experience, learn, touch, smell, feel helps in the change process. But we always have to work hard to make change. I have turned myself inside out more than once, and I believe it to be a worthwhile activity.

MISTAKE 1) Look at more than one habit at a time.

In order to succeed, we must focus. We need one-pointed mind.

Remember the quote in The Last Samurai, where the Japanese general tells Tom Cruise’s character,

“Too many mind. No mind,”

when he is training him in the sword? (Go to http://000chi.com to hear the quote.)
Focus On One Habit At A Time

He is referring to our ping pong ball minds. When we look at many things, we lose focus of all of them. When we look at one thing, we are able to focus on it. One Habit At A Time!

MISTAKE 2) Picture the end result instead of the first step.

When learning to change a habit, looking too far ahead is usually a deal breaker. If we are looking at the end result, meaning that we changed our habit; it may look vast, overwhelming, impossible, certainly difficult that it’s quitting time, quitting the process of change, that is.

That’s why we only look at the very first step, whatever that step is for each of us at the moment. The first step is NOT the first step in the process. It is the one step directly in front of us. I realize that this same step may need to be done over and over and over again 25 times in one day. This depends upon how many times a cue, urge, trigger presents itself.

Here’s what I mean. Let’s say we decide that when we get the urge to __________, and I am leaving this blank so that any habit can be filled in; we will drink 16 ounces of water. We will also drink water before every meal. Supposedly, it’s difficult for the body to tell if it is hungry or thirsty, so water can fill us up, especially if we have the patience to wait 20 minutes (which most of us don’t) before we __________. Also, the act of drinking the water will change our focus from the ______________ to the water. It may be just enough to allow us not to ____________.

MISTAKE 3) Commit to change our habit forever.

When we decide we will change a habit forever, we are locking ourselves in a prison. To give up an old behavior is not as difficult if we tell ourselves that we might be able to go back to it at some point in the future. It makes it easier to start, and it is not as scary a process. Change A Habit For Today, Not Forever

It’s easier to say,

“I will do this today,”

than it is to say I will never do this again.

So, our change is for today, not for forever. One Urge At A Time.

MISTAKE 4) Stop doing the action that actually worked to get us to change our habit because we think it’s no longer necessary.

 How many times have we thought we had ourselves together, and we stopped behaving in the way that was working for us? We had changed our habit so long ago that we thought we could stop the technique that got us to change the habit?

This happens with the weight loss habit all day long. That’s why people lose weight for a year or five, then gain it back. That’s why substance abusers get clean for 10 years and then start their old behavior.

We can’t go to the track once; we can’t do drugs recreationally; we can’t eat chocolate cake for lunch. Because we will cause the cues to start hitting us in the head again. Kind of like a trigger on a gun that is broken. Every time it is fired, it cocks itself. And every time it is cocked, we have the itch to execute our old habit.

We can’t fight biology. Our habits live inside us, and we can’t take them out of us. We can choose to change a habit to make another dormant. If we stop the new, in most cases, we will revert back to the old way of behaving because it is so natural to us. That is why once we make a change, we have to maintain it for as long as we want the old habit to be hidden.

Here’s an example of how the habit of speaking one way reverts to an old way in a flash.

We speak with the accent of our region. The people around us sound the way we sound, and we sound the way they sound. No one in our region says we have an accent because we all speak similarly.

What happens if we move to a different region? According to our new neighbors, we have an accent. They sound like each other, and we don’t like them. People usually smile about it because we sound very much like the place from which we came. We smile, too.

So we end up living in the new region for about 10 years. And we start to sound more and more the way the people of the region sound. This is not really a phenomenon. It is a combination of:

1) wanting to fit in even if this desire is unconscious. We are human and we like to fit in;

2) learning our new accent unconsciously through continually hearing the new region speech all the time and, finally,

3) making an effort to learn the accent of the region so that we can further call it home.
What happens if our best friend from back in our old region comes to visit? We instantly start to speak the dialect or accent of our old region. In a flash. We go out to town to introduce our best friend, and we are speaking the way we were when we first arrived.

Here’s the explanation.

We learned our original habit, our accent from where we were born.

We changed this habit, partly by choosing to fit in and partly through unconscious, auditory repetition.

We changed our habit back to the original habit in a heartbeat because all our habits are always ours.

We choose a new behavior so as not to express the old habit. When we don’t, our old habit comes out (usually). So we need to be diligent even if we have been doing the new habit caused by the new action/behavior for a decade or longer.

The story about the accent focuses on a habit that is not harmful. And, most of the time, the accent habit situation is harmless. But what about the following scenario?

Imagine a U.S. Senator whose family members all speak street language. She was the only member of the family to go to school. She was raised on “ain’t,” “anyways,” “nucular energy,” “athalete,” “asterik,” “supposubly,” “mischieveeous.” She goes to visit her original home for a week and her entire family speaks their normal street speak to her or with her. Then she comes back to D.C.

All of a sudden, at a dinner with the President, she starts telling a story about her family. She forgets where she is and begins speaking in her old dialect with her old street slang.

People judge people by their speech. And people don’t use slang in the political halls of our government because of it. Bringing out her old habitual speech could have serious credibility consequences since the public must trust her and some of that public equates her speech with her ability to lead. Her constituents might lose trust in her; and political peers might judge her unworthy of her post.

Fortunately, if someone has become a U.S. Senator, she will have a strong foundation in having learned how to speak and know what to speak in front of whom. But the old speech is there like all our old habits.

5) Forget to enjoy the idea of the new action that led to the new habit which is what helped us conjure the power to change.

This does not apply at the beginning of the habit change process. For as long as it takes, we are learning a new set of behaviors, and enjoyment is important but second to doing the behavior without intellectualization.

The ONLY thing that is relevant is doing the new action. Nothing else.

Once we have accomplished doing the new action and have a routine going that includes the new behavior, we can rejoice in the fact that we have begun to change the habit and that we had the power to start. If we forget to be joyful which includes acknowledging ourselves for changing, we are missing out on the joy that can sustain the new behavior.

CONCLUSION

These 5 mistakes create powerful action steps from which to learn. They are simple ideas that, when executed, have much power, much wisdom and many success statistics.

Here are the steps:

ACTION STEPS – THE FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF HABIT CHANGE

1) Focus on one habit at a time!

2) Picture the first step in front of you now! When accomplished, picture the first step in front of you now!

3) Commit to change your habit for only the moment you have an urge or for an hour after it or for a day. Any longer is too overwhelming.

4) Continue doing the action that changed your habit, even if it doesn’t seem as if you need it.

5) Enjoy the idea that we have made the change (further on down the process).
____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________
FEEDBACK

Please leave a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She has seen the same mistakes over and over when people change habits or make the attempt. She says,

“We can learn as much from our mistakes as from our successes. We may even learn more because we are acutely aware of our falling short of our goals and pay attention so that we can strive to reach them.

“We are fortunate to be able to learn from others’ shortcomings. All living things do. Because we have an emotional and ego-driven minds, it is not as easy for us to take the errors of others as gospel. We are often blinded by egos, unlike our animal friends. If they are blinded, it is usually by the need to survive.

“Let us turn these five mistakes of habit change into action steps. Each one has the potential to make the ultimate difference in the outcome of our goal for habit change.”

DEMYSTIFYING TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE (ISSUE 95)

By Diane Gold

Tradition Chinese Medicine needs to be demystified in the United States. Through my years of being around both Western and Eastern Medicine as a music therapist and tai chi mentor and school owner, I have seen lots of confusion when it comes to understanding Eastern Medicine. My purpose is to bring people closer understanding Traditional Chinese Medicine so it can be used with confidence.

 

My interview demystifies. It is with Doctor of Oriental Medicine, George Love, licensed as a primary care physician in the State of Florida since 1986. He has extensive background in acupuncture, massage, herbology and nutrition. Parts of the interview are in dialogue, other parts in narrative.

DIANE

Can you talk about people’s perception of Chinese Medicine when they really don’t know anything about it. What do you think people see and how can we bring people closer to it?

GEORGE

Number one, it’s called attitude, perception and perspective. We grow up thinking everything American is great and wonderful, and the rest of the world doesn’t know anything. And obviously that’s not the case.

Number two is that anything we don’t understand immediately upon hearing it cannot be good.

And number three, our perspective, is that we live in a country where A follows B, and everything is linear thought.

ATTITUDE

America is a very young country; we don’t know much. Therefore, we have to look at ancient cultures and what worked for them and try to adapt the ancient …

PERCEPTION AND PERSPECTIVE
     … we look at acupuncture, and we perceive that acupuncture is Chinese Medicine. Acupuncture is only one tool in a tool kit that contains at least 14 different tools. The number one tool is the understanding that blood and energy flow together. … The reason people get sick is that blood and chi become stuck or stagnant.

If we look at arthritis or pain or any muscular pain or any digestive pain or any respiratory distress, the blood and the chi are stagnant; they don’t flow. The purpose of Chinese Medicine is to move chi and to move blood. The purpose of chi kung and tai chi is to move chi and to move blood. So, therefore, tai chi and chi kung are actually part of Chinese Medicine.

DIANE

Can you differentiate … between moving chi and moving blood?

GEORGE

Chi moves the blood, and the blood pumps the heart.

DIANE

OK. Great.

People are in the habit of going toward what they’ve heard of, what they know and what other people have told them, social proof. If we’ve been around Chinese Medicine, then we think it’s normal. If we’ve been around only Western Medicine, very often, we don’t understand Chinese Medicine. And we shy away from it thinking we know what it is.

DEMYSTIFYING CHINESE MEDICINE: THE PROCESS

When you’re short of breath, you know when you’re short of breath. (George pants and says,)

“I’m short of breath.”

If you run across the street really fast or … you … run up a flight of stairs really fast, you know you’re short of breath.

If you see somebody sitting in a chair and they’re slumped over, you say,

“Hey, what’s wrong with you? You don’t feel well?”

Or if you see somebody sitting on the edge of their chair, their back is straight and they’re smiling; you say,

“Wow, what’s going on with you? You look really energetic.”

So, it is literally visible if somebody’s chi is strong or weak.

DIAGNOSIS

HOW WE GET SICK: THE CAUSES

So what we want to know is why do people get sick, how do we get sick, and how do we get well?

So, how do we get sick? TRAUMA, INSUFFICIENCY, TOXICITY.

TRAUMA

 

Either you have a car accident, you fall down the steps, you fall out of a tree, you get run over by a car, whatever that trauma is.

 

There’s also emotional trauma. So your emotional trauma is abandonment, rejection, betrayal and abuse. Your emotional trauma is anger, avoidance and addiction. Your emotional trauma is your victim story.

TOXICITY

Now we have toxicity from overeating the wrong foods, eating the bad foods or getting an infection.

INSUFFICIENCY

Insufficiency would be not enough love, not enough laughter, not enough relaxation, not enough exercise, not enough water. That would be insufficiency.

DIANE

This sounds very, very simple and something I can understand.

 

HOW TO GET WELL

GEORGE

So, this is our framework. These are our tools that we need to look at how we get sick.

How do we get well? You reverse the trauma.
Reverse The Trauma

PARTIAL LIST OF TOOLS OF CHINESE MEDICINE

GEORGE

That [which what would reverse the trauma] would be massage, … acupuncture, … physical therapy, … yoga, … chi kung, … tai chi. So there’s any number of tools at your disposal to reverse trauma. Breathing, meditation, internal exercise.

TOXICITY

So toxicity, well, we want to detoxify the blood.
So [for] inflammation or infection, you want to take herbs, or you want to a juice fast, juice feast.

You want to restrict  caloric intake. You want to take herbs that purify the blood or cool the blood. And that’s how we reverse toxicity.

INSUFFICIENCY

And, insufficiency, you want to eat super foods. You want to take herbs that give you energy. And chi kung or tai chi would be appropriate also for insufficiency.

THE REST OF THE LIST OF  TOOLS OF CHINESE MEDICINE

What we call Chinese Medicine, they (the Chinese) call meridian therapy. There’s breathing, there’s meditation, there’s internal exercise, there’s food, there’s herbs. Then there is heat, pressure, sound, magnets, electricity, red light, laser light, suction, scraping, and, oh, by the way, we’ve got an acupuncture pin, also.

In the west, our perception is that acupuncture is Chinese Medicine.

 

DIANE

Absolutely right. And many people don’t even know the word acupuncture…
To understand that there are all these other therapies that are Chinese Medicine is very interesting. And, it makes people understand how Chinese Medicine came about. Because not everybody needed a pin, and some people needed a pin. And there were so many other ways to move the blood and the chi. And these are the ways of the Traditional Chinese Medicine.     Traditional Chinese Medicine Caduceus

THE DIAGNOSTIC GRID

NARRATIVE

I ask George to complete the diagnostic grid and talk about the categories that make up the diagnostic grid.

GEORGE

OK, we have the emotional, physical, nutritional and energetic. That’s gonna be the rows on the left.
And then your columns are going to be trauma, toxicity and insufficiency.

DIANE

So when I asked you how you diagnose, you said to me,

“You ask why is someone here, or why do you have pain or who is giving you pain.”

I thought that was rather telling …

GEORGE

WHO is the pain in your neck?

DIANE

It’s very true. Pain can be emotional pain and can be caused by a particular being.
So what we talked about today seems like very [systematic] medicine. It doesn’t involve putting someone on a particular medicine and keeping them there without looking at other factors.

NARRATIVE

Traditional Chinese Medicine is integrative. It makes me smile that there is a fairly new Western Medicine specialty: Integrative Medicine. It seems like a bridge to join medicine from the East and medicine from the West.

CONCLUSION

We now have a transparent way of looking at Traditional Chinese Medicine. It is not a mystery any longer. Our interview guest, Doctor Of Oriental Medicine has demystified it. He has talked about how to diagnose by asking, not only why you are there, but who is giving you pain. He mentioned how many tools there are in the arsenal of Chinese Medicine.

We wanted to show how medicine is profound and vast. The connection between Western and Eastern Medicine is the fact that people do want to heal. The person who goes into the field of medicine wants to heal. Sometimes, as in any area, people can get distracted by money, power, fame, opportunity.

It’s all about balance. balancing the finding of a cure with the money expended for drug research or balancing one’s emotional life with work and family.

The information we have offered has certainly demystified Traditional Chinese Medicine. We hope it has helped to outline its backbone in a way such that its systematic approach is easier to see, easier to validate and friendlier to use.

ACTION STEPS

Here are some action steps that may be useful. They are simple techniques that can be achieved with little effort.

1) Consider what you have and rejoice.

2) Pick one thing out that you lack, even if you have some but not enough. George mentioned love, laughter, relaxation, exercise, water, for starters. You might also include music, health, creativity, skill, talent as your item of which you want more.

3) Add this item to your life. If it something like water, drink more (and be thankful for our water supply). For laughter, make sure to laugh at least one time a day more than you do now by reading a joke or looking at a comical photo. It’s up to you as to what you choose. If you need more love, give it to yourself. Go to the local library or cafe and just say hello to someone. Contact usually changes perspective and, often, strikes up interesting communication. Or go make a friend by listening to music in the park.     Massage For Relaxation

TIP

If you have any doubts about the action steps, go watch this: 21 Second Motivational Video.
____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She is fascinated by any method that can achieve personal development success. She also loves clearing up misconceptions. She says,

“Medicine is a systematic approach to healing, no matter which approach is taken.

“The discussion of Traditional Chinese Medicine in this article gives an excellent overview of what is its scope, how diagnosis is approached and the vast number of techniques in the tool kit. I am excited with the information provided from the interview and am hopeful it will be helpful in the quest for healing.”

CAN GUT MICROBES HELP WITH WEIGHT LOSS? (ISSUE 94)

By Diane Gold

There is extremely specific evidence that gut microbes have something to do with weight loss or gain. Much research is in process, and a new, amazing breakthrough has just been published.

THE STUDY

On September 5, a new study came out in the journal, Science, where germ-free mice were colonized with gut microbes (called “microbiota” in the study itself) from four pair of human twins. Each pair of twin donors contained one obese and one thin human. The recipients of the fecal matter were sterile mice who had no gut microbes until they were exposed to the human microbes.

Those mice who received the transplanted material from the obese twin became obese. The mice who received the transplanted material from the thin twin became thin. The mice were genetically identical so as to rule out genetic differences.

So far, this research, in its early stages, shows much promise. Not only did it show that the obese donors’ gut matter with controlled diet affected the recipient mice to get obese and vice versa. A big conclusion came out of this: it might be possible to change out microorganisms in an obese person’s gut so that the new microbes could promote thinness rather than obesity.

The researchers fed the mice a low-fat diet, which regular mouse food is. The microbes from the lean twin took over the gut of a mouse that already had microbes from the obese twin. The overweight mouse started to lose weight. The microbes from the overweight twin did not take over in a mouse that was thin.

 

NEXT STEP

Dr. Jeffrey I. Gordon, the senior researcher on the study, from Washington University in St. Louis, called the collection of microbes the “Battle of the Microbiota.” This is what happened.

After the transplants, the mice from each set of microbes, both obese and thin, were put together in the same cage. Mice typically eat each other’s dropping. So both sets of gut microbes were shared, and the mice with obese donor microbes started converting to the microbes from the mice from thin donors. There were sterile mice also introduced into the cages to see which microbes would appear in the gut of the sterile mice. The thin microbes seemed to take over.

One of the research colleagues, Vanessa K. Ridaura came up with the idea of creating two different diets for the mice, based on a national survey of what Americans eat: a high-fat diet with saturated fats and a low-fat diet with the most fruits and vegetables diet. The researchers created mouse pellets of two compositions to reflect these two types of diets. What they found was the mice who were overweight and received food high in fat, low in fruits and vegetables, stayed overweight and kept the gut microbes from their obese human. The thin twin’s gut microbes took over only when the mice were fed the food rich in fruits and vegetables and low in fat.

This study parallels the science that shows how low fat and high fruits and veggies are good for you.

FUTURE WORK

Dr. Gordon has said he wants to search out which particular microbes are responsible for the effect on obesity and leanness so that, eventually, people can be given microbes instead of fecal matter. A gastroenterologist, not part of the study, Dr. Alexander Khoruts, University of Minnesota, mentions how this isolating “the” microbe could take decades. He mentions that it would be a lot quicker to try fecal transplants.
To date, just under 500 fecal transplants have been reported for very aggressive clostridium difficile infection with successful results in over 90% of the cases. For obesity therapy, the prospects are hopeful. It seems like the simplest, least expensive, least invasive therapy to date.

NOMENCLATURE

When the study came out two days ago, the New York Times, the paper whose Sunday crossword puzzle my mother could get through without much effort, writer Gina Kolata, used the words “Gut Bacteria” in the headline. Enjoying using the right language, I started this mad dash to check what to call the microbes in our intestine (did you know these biological helpers are also in our conjunctiva [the eyelid inner skin], on and under our skin and in the mucous membrane [in the mouth, nose, gut]?), and I wondered whether this study used bacteria exclusively. Now I know it was a combination of whatever was in the stool.

I kept seeing the words “gut flora” in the brilliant encapsulation with the same title in Wikipedia, also in the L.A. Times’ rendition of the study which was published on the same day and in various other publications. I was confused because I had always used the words that distinguish plants from animals, flora from fauna, by thinking of Bambi, the fawn. Faun, get it? So, to my knowledge, flora was plant matter.

It turns out the words “gut flora” when speaking about our intestinal microorganisms is used although it is phasing out to the correct microbiota, “biota” pertaining to the diverse collection of “micro” or tiny organisms. Flora was probably begun to differentiate the microbes from the exclusive word “bacteria” which would leave out fungi and archaea, other microbes that live in the gut and help us thrive. The New York Times article used the limiting word, “bacteria,” in this article.

CONCLUSION

We are influenced heavily by what we eat. Now we have more proof than we used to that gut microbes have influence on the proteins produced and the processes that contribute to our weight and our appetite. It is important to be thoughtful of what the food we eat does to support or inhibit our bodies and to make changes accordingly.

Here are a few easy steps we might take to protect our gut microbes. Imagine if weight loss were only a matter of balancing our gut microbes, as may be. It seems correct since these microorganisms have so many productive jobs to keep our body functions optimal.

ACTION STEPS

 

1)   Make more than half the food you eat fruits and vegetables.

2)   Experiment with ingredients in a salad or vegan nori rolls, so quick and nutritious.

 

 

3)   Do a few seconds of abdomen circles every day to assist with digestive flow.

 

 

 

4)   Notice how food affects your body, and be good to it. Your bathroom visits will be regular and smell mild if the body appreciates the way you eat. The more vegetables, the better. They nourish and cleanse.

5)   Consider making one new food choice, and commit to it for a week. If you do not feel better or if you get bored, let it go, and make another food improvement. If you do feel better, continue it for another two weeks. If you still feel good, keep the change.

EPILOGUE

These steps are the beginning of changing any habit so that your gut microorganisms can make you strong and healthy. Time will tell about how powerful are the findings in the above scientific breakthrough study.

Wouldn’t it be tremendous if this non-debilitating method of achieving better health could be made available to all who need it!

____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She looks for the latest research techniques that can help people curb cravings.  There are so many keys to health that are right in front of us. She says,

“The current science about our own microorganisms in our gastrointestinal tract is vast and growing. It makes sense to me that we can use this micro eco system within ourselves for balance. I hadn’t considered that we could offer each other our good microbes for health, but it’s so logical.

“The ease with which this therapy could help people all over the world is remarkable. I am very excited and await more gut microbe news.”

OUR PATH TO HAPPINESS: DO OUR GENES KNOW BEFORE WE DO? (ISSUE 92)

By Diane Gold

Whatever our path to happiness, it is what drives us, floats our boat and encourages us to behave the way we do. Sometimes, it can be judged as superficial ego stroking; other times, it is seen as deep, genuine and benevolent. Whatever it is for us, we might be interested to know that our genes, and not just the social networks, can tell the difference.
Happiness

Barbara L. Fredrickson of University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill et al and Steven W. Cole of UCLA, School of Medicine et al authored a July, 2013, study (published in the Proceedings of the National Academy Of Sciences) on how genetic expression is effected by the kind of happiness we seek. There is hedonic happiness, where we park ourselves at the local upscale restaurant’s bar for the purpose of being seen and getting photographed for the high society pages;  and there is eudaemonic happiness, where we devote ourselves to a societal goal or creative act to beautify the world.

Yes, it’s surprising that our biology is watching and reacting; there is more and more proof.

THE STUDY

The study included 80 subjects who took a verbal survey, had their blood drawn and data compiled. It turns out that the study clearly indicated different gene expression profiles for those people whose happiness had to do with a goal or higher purpose and those whose happiness was connected with superficial pleasures and instant, short-lived gratification. According to an article in The New York Times on the study findings, Gretchen Reynolds wrote,

“Gene expression is the complex process by which genes direct the production of proteins. These proteins jump-start other processes, which in the case of white blood cells, control much of the body’s immune response.”

She’s referring to the fact that the blood testing of these 80 healthy individuals showed profiles with relatively high levels of blood markers that are known to cause inflammatory response for those whose happiness was related to the hedonistic approach. Their antibody production seemed to be less than in those whose goals were more moralistic. The smaller part of the group whose happiness was more service-based had gene expression that raised antibody production and reduced inflammatory expression.

Steven W. Cole, co-author of the study and professor of medicine in California stated,

“Our genes can tell the difference,”

between a life of purpose and self-gratification, unrelated to the greater good.     Our Genes

WHY

It has been suggested that our genes are evolutionarily programmed to do the ultimate good to keep ourselves and humanity safe. The lead author, Steven W. Cole is quoted by Christopher Bergland in Psychology Today, when referring to why the genes express differently, based on what different people feel,

“likely evolved to help the immune system counter the changing patterns of microbial threat that were ancestrally associated with changing socio-environmental conditions; these threats included bacterial infection from wounds caused by social conflict and an increased risk of viral infection associated with social contact. But in contemporary society and our very different environment, chronic activation by social or symbolic threats can promote inflammation and cause cardiovascular, neuro-degenerative and other diseases and can impair resistance to viral infections.”

It’s pretty amazing at how our genes have protected us and continue to protect us from internal and social threats. Pretty fascinating!

CHANGING

This article is not suggesting we make changes, that is, change our habits to those that include giving, sharing, helping, doing service. It is, however, informing and reinforcing the idea that if we don’t, our bodies may become weaker.

It would serve all of us if we used the concepts in this study wisely. Whether we decided to run a store to give free sandwiches to the poor or we decide to work on our own physical fitness so that we can be a better and healthier family member; we would ultimately achieve that deeper happiness because our genes would tell the right proteins to fire so we would live longer and more healthily.

In order to feel the deep or the shallow happiness, and no one here is judging which is better, we must be alive and well. Therefore, we are recommending that it is worth thinking twice from now on about how to act in the name of happiness.

It’s one thing to go from activity to activity, always looking for the next great kick. It is another to build a foundational difference in the world or in ourselves. The bottom line is that now we can attach a scientific reason to taking care of ourselves and others.

ACTION STEPS

NOTE

The following are a series of simple questions to ponder. Do not judge yourself. Only consider truthfully. If it pleases you, number a page from 1 to __, and write down your considerations and the date.

1)  Consider which is better for you, your favorite quick fix or a project where you are making a difference.

2)  Consider what your favorite quick fix is, and, on a scale of 1 to 10, how healthy is it for you, 10 being very healthy.

3)  Consider what your favorite “making a difference project is, and, on a scale of 1 to 10, how healthy is it for you.

4)  Consider how many people’s lives you could impact with your project.

5)  Consider which is better for you, your favorite quick fix or a project where you are making a difference.

6)  Do the activity you have considered as most pleasing to you with extra gusto.

CONCLUSION

It is fascinating that our genes which control whether things do or do not become, in many cases, respond to tension, release and, apparently, innate tendencies. Because of this and since we are speaking about it now, it is a great time to take a self-look.

____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave  a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition and habit change.

She has always been fascinated by genetics. She says,

“Happiness comes from within. The instantly gratifying activities we do or actions we take count for fun but can easily go away. We each choose how to live, and whatever that is, it is right for us at the time we choose it. We can be confident in that!

“Looking at the ways others obtain happiness will not trick our genes. Obviously, they feel us closely. Therefore, considering inner balance is a worthwhile effort.”

HOW WATER WORKS ON HABIT CHANGE (ISSUE 87)

By Diane Gold

Water works on habit change. It has a profound influence on whatever we are doing. If we are working on changing a habit, we need it. If we are thirsty, the body is already deprived, but it hydrates us. Water flushes out toxins; it balances the chemicals that make us human; it combines with the nutrients from our food. It keeps our health.

THE ACT OF DRINKING WATER, THE BEHAVIOR

We know that, in order to change a habit, we are going to plan a new behavior to activate when we get our urge, our cue, our itch instead of following through with our behavior we have decided to change. Here’s an example behavior with overeating. When we sit down to eat, and we find ourselves salivating and ready to gobble down every last drop of our food because we can never get enough food at 100 pounds overweight, we can use this pre-planned strategy, which works for most habits:

ACTION STEP

Before sitting down to eat (or even if we eat standing up), pour two glasses of water for ourselves. Before we allow ourselves to take a bite to eat, we drink all the water. We do this at every meal, including snacks.

We can think of the beautiful water supply from which it came, if it is clean water and conjure a picture of wonderful waterfalls surrounding it. Secondly, we can honor those who do not have clean water or any water at all by being grateful for the water in front of us. This mental exercise helps insure the water is drunk with no excuses.

THE RESULT

The body is somewhat sated and has the control to eat the meal at a healthy speed, chewing many times (25 X per mouthful is a good start). We will also eat less. Yes, we will become hungry again after we have finished the meal. However, the water may give us control not to run and eat again.
__

PROOF OF MY OWN

I recall that drinking water was a way I used to reduce my urges. On many occasions, I actually lost the desire to overindulge from the act of drinking water. The removal of desire was not permanent, but it is became very manageable and rarely reappears. Sleep often followed this remedy so that I didn’t chance that the urge would reappear again and tempt me to have an additional meal or substance.

The idea of taking away my appetite for whatever it was I wanted often made me REFUSE to drink water. Why would I want to get in the way of satisfying my own urge? As time went on, though, I realized that the technique of using water as a friendly control tool, was changing my understanding of myself. Even if part of me resisted it, once the water was down, I wanted to forego the old habit and a new reward took its place, that wonderful feeling of having changed myself. I still feel it all over my body, inside and out. I smile at the way the mind pulls us and marvel that I have discovered how to adjust it with a plan, some faith in myself and repetition.

Here’s another relevant personal tidbit. My precious cat is usually on a weight loss or weight maintenance diet. He quickly changes his behavior when there is no food in his dish. He goes out to play or, like me, goes to sleep.

THE SCIENCE

There are lots of people who know that water helps habit change. Most don’t know that , according to a study by Almiron-Roig & Drewnowski, 2003, and DellaValle et. al., 2005, in the Journal of Physiology & Behavior, energy drinks increase food consumption, compared to water or non-energy, artificially- sweetened drinks. (It has been shown that artificial sweeteners can be carcinogenic and are still under study, so I recommend water). I don’t know the sample size or technique used in this study.

More recent than that is a 2009/2010 study performed by Brenda Davey, Ph.D., of Virginia Tech University, et. al. with 24 subjects. This study demonstrated that water, drunk prior to a meal, reduced energy intake (which we call the amount of food we eat) in older, overweight adults. Although the sample of test subjects was small, it finally demonstrated what many people have been saying for years.

THE EXCUSES

Here are reasons why people don’t drink water. Know them, bypass them and go drink:

1) It’s not always convenient to stop and get water.

2) It makes our stomachs puff out, and we don’t like to see that.

3) It flushes out the many toxins that are produced during weight loss which is necessary and good. The result is we have to use the bathroom much more often, which is a chore for the lazy.

4) We don’t feel thirsty. Once we feel thirsty, we are already dehydrated, and we have already taxed our bodies too much.

5) We know water will take away our urge and we want to get the old reward of our urge that is not supporting our positive life style. And it’s hard to let go of this.

CONCLUSION

What I have learned from changing habits is this: water cuts the appetite, water cuts urges, water makes us healthy and water sustains our lives. If we have access to it, we can use it for all these things.

Before we close, I want to make sure to mention some water facts. These facts do not take away from the fact that to change a habit requires will power galore. They just bring to light the fact that we are not the only ones with issues.

THE FACTS

1) Over three-quarters of a billion people lack access to clean water.

2) Only 63% of people have a sanitation facility. That means 1.1 billion people (estimated from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme) defecate in the street.

3) More than 80% of sewage in developing countries goes untreated to pollute rivers, lakes and coasts.

4) 90% of all disease comes from feces.

5) According to water.org, a $25 donation will supply clean water for one person for life.

In honor of those who have less,

CONCLUDING ACTION STEPS

1) Continue the two-glass technique until you feel some modicum of control over your most out-of-control urges.

2) Repeat this technique for seven days. If successful, go 14 more days.

3) Once you have completed 21 days, think of drinking water as a method to change your biology for the rest of your life. This method needs to be continued, since habits we change usually live in us in a dormant state.

4) Once you have completed 21 days, as you drink water on purpose, congratulate yourself.

5) Every day, don’t wait until the body is thirsty. This taxes the body. Drink at regular intervals. In keeping water drinking high, we have a good chance of staying in command of our urges.
____________________________________________________________________

FEEDBACK

Please leave a comment and LIKE.

DIANE GOLD, AUTHOR

Diane Gold, Founder of Warriors of Weight, Turning Habits Into Health, is a mentor in tai chi, kung fu and meditation, a music, fitness and stress expert, dedicated mom, studying plant-based nutrition.

She is pleased to have lived long enough to discover herself well. She says,

“I am not special in developing self-control and the ability to know myself. I believe we can all do it, if we devote the time and follow a technique. And here’s a secret. Even if we don’t believe in ourselves, as long as we follow the technique, we’ll succeed anyway. It’s the doing that matters; the belief comes later.”