Are our homes making us sick or fat?

Below are the notes that I took from a workshop at the 2012 Young Living Convention.  

There are 80,000 synthetic chemicals and only 200 are studied, none of which were on infants.  Infants have an undeveloped immune system and lower body mass.  These chemicals alter brain and neurodevelopment.  Are toxins predisposing us to gain weight?  Yes, obesogens, antibiotics, organotins, phthalates, parabens, BPA, and PFOA (Teflon/scotch guard and controls metabolism and disrupts the thyroid gland).  These are all endocrine disrupters.  Toxins cause cells to be bigger causing us to gain weight and can cause stem cells to be fat cells.  

271 million pounds enter waterways every year.  48% of Americans are on prescription drugs.  Acetaminophen causes liver damage.  Anti-bacterial chemicals are in 76% of products.  Triclosan (which is an environmental toxin in Canada) is anti-bacterial.  The EPA says that triclosan is a pesticide.  Did you know that it is in your toothpaste?  Our micro biome does not go back to what it was before the antibiotics.  Why not use something that has a natural anti-biotic instead of a synthetic one?

Who is responsible for protecting us from toxic exposures in our homes?  Green is not enough.  Green eliminates the risk but the bioaccumulation toxifies us and is a mechanism for disease. We need to offset it.  Creating a healing home is necessary.  Did you know that air fresheners are a $1.7 billion business and that phthalates are not required to be on the labels?  Our daily exposure to chemical synthetics does wreak havoc with our homeostasis (balance) between the body systems.  Our immune system is on constant override and it turns into inflammation with common household toxins.  And inflammation is a pre-cursor to disease.  Why not diffuse essential oil that can be a benefit to our immune system and our home?

Young Living Essential Oils help us pharmacologically, physiologically, psychologically.  They offset the effects of synthetic pharmaceuticals, chemical synthetics, and obsesogens.  Serotonin goes up when using essential oils which makes more protein receptors and have more of a feel good response.  So, why essential oils?  First, the communication factor.  The oils are organic compounds that have 70-80% carbon, in fact.  They can absorb toxins and hold carbon onto them.  Second, synergy.  The oils complement each other and feed off of each other.  Third, PMS, which stands for phenols (cleanse cell receptor sites and fights off microbes and parasites), monoterpenes (correct DNA), sesquiterpenes (deletes misinformation in cells and cell communication is restored).  Cell communication is stimulated by the organic compounds composing of essential oils.  

Essential oils can distinguish the good from the bad bacteria and leave the good bacteria intact.  The added benefits are in the fact that we normalize metabolism and support an effective digestive system.  Using essential oils support respiration, oxygenation, improved cognition, and we counter the lack of productivity.   Did you know that certain oils containing high sesquiterpenes can increase brain oxygenation by up to 28%?  With improved brain oxygen levels, we are more awake and alert, better able to think, process, and solve problems.  Some of those oils are cedarwood, sandalwood, melissa, frankincense, myrrh, and clove.

With essential oils, we offset the effects of stress and sleep issues.  Sleep Essence contains lavender, vetiver, valerian, ruta graveolens, and the hormone, melatonin, which synergistically act to promote relaxation and induce better, sustained sleep.

Going green removes the toxins, but in Healing Homes, essential oils offset the bio-accumulation factor and provide additional health benefits.

How will you make your home a green home or even a healing home?

For more information, www.oilsforhealthyliving.net.  

Aroma and Satiation: Do They Go Hand in Hand?

The Young Living Essential Oil products in the Slique line are Slique Slim Caps, Slique Gum, and Slique essential oil.  These products assist in letting the brain think you are full quickly.  Below are my notes from the 2012 convention.

As we all know, stress stores more fat cells.  If you are stressed, you will over eat because of cortisol overload.  Stress triggers cortisol and stimulates hunger hormones.  Aromas (like orange and peppermint) suppress appetite and can lead to a 2% weight loss every month with no change in diet or exercise.  Citrus is known to have the ability to quench hunger as well as have many compounds to assist our health.  They are also natural antibiotics. 

Slique Slim Caps (liquid) have lemongrass leaf oil, fractionated coconut oil, pomegranate seed oil, lemon myrtle leaf oil, and balsam fir idaho branch/leaf oil. 

-          Citral, a constituent found in lemongrass and lemon myrtle essential oil that may increase metabolic activity while decreasing appetite triggers. 

-          Puricic Acid – an acid found in pomegranate seed oil that may block fat cell uptake at the cellular level and may reduce lipid levels in the blood.  It reduces belly fat.

-          Lemon myrtle consumes adipose tissue (fat).

Slique Slim Caps (powder) have premium gluccomannan, ocotea leaf fines, and fucoxanthin.  These caps will dissolve in the stomach allowing the contents to expand, which may initiate physical satiation and feelings of fullness. 

-          Glucomannan is a soluble dietary fiber derived from the konjac root that expands in the stomach and may induce feelings of fullness and decrease appetite.  It promotes good gastrointestinal friendly bacteria – flora and calcium absorption.  It facilitates magnesium and calcium absorption into the blood. 

-          Ocotea leaf – a South American plant thought to help reduce sugar cravings. 

-          Fucoxanthin is a carotenoid found in brown seaweed and has a very similar structure to beta carotene.  It helps to metabolize white body fat (not brown body fat).  Brown fat is resistant to diet and exercise.

Slique Gum has frankincense resin, spearmint, peppermint, and turmeric.  It keeps your mouth busy and to not eat.  Why would frankincense be in the gum?  Well, back in the day in the Middle East, caravans used to carry more water than food mainly due to not being able to carry more.  The Frankincense resin is what they chewed all day long to sustain them and not feel hungry.  They would eat one meal every three days. 

-          Orosensory stimulation is an important contributing factor to the development of satiation.  Chewing gum for at least 45 minutes significantly suppressed rated hunger, appetite and cravings.  95% of taste is aroma.  If you chew more, you get more aromatic satisfaction from the food.

-          This gum can be chewed on for up to 3 days!  You can put a drop of Slique essential oil on it to revitalize it.

A part of modulating appetite is cravings, which is satiating.  Sense of satiation is for the brain – without that, we can overfill the stomach.  There’s no better tool for aroma than hot foods, like tea, to have psychological satiety.

Slique Tea has Jade oolong tea, inulin, ocotea leaf (Ocotea quixos), Ecuadorian cacao powder, vanilla essential oil, frankincense powder (Boswellia sacra), and natural stevia extract. 

-          Vanillin is vanilla and the chemical structure is similar to clove.  Clove has a numbing effect and is great for dental work.  Therefore, vanillin numbs your appetite.  It is 25% higher than any other commercial vanilla.  Stress Away roll-on helps our cravings because of the presence of vanillin, which numbs the brain.  Stress unlocks the fat cells for further absorption, triggers cortisol (the stress hormone) and triggers a cascade of hunger hormones. 

Slique Essence essential oil combines grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, spearmint, and ocotea with stevia extract in a unique blend that supports healthy weight management goals. These ingredients work together to help control hunger.

Wow, Slique is unique!  As of this posting, I have tasted the Slique Essence essential oil and love it!  It's a spearmint-citrus flavor.  I also have chewed on the Slique Gum for 2 days - not bad for old gum.  The Slique Tea has a unique flavor to it like no other and is really tasty.

Related Blogs:
Homeostasis and Weight Loss
New Year, New You - The Slique Experience

For more information: www.oilsforhealthyliving.net.

 

Which super fruit juice should I drink?

There's a lot of hype about these super fruit juices that are high in anti-oxidants like Acai Berry, Goji Berry, Mangosteen, Mannotech, Noni, Xango, Guarana, Wolf Berry, Chinese Lycium, Siberian Pineapple, Cili, Black Currant, Ningxia Red, etc...  How do I decide which one is the best for me?  I say that something is better than nothing.  However, there are a few things that you should look out for.

1.  Look at the list of ingredients.  Are there "junk juices" or "filler juices" in the drink?  Those would include apple, pear, and grape.  They taste good, but are not high in anti-oxidants.  Plus, they are high on the glycemic level and not good for diabetics.  In my opinion, the company wants to sell more for less and the consumer suffers.  If there are "filler juices", the better ones are pomegranate, blueberry, and raspberry.  NOTE: pomegranate juices do not spike blood sugar levels as easily as other fruit sugras.  Keep in mind that the majority of the drink may not contain the super fruit.  Acai can be on the label if it is one of the top 3 ingredients. 

2.  Look at the labels.  Don't be fooled by the words "100% juice".  It may consist of the super fruit juice as well as the "filler juices".  Look for the words that say which juice is 100%.

3.  Is the juice free of toxins?  Don't just look for the word "organic" as it only has to be a certain percentage of organic.  Look for it to be certified by the USDA as organic.  Foods today have less nutrients than they did hundreds of years ago.  Pesticides are not required on the label.

4.  Preservatives in the juice disrupt the natural qualities of the juice.

5.  Avoid the juice drinks that contain extra sugar that have a high glycemic index, which causes inflammation and counteracts the super fruit's benefits.  If you are drinking something that is "acai flavored", it won't give you the health benefits.  Low glycemic index sugars are organic blue agave, stevia, etc...

6.  Buy the juice in glass bottles, not plastic.  Plastic leeches into the juice and causes negative effects.  If the juice is heated and then poured in plastic bottle, bisphenol-A may be released.

7.  Check out www.bbb.org for the rating of the company by the Better Business Bureau.

8.  Is the company part of the fair trade?

9.  How does it rate on the ORAC scale?  ORAC stands for Oxygen Radical Anti-Oxidant Capacity.  The higher the number, the more anti-oxidants there are. 

10.  Were the tests done is a test tube?

11.  Is the juice reconstituted?  Concentrated juices have less nutritional value.


You will not get the benefits of the super fruit if the drink does not consist primarily of it.  You will have to drink several times the serving size and thus, it will cost you more.  Looks for juices low in glycemic index and high in anti-oxidants.  These juices will give you better health results in combination of a healthy lifestyle.

From the 2012 Young Living Convention, they mentioned that a lot of the fruit juices contains propylene glycol.  Why?  Because they need to sell the diluted juice to make money.  It is not required by law to disclose it on a label. 

Sources and Resources:
http://www.naturalnews.com/022029.html
http://adamgreen.ca/articles/nutrition-articles/deciphering-antioxidant-juices/
http://acainotes.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=53:buy-the-best-acai-berry-juice&catid=37:buy-acai&Itemid=53
http://curezone.com/forums/am.asp?i=924261

Ingredients of some of the juices:
http://www.ningxiawolfberryjuice.com/ningxia-red-ingredients.html
http://www.mangosteenplus.org/mangosteen-ingredients.html
http://tahitinoni.com/noni_juice.htm


What super fruit juice will you drink?

For more information, www.oilsforhealthyliving.net