An Exciting Heart Health Story

Before we get started talking about what's good & bad for the heart, I have to tell you this very personal story. In December of 2005 my husband and I went to Conway, Arkansas to check out a technology called Digital Pulsewave Analyzer (DPA). I had my first DPA test there while being trained as a technician. To my shock and utter dismay it revealed that my arteries were in bad condition!

What does a DPA test do? The DPA test gives you a letter grade from A - G that indicates the condition of the arteries. A means your arteries are in great condition and G means find a cardiologist now! It shows how well the blood circulation is, it reveals the biological age of the arteries. It measures the time from the aortic valve opening to the aortic valve closing. It registers the heart rate. It gives a print out of all this information so that you can see for yourself.

My test revealed that my circulation was very low, my letter grade was an F which indicated I had hardening of the arteries and plaque build up, the biological age of my arteries was 80 or older. This was very scary to realize; in fact I wondered if I would even make it back to my home in Houston, Texas without having a heart attack or stroke!

Now, I wasn't an unhealthy person. I was a vegetarian for 10 years, I didn't eat junk, I drank raw veggie juices everyday and I exercised regularly but I was not getting something I needed for healthy arteries; and that was adequate amounts of arginine!

What is arginine? Arginine is simply an amino acid; but the body uses it to make nitric oxide.

What is nitric oxide? The nitric oxide derived from arginine is directly or indirectly implicated in practically every cellular response and health condition imaginable, from the cardiovascular system to the immune system; and hormone function to nerve function. When your body has adequate amounts of arginine, the arginine will be converted to nitric oxide gas in the endothelium of the arteries; allowing the arteries to repair themselves and clear themselves of plaque build up.

I discovered an arginine drink in a base of exotic fruit juices called Cardio Cocktail (CC) made by the ForMor Company. I started drinking an ounce of Cardio Cocktail (CC) but not consistently. My mother had become ill on January 1st of 2006 and passed away after several weeks of hospitalization. Then came the aftermath of bills to be paid, belongings to distribute, etc. So for a year I wasn't drinking the CC like I needed to.

In 2006 another DPA test revealed I had some improvement but I still had 80 year old arteries and low circulation. The next few years brought more family crisis that I let get in the way of my health. But in 2009 I began consistently taking two ounces of CC every day and even increased it to 4 - 6 ounces per day for several weeks that summer; my last DPA test in August of 2009 revealed that my letter grade went from F to B and the biological age of my arteries went from 80 to 50 years old!

For a colorful brochure of 22 reasons you should try this arginine drink, contact Pat Blasingame at pat.blasingame@yahoo.com

Poison in a Can

Here's a little tidbit while I'm working on the heart health post. A friend sent me this info so I thought I'd pass it along.

Sugary Soft Drinks Linked to Pancreatic Cancer

According to Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, Editor of Natural News; A fourteen year old study of 60,000 people in Singapore found that those who consume two or more sweetened soft drinks per week have an 87 percent higher risk of pancreatic cancer. Published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Bio-markers & Prevention, the study was led by Mark Pereira of the University of Minnesota who said, "the high levels of sugar in soft drinks may be increasing the level of insulin in the body, which we think contributes to pancreatic cancer cell growth."

Nearly 38,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the United States each year, and over 34,000 die from the disease each year. This research points to what may be the common culprit of all those preventable deaths: Sugary soft drink consumption!

Poison in a Can

Natural News has warned readers for years about the dangers of consuming soft drinks. (so have I, Pat Blasingame) The sweetener used in most beverages......high fructose corn syrup....... is linked to both diabetes and obesity. The phosphoric acid found in soft drinks is highly acidic, stripping minerals from bones and promoting osteoporosis. At the the same time, soft drinks can cause kidney stones.

For those who consume diet sodas, the health risks may be even worse. Aspertame causes neurological side effects that include blindness, headaches, and impaired cognitive function. The beverage industry of course, denies any links between soda consumption and negative health effects. It wants consumers to naively believe that liquid sugar, phosphoric acid and pressurized carbon dioxide are all good for you!

Look Around You

Experience tells us a different story. Look at the people you know who consume the most soft drinks and ask yourself this simple question; "Are they the healthiest people I know?" Probably not! Most likely, if they've been drinking sodas for many years, they're suffering from obesity, diabetes, kidney stones and perhaps even pancreatic cancer.

Start Living Healthy in 2010

Always start at the beginning!

In this case, start at the beginning means, first thing in the morning. Put one teaspoon of Bragg's Raw Apple Cider Vinegar in eight ounces of water and drink.

There are many benefits from drinking raw apple cider vinegar (ACV) every day, but the most important one is, it gives the body the potent nutrients it needs to purify and heal itself. And because your body is in a cleansing cycle from 4:00 a.m. until about 10:00 a.m., the ACV drink gives it a boost.

Paul Bragg created a great product for good health!

According to a paragraph in the booklet by Bragg on raw apple cider vinegar (ACV); "It's time for life changes when you feel badly and don't seen to have human go power and vital force to do the things in life that are necessary! It's time to flush out the energy depleting, problem causing, toxic wastes that are clogging your machinery and organs of elimination! Waste products broken down by this ACV drink process are flushed out. Remember, your important organs of elimination are the bowel, the lungs, the skin and the kidneys. they are your faithful servants! They work hard 24 hours a day to detoxify and flush out toxic wastes. Many times these eliminative organs need help and that is when the ACV drink comes to their aid!"

You can also have glass of ACV drink with meals, it will help eliminate indigestion. You can mix ACV with olive oil and herbs for a nice salad dressing.

Experts like to say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day!

But only if you consume the right food. Remember the cleansing cycle; a heavy meal will interrupt that cleansing cycle. Bacon & eggs, toast, cereal, milk, biscuits, donuts, coffee, sweet rolls, etc. are all devoid of enzymes. your body will therefore have to stop the cleansing cycle and focus on making digestive enzymes. Because the cleansing cycle was interrupted, a toxic build up will begin. When there are no enzymes in the food, the body will call on white blood cells to help make digestive enzymes so the immune system is put under stress.

These traditional cooked breakfast foods do have carbs, proteins & fats but no vitamins & minerals except for synthetic ones. Doesn't it make sense that if you want to start the day out with energy that will endure, you should eat the kind of food that gives your body what it needs to actually make energy that will endure?

So what is best to have in the morning? Fresh fruit salad with no added sugar or creamy sauces, fresh fruit & vegetable juices, fresh apple sauce made in a blender or food processor combining a banana to give it substance. Use other fruit for variety; peach & banana, pear & banana, strawberry & banana, etc. Try whole food concentrates like The AIM Companies' BarleyLife, Just Carrots & Redibeets. Whole food concentrates are quick & easy while being packed with everything your body needs to build healthy cells, including enzymes! And this is basic to having a strong immune system.

Here are some drinks to try:

Drink # 1

1 tsp. green barley powder

1 tsp. carrot powder

6 or 8 oz. can of low sodium tomato juice

dash of garlic powder

cayenne to taste

1/2 C crushed ice

blend on high

Drink # 2

8 oz. cold water

1 Tbs. green barley powder

1 Tbs. carrot powder

1/2 tsp. beet powder

1 Tbs. flax oil blend of your choice

1/2 C crushed ice

blend on high

Drink #3

In a juicer :

juice 1 apple, 1 section of celery, 1 cucumber

add: 1 tsp. carrot powder, 1/2 tsp. beet powder

Try these drinks in the morning & in the afternoon for a energy boost. If you want to have something like a multi-grain or bran muffin later in the morning after 10:00 a.m. , that will not interfere with the cleansing cycle.

If you want to know where to get whole food concentrates, contact me at: pat.blasingame@yahoo.com

Cold and Flu Season!

This time of year is not only reserved for new beginnings and making new resolutions but is also typically the time when people succumb to bad colds and flu symptoms. Why is this? Starting with Halloween, there are parties, fall festivals with caramel apples, candy, popcorn balls, pumpkin cookies & other treats, Trick or Treating........ oh and don't tell me you don't go through your kids Trick or Treat bag and sneak out the good stuff. Yeah that's what I thought.

Then in November you start thinking about Christmas shopping, but it's early so that's not too stressful yet Thanksgiving Day brings travel or a house full of people for you to prepare for as well as a lot of food that's high in fat and sugar or starches that turn into sugar.

In December the shopping intensifies; the parties begin along with programs, pageants, decorating, more high fat and high sugar foods. More travel, more company; often the weather is bad so your not getting that great fresh air and sun shine. There are back to back football games so instead of walking off some of those calories you've become an immovable object; and even though you are having a great time with family and friends, your body is under a lot of stress. All that will have a negative effect on your immune system!

Next is New Years Eve parties and many times alcohol is involved with all of these holidays; that comes with yet another set of negatives. All the festivities end with New Years Day dinner with more family & friends and MORE FOOD! And I doubt that anyone is taking multiple digestive enzymes to help digest and assimilate all that cooked food and empty calories. Or a good fiber product to make sure every thing that comes in gets moved out. It's no wonder that the Flu Season is mostly in January & February!

Multiple Digestive Enzyme tip:

the rule of thumb for taking digestive enzymes is one capsule per serving of food; in other words if you have a serving of potatoes, green beans, carrots, meat, salad, salad dressing; that's six separate servings of food and you will need six capsules taken before you start eating. If you eat desert later, that's another capsule per serving.

Fiber Product Tip: If you don;t want to over eat, then take a fiber product 30 minutes to an hour before you eat.

If you want to know where to get enzymes & fiber, contact me at: pat,blasingame@yahoo.com

Too much sugar in the system suppresses the immune system among other things. Dr. Mary Ruth Swope talks about watching white blood cells under a microscope from a person who had ingested average amounts of sugar for the average person. The blood cells were sluggish and barely moving. In that condition they are not able to destroy all the invaders that are among us all the time. Their ability to destroy pathogens is decreased!

Here's an example: if you had no processed white sugar in your system, one white blood cell can destroy 14 bacteria in 30 minutes. Where as if you had as much as 24 teaspoons of processed sugar, one white blood cell can only destroy one bacteria in 30 minutes. The good news is, this situation can be corrected with natural vitamins, minerals and enzymes.

A Strong Immune System is the Key to Staying Healthy!

Our bodies are the most intelligent thing about us! The cells of our bodies are communicating with each other all the time without asking us anything. They're not going to ask us anything because we do foolish things to our bodies. They don't need to ask anyone, they have the instructions that God gave them!

Now in order for the body to do all kinds of things to save our lives, it has to have a healthy immune system. And most of the actions of our body that we think is a health problem is really an immune system response! If you have a fever, that's an immune system response; bacteria are heat sensitive and the fever is keeping the pathogens from multiplying out of control; if you get congested, that's an immune system response; your body has surrounded something that doesn't belong in the lungs with mucus so that you will cough it up. If you have diarreah, your body's trying to get rid of something in a hurry, that's an immune system response.

Our immune system is actually the body's defense army; and it has a great radar system. it is constantly monitoring and providing protection against invaders making assaults upon it 24/7, non stop! If we could see all the invisible invaders trying to get at us, we would freak out!

The immune system is made up of the thymus gland, lymph nodes found from the face to the thighs. And there are a bunch of them , thank God; because He knew that one day medical doctors would want to take a lot of them out! There is also the spleen and the bone marrow. The immune system has about a trillion cells called lymphocytes; and it has about 100 million trillion molecules called antibodies that are produced and secreted by the lymphocytes. Lymphocytes are made in the bone marrow and multiply by cell division in the thymus, spleen and lymph nodes. (see how important those little lymph nodes are?)

Once an invader has gained entry into the body, it is met first by a large white blood cell called a macrophage. It's standing guard like a big, no nonsense bouncer. It looks at the invader and says, "Your name's not on my list; you can't come in!" ( kind of) The "'big guy's job is to take out the invader. If it cannot surround and absorb the invader, it sends out an S.O.S. message to another white blood cell called a lymphocyte. The lymphocyte goes into the thymus gland and comes out a T Cell, sort of like Clark Kent goes into the phone booth and comes out Superman! So the "mild mannered" cell has become a killer T Cell, ready to protect it's home land!

Special Forces - there are three divisions of T Cells. One is Killer Cells and they flow in the blood stream and in the lymph fluids to all parts of the body, surrounding and destroying microscopic invaders. The other two divisions are called Helper Cells and Suppressor Cells; they monitor the situation and will either order more Killer Cells or restrict the number of Killer Cells sent out! (the body knows how to be efficient.) When the T Cells are unable to over come a particular invader by them selves, they call for help from the B Cells. T Cells and B Cells together are the body's Special Forces! B Cells become Plasma Cells and they make molecules of proteins called antibodies. Antibodies hunt for specific invaders called antigens which invade the body........ and what happens next is right out of a science fiction movie! (except it's true!)

A Science Action Thriller! The antibody locks onto the antigen and then calls for another chemical component of the immune system called the complement. The complement folds around the antigen, which is being subdued by the antibody and just dissolves it!

The Clean Up Crew; when this process is complete, the antibody and the complement call out certain macrophages and other white blood cells called polyleukocytes to gobble up the remains of the destroyed invader........WOW! ........What an organization. Not only do the bad guys get destroyed but there's a clean up crew as well! ........ With a defense system like that isn't it amazing that people even get diseases?

Pat's Health Tips:

The best defense against any kind of flu or respiratory infection is vitamin C with rose hips taken several times a day and vitamin D3 taken with food once a day. If it's viral then I recommend protease enzymes taken on an empty stomach several times a day.

AIM's Bear Paw Garlic is made from the leaves of wild garlic found in the Alpine mountains and is beneficial for boosting the immune system and fighting viral infections as well as discouraging parasites.

AIM's Proancynol 2000 is great for breaking up congestion and eliminating persistant coughs as well as boosting the immune system.

To ease breathing, use an essential oil called Thieves Oil along with Peppermint Oil, a few drops on a cloth or in a diffuser; this very versatile oil can be inhaled (careful not to get near eyes or mucus membranes) , applied to bottoms of feet for supporting the immune system, one drop in two oz. of water and gargle to kill bacteria in throat and also to soothe soreness. One drop in twelve oz. of cool water sipped slowly supports the immune system. Mix a few drops with a light vegetable oil and rub on chest & back for breaking up congestion.

For best sources of essential oils contact me at: pat.blasingame@yahoo.com

For prevention use 3% hydrogen peroxide; a few drops in each ear once a week followed by a few drops of olive oil. This will discourage bacteria from entering the respiratory system, because of the connection of ears, nose & throat.

If you've done all you can and you still find yourself in the situation of just feeling rotten, achy, congested & pretty much overwhelmed, you may need more than high powered nutrition. You may need to detox with a series of Ionic Foot Baths & Chi Machine sessions. And/or a healing Raindrop Massage Therapy with nine different essential oils dropped along the spine, followed by hot compresses.

We also have a (DPA) Digital Pulsewave Analyzer that scans the entire cardio vascular system.

Watch for Cardio Health Blog in February