Contents

Sugary Sweet Beauty
Prepare for vacation with workouts
The Cave Womans Diet
Detoxication: You Are What You Fail to Excrete!
Recommended Reading

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Sugary Sweet Beauty
by Danielle Sims

In the self-care and beauty industry, the latest craze is to include sugar in skin care products. If you search the internet you will find everything from sugar body scrubs to sugar hair removers. The prices can range from $8.00 to $35.00 for each product. How's that for a product in which the main ingredient can cost you a no more that $3.00 for a 5 pound bag!

To enjoy all of the benefits of a sugar based product without shelling out the big bucks, try these recipes:

Orange Cream Sugar Body Scrub

This recipe is great to remove dead skin and give your skin a healthy glow. The sugar contains glycolic acid and the cream is a source for lactic acid. Avoid irritated or broken skin areas.

Ingredients:

½ cup sugar
2 TBSP cream or whole milk
5 drops orange oil
1 cup olive, jojoba, or almond oil

Mix sugar, oil and cream together. Add orange oil after main ingredients are completely mixed.

Apply to your body by starting at the feet and working your way up. Massage in a circular motion and leave it on for 10-15 minutes, then shower it off. This recipe is enough to make one full body treatment.

Lemon Head Sugar Body Scrub

This recipe is both cleansing and detoxifying. Lemon is very detoxifying to the body and will also help brighten the skin.

Ingredients:

½ cup sugar
10 drops lemon oil or ½ a lemon freshly squeezed
1 cup olive, jojoba, or almond oil

Mix all ingredients together. Apply to your body by starting at the feet and working your way up. Massage in a circular motion, then shower it off. This recipe is enough to make one full body treatment.

Facial Cleanser

Ingredients:

White or brown sugar
Your favorite facial cleanser
Witch hazel
Water

Using your favorite daily facial soap, an easy, inexpensive facial scrub can be made by adding sugar. Simply add a teaspoon of either white sugar or brown sugar and massage it gently on your facial skin. Rinse with cool water and spritz your face with a ½ witch hazel and ½ water mixture.

Sugar is a natural and inexpensive way to include alpha-hydroxy acids in your skin care program. It produces glycolic acid, an alpha hydroxy acid, which is included in many skin care product lines. Today's pricey beauty products that include sugar or alpha hydroxy acid, can be created inexpensively right at your kitchen table. You will experience all of the benefits without the inflated price.

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Prepare for Vacation with Workouts
by Nancy Conway

The ads are everywhere -- lose weight, work out, do what it takes to look good in a swimsuit for your summer vacation. This might be a good plan if you expect to languish on the beach or hang out at the tiki bar for two weeks.

But most of us expect to pack our precious vacation time with touring, hiking, biking and on-the-go activities. That means tailoring fitness workouts to be in top shape for a fun and healthy adventure.

Whether you are touring the historic sites of Washington, D.C. or Savannah, Ga., the nature that surrounds Anchorage, Alaska or the Grand Canyon, the requirements are the same. It is best to do by foot power -- many hours of foot power.

In Savannah, the Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil Tour (based on locations in the 1994 best-selling novel written by John Berendt) takes two hours and the Historic Tour can take all day. Touring the historic homes in Washington’s Dupont Circle area will take four or five hours. Travel guides recommend taking two and half days to tour the sites of Charleston, S.C. You won’t get the flavor of Anchorage or appreciate this beautiful city without strolling the miles of coastal trails, doing some nearby mountain hiking and exploring by bike on miles of bike paths.

Even organized tours can require a lot of walking, and summer heat plus humidity will add to the endurance requirements. Bike tours are becoming more popular, but that mode of transportation requires just as much fitness conditioning as walking. So unless you are resigned to seeing the sites via Lolley the Trolley, start planning to get in shape now.

To get a better understanding of your fitness demands, do the following: Once you choose your vacation, go over your itinerary and figure out about how much walking, standing and bike riding you will be doing each day. It usually takes about two hours to tour a museum or historic home, which translates into two hours of walking and standing on your feet. Come up with an average number of hours (or miles) you expect to walk or ride each day. You may be surprised at how active your jaunt will be. But it will be a breeze if you prepare beforehand with the right workout program. First, start by extending your regular stints on the treadmill, stationary bike, walking or biking. The more time spent on these activities the more you will increase your overall endurance. Recently a man planning a cross-country bike ride was able to prepare for the trip by riding a stationary bike 30 minutes a day for ten weeks.

If you don’t walk or bike on a regular basis, you need to start a daily program as soon as possible. There is nothing worse than suffering with a backache, sore feet and legs on your first day. Many who think they get enough exercise in their normal daily routine are often surprised at how much stamina they need. Not being prepared for the rigors of vacation can turn the time of your life into a nightmare.

But there is much more to consider. According to Certified Fitness Trainer Maia Appleby, core strengthening (abs/back work as a muscle group) and lower body exercises are crucial. She adds that flexibility training is essential to improving posture.

“When people do a lot of standing and vacation walking, they are demanding a lot from their backs and legs. These two things are totally related. When your back hurts, you start walking funny and then your legs, knees or hips start aching - and vice versa, so if one is neglected, it affects the other. “People with good posture fare much better with a lot of standing and walking,” says Appleby. “Back and hamstring stretches are the most effective, but a good all-over stretching program does wonders for the posture … and people who stand straight and tall look better in swimsuits, too!”

To get a clearer picture, check Appleby’s article on walking at www.inch-aweigh.com/walking.html.

Encourage others you are vacationing with to prepare as well. If you are traveling with kids, start taking neighborhood walks or hike in nearby parks. Children seem like endless bundles of energy, but hot weather and touring can wear them out, too.

Another crucial bit of planning is to choose your clothes and shoes wisely. You don’t have to wear gym shoes to tour a Southern mansion, but a good pair of walking shoes is important. For hot weather walking, you may want to wear sandals, but make sure they are built for comfort. As a rule, it is best to have as much rubber between your feet and the pavement as possible. Even though the fitness gurus don’t advise wearing street shoes for workouts, it may be a good idea to tread wearing the shoes you plan to take on vacation, just to make sure they stay comfortable after a couple of miles.

The same goes for clothing. Wear loose fitting clothes of natural fibers. Worry more about comfort and less about wrinkles.

Don’t despair and don’t fall back on the tiki bar plan. Then you can get yourself in shape, do all the activities you planned and look back on the experience with fond memories. Have a great trip!

Nancy Conway may be contacted at http://www.shapeupshop.com antsyartist@hotmail.com. Click here to view more of their articles.
Nancy Conway uses her many years of journalism experience to write for a family of four websites concerned with sports, health, wellness and fitness. Her favorite activities are bicycling, baking, crafting and anything to do with her family.

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The Cave Woman Diet
by Coty Fowler

In spite of it's name, this diet does not include being dragged by the hair, hunting with clubs or skinning big game. Though you might feel good enough to do all of those things. What it does include is a return to our evolutionary roots.

As a student of anthropology, I read every book I can find on ancient homonids and their culture. In January of 2002, while cruising Amazon.com for something new about our primitive cousins, I came across two books on ancient hominid diets. Out of curiosity, I ordered them.

In a nutshell, about 12,000 years ago the last Ice Age ended. Within 2,000 years of the ice sheet receding, agriculture began and new foods became the staple they are in today's diet. This new diet, called Neolithic, had an immediate effect on human health. Skeletons of Neolithic farmers show poor nutrition compared to the previous generations of hunter-gatherers. They died younger, were shorter, had more cavities in their fewer teeth and showed the first evidence of obesity.

The problem with the new diet of the Neolithic period was that we didn't evolve to eat those new foods. The small human digestive tract is unique among primates. We have only one stomach and a relatively short large intestine. We are more suited to digesting and extracting nutrients from meat, fruit, nuts, and some vegetables.

This was of particular interest to me since I knew I was allergic to wheat and was also lactose intolerant. If I couldn't digest those items, maybe there were other items I couldn't digest and just didn't know it.

After reading both books, doing some research on the Internet and at my local library, I fashioned a diet for myself. And the Cave Woman Diet was born.

On January 16, 2002, when the last kid returned to college, I began my diet. Since the previous January, I had been exercising, lifting weights and generally killing myself to lose a grand total of ten pounds. And it took a year! Not a very satisfying result from so much effort.

I began by purging the kitchen of every slide of bread, every cracker, every package of pasta, and every cream-filled pastry. I was ruthless.

Next, I went to the store and bought meat. Beef, pork, chicken, fish and shrimp. Then I hit the produce section. Fresh vegetables and fruits nestled in the shopping cart next to nuts and dried fruit (without sugar added) and eggs. The rules for eating were simple. Eat nothing that couldn't be found in nature. Eat only when I was hungry, even if it was every two hours. And eat only enough to satisfy my hunger. No gorging.

I began my eating day at 9 am. I scrambled an egg in a small amount of butter and topped it with a dash of cheese. At 11 am, I was back in the kitchen eating pastrami or corned beef (not processed but from the deli). Just a couple of slices rolled inside a thin slice of cheese.

At one, I had lunch. Usually a left over item from dinner the night before. Pork chops, a stuffed pepper, a ground beef patty. Whatever. I made a small salad to accompany this with a teaspoon of salad dressing. Between three and four in the afternoon, I was hungry again. This is when I got out the fresh fruit and nuts. usually apples and walnuts. I munched them while I fixed a dinner of steak, chicken, pork or fish. I also prepared the fresh vegetables for the meal. I'm partial to broccoli, cauliflower and carrots, but I also ate snow peas, mushrooms and other vegetables, though no corn or beans.

By eight or nine that night it was time to drag out the fruit again for something to snack on.

At the end of five days, I had lost three pounds and my chronic indigestion. Goodbye Tums! And I was never hungry since I ate all the time. Previous dietary study indicated that to change our metabolism it is necessary to eat often. This reprograms the body to stop storing fat.

The second week I droppef four pounds and my energy level skyrocketed. I was not just cleaning house, I was cleaning closets and kitchen cabinets and organizing items for a yard sale. Interestingly, I had no more sinus headaches or joint pain and had eliminated the use of over the counter decongestants and arthritis pain relievers.

At the end of six weeks, I had lost twenty pounds, my clothes no longer fit and I had energy to spare. I was sleeping soundly and my anxiety level was greatly reduced. I felt better than I had in years.

I had continued a modified version of my daily workout during this diet period. Chronic back pain had plagued me since my twenties and I used exercise to keep my muscles from seizing up. I had to wonder if my diet would have been as succesful without the twenty minute a day workout. So, at the end of my third week, I put my wheelchair confined husband on the diet. He lost twelve pounds! A man who cannot move lost weight. I knew then I was definitely onto something.

I thought at the end of six weeks, it was safe to add a few goodies back into my diet. I missed a few things like a slice of bread with my meat and cheese and an occasional sip from a root beer float. Only in moderation, of course.

Big Mistake!

Those small indulgences made me sick. Tummy ache, diarrhea, headache. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that modern foods were making me sick and probably had been all my life. That was pretty strong motivation to continue the Cave Woman Diet.

I am now at my ideal weight. I no longer suffer with indigestion and allergies. And I am more energetic and productive than ever. My coaching business is taking off, my writing business is flourishing and I feel and look better than I have in years.

So, get out your loincloth, sharpen your stone tools and become a Cave Woman! Eat the way Mother Nature designed us to eat. Once you brake the addiction to grains and sugars, you will lnever want to touch them again.

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Detoxication: You Are What You Fail to Excrete!
by Dr. John Maher, A.B.A.A..H.P.

“Ridding your body of toxins is a giant leap toward strengthening your heart and adding more years to your life.”- Stephen Sinatra, Cardiologist, HeartSense Newsletter

Among the many theories of aging is to be included the Waste Accumulation Theory. As time goes on, living cells produce more waste then they can fully eliminate. These waste products are considered toxins because they are capable of producing a deleterious biological response. According to this aging theory, various and sundry toxins sooner or later accumulate to such an extent that they begin to interfere with cell function, eventually killing the cell.

In us humans the clear presence of the waste product accumulation is exampled in the cells of our aging skin. We call them “age spots”. The pigment responsible is the waste product lipofuscin. Actually, lipofuscin pigments are most concentrated in the high metabolic tissue of the brain, nerves and heart. A complex intracellular action binds the fat in our aging cells to the proteins therein. These accumulate as small granules, increasing in size over time. Indeed, lipofuscin has been rather poetically described as, “the ashes of our metabolic fires”!

In life extension experiments older cells divide fewer times than brand new cells from embryos. This may be in part because the number of times a cell can replicate itself is inversely related to the amount of accumulated intracellular waste products. Greater waste accumulation means faster cell degeneration. (Journal of Anti-Aging Medicine, Vol. 1, No. 2, p. 31)

Toxins come from all sorts of sources: processed and non organic food, tap water, legal and illegal drugs, hormones and medicines, poisonous insects and plants, work environments, homes, cars, air pollution, dental amalgams, laundry soaps, household cleaners, aluminum and plastic containers, cigarette smoke, and alcohol just to name the more obvious! As these come from outside the body, doctors call these exotoxins.

Chemicals and metals are the most pervasive exotoxins. Of the over 100,000 commercial chemicals in use today, 25,000 are known to be hazardous! In 1997 the Environmental Protection Agency estimated that 1.3 billion pounds of emissions were pumped into our air and 218 million pounds of industrial by-products were emptied into our surface waters.

The EPA further states that everybody has stored in their fat toxic doses of such chemicals as styrene from Styrofoam, 1,4-dichlorobenzene from mothballs and house deodorizers and xylene from paints and gasoline. ( Journal of the American Nutraceutical Association, Vol. 2, No. 2, Summer 1999)

But even assimilating “good food”, turning it into energy, and getting “good” exercise causes the production of waste products. There are also natural hormones to be de-activated, broken down and excreted. Old body cells to breakdown and then dispose in order to make room for new ones. Plus there are bacteria, yeasts and parasites that many of us host, often unknowingly. Such toxins made inside the body are called endotoxins.

Although much of our toxic load is stored in our adipose tissue, we should know that our bodies are always trying to process toxins in our livers and then excrete these toxins via our colon, kidneys, lungs, lymph nodes and skin. Even our sweat, tears, hair and breast milk are used! The simple truth is each of us is detoxifying every second of our lives. It is a natural process. But considering our modern lifestyles and environments, how can we enhance our self-detoxications and thereby our health, vitality, and even perhaps longevity ?

Detoxication Made Easy

First we need to understand that all the above escape routes depend upon our livers, the veritable “clearing house “ for toxins. There toxins undergo a two-phase detoxication process called bio-transformation. In Phase I the liver directly neutralizes some toxins, while converting other toxins into intermediary products. Surprisingly, these intermediary products can sometimes be even more toxic and carcinogenic than the original toxins! Fortunately, in Phase II these products are converted into less toxic water soluble chemicals that are excreted via the many routes listed above, passing harmlessly out of the body. This second phase is called conjugation in which various amino acid dependant enzymes in the liver attach small chemicals to the toxin.

Detoxication via juice fasting has a long and successful history in naturopathic medicine.

Juice fasting is thought to:

Increase our levels of natural enzymes to literally digest toxins. Fresh juices are full of natural enzymes. This is why using cooked juices, like pasteurized orange juice or V-8 juice, is not recommended for fasting. And fresh juices being very easily digested allows one to use one’s own digestive enzymes, which might normally be used for food, to now begin to “clean house”.

Decrease your level of oxidizing free radical production. Remember, the foods we eat are a major source of free radicals, especially white sugar and heated and highly processed polyunsaturated fats and vegetable oils. This is especially true when we over eat!

Dramatically raise your antioxidant levels. Fresh fruit and vegetables juices and green tea are super rich in hundreds of antioxidant phytonutrients. This is so important as Phase I detoxication actually produces free radicals!

Greatly enhance liver detoxication. Our livers have many functions, all essential! As explained above, one such major function is to breakdown toxic products and by products and then package them for excretion. And the vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients so prevalent in fruits, vegetables and herbs can greatly assist the liver in this two phase process.

Lower waste product production and toxin exposure. When we only imbibe fresh juices, water and teas, we obviously have less waste to process, freeing the liver and intestinal cells to repair and “catch-up” as it were. (Any parent who has kicked the kids out of the house for the afternoon so they can get the housework done will know exactly what I mean!) Remember, even eating and processing good food can cause the production of endotoxins, or toxins from inside the body. And with juicing with organic produce, we also ingest less xenobiotics,. which are natural and man-made environmental and agricultural exotoxins, found in our foods .

How to Detox.

Long detoxication programs should be under the guidance of a health professional long experienced in detoxication protocols.

But most of us can do short detoxication juice fast or partial fasts from 1 to 3 days on our own. Those taking prescription drugs obviously need to consult their physician regardless of length.

The Pre-Fast

Sometimes there is a tendency to “pig out” before or after a fast. This is a very bad idea! Indeed fasting starts with the pre-fast period.

The pre and post fats period should be about as long as the fast itself. During this period we want to have a diet high in super foods like fruits (pectin), soluble rice bran and oat beta glucan and flax seed for soluble and insoluble fiber to promote colon health. The flax seed is rich in omega 3 essential fatty acids as well, the intake of which will likely be limited during the partial fast. And we want to drink copious amounts of water such that are urine remains clear if possible.

Plus we want to have a fair amount of non-meat proteins from an easily digested whey or a balanced and fortified plant based protein powder enhanced with digestive enzymes. Most important are the sulfur containing amino acids like cysteine and methionine, and the amino acid glutamine or glutamic acid. From these amino acids the body to makes glutathione, the most important endogenous antioxidant and detoxifier. Indeed, glutathione levels are so important they are used to predict life expectancy! Glutathione, which is also found in fresh fruits and vegetables like asparagus and fruits like avocados, as well as in cooked fish and meats, converts fat soluble toxins, like heavy metals, solvents, and pesticides into a more easily excreted less toxic water form.

At the same time we want to avoid sugar, caffeine, alcohol, heat processed oil, fried fats, refined flours, additives and junk food and plain old over eating in our pre and post fats period. It is also advisable to take a mild herbal or magnesium based laxative the night before your fast with lots of water.

The Partial Fast

Without professional guidance juice fasting is recommended over water fasts because it is safer, easier, and likely more efficacious than complete fasting. Safe detoxication by the liver demands vitamins, minerals, antioxidants be readily present in abundance. Plus certain plant chemicals actually assist the liver in detoxication!

Juice fasting is easier because juice fasting gives some gustatory pleasure while providing some carbohydrate for energy production. Carbohydrates also help one stay out of a highly acidic and often uncomfortable state known as ketosis, which water fasting produces.

If you recall, the liver has two phases of detoxification. Foods that activate Phase I and II detoxication include the cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower), whey, d limonene containing oranges, tangerines, and the spices caraway and dill seeds. Foods and herbs that inhibit Phase I one detoxication include grapefruit, turmeric, red chili pepper and clove oil.

If you recall Phase I detoxication can make toxins more toxic. So if your Phase I system is functioning well or stimulated, and your Phase II is sluggish or impaired, one can start to feel quite sick when detoxifying. Therefore, slowing down Phase I by using grapefruit juice and turmeric is a possible remedy.

Many over the counter and prescription drugs effect liver detoxication. These should be avoided during fasts when feasible. Prescription medications need a doctors advice.

Partial fasts will consist of frequent sips of water, 6 ounces of fresh fruit and vegetable juices several times a day, and green and herbal teas with organic lemon or citrus peel as desired. The fresh juices should emphasize the vegetables and not be “sweetened” too much with carrot and apple juices and the like. Also “allowed” are vegetable broths perhaps seasoned with dill and caraway, and raw unfiltered honey sweetened lemonade.

One may consider the possible addition of whole fruit and perhaps some whey or sulfur amino acid balanced plant protein powder (fermented soy plus pea protein and/or rice protein). Whole fruit or protein is eaten if needed to function because lack of energy or concentration interfere with necessary tasks. The fruit should not be dried, or over ripe. Bananas and grapes are likely too glycemic, and may cause rebound hypoglycemia. Those with blood sugar problems or excessive hunger or tiredness may find protein powders useful.

The fresh fruit and vegetable juices can be juiced at home, or purchased fresh daily at a health food store or juice bar. However, probably even better, and certainly more convenient, is the use of fruit and vegetable super food powders. These instant powders will contain dozens of super foods like the highest antioxidant/ phytonutrient fruits, vegetables, herbs and dark green alga and grass juices, detoxifying medicinal spices, probiotics, soluble fibers, and digestive enzymes. And the best ones are organic and low temperature processed so the juice enzymes are still live. Just find one that tastes great in water and/or diluted citrus juice.

The fast should start after the last meal of the day, which should be at least three hours before bedtime if possible. One would then partially fast till the morning of the second , third, or fourth morning subsequent. Longer fasts require professional guidance and supervision.

Bile from the liver is loaded with toxins, most of which after being excreted by the gall bladder into the colon are re-absorbed! Therefore taking a soluble fiber product (oat bran, oat beta-glucan, soluble rice bran, apple pectin, flaxseed) and / or charcoal or bentonite tablets before bed each night of the pre-fast, partial fast, and post fast period, will help prevent some such re-absorption. Soluble fiber will also help maintain regular elimination and satisfy hunger somewhat, while binding cholesterol and promoting detoxifying intestinal bacterial proliferation.

To further facilitate elimination hot Epsom Salt baths, saunas, sun bathing, light exercise, deep breathing and massages are often incorporated. Some of you may even want to perform water enemas and not a few might seek professional colonic irrigation services.

The Post Fast

The post fast diet is very much like the pre-fast diet. Overeating is to be avoided! Often a simple breakfast of raw fruits is best. Or a small “smoothie” of water blended with fresh or frozen fruits, with a 20 or so grams of a good tasting protein powder, and a tablespoon of fresh ground nuts or seeds. The post fast, which is just eating only really healthy foods, and mostly uncooked, in small well chewed relaxed meals, should last as long as the fast itself.

An oft recommended cycle for the truly health conscious is a 36 hour fast once a week and a three day fast once a month or season.

Though most every modern inhabitant of the western world could gain from a specific routine of detoxication, a Detoxication Questionnaire will help surface how much of a candidate for detoxication you might be.

Dr. John Maher, A.B.A.A..H.P. may be contacted at http://www.RxforWellness.com drjmaher@cts.com. Click here to view more of their articles.
Dr Maher has practiced alternative medicine for 25 years. In May of 99 he co-founded of Longevity Resources International. Since then he has functioned as Editor of the Longevity News and provided the text for the Wellness Resource Community web site.

Dr Maher hold a post graduate faculty position for the New York Academy of Anti-Aging which endeavors to prepare doctors and other professionals who need to qualify for their certification by the American Board of Anti-Aging Health Professionals (ABAAHP).

He is currently Vice President of Education and Programs for Doctors For Nutrition, Inc.(doctorsfornutrition.com )

Learn how to naturally lower your risk of Alzheimer's, Osteoporosis, Heart Disease, Impotence, and Cancer and maintain youthful muscles, skin, sex drive and energy! Longevity Resources Int'l offers a monthly anti-aging, health and fitness study course you implement at home. Edited by antiaging and nutritional specialists, the program is designed to assist you in creating your own personalized anti aging program.

The American Academy of Anti Aging Medicine (A4M) predicts 50% of all baby boomers alive and well today will celebrate their 100th birthday with physical and mental faculties intact. The doctors at LRI will show you how to best insure your inclusion in that fortunate group of those who enjoy 100 year "health spans". Babyboomers desiring beauty, bodybuilding, health diets, natural hormones, muscle growth, weight loss, antiaging foods nutrition exercise, vitamins,seniors with osteoporosis, prostate, sexuality, and menopause concerns, and heart diseases.

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Recommended Reading

100% Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils
Easy Detoxification Program

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Danielle Sims
Wrap Yourself Slim: Body Wraps Exposed!
http://www.wrapyourselfslim.com

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