Alkalising Cucumber & Watercress Soup

Serves Two
Ingredients

1 bunch of spring onions, chopped
1 large cucumber, deseeded and chopped
2 bunches of watercress (or as much as you like, to taste, keep adding more and more if you like!)
1¾ pint water yeast free vegetable stock (cooled)
(Himalayan) Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Chop, slice and dice all of the ingredients and place in a blender. Make the stock by putting a small amount of hot water onto the stock cube or bouillon and once melted, top up with cold water. Add this to the blender too and then blend it all up! Serve chilled with an ice cube per bowl.

Every single electrical appliance in our lives is exposing our body to harmful electromagnetic radiation. And even those that we don’t have control over such as power lines, wiring in buildings, and a whole heap of other technologies such as wireless internet that are so prevalent in our modern lives are all potentially harmful to our health.

Potentially harmful electical appliances are everywhere, and more and more research is beginning to show that when we continually expose ourselves to these frequencies we are seriously putting ourselves at risk!

Some frequencies are stronger than other (the frequency of a laptop and mobile phone is the same as a microwave when it cooks your food - yes, that’s right, the thing you put up to your ear and the thing you put on top of your sexual organs is slowly cooking you) and some are more in our control than others, but researching this article and the things I have been told lately have really started to make me think about the way I live my life and the way my home and office are set up!

What the World’s Longest & Largest Mobile Phone Study Found…

During the 1990’s the scientist, research director, and consultant was hired by the US Cell Phone Industry to investigate the safety of using mobile phones with the hope of finding that using mobiles was safe and not dangerous to the health of the public. They could not have ever predicted what he would find and the impact it could have.

After six years of continual research, Carlos’ research could not find any evidence to support the safety of mobile phones and in fact found a direct link between mobile phone use and cancer. He summarised:

The big picture is disturbingly clear. There is a definite risk that the radiation plume that emanates from a cell phone antenna can cause cancer and other health problems. It is a risk that affects hundreds of millions of people around the world. It is a risk that must be seen and understood by all who use cell phones so they can take all the appropriate and available steps to protect themselves and especially to protect young children whose skulls are still growing and who are the most vulnerable to the risks of radiation .” -Dr. George Carlo

He has most recently stated that epidemiological studies prove that every year there are between 30-50k new cases of brain and eye cancer atrributable to mobile phone use. Just mobile phone use. By the year 2010 that number is going to have risen to nearly 500k cases.

This is scary stuff.

And it is proven. Studies by Danish scientists have shown that 20 - 80% of the electromagnetic radiation generated by mobile phones (depending on the make) is absorbed directly into the brain of the user. A few minutes exposure to cell phone type radiation can transform a 5% active cancer into a 95% active cancer.

And that is not all

Other dangers include wireless internet, microwave use, hairdryers, hair straighteners, wireless home phones, alarm clocks by our bed, electric blankets and any big number of plugs that are near where we spend a lot of our time (for instance under the computer desk, behind the tv etc.).

To put it in technical terms, 2.5mG is the generally accepted limit of ELF magnetic field (EMF) exposure, but the average hair dryer, vacuum cleaner or electric can opener that we use, EMITS AN AMAZING 300mG or more. This is the type of level of EMF we are being continuously exposed to. Some hairdryers even go as high as 700mG and there has been continual proven links between hair dryer use and leukemia. In fact, this link was reported in the US Government report, NIH98-3981 (pages 180 & 182) for the National Institute for Health (NIH), in August of 1998. This report was prepared under a $65 million dollar allocation by the U.S. Congress under the EMF RAPID Program. This is also proven in studies by the University of Southern California and the National Cancer Institute who have also linked children’s leukemia to hair dryers.

Wireless internet is something else that has made me think. I’ve been slightly concerned about it lately and wondering if it was potentially harmful and my research has led to to believe that, yes it is!

The magazine Eco-Test (the eco equivalent of the UK “Which?” magazine] tested workstations in the juristic library in Göttingen, Germany and found a peak value of 23,000 µWatt/m2. The current official guideline in Germany [and in the UK] is 10 µWatt/m2. And while it would be possible to argue that official guidelines say wireless is safe - the legal basis for this, the Electromagnetic Fields Ordinance, was last updated in 1996! Before wireless was publicly available!

The ECOLOG Institute in Hanover has also produced a science review of more than 220 peer reviewed and published studies of the various health effects of electromagnetic fields and confirmed, on a scientific basis, that proximity to wireless networks caused, at least, headaches, high blood pressure, lack of concentration, effects on brain function, the onset of allergies (!) and more.

The alarm clock that sits next to your head all night, every night also emits higher than safe levels of EMF.

I am not saying all of this to scare you into living in a mud hut in a field in Scotland. But what I am saying is that the majority of us have been living unaware of the dangers we are putting ourselves under.

But What Can We Do About It?

Like all of you, I live in (and love) the modern world. I work on computers all day, I am often on wireless in my many random cafes (offices) around Australia and England. I love to watch the football and Location, Location, Location (why is it so addictive?!). I use a juicer, a blender and an ionizer. I do have a mobile phone and I regularly fly.

But I have taken a few dramatic steps to minimise my risk and put me in the safe zone as much as possible. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not perfect (I never am), but I think I’ve done a lot to improve my chances and reduce my time in what I lovingly call ‘the cooking zone’.

Here are the top ten things I have done or changed in my life that I think each and every one of you can do too:

My Top Ten Ways to Reduce EMF

1. Throw Away Your Microwave: there is no place in life for a microwave. Stop being lazy. Not only do microwaves kill any traces of nutrition from your food, increase the carcinogenic effect of everything they cook and make all food taste like s**t, but they also cook you. Being anywhere near a microwave is crazy. Get rid of it, warm your food on the stove and cut this unnecessary danger out of your life. I have literally NEVER missed having one.
2. Put Your Alarm Clock On The Other Side of The Room: having this source of dangerous EMFs right by your head all night every night is just crazy too. Move it well away from your bed and you get the added bonus of HAVING to get up when your alarm goes off. Genius!
3. No Mobile Phone in the Bedroom: Similarly, this is crazy. Mobiles are always searching for a signal, even when off. You don’t need this by you while you sleep. I can’t believe I used to go to sleep with my phone ON, and UNDER MY PILLOW. Madness. Please never, never do this.
4. Go Wired: There is just no need to have wireless at home. The day I switched to wired I breathed a sigh of relief. It was actually quite weird getting rid of my fandangled wireless modem and having to specifically get a wired capable modem (the shop only had one!) and then buy lots of nice long ethernet cable, but man it felt good! You don’t have to put you and your family at this risk.
5. Dry Natural: I’ve never been a hair dryer user really (sometimes to warm up on a cold day when I was a wee lad) but I am quite sure you can live without hovering this absurdly unsafe implement around your head for 10 minutes every day. Just say no.
6. I Know It Is Called A Laptop, But…: please don’t put it on your lap. You know when you have your laptop on your lap and you get all hot. That is your genitals cooking. Seriously. At the same frequency as a microwave. I know.
7. Brush Your Teeth Using The Mechanical Wonder Of Your Hands: please ditch the electric toothbrush. Putting it in your mouth (and even worse, around your metal mercury fillings) is just plain wrong. Your hands can jig about, why are we so lazy that we need an appliance to move very slightly for us?
8. Switch to Low EMF Appliances Where You Can: sites like lowemf.com sell a range of low EMF products to replace some of the more dangerous in the home. Another great site is Tom’s Gadgets which sells EMF detection devices so you can test areas of your home and make improvements
9. Get Your Mercury Fillings Replaced: I’m pretty sure that having conductors in your mouth is a bad idea. Plus they’re just plan toxic.
10. Protect Yourself: finally, take steps to protect yourself no matter where you are. You can’t always control your surroundings and sometimes you are exposed without knowing it. For instance, aeroplanes are dreadful for having high EMF but we can’t avoid this. I always have a Q-Link on me no matter where I go. It protects your whole body from EMFs and I really think it makes a massive difference.

More Reading?

Start here - Silent Fields by Donna Fisher. This is a truly eye-opening book on the dangers of high EMF.

Next watch this:

THE DANGERS OF EMF RADIATION AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO IMPROVE OUR HEALTH IN TODAY’S POLLUTED WORLD

Be safe and keep smiling
Ross

So fibre + protein + alkaline minerals = winner.

Tuscan Bean Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 Tbs (30mL) olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups (680g) chopped tomatoes
6 cups (900g) tinned cannelini beans
5 cups (1.25L) water
1/2 tsp (3g) Himalayan Salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 cup (75g) spelt pasta shells, or other small pasta shape
1/4 cup (9g) fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped

Directions

Firstly, you need to steam fry the onions, celery, and garlic until tender. Do this in a few spoons of water in a large pan. Once it is all nice and tender you can add the chopped tomatoes (juice n’ all) and warm this over a medium to low heat, breaking up the tomatoes so that it is all chunked down in nice small chunks. Cook this all together for about fifteen to twenty minutes.

Now you can add the lovely creamy-textured cannelini beans, the water, salt, pepper and cook over a medium-low heat for another twenty minutes. Once the beans are soft you’re good. Now you can add the spelt pasta and cook for another ten minutes until it is al dente.

Once the soup has cooled a little bit, stir in the olive oil and add the basil leaves.

This soup rocks, I urge you to try it!

This week’s interview is with Dr Rachel Hall of Evolve Dental Healing in Queensland, Australia. After finding out about the dangers of mercury fillings I blogged about it and have since had countless emails, facebook messages and tweets from others who are concerned, have questions or have been told by their dentist that they don’t need to worry!

Rachel was the saviour who removed my mercury amalgams and I think she is awesome and to prove it she agreed to be interviewed for the Energise Blog!

And here it is! The Energise Interview with Dr Rachel Hall:

Your philosophy to dentistry is more than just fixing teeth, removing teeth and filling them! Can you explain how dentistry, nutrition and body chemistry all fit together?

Mainstream dentistry focuses on alleviating pain, restoring function and to some extent preventative care. It is understood that plaque bacteria present in our mouth feed off sugar in the diet and cause decay and that gum disease is caused by poor and inadequate oral hygiene that is not enough flossing and brushing.

However, I see many patients who have impeccably clean teeth and a diet low in sugars and acid yet they still get cavities and gum problems. I wanted to know why that happens as it is frustrating to see someone who is doing everything right so to speak getting dental disease.

Natural medicine approaches illness from the angle of treating the body systems and biochemistry rather than the symptoms so it made sense to me that we could apply this to the mouth and teeth. If a person has insufficient minerals, vitamins, proteins etc or suffers from emotional stresses or chronic illness then the body is out of balance, the liver has to work very hard to clear toxins and the system becomes acidic which also lowers the immune response.

Then acid builds up in the blood, urine and saliva drawing more minerals from an already depleted body. So essentially the teeth become more prone to decay as minerals such as calcium are required to balance the acidity in the body. Also acidic saliva dissolves the enamel from the teeth instead of protecting it and aiding remineralisation after eating sugars or acid in foods. Thus balancing the acidity in the body via nutritional support helps to prevent decay. With gum disease the key factors to address are the reduction of inflammation and the boosting of the immune response and this too can be done with nutrition and supplements such as vitamin C, zinc and co-enzyme Q10.

You’d been a dentist for nearly ten years before you started to develop more of an interest in holistic health - what set you on this path? When was the a-ha moment?

When I trained as a dentist some years ago we had no training in nutrition or in the safety of materials. In fact we were told once mercury is mixed into the alloy to make amalgam it is perfectly safe.

However, not long after working in general practice (NHS dentistry in the UK) I realised that the suction unit has a filtration device that captures the chunks of amalgam drilled out of a tooth and that the dental nurses would empty this into a jar containing x-ray fixative chemicals at the end of the day so that it could not gas out mercury.

Once the jar was full it would be collected to go away as a hazardous waste material as we are legally not allowed to dispose of it down the sink or in the garbage. That material is identical to what I was drilling and placing in teeth yet once out of the mouth was a toxic waste product. How could that be?

I started asking questions but back then there was little information and working for the NHS we were not allowed to use anything other amalgam unless filling a front tooth. My hands were tied! A few years into my career the BBC Panorama program ran an expose asking how safe is amalgam? The dental board wrote to all dentists with lots of scientific information telling us how safe amalgam was. However a few moths later we were told not to drill out or place amalgam for pregnant women as there was “a theoretical risk to the foetus”. Curious when it is such a safe material.

I moved to Australia for health reasons and a lifestyle change as 8 years on the NHS had me completely worn out, however looking back I do wonder how much my own exposure to mercury day after day played a part in this as now I only handle amalgam following strict protocols I feel healthier at 40 than I did in my 20s.

By pure chance (no such thing as coincidence) I got a job in an amalgam free practice where at first I was still sceptical to the merits of what we were doing but it was a great practice so I wanted to work there. Shortly, I started noticing how patients’ health, mood and energy levels improved after only having a few amalgams replaced and the same started to happen for me as I was no longer breathing in mercury vapour all day long. That was the final piece of the puzzle that confirmed holistic dentistry is the approach I wanted to take with my work.

Why is it so important to have mercury amalgam fillings removed?

Mercury especially in vapour form is the third most toxic non-radioactive substance known to man. It is up there with lead and arsenic and causes many nasty symptoms in the body.

The World Health Org. say there is no safe exposure level for mercury. When an amalgam filling is drilled friction is created which vaporises mercury from the filling which under normal circumstances the patient and the dental team would inhale. The methyl-mercury passes from the lungs into the blood where it can enter cells disrupting their normal biochemistry thus adding to a person’s toxic load increasing the risk that the individual will go on to develop mercury toxicity and symptoms of illness and disease. By following safe removal protocol where by everyone breathes clean air from a separate air supply exposure to mercury vapour inhalation is massively reduced.

What is the process for safely removing mercury amalgams?

The teeth to be worked on are isolated by using rubber dam (see www.evolvedentalhealing.com.au/biocompatible.htm) so the amalgam debris does not splatter over the mouth tissues of the patient, the use of sterile medical air via nose pieces, special amalgam drill bits, lots of water spray and suction, air purification / filtration in the surgery and the use of supplements to support the immune system and elimination of mercury.

And what do you replace these fillings with?

Amalgam is replaced with non-metallic restorations either composite resin filling or a porcelain restoration or crown. The composite resin we use is very biocompatible and non-allergenic and consists of an ocemer resin with quartz, silica and porcelain particles so is very hard wearing.

A mutual friend first made me aware of the danger of mercury fillings and showed me this video. Why don’t more people know about this?

I guess as a profession many dentists still consider amalgam very safe. Doctors are not trained to look for mercury or many toxins just to treat symptoms so until the way healthcare looks at illness the smoking tooth video will only be known about by the minority within that field.

For anyone who still has mercury fillings what is your recommendation? How can they find a dentist like you near them and what sort of questions should they ask to make sure that the dentist will be using safe procedures?

Do lots of research but be sensible in your approach there are a lot of fanatics out there who will go to the extremes. Find a dentist who will use rubber dam and a separate air supply and understands the need to handle the amalgam safely and provide information regarding nutritional and supplements to support you through the process. The web is the best resource for finding a holistic amalgam free dentist the IAOMT site will have a list of practitioners as does ACNEM in Australia.

Having recently just had all four of my mercury fillings removed by you (thank you!) - I know that you promote proper supplementation to support the removal of any mercury that may be in our system. What are your biggest nutrition tips for anyone going through this process?

Lots of protein, water, green leafy vegetables, coriander, garlic and onions. Supplement with vitamin C and B6 and minerals such as magnesium and zinc. Good probiotics and mercury scavengers like selenium, glutathione and chlorella.

And finally, aside from toxin removal, what are your top five diet and nutrition tips?

Avoid dairy, gluten, alcohol, sugars including complex carbs, and caffeine. Eat garlic and chilli and drink plenty of water. Oh and get to bed early!

—-

Wowsers! What an interview! I take no credit of course - Rachel’s answers were fantastic, detailed and incredibly useful!

Thanks to Rachel and all the crew at Evolve - they’ve made me mercury free and were an absolute delight!

Since then, I’ve had all of my mercury fillings/amalgams removed as quickly as possible, and thankfully it is all done and dusted now.

I have absolutely no doubt that having mercury fillings in your mouth is a very bad idea, but having them removed properly is an absolute must. After this blog post, which I am going to keep quite brief, I will post my interview with my holistic dentist Rachel Hall. She really does have the answers.

But before that, here are my thoughts and round up on the research I had done in between finding out about the amalgams problems and getting them out!

Brief Research & Supporting Evidence

• Dr Young posted on his blog about the FDA finally admitting that mercury fillings are toxic. He states that “mercury fillings can be a focal point for acidic
  toxicity and poisoning of the blood and tissues. Mercury is known to be one of the most dangerous and toxic substances on the planet. Many people are unaware that “silver” amalgam dental fillings are actually 50% mercury. The American Dental Association (ADA) refuses to publicly state that dental amalgam fillings contain a high level of mercury, and adamantly denies that the mercury escaping from them can cause serious health issues. Yet it has been proven that fillings lose their mercury content.
• Here is a series of videos on mercury fillings by naturaldentistry.us - really insightful.
• Very interesting article (surprisingly) from the Daily Mail. Full of interesting stats and the news that Norway and Denmark have already banned them with Finland and Japan close to following suit. The most interesting stat in the article is that there is 0.5 grams of mercury in each filling - the same amount in a TEN ACRE LAKE would result in health warnings about consuming the fish from that lake. Is that mental?!
• Article in the Swedish Journal of Dentistry states - “It is concluded that the cause of the association between amalgam load and accumulation of mercury in tissues is the release of mercury vapour from amalgam fillings.” They found in the autopsy of 34 individuals that a heap of mercury was found in the BRAIN!
• Article from The American Association of Endodontists found that of the 104 fillings that were placed before 1981, 44 were failures (meaning they had broken down and the mercury had been consumed). This study was done in 1992 so I dread to think how many more have crumbled since then. I know that two of mine basically exploded as soon as the dentist touched them.
• And another from the The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, showing that from autopsies on individuals those with mercury fillings showed a much higher level of mercury in their brain, thyroid, and kidney.

There are heaps more articles like this out there - just click here to see a few!

My Experience

After finding out that I needed to have these fillings out quick-sharp, I booked in to see Dr Rachel Hall of Evolve Dental Healing in Kenmore, Brisbane. I had to send in my x-rays, and within a few days Rachel had identified that I had four mercury fillings that needed to come out.

She only wanted to do them two at a time, so I booked two appointments, one day after another and waited patiently until the time came!

The procedure itself was really simple. I had a few anesthetic jabs into my gums and once this had kicked in, Rachel fixed a clamp over the tooth and attached a rubber dam over my mouth to ensure that no chips of mercury managed to escape and be swallowed. She also put an oxygen mask over my nose so I could breathe clean air and had an assistant with a suction thing that literally took the fragments of mercury amalgam right out of my mouth into a tube and out of the whole building!

It was quite painless and quick and the only hard bit was going for a cup of green tea with my numb mouth afterwards. It spilled straight out of my massive lips and right onto my trousers. Oh I also recommend not eating anything until the numbness has subsided, I bit right into my lip. There was blood.

So in short:

1. Do get your mercury fillings out!
2. Don’t do it just anywhere - make sure you go to a dentist that practices safe amalgam removal
3. Don’t put it off

Importance of Nutrition After The Amalgam Removal

According to Rachel (my dentist, remember) and the research I conducted, it is important to take steps afterward the mercury removal to ensure that your body is able to detoxify of any mercury that is still in your system through solid nutrition and supplementation.

Here is my advice:

• Eat your greens - make sure that you really ramp up the greens after your removal. This can be done by drinking plenty of green vegetable juices and smoothies and by consuming lots of green drinks (powdered green grasses such as wheatgrass). Greens are full of essential vitamins, nutrients, antioxidants, chlorophyll and more. This is essential consumption!
• FIBRE! - fibre is absolutely essential in detoxifying your body of heavy metals and other toxins. FIbre is an absolute must for many reasons in your normal diet, but during this time it becomes even more important. I really suggest consuming a high quantity of fresh (often raw) veggies and salads and supplementing with psyllium husks. These husks are rich in both soluble and insoluble fibre and are incredible effective. I’ve not had one customer with digestive problems who have not reported significant results from using psyllium husks. Works every time.
• Clay - might sound funny, but clay is an amazing detoxifyer. It provides an impressive assortment of alkaline minerals including calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, manganese, sodium, sulfur, and silica and as these minerals are all negatively charged (full of electrons) they bind to the positively charged toxins in the body and eliminate them! I recommend Dr Young and his Terra pHirma Clay.
• Get Your Glutathione - glutathione is the master antioxidant, it is the antioxidant that all of the other antioxidants need to do their thing! Without glutathione, the other antioxidants in the body cannot function properly, so ensuring we have enough of this vital nutrient is incredibly important. While the body can manufacture glutathione, it’s supplies are rapidly depleated by exercise, stress and the digestion of unhealthy foods and drinks. The best place to get it is from an abundance of other constituents such as vitamin b2 rich foods, selenium rich foods and more. Or you can use a glutathione supplement such as Dr Young’s GlutapHione.
• Alkaline Minerals - when the body is detoxifying it draws upon our alkaline mineral reserves rapidly and these need replacing. Supplement with calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium either using a multimineral such as pH Ion Blue or Dr Young’s pHour Salts.

That is my 2p worth! Now on with the interview with the expert!

Courgettes in chick-pea sauce

Serves 2 | Ready in 20 mins

Ingredients:

* 120g quinoa or buckwheat
* 250ml yeast free organic vegetable stock
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 400g courgettes, sliced diagonally
* 1 large tomato
* 1 handful fresh coriander or parsley, ripped
* 2 tablespoons seeds

For the sauce:

* 400g chick-peas, drained and rinsed
* 1 garlic clove
* 1 tablespoon lemon juice
* ½ teaspoon chilli powder
* ½ teaspoon cumin powder
* 100g tofu

Instructions:

* Cook the quinoa in stock for 15mins.
* Put all the sauce ingredients in a blender and blitz until smooth.
* Put a small amount of water in a large frying pan and steam fry the courgettes for a few minutes.
* Add the sauce and warm through. Add the olive oil in just before serving.
* Divide the courgettes between two plates, top with chopped tomatoes and herbs.
* Add the quinoa and sprinkle the seeds over the top.