March 2010 | Natural Health with Merrilyn Hope

Best Vitamins For Hair Growth

Vitamin B complex, Biotin,Vitamin C, Zinc and Iodine are the best vitamins and minerals to encourage hair growth. Of course, you also need a nutritious diet with plenty of alkaline foods such as green vegetables, and adequate protein. If you are on a budget, then the first things to consider buying would be things like eggs, fish, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, greens and fruits, and IODINE . However, there are many more Vitamins and Minerals which are necessary for good health and for the growing of new hair. There are also a variety of conditions which can lead to hair loss, and so we will look at those things in this article too.

Photo taken by Merrilyn 25th December 2012, Dunedin.

In this article we will discuss the possible causes of hair loss, the range of foods which may be helpful as sources of essential elements, and also the additional best vitamins for hair growth.

There are several main issues to consider in treating hair loss.

If you have a physical condition such as diabetes, or a thyroid disorder, then you might suffer hair loss. These conditions, of course, must be treated by a doctor, and any vitamin therapy you might consider should be discussed with your doctor if you have a medical problem of any kind, especially if you are taking medication.

If hair loss is a hereditary condition, then growing new hair might be difficult to achieve, especally for men; however, it is certainly worth a shot to give your diet an overhaul and to use vitamin and mineral supplements over a period of 4-6 months, even if hair loss is hereditary: You might be able to stave off the condition of hair loss with massage, supplements, a few drops of iodine applied to the scalp several times a week, and optimum nutrition.

Many women suffer hair loss after childbirth, or because of deficiencies which arise because of heavy menstruation. This type of hair loss responds well to good nutrition, rest, and added supplements.

A traumatic event such as the loss of a loved one, or major surgery,or chemotherapy can cause hair to fall rapidly and effect a general decline in health. The hair loss which can result from trauma also responds well to good nutrition, and supplements, when combined with a good amount of rest.

However,exposure to excessive amounts of radiation can mean a slower recovery to health, which affects hair growth. Even radiation from power lines, transformers, and close proximity to electrical wires and appliances in the living, working, or sleeping environment can cause hair loss. If this is the main reason your hair is falling out, then you need to correct the environmental causes: Vitamins and minerals and diet will help, but the problem cannot be cured if your environment is toxic in any way. A poison-free, radiation-free environment is a prerequisite for any healing, including encouraging hair growth.

Poor nutrition,which includes a diet deficient in protein, green vegetables and fruits, or a diet which is generally lacking in the essential vitamins and minerals necessary for good health, can cause hair loss. Not enough protein, oils and fats in the diet causes a slowing of hair growth, and a dry scalp which causes hair to fall.

Sudden crash diets can cause hair loss. Studies of people who suddenly reduced their calorie intake to 800 calories per day, or less, showed that these crash dieters experienced dramatic hair loss.

Some medications cause hair loss. Warfarin and heparin, both of which are blood thinners, cause hair loss in 50% of the people who take them. The contraceptive pill depletes vitamin and mineral content in the body which can lead to hair loss. Some other drugs which are known to interfere with vitamin absorption and which produce hair loss are: amphetamines, propranolol which is used as a blood pressure medecine, and oral gold which is prescribed for arthritis.

Using hair dyes cause hair loss. Many dyes contain p-phenylenediamin, which not only thins your hair out, but can cause heart problems and cancer.

Generally, vitamins and minerals which help sugar metabolism, thyroid function, and kidney function have a beneficial effect on the hair. Symptoms of these conditions or weaknesses are often displayed by thin, falling hair. All those trace elements which help to regulate blood sugar levels should be included in the list of “Best Vitamins For Hair Growth”. Hypoglycemia, or rocketing blood sugar level, is a chief cause in most people’s condition of hair loss. If good nutritional food is eaten, sugar is minimized in the diet, and the correct supplements given to help correct hypoglycemia, then you will find the hair begins to grow again.

Vitamin and mineral supplements really can make a difference to the condition of your hair and, in many cases, encourage new growth. You really need the whole range of vitamins and minerals in your diet for maximum health benefits from the food you eat: Vitamins and minerals are often activated, or assisted in their efficacy, by another vitamin or mineral. Some of the best vitamins for hair growth, assuming your diet includes a range of vegetables, fruits, proteins and whole grains, are:

VITAMIN A, or RETINOL, helps to prevent a dry scalp and dandruff. It is conducive towards general good health and for growing healthy hair. While deficiencies of Vitamin A/Retinol can lead to hair loss in combination with other deficiencies, an excess of this Vitamin can also result in excessive hair loss. Vitamin A is thought to be commonly deficient in about 33% of American and Australian/New Zealand children, and also deficient in about 20% of adults in these countries. Carrots, pumpkin, apricots, rockmelon, mango, in fact any yellow/orange fruit or vegetable will provide you with enough Vitamin A if some of these foods are eaten on a daily basis.

Too little Vitamin A will deplete your body of some of your Vitamin C intake.

VITAMIN C, which is a good, general all-rounder, helps all functions of the body, including the absorption of some vitamins and minerals,and the regrowth of bones, teeth and hair and nails. It also is effective in the counteracting of toxins and in the elimination of waste products from the body. Ester C, or Calcium Ascorbate, or some other non-acidic form of Vitamin C is the best one to go for: the non-acidic type is gentle on the stomach.

VITAMIN C when taken with IRON helps to cure anemia, which can be a cause of hair loss. Prevention of anemia is assisted by adequate intakes of zinc.

Without adequate iron, the body inhibits hair growth as a self-preservation measure, and will only allow hair to grow again when the iron is restored to the body. Anemia can arise because of heavy menstrual periods or after childbirth. Iron is needed to cure anemia, but it is important that enough Vitamin C is taken in order for the iron to be assimilated into the body. 50 milligrams of iron taken with 100 milligrams of Vitamin C is a good remedial measure: you would take this until your iron levels are normal, which should be only a matter of weeks if your diet is nutritionally sound: Check with your doctor for advice on when to start and when to stop.

NOTE: Lack of zinc can contribute to an anemic condition. If your zinc intake is adequate, and your diet is good with a variety of foods eaten which cover the range of vitamins and minerals, then you should not develop anemia. Taking iron supplements can make you constipated. Talk to your naturopath or doctor about what is best for you.

IMPORTANT: It is best when taking IRON supplements that you get medical advice. Some people can build up an excess of iron in the blood. If you are not anaemic, then do not take an iron supplement: It is a safer practice to follow an iron-rich diet without taking an iron supplement, as this way you will not exceed a healthy iron level.

Foods which are high in iron are egg yolk, red meats, green vegetables such as kale, broccoli, spinach and silver beet should be included in the daily diet for people who have iron deficiency because of childbirth or menstruation. If you take a large glass of orange juice ,which is high in Vitamin C, you will maximize the iron intake from these vegetables.

VITAMIN B COMPLEX is essential in treating hair loss. This vitamin helps to alleviate stress and is functional in processing your carbohydrates, both of which help to keep your hair on. The B complex components which are helpful in growing healthy hair may be broken down into the following specifics, however DO NOT OVERDO any one of the Vitamin B complex over a long period. It is good to take a B complex tablet with any extra Vitamin B component so that you do not get an imbalance of any one of the complex. Best to get your health practitioner’s advice on what combinations to take.

VITAMIN B1, or THIAMINE: This is very helpful in keeping your brain and nerves healthy so that you can allow those new hair follicles to grow. Deficiencies can cause depression and constipation. It helps you manage stress and imparts a general feeling of well-being.

Some good sources of Thiamine are milk, orange juice, peanuts, wholemeal flour, green peas, sweet corn and wheat germ. Brewer’s yeast is especially high.

VITAMIN B2, or RIBOFLAVIN: This is important as a vehicle to take blood sugar to the muscles, brain, and eyes. Cataracts can form with a deficiency of Riboflavin, and serious hair loss can result when levels remain low. Milk is a great source of Riboflavin, so if you do not have a problem with the digestion of milk, then this is an affordable option to increase your Riboflavin. Baking soda, and baking powder can destroy Riboflavin, so baked products using these ingredients may not give you your requirement of this vitamin. Sunlight also affects Riboflavin adversely.

Riboflavin is thought to be one of the most deficient B Vitamin in people’s diets. It is added to many foods in America to help prevent deficiencies.If you are taking the contraceptive pill, then this vitamin could be deficient, along with B6, B12 and Folic Acid.

Some good sources of Riboflavin are: milk, eggs, avocado, brussels sprouts, broccoli and mushrooms.

FOLIC ACID is another B Vitamin which is necessary for healthy hair. Inadequate folic acid can cause extreme anxiety, poor mental health, and premature greying of the hair: the greying of the hair can, in many cases, be restored with treatment of this B component, and mental/emotional factors relieved. Folic acid also helps prevent anaemia, which can be a cause of hair loss. Folic acid is necessary for healthy blood, hair, eyes, and a healthy brain.

Folic acid is found in orange juice, eggs, milk, brewer’s yeast, oatmeal porridge, wholemeal flour, peanuts, spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts, pumpkin, silver beet, sweet corn, cauliflower, peas and tomatoes.

INOSITOL is another important B vitamin which helps hair grow. Excessive hair loss can result with insufficient inositol in the diet. It is important because it helps with the digestion of foods, and helps to produce lecithin in the body. It is important not just for the hair, but for the health of eyes, bone marrow, intestines, arteries, liver, kidneys and heart.

Inositol is found in orange juice, milk, peanuts, brown rice, wholemeal flour, beef, baked beans, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, sweet corn, raw tomatoes, lettuce, liver and wheat germ.

PANTOTHENIC ACID is another important B vitamin. It aids digestion, helps protect against radiation and is a good anti-stress vitamin, thus it is helpful for hair growth. Baking soda can destroy this vitamin. It is manufactured in the body, but is also found in eggs, milk, avocado, peanuts, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms and brown rice.

BIOTIN, or Vitamin H, is a recommended vitamin for hair growth. This encourages the hair to grow, it thickens and strengthens the hair strands, and reduces shedding of the hair. Biotin is manufactured in the intestines, so the production of biotin can be halted if you have taken antibiotics, or are on medication which inhibits the biotin manufacture. Some biotin is drawn from the foods we eat.

Eggs, peanuts, liver and brewer’s yeast are good sources of biotin.

IODINE is especially important for healthy hair. It is best to simply apply this to the scalp several times a week, just a few drops at each application, and massage into the scalp. Iodine is absorbed readily through the pores of the skin and scalp, so there is no need to take this orally.

Iodine nourishes the thyroid gland. It helps in the maintaining of energy levels and regulates cholesterol in the blood. It aids heart function and blood circulation. Applied to the scalp, it is absorbed easily into the tissues where hair is formed, helping it to grow.

MANGANESE is important in helping to regulate blood sugar levels, so this makes it a necessary component in your diet if you are treating a condition of hair loss. It is found in milk, banana, orange juice, peanuts, baked beans, silverbeet and tomatoes, dolomite powder, molasses and treacle.Fish and avocado are also good sources.

ZINC is especially important in building a strong body, improving immune function and in increasing hair growth. Zinc helps prevent anaemia, which can cause hair loss. It helps the conversion of carbohydrates to energy in the body and is important in keeping the blood sugar stable. If the blood sugar begins to fluctuate, then hyperglycaemia can result, which leads to thinning hair.

See also http://merrilynhope.com/best-vitamins-for-hair-growth/

Merrilyn’s new book is out on Amazon: See The No Cancer And Good Health Notebook

Foods To Eat On A Candida Cleanse Diet

Curing your body of a candida infection is easy provided you do not have a serious chemical poisoning due to some exposure to a dangerous chemical: if chemicals have made you ill, then it will take some time on the candida cleanse diet before you are well. You would be best advised, in this case, to work with a health practitioner.

Curing candida is simple, but it takes a lot of perseverance: all you have to do is starve the candida of the things which feed it. The best foods to eat on a candida cleanse diet are those which do not contain sugars, or carbohydrates which are converted to sugars very quickly, or yeasts of any kind.

BUT FIRST: Your new anti-candida diet will be most effective if you begin treatment by taking two tablespoons full of castor oil, followed up immediately with a cup of black coffee, made from real coffee grounds. This draws toxins from the liver and the intestines, and rushes through all the sludge and sugars which the candida is feeding on.

Dr Max Gerson, who used castor oil widely in his treatment of cancer, recommended that an enema be taken within five hours of taking castor oil, otherwise the rush of toxins exiting through your intestines can make you feel very ill. If you have an aversion to doing this, then you could go to a colonic clinic to have a colonic cleanse on the following day to taking the castor oil.

Here are the best foods to eat on a candida cleanse diet:

GREEN VEGETABLES are excellent. Eat plenty of these, especially raw greens. Try to eat a big salad at least once a day: this is good, but twice is even better, and three times is best.

CELERY: this is probably the best anti-candida food out of them all. Celery is alkaline, and an alkaline state is necessary to reduce candida. It is also pretty high in roughage, which is another thing in its favor: the fibers of the celery help keep the bowel walls clean. It also has an antiseptic effect in the body, which helps to keep candida albicans at bay, as well as other bacteria. The other attribute of celery is that it is good for building strong bones, teeth, blood and brains! It is an ACE health food generally, and an ace anti-candida food.

GREEN VEGETABLES: Those which you may put on your list of foods to eat on a candida cleanse diet are:

Broccoli, Cabbage, Kale, Lettuce, Parsley, Silver Beet, Spinach, Spring Onions

Note: cooked cabbage might be best left for a week or so, as it becomes very sweet once cooked. But raw cabbage in a coleslaw is OK. Do NOT use any vinegars, honey or mayonnaise on your salads and coleslaw. Instead, you can use safely use oil on these -any amount of olive oil, or rice bran oil, or grape seed oil etc.

AVOID root vegetables initially. This includes potatoes, kumara, or sweet potato, carrots, turnips, parsnips, swede. These all turn to sugars too quickly in the body. After you have recovered from the infection, you can take these foods in moderation. When you do, eat them in a balanced way, with a good portion of salad and/or cooked greens, a good measure of quality protein, vegetable oil and garlic.

AVOID all fruit and fruit juices, alcohol, vinegars, and any food which contains sugars, yeast, or vinegars such as soy bean tofu, miso, cheese, soy sauce, tomato sauce. Avoid milk and yogurt also.

AVOID all wheat and wheat products like bread, pastries and biscuits or cakes.

AVOID all other grains and flours for the first week, except for brown rice in moderation.

EAT BROWN RICE: This is the best grain to eat whilst treating yourself for candida. Eat it with garlic, vegetable oil, quality protein and a large salad with some cooked greens if you like. Some people with chronic infections might need to wait for a few days before including brown rice in their diets, using only raw and cooked greens, oils, and some protein initially.

EAT PLENTY OF PROTEIN: Many people get candida because their diets do not include enough real protein. Vegetarians, for instance, might be using grain products and pulses to get their protein intake. But this can be problematic for many people. Include real protein such as fish, free range eggs, free range chicken, beef or mutton with every meal. Almonds are good, generally, but most nuts are best left until you have overcome the candida.

Alzheimer’s and Pendulum Communication

Psychic Healing and Communication: People who have alzheimer’s, or brain damage, still have their core part of their mind still intact. To the visitor, friend or relative, doctor or nurse, often an alzheimer’s patient seems beyond any power of comprehension, as the patient may simply sit there, with no outward recognition of any visitor and with, seemingly, no appreciation of what efforts the visitor or care-giver may be making on behalf of the patient. These poor people have often lost the ability to speak and move, which might indicate to the observer that they are absolutely ‘in another world’. In a sense, this is true, as people whose physical being has shut down get to expand their consciousness into realms which most of us have not yet seen. They may seem dead on a physical level, but the main part of their existence continues just the same.

I have recently been made aware that a very good friend of mine who lives overseas is very much alive and well in his mind, although he has alzheimer’s, or a similar condition. My friend Gottlieb has been in care for some time now. I had been told a year or so ago that he had died, and so I hadn’t bothered to make the effort up to see him in Queensland where he has resided with his wife for about ten years or more.

Now Gottlieb knew I used the pendulum to a fairly high degree of success in some fields, although I had never used it to spell out words direct from spirit before.He knew I would eventually cotton-on to the idea. This is why he made me the target for his directive which was to contact his wife, reassure her, and teach her how to communicate with him through this new method of pendulum use. His wife also uses a pendulum. I am sure the new idea was partly inspired by Gottlieb in order to equip me with the skill to convey messages to his wife. His input into my own learning has thus developed my skill of pendulum use, because now I am able to divine messages from spirit.

Gottlieb always had a psychic force, a wonderful healing energy about him which was imparted to you as you either sat with him or received his hands-on spiritual healing. I have been aware of his healing presence about me from time to time. I assumed he was coming from the spirit world because I had been told he had died. But this was not the case, as I was to discover later. There were several people who were keen to communicate with me, including my daughter who died more than 30 years ago, and other family members and friends. Gottlieb, however, came through with the most energetic pendulum swing, and with clear, precise messages, just as he always did. He implored me to get in touch with his wife, as she was sad. A few weeks went by. I had not been able so far to track her down. The messages kept coming through to find her. A message came telling me I would find her on the computer under addresses of Australian Healers, but I still had no computer set up to get this done. Then a few weeks later, within half an hour or so of my sons setting up a computer for me and getting on line, Gottlieb had a message for me. It was, again, very specific: GOTTLIEB SAYS HELLO MY FRIEND. AND NOW YOU MUST CONTACT INGRID ON THE COMPUTER

I found her immediately and sent her an email. The most exciting thing for me was that she told me Gottlieb was STILL ALIVE. He was unable to communicate with Ingrid because of his deteriorated physical condition which had affected his speech. He had alzheimer’s and was thought to be past understanding anything, and quite beyond doing any healing.

This was not the case – apart from the messages concerning his wife and the necessity to teach her this method of communication, he had, at an earlier date, given me a specific remedy via the pendulum for a remedy to cure a skin complaint. The active ingredient was tamarind. I had never heard of tamarind used in the way he described, but research showed me he was definitely on the right track.It has turned out to be effective.

I believe that many people with alzheimer’s may be able to communicate via this method. It is worth the effort, if you have a loved one in care who cannot communicate for any reason at all, to try this approach to see if you might receive their thoughts. They most probably will already know yours. It is certainly reassuring to see that the spirit of the person, the intelligence beyond the physical brain, is still alive and well and active, even when the physical body is not.

So Ingrid followed the method I described and learned how to decipher messages from Gottlieb. She was very happy with the result, which in turn has given Gottlieb peace of mind. Gottlieb still continues to convey messages of healing, love and reassurance to his friends.

Causes of Memory Loss

How To Reverse Memory Loss

Toxic Chemicals, Alcohol, Marijuana, Microwaves, Toxic Dentures, And Some Medications Can Cause Candida

Candida Can Cause Memory Loss: Too often people say that the cause of memory loss is a genetic thing, especially when it is related to Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. But while we accept that some people have a propensity for afflictions of the brain, and memory loss, as with cancer and other degenerative diseases, much can be done, in my experience, to avoid or avert these conditions in most people, even when there is a genetic weakness.

Candida Infection

A weakened immune system can result in candida, which can cause memory loss.

It is easy to cure candida: The main thing is to starve it of the foods it thrives on, and avoid all those environmental contaminants which encourage it. Periods of detoxification, as in fasting on raw foods, castor oil occasionally, an alkaline diet, avoidance of all toxic herbicides, pesticides and other substances, and a healthy environment is the way to recover your health and naturally improve your memory.

Heavy metal poisoning, asbestos, addiction to alcohol and other drugs, vaccinations and some medications, as well as agricultural chemicals such as RoundUp’s glyphosate, all have the potential to weaken the immune system and incline people to candida infection.

Any of these things, given enough exposure, tend to upset the functioning of the bowel flora, and kill off the very organisms which are there to help digest our food and protect us from sickness.

One incident which caused severe memory loss, and a near physical breakdown, was the poisoning which occurred after I cleared a property of asbestos and toxic ash after a fire. I began to collapse with heavy metals, formaldehyde, and asbestos dust poisoning my system. Lead is one heavy metal which is known to severely affect nervous system, brain function and memory, and combined with all the other poisons in this toxic ash, it very nearly caused my death. I guessed that if I wasn’t to die of heavy metal poisoning, then I might die of candida.

Candida took over my digestive system to the extent that eating a grain of sugar, or a drop of fruit juice caused an immediate visible reaction in the mouth, which became white with thrush. As long as I did not eat anything which fed the organism, then I was OK. But there was very little food which was safe during this time. Raw lettuce, for instance, was no good, as there are multiple little organisms on lettuce which cause the lettuce to decompose fairly quickly. As my immune system was so incredibly weakened, I had no resistance to the yeasts on lettuce, or the sugars in sweet vegetables such as carrots, or apples, which caused immediate candida overgrowth.

It took a very long while to rid myself of the poisons which were making me ill, and to build up resistance again, but I managed a recovery with castor oil, and a diet which allowed only raw celery and tuna fish in oil, and calcium ascorbate vitamin C. I followed this regime religiously for six months, after which time I was able to eat cooked vegetables again. After this initial healing period, I still had to follow a strict modified diet using both cooked and raw vegetables, tuna fish in oil, and continue to use castor oil for cleansing at least once a week.

Gradually, memory and physical health was restored.

Seven years after this, the oppressive effect of Saturn was upon me again. I suffered a period of chronic depression, probably related to the asbestos, lead, mercury poisoning, as well as my children leaving home. This time I became addicted to alcohol. Candida loves alcohol. After three years of drinking and isolation, I had virtually no memory, had forgotten how to speak in coherent sentences, could not recognize familiar faces or voices, and had forgotten how to perform many simple tasks.

It was imperative that I stop drinking. I joined the local Alcoholic Anonymous group, and began to pay attention to diet, intellectual, and social factors. It took one year for the nervous tremors to stop, and several more years for memory, speech and eyesight to recover normal function.

It is probable that vaccinations in childhood play a part in people’s immunity being low and too readily succumbing to candida and other infections throughout life. I believe that childhood vaccinations, as well as flu vaccinations, could also be one cause of mental deterioration and memory loss in less than old people because of their influence on the digestive and immune systems.

Childhood vaccinations could even predispose us to cancer, obesity, alcoholism, and other addictions later on in life. See my website article: http://merrilynhope.com/link-between-vaccinations-and-obesity-new-study-suggests-bbc-22-august-2012/

My generation was the recipient of numerous nationwide school vaccinations and innocculations in the 1950’s and 1960’s. It is no wonder, to me, that so many of my peers have died so young of cancer, and heart and breathing problems, addictions, and that most of us still living have chronic short-term memory loss.

Avoid Exposure To Radiation And Electromagnetic Energies: As stated in the article entitled ‘Improve Your Eyesight Naturally, electromagnetic radiation from cell phone towers, ‘smart’ electricity meters, and electricity transformers, can harm brain function very dramatically.

These vibrations and radiations affect the central nervous system, which runs on its own series of electrical impulses. The nervous system’s energy circuit is very sensitive to the stronger rays from things like cell phone towers and electricity meter boxes, and the result of prolonged exposure is that the organs suffer. The brain, eyes, ears and heart, which are all connected to the nervous system, are especially vulnerable to these toxic energies.

These radiations and electromagnetic fields can also cause candida, as they have the ability to kill off the ‘good’ bacteria in the bowel, to the advantage of the ‘bad’ bacteria and other parasites.

Anti Candida Diet Improves General Health And Memory

Important: If you feel at all unwell whilst you try this anti-candida diet, then quit the diet and go back to see your health adviser. However, it can be rather trying at the beginning of the diet, as the candida yeast will demand those sugars and foods which feed it, especially when you are starving it of these items. If you can resist the temptation to eat those foods which candida loves, then after a week or so on the diet, your candida infection should be more or less under control.

The best way to combat candida and rebuild your immune system is to starve it of all sugars for a while. This means adopting a very radical approach which involves more than being gluten-free. You need to cut out all wheat flour products – no bread,cake or pastries, as these are all converted to sugar too quickly: wheat flour, and many other flours, can cause the candida to thrive whilst your immune system is poorly functioning. Cut out sweets, including all sweet drinks, juices, fruit and honey for a time. Dairy products are also best avoided; the lactose in milk, including soy milk, also feeds candida. All leafy greens are just great, as are most vegetables, but cut down on those potatoes and kumara, or sweet potato, and carrots for a while, as these carbohydrates are converted to sugar very quickly in the digestive system, and this gives the candida plenty to thrive on.

Brown rice is generally good; however, if your condition is chronic, then you will need to exclude all grains until you improve. Taking olive oil, rice bran oil or some other good quality cooking oil with your brown rice, and poured over your salads and cooked greens, helps slow down the process of sugar conversion in the body: it is nourishing, and inhibits the candida, because candida doesn’t like oils. Taking garlic with your brown rice and oil also helps inhibit candida overgrowth. Use garlic and oil at every meal until you are better. Even after you are better, good oils,garlic, brown rice, salads, and cooked greens should form the bulk of the diet to avoid getting a candida imbalance which causes memory loss.

Protein and Vegetable Oils: A protein-rich diet, and the use of good quality oils such as virgin olive oil, is very effective in combating candida infection. Candida does not thrive in protein-rich diets, and vegetable oils. You must have adequate protein in the diet – candida sufferers are often on vegetarian or low-protein diets where grains are used to substitute real protein. Try to eat protein at every meal. Oily types of fish are just the very best – salmon, mullet, sardines, tuna, but free range eggs, almonds, free range chicken and beef, are all good sources. Nuts are sometimes best left until you begin to recover, but you can experiment with these after you have given yourself a week or so without, to see what their effect is. Once you have followed this anti-candida diet for a few days, you can recognize what foods are best to avoid when you try them again, as you usually get symptoms of candida fairly soon after eating them.

Avoid taking protein foods such as soy bean tofu, soy bean miso, and cheese, as these are all fermented foods which encourage candida.

Eat salad foods at every meal. Celery is very effective in helping to combat candida, as it has plenty of roughage to cleanse the bowel. It is a very alkaline food which makes for a healthy body and immune system. It also has an antiseptic effect which inhibits candida and other bacteria. Celery is a great cleanser and helps to build healthy blood, whilst being excellent for the brain. Sprouts are a great food, but you have to be careful with these as yeast begins to grow on the sprouts while they are germinating: they must be washed well – I think these are best left out until you have recovered somewhat. Lettuce must also be washed well. Avoid tomatoes for a while – they are just too sweet. Avocado is best avoided for the first few few weeks until you have strengthened your immune system, as they begin to ferment very quickly and therefore feed the candida if they are overripe.

The other thing which you must starve the candida of is any food or drink which contains YEAST. Candida is a yeast, and it gets a huge boost when you feed it things like alcohol, or vinegar, or sauces, or even vegetarian products like soy bean miso, tofu,or soy sauce: all these are fermented. Just a taste of another yeast really sets off the candida growing again. Mushrooms need to be avoided, as the yeast on mushrooms encourages candida overgrowth in your intestines.

If you suspect that candida albicans might be the cause of your memory loss, then the above suggestions should be helpful. Remember to eat enough while you are on this diet. There is absolutely no need to go hungry. Have a salad ready, maybe with boiled eggs or fish added to it, and some brown rice, already cooked, which you have put in the fridge. You can snack on these super healthy foods, throw a few almonds in with cooked broccoli or spinach, throw on a bit of olive oil, a taste of garlic, and you are ready to go.

Avoiding all yeast foods and sugars will help your memory loss if candida, or sluggish bowels, is the problem. The bulk of salad foods, cooked greens and brown rice which you eat with your protein will provide good roughage to get your bowels clear of effete matter, get them functioning normally again and provide the very best nutrients to feed your body and your brain.

Calcium Ascorbate, or Ester C are the non-acidic Vitamin C types you should look for in treating candida. These are the most effective of all available supplements which counteract candida albicans, and thus they are helpful in restoring your memory. They also help keep an alkaline state in the body which is another important factor in treating candida. Do not use the ordinary, sour tasting Vitamin C, as this does not help candida, but actually feeds it. Calcium ascorbate in doses of 1000mg can be taken once, or twice, or even three times a day to combat candida and help your memory grow strong. Cut the dose back after a few days, once the bowels have been cleared.

Acidophilus: This is the name of one of the beneficial bacteria in the intestines. Acidophilus helps keep the candida in check, so it is very useful in tackling the cause of your memory loss. Having a healthy amount of acidophilus in your bowel also helps you to process your food more efficiently, thus more nutrients are provided to the brain, helping to counteract memory loss. It is important to find a product which is suitable for candida sufferers, though. Make sure there are no added sugars or lactose added to the acidophilus which you buy. Otherwise it is best to do without

Epsom Salts For Magnesium: This is very helpful in clearing out the bowel of toxins. The extra magnesium can also boost your brain function. Take a dose several times a week, or as needed.

Bowel Cleanse or Colonic Cleanse: It is a good idea to go to a colonic clinic to get this professionally done at first. After that, you can learn how to use an enema so that you can clean out your system regularly. This is especially important in the beginning of treatment, when toxins will be released from the liver because of the healthy change of diet you have implemented. Washing out the colon is an important measure to take in getting rid of all the gunk in your bowel: keeping the bowel clean is a priority in helping to build a good memory.

Candida does affect very many people, and most people, given the quantity of processed food which we all consume, have sluggish and clogged bowels. These things are probably the most common causes of memory loss, so the above dietary and cleansing suggestions really are worth a try.

Some other causes of memory loss are:

Emotional exhaustion, lack of sleep, anxiety, and depression: these can all contribute to a state of memory loss. Good nutrition, such as the basic wheatless anti-candida diet outlined above, should help most people with these conditions. Also, Yoga Nidra, deep relaxation and yoga breathing are useful in minimizing these negative mental states. See the chapter at the end of the book on how to practice Yoga Nidra.

Radiation from cell phone towers, cell phone use, electrical transformers which are too close to your house, overhead power lines near your house, radio transmitters, even TV aerials above your sleeping space, can all affect your memory and your nervous system generally. Having a radio close to your head at night will interfere with your brain patterns and affect your memory: I read once that Paul Simon won’t sleep with a radio or a TV anywhere near his bedroom, even if it they are not going. He recognizes the negative effect radio and TV waves have on the brain and memory function.

Alcohol and marijuana addiction: the effect of both these drugs is well known to be deleterious to the physical health, and to the mental health. Marijuana has a potent weakening effect on memory.

Allergy to denture plastic or acrylic: Many people are sensitive to plastic materials: these materials, which are prolific in our environment, are one major cause of memory loss in my experience. Unfortunately, many people wear plastic in their mouths, in the fabric of their denture. This plastic starts to break down after a couple of years or so, and chemicals from the plastic denture are absorbed into the body. This affects the brain and is one of the probable causes of memory loss in people who have dentures. Also, candida yeasts and other bacteria can thrive in the denture plastic, especially when it becomes older, and these bacteria also cause memory loss. Read the article on Dentures which appears just before this article.

Lack of certain essential elements in the diet such as iron, B vitamins, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, Vitamin A,Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin C, iodine, silica, manganese, selenium to name a few of the important ones. These are all essential to keeping a well functioning memory and a healthy brain.

Dentures

Keep Your Own Teeth If You Can: Dentures should be fitted only when your old teeth are causing you health problems which cannot be remedied by dental specialists or doctors. It is far better to keep your own teeth for as long as possible, and here are the reasons why:

COSMETIC: The roots of your natural teeth are embedded well down into the gums of the jaw. When your teeth are removed, the natural shape of the mouth is undermined, as this causes the gum line to become eroded; imagine it being more or less mined, by the digging out of the natural teeth. The denture gives you teeth replacements, but it cannot possibly repair or fill out the damage done to the natural shape of the mouth and jaw once your teeth have been removed. Your appearance is changed forever once you have your teeth out; that is, unless you can afford expensive dental implants and jaw reconstruction. Even keeping old roots in the gums helps prevent your face changing shape and it developing that sunken look which is characteristic of one who has dentures.. Unless the roots of broken teeth are causing you health problems, then it is really better to leave them there.

CHEWING with your own teeth is far more effective than chewing with dentures – assuming you have enough of your own teeth left to do the job. Dentures, if they are made by an artful dental technician, can work surprisingly well, but never as well as your own teeth, because the bottom plate is not fixed to your jaw and does not have anything to hold it there. Consequently, it can move around, even as you are eating, or worse, while you are simply talking to people, which proves to be very embarrassing. It is possible to get tooth implants on either side of the lower jaw, for the purpose of holding down the plate. But if you think about it, instead of dental implants, then it might be best to keep a few of the original back teeth in the first place, so that these could be used for anchoring the plate. No one advised me about these things when I got my teeth removed. These notes are all from personal experience !!!

ALLERGY to modern denture-making materials is the worst aspect of having dentures in my experience.

DENTURES WITHHOLDING TOXINS is another issue.

These two things are inter-related: I find that the very best materials have a life of only about three years. After about three years of wearing a new plate I begin to notice that my memory has become very bad. It continues to worsen over the next year or so, but by then I am beginning to feel quite ill for a lot of the time. My immune function becomes weaker, I suffer candida throughout the whole digestive system beginning with the mouth, my eyesight becomes poor, my nervous system is shot, and my skin begins to suffer from eczema. I feel very depressed. Then I usually cotton on to the fact that it is the plastic in the denture which is breaking down and making me feel so bad, as I can taste the plastic, like apoxy resin, or formaldehyde, in my mouth all the time. Then I remember that this is EXACTLY what happened three or four years ago before I got the new dentures – and, YES -the time has passed very quickly, as I have had these teeth for all of three or four years, the same life which the previous teeth had.Then I do an experiment whereby I leave the teeth out for a few days. Like magic, my memory begins to perform quite a lot better, and I stop feeling sick. Putting the teeth back in brings back all the old symptoms, and by now it is quite obvious that the teeth are the cause of all the problems, as I have begun to feel normal, both mentally and physically, without the teeth. After doing without the teeth, I cannot stand their effect any longer, and I have to simply go without the teeth until the new ones are made up for me.

My wonderful dental technician is fairly sure that if I had the old teeth relined after two years or so, then this problem would not occur. He is convinced that the reason my health declines so badly is because of bacteria which get into the plastic once it begins to pit after a few years. However, knowing about my sensitivity to formaldehyde and plastics, etc, I am not convinced, and so I have gotten brand new teeth made each time, just to make sure.

I have found a new dental technician who has made just the greatest teeth for me using porcelain teeth to minimize the effect of having too much plastic in my mouth. But years before meeting my new dental technician, I went to a man who made up new teeth very cheaply: the plastic in these dentures caused panic attacks and all kinds of ill health immediately from the moment I began wearing them. The actual teeth of these dentures was plastic as well as the plate. They tasted of plastic all the time. Now, after having experienced ill-health with several different dentures over a period of about twenty years, I know that the plastic in those dentures was the cause of a sudden decline in health, especially mentally, which occurred once I began wearing that set of new dentures.

I think that the old kind of plastic which was used in denture making in war time was harder and more durable than modern denture-making materials. My father still has the same set he was issued with in 1942. He has a fantastic memory. This type of plastic doesn’t break down as quickly as what the softer modern materials used by dental technicians today do: they use these softer materials because they are easier to work with, and they probably get a better fit with the newer materials; but I think the bad effect of these plastics and acrylics on people’s health has yet to be determined. A condition similar to alzheimer’s affects me after several years of wearing a product made with these new plastics/acrylics. One plastic, as already mentioned, caused memory loss and anxiety right from the moment I began wearing it. I wonder how many people suffering alzheimer’s might have dentures made with modern plastics/acrylics?- Of course, it won’t be the sole contributing factor in the occurrence of this disease , but I think that research in this area definitely needs to be done.

VITAMIN C has a damaging effect on dentures. Megadoses of Vitamin C, whilst being good for the purpose of detoxifying the body, actually cause the plastic of your denture to erode and break down more quickly than otherwise, and this will mean that you are unknowingly ingesting particles of plastic along with the Vitamin C. If you need to take Vitamin C, then it is best to take it with the dentures removed, or to swallow a tablet quickly with a glass of water rather than let it sit in the mouth where it will interact with the plastic of your teeth. Many other strong vitamins, minerals and herbal products cause this effect to denture plastic; or they are retained in the denture plastic for a period after dosage.

DENTURE CLEANER is another thing which can cause health problems. Even after having brand new dentures fitted this time I began to feel dizzy and unwell after a few days: I had been recommended a denture cleaner, and thought that regular use of this product might keep the bacteria at bay and therefore give more life to the teeth. But, again, these modern plastics/acrylics have the ability to attract and hold poisons, including the chemicals in denture cleaner. Once I realized where the source of the problem lay, more or less after I recognized the taste of the cleaner remaining on the teeth even after using copious amounts of water to flush the teeth, I stopped using the product: but it took about a month before the dentures were clear of these chemicals.

I found that ordinary baking soda toothpaste made for people with their own teeth worked well: there is nothing harmful in the baking soda toothpaste, which I used, for the denture plastic to absorb. I decided, against professional advice and marketing ploys on telly, which tell you that this type of toothpaste scratches your dentures, making pits where germs can breed, that I would just have to risk using normal baking soda toothpaste and “the pits” rather than use a specific denture-cleaning product whose chemicals were obviously poisoning me.

The effects of CHEMICAL POISONING FROM EXTERNAL SOURCES is made worse, again, because modern, soft denture plastic/acrylic materials draw chemicals into their fabric, which intensifies the effect of the poison. Using any strong cleaning chemicals, or even walking near areas where herbicides have been sprayed on grass verges affects the person who is wearing modern dentures more so than someone who has their own teeth, because the poisons are absorbed very quickly into the fabric of the acrylic/plastic fiber. My experiment with the denture cleaner on brand new teeth has proved the point, at least to myself. However, this experiment confirms what I sensed to be true on another, earlier, occasion:

MAF, in Auckland, New Zealand, carried out a huge aerial spraying programme over Auckland city several years ago. This was, ostensibly, to get rid of the ‘apple moth’ which we were told, via ads in our letter boxes and newspapers, was a risk to the pine trees which are grown here en mass by multi-million dollar overseas companies. (and therein lies another story – much of the profit goes overseas, for a start, but growing pine trees en mass is bad for our precious soil: the practice causes mass erosion, and it affects the rainfall in an area, since pine trees repel water; so planting them in other countries and locations where they do not belong, where there is a rainfall considerably higher than where they come from thus has an effect on climate, generally) Just how MAF and our government expected to rid the place of a moth by spraying a whole city is beyond me – many of us feel that there was some ulterior motive behind this weird spraying programme.

Back to the story: every time the aerial spraying was done, many people reported detrimental effects to their health. These reports were generally referred back to the special MAF doctors and advisers, which was useless, as they had every-which-way reason to tell you that the spray wasn’t making you sick at all. You were ‘screened’ – had you ever had a problem with alcohol? – any mental illness in the family? – do you suffer from depression? -do you have allergies? – the implication was that these factors were the reason you were ill again, nothing to do with the apple moth aerial spraying. And it was no use writing letters to our one and only newspaper in Auckland: they were running the huge, expensive, full page ads for MAF which portrayed the spraying programme as being helpful to us and the community at large: they refused point blank to publish anything which argued that the spray was detrimental to our health. A few weeks, earlier in the programme, the newspaper published a few letters, then suddenly said that the matter was ended and no more letters would be published. So it was difficult to prove publicly that the apple moth spraying programme was affecting our health, because we had no voice. In the end, the Victoria University of Wellington’s medical school proved conclusively that the spray was damaging the health of people in Auckland, and it was stopped immediately at this point: But this was years after much spraying abuse had been suffered by many, many people. Thank God for the Victoria University of Wellington.

I began to suspect during this time that dentures retain toxins: I could taste the spray chemicals in the teeth, and no amount of cleaning or soaking in any product would remove these poisons. I was being poisoned continually by the MAF spraying programme to eradicate the apple moth: not only were MAF helicopters and aeroplanes spraying us about every three weeks during parts of the year, but the toxins were being retained in the plastic fabric of the teeth after each spraying. I became VERY ill during this time, both physically and mentally. I was not treated for a mental disturbance, but my memory packed up, my eyesight became blurred, my nerves were extremely fragile and I became very neurotic. In the end, I had to do away with the teeth. As soon as I had done this, and left the city to avoid the spray completely, my health radically improved: I could remember again. I had new teeth made up for me. Gradually, my health was restored to normal.

Best to keep your own teeth if you possibly can.