Natural Health with Merrilyn Hope | Page 37 of 97 | Health, Alternative Medicine, Music, Political Opinion and so much more

Recipe For Potassium Rich Soup For Winter or Cleansing Diets

Vegetarian Lentil and Mung Bean Potassium Broth

This is a very tasty and mineral-rich soup. It is a great thing to make in a large pot-full, so that you have plenty for the family, and for those days when you are eating only potassium-broth as part of your detox-cleansing regime.

Really, you can put any vegetables that you have on hand into a vegetable potassium broth. One of the standard ways of making a potassium broth for a fast is simply to use potatoes and onions, and celery: This is simmered gently for an hour, then left to cool. If you are fasting, then the liquid is strained off and the cooked vegetables are discarded.

But in this potassium rich soup recipe, we leave the vegetables in the broth. Instead of a fast, you can give your digestion a rest by having days when you eat only potassium soup. Once you have made it, you can eat a helping whenever you feel hungry. Potassium-Rich soup is an alkaline food which is very nourishing to the nerves, so it is a healthy thing to snack on.

Potassium Broth is also a good hearty starter to a meal on those cold winter nights, to feed a hungry family.

Recipe For Lentil and Mung Bean Potassium Broth:

You need a very large soup pot for this recipe. Use a pot which will hold around 4 to 6 litres.

1 cup mung beans

1 cup of brown lentils or adzuki beans

3-4 cups of chopped celery. Use some of the green tops, as this is where most of the potassium and other nutrients are found.

2 chopped onion

1/2 a leek chopped up.

2 carrots.

2 cups of chopped parsley picked from your garden.

2 cups of chopped coriander preferably picked from your garden.

3 cups of young silver beet or spinach, picked from the garden.

1/2 a medium sized pumpkin or squash.

2 teaspoons sea salt.

1 teaspoon red paprika powder.

In your big stainless steel pot put the mung beans and the lentils or adzuki beans. Half fill the pot with water. Soak for an hour, then cook the beans and lentils for half an hour on the stove.

After the beans and lentils have cooked for a bit, put in the pumpkin with the chopped celery, the leek, the chopped carrots, and the onions.

Top up the pot with water to about 3/4 full. Simmer all for around half an hour. Then add the rest of the ingredients – the parsley and the coriander and the paprika pepper.

Now simmer the soup very gently for around another hour.

Use a potato masher to roughly mash up the pumpkin and the carrots.

Your broth is now ready. It is a good idea, unless you need all of this soup mixture to feed a large group, to take some of the soup off to cool, to put into the freezer. It freezes very well so long as it is put into well-sealed containers. Add a little more water to the remaining soup in the pot if needed, and perhaps a little more salt and pepper to taste.

Natural Insecticide Marigold And Its Healing History

All Marigolds, Indian, African, French and English, have healing qualities, as well as being useful and beautiful companion plants for the organic garden. Marigolds are natural insecticides. Their wonderful, sun-like vibrant orange flowers are delightful, therapeutic, and energizing to behold. If you have marigolds in your garden, you will have colour in your garden throughout the year if you live in New Zealand, or places which have a similar temperate climate.

Marigolds Are Treasured In India: A Hindu friend told me once that, in her home town in India, Marigolds were one of the most lovely flowers that one could take to honour the Gods at the Temple of Krishna.

The English Marigold, Calendula officinalis, is a wonderful healing and protective flower with a great history. It is thought to have been brought to England from its native India well before the 13th century. The Marigold is thought to have been named in England in honour of the Virgin Mary.

Marigolds can be used in cosmetics to enhance the skin, in hair rinses to enhance the shine of the hair, in salads as a colourful and healthful condiment, and in herbal relaxing teas.

John Gay, who was born in 1685, the same year as Bach, Scarlatti and Handel, and who died in 1732, was an English poet and author of ‘the Beggar’s Opera’: He makes reference to the Virgin Mary, and refers to the rich golden colour of the Marigold in his centuries old poem, ‘Pastoral’ when he asks:

‘What flower is that which bears the Virgin’s name. The richest metal added to the name?”

Shakespeare also wrote of the marigold, saying that ‘the Marigold goes to bed with the sun and with him rises weeping’. Charles the First apparently was mindful of the Marigold and its sun-worshipping attributes when he was imprisoned in Carisbrooke Castle, saying that ‘The Marigold observes the Sun….More than my subjects me have done’.

These historic references quoted above are taken from the book by Josephine Addison, entitled ‘The Illustrated Plant Lore’, published in 1985, Guild Publishing, London. About birthday flowers, Josephine says that the 15th January is the date for the English Marigold, and that the 29th May is the date for the French Marigold.

Well, the lovely Marigold flower is a great plant to put amongst your garden flowers for its beauty and therapeutic value , and in amongst the vegetables, to keep insects at bay and add colour to the vege patch.

All Marigolds Possess Natural Insecticide Qualities. The ‘Tagetes’ variety, which are the French and African variety, are supposed to be the most potent, but the English Marigold is also good. Because of a strong odour which comes from the roots, Marigolds are thought to be great to plant grow amongst root vegetables. Put it in amongst the potato crop. The odours from the root works as an insecticide to keep eel worm away from the growing potatoes. Beans, tomatoes and roses also benefit from having Marigolds planted amongst them. The Marigold is also helpful in keeping white butterflies away from cabbages and other Brassica vegetables. Apparently the Mexican beetle stays well away from beans which have Marigolds included in the planting.

Brenda Little, in her book called ‘Companion Planting in New Zealand’, New Holland Publishing, Auckland, New Zealand, 2000, reports how an organic gardener friend of hers has one motto with regard to companion planting: ‘Plant marigolds with everything’ is his advice to the organic gardener.

How No Alcohol, No Smoking, Diet and Detoxification Improved Eyesight

View Through The Trees: Photo by Merrilyn on Holly’ camera, Dunedin Botanical Gardens, December 2012.

Lack of Important Nutrients and Poisons stored in the body can cause the eye sight to deteriorate. Poor diet, dehydration, exposure to toxic chemicals, and chemicals contained in food, can all cause the eye sight to weaken, with blurred vision, or black spots developing in the field of vision. But if the right measures are taken, I believe that many people are capable of improving and restoring their sight again, just as they are capable of improving memory and combatting alzheimer’s disease.

If you can reverse the beginnings of glaucoma, or macular degeneration in the early stages, chances are that you can stave off these serious eye conditions for a very long time. Concurrently, you find that if, through your efforts, the eye condition improves, then so does memory and general brain function.

I know for a fact that the state of the eye sight is not fixed in concrete. The quality of your vision can change from day to day, week to week, depending on how you are looking after yourself, the amount of sleep you are getting, the levels of stress you are experiencing, the chemicals in your environment and body, whether you drink alcohol or smoke, and the vitamins and minerals in your food. These factors all have a bearing on how well your eyes are performing.

Merrilyn’s new book is available on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.ca/Cancer-And-Good-Health-Notebook-ebook/dp/B01DHMH6DG

Excessive alcohol drinking, and smoking, both affect the health of the eye sight very badly. Good eye sight depends on having clear sinuses, so if you are busy contaminating your sinuses by smoking, or inhaling other toxic substances, your eye sight, and your hearing, will deteriorate. Thirteen to sixteen years ago, because of alcohol abuse, and smoking, I suddenly found that I could not read the print on a book held at a normal distance from the eyes. This state of affairs did not correct itself immediately upon quitting alcohol, but took some time to reverse.

After I had become a ‘recovering alcoholic’ and was attempting to bring some semblance of order into my life again, I did my truck driving licence as a test to see if my memory would work again. It was a small goal to set myself. Everything about the examinations went well, except for when I went to have my eyes tested for the issuing of the new licence. My eye sight at this stage showed that I would need glasses to get the licence. Mind you – I was tested on one of those dreadful machines at the AA office, which simulates distances, and has the effect of disorienting you spacially.

I do not think that these machines give an accurate indication for eye sight performance. Nowadays I request to use the old fashioned eye chart to get my eyes tested. However, I was aware that my eye sight was not half as good as what it had been only three years earlier, before I had taken up smoking and the drinking of wine on a daily basis.

So – after sobering up, but still continuing to smoke, I went to an optician to get prescription glasses made so that I could pass the truck driving licence. These cost $750 which was quite a lot of money at the time. Anyway – the glasses were issued a couple of weeks later, and so I went to get my eyes tested again, this time by the bus company’s medical team, who used the eye chart instead of a machine. I decided to do the test first without the glasses, to see how my eyes were performing without the glasses. It seemed that my eye-sight was much better than it had been prior to this time – I was pleasantly surprised to see how well I fared. I passed the eye sight test without the glasses. The doctor told me that my eye sight was actually very good for my age, and that many younger people do not have eye sight which was as good as my own. So I have never used those glasses.

One day I might have to use glasses, but so far – 13 years after I was told I would have to have glasses for the rest of my life, for driving and for reading – I still do not have to wear glasses for anything – not to read a book, nor to drive a car. I am 62 years old today. I thank Divine Power, the Power Greater than Ourselves, and my friends, for helping me to recover from alcohol and getting my life back on track.

I went back to another doctor five or six years later to get my licence renewed, and was told the same thing – that my eye sight is very good. But it certainly was deteriorating very fast while I continued to smoke and drink, in combination with an acidic diet which was devoid of many fresh or cooked vegetables.

Avoid Alcohol and Smoking, Herbicides and Pesticides: The trick to improving eye sight, I have found, is to stop using all these weakening environmental chemicals which damage the eye sight. Herbicides and insecticides and many other chemicals have a bad effect on the eyes. But substance abuse of any kind is probably worse, because it is done to the detriment of the body on a daily basis: Alcohol, and especially smoking, are extremely damaging to the eye sight.

Avoid Food Additives To Protect Eye Sight: One needs also to stop using processed foods which contain damaging chemicals such as preservatives and colourings. These also affect the eye sight, the nervous system, the memory, and the general health.

Detoxify With Castor Oil To Help Eye Sight: Once I began to take an interest in my health and well being again, I began using natural detoxification methods to reduce the toxins stored in the body: Using castor oil once a week is one method of detoxifying the body naturally. This has an immediate beneficial effect on the eye sight.

Lemon Cleanser: A litre of warm lemon drink taken every morning with 1/2 teaspoon of paprika pepper, is another good cleanser. This hydrates the body as well as working as a detoxifier. Drink as much as you can of the lemon drink first thing, before eating anything or making coffee. Try to drink down at least half a litre, about a pint, of the lemon drink and paprika in one go. Then finish what is left after breakfast.

Vitamin C – Calcium Ascorbate: This is a miracle worker. Vitamin C is a natural detoxifier, as well as being highly instrumental in the building and maintaining of cell tissues. Apparently the brain has very high amounts of Vitamin C in it, something like six times the amount found in any other part of the body. Your eye sight also needs this Vitamin C to function properly and stay healthy. Extra vitamin C, taken in the form of Calcium ascorbate, can help to regenerate those eye tissues. This is a very good idea if you have been neglecting your diet in any way, or have been exposed to harmful chemicals. Vitamin C helps to remove toxins from the body. A body free of toxins leads to better eye sight.

Enemas and Colonics: I recommend using enemas, or going for a colonic irrigation if you are attempting to improve the eye sight and your general well-being. This is another method which hydrates the body whilst detoxifying the body at the same time. A professional colonic irrigation washes away years of toxins which have built up in the intestines. This is a great start both physically and psychologically, to a new and healthy approach to life.

Drink Plenty Of Water Or Vegetable Juices: Dehydration can cause poor eye sight. Alcohol causes dehydration, which is just one reason why it is bad for the health and the eye sight. So does excessive coffee drinking. Drinking enough water keeps the bowels working efficiently. Drinking enough water helps the kidneys to remove toxins through the bladder. If you decide to use the lemon cleanser drink in the morning, then this will hydrate your body wonderfully well, and take care of your water needs. Eyes do not perform well if water is short in the diet.

Alkaline Diet After Giving Up Alcohol– and eventually smoking, I began to change the diet to a more alkaline one again, and to work on nourishing the body and the brain with vitamin and mineral rich foods. Good quality protein is important, as well as all those alkaline foods. Organic free range eggs, chicken, fish, beef, lamb, nuts and seeds, are all good for helping the eye sight, so long as enough raw vegetable matter is taken as well. These methods of simple purification, which included plenty of alkaline foods such as green vegetables and sprouts, and fresh fruit, all helped to restore the health of my eyes. Even memory was regained, when I thought I would never ever recall a movie, or remember a face again. The nervous function improved bit by bit: After a year of not drinking a drop, the shakes stopped, and general health improved.

Note: Using an alkaline diet will help you to give up drinking alcohol if you are having difficulties with abstinence.

Other things to help the eye sight: Reduce coffee. Eliminate milk if you can, at least until the eye sight has improved and the bowels are cleansed. It is good to eliminate bread and all wheat products too, I have found. Walter Last recommended this many years beforehand, and I reverted back to his diet whilst I was recovering. It is better to have a bowl of rice rather than a slice of bread. Have an apple instead of a piece of cake or a biscuit. For snacks, use vegetable and rice and protein left overs instead of bread or cake, or dairy foods. Eat some sunflower seeds, or sesame seeds, or almonds, with dates for a sweet and nutritious treat. Sesame seeds are much higher in calcium than milk is. Sunflower seeds are also rich in calcium and other nutrients which benefit the nerves and the eye sight. There is nothing in bread, really, which is beneficial to the eye sight. So- cut bread out and use the nutritious alternatives instead.

Grated Raw Carrots: This is one of the best remedies for the eyesight, the health of the nervous system, and the immune function. Carrots, either raw or cooked, are rich in beta-carotene, which is a Vitamin A constituent. Raw carrots grated up are especially good to include in the daily diet to help eye sight, as more or the beta carotene is held in the raw carrot. The raw carrot also helps provide enzymes and roughage for the bowel, which also helps eye sight.

Broccoli, Silver Beet, Comfrey, Raw and Cooked Spinach: These are also high in Vitamin A beta-carotene, iron, Vitamin C, and other vitamins and minerals.

Sluggish bowels lead to the eye sight deteriorating. Keeping the bowels clean by eating plenty of the alkaline raw foods, sprouted seeds and grains, green vegetables and fruit, is going to do your eyes and your nervous system, and your general health, just so much good. Eating snacks of raw celery and carrots is going to help keep your system alkaline and clean of toxins. Eat a good breakfast every day, such as porridge with a grated raw apple, or a banana, each morning. Dr Gerson recommended porridge every morning, taken with a large grated apple and olive oil, for his cancer patients. Porridge is rich in silica, as well as being good bowel-cleansing fibre, which is going to help your eye sight recover.

Homeopathy For New Strain Of Avian Flu When Vaccines Don’t Work

Homeopathic Medicine will win in the end. When Vaccinations no longer work, or prove to be too risky for the health of the individual, people will resort to the alternatives to vaccination and antibiotics – Homeopathic medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, Herbal medicines, and Vitamin C.

Two days ago, on the 29th August 2011, on New Zealand television news, we were told that a new strain of Avian Flu Virus has developed, and that this is threatening parts of Asia. It was announced on the news that this new strain is not responding to antibiotic treatment. Vaccines are in effect an antibiotic, so this statement which warned that the new strain is immune to antibiotics, means also that Vaccinations will not be effective in defeating this flu virus.

Powers greater than ourselves are at work, I am sure: The drug companies have been making a mint out of promoting their chemical prescription medicines for a long time now, and they have deliberately caused Homeopathy, Herbal medicine, and Vitamin C therapy to be ignored by doctors and the general public. Once these giant companies gained a stronghold of the market, and they saw their fortunes rising dramatically from the very profitable drug making industry, they have used their money and their influence to drive out any competitors. Exerting their power over the forces of marketing has resulted in the detriment of the real healing arts. But it looks as if their dictatorial control over medicines, many of which have proven to be harmful, might be coming to an end, thanks be to the ‘Divine Forces’, ‘Mother Nature’, or unseen forces.

Suddenly, viruses have developed which their pharmaceuticals and vaccines cannot cure. There is no alternative in such a scenario, but for the public to demand Homeopathic medicine, and Vitamin C instead. Homeopathic medicine is more than likely to be effective in the case of the new strain of Avian flu, as is Vitamin C, when given in megadoses.

Of course, it is essential that you visit a Homeopathic practitioner in the event of an epidemic. But better still – why not go to visit a registered and experienced Homeopathic practitioner now, so that you can prepare for the event of an epidemic. If you live in an at risk country, then you really should visit your Homeopath, because it is possible for PREVENTATIVES, or PROPHYLACTICS to be given for almost any illness, before the event arrives. These prophylactic homeopathic remedies will work similarly to a vaccine in that they will help to counteract the virus. A prophylactic homeopathic remedy may not completely immunize you against the flu virus, but it will most surely help your immune system to fight off the disease should it occur.

Meanwhile, arm your medicine cupboard with quantities of the preventative and cure for almost all illnesses – Vitamin C. I prefer the Calcium Ascorbate powder, as this is a non-acidic type of Vitamin C. Because it is non-acidic, it is possible to take large quantities of the calcium ascorbate vitamin C, whereas you might tolerate only small quantities of the acidic type of Vitamin C.

Vitamin C can be taken along with Homeopathic Medicine which has been prescribed specially for this flu virus. You would take the Vitamin C powder at a time when you were not taking the Homeopathic remedy. For example, you might take your homeopathic remedy in the morning at 8 AM. At 9, or 10 AM you might take the Vitamin C. At 11 or 12 oclock noon, you might take another dose of the Homeopathic remedy which was prescribed for you.

However, in the event of an illness, and there being no medicine around to help you, you need to have quantities of around 5 to 10 gms of Vitamin C, or Calcium Ascorbate – for one adult, for one day’s dosage. I have no idea what this new Avian flu is like, or how long the worst of the symptoms last, but I guess that you would need to have enough Vitamin C to last one adult for about a week. That would be anywhere between 35 gms to 70 gms per adult. You would give a quarter to a half of this dose to a child who had the illness. If you have a larger family, then I would procure a good quantity of Calcium Ascorbate so that nobody would miss out, if there was a need for it.

Your Homeopathic Physician can prescribe specific remedies which are stronger than those you can buy across the counter. He or she can also select the very best remedy, with consideration for your body type, your mental type, your age, and the disease which is expected to strike, so that the very best result can be achieved.

As a precaution, in case it might not be possible to visit a Homeopath, or Herbalist, or Ayurvedic or Chinese herbal practitioner, OR a doctor, you could invest in the following flu and infectious disease remedies, to keep in stock.

Dr John H. Clarke, a Homeopathic physician who wrote a book on Homeopathic Prescribing entitled “The Prescriber”, recommends the following for an epidemic of Influenza. At the time of writing his book, there was a strain called the ‘Russian or Siberian Influenza’ which was prevalent in Europe.

Dr Clarke says when there is a risk of infection from flu, or a threatening epidemic, then the prophylactic – preventative- homeopathic remedy to take is Ars. 3, pil. iii. 8h. Only a chemist, or a Homeopath from the old school, would know how to prepare this homeopathic preventative remedy. However, “Ars.” is an abbreviation used in Homeopathic medicine to describe Arsen alb., which is Arsenic. Of course this is in a homeopathic microdose, and so it is quite safe to take. You would never take arsenic in home made dilutions of any kind, except in the safe homeopathic preparation, which has been diluted many times, to a specific degree.

So – you could buy a bottle or two of Homeopathic Arsen alb. to keep in your medicine chest. You can buy the 30C dilution, and the 6C dilution at most health food stores. This remedy could prove to be very valuable in the event of a flu epidemic. You would take the 30C dilution of Arsen alb. once a day for two days, as soon as you hear that there is an epidemic about. I should think that this treatment would not be as good as the specific prophylactic Ars. remedy which Dr Clarke recommends, as shown above, but Arsen alb is a very potent medicine, and it could very well do the trick.

I have oftentimes used Arsen alb. in treating illnesses of various kinds, including treating a young pup who had contracted Parvo, a disease which is usually deadly to dogs. I also spoon-fed honey and water every hour or so to the pup. I eventually gave a dose of castor oil after several days, to detoxify the dog more quickly. This treatment of Ars. alb, and honey and water to prevent dehydration, culminating in a dose of castor oil, worked to cure the dog. Suddenly, he was ‘up and away’ again.

Another good Prophylactic Homeopathic Remedy for Influenza according to Dr Clarke the homeopath, is Bacillinum 30 and Influenzinum 30. He suggests taking “a dose of each taken together or as a combination remedy once a week during inluenza epidemics.”

Other Homeopathic Remedies for treating the Flu are: Bapt.; Eupatorium perf.; Glonium; Belladonna; Mercurius. sol.; Gelsemicum; Echinacea; Bryonia; Aconite; Sang.; Aviare; Camphor; Phytolacca. Aconite may be given in alternation with another chosen remedy.

The addition of Aconite to the treatment can be especially helpful at night, when there may be exceptional restlessness and sleeplessness. Aconite is a pain killer and a mild sedative, as well as being effective in treating some infectious diseases.

Chemicals in Food Can Cause Obesity, Depression and Hyperactivity

Opt For Chemical Free Organic Food: Food Additives such as preservatives, colourants, artificial sweeteners, and flavour enhancers are best avoided like the plague. Of course, not all food additives are harmful. This post will include a list of some chemical food additives which are considered to be harmful.

Once you understand what a bad effect these things have on your health and the health of your children, you will want to make all your food at home from scratch, with untreated, unprocessed organic ingredients.

Some things which are added to pre-packaged food, such as Calcium, Lecithin, Vitamins such as Ascorbate acid, Vitamin E, or Folic acid which is put into many breads, are not harmful. These things are essential vitamins which are present in many foods anyway. But many food additives are very harmful to our health, and especially to the health of the growing child. These harmful food additives can affect hormone production in the body, and when this fine balance of hormone production is upset, then the stage is set for disease to set in.

Toxic food additives disturb the absorption of essential vitamins and minerals in the body, and so nutritional deficiencies can occur when a regular diet includes the intake of certain chemicals. Troubles such as obesity, binge eating, binge drinking and addiction, diabetes, depression and hyperactivity in children can all be triggered by the common chemical additives in processed food.

Food additives can affect the immune system. They can affect the delicate balance of bowel flora which includes things like acidophilus and candida, and this affects the immune system. Candida yeast infections can develop when the bowel flora is upset through chemicals. Exposure to areas which have been sprayed with toxic chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides can also upset the natural flora of the bowel, which leads so sickness. Degenerative conditions such as arthritis and cancer can be set off by regular ingestion of the many common additives put into packaged food.

Preservatives To Avoid: Some of the most harmful food additives are the preservative chemicals. These are the benzoates; the sulphates and sulphites; the nitrates and nitrites; the galates; and the antioxidants BHA and BHT.

Flavour Enhancers To Avoid: The glutamates are especially bad

Artificial Sweeteners: These are all bad. Saccharine, Aspartame, Sorbitol and other chemical sweeteners are all foreign to the body. Unless you are diabetic, it is better to use brown sugar, molasses, treacle, maple syrup or honey, than anything which has artificial sweetener in it. These other sugars are real foods which the body can digest. Artificial sweeteners are not foods, but are chemicals foreign to the body: Artificial sweeteners cause ill health.

All Chemicals Not Found Naturally in Food are Bad for the Body: Obesity, Depression, Diabetes and Hyperactivity are some of the first conditions of ill health to show up from the regular use of food additives, as well as exposure to other toxic chemicals such as household insecticides. Because the body does not know how to process any of these chemicals, the body can mistake them for other necessary chemicals. This leads to the introduction of these foreign and destructive chemicals into the liver and the body system. This not only upsets hormones and the absorption of vitamins and minerals: These foreign chemicals react with other chemicals in the body, and many of these toxic chemicals get stored into the liver, leading to cancer, arthritis and other things over time.

Food Additives are generally coded with numbers, although not all additives are required to identify with a given code number. For instance, the artificial sweeteners do not all carry an additive number. Here is a general listing of Food Additives and their code categories, mainly taken from the research of Jan Greig, who wrote ‘Kids’ Snacks’, 1991, published by Sally Milner, NSW 2041, Australia..I have added my own notes to her basic list of food additives and their effects.

List Of Common Food Additives:

100-181 are the Food Colourants. Many of these contain coal-tar dyes which can can cause sugar imbalances in the body, and hyperglycaemia. These food additives can also cause asthma, hyperactivity, depression, and skin troubles such as eczema and rashes. The problematic food colourant numbers are E 102, E 104, E 107, E 110, E 112, E 123, E 124, E 127, E 128, E 131, E 132, E 133, E 142, E 151, E 154, E 155, E 180. Many of the common food colourants are suspected of causing cancer, depression, as well as behavioural problems in children. Tartrazine, Number 102, is a yellow dye which has been banned in many countries. Japan, UK and the USA have already banned this chemical. It causes hyperactivity, runny nose, blurred vision, and bad skin. ‘Sunset Yellow’ dye, Number 110, can cause digestive disturbances and vomiting. It is especially bad for people who are allergic to aspirin. ‘Sunset Yellow’ has already been banned in the USA, the UK, and Japan. Amaranth, the red dye which is Number 123, was banned in the USA in 1976, because it caused malignant tumours in test animals. South Africa has banned this chemical also. Number 127, Erythrosin, is a known carcenogen. It is a red dye. The American FDA were planning to get this chemical banned from food in the 1990’s. This has probably been banned in America, but you still need to watch out, as other countries such as China do not have the same rules as America on additives. And even in Western countries, many of these carcenogenic chemicals are still being used.

The Colourant Brilliant Blue FCF, which is number 133, is linked to hyperactivity, asthma and skin troubles. This used to be common in iceblocks and some icecreams in New Zealand. I think it is already banned here. It has been banned in many European countries such as Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Holland and Finland.

The Colourings 150 and 160b are known to be bad for the health. 150 is a brown dye obtained from producing caramel from chemically treated burnt sugar. This chemically treated sugar is thought to damage the genes. It also reduces the white blood cells, which can lead to various health problems, and may cause cancer. It destroys Vitamin B6 in the body, and probably affects the utilization of other vitamins and minerals too. The Colouring 160b is called Annatto. This is a yellow or red dye which is related to asthma attacks and skin troubles.

Cochineal, E120, which is an organic food colourant derived from the Cochineal beetle, can cause hypersensitivity and other reactions in some people, especially in children. Best to avoid this one, even though it is a ‘natural’ food colourant. The synthetic chemicals used to produce red colours all cause health problems of some sort: Ponceau 4R is a scarlet dye which can cause asthma. People with intolerance to aspirin must avoid this chemical. The red dye Erythrosine, Number 127 is a carcinogen. The red dye Amaranth Number 123 was found to cause malignant tumours in rats, and so was banned in the States in 1976. The red dye Allura Red Number 129 can cause puffy skin which is a symptom suggestive of kidney trouble.

200-297 are the Preservatives. Some food acids are also listed in the 200-297 category. The Benzoate Category of Preservative are E 210, E 211, E 212, E 213, E 214, E 215, E 216, E 217, E 218, E 219, and these can cause asthma, hyperactivity and eczema.

The Sulphite Category of Preservative are the numbers E 220, E 221, E 222, E 223, E 224, E 226, E 227. Any of these can bring on asthma attacks, hyperactivity and eczema. These are all thought to destroy Vitamin B1 in the body. Sulphur Dioxide, which is 220, is a common preservative used in gelatine and many other products. This is very bad for the kidneys, the liver, the heart, and the lungs. People who suffer asthma need to avoid this one completely. Sulphur dioxide also destroys Vitamin B1. Potassium Metabisulphite Number 224 has a similar effect to Sulphur Dioxide 220, because it also can damage the liver and kidneys and heart muscle, as well as cause asthma.

The Nitrites and Nitrates E249, E 250, E 251 and E 252 are all dubious because they produce poisonous nitrosamines in the body, which cause cancers of various kinds. These nitrosamines are all thought to lower oxygen levels in the body, and an oxygen starved body is the ideal environment for cancers to begin.

300-381 are mainly Antioxidants. Vitamin E is an example of a healthy antioxidant which occurs naturally in food. Some food acids and mineral salts are also included in this section. The Gallate Category of antioxidant are the numbers E 310, E 311, E 312, which are linked to liver damage. Irritable bowel syndrome can result from regular use of foods containing these Gallates. Food intolerances can also develop. The BHA and BHT category of Antioxidant are thought to cause hyperactivity, eczeman and rashes, and are linked to cancers of various types.

The Emulsifier, E 385, Calcium Disodium, or EDTA, is thought to be carcenogenic.

400-492 are the Vegetable Gums, Emulsifiers, and Humectants. Some emulsifiers, such as Lecithin, are natural food items, and are truly healthy ones. However, E 407 which is a ‘natural’ seaweed extract derived from Carrageenan, also used in some cough syrups, has been linked to ulcers in the colon. Carrageen has been used in herbal medicine for centuries, but it is possible that in making a more potent extract from the plant, as used in the E 407 emulsifier, its healing qualities are negated. Jan Greig says that research suggests that the preparation E 407 has been linked to foetal damage in animals. Tragacanth Gum Number E413 can cause reactions in some people, although this is an organic compound. It is thought to be linked to liver damage and can cause food sensitivity. These naturally occurring gums are used in some laxative preparations. But because of the high concentration of these gums in certain products including laxatives, gums such as Tragacanth E413 , Sterculia Number ?, and Karaya gum 416 can be problematic, causing hay-fever like symptoms, allergy, skin rashes and asthma-like symptoms.

The Emulsifier 420, which is Sorbitol, is extremely bad for children. It has been prohibited for use in children’s processed food because of its harmful effects.

The Thickener Gelatine, number 441, is a natural food item which is recommended by some healers for cancer patients and other people with serious illness. Gelatine can help the assimilation of vitamins and minerals in the intestines. It can also aid the immune function, and increase ones resistance to infection. However, some people cannot tolerate gelatine. This may be because of the Sulphur dioxide, 220, which is often added as a preservative. Sulphur dioxide can cause asthma attack, swelling of the ankles, hands and fingers. Sulphur dioxide is not good for the kidneys or the heart or lungs.

The Humectant 422, which is Glycerin, is very bad for the heart and weakening to the veins. It can cause heart palpitations, in my own experience. This food additive can play havoc with your blood sugar levels, cause swelling in the legs and body, cause extreme thirst, and headaches.

The Stearates and Polysorbates, which are emulsifiers, are definitely bad. These have been related to skin and intestinal disturbances, and degenerative conditions such as cancer. These numbers to watch out for are 430, 431, 432, 433, 434, 435, 436.

The Polyphosphates, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphates, are other types of emulsifiers which are destructive to the health. These numbers are E450a, E450b, and E450c. Sodium Phosphate Number 450 is used as a thickener. These are believed to cause kidney damage.

500-579 are the Mineral salts and free-flowing agents. Number 554 is Sodium Alumino-silicate, which is an anti-caking agent. This is sometimes found in cosmetics, as well as in some food items. It causes nerve damage. The aluminium salts from sodium alumino-silicate can easily be absorbed by the body, and blood, and find their way into the brain tissues. This chemical can cause alzheimer’s for this reason.

620-637 are Flavour enhancers, such as MSG. These are the Glutamate category of flavour enhancers, which are 620, 621, 622, 623. These can cause palpitations and dizziness in some people. Test animals have had reproductive damage with these flavour enhancers. MSG, or monosodium glutamate, Number 621, is one of the worst flavour enhancers. This can lead to reproductive damage, as it has with animals. Migraine headaches, heart palpitations, bladder weakness, nausea and thirst are all indications of MSG ingested in foods. Some Chinese restaurants in New Zealand still use this ingredient, although it is banned.

Other Flavour enhancers to avoid are 627, which is Disodium Guanylate, and 631, Disodium Inosinate. Both these, and 621 Monosodium Glutamate, are especially bad for children. 621, 627 and 631 can all cause fluid retention and gout.

900-1202 is a miscellaneous list of things not found in the other categories. Bleaching agents and ‘improvers’ used in processed flours, propellants, lubricants, etc belong to this category. Numbers 924, 925 and 926 are used in processing flour. These can irritate the stomach and intestines, as well as destroy vitamins and affect the absorption of important vitamins and minerals. Vitamin E is known to be affected by these bleaching agents.

1400-1450 are food thickeners.

1505-1520 is an extension of the miscellaneous list.

Artificial Sweeteners are very toxic. Saccharine is weakening to the bladder, and has caused bladder cancer in animals. Aspartame is another sweetener to beware of, as it is lined to nervous disease such as multiple sclerosis and parkinson’s disease. All artificial sweeteners are weakening to the immune system, the nervous system, the liver, kidneys, bladder and heart, and all will affect the digestion and vitamin and mineral absorption to some extent. My experience with artificial sweeteners is that they definitely affect the kidneys, for a start, and usually cause fluid retention, which is evidenced by a slight puffiness of the legs or finger joints.