Unconscionable Police Raid on Family's Home and Organic Food Co-op

Mercola.com





Steps have been taken to start legal action against the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) and the Lorain County Health Department for violating the constitutional rights of John and Jacqueline Stowers of LaGrange, Ohio.

The Stowers operate an organic food cooperative called Manna Storehouse. ODA and Lorain County Health Department agents forcefully raided their home and seized the family's personal food supply, cell phones and personal computers.

On the morning of December 1, 2008, law enforcement officers forcefully entered the Stowers' residence without first announcing they were police or stating the purpose of the visit. With guns drawn, they swiftly and immediately moved to the upstairs of the home, where ten children were in the middle of a home-schooling lesson. Officers then moved Jacqueline Stowers and her children to their living room, where they were held for more than six hours.

There has never been a complaint filed against Manna Storehouse or the Stowers related to the quality or healthfulness of the food distributed through the co-op.

Click here for Dr. Mercola's comments.

Red Meat Eaters More Likely to Die from Cancer or Heart Disease

NaturalNews.com

by Louis Lazaris

A controlled study conducted in the U.S by researchers at the National Cancer Institute indicates that men and women whose diets are high in red or processed meats are more likely to die from cancer or heart disease. The study included data collected over a 10-year period between 1995 and 2005, and involved half a million males and females between the ages of 50 and 71.

According to the results of the study, published this week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, those who ate 4 ounces of red meat per day - or a serving equal to a small steak - had a more than 30 percent increased mortality rate compared to those who ate the smallest amount of red meat.

Last week the Ottawa Citizen reported that the Canadian Cancer Society, in response to the study, is planning to change its recommended limit on red and processed meats. Heather Chappell, the Canadian Cancer Society's senior manager of cancer control policy says, "This takes it that next step and actually looks at the impact that has on cancer deaths. This really is a significant addition to our body of knowledge in this area."

322,263 men and 223,390 women from eight U.S. states filled out questionnaires detailing their usual food and drink consumption. The red meat included beef, cold cuts, hamburger, liver, pork, sausage, as well as meats in prepared meals such as pizza and lasagna. White meat included chicken, turkey, fish, cold cuts, tuna, and sausages made from poultry.

The heaviest meat eaters ate about 8 1/2 servings of meat per week and had a 31 percent increase in mortality rates in comparison to the lightest meat eaters, who consumed about one serving of meat per week.

Jennifer Macey of Australia's AM radio broadcast interviewed one of the authors of the study, Dr. Rashmi Sinha, to inquire about methods used to ensure that results were due to red and processed meat consumption and not due to other factors.

Sinha explains, "We were controlled for many different factors such as body mass index, family history of cancer, alcohol intake, education, smoking, other dietary factors, so we tried to control to the best of our ability with the information that we had."

The researchers reported that if the lowest level of intake of meats was consumed by all participants, 11 percent of deaths in men and 16 percent of deaths in women could have been prevented.

Cancer deaths increased by 22 percent, and cardiovascular-related deaths increased by 27 percent among the heavy meat eaters that were male. For females, the increases in death rates among the heavy meat eaters were 20 percent for cancer and 50 percent for heart disease.

This study was much broader in scope than past studies that have compared death rates in different types of meat eaters. Prior studies have been conducted involving vegetarian populations in the U.S. and Europe, as well as on Seventh-Day Adventists, who promote a vegetarian diet.

Sinha explained, "They combined their results, so it was a bit more ambiguous. This is a big study. That's what's interesting."

These results come on the heels of a similar study conducted in the U.K. that analyzed data from 52,700 men and women. In that U.K. study, those that did not eat meat had a significantly lower risk of cancer than those that did eat meat.


Sources:

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/20...
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/health...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sevent...

Cooking Broccoli Destroys 90+ Percent of Anti-Cancer Compound Sulforaphane

NaturalNews.com

Levels of the beneficial, cancer-fighting compound sulforaphane in broccoli are reduced by 90 percent when the vegetable is cooked, according to a study conducted by researchers from TNO Quality of Life in the Netherlands, and published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

"Consumption of raw broccoli resulted in faster absorption, higher bioavailability, and higher peak plasma amounts of sulforaphane, compared to cooked broccoli," the researchers wrote.

Eight male participants were fed 200 grams of crushed raw or crushed cooked broccoli as part of a warm meal; researchers then measured the men's blood and urine levels of sulforaphane. Based on these measurements, the researchers calculated that while the sulforaphane in raw broccoli had a bioavailability of 37 percent, this dropped to only 3.4 percent when the vegetable was cooked.

Furthermore, it took longer for the sulforaphane from cooked broccoli to be absorbed by the body. Optimal levels of sulforaphane were observed in the blood and urine of participants 1.6 hours after eating raw broccoli, but these levels were not reached among consumers of cooked broccoli for six hours.

The cruciferous vegetables, also known as Brassicaceae, include broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, arugula, Brussels sprouts, collard greens, daikon, garden cress, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, radish, rape (canola), rapini, rutabaga , tatsoi, turnip, wasabi and watercress. Numerous studies have linked higher intake of these vegetables to lower rates of cancer and other health problems, particularly when the vegetables are consumed raw.

One of the plant compounds identified as partially responsible for this protective effect is sulforaphane, the main member of the isothiocyanate family that is found in broccoli. All cruciferous vegetables contain plant compounds known as glucosinolates, which are metabolized by the body into cancer-fighting isothiocyanates.

Studies have suggested that sulforaphane may help activate genes that produce antioxidants to clear dangerous free radicals from the body. This effect is believed to be partially responsible for the observed lower rates in breast, bladder, cervix, colon, endometrium, liver and lung cancers among those who eat large quantities of cruciferous vegetables. It is also believed to help protect the immune and other bodily systems from age-related decline.

Sulforaphane is also believed to reduce inflammation, which can transform precancerous cells into tumors and has also been linked to other chronic health problems such as heart disease and diabetes. At least one study has suggested that the chemical can even prevent the blood vessels of diabetics against the damage caused by high blood sugar.

The current study is not the first to suggest that most of broccoli's health benefits are destroyed by cooking. Recent research from the International Agency for Cancer Research found lower cancer rates among those who consumed at least three servings of raw cruciferous vegetables per month. This mirrors the results of an earlier study by researchers from the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., who found a 40 percent lower risk of bladder cancer among those who ate that many raw cruciferous vegetables.

There was no protective effect observed, however, among those who ate cooked vegetables.

The researchers in the current study noted that other forms of processing besides cooking might also lead to the degradation of sulforaphane or its chemical precursors.

"The sulforaphane content of cooked broccoli was lower than the glucoraphanin content of raw broccoli, 9.92 and 61.4 micromoles, respectively," the researchers noted. "It seems that the conversion from glucosinolate to isothiocyanate was incomplete or that another reaction occurred."

Glucoraphanin (a glucosinolate) is the chemical precursor to sulforaphane (an isothiocyanate).

"In future research," they said, "care should be taken that glucoraphanin is not hydrolyzed into other metabolites when broccoli is crushed."

Broccoli Protects Against Asthma, Rhinitis and Lung Disease

NaturalNews.com

by Sherry Baker, Health Sciences Editor

If you don't already eat broccoli regularly, you could be putting your ability to breathe easily at risk. The reason? Research by University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) scientists concludes sulforaphane, a natural compound found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables (like Brussels sprouts and cauliflower), appears to protect against respiratory inflammation that causes asthma, allergic rhinitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other conditions that make it hard to breathe.

Free radicals have long been known to cause oxidative tissue damage -- and that can lead to inflammation and respiratory disorders such as COPD and asthma. The new study, just published in the March edition of the journal Clinical Immunology, documents that sulforaphane found in broccoli triggers an increase of antioxidant enzymes which protects the airways against free radicals that most people breathe daily every time they are in polluted air, pollen, diesel exhaust and tobacco smoke.

"A major advantage of sulforaphane is that it appears to increase a broad array of antioxidant enzymes, which may help the compound's effectiveness in blocking the harmful effects of air pollution," Dr. Marc Riedl, the study's principal investigator and an assistant professor of clinical immunology and allergy at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, said in a statement to the media.

Over a period of three days, the UCLA researchers gave 65 volunteers varying oral doses of either (raw) broccoli or alfalfa sprouts (which do not contain sulforaphane, so the alfalfa served as a control for the test). Nasal passages of the research subjects were rinsed at the beginning and end of the study to measure the gene expression of antioxidant enzymes in cells in the volunteers' upper airways. "We found a two to three-fold increase in antioxidant enzymes in the nasal airway cells of study participants who had eaten a preparation of broccoli sprouts," Dr. Riedl explained in the media statement.

Overall, the scientists found significant increases of antioxidant enzymes in the group taking the broccoli sprout preparation at doses of 100 grams and higher. When the broccoli sprout dosage was increased to 200 grams, it resulted in an especially dramatic increase in airway protective enzymes -- a 101 percent increase of an antioxidant enzyme called GSTP1 and a 199-percent increase of another key enzyme called NQO1.

"This is one of the first studies showing that broccoli sprouts -- a readily available food source -- offered potent biologic effects in stimulating an antioxidant response in humans," Dr. Riedl stated in the press release. "This strategy may offer protection against inflammatory processes and could lead to potential treatments for a variety of respiratory conditions."

Although Dr. Riedl said it is too early to recommend a specific dosage of broccoli to protect the airways, he does recommend including broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables as part of a healthy diet.

For more information:
http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/portal...

Byetta Diabetes Drug Linked to Patient Deaths; Real Diabetes Cures Ignored

NaturalNews.com

by Mike Adams

Another FDA-approved diabetes drug has now been linked to life-threatening pancreas inflammation that has resulted in at least two deaths. Byetta is the latest FDA-approved diabetes drug to be linked to organ damage and death. Several years ago, Rezulin was being pushed into the diabetic market in the United States by the FDA even though the drug had already been banned in Europe and was linked with severe liver damage of at least 10,000 patients. After keeping the drug on the market for as long as possible to boost Big Pharma profits, the FDA finally conceded and banned the drug.

Rather than banning Byetta, the FDA has announced it would simply require stronger warnings on the product label. This is the FDA's scheme for keeping dangerous drugs on the market so that its clients -- the drug companies -- can keep making money selling products that pose serious health hazards to consumers.

Notably, when an herb is reported to harm or kill even a few people, the FDA immediately bans it, declaring it to be "unsafe at any dose." But when a pharmaceutical kills people -- even tens of thousands of people -- the FDA applies no such logic and instead resorts to requiring a stronger warning label that nobody reads.

Drugs don't treat diabetes

What the FDA and drug companies don't want consumers to really find out, of course, is that drugs don't really treat, prevent or cure diabetes. Virtually all diabetes drugs are toxic, and they simply don't do anything to address the underlying causes of diabetes.

But curing diabetes is easier than you might think, and a new documentary called Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days documents how people are curing diabetes by shifting to a plant-based diet that's rich in raw, living foods.

I cured my own pre-diabetic condition using superfoods and nutrition, and thousands upon thousands of people around the world are now discovering that simple dietary changes can cure diabetes for life.

Drugs don't treat diabetes; they merely mask symptoms while ignoring the underlying causes of the disease. Even worse, most diabetes drugs cause severe damage to your liver or pancreas, leaving patients in far worse health than before they started taking the drugs. Only nutrition, plant-based foods and exercise can cure diabetes, and they can cure it in a matter of just a few weeks.

Both type-I and type-II diabetics have been cured of diabetes using plant-based diets. Yes, you read that correctly: Even Type-I diabetics. In fact, later this week I'll be featuring an interview with a former Type-I diabetic who is now completely off insulin and has cured his condition using nothing but raw, living foods and exercise.

The American Diabetes Association, FDA and Big Pharma don't want you to know about this. They all want you to keep taking medications while suffering under the delusion that there is no way to take charge of your health and reverse diabetes.

They're all lying to you, of course, and they're doing it to keep you trapped in a high-profit system of disease "management" and "blood sugar control" rather than teaching you the real truth about curing diabetes.

Empower yourself with the truth about diabetes. No one has to suffer with diabetes any longer, and no medications are necessary to treat or manage diabetes. It can be entirely cured using simple nutritional strategies. Watch the movie trailer yourself, and be enlightened:

Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days

The film features David Wolfe, Dr. Gabriel Cousens, Tony Robbins and many other pioneering health leaders. Watch for a full review of the film later this week on NaturalNews.com.

Improve Your Ocular Nutrition to Fight Eye Diseases

NaturalNews.com

by Jo Hartley

There is now emerging research that suggests that a small protein called glutathione plays a significant role in protecting the eyes. Scientists have been aware of glutathione and its important ocular antioxidant properties for some time, but they did not know until recently how to raise glutathione levels.

Ocular nutrition and raising your glutathione level can be instrumental in preventing or resolving visual degeneration due to Macular Degeneration, Glaucoma, and Cataracts. Low levels of glutathione are often seen in patients with these diseases. Raising glutathione with improved ocular nutrition can halt progress and often reverse these conditions.

Macular degeneration is defined as a progressive loss of vision because of a breakdown of the macula. The macula is the portion of the retina that is responsible for close vision. Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is a top reason for sight loss in seniors over age 65.

Smoking and atherosclerosis are contributing factors that can make ARMD worse. ARMD is probably a result of cumulative damage of free radicals released because of exposure to ultraviolet sunlight. Other sources of oxidative stress may also play a role in its onset. The elderly often have low glutathione levels and this predisposes them to ARMD. This makes ocular nutrition very important.

Glaucoma is a serious condition that involves fluid pressure rising within the eye. Some pressure is necessary to maintain the shape of the eyeball, however too much pressure will compress and obstruct the small blood vessels of the eye. This will damage the optic nerve. Glaucoma is one of the top causes of vision loss.

Glaucoma becomes more common with aging, and is many times connected to diabetes, hypertension, and nearsightedness. Traditional treatment concentrates on relieving the pressure by drug therapy or surgery.

Glaucoma patients have been found to generally have very low glutathione levels. Increasing glutathione levels has been found to either prevent glaucoma or delay the onset.

Cataracts are a clouding that occurs in the lens of the eye. This is the leading cause of vision impairment in the elderly and cataracts lead to over one million surgeries every year in the United States.

Research has shown that the onset of cataracts could be delayed or even prevented by raising glutathione levels. An effective defense against cataracts is improving one's ocular nutrition.

Broccoli and broccoli sprouts have been shown to be effective in protecting the retina against oxidative damage because these foods contain a compound called Sulphoraphane. Sulphoraphane boosts the body's defense system and enables it to fight free radicals.

Glutathione and Sulphoraphane have important advantages over regular antioxidants. Not only are they effective protection for the eyes, but they also protect every other part of the body. They also last between four to five days in cells after being consumed.

Other significant protective dietary ingredients are Lutein and Zeaxanthin. These are antioxidant carotenoids that are an important part of the macular pigment that protect the retina from degeneration.

Zeaxanthin helps protect the photo receptor cells present in the macula from damaging UV rays and also from free radical damage. Lutein is plentiful in many leafy green vegetables, such as Kale, Collards, Spinach, Swiss chard, Beet and Mustard Greens, Romaine Lettuce, and Endive. It is also present in Peas, Red Peppers, Pumpkin, Beetroots, Okra, Leeks, Celery, and Brussels sprouts.

Of course, Lutein supplements can protect your eyes. However, increasing the amount of leafy green vegetables in your diet is a much better way to fight eye diseases and macular degeneration. Not only are you helping your vision by raising your glutathione levels, you are helping your entire body!

Cooked Food: Your Body Wants a Salad!

NaturalNews.com

by S.A Ramratan

Cooked food weakens your immune system. Many believe that cooking is needed for food to get rid of bacteria and make it more digestible. True, there are a few vegetables that are more difficult for some to digest raw, such as some in the cruciferous family, but most foods do not become more digestible once cooked.

In 1930, Dr Paul Kouchakoff observed that after eating a meal, a person's white blood cells (leukocytes) would increase. An increase in white blood cell count usually indicates a stress reaction by the body. Eating a raw meal does not have this same effect on the body. He also observed that most foods that have been altered produce this immune suppressing effect. Your immune system is basically finishing your digestion process for you, which is a function that it is not meant to do.

You can minimize this effect quite easily. If you have anything cooked on your plate, you should have fresh, raw vegetables to go with it. As well, chewing your food thoroughly will lessen the immune response to the cooked food.

The best practice is to eliminate as much processed, altered, and cooked food from your diet as you can. That includes milk, as it is pasteurized and homogenized. That also means removing sugar and white flour from your diet.

Getting used to eating most meals with a big salad, or some cut vegetables will save your immune system a lot of harm. After years of only ingesting cooked foods, for every meal, you can imagine the toll this has unknowingly put on your immune system. If you at least include raw vegetables with your cooked meals, you are giving your immune system a break. And it has other effects, like keeping you healthy! Cooking also can take away the antioxidants, and reduce the amount of bioavailable vitamins. So you are doubling your benefits when you eat raw.

Many won't be able to give up cooked food, but if you add some raw foods to your diet, then you won't be further harming your body. Reduce the cooked foods in your diet, and replace them with raw foods. Give your body a chance to heal itself, your body has built-in properties to heal. Eat the right foods, and you will have a healthier body and mind!

Research Shows Spinach Can Help Prevent Ovarian Cancer

NaturalNews.com

by Frank Mangano

It's no secret that fruits and vegetables provide the body with the essential vitamins, nutrients and minerals that help keep the body free of disease. But how great would it be if specific foods warded off specific illnesses? Well, based on some recent research, that could very well be a reality.

Published in the International Journal of Cancer, researchers have discovered that the compounds found in specific vegetables may prove as an effective deterrent to one of the most prevalent cancers among women today: ovarian cancer.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause in cancer-related deaths, preceded by lung, breast, colorectal and pancreatic. Though there hasn't been a significant rise in the number of ovarian cancer diagnoses over the past 20 years in the United States, in 2004 alone, nearly 15,000 women died from it, despite the estimated $2.2 billion annually spent on treating the disease.

Before I get to some of the salutiferous (i.e. healthful) cruciferous (some of them) vegetables cited in the research, you may be wondering what it is about these vegetables that make them cancer fighting. Researchers believe the flavonoids found in the vegetables are the likely purveyors of protection as they not only shield the body from disease upon consumption but ward off diseases from infecting the vegetable as well.

Researchers came to their conclusions after reviewing the diets of 67,000 women over 14 years and found that women who consumed the most flavonoids were 40 percent less likely to develop ovarian cancer. Though all flavonoids are considered good for you and disease fighting, kaempferol was singled out as the most effective in fighting ovarian cancer. This odd-sounding flavonoid is naturally-occurring and some studies suggest it has anti-depressant properties. But for ovarian cancer purposes, kaempferol is particularly dense in vegetables like broccoli, kale and spinach (I guess Popeye was on to something).

Another particularly effective flavonoid is luteolin. Frequently found in leaves and bark, this other odd-sounding flavonoid is found in salad vegetable faves like peppers, cabbage and carrots. Women who consumed these kinds of vegetables were 34 percent less likely to develop ovarian cancer than women who consumed the least amount of flavonoids.

Another food with ovarian cancer-protective qualities due to its flavonoid density is - you guessed it - blueberries. The blue beauties have a flavonoid called myricetin, which is also found in grapes and walnuts.

While these findings suggest women eat some vegetables over others, researchers are reluctant in advising this because there is still some question as to the exact source of the cancer-fighting properties. Hopefully, women (and men) have the means and desire to eat a wide variety of vegetables, as just about all of them have carved out their own niche in the disease-fighting department.