Probiotics

The Importance of Probiotics

I'll be honest, I did not know what the heck probiotics were before I started school.  Now I find them to be one of the most fascinating topics.  Most people understand the concept of "good bacteria" and "bad bacteria".  Well probiotics, are the "good guys".  I say "guys" on purpose because you must think of them as living beings.  Much of our digestive issues are caused by too many of the bad guys taking over our digestive tract.  Antibiotics are used to help fight illnesses caused by these bad guys but the problem is that it also kills the good guys.  Taking probiotics regularly and even more importantly, after the use of antibitotics, helps to replenish the good bacterial growth.

Probiotics have many roles in our body.  They offer vital help with physiological processes from digestion to growth to self-defense.  There has been a rise of modern diseases such as obesity and autoimmune disorders which can very well be linked to not having enough of the good guys inside of us.  Specifically, 2 species play a very large role in our digestion and regulation of appetite.  Bacterial cultures living in our GI tract help to break down complex cards and absorb nutrients.

We all have an individual and unique "microbiome" which is a community of microbial cells and the genes they contain.  In other words, inside of us lives a colony of living organisms.  In a European study it was founded that there are 3.3 million microbial genes found in the gut from more than 1000 species.  That is 150 times the 20,000-2500 genes in the human genome.  Our individual fates, health and even actions may have more to do with the genes found in the microbiome than what is in our own DNA.

When I imagine this microbiome I think of a specific Simpsons episode: Treehouse of Horror VII "The Genesis Tub".  Lisa has a tooth that she puts into a petri dish and in time a whole community grows out of it and becomes a very complex world.  Bart comes in and makes the environment hostile and thus wreaks havoc on the little people.  I relate this to the environment inside all of us.  We must create a positive environment so that we don't make the good guys angry and help the bad guys to multiply.  It is like we are the Earth and the bacteria are the humans.  They can kill us by adding to the demise of our over all health or help us to thrive by teaming up with our immune system and our digestive tract for optimal health.

Fermenting foods is a great way to get additional probiotics inside us.  Something that used to be so common and was a way for our ancestors to make foods last longer.  I made my very first batch of sourkrout the other week and I do believe my Baba would be very proud!

Reference:
http://faculty.rcc.edu/herrick/Biology%2011/Misc/InnerEcosystem.pdf

Interesting Reads:
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/10/23/genetically-modifying-humans-via-antibiotics-something-you-need-to-know/

http://www.theallergymenu.com/blog/proof-probiotics-affect-brain-function

Fragrance

Fragrance is the #1 pollutant on Earth

On my first day of Fundamentals Class, the teacher informed us that fragrance is the number one pollutant in the environment today.  That came as a surprise to me considering of all the heavy smoke I see leaving car exhausts and factory smoke stacks.  However, it made sense the more I thought about it.  I can barely walk past a perfume section in a mall without my eyes burning and my chest tightening.  Perfume is a volatile and offensive smell to me, but for so many others it is loved and revered as desirable. 

Fragrance on an ingredient list can indicate the presence of up to 4000 chemicals.  That does not exactly give one a good indication of what ingredients are in it.  David Suzuki states that, “of the thousands of chemicals used in fragrances, most have not been tested for toxicity, alone or in combination.  Many of these unlisted ingredients are irritants and can trigger allergies, migraines, and asthma symptoms.”   This article goes on to state that “in laboratory experiments, individual fragrance ingredients have been associated with cancer and neurotoxicity among other adverse health effects.”   I must speculate why it is so widely used in products that do not even require it.  It shows up in the ingredient list for blush, moisturizer, and make-up removing lotion.  Phthalate (DEP), which is often found in fragrance to help the scent linger, has been labeled as a “Category 1 priority substance, based on evidence that it interferes with hormone function”  by the European Commission on Endocrine Disruption.  Furthermore, “Phthalates have been linked to early puberty in girls, reduced sperm count in men, and reproductive defects in the developing male fetus (when the mother is exposed during pregnancy).  Phthalate metabolites are also associated with obesity and insulin resistance in men.”    Health Canada has recently banned phthalate in children’s toys; however it is still allowable in cosmetics.   The Environmental Working Group rates fragrance to be quite high on the overall health hazards of the ingredient.   It causes irritation to eyes, skin and lungs.  Fragrance is also a “known human immune system toxicant or allergen.”   Fragrance poses as a toxic threat to the environment and to wild life.

There is a loophole in the label “fragrance” that manufacturers use to keep their secret recipes from being exposed.  The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics got together with Environmental Working Group and tested seventeen different fragrance products and found fourteen secret chemicals not listed in the labels due to this loophole.  Ten of these chemicals are linked to allergic reactions such as asthma, wheezing and contact dermatitis.  Four hormone disrupting chemicals were found that are linked to a range of problems including sperm damage, thyroid disruption and cancer.    The main concern is that fragrance is so hidden in these ingredient lists that people do not even consider that these unknown chemicals are being absorbed through their skin.  

It's funny when you think about it, where did we even ever get the idea that we have to bathe in chemicals to smell good?  Somewhere (probably around the 1950's during the creation of heavy consumerism) someone made an advertisement that told you to try their product.  They got celebs to join in and sold a lifestyle.  They use the cheapest ingredients and ask for a hefty price.  That price is not just monetary, but it is doing damage to your body as well.

The way I see it, fragrance is a mask.  If you have a smelly body odour problem, masking it with heavy fragrances, from soaps to room deodorizers, does not actually fix the problem.  When I smell heavy perfumes on people I have to wonder, what are they hiding beneath that fake aroma?

Solution:

We are what we eat.  Often if we are eating processed and unnatural foods that will contribute to the awful smell that's coming out of us.  A diet in wholesome and real foods can surely help.  Can you image the odour of someone who eats burger king everyday compared to someone who eats fresh salads and organic meats?

Fragrances are meant to mimic REAL life smells.  Like flowers and fruits.  You can get essential oils of your favourite smells and use these sparingly instead.  Plus, oils are even cheaper compared to these over priced bottles you buy at shopper's the day before Christmas.  I also sometimes like to rub flowers and herbs from the garden on myself.  Natural and lovely.

Bathing regularly is key.  If I don't feel the freshest, there is nothing greater than I nice hot shower with my favourite all natural goats milk soap.

My mom sprayed the bathroom with febreeze awhile back and I immediately started coughing and choking.  Now she puts cinnamon in a little pot with some water, heats it on low heat on the stove and it freshens up the whole house.

We complicate life too much sometimes.  I think it's time to start taking a few steps back and questioning why it is that we do what we do in this society and if it is worth the price to pay at the end.

References:
   David Suzuki Foundation, “Fragrance and Parfum”, http://davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/fragrance-and-parfum/

   Environmental Working Group, “Fragrance”, EWG’s Skin Deep Cosmetics Database,
http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/702512/FRAGRANCE/#

  The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, “Not So Sexy”,
http://safecosmetics.org/article.php?id=644 

Education is Empowering

The long awaited Christmas Break is approaching, less than 2 weeks away.  I will say this proudly, I deserve a break.  A break from responsibility and studying.  My brain has just about reached it's full point, I am not sure how much more information I can get in there.  I've been in school since September.  I treat school like a full time job of a workaholic. I have learned more in these last few months than I have learned in the last 10 years.  I am surprised at how well my grades are, it emphasizes to me that I am on the right path.  You get back what you put in.  I am really looking forward to being able to update this blog on all the new and exciting things that I think are worth sharing.

What I am learning is very serious stuff relating to not only health but the environment too.  It has put me in a very different head space.  It is like the weight of the world is on my shoulders.  There is this constant whirlwind of factual information and enlightening mysteries enveloping my every thought and action.  There is no where to go but up from here.  Education is Empowering.  

With each and every new bit of vital facts that I learn I want to shake people and move them into a direction that will make themselves healthier and happier.  It does not work that way.  People will learn at their own pace.  Those that seek it will find it.

Gaia by Archan Nair