Dr Deborah Banker Natural Vision Improvement Workshops
In one way or another, every system in the body contributes to vision. The eyes are one of the most sensitive barometers for health of the body. A vision problem usually isn’t just an eye problem; other parts of the body – heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, and digestive system – may not be functioning properly.
In this one day Workshop, you will come to understand why vision deteriorates and how it can be corrected naturally. You will also learn exercises to strengthen your eyes’ ability to focus, thus reducing your need for glasses. Although visual deterioration is a natural part of aging, this process can be slowed, even reversed, with lifestyle changes, targeted exercise and proper nutrition.
Emotional tension influences eyesight. Tension in our bodies creates tension in our eye muscles. And that interferes with circulation to oxygen-sensitive eye tissue. This also causes the extra-ocular muscles to contract, which distorts vision.
The eyes are part of the brain, but they have a higher oxygen need than the brain itself. The back of the eye sees with a tiny area called the macula, which is only 1.5mm across. This area is vulnerable, because blood vessels that deliver oxygen and nourishment actually stop short of the macula. Nature designed the eye this way so you don’t see blood vessels when you look through your eyes. Anything like stress or caffeine that constricts the blood vessels, decreases oxygen flow to the eye and diminishes vision.
This condition can be corrected with eye exercises developed by Dr. Banker that stretch and tone the eye muscles. Stretching the whole body also helps to release tension and improve circulation to the eyes. Anything that releases stress and muscular tension of the overall system, such as deep breathing, yoga, hot baths or massage, improves circulation to the eyes.
Dr. Banker creates a unique health plan, combining cross-cultural exercises and traditional healing methods for each of her patients. The “Natural Vision Improvement” one day seminar gives you personal interaction with Dr. Banker as she guides you through your body, identifying where your system most needs attention. She then demonstrates the exercises and procedures that will assist you in bringing yourself to a more healthful state of being.
Vision Improvement Workshops are $400.00, registration a minimum of two weeks in advance is required.
The Workshops are held Saturdays, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM with a break for lunch. Included in the class is our vision improvement kit – the “Self Help Vision Care Kit”, which contains a 300 page workbook, 4 Audio Compact Discs, 1 DVD video, and 8 laminated charts, a $200.00 value.
Here are two sites that you must look at to purchase prescription glasses.
These are direct, no affiliate, links.
Florida quietly shortened yellow light standards & lengths, resulting in more red light camera tickets for you
Posted on: May 16, 2013
TAMPA BAY, Florida — A subtle, but significant tweak to Florida’s rules regarding traffic signals has allowed local cities and counties to shorten yellow light intervals, resulting in millions of dollars in additional red light camera fines.
The 10 News Investigators discovered the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) quietly changed the state’s policy on yellow intervals in 2011, reducing the minimum below federal recommendations. The rule change was followed by engineers, both from FDOT and local municipalities, collaborating to shorten the length of yellow lights at key intersections, specifically those with red light cameras (RLCs).
Continue reading at: WTSP
#1) Maltodextrin (from GM corn)
Let’s start out with the big one first: If you pick up a natural product and the ingredients list says “maltodextrin,” chances are very high that the maltodextrin in the product is derived from Monsanto’s GM corn.
Virtually all the maltodextrin used throughout the natural products industry is genetically modified. Products that are certified USDA organic, however, are not using GMO maltodextrin.
The non-GMO, non-corn replacement for maltodextrin derived from GM corn is tapioca maltodextrin, and you’ll find tapioca starch / maltodextrin in many certified organic, non-GMO products. Corn maltodextrin should be avoided unless it’s certified USDA organic. Look for tapioca maltodextrin instead (or no maltodextrin at all).
#2) Vitamin C / acorbic acid (from GM corn)
Here’s another whopper that’s sure to open some eyes: Nearly all the “vitamin C” sold in vitamins across America right now is derived from GMO corn.
This means that many of the supplements sold at Whole Foods, the vitamins sold on Amazon.com, the pills at your local pharmacy, and especially the products at the grocery store are (nearly) all routinely made with genetically modified vitamin C. It’s typically called “ascorbic acid,” and nearly 100% of the ascorbic acid used in the natural products industry is derived from GMOs.
Sourcing non-GMO vitamin C requires you to go outside the United States. There is no existing supply chain of certified organic, non-GMO ascorbic acid available anywhere in America (at least not to my knowledge). You can’t even run batches of non-GMO ascorbic acid production in the USA because all the facilities are contaminated with residues of GM corn.
Rest assured that all those cheap “vitamin C” pills sold at retail are derived from genetically modified corn.
#3) Hexane-extracted soy and rice proteins
Nearly 100% of the “natural” soy proteins sold in the USA are extracted in China using a hexane extraction method.
CLARIFICATION (updated): The primary manufacturer and distributor of brown rice protein in the USA, which imports brown rice protein processed in China, insists that hexane has never been used in the extraction of their product, not in the conventional brown rice protein nor their organic brown rice protein.
Their brown rice protein is a “hexane-free, non-GMO, Prop 65 compliant, Gamma Oryzanol-rich whole grain Oryzatein powder” and the manufacturer is Axiom. They supply a lot of the brown rice protein to numerous sources in the USA, and this is the best brown rice protein product available today, partially because it is NOT hexane extracted.
There is brown rice protein that’s hexane extracted in China, however, but that’s not carried by Axiom. So if you’re buying anything with brown rice protein, make sure it’s sourced from Axiom and not from another source that uses hexane. I also encourage you to eat only certified organic brown rice protein, not conventional brown rice protein.
Anything from China, by the way, should be double checked for metals content just to make sure it’s all clean. This is true across the board for all food products from China, not just brown rice protein. We have consistently found nutritional products from China to be contaminated with worrisome levels of metals, which is why I personally won’t put my brand name on anything from China other than a few exceptions that are well-tested such as goji berries (grown in the Himalayas). The Axiom company says their brown rice protein tests completely clean, but until I run those tests myself, I can’t say for sure whether I concur with the claims.
What the industry really needs right now is a U.S. manufacturer of brown rice protein, for which a multi-million dollar market already exists. If Axiom would find a certified organic U.S. grower for its brown rice protein, the company would receive a huge endorsement from Natural News and probably find a whole new wave of demand from consumers who want U.S. grown products. Texas, by the way, produces a lot of organic brown rice. Surely there must be a way to extract the protein in America and not have to go all the way to China to find this.
On the issue of soy protein, no one disputes the fact that it’s routinely extracted with hexane. Here’s a list of many of the protein bar brands currently using soy protein:
http://www.naturalnews.com/032862_soy_protein_food_bars.html
Hexane is a highly explosive chemical. It is not only extremely hazardous to the environment, there may also be trace amounts of hexane left remaining in the resulting protein products. My understanding is that hexane extraction is not allowed in certified organic proteins, so if you have a choice, go for certified organic instead of just “natural” (which means nothing anyway).
Hexane extraction, by the way, is also used in the manufacture of textured vegetable protein (TVP). Read more about TVP here:
http://www.naturalnews.com/033728_TVP_textured_vegetable_protein.html
#4) High levels of Aluminum in detox products
Natural News helped expose high aluminum levels (over 1200ppm) in a popular detox liquid, causing the main U.S. distributor to issue a “recall” notice and provide over $1 million in refunds to customers.
The manufacturer of this product, Adya Clarity, intentionally and knowingly deceived consumers by mislabeling the product and not mentioning the 1200ppm of aluminum it contained. The FDA seized some of the products and ran its own lab tests, confirming the high aluminum level as well as identifying multiple labeling violations.
Adya Clarity is just one of many so-called “detox” products containing alarming levels of aluminum and other metals. Ingesting these in order to “detox” your body may be harmful to your health. This experience also proves you can’t always trust health products sold through online webinars, where manufacturers can ignore labeling laws and fabricate false claims. Buyer beware when it comes to metals in detox products that claim seemingly magical results.
#5) Lead and arsenic in herbs from China
China is the most polluted nation on the planet (by far), yet many fruits, vegetables and herbs are grown in China and exported to North America for use in natural products.
High levels of lead and arsenic are routinely found in various food, supplement and herbal products from China. I’m not concerned about 1ppm or lower, by the way, of heavy metals like lead and mercury. Even aluminum isn’t necessarily a problem when found organically grown inside foods that test at higher levels such as 150ppm. But when lead, arsenic, mercury and cadmium get to high saturation levels (or are present in inorganic forms), it makes the products potentially a source of heavy metals poisoning for consumers.
Astonishingly, many of the small and medium-sized companies that import and retail products from China conduct no metals testing whatsoever. I know this as a fact because I’ve talked to people doing this.
For the record, everything packed under my own brand name (Health Ranger Select) and sold at the Natural News Store is independently tested by us to ensure full product safety and regulatory compliance.
#6) Inorganic minerals in cheap vitamins
Would you eat iron filings and call it nutrition? The majority of people don’t know that most of the cheap vitamins sold today are made with iron filings. “Scrap metal,” almost.
The calcium found in cheap vitamins is often just ground-up seashells, and magnesium is often sold as cheap magnesium oxide which may be completely useless to your body’s cells. If you’re buying mineral supplements, you may be wasting your money unless the minerals are in the right form: Magnesium orotate or malate, for example.
When it comes to mineral supplements, you’ll often find trace levels of scary things like barium and lead in liquid supplements, but these are typically at such low levels (ppb) that they are no real concern. But the No. 1 best source for all minerals is, not surprisingly, fresh plants. If you really want to boost your minerals, feed ‘em to sprouts or garden plants, then eat or juice those plants. Your body wants “organic” minerals from plants, not inorganic minerals from rocks.
#7) Carrageenan?
The Cornucopia Institute, a highly-effective food activism group that we’ve long supported, recently published a warning about carrageenan in foods. Cornucopia says carrageenan is linked to “gastrointestinal inflammation, including higher rates of colon cancer, in laboratory animals.”
It goes on to report:
Given its effect on gastrointestinal inflammation, Cornucopia urges anyone suffering from gastrointestinal symptoms (irritable bowel syndrome/IBS, spastic colon, inflammatory bowel disease, chronic diarrhea, etc.) to consider completely eliminating carrageenan from the diet to determine if carrageenan was a factor in causing the symptoms.
Personally, I have never had any problem with carrageenan, and given that it’s derived from seaweed, I also didn’t mind the source. I actually consume quite a lot of carrageenan in Blue Diamond almond milk, which I drink when I’m too busy to make my own raw almond milk. And I’ve never had a problem with it whatsoever. So from my personal experience, I don’t see carrageenan as a worrisome ingredient, but I do understand that some people experience it differently, and it may be troublesome for people whose digestive systems are more sensitive than my own.
For the record, I definitely don’t consider carrageenan to be anywhere near as worrisome as, say, aspartame, GMOs or MSG.
#8) Acrylamides
Acrylamides are cancer-causing chemicals produced during the cooking of carbohydrates. Fried snack chips, for example, contain acrylamides. They don’t have to be listed on labels because they are technically not “ingredients.” They are chemicals produced during cooking or frying. Consuming acrylamides increases kidney cancer risk by 59 percent.
The FDA has published an extensive reference guide on acrylamide levels in foods, revealing that french fries have the highest levels of all. But they are also present in prune juice and even breakfast cereals.
A bag of organic snack chips can have just as many acrylamides as a bag of conventional snack chips. This is why fried snack chips should be eaten only sparingly, or never at all. I’m guilty of eating some of these chips myself from time to time, but I limit the quantity and make sure I’m taking chlorella or other superfoods at the same time to counteract the acrylamides.
Interestingly, it turns out that vitamin C blocks acrylamides from causing damage to your body. But if your vitamin C is from a GMO source (see above), you may want to rethink that strategy. Natural citrus juice, rose hips or even camu camu berry powder is a much better choice of natural, full-spectrum vitamin C.
If you eat fried foods of any kind, make sure you ingest a lot of vitamin C, astaxanthin and chlorella before and after your meal or snack.
#9) Hidden MSG / yeast extract
Hidden MSG is a huge issue across the natural products industry. Pick up almost any veggie burger, and you’ll find it’s made with yeast extract, a hidden form of MSG (monosodium glutamate).
Yeast extract is unbelievably prevalent in the food industry because it looks nicer on the label than “MSG.” Most people are trained to avoid MSG, but yeast extract slips by, so food manufacturers put it into canned soups, dip mixes, snack chips, microwave dinners and especially in vegetarian products, many of which are so loaded with chemicals and additives that I won’t dare touch them. Just because a food says “vegetarian” doesn’t mean it’s healthy.
Hidden MSG is also labeled as “autolyzed yeast extract” or “torula yeast” or even “hydrolyzed vegetable protein.”
#10) Fluoride in green tea
Green tea is famous for being contaminated with high levels of fluoride. This is frustrating, because green tea is phenomenally good for your health. It has been proven to lower “bad” cholesterol levels, and it may even help prevent cancer and neurological disorders. It’s probably one of the healthiest beverages you can ever drink.
The tea plant that produces green tea just happens to uptake a huge amount of fluoride from the soils. So when there’s fluoride present in those soils, the green tea will have a surprisingly high concentration, sometimes as much as 25ppm.
An interesting article on this issue is found at Toxipedia.org:
http://toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Fluoride+Content+in+Tea
While this fluoride in green tea might not be a health hazard all by itself, the governments of the world seem insistent on pumping even more synthetic, chemical fluoride into the water supplies, thereby creating a high risk for fluorosis. Adding green tea to the fluoride consumption you might experience from tap water is a recipe for disaster: brittle bones, discoloration of teeth and even cancer
Learn more: Natural News
1) Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). Millions of Americans take PPIs to alleviate the symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), a condition marked by food and acid in the stomach leaking back into the esophagus and causing damage. But PPIs like Nexium (exomeprazole) and Prevacid (lansoprazole) have been shown to both block nutrient absorption and inhibit the production of necessary stomach acid, which can cause a host of other health problems. (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued at least a dozen warnings about the dangers of PPIs, which include an increased risk of bacterial diarrhea, magnesium deficiency, and bone fractures (http://www.fda.gov). Long-term consumption of PPIs has also been linked to increased risk of pneumonia and unhealthy weight gain.
(http://www.naturalnews.com/036336_PPIs_acid_reflux_side_effects.html)
2) Statins. The top-selling class of drugs for several years in a row, statins are hailed by the medical system as a type of miracle cure for high cholesterol and heart disease. But popular statin drugs like Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) and Crestor (rosuvastatin calcium) have been shown to greatly increase users’ risk of diabetes, liver disease, brain damage, muscle atrophy, and even early death. (http://www.drfranklipman.com)
The side effects of statins are so severe, in fact, that the FDA recently expanded its official warnings about their use (http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm293330.htm). Beyond this, more than a dozen studies have shown that taking statins for primary prevention does little, if anything, to prevent heart attack or stroke, which means the drug class is medically useless for the millions of otherwise healthy people who are prescribed it. (http://www.minnpost.com)
3) Antibiotics. The leading cause of antibiotic-resistant “superbugs,” antibiotics are another class of drugs that can cause long-term health problems without providing much, if any, benefit. Insanely overprescribed for conditions that often do not even respond to them, antibiotics and their long-term abuse by the medical system has made many infections more virulent and untreatable.
According to Shane Ellison, M.S., from The People’s Chemist, the three most dangerous antibiotics currently being prescribed are Levaquin (levofloxacin), Vancocin (vancomycin hydrochloride), and Bactrim (trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole). Ellison also lists quinolones, the most commonly prescribed class of antibiotics, as dangerous as well, noting that antibiotics like Cipro (ciprofloxacin), Avelox (moxifloxacin HCL), and Floxin (ofloxacin) can cause severe and permanent disability. (http://thepeopleschemist.com)
4) Antipsychotics. One of the deadliest drug classes, antipsychotics are commonly prescribed for conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and severe major depression, as well as for many “off-label” conditions such as mild mood disorder and everyday anxiety. But popular antipsychotic drugs like Seroquel (quetiapine fumarate), Abilify (aripiprazole), Risperdal (risperidone), and Zyprexa (olanzapine) have been shown to increase blood sugar levels, elevate lipid and cholesterol levels, and promote weight gain. (http://www.nytimes.com)
But even more concerning is the long-term neurological and brain damage that can result from taking antipsychotics, not to mention the greatly elevated risk of metabolic syndrome, which can include major health conditions like cardiovascular disease and diabetes (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121127190016.htm). Antipsychotics are so dangerous that a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) declared them to be more deadly than terrorism. (http://www.naturalnews.com)
5) Opioid pain relievers. Pharmaceutical drugs have officially been declared a leading cause of death in America today, and leading the way are opioid-based painkillers like Vicodin (hydrocodone bitartrate and acetaminophen), OxyContin (oxycodone HCI), Percocet (oxycodone and acetaminophen), codeine, and morphine.
According to a study out of Brandeis University in Massachusetts, prescription painkillers are now responsible for causing more fatal overdoses than both heroin and cocaine combined. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has actually declared an epidemic in response to this elevated number of prescription painkiller deaths. (http://www.naturalnews.com)
6) Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Antidepressants like Prozac (fluoxetine), Zoloft (sertraline), Paxil (paroxetine), and Lexapro (escitalopram) have been around for years, but their dangers typically receive far less attention than they deserve. Side effects like suicidal tendencies, sexual dysfunction, gastrointestinal bleeding, and heart disease are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the many side effects of SSRIs.
Learn more: Natural News
Sarah Longwell, managing director of the American Beverage Institute, a trade group representing about 8,000 restaurants, maintains that lowering the BAC targets the wrong people. “It targets moderate social drinkers and makes no progress in solving the actual problem — hardcore drunk drivers,” she said. “Over 70 percent of alcohol related fatalities are caused by high BAC levels and repeat offenders.”
The National Restaurant Association says much the same thing. “As responsible members of the community, our industry is very concerned about drunk driving,” said Scott DeFife, executive vice president, Policy & Government Affairs for the NRA.”However, we feel measures addressing it should be focused on repeat, chronic offenders who drink excessively, then drive — and not the millions of Americans that enjoy an adult beverage in a responsible manner with their meal.”
Although individuals metabolize alcohol differently, experts generally say that it would take only two average-sized drinks — whether beer, wine or liquor — imbibed over a period of an hour and on an empty stomach, to raise a 160-pound person’s blood alcohol content to 0.05. Longwell said a 120-pound person could reach that level with one drink.
“It would be a huge blow to the restaurant industry if the states start to adopt 0.05,” Longwell said.
The NTSB is also advocating the universal use of steering locks on automobiles of convicted drunk drivers, which require that a driver blow into a Breathalyzer to start a car. In addition, the board also is calling for a more extensive use of roadblocks and the creation of special courts to deal with drunken-driving cases.
The battle over BAC has been going on since the 1980s. In 1968 the Department of Transportation reported that more than 25,000 Americans died each year because of drunk driving. In the 1980s, activist groups like Mother’s Against Drunk Driving succeeded in convincing lawmakers to take a stand against drunk driving and lower the BAC limit, which had been as high as 0.15 in some states.
By 2004, all of the 50 states had decreased the BAC to 0.08. In 2011, the number of “alcohol-impaired-driver-related crashes” was less than 10,000.
“Our goal is to get to zero deaths, because each alcohol-impaired death is preventable,” said Deborah Hersman, NTSB chairman. “Alcohol-impaired deaths are not accidents; they are crimes.”
While the NTSB recommendations do not carry the force of law, the board remains influential at all levels of government when it comes to public safety.
“The states listen to the NTSB,” Longwell said. “The industry needs to brace itself. A new fight is standing in front of us.”
Source: NRN
A new psychiatry lie: Orthorexia
Posted on: May 15, 2013
- In: Lies | Psychiatry
- Leave a Comment
If you want to be healthy and eat well, you will now be diagnosed with a psychological “disease”.
BOSTON (CBS) – This is the time of year when many people are excited to get in shape and eat healthier. The problem is many people are going too far. A dangerous phenomenon called “Orthorexia” is becoming more prevalent.
Personal trainer Bron Volney at Boston Sports Club is just as concerned with his clients’ diet as he is with their workout.
“I monitor a lot of my clients’ weight, and if they are dropping really fast, and it seems they are going to extremes, you’ve got to question them and say, ‘Let’s make sure you are staying healthy,’” said Volney.
Staying healthy means following a balanced diet. A growing number of people, however, are eliminating entire food groups, seeing only negative qualities in things like dairy, eggs, meats, grains, and fats.
Over time, the only things left in their diet are fruits and vegetables.
Taken to an extreme, it’s now treated as an eating disorder called “Orthorexia”.
This is how Boston University Nutritionist Jenn Culbert defines Orthorexia: “What it essentially means is that someone is obsessed with eating only healthy food that they consider to be pure.”
Source: CBS
