No Greater Joy Ministries » Health

Loquats for Your Health

No Greater Joy Ministries — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 11:25:33 +0000

I’m 14, and, about eight years ago, my parents planted this strange-looking tree that we thought was just an ornamental tree until a year or two later. It was very tall, and we started getting little fruits on the tree. We looked the loquat up and saw that it was a fruit tree, so we ate it, just for the fun of it. I began planting the seeds and now have more than 50 trees in gallon containers. I wanted to know more about it this year, so I researched it. I knew so much about it my mom told me to write a research paper on the tree. Here is the sample of my paper. LOQUATS Luscious, sweet, tangy, and magnificently delicious, loquat fruits are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. The exclusive fruit, sometimes called the Japanese Plum, Japanese Medlar, or Maltese Plum, originates in the mountainous evergreen rain forest of Japan, from which the loquat tree has been spread all across the world. The loquat tree is an evergreen that reaches up to 25 feet and belongs to the family of Rosacea. It is botanically named Eriobotrya Japonica and is closely related to the apple tree. The flowers bloom by the end of winter and the fruit is ready to harvest by the end of spring. The delicious fruits are in clusters from 5 to 20 pieces and are about 1.5 inches long. The skin is fuzzy on the outside and is edible. There are also 1 to 5 brown seeds in the center of the fruit. The leaves are used as traditional medicine and make excellent and very healthy tea. The fruit is eaten right from the tree or used to make jellies, pies, or sauces. The loquat fruit and leaves are extremely nutritious. They contain vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B12, B17, and C. These fruits are full of pectin, rich in fiber, potassium, amygdalin, iron, copper, calcium, magnesium, and other minerals. The loquat fruit greatly enhances digestive health and heart health. The high pectin content reduces cholesterol by reducing the reuse of food in the colon. The fruit works as a bulk laxative and protects the mucous membrane by decreasing exposure to toxic substances as well as binding cancer causing chemicals in the colon. Because of the reduction of blood cholesterol, the heart’s health is dramatically increased. Loquats also regulate heart rate and blood pressure. B-17 laetrile, often called the anti-cancer vitamin, is found in large amounts in the fruit and the leaves of the loquats. Some people swallow the pits of the fruit (2 a day) to prevent or slow down cancer. The pits contain 1300 times more B-17 laetrile than the leaf, but there are small traces of cyanide, which, taken in large amounts, is poisonous. Apples also contain cyanide in their seeds, which continue to be sold in the apple juices in which the seeds are crushed. Teas made from the leaves of the loquat tree are known to reduce inflammation, form red blood cells, release anti-oxidants that neutralize harmful toxins, increase immunity, and prevent various diseases. The leaf tea also enhances the respiratory system in that it works as an expectorant, dissolving phlegm and assisting coughing. This tea also fights a variety of viruses and colds, and lessens symptoms including nausea and vomiting. The leaf tea supports liver and pancreas health as well as combating diabetes. There is also evidence that it fights HIV. Life expectancy and youthfulness are increased in all who eat this great tasting fruit and drink the tea. The large quantities of anti-oxidants and vitamins per fruit cannot be found in any other fruit available to man. Everyone should take part in making tea, pies, jams, jellies, or just eating the raw fruit right off the tree for optimum health. This is one of the only fruit trees that does well on our land with no maintenance. The tree is very resilient. I’ve started around 60 trees from seed and hope by next year they will be large enough to sell. My parents paid $50 for a 5-gallon tree and now a 5-gallon tree is about $60. For more information, or to buy some leaves, please e-mail forrest_harris@bellsouth.net

The Good Salt

Debi Pearl — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 11:05:41 +0000

Why did God call his people “the salt of the earth” if salt is so unhealthy? Both of my parents had problems with salt. If they ate too much salt, they would swell and then their blood pressure would rise. “Salt is bad for you,” Mom would say as she shook her head in puzzlement, “but the Bible speaks so highly of salt. Why did God call his people ‘the salt of the earth’ if salt is so unhealthy?”

God designed mankind to have a natural craving for salt.

Unfortunately, I inherited the salt problem. I was in my early 40s when I noticed my wedding ring was tight. Then I noticed my ankles seemed to stay fat. Next I noticed a great swelling in other places. I had always had very low blood pressure but with the swelling came a quick, dramatic change. My doctor said, “No more salt.” Food became very boring. I still ended up getting too much salt because some of my meals didn’t start in my own garden where I could control what went into the food. I started eating lots of fresh celery because it acts as a diuretic, which provokes the body to flush fluids. It worked amazingly well, but keeping up the celery thing was not practical. I also started drinking Stinging Nettle tea, which also acts as a diuretic. But I sure missed salt. Then a few years ago I started noticing dirty looking salt available on the shelves of some health markets. I began to read what researchers were discovering concerning processed salt and real salt. WOW! Salt is not always bad. Salt is good—at least, real salt is good.

Bad Salt

Refined salt is harvested from salt mines as brine, which means the salt is in water. Chemicals are added to the brine to remove the minerals. Ironically, in the salt industry minerals are referred to as impurities. The minerals (impurities) are sold to be used in other industries. Then the brine is evaporated using high compression and heat. This disrupts the molecular structure of the salt. Then toxic chemicals are added to prevent clotting. Iodine is also added (iodine is depleted from the soil and should be added to every diet). The purity of food-grade salt is between 99.7-99.95%. “Pure” means that the content of the salt is sodium (39%) and chloride (60%). And so, man has managed to render salt a lifeless product. Dead salt could be assured a longer shelf life, and without the minerals it is white and appears cleaner. The only problem is that the human body doesn’t respond well to an imbalance of sodium and chloride. Case in point: Me, along with a host of other people. The human body requires lots of minerals, and those minerals need to be balanced. When there is an imbalance of minerals, the body starts to break down, causing the pH of the body to become unstable. The immune system gets faulty, sleep patterns are disturbed, hormones go nutty, even your hair will be affected. Of course, the kidneys can’t function properly, which means swelling and high blood pressure. A balance of minerals is critical for good health. In much of the United States the minerals in the soil have become depleted; therefore, the foods grown in those soils lack the minerals required for good health. Many people suffer from lack of minerals.

All natural salt is loaded with minerals in a balance that works well with the body.

God designed mankind to have a natural craving for salt. All natural salt is loaded with minerals in a balance that works well with the body. Colors (pink, dirty gray, etc.) document the presence of minerals in the salt. Salt comes from the earth. Like all earth (dirt, coal, clay, etc) the qualities of the salt vary depending where it is harvested. In my garden, the upper end is less fertile than the lower end because nutrients are prone to wash downhill. The same is true with natural salt. Some salt comes from areas of the world where it is loaded with minerals, while other salt has a lower amount of minerals. Celtic Sea Salt has been tested to have a very high percentage of minerals. It comes from France and is harvested by channeling ocean water into clay-lined ponds. It is an ugly gray, large grain salt. If I were sick, this is the salt I would use in my food. In fact, I do keep this kind of salt on hand to use for slow-cooking items like beans, stews, etc. Redmond’s Real Salt comes from the mines in Utah. It has a pinkish color and a slightly lower mineral content than Celtic Salt, but still offers life-giving minerals. I also make sure I take iodine or kelp (seaweed high in iodine) every day. Switching to natural salt is an easy and smart thing to do. Keep your eye open for products that now use natural salt; it is a fast-growing market. Learn and live well. - Debi Pearl

You’ve Got Worms

Shoshanna (Pearl) Easling — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 12:00:41 +0000

I have been trying to write this article for a while, but I would get so grossed out with my research that I put it off. Here it is—the PG-rated version! Did you know it is estimated that more than 85 percent of the world’s population have some kind of parasite living inside their bodies? You can get parasites from people, animals, mosquitoes, ticks, the air you breathe, food, and your drinking water. You can get the disgusting little creatures almost anywhere, at any time. They need you to survive and multiply. Are you yucked out yet? So what is a parasite? It is an organism that lives on or in another organism (a person, an animal, etc.) from which it obtains nutrients to live, causing harm in the process. Parasites have been linked to almost every illness. However, just because you have parasites does not mean that you are sick. Many people have parasites and never know. When your body has a healthy, strong, immune system, it can deal with most parasites. However, if you have poor circulation, your pH is off-balance, your organs and tissues lack oxygen, or your immune system crashes, it creates favorable conditions for the invasion and multiplication of parasites. Parasites migrate to the areas of the body where it is not functioning optimally. Often people get a disease, crashing their immune system, thus making their body a perfect home for parasites. This makes the disease worse. There are over 100 different types of parasitic worms that can live in the human body. They range from microscopic in size to many feet long. Female worms can release 3,000 to 200,000 eggs per day depending on their type. Parasites’ waste makes your body very toxic. People with parasites can become malnourished and weak because parasites secrete toxins and steal vital mineral nutrients and amino acids needed for digestion and a healthy body. People often end up with issues such as viruses, fungal and bacterial infections, anemia, bloating, fatigue or hunger, allergies, asthma, gas, digestive disorders, nervousness, skin rashes, foggy brains, aches and pains, chemical and metal poisoning, and much more. Most doctors are not trained to recognize the symptoms of parasitic infections—and even when they do, the medicine they give you to kill the worms is very toxic to you. But there is good news! God gave us three herbs that kill over one hundred different parasites: green Black Walnut hull (Black Walnut hull that is still green when harvested and processed,) fresh ground clove powder, and wormwood. These three herbs must be used together to kill the worms and eggs all at once. Parasitic infections can cause physical trauma by burrowing into the intestines, the circulatory system, the liver, the lungs—anywhere in the body. Worms can drill holes in your organs as they destroy cells faster than cells can be regenerated. A parasite cleanse is required if your body is overburdened with other toxins.

Do you have parasites?

You may have parasites if you have stomach pain, indigestion, ulcers, constipation, Parkinson’s disease, joint or muscle pain, food or environmental allergies, dermatitis, itching, psoriasis, eczema, hives, swelling and rashes, acne, anemia, fatigue or drowsiness after meals, or frequent infections in the lungs, sinuses, vagina, bladder or any mucous membrane. Signs that a child may be infected with parasites include blisters on the inside of the lower lip, frequent wiping of the nose, restlessness and grinding of the teeth at night, twitching eyelids, dark circles under the eyes, hyperactivity, bed wetting, headaches, sensitivity to light, and rectal or nasal bleeding.

How do you kill your parasites?

There are many studies with various conclusions as to the herbs you should take and the conditions of the treatment. So you need to do your own research and decide what you want to take, but this is what I do: Green Black Walnut Tincture First day: I take 1 drop of black walnut tincture four times in a beverage every 4 hours through the day on an empty stomach. Second day: I take 2 drops of black walnut tincture four times in a beverage every 4 hours through the day on an empty stomach. Third day: I take 3 drops of black walnut tincture four times in a beverage every 4 hours through the day on an empty stomach. I keep increasing the amount until I have taken 14 drops four times a day. I do this for 14 days and then take 5 days off, then 14 days on, and continue for three months. If fresh walnut hulls are not in season and I need to do a cleanse, I take Green Black Walnut Hull powder capsules. If you have them fresh it is always best, but, when in need, take what you can get. Green Black Walnut capsules (size 00) First day: I take 1 capsule twice a day on an empty stomach. Second day: I take 2 capsules twice a day on an empty stomach. Third day: I take 2 capsules three times a day on an empty stomach. Then I continue 2 capsules three times a day on an empty stomach for the remainder of three months. Wormwood capsules (size 00) First day: I take 2 capsules 20 minutes before I eat, every meal. Second day: I take 4 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. Third day: I take 6 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. Fourth day: I take 8 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. Fifth day: I take 10 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. Sixth day: I take 12 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. Seventh day: I take 14 capsules 20 minutes before I eat. I do this 14 days on, then 5 days off, then 14 days on, then I just do 14 capsules twice a week for the remainder of three months. Cloves capsules (size 00) First day: I take 1 capsule 3 times a day. Second day: I take 2 capsules 3 times a day, 20 minutes before I eat. Third day: I take 3 capsules 3 times a day, 20 minutes before I eat. I do this 14 days on, then 5 days off, then 14 days on, then just do 3 capsules once a day for the remainder of three months. It can be difficult to get a child to take an herbal concoction that tastes bad, and most of them do. Wormwood is one terrible-tasting herb. You cannot expect your kids to take it by itself. I like to mix half maple syrup and half herb. That helps with the taste. You can also give them a reward when they take it. I wrapped little things up and gave them to my son for the first ten times of taking herbal concoctions. This made him look at them as “good things”. Even though it tastes bad, and he no longer gets presents for taking them, he still takes them with a smile! For children 40 to 65 pounds, I do one-fourth the amount of an adult dose, and only do 14 days on, 7 days off, then 14 days on, and that is all. For children 65 to 90 pounds, I do one-third the amount of an adult dose, and only do 14 days on, 7 days off, then 14 days, and then I cease. I cannot tell you what you should do regarding your children. Any herb can be harmful in some circumstances so I am not prescribing a cure or treatment. I am not a doctor. I am just giving you some ideas for your own research. Make sure you are sufficiently knowledgeable and/or consult an expert before giving or taking herbs that can be toxic. Some other things used to expel worms include: Garlic, Pumpkin Seeds, Cayenne Pepper, Goldenseal, Sage, Thyme, Fennel, Male Fern, Cranberry Powder, Grapefruit Seed Extract, Apple Kernel, Olive Leaf Extract, Apple Seeds, Red Clover Blossoms, Vitamin C, Wheat Grass Juice, Grapes and Grape Juice, Echinacea, Metabolic Enzymes. Contact the Bulk Herb Store for more information at 877-278-4257 or BulkHerbStore.com.

The Lay of the (Land) Pan

Johnny Taylor — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 12:25:16 +0000

Seeds are not just for the garden, and can be grown beyond spring and summer. You can enjoy a kitchen garden all year long—even if you live in Alaska! There are three different ways you can garden indoors: Nub-sprouting, regular sprouting, and planting seeds to harvest as micro-greens. Here are the differences between the three, as well as basic instructions to get your kitchen garden started: Nub-sprouting is just allowing the seed to barely make a tip. You can use nub-sprouts to make "Ezekiel bread," thus named for the recipe found in Ezekiel 4:9. Nub-sprouting is very simple. Presoak the seeds for a few hours. Rinse well to remove the natural sprout inhibitor found on most seeds. Then place in a shallow pan with a small amount of water. Put the seeds just a few layers deep (so they can breathe). Cover with a cloth to keep the seeds from drying out. Usually within 24 hours the nubs will appear at the end of the seed. Regular sprouts are also grown without dirt, but they are allowed to grow a few days until the plants are between one and three inches tall. These sprouts can be used as salad sprouts. To grow seeds to be eaten as salad sprouts you first need to soak them in water for a few hours and rinse them well. The seeds should then be placed in a shallow pan with a small amount of water. They should not "drown" in water, but they should not dry out, either. Cover with a cloth and set the pan in a dark, warm spot. Rinse the seeds daily. Within a day or so they will start to grow. Harvest as you need them or when their size suits you. Sprouts are best eaten fresh, but they can be stored in your refrigerator for about a week. Micro-sprouting greens are seeds grown in a small amount of dirt until they are 5 or 6 inches tall. The tops are then harvested and allowed to re-grow to be harvested again and again until it is clear by the yellowish leaves that the nutrients of the soil are depleted. These greens can be used in salads, or they can be juiced. Generally, grass-type seeds are used for micro-planting. This includes seeds like barley or wheat. When they are grown, they look like grass. I use a large flat pan with about a 1/2 inch of good quality potting soil, although I have used regular garden dirt with successful results. The idea is to allow your plants to grow a few inches tall, then harvest the top few inches and allow the plant to continue to grow. You can obtain many harvests from one planting. Your grass does not need full sunlight; many people just leave their tray sitting in their kitchen. Sprouts—particularly green leafy sprouts—are great to eat for everyday living. With less expense, you can get vitamin A, B, C, fiber, protein, and enzymes that aid digestion. In addition, sprouting destroys the seed’s natural preservative enzymes that inhibit digestion. Sprouting kits are now available in malls and supermarkets everywhere. Leafy sprouts

Alfalfa
Clover
Radish
Fenugreek
Mustard

Bean sprouts

Adzuki bean
Garbanzo
Mung
Green pea
Speckled pea
Soy bean
Various types of lentils

Brassica sprout family includes

Broccoli
Cabbage
Kale
Cauliflower
Rutabaga
Mustard
Turnip

Sprouting kits are now available in malls and supermarkets around the country and probably around the world. Once you get sprouting and gardening, try saving your own seeds!

Methods

WITHOUT SOIL

Jar
Cloth
Sprout bag
Sprouting tray

WITH SOIL

Seedling tray
Greenhouse

Try some Ezekiel Bread!

Recipe (taken from the DVD, Homesteading for Beginners, Volume 3): Place 1/2 cup each of these in a bowl: Millet, Beans, Lentils, Wheat, Spelt, and Barley. Soak them 24-48 hours. Drain grains and seeds thoroughly. Use a food processor to grind the soaked beans/grain mix until it becomes like fine mash. Add one tablespoon baking powder, one tablespoon baking soda and one teaspoon salt (we used a bit more salt!). There are other recipes online to try. Experiment! Dear NGJ, ...Seeds can be stored for years if they have been dried to a moisture level of 8% or less. I’m using silica gel for drying the seeds. The drying process requires a glass jar with an air-tight lid, and an equal weight of gel and seeds. The seeds are placed in paper envelopes, and the gel in a plastic cup inside the glass jar. After seven days the seeds are then vacuum-sealed in Seal-A-Meal plastic bags. Seeds stored using this technique will maintain their viability for up to ten times longer than normal germination rates. Freezing does not hurt seeds that have been dried to an 8% moisture level, but if the seeds are not dry enough the moisture expands when frozen and ruptures the cell walls. In closing, even though the garden party is just about over, I’ve still got a lot more to do in preparing the beds for winter. I’m making a mulch sandwich by laying down straw (from the chicken coop) and then a layer of cow manure that has thousands of earthworms, followed by vegetable matter and another layer of straw. —Bud

Fatty Liver and Ugly Toes

Shoshanna (Pearl) Easling — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 11:05:14 +0000

My husband spent many of his young years on fishing boats in Alaska. The life of a professional fisherman is not easy. They labored 18 to 22 hours each day, on their feet, and they would be out on the boat for as much as a month at a time. It was a hard life, made for real men, but it also made for toe fungus. Wearing the same shoes, and often running out of socks, feet got wet and stayed wet. Soon, white nails began to grow as the fungus grew stronger. Toe fungus is not one of these things that just goes away if you ignore it, but people try. James and I got married a few years later; I took one look at his toenails and was determined to get rid of it. So I found some natural remedies and gave them to him, but he was used to having the fungus and not very concerned about it at first. You won’t get rid of any ailment without consistency. After a few years the fungus annoyed him enough that he wanted to be rid of it, so he went to the doctor and got some medicine. It seemed to work: three months of taking the medicine and the fungus was almost gone. The medicine ran out, but he figured if he kept his feet clean and dry, all would be well. Wrong! The fungus came back with a vengeance. He got more medicine. It worked not quite as well as the first time, and worse, the moment he stopped taking it, the fungus returned stronger than ever. Worse still, he constantly seemed stressed out, grouchy and sometimes even angry. I knew that this was not him and there was something wrong, so I started to research. I knew that certain medications adversely affect the liver, but I did not know that anti-fungals like Ketoconazole and anti-TB medicines like Rifampicin and Pyrazinamide topped the list of liver killers. I knew James was in trouble. I needed to know how bad he was and what I could do to help him, so I researched the symptoms of liver problems. Here are a few of the symptoms: constipation, chronic gastritis, morning sickness, hepatitis, cirrhosis, Hepatomegaly (enlarged liver), a yellowish tinge about the eyes and dark yellow urine, anemia, nausea, light colored stools, irritable bowels or irregular bowel movements, swelling under the right lower ribs, painful breathing, curved and whitish look of nails, nose bleeding, and easy bruising (caused by protein deficiency), and also frequent headaches, dizziness, spasms, irritability, depression, anger, stress, PMS, hormonal problems, acne, skin rashes or skin problems, and unusual tiredness. James showed many of these symptoms, so I started researching everything liver.

Did you know...

...that a fully grown liver is the size of a football and the biggest organ in the body? ...that many people live with less than three quarters of their liver working? ...that it is not only an organ but also the largest gland in the body? Your liver is one of your body’s most crucial components. It is also the only organ that can rebuild itself. To rebuild a liver completely takes 18 to 24 months, because that is how long the liver cells live. The liver has many functions: manufacturing proteins, synthesizing, storing, and processing (metabolizing) fats (used for energy), metabolizing and storing carbohydrates, which are used in blood that red blood cells and the brain use, forming and secreting bile, and absorbing vitamins A, D, E, and K. The liver also eliminates the potentially harmful biochemical products produced by the body, and detoxifies drugs, alcohol, and environmental toxins. Everyone is different with detoxification, depending on what they eat and what they are around. People eating organic food and living a low chemical life will recover much faster than, say, a painter, or someone that has been on prescription medications with serious side effects. Life can quickly get bad when your liver is not working well, because your blood passes through your liver but does not get recharged properly. This can give you fatigue, toxemia, and chronic diseases. A healthy liver balances your body and enhances your quality of life. A bad liver can turn all the joy and excitement in life into impatience and anger. So how do you know when your liver-cleansing program is complete? Your skin will be more lustrous, your vision will be better, your skin will be free from red blotches and itchy spots, your brain will be clearer, and you’ll have more energy and a sense for tomorrow. Regenerating the liver takes longer than detoxification. The detoxification will make you feel better, because it will give your liver the clean house it needs to start rebuilding. But beware: that’s just the beginning. Your liver needs to be nourished and well taken care of while it is rebuilding. Here are some things that help your liver along: eating nourishing and organic foods whenever you can, avoiding chemicals, drinking eight cups of water a day, taking nourishing anti-oxidants, and using blood purifying herbs and foods. I researched herbs to find the perfect combination for my man to take. I made a tincture and he started taking it. Within a few days I could already see a difference. He was relaxed for the first time in months. I was so excited! I knew we had a long way to go, but we were well on our way to the old James. One month later, he is still taking my homemade Liver Tincture and doing well. He plans to continue to take a dropper full (1/2 tsp) 3 to 5 times a day for 3 to 6 months, then a dropper full 1 to 2 times a day for 2 years. Life is good, and living life with joy, excitement, and purpose makes it even better. Don’t give up if you are sick. Research, and enjoy the best quality of life you can. For James’ toenail fungus, I am coming up with something great. I will let you guys in on it when I get it perfected. The Liver Tincture contains: Indian gooseberry/amalaki, turmeric, ginger, dandelion leaf, licorice root, burdock root, milk thistle seed, hawthorn berries, ginseng root, astragalus root, and St. John’s wort. The Liver Tincture is a combination of herbs that purify the blood, are rich in anti-oxidants, nourish the liver, help with liver enlargement, aid in rebuilding the liver, ease the stress of detoxing on the body, level the hormones, stimulate the digestive system and more. How to make it: Fill a clean glass canning jar 2/3 full with dried herbs. Add vodka up to one inch from the top. Screw lid on tightly and store in a cool, dark place. Shake 3-7 times a week. The tincture needs to sit at least 2-6 weeks. Strain tincture and pour into a colored glass bottle, closing the lid tightly. Alcohol tinctures will last 2-3 years. Tinctures need to be kept in a cool, dark place such as a cabinet. Why use vodka? Water rolls off the liver where alcohol goes straight to it, bringing the herb with it. For more recipes, herbs, Liver Cleanser Mix, and more, contact the Bulk Herb Store at BulkHerbStore.com.

Healthy Broth

Shoshanna (Pearl) Easling — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 11:25:59 +0000

Old-fashioned broth is packed with important minerals that have disappeared from the American diet. They have been replaced with the discovery of monosodium glutamate (MSG). What is MSG? It is a neurotoxin that causes a wide range of reactions from temporary headaches to permanent brain damage. You might think you do not use MSG, but it is in bouillon cubes, canned broths and soups, dehydrated soup mixes, sauce mixes, TV dinners, most restaurant food, condiments, and more. It tricks the brain into thinking the food tastes better than it does. Fast food restaurants could not exist without MSG. Enough about MSG; this article is about broth. So what is broth? It is a flavorful liquid resulting from slow cooking bones, hooves, egg shells, knuckles, chicken feet, meat, poultry, fish, or vegetables in water. This process pulls nutrients from cartilage and tendons, like sulphates and glucosamine, which is used as a supplement for treatment of arthritis and joint pain. Some of that stuff might sound a little disgusting, but believe it or not, it is delicious. The benefits for the body are amazing. It is an herb in itself, healing and strengthening the body’s digestion. It contains minerals, like calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur, gelatin, and trace minerals, in a form the body can easily absorb. Broth has been used to treat arthritis and joint pain, peptic ulcers, tuberculosis, diabetes, muscle diseases, infectious diseases, jaundice, cancer, colds, and can even be put in babies’ milk to aid digestion. Broth is also used to activate and strengthen the thyroid. Not only is broth great for your health, it is a MUST for culinary-minded individuals. I use broth for cooking vegetables, noodles, rice, sauces, soups, gravy, stews and more.

TIPS:

1. Asian and Latin American markets sometimes carry whole birds, and some butchers in ethnic neighborhoods carry calves’ feet. Use 2-4 chicken’s feet for chicken stock and about 2 lbs. calf’s feet pieces for a large pot of beef stock. 2. If you want to make a gravy you can add 2 tbsp. arrowroot powder with 2 tbsp. water to one cup broth. Bring to boil, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens. Add sea salt, and, if desired, other seasonings. 3. Let all the ingredients sit in the water for an hour before starting to cook broth. This helps the vinegar break down the calcium.

TidBit on Eggshell and Bone Health:

Studies have shown that taking eggshell with vitamin D3 improves bone mineral density. Egg shells have been used to treat of all kinds of arthritis and joint pain. Pour 2 cups of hot water over 4-5 (free-range or organic is best) crumbled egg shells. Add 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice or vinegar. Cover and let sit for 2 hours. Strain the shells out and put liquid in a clean glass jar with a lid. Take a sip of the liquid one or two times a day. Just because it works does not mean you should take more than you need. Slowly increase your dosage until pain is the gone. After that do not increase it. Some of us need more calcium than others, but remember, our bodies cannot handle too much calcium. Egg shells are high in Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Glycine, Gelatin, Collagen, and other trace minerals. For more healthy lifestyle tips and recipes check out Nourishing Traditions. You can order this and many other helpful books from The Bulk Herb Store’s website at: www.BulkHerbStore.com

Recipes

Chicken Stock

1 whole free-range chicken or 2 to 3 lbs. of chicken parts, such as necks, backs, breastbones and wings 2-4 chicken feet (optional) 4 free-range or organically-grown egg shells 4 quarts cold, filtered water 2 carrots, peeled and chopped; if organic, do not peel 3 celery stalks, chopped 2 tbsp. vinegar 4 whole garlic cloves 1 onion, chopped 1 tsp. peppercorns 1 bunch parsley Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for at least 6 hours or as long as 48 hours. Strain out solids and discard. Use liquid broth. Broth will become very thick when cooled.

Fish Stock

3-4 whole carcasses, including heads, of non-oily fish such as sole, turbot, trout, brim, rockfish, or snapper 2 tbsp. butter 2 onions, chopped 1 carrot, chopped 1 bunch of cilantro 3 cloves garlic 1/2 cup dry white wine or vermouth 1/4 cup vinegar 3 quarts cold, filtered water (approximately) Milk from young coconut (optional) Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for at least 4 hours or as long as 24 hours. Strain and discard solids. Use liquid broth. Broth will become thick when cooled.

Beef Stock

4 lbs. beef and knuckle bones (approximately) 1 calf’s foot, cut into pieces (optional) 3 lbs. meaty rib or neck bones 4 or more quarts cold, filtered water; more, if desired 1/2 cup vinegar 4 free-range or organically-grown egg shells 3 onions, chopped 3 carrots, chopped 3 celery stalks, chopped 5-6 whole garlic cloves 1-2 tsp. dried thyme 1 tsp. peppercorns 1 bunch parsley Simmer stock for at least 12 hours or as long as 72 hours. Strain and discard solids. Use liquid broth. Broth will become very thick when cooled.

From City Slickers to Happy Homesteaders

Erin Harrison — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 11:20:26 +0000

My husband and I were brought up in the city and had no experience with country living. When we first got married, all I knew how to cook was macaroni and cheese from a box, canned ravioli, and Hamburger Helper. We would have starved without a nearby grocery store. After we started having children we wanted to move out to the country, plant a garden, and work toward becoming self-sufficient. We bought an old farmhouse on three acres and fixed it up very nicely. I met some Amish folks and began taking lessons on cooking, butchering, sewing, and canning. We spent one year’s tax refund on our first milk cow. We could not believe how fun and economical this lifestyle was. We started raising chickens, collecting eggs with our little children, and making healthy meals. The first year we started canning with the Amish, we canned about 500 quarts of everything from tomatoes to green beans to applesauce to meat. I found that we were spending less time in the car going to the grocery store and more time as a family working together. There is no greater joy than building relationships with your children by working together for everyone’s good. We wanted to share our joy. Since we are professional photographers, we decided to create a DVD teaching what we had learned. For over a year every new project was recorded on camera: raising chickens, boiling down maple syrup, making bread, growing a garden, and many other homestead projects. The Homesteading for Beginners DVD series is the result. Everyone who watches it says it inspires them to try to reacquire some of these lost skills that our forefathers knew well and relied upon to survive hard times. Modern families would do well to learn these skills and get back to the basics. When jobs are lost or power is failing, it would be helpful to know how to provide food for the family. Homesteading for Beginners comes in two DVDs and will show you basic skills for homesteading. The first DVD is a good teaching tool for children and parents, but is geared to keep children captivated. It is a basic step one for those who know very little of homesteading. Our second video is aimed at an older audience and goes into greater depth. Both DVDs introduce milking a cow, making butter, cheese, kefir, planting a garden, butchering chickens and more. Through all the homesteading we have learned that there is a real need for community life. Until two generations ago everything centered around the community. People would come together to work, to survive, and to learn from each other. Our family desires to help bring like-minded families together in their homesteading adventure. We created a website and forum that others can join to encourage one another. We will be offering a platform for trading, buying, selling, and getting to know others in the same season of life. It will be an opportunity for people to learn, be creative, write articles, ask questions, get the products they need, and build family bonds. Visit our website and join our community at: www.HomesteadCommunityPost.com

I Made an “Herb Girl” Out of Me

Shoshanna (Pearl) Easling — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:05:26 +0000

When I first started learning about herbs and their properties I was captivated by the possibilities. I knew that if half of everything I was reading was true, a lot of people were missing out on the healing power of God’s plants. First I needed to test them for myself. I had to know if they really worked as well as the books claimed. So, with the little herb research I had done, I made a dark green herb salve and gave a quart of it to some missionaries who were heading to the mountains of Papua New Guinea with their five kids. In a few months they wrote asking for more. They were living deep in the jungle among a tribe of people while learning to speak the language. It was a three-day hike to a dirt air strip where a little plane could transport them to a town—when a plane was available. A long way from medical help, they discovered that my green salve was very effective in treating a variety of ailments, from boils to rashes to ringworms and more. I was blown away. I did the research, but reading about the field-(jungle-)tested results was a whole new perspective. I was hooked, went back to the books—many books—and I have been an Herb Girl ever since.

MAKING MASSAGE OIL OR SALVE

1. Making a salve might sound difficult, but it isn’t. The thing that takes the longest is infusing your herbs with oil. The best way to do this is in a crock pot on very low heat. 2. Stuff a mason jar two-thirds full with herbs. 3. Fill jar with oil of your choice (coconut oil, olive oil, sweet almond oil, etc.), leaving at least one inch from the top of jar. Screw a lid on tight. 4. Put a wash cloth in the bottom of the crock pot. Put jar in the center of the pot (on the cloth). Fill the crock pot with water, one inch below top of jar. 5. Keep crock pot on low heat (oil needs to be very hot but not boiling) for 3 days. Water will evaporate out of the pot, so keep adding water as needed. 6. As the herb’s properties release in the oil, the oil will take on more color and smell like herb oil. With a cheese cloth (a cotton sheet or t-shirt will work too) strain herb solids out of oil. Now you have an herbally-infused oil. It is great for massage oil! 7. To make the oil into a salve you need beeswax. You need approximately 2 oz. of grated beeswax for 8 to 9 oz. of infused oil. 9. On low heat, warm oil and beeswax until wax is all melted. 10. Add a drop of vitamin E oil for every ounce of oil. This is a natural preservative. 11. While salve is still hot, pour into your container (widemouth jar, can, etc.). 12. Let sit overnight or until salve is hard. 13. Screw a lid on tight and label with name and date. Voila!! You have a salve!

Tips:

~ If it is too soft for you, reheat it and add a bit more beeswax. If it is too hard, reheat it and add a touch more oil. ~ Salve is a thick oil that is used for cuts, bites, burns, rashes, boils, massage, and more. Salves can keep up to five years or more. ~ Keep out of light and extreme heat. If I get a poisonous bite from a bug, bee, or spider, if there are fresh plantain leaves around, I grab a few leaves, chew them up and spit them on the bite. There is nothing faster or that works better to pull poison out. If you have activated charcoal around, you can mix that in the plantain chew and give it another boost in pulling out poison. After these fresh poultices, I continue to use salve until there is no sign of a bite. For more info on herbs and healthy living go to BulkHerbStore.com. Sign up for weekly Herb Pearls! You can also write or call us for a catalog at 26th West 6th Ave., Lobelville, TN 37097 or 877-278-4257. Check out our salve mixes, for muscles, Healing touch, and arthritis.

The Bottom Line

Shoshanna (Pearl) Easling — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:35:24 +0000

Maybe your approach was wrong. Dieting is usually not effective in the long run. Low-calorie diets will enable you to lose weight fast, but they will also almost always lower your metabolism. What’s wrong with that? Lower metabolism means your food will not burn off as fast. Your body will be expecting less calorie intake because of the diet. Then you stop your diet. As soon as you stop it, you will gain weight faster than ever before. How can you lose it and keep it off? Clean your colon out. Try Detox +, cayenne, aloe, ginger, garlic, psyllium seed, and other cleansing herbs. Keep everything flushed daily. Drink lots of filtered or spring water and daily take in fiber, flaxseed, chia seed, oat bran, rolled oats, whole grains, whole wheat. Get your liver and kidneys working right. If they function properly, your body can better process foods and eliminate waste. Look to milk thistle, burdock, dandelion root, fennel, bilberry, and, of course, plenty of filtered or spring water. Accelerate your metabolism with herbs and exercise. Get your heart pumping. Exercise at least three times a week, at least 30 minutes each time. After exercising, drink a big glass of an energy herb like green tea, ginseng, nettle, or all three mixed. Curb your appetite. Feed your cells richly with vitamins and minerals. It is believed to reduce cravings. Try nettle, fennel, bilberry, and chia seed. Taking a teaspoon of psyllium mixed well in seven ounces or more of water or juice 30 minutes before you eat will curb your appetite, making you eat less. It also helps regulate movements. Feed your cravings. If you know that you always start craving something sweet around a certain time, then plan on feeding it with something that will satisfy it and help you lose weight, like a cup of hot or cold herbal tea with honey and a dab of milk. Creamy and sweet! Try spiced chia tea, green tea, jasmine green tea, or Double E Immune Booster (one of my favorites, when taken with honey and milk). Carrots are pretty sweet too! Eat whole foods high in fiber and lean protein, like beans, whole grains, raw nuts, seeds, fruit, vegetables, wild game, and more. Stay away from processed foods. They are fat-makers. You are going to eat some processed food, but remember, even if it doesn’t seem like a lot of food, it is fat food. Things like potato chips and cookies are highly processed and highly fattening. Why these herbs? Bilberry is known to be an anti-aging herb. It helps purify the blood, promote healthy liver and kidney function, increase circulation to the brain, reduce inflammation and pain, relieve muscle spasms, strengthen blood vessels, improve night vision, and more. Chia seed is one of the richest plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids. It is a rich source of protein, antioxidants, potassium, calcium, manganese, phosphorus, zinc, and copper, and it has six times more iron than spinach. Chia seeds are great in breads, granolas, mixed in smoothies, and more. Chia is great for your skin, blood sugar stability, endurance, energy, and it promotes healthy intestines. Nettle is very high in many vitamins and minerals. From Vitamin C to silica nettle, it is one of the richest of herbs. It is also a wonderful diuretic that will purge your body of toxins while nourishing your cells. It is also believed to curb hunger. Psyllium and flax help your colon regulate and flush out waste faster. Holding waste makes you gain weight. They can also be used to curb your hunger. Mixed in water or juice, they can expand up to five times in bulk. Flax is an excellent source of protein, fiber and many vitamins, stabilizing blood levels and strengthening your immune system. For more information on herbs go to BulkHerbStore.com or call us at 1-877-278-4257.

Science Fiction Horror Story

Michael Pearl — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:16 +0000

Which word in the title is erroneous: Science—Fiction—Horror—Story? It’s the word fiction. The food you eat is no longer the food God made for the human body. Evolutionary scientists have irreversibly changed the DNA of plant, animal, and human cells. They are uncreating God’s creation, rendering staple foods unfit for human or animal consumption. I recently read two books, and the following article contains quotes from those books (indicated by quotation marks), with some of my own observations. You need to buy and read both of them: Seeds of Deception and Genetic Roulette by Jeffrey Smith. The converging lines of evidence in these books indicate conclusively that genetically modified (GM) crops are inherently dangerous and may be responsible for the unfolding health disaster in the U.S.A. All living organisms, whether plant or animal or human, are constructed of cells. Each cell contains the entire DNA chain of information that constitutes an organism―what it is―and differentiates it from all others. Each cell is made of billions of atoms, intelligently designed and arranged to contain and dispense complex information that assures the function, adaptation, survival, and procreation of the species. Genetic engineering is the process of artificially tampering with these God-given, natural genetic blueprints. Genetic engineering (or bio-engineering) is a technique to splice, delete, add, isolate, and recombine or transfer genes from one organism to another that may be totally unrelated. Alteration of genes and chromosomes causes disruption and disturbance in the biochemical structure of species (plant or animal) and can result in species mutation. “The discovery in the mid-1970s that scientists could transfer genes from the DNA of one species into that of another was heralded as a major scientific breakthrough. Plants, animals, and other organisms could now become equipped with genes that could never occur naturally and exhibit traits not previously found in their species or even their kingdom. “Scientists have since worked on some interesting combinations. Spider genes were inserted into goat DNA, in hopes that the goat milk could contain spider web protein for use in bulletproof vests. Cow genes turned pigskin into cowhides. Jellyfish genes lit up pigs’ noses in the dark. Arctic fish genes gave tomatoes and strawberries tolerance to frost. Potatoes glowed in the dark when thirsty. Human genes were inserted into corn to produce spermatocides. “The single dominant GM trait is herbicide tolerance. Crops are engineered to survive an otherwise toxic dose of weed killer. “The second popular GM trait is a built-in pesticide. The plant produces pesticidal toxins in every cell. Monarch butterflies are killed when feeding on the corn. If a plant kills bugs, do you want to breathe its pollen, eat honey made from its nectar, or ingest the plant? “Virtually an entire Filipino village of about 100 people living adjacent to a large field of Bt corn [genetically altered to produce a toxin that kills bugs] were stricken by a disease. The symptoms, which appeared at the time the corn was producing airborne pollen, included headaches, dizziness, extreme stomach pain, vomiting, chest pains, fever, and allergies, as well as respirator, intestinal, and skin reactions. Many, if not all of the villagers exposed to the GM-maize pollen in 2003, have remained ill to this day. Furthermore, there have been five unexplained deaths in the village. In total, 96 people got sick. In addition, nine horses, four water buffalo, and 37 chickens died soon after feeding on the GM maize.” The increase in the number of people afflicted with chronic diseases in the United States roughly corresponds to the period when Americans began eating GM foods. Proponents of creating Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) try to sell us the lie that what they are doing is just hybridization by a different method. Not so. Genetic engineering is not in any way similar to hybrid plants or selective breeding. “Plant breeders have worked with this system (selective breeding of plants) for thousands of years, selecting parents with desired characteristics, such as yield and disease resistance, in the hope that the offspring expresses both. With genetic engineering, however, a single gene is removed from the DNA of one organism and forcibly inserted into another. This doesn’t happen naturally. “A pig can mate with a pig and a tomato can mate with a tomato. But there is no way a pig can mate with a tomato. Using genetic engineering, however, pig genes can be inserted into a tomato and vice versa.” This transfer of genes across the natural barriers established by God at creation is an arrogant and reckless confusion of nature. It is introducing chaos into perfect order. “Another problem is that inserted genes may transfer from food into gut bacteria or internal organs. Animal studies demonstrate that ingested DNA can travel through the body, even into the fetus via the placenta. Trans-genes from GM crops fed to animals have been found in their blood, liver, spleen, and kidneys. The only published human feeding trial on GM food verified that genetic material inserted into GM soy transfers into the DNA of our intestinal bacteria.” Manufacturers of genetically-modified organisms assure us that the genetically-modified cells are destroyed in the stomach when eaten and cannot be transferred to the host. However, Sidney Pierce spent 20 years studying the green sea slug that eats algae and somehow transfers the plant genes into its body. The slug then possesses the algae’s ability to produce chlorophyll from sunlight—a universal trait of plants but not of animals. The young slugs must eat algae until they accumulate enough of its genes to begin manifesting the plants’ ability to convert sunlight into energy. The slug can then be sustained on sunlight alone, like a plant, without further eating. Pierce says, “It certainly is possible that DNA from one species can get into another species, as these slugs have clearly shown, but the mechanisms are still unknown.” Scientists have discovered genetically-modified cells present in the organs of animals fed GM food. Corrupted DNA never becomes uncorrupted. It is passed on to future generations. “Lab animals tested with GM foods had stunted growth, impaired immune systems, bleeding stomachs, abnormal and potentially precancerous cell growth in the intestines, impaired blood cell development, misshapen cell structures in the liver, pancreas, and testicles...alerted gene expression and cell metabolism, liver and kidney lesions, partially atrophied livers, inflamed kidneys, less developed brains and testicles, enlarged livers, pancreases, and intestines, reduced digestive enzymes, high blood sugar, inflamed lung tissue, increased death rates, and higher offspring mortality. About two dozen farmers report that GM corn varieties caused their pigs or cows to become sterile. 71 shepherds say that 25% of their sheep died from grazing on Bt cotton plants (altered to be toxic to bugs), and others say that cows, water buffaloes, chickens, and horses also died from eating GM crops. Filipinos in at least five villages fell sick when nearby Bt corn was pollinating, and hundreds of laborers in India report allergic reaction from handling Bt cotton. Soy allergies skyrocketed by 50% in the United Kingdom soon after genetically-engineered soy was introduced; and one human subject out of the few tested showed a skin prick, allergic-type reaction to GM soy, but not to natural soy. In the 1980s, a GM food supplement killed about one hundred Americans and caused sickness and disability in another five to ten thousand people.” Genetically-altered soy, corn, cotton, and canola and their derivatives are found in 70% of all processed foods. If you have ever eaten a corn chip, corn flakes, or a tortilla, you have eaten GM organisms. Tomatoes were genetically-engineered to have a shelf life of months instead of just days. Great for farmers, right? Except that when they fed laboratory rats a diet of GM tomatoes, many of them quickly developed lesions in their stomachs, and about a fourth of the rats died within two weeks. The control group of rats fed natural tomatoes did not manifest any of the negative reactions experienced by the GM-fed rats. By now you might be thinking, “Well, I will just avoid corn, soy, and canola oil, and eat squash and papaya instead.” They are re-engineered, as well! Do you avoid sugar, relying on artificial sweetener? Aspartame is the product of genetic engineering. Do you ever drink milk or serve it to your children? What about cheese or yogurt? Cows are injected with genetically- engineered growth hormones. It so speeds up their milk production that the cows are used up and discarded in about two years. Many farmers testify that twenty-five percent of their herds don’t live that long. They suffer from infections in their udders, making it necessary to constantly inject them with antibiotics. What do those same growth hormones do when ingested by humans? Just examine the statistical rise in breast cancer in the last 20 years. Eat more chicken? It, too, is injected with GM organisms. As the breasts on chickens get bigger, so do the breasts on young boys eating the chicken, and breast cancer continues to rise. Wild animals will repeatedly reject the GM crops in preference for natural corn and soy. Deer and elk will walk through a large GM field to get to a small plot of natural corn. If geese, squirrels, rabbits, deer, elk and rats have an aversion for GM crops, should humans eat them? What do the animals know that we don’t?

What does God say about modifying his creation?

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:27, 31). Can you believe it? God designs his human creation after his own image, tailors the plant and herbs to the exact food specifications humans and animals require, and then pronounces that it is all very good. And what do scientists do? They say, “It is good, but not good enough; we can do better,” and then proceed to re-create what God created. It produces havoc, and they forge ahead undaunted in their “mission.” They are like four-year-old children dismantling a computer to improve upon it. I say with the Psalmist, “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought [like needlework] in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (Psalm 139:14–15). If the above verse says anything, it says that before we were born, God designed the very substance of our beings—recording the design in a book—and then fashioned us after that secret design. We are awesome and wonderful in design, a marvelous work of God. Who could dare to improve upon the master design of the God of creation?

Clear prohibition against modifying God’s creation.

“Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled” (Deut. 22:9). Note, God did not want his original seeds mixed so as to cause them to lose their inherent uniqueness. The result of mixing seeds produces a seed that was “defiled.” “Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed” (Leviticus 19:19). Again, God is concerned to maintain the seed’s and the cattle’s original character. “And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:11–12). God designed everything to bring forth after its singular kind, and neither a mixed kind, nor a new kind. We live in strange times, when man has begun to move into God’s laboratory and is attempting to sabotage his design and change the very structure of creation. They dream of cloning humans, mix human and animal genes, throw in a few plant genes and come up with a Frankenstein monster. Science fiction has become a vision for tomorrow. There was an earlier time, about 1800 years after creation, when men pooled their knowledge and built a city and a tower to reach unto heaven. “And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.” (Genesis 11:6). This is a fascinating verse. God concedes that when many people combine their knowledge, they will not be restrained from accomplishing their wildest imaginations. So he divided them into diverse language groups to prevent them from conferring and sharing their knowledge and skills. That language barrier God put into place is now obsolete. Scientists of the world cooperate and share their knowledge. We are again at the place where “nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.” But God will have the last say in the Great Tribulation “which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Rev. 3:10). “And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth” (Rev. 11:18). I have never been sure what this passage referred to—“God destroys them which destroy the earth.” Surely it is not killing the snail darter or wiping out the buffalo that has angered God to the point of exercising “great wrath” upon all flesh. Nothing man has ever done is one percent as destructive as permanently changing the DNA of God’s creation. Look out Monsanto, Dupont: here comes the Judge!

What can you do?

First, you must be informed. The military-industrial complex is little more than a local gun store compared to the agricultural-industrial complex. When media outlets have attempted to publish the facts concerning GMOs in our food chain, they have been intimidated into silence by their largest advertisers—the producers of genetically-modified foods. When politicians get wise to the conspiracy to control the food chain, they are silenced by the fear of losing large gifts to their campaigns. You must get informed. Purchase the book, Seeds of Deception, and become acquainted with the issue. Go online, and read about GMOs. Stop buying foods that have been altered. Write to the manufacturers, and inform them that you will not eat their GMOs. All we ask is that the government mandate labeling of GM foods. Just put a label on the product that says Genetically Modified. There have been many failed attempts to force labeling. The industry knows that once products are labeled, the public will ask, “So, what’s the difference?” and it will all be over for the agricultural-industrial complex. Labeling. Demand labeling. In the meantime, grow your own food. If the grocery store labels food as organic, it is not genetically modified. Learn which plants have been altered and which ones maintain the integrity God gave them. GM tomatoes and potatoes have been removed from the market due to obvious health tragedies. Rice and beans are not modified, and, to my understanding, neither are any of the salad vegetables. Wheat, rye and barley are still good. Avoid all cooking oils and salad oils, and all prepared foods containing canola, corn, or soy. Avoid bread, crackers, chips, cakes, pies, and cookies containing corn, soy, or oils or derivatives of the same. Avoid milk, cheese, yogurt, cream cheese, sour cream or any food prepared with milk products. Avoid meats from animals that have been fed GMO grains or injected with GMOs. You do realize that you won’t be able to eat at your standard restaurant, don’t you? If in the process of throwing out all processed foods you cease eating all corn syrup and sugar, within three days to a week you will see a remarkable improvement in your family’s health and in the temperament of your children. You can go online and purchase Seeds of Deception by Jeffrey Smith, or you can order it at a discount from BulkHerbStore.com (call toll-free 1-877-278-4257). Check out their heirloom seeds, too.