Early in 2008 the USDA required all store-sold raw almonds to be pasteurized.

This is a life and death matter, and in more ways than you could imagine.

A live almond could be plopped into the ground and sprout, growing into a tree. A pasteurized almond is dead. Along with the death of the almond comes the death of many of the benefits, including taste.

Raw almonds are a rich source of calcium, folic acid, magnesium, vitamin E, protein, fiber and antioxidants. These are believed to be significantly reduced by the the pasteurization process.

Toxic Almonds?

Here is the ulterior factoid you need to know.

Pasteurized almonds can now be labeled as “raw.”

The pasteurization process (not required to be disclosed) can include alarmingly, fumigation using propylene oxide or polypropylene oxide (PPO)— a probable carcinogen among the many nasty things it does to humans according to according to the EPA.

Steam is the approved method used on organically grown almonds.

So, although seven almonds can improve your health, they can possibly result in other problems.

There are two ways to protect our selves and loved ones.

Become educated consumers and boost our glutathione levels and help our bodies detoxify any toxins we take in.

Good health to you.

Who Pays for Increasing Drug Prices?

Pharmaceutical companies will raise the price of their drugs, historically as high as 75% in a year.

By increasing the price they boost profits and set themselves up to steer patients away from cheaper generic drugs.

Lets say the patent is nearing the last year of protection. The company will launch a longer acting version of the drug (with a new patent to protect it) the year before. Then to get the patients to switch over to the new, the price of the new drug will be so low it will be a bargain.

By the time the generic versions hit the market, they will have milked the original drug for all it is worth and now have loyal buyers for the new product that is protected.

So what you may think.

There are two problems this creates for all.

Who do you think pays for the increase? We do in the form of increased health care premiums. We do again in the form of higher prices of products from employers who pay increased premiums. We do yet again when we have to pay the co-pays.

It gets better (or worse if you do not have stock in a pharmaceutical and are a user). What if a person take a drug for “off label” reasons. Many drugs have benefits other than what they are approved for. In such cases, the insurance companies will not pay for the drug.

Although the company hopes they will be used for off label needs, if caught promoting for off label uses, they could be fined, often for hundreds of millions. This is not a problem that cant be fixed by yet another price hike.

This results in many who just stop taking drugs because they cannot afford them.

What to do.

In educational seminars on boosting glutathione, one of the most often asked questions about the two products that do this, “Is it covered by insurance?” Depending on the state and often age and use, for a very few it is covered by insurance.

Remember, nothing is free. We will pay in one way or another.  We could pay in lost days of work. We could pay in higher insurance premiums.

The benefits however are priceless. One leukemia survivor who did not like the odds the doctors gave him put his leukemia in remission buy boosting his glutathione. The cost, it was close to $600 per month. This was paid out of pocket for several months. He is not taking chances and is on a maintenance dose of about $150 per month.

This is out of pocket. This is off label. But it works.

Remember, we will pay in one way or another. And you get what you pay for.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… I: wait… Top: wait… I: wait… L: wait… C: wait… SD: wait…

Learn more about Glutathione and how you can take charge of your health.

However this could not be passed up.

The SELECT study on vitamin E and Selenium need to be exposed.

The study, if you heard of it, stated that they do no good and could do harm. This is absolutely true. The form of vitamin E and the dose of selenium used in the study could indeed prove harmful to your health. They should be avoided at all costs.

What should you do?

The chemically-derived vitamin E (dl-alpha tocopherol acetate) given at 400 IU per day did have deleterious effects in the SELECT study. What should you conclude? If you see an “l” after the “d” in a vitamin E (see above) then it should be avoided if you read between the lines according to the study.

In this case, this vitamin e is made from coal tar and it has little or no antioxidant properties.

What about selenium that was used in the SELECT study? l-selenomethionine was used at a dose of 200 mcg.

This is the typical dose given to prostate cancer patients, burn patients and numerous others. However, the doctors tend to be divided on the effectiveness of this.

What we know is that selenium is an essential macronutrient. This means it is needed for life and health. This is because it is an essential co-factor in the production of glutathione. Thousands of medical studies show that glutathione plays a major role in fighting cancer.

We also know many dietary and drug interactions could reduce the absorption of the mineral. Reduce the intake and reduce the glutathione formation and increase other complications.

For instance, statins suppress selenium absorption. In the test, this would have had to be accounted for by giving a higher dose.

Since statins damage muscle and nerves, the increased potential diabetes risk could be a side effect of the statin and not the selenium.

So when you hear a study that is not congruent with common knowledge, it is usually because of a flaw.

I am one who says coffee does not keep me awake. Funny thing, my usual 5 hours of sleep was only 3 1/2 hours. Awake and unable to go back to sleep and a long day scheduled was not fun.

Then at 5 AM it was brought to my attention that my lips looked dry. Very dry at that.

Wine may help you go to sleep faster but it will not help you have a good nights sleep. Actually the opposite is true. Now add caffeine and with the dehydration from that alcohol, you have a perfect storm to keep you awake.

Simple lesson here about medications, drugs, and chemicals we expose our body to. The more dehydrated we are the more potential to react or not. We are so complex in our make up, sometimes one thing that may have no effect can have greater effect depending on that balance.

Even 12 hours later the imbalance is still being felt in my being thirsty. Bringing the balance back could take a few days.

If you drink, remember to compensate with increased water intake prior to sleep.

Oh yea, one more thing. People often wonder why Beer passes though you so fast. A urologist I once worked for shared the reason why this is.

It seems that it does not have to stop to change colors.

Good health to you.

Even more exciting, the treatment has been shown to reduce cardiovascular death by a remarkable 73%.

The treatment was reported in the September BMJ from the Harvard School of Public Health. It gets even better. There are few untoward side-effects. Those experiencing side effects will usually find they go away after a short time.

Also there are virtually no known drug interaction problems with this treatment. It is commonly known in health care that when you take ten medications, there is a 100% chance of all of them interacting with each other.

In some cases, this treatment will reduce or even eliminate the need for some medications. However, do not stop with out consulting your doctor.

The unfortunate aspect of the treatment is the cost. It is not covered by medicare, Medicaid, or any insurance company to my knowledge at this time. This means it will not be available to the vast majority of those who need it the most.

What is it? The link to the study can be found at the bottom.

It does not come in a pill form although it can be hard to swallow.

It is perhaps the ultimate ulterior health treatment we could ever institute in our life.

It is a life style change.

The study, managed by doctors consists of very simple treatments. What is the treatment? Stop smoking, eat healthy, exercise. This explains why insurance companies will not pay for it. Yes, a price most will not want to pay.

if you add supplementation and flush the toxins from your body, the cardiovascular risk and cancer risk can be cut by 90%.

Imagine, dying from old age rather than a dreaded disease like cancer.

All for the want of a simple treatment.

The study shows that these lifestyle changes can reduce your risk of death from ALL causes by 55%.

Are you willing to pay the price to reduce cancer risk, decrease cancer mortality

Good health to you.

The Study

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