May 27, 2010
" When it feels as if your world is falling apart, know at the core that YOU , and only YOU, are a strong BEing of light and life."
Who hasn't had the feeling that everything is being to crumble around them ? Who doesn't worry ? We all at one time or another in our lives have had that feeling. Remember you are not alone! You are never alone.! You are connected to another individual and others throughout this world. Your energy is part of life. That is why when someone I know was hugging a tree felt energy, I understood that without hesitation. Each of us are the strong being of life and energy. Every day , each cell of our body must withstand assaults and insults by medical free radical damage, endangering the environment and individual character assassination, gossip. Remember when such unfortunate circumstances happen, you are the strong BEing of light and life.
Today in a way is another vitamin day. I was going to take about more B vitamins.
However I had comments about what food sources contain powerful antioxidant instead of consuming supplements So here we go...
In search of the defense of free radical damage , medical especially integrative medicine has the answers. There are supplements that decrease free radical damage, as well as conventional drugs. If you didn't watch the Today Show, I was apalled how much the medical team did not know about supplements and botanicals. Some of their comments were justified, but again as usual it portrays the message that supplements, vitamins and botanicals are not useful. They are useful in the right hands and by qualified health care professionals. We do know that polyphenols anti oxidant properties are strong. I did much work on this when studying Greem Tea ( Camilla sinensis- see www.fratellonemedical.com website. ) Of by the way Rick and I when he feels better are updating this . We could use a team of experts to do it. It is hard when two people are trying to convery all this information to everyone. Read and be careful what you choose to believe.
Anyway back to free radical damage. Can we get a food source that is powerful in its anti oxidant potential ? The standard of index for determining the antioxidant value of various organic compounds is know as the oxygen radical absorbance capacity, or
ORAC. Did anyone know that each fruit and vegatable has an ORAC value ?
Well now you do ! The ORAC test is considered one of the most sensitive and reliable methods for meauring the ability of antioxidants to absorb free radicals. Thus, the ORAC value given is proportional to the polyphenol content. the fruits and vegetables with a higher ORAC value, or richer color have been shown to suppress free radical more effectively. In order to maintain optimal anti oxidant potential an individual must consume between 3-6,000 ORAC units per day. Maybe you do consume this much and do not even know it ? Or maybe you do not consume even a 1,000 ORAC units. I always knew that blueberries had a high anti oxidant value and are also low in sugar ( glycemic index). This was confirmed when attending the annual Nutrition Conference sponsored by the University of Arizona Fellowship of Integrative Medicine and Columbia University , NYC. There as a whole lecture on blueberries. The ORAC value for blueberries is 3,200 ( this is based per 100 grams ( or about 3.5 ounces) The blueberries have been shown to enhance cognitive memory function and have these polyphenols that cross the blood brain barrier to get into the brain. There have been studies helping patients with heart failure and even managing insulin resisteance ( pre diabetic) Of course, more studies need to be conducted.
After attending that blueberry lecture years ago, I started to study/research and read about berries in general. As a young kid, we lived on a hill. We were at the peak of the hill and as the hill went down, there was an empty lot. The kids of the neighborhood built tree houses and forts. In that "lot" there was a large tree with mulberries. I used to collect them, bring them home to my Nanny and we ate them for desert. I called them mulberries, but in actuality it was a 'blackberry'
Actually blackberries have a higher ORAC value than blueberries. Their ORAC value is 5,100. The blueberry, bilberry, blackberry,cranberry, elderberry , pomegranate and acai contain a classs of polyphenols, called anthocyanins. These produce a deep purple, red and blue pigment through the plant world. There is a benefit to these anthocyanins ranging from inhibiting cancer growth to reduce cardiovascular heart disease.
In the Bible, mulberry ( Morus nigra) is noted:
" And to the end thye might provoke the elephants to fight, they shewed them the bloof of grapes and mulberries." I Maccabees 6:34 (RSV)
The bilberry has been found to effective in eye disease as well as cardiovascular disease. Studies have shown that the bilberry can inhibit an enzyme, ACE ( angiotension converting enzyme) This enzyme being blocked is useful in reduction of hypertension ( blood pressure) There is a class of ACE inhibitors in conventional medicine that usually end with -pril. Examples are enalapril, quinapril, enalapril, monopril.
There is much mention of the pomegranate which I will discuss tomorrow.
The photograph above are of bowls of fruit.
Beautifully framed ( flash photography by me gave a reflection)
Initial phot credit: Michael Byrd
The next photograph is a new product by Longevity Nutritionals --www.longevitynutritionals.com
Until tomorrow...
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