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You are welcome to submit your questions regarding natural health. However, we receive many questions each week and we are only able to publish a few.
All questions will be answered within a "general advice" format in the column only. As health problems require the personal advice of a health care professional, we are unable to answer questions personally.
Karima Burns, MH, ND has a Doctorate in Naturopathy and a Masters in Herbal Healing. She has studied natural healing for 12 years, published a natural healing newsletter for 4 years, and writes extensively on natural healing and herbs. Sister Karima became interested in natural healing after ending her personal lifelong struggle with asthma, allergies, chronic ear infections, depression, hypoglycemia, fatigue and panic attacks with herbs and natural therapies.
Karima offers natural healing consultations, aromatherapy and reflexology treatments, iridology readings, and nutritional and herbal programs from her home in Saudi Arabia. She believes that healing occurs more rapidly when her clients can work on the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of their illnesses.
Dear Editor,
Recently I read your article about a new infection among herds of cattle in England. I also heard that mad cow disease has reached dairy products and in America, animal parts are still used in feed for cattle that is then exported to countries as far away as Saudi Arabia. It seems all the meat in the world is contaminated now. Should I become vegetarian?
N.G., Alaska
Dear N.G.,
If you are looking for a safe haven in the world of food I am afraid Vegetarianism or veganism (no animal or animal products or derivatives like gelatin) won't be much safer. There is mounting evidence that Mad Cow Disease can be contracted through blood transfusions and the incubation period is so long you could show symptoms as much as five years after contracting the disease. In addition, it has been found that the disease can be contracted even by a fractional exposure to the contaminated animal product. This means that if you are vegan and you eat something by accident with gelatin or beef stock in it as a flavoring you will still be exposed to harmful substances if they exist in the animal you have consumed.
Does this at all remind you of the beginnings of AIDS?
Running away from pollutants, toxins and disease is futile in today's world. The more we learn about the 'dangers' of our foods, the more we can see the safest and best way to eat is in moderation from the whole food realm and to say a prayer before our meal. Here is an example of where food paranoia will take you.
The Don't Eat List:
- Eggs raise cholesterol.
- Chickens are the most contaminated animals due to antibiotics, abuse, and chemicals.
- Sheep or cows are infected with mad cow disease and e-coli.
- Milk causes allergies and lymphatic congestion.
- Many vegetables like spinach and broccoli cannot fully be cleansed of their pesticide contamination. Other vegetables like green beans and green peppers won't have many nutrients once you raise them in devitalized soil.
- Fruit is harvested before they are ripe and can cause disease. Strawberries and other hand picked fruits have recently been implicated in many cases of e-coli. Once a fruit is harvested it only has a couple days before it starts breeding harmful molds that encourage candida in the gut.
- Butter is high in saturated fat.
- Distilled water leaches minerals from your body.
- Coffee is harmful.
- The wheat available today is only available in one overused variety and it causes allergies in most people.
- Nuts are fattening and once shelled they start to breed harmful toxins that are fatal in some people with nut allergies.
As you can see, if you follow this list, you would be eating nothing. A good rule to follow is to buy the best quality food (organic when you can), and to work on ALL areas of one's personal health - spiritual, mental health (positive attitude) and the physical, so that one's body has a chance to grow and heal in many ways. Don't get caught in food paranoia scams. A good book to read on this topic is Panic in the Pantry by Whelan and Stare.
Dear Editor,
I heard from a friend of mine that coffee is actually healthy. Is this true?
T.F., USA
Dear T.F.,
It is amazing how so many people reject herbal healing yet take and benefit from herbs themselves in the form of America's three most popular substances - chocolate, coffee, and beer. Coffee contains the herb Coffea Arabica, chocolate comes from the herb cocoa and beer is made from the herb, hops (non-alcoholic beer is nothing more than a cold herbal infusion). In fact, these three herbs, when used wisely, do have healing benefits. Our society, however, ends up suffering from side effects due to improper preparations rather than benefiting from these herbs. All herbs have side effects and must be used carefully. If I told a client of mine to take Chamomile or Pau d'arco tea four times a day for the rest of their life or drink Valerian tea at every party, the first question they would ask me is "Isn't that a lot?" However, these same people have no problem drinking five or more cups of coffee a day that can cause headaches, irritability, trembling, confusion, ringing in the ears, and bowel disorders.
Modern science has found that frequent use of coffee increases blood pressure, cholesterol levels, heart and respiration rate; causes asthma in some people and also insomnia. Long-term use has been implicated in cancer, heart disease, and birth defects. However, some of this has as much to do with the chemical manufacturing and pesticides in coffee as the substance itself. In short, if coffee is treated and used as AN HERB and not as a daily beverage it is quite useful.
In Ethiopia, where it was first grown, coffee used to be a tribal war tonic. Before men went off to war, they would grab a few berries to eat. In fact, until 1000 A.D., coffee was primarily eaten as a bean and did not become popular as a drink until Arabs started roasting, grinding and simmering it to make the beverage we all know today. In the 19th century, herbalists prescribed coffee as an agreeable stimulant that frequently overcomes the effects of opium, morphine, and alcohol. It was also recommended in the treatment of menstrual cramps, constipation, asthma, and dropsy (congestive heart failure). Other medicinal uses of coffee include the treatment of fever, headaches, colds, and flu. In modern healing, coffee is often used to combat jet lag, increase stamina (however, the Olympic committee has put a regulation on the amount allowed before a race), to open the bronchials in asthma attacks, and to encourage weight loss.
However, even the old healers noted that too much or too frequent use could cause headaches, irritability, trembling, confusion, ringing in the ears, and bowel disorders. Modern science has found that frequent use can increase anxiety, blood pressure, cholesterol, heart and respiration rates, the likelihood of asthma, and can cause insomnia. Long-term use has also been implicated in cancer, heart disease, anxiety, and birth defects. However, some of these ailments can be linked as much to its chemical manufacturing and pesticides as to the substance itself.
In short, if coffee is treated and used as AN HERB and not as a daily beverage, it is quite useful.
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