Dr Richard Teo Keng Siang

Dr Richard Teo Keng Siang Recorded
at the Dental Christian Fellowship , on 24 Nov 2011,
8 months after his diagnosis. Richard would have liked to share this with you.

We are doing this to continue his work. Please have a read and leave it behind for someone else to benefit from his sharing.

 If you would like a copy, please let any of his family or close friends know and we will be able to provide both the audio recording as well as the transcript.

 Thank you, and may God bless you richly. Below is the transcript of the talk of Dr. Richard Teo, who was a 40-year-old millionaire and cosmetic surgeon with a stage-4 lung cancer, sharing at a Dental Christian Fellowship Meeting. He would have liked to share this with you too.

 HIS BACKGROUND Hi good morning to all of you. My voice is a bit hoarse from the chemotherapy, so please bear with me. I thought I'll just introduce myself. My name is Richard, I’m a friend of Danny’s, who invited me here. I’d just begin to say that I’m a typical product of today’s society. Before this, I was talking about how the media influences us etc. So I’m a typical product of what the media portrays. From young, I’ve always been under the influence and impression that to be happy, is to be successful. And to be successful, is to be wealthy. So I led my life according to this motto.

 Coming from a poor average family, back in those days, I was highly competitive, whether in sports, studies, leadership. I wanted it all. I’ve been there, done that. But at the end of the day, it’s still about money. So in my recent last years, I was a trainee in ophthalmology, but I was getting impatient, cos I had friends of mine who were going out into private practise, making tonnes of money. And there I was, stuck in a traineeship. So I said, ‘Enough, it’s getting too long.’

At that time, there was a surge in protégés of aesthetic medicine. I’m sure you’re aware, aesthetic medicine had peaked over the last few years, and I saw good money in there. So much so that I said, ‘Forget about ophthalmology, I’m gonna do aesthetic medicine.’ So that’s what I did. The truth is, nobody makes heroes out of the average GP in the neighbourhood. They don't. They make heroes out of rich celebrities, politicians, rich and famous people. So I wanted to be one of these.

I dived straight into aesthetic medicine. People were not willing to pay when I was doing locum back in those days. Anything more than $30, they would complain that “Wah, this lo kun (doctor) jing qwee (very expensive)”. They made noise and they were not happy. But the same people were willing to pay $10 000 for a liposuction. So I said, ‘Well, let’s stop healing the sick, I’m gonna become a beautician; a medically-trained beautician.’ And that was what I did – liposuction, breast augmentation, eyelid surgeries, you name it, we do it. It was very good money. My clinic, when we started off, waiting time was 1 week; 1 month; became 2 months; became 3 months.

There was so much demand that people were literally queuing up to have aesthetic work done on them. Vain women – easy life! So the clinic grew. I was so overwhelmed, from 1 doctor, I employed 2, then 3, then 4 doctors, and carried on. Nothing is ever enough. I wanted more and more and more. So much so that we set up shop in Indonesia to lure all the Indonesian tai tai’s. We set up shop, set up a team of people there, to get more Indonesian patients to come in. So, things were doing well. I’m there, my time has arrived. Around some time in February last year, I said, ‘OK, I have so much spare cash, it’s time to get my first Ferrari. So there I was, getting ready for the deposit. ‘OK! There comes my first Ferrari!’ I was looking for land, to share with some of my friends. I have a banker friend who makes $5 million a year. So I thought, ‘Come, let’s come together. Let’s buy some land and build our houses.’ I was at my prime, getting ready to enjoy.

At the same time, my friend Danny had a revival. They were going back to church, some of my close friends. They told me, ‘Richard, come, join us, come back to church.’ I have been a Christian for 20 years; I was baptised 20 years ago, but it was because it was fashionable to be a Christian then. All my friends were becoming Christians then. It was fashionable! I wanted to be baptised, so that when I filled in a form, I could put there “Christian” – feels good. In truth, I had never had a bible; I don’t know what the bible is all about. I went to church for a while, after some time, I got tired. I said it’s time to go to NUS, stop going to church. I had a lot more things to pursue in NUS – girls, studies, sports etc. After all, I had achieved all these things without God today, so who needs God? I myself can achieve anything I want. In my arrogance, I told them, “You know what? You go tell your pastor to change your sermon to 2pm. I will consider coming to church.” Such arrogance! And I said 1 statement in addition to that – till date, I don’t know I’ve regretted saying that – I told Danny and my friends,

 “If God really wanted me to come back to church, He will give me a sign.”. Lo and behold, 3 weeks later, I was back at church. THE DIAGNOSIS In March 2011, out of the blues – I was still running around, ‘cause I’m a gym freak and I always go to the gym training, running, swimming 6 days a week. I had some backache, and that’s all I had, but it was persistent.

And so I went for an MRI to exclude prolapsed disc. And the day before I had my scan, I was still in the gym, lifting heavy weights, doing my squats. And the next day, they found that half my spine had bone marrow replacement. I said, “Woah, sorry, what’s that?” We had a PET scan the next day, and they diagnosed that I had terminal lung cancer, stage 4B. It had spread to the brain, half the spine, whole of my lungs were filled with tumour, liver, adrenals… I said, “Can’t be, I was just at the gym last night, what’s going on?” I’m sure you know how it feels – though I’m not sure if you know how it feels. One moment I was there at the peak, the next day, this news came and I was totally devastated.

My whole world just turned upside down. I couldn’t accept it. I have a hundred relatives on both sides, my mom and my dad. 100 of them. And not a single one has cancer. To me, in my mind, I have good genes, I’m not supposed to be having this! Some of my relatives are heavy chain smokers. Why am I having lung cancer? I was in denial.

 HIS ENCOUNTER WITH GOD So the next day, I was still in a state of denial, still unable to accept what was going on. There I was lying in an operating theatre in a hospital, for a needle biopsy (for histology). There I was, just completed the biopsy, and lying in the operating theatre. The nurses and doctors had left; told me I had to wait for 15 minutes to do a check X-ray to make sure there’s no pneumothorax (a complication). And there I was, lying on the operating table, staring blankly at the ceiling in a cold, quiet operating theatre. Suddenly I just heard an inner voice; it was not like coming from outside. It was inside. This small inner voice that I had never felt before.

And it said very specifically, it said, “This has to happen to you, at your prime, because it’s the only way you can understand.” I said, “Woah, why did that come from?” You know, when you speak to yourself, you’d say, “OK, what time should I leave this place? Where shall I have dinner after this?” You’d speak from a first person point of view. You don’t say, “Where should YOU go after this?” Whereas the voice that came spoke as a third party.

It said, “This has to happen to YOU, at YOUR prime, because this is the only way YOU can understand.” At that time, my emotions just overflowed and I broke down and cried, alone there. And I knew then, subsequently, what it means to understand that why this is the only way. Because I had been so proud of myself, my whole life, I needed nobody else. I was gifted with things that I could do, why do I need anybody else? I was just so full of myself that there was no other way I could have turned back to God. In fact, if I were diagnosed with stage 1 or 2, I would have been looking around busily for the best cardiothoracic surgeon, remove a section of the lobe (do a lobectomy), do preventive chemotherapy…

The chances of it being cured is extremely high. Who needs God? But I had stage 4B. No man can help, only God can. A series of events happened after that. I wasn’t sold after that, because of the inner voice, I became believing, prayers, all that. No I wasn’t. To me, it was just ‘maybe there was a voice; or maybe that was just me talking to myself.’ I didn’t buy the story. What happened next was that I was being prepared for chemotherapy. I started off with a whole brain radiation therapy first; takes about 2 -3 weeks. In the meantime they prepared me for chemotherapy, supplements etc. One of the things they used for chemo was a thing called Zometa. Zometa - they use it to strengthen the bones; once the bone marrow (replacement) is cured of cancer cells, it becomes hollow, so we need Zometa to strengthen the bone to prevent compression fractures.

 One of the side effects of Zometa is that it can cause osteonecrosis (bone death) of the jaw, and I had to have my wisdom teeth removed. Years ago, I had my upper wisdom teeth removed, cos it was giving me trouble. The lower ones didn’t give me trouble so I said, “Forget it, just leave it.” So of cause, Danny volunteered to remove it for me. So there I was, lying there in a dental chair, asking myself, suffering all the side effects of radiotherapy, and now I have to go through wisdom tooth surgery. As if I’ve not had enough to suffer! So I asked Danny, “Eh, bro, is there any other way? Can I not go though this?”

He said, “Yes, you can pray.” I said, “What’s there to lose? Ok lah, pray lah!” And so we prayed. And we did an X-ray after that. Everything was all there, all the appliances and everything. And lo and behold, the Xray showed that there was no wisdom teeth in the lower jaw. I know most people have 4 wisdom teeth, maybe some have none, but to be missing one or 2, as I understand – I’m not too sure, as I understand – is not that common. Still I was, “Nah, I don’t care about that.” To me, as long as I didn’t have to take out the tooth, I was happy. At that point, I still wasn’t sold on prayers. Maybe it was just a coincidence – for whatever it’s worth.

 I continued meeting my oncologist, asking him, “How long do I have?” I asked him. He said, not more than 6 months. I said, “Even with chemotherapy?” About 3 – 4 months, he said. I couldn’t grasp that. It was difficult to come to terms. And even as I went through radiotherapy, I was struggling everyday, especially when I wake up, hoping that it’s just a nightmare; when I wake up, it’s all over. As I was struggling, day after day, I went into depression, which is the typical denial, depression blah blah blah that you go through. But for 1 reason, I don’t know why, there was this specific day that I was supposed to meet my oncologist. At about 2pm, I felt this sudden surge of peace, comfort, and in fact, a little happiness. It was just overflowing.

For no rhyme or reason, it just came about 2pm, as I was getting ready, dressing up to meet my oncologist. So much so that I whats-apped all my friends that, “Bros, I just feel so good suddenly! I don’t know why, it just came!” And it was only days, or was it weeks after, that Danny revealed to me that he had fasted for 2 days for me, and he was bargaining with God, and fasted for 2 days, and he ended his fast at that exact same point, about 2pm thereabouts, that this surge of sensation came to me for no rhyme or reason. And I didn’t know that he was fasting for me. And when he ended the fast, I felt that sensation! Whoa, things were getting a bit too coincidental. I was starting to buy a bit of the story, but still I wasn’t sold. As days passed by, I completed my radiotherapy, about 2 weeks plus. Getting ready for chemo, so they let me rest for a few days. See, the mortality rate of lung cancer : Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate.

 If you add up breast, colorectal (colon) cancer, and prostate cancer (the top few cancers in Singapore for men and women), if you add up the mortality rate of these 3, it still doesn’t add up to lung cancer. Simply because, you understand, you can remove the prostate, the colon, the breast, but you cannot remove your lungs. But there’s about 10% of lung cancer patients who do pretty well for some reasons, because they have this specific mutation; we call it the EGFR mutation. And it happens, only 90% of the time, in Asian ladies who never smoked in their lives.

Me, first of all, I’m male. 2ndly, I’m a social smoker. I take one a day after dinner; weekends, when my friends offer me, I take it as well. I’m a light smoker, not a social smoker. But still, my oncologist was still not hopeful for me to have this mutation. The chances of it happening for me was maybe 3-4% for me to get it. That’s why I was being primed to go for chemo. But through all the intense prayers, friends like Danny, people that I don’t even know, it turned out that, during my waiting for chemo, the results came back that I was EGFR positive. I was like, “Woah, good news!” Cos now I don’t have to undergo chemo at that time, because there’s this oral tablet that you can use to control this disease. Just to share with you some idea – this is a CT scan – thorax – of my lungs, before treatment.

 AFTER BEFORE Every single dot there is a tumour. You can see all the mets (metastasis) there. This is just one single plane. Literally I had it in both lungs, and I had literally tens of thousands of tumour. That’s why the oncologist told me, even with chemo, at most 3-4 months. But because of this mutation, they have this oral medication. This is what happened after 2 months of treatment. As you can see over here; this is what God can do. And that’s why I’m still here having this opportunity to share with you. As you can see over here, the difference between before and after treatment. At that point, I said, “Well, it’s to be expected, isn’t it? The medicine is good.” I’m still not buying the story. Well, the guys prayed for me and the tumour markers started to come down. 90% of the tumours were wiped out, and the tumour markers came down to more than 90% over the next few months. But still, you know, once you have the clinical knowledge, you know the statistics.

One year survival, two year survival; having all this knowledge is not a good thing. Cos you live with the knowledge that even with all this, the cancer cells are so unstable, they keep mutating. They will overcome and become resistant to the drugs, and eventually you’re gonna run out of medication. So living with this knowledge is a huge mental struggle, a huge mental torture. Cancer is not just about a physical struggle, it’s a huge mental torture. How do you live with no hope? How do you live with not being able to plan for the next few years? The oncologist tells you to bear with it for the next 1 – 2 months. So it’s a lot of struggles as I went through: March, then April. April was my lowest point, in deep depression, struggling even as I was recovering. HIS ACCEPTANCE & PEACE And one of those days, I was there in bed, struggling in the afternoon, asking God, “Why? Why do I have to go through this suffering? Why do I have to endure this hardship, this struggle? Why me?” As I fell asleep, in my dreamy state, a vision just came, that says Hebrews 12:7-8. Now mind you, at this time, I had not read the bible. I have no clue what’s Hebrews, I don’t even know how many chapters there are. Totally clueless. But it says Hebrews 12:7-8, very specifically. I didn’t think too much of it. I just continued sleeping.

Then I woke up, and I said, “What’s there to lose? I’d just check it out lah!” Danny had bought me a bible; it’s still quite new. I said, “It’s ok, just try.” So I flipped to the Old Testament. Hebrews to me sounds like something ancient, so it should be in the Old Testament right? So I flipped through the Old Testament. No Hebrews there. I was so disappointed.

 Then I said, “Maybe New Testament, let’s have a look!”. WOW – New Testament, there’s Hebrew’s!! It says Hebrews 12:7-8. It says, “Endure hardship as discipline as God is treating you as His children.” I said, “WAH!! Where did that come from?” I was getting goose pimples all over my body. I said, “This can’t be, right?” I mean, what’s the chance of somebody, who has never read the bible, to have a vision of a chapter of a specific verse, that answers my question directly?

 I think God called to me directly as I was there sleeping, struggling with it, asking God, “Why do I have to suffer? Why do I have to suffer this?” And God says “Endure hardship as discipline as God is treating you as His child.” At this point, the chance of that happening is even lesser than my EGFR being positive. There’s just no way; there’s so many millions of thousands of verses in the bible, how can I just conjure up something like that? So at that point, I was sold I said, “YOU WIN! YOU WIN!!”

 Ok , I was convinced. And so from that day onwards, I started believing in my God. And the last time I heard that inner voice was the end of April. And that inner voice, same thing, in the afternoon, as I was sleeping (this time I wasn’t struggling, just going to sleep). In a dreamy state I just heard Him say, “Help others in hardship.” It was more like a command, rather than a statement. And that’s when I embarked on this journey, helping others in hardship. And I realised that hardship is not just about being poor. In fact, I think a lot of poor people are probably happier than a lot of us here. They are so easily contented with whatever they have, they’re probably pretty happy. Hardship can happen to rich people; it can be physical hardship, mental hardship, social, etc. And also over the last few months, I started to understand what this true joy is about. In the past, I substituted true joy with the pursuing of wealth. I thought true joy is about pursuing wealth. Why? Cos let me put it to you this way, in my death bed, I found no joy whatsoever in whatever objects I had – my Ferrari, thinking of the land I was going to buy to build my bungalow etc, having a successful business. It brought me ZERO comfort, ZERO joy, nothing at all. Do you think I can hold onto this piece of metal and it’s going to give true joy? Nah, it’s not going to happen. True joy comes from interaction with other people. And at a lot of times, it is a short term pride, the past. When you pursue your wealth, Chinese New Year is the best time to do it. Drive my Ferrari, show off to my relatives, show off to my friends, do my rounds, and then you thought that was true joy? You really think that those guys who sold you your Ferrari, they share their joy with you?

And your relatives, wow, they share this joy with you? In truth, what you have done is just to illicit envy, jealousy, and even hatred. They are not sharing the joy with you, and what I have is that short-term pride that wow, I have something you don’t have! And I thought that was joy! So what we have is basically a short-term pride at the expense of somebody else. And that wasn’t true joy. And I found no joy at all on my deathbed, thinking of my Ferrari – to hold on to it, sayang it?!? True joy I discovered comes from interaction. Over the last few months I was so down. Interaction with my loved ones, my friends, my brothers in Christ, my sisters in Christ, and only then was I able to be motivated, able to be uplifted. To share your sorrow, to share your happiness – that’s true joy. And you know what makes you smile?

True joy comes from helping others in hardship, and because I’ve gone through this, I know what hardship entails. In fact, there’re some cancer patients who tell me a lot of times, people come up to them and tell them, “Stay positive. Stay positive.” Yah, right. You come in my shoes and you try to stay positive! You don’t know what you’re talking about! But I have the licence. So I’ve been going out to meet other fellow cancer patients, to share with them, encourage them. And I know, because I’ve been through it, and it’s easier for me to talk to them. And most importantly, I think true joy comes from knowing God. Not knowing about God – I mean, you can read the bible and know about God – but knowing God personally; getting a relationship with God. I think that’s the most important. That’s what I’ve learnt. So if I were to sum it up, I’d say that the earlier we sort out the priorities in our lives, the better it is. Don’t be like me – I had no other way. I had to learn it through the hard way. I had to come back to God to thank Him for this opportunity because I’ve had 3 major accidents in my past – car accidents.

You know, these sports car accidents – I was always speeding , but somehow I always came out alive, even with the car almost being overturned. And I wouldn’t have had a chance. Who knows, I don’t know where else I’d be going to! Even though I was baptised it was just a show, but the fact that this has happened, it gave me a chance to come back to God. Few things I’d learnt though: 1. Trust in the Lord your God with all your heart – this is so important. 2. Is to love and serve others, not just ourselves. There is nothing wrong with being rich or wealthy. I think it’s absolutely alright, cos God has blessed. So many people are blessed with good wealth, but the trouble is I think a lot of us can’t handle it. The more we have, the more we want. I’ve gone through it, the deeper the hole we dig, the more we get sucked into it, so much so that we worship wealth and lose focus. Instead of worshipping God, we worship wealth. It’s just a human instinct. It’s just so difficult to get out of it.

 We are all professionals, and when we go into private practise, we start to build up our wealth – inevitably. So my thought are, when you start to build up wealth and when the opportunity comes, do remember that all these things don’t belong to us. We don’t really own it nor have rights to this wealth. It’s actually God’s gift to us. Remember that it’s more important to further His Kingdom rather than to further ourselves. Anyway I think that I’ve gone through it, and I know that wealth without God is empty. It is more important that you fill up the wealth, as you build it up subsequently, as professionals and all, you need to fill it up with the wealth of God. I think that’s about it. It’s good to share. Thanks. http://www.heavenaddress.com/Dr-Richard-Teo-Keng-Siang/424153/379719/content (transcript of his testimony) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umLkfADe17s

mung beans

These mung beans are still covered with their green skins. You can grow your own bean sprouts by soaking the mung beans in cold water. Keep the soaked beans in a cool place. The root will start to sprout within a couple of days.

Benefits of Honey

Honey is probably the oldest known sweetener for human kind. A healthy replacement for sugar, honey also has tremendous nutritional value and health benefits. Honey can also be used as a beauty aid and has medicinal value too. Honey is obtainable all through the year but is special in summer and fall when it is collected fresh. Read on to find out how you can partake of the benefits of honey.

Nutritional value of honey

Honey contains sugars like fructose and glucose, minerals such as potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulphur, chlorine, sodium, phosphate and iron. Vitamins B1, B2, B6, B3, B5, and C are predominant in honey. Based on the quality of the nectar and the pollen, these values keep differing. Several hormones are also present in honey and apart from all these small quantities of copper, iodine and zinc are present in honey.

Benefits of honey

Health benefits

• Honey is broadly used as an anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal.
  
  
• Honey has wonderful wound healing capacities. It can cure burns, ulcers and wounds and is used as an antiseptic curative agent.
  
  
• Honey can improve performances in athletes. The ergogenic aid present in honey helps in this.
  
  
• Honey improves blood quality by keeping a check on the free radicals.
  
  
• Honey is great substitute for sugar in people with type 2 diabetes and is good for cholesterol patients.
  
  
• Honey relieves nasal congestion, helps digestion, gives relief from cough and helps in conjunctivitis. It acts as a sleeping aid when taken with hot mug of milk.
  
  
• Honey is known to soothe tissues and help retain calcium in the body.
  
  
• Honey is known to be effective in countering anemia.
  
  
• Consumption of honey can rev up your immune system.
  

Honey as a beauty aid

• Pat your skin with honey while you go for a shower and keep patting till the honey gets really sticky, this helps improve blood circulation and lends a glow to the skin.
  
  
• Rinse your hair with honey and lime; this will add shine to your hair.
  
  
• Add ¼ teaspoon of honey to your bath and this will bring a glow to your skin.
  
  
• Mix honey with oatmeal and ground almonds, this will make for an excellent face cleansing scrub.
  
  
• When apple and honey are blend together and applied on the face for about 15 minutes, it acts as a brilliant moisturizer while also making the skin firm and soft.
  
  
• As a facial mask mix 2 tsp. of honey and 2 tsp. of milk and leave it for 10 minutes, this will get your skin glowing.
  
  
• Honey acts as a lotion for dry skin, mix ¼ tsp lemon, 1 tsp vegetable oil and 1 tsp honey and leave it for 10 minutes.
  

Flavor deserts and fruits using honey

• Honey is widely used to flavor deserts and fruits. The acidity prevailing in honey helps the fruit retain its original color. While using honey for fruits ensure that you use mild one lest the honey overpowers the fruit flavor.
  
  
• To preserve fruits for the coming winter season, add honey to the crushed or sliced fruit and freeze it. For whole fruits, add 1 cup of water and two cups of honey till the fruit is covered.
  
  
• Honey can be used as a topping for fruit puree.
  
  
• Yogurt and honey make for a great desert.
  
  
• Substitute honey for sugar while you make pancakes, it will taste great.
  
  
• Banana with some honey to top it makes for a great pudding.
  
  
• Mix honey and butter and sprinkle over your desert like cakes, this gives it a sugary and glossy look.
  

Recipe for a quick desert with honey

Fried bananas and honey

Bananas cut lengthwise
Almond flakes
Butter
Clear honey
Lemon juice

Drizzle lemon juice over the bananas. Melt butter in frying pan and cook bananas till brown on both sides. Transfer to serving plate, add almonds to the remaining butter in the pan and cook till light brown. Mix honey, heat a little and spread over the bananas, serve hot.


Buying honey and storing it

• Buy honey that is labeled 100% pure.
  
  
• Darker the color of honey, the better will be the flavor and quality.
  
  
• Buy honey that has not been pasteurized, clarified or filtered. Get it straight from the farm.
  
  
• Honey should be stored in airtight jars lest it absorb any moisture from the atmosphere.
  
  
• Store in a cool dry place.
  
  
• Honey exposed to cold temperatures tends to thicken. Honey exposed to high temperatures tends to get darker in color.
  

http://www.targetwoman.com/articles/benefit-honey.html

 

 

Jane Seabrook Illustration

Jane Seabrook Illustration

JANE SEABROOK is an illustrator and designer who lives in Auckland, New Zealand. In recent years, her artwork has focused on paintings of wildlife for the Fury Logic series of books. She shares her life with her husband, two teenage children, and a growing menagerie of assorted animals. Following are some excerpts from her Fury Logic books.

There's always a lot to be thankful for if you take time to look for it. For example, I am sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt...

15 Remedies for Back Pain Relief

15 Remedies for Back Pain Relief

By Cathy Wong, About.com Guide
http://altmedicine.about.com/od/chronicpain/a/back_pain.htm
Updated September 25, 2011

Almost everyone has back pain at some point in their lives. According to the National Institutes of Health, back pain is the second most common neurological disorder in the United States -- only headache is more common.

If you have back pain, the first step is to be properly assessed by your primary care provider. Back pain has many causes, from muscle strain to more serious conditions such as a herniated disc, spinal stenosis, spondylosisthesis, osteoporosis, or a tumor, so it's important to find out what is causing the back pain.

1) Acupuncture

A study conducted at Sheffield University in the United Kingdom looked at the long-term symptom reduction and economic benefits of acupuncture for persistent low back pain. An average of 8 acupuncture treatments were given to 159 people, while 80 people received usual care instead.

After one year, people receiving acupuncture had reduced pain and reported a significant reduction in worry about their pain compared to the usual care group. After two years, the acupuncture group was significantly more likely to report that the past year had been pain-free. They were less likely to use medication for pain relief.

How does acupuncture work? According to traditional Chinese medicine, pain results from blocked energy along energy pathways of the body, which are unblocked when acupuncture needles are inserted along these invisible pathways.

A scientific explanation is that acupuncture releases natural pain-relieving opioids, sends signals that calm the sympathetic nervous system, and releases neurochemicals and hormones.

An acupuncture treatment generally costs between $60 and $120. Acupuncture is tax-deductible (it's considered a medical expense) and some insurance plans pay for acupuncture.

If you want to try acupuncture, plan on going one to three times a week for several weeks initially.

* Find an acupuncturist
* More about acupuncture

2) Capsaicin Cream

Although you may not have heard of capsaicin (pronounced cap-SAY-sin) before, if you've ever eaten a chili pepper and felt your mouth burn, you know exactly what capsaicin does. Capsaicin is the active ingredient in chili peppers.

When it is applied to the skin, capsaicin has been found to deplete substance P--a neurochemical that transmits pain--causing an analgesic effect.

In one double-blind study, 160 people were treated with capsaicin for 3 weeks, while another 160 people used a placebo. After 3 weeks, pain was reduced by 42% in the capsaicin group compared to 31% in the placebo group. Investigators rated capsaicin significantly more effective than placebo.

Capsaicin cream, also called capsicum cream, is available in drug stores, health food stores, and online. A typical dosage is 0.025% capsaicin cream applied four times a day. The most common side effect is a stinging or burning sensation in the area.

If possible, wear disposable gloves (available at drugstores) before applying the cream. Be careful not to touch the eye area or open skin. A tube or jar of capsaicin cream typically costs between $8 and $25.

* Capsaicin cream profile
* Find capsaicin online
3) Vitamin D

Chronic muscle pain can be a symptom of vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D is found in fish with small bones, fortified milk and cereal, and exposure to sunlight.

Risk factors for vitamin D deficiency are:

* darker pigmented skin (e.g. Hispanic, African American, Asian) does not convert UV rays efficiently to vitamin D
* digestive disorders, such as celiac disease
* use of glucocorticoid medications for conditions such as lung diseases and allergies
* minimal sun exposure (elderly, institutionalized, homebound, veiled or heavily-clothed individuals)
* latitude and season - for example, people in Boston do not produce vitamin D from sun exposure between November and February

A study by the University of Minnesota looked at the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in 150 people with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Researchers found that 93% of patients had vitamin D deficiency. All people with darker pigmented skin (African American, East African, Hispanic, and Native American origin) had vitamin D deficiency.

Another interesting finding was that the majority of people with severe vitamin D deficiency were under 30 years of age. Season was not a significant factor.

The researchers concluded that all people with persistent, non-specific musculoskeletal pain should be screened for vitamin D deficiency.
4) Music Therapy

Music therapy is a low-cost natural therapy that has been found to reduce the disability, anxiety, and depression associated with chronic pain.

A study evaluated the influence of music therapy in hospitalized patients with chronic back pain. Researchers randomized 65 patients to receive, on alternate months, physical therapy plus 4 music therapy sessions or physical therapy alone.

Music therapy significantly reduced disability, anxiety, and depression. Music had an immediate effect on reducing pain, although the results were not statistically significant.

Ginger Tea Helps Digestive Problems

Ginger Tea Helps Digestive Problems

Ginger is a fairly well known root, used in preparing many dishes. I even had ginger pancakes when I was in Holland (can't say that I was a big fan, but they certainly were memorable). But did you know ginger can help with digestive ailments? Here's what Anil Minocha, M.D. has to say in Natural Stomach Care:

"Ginger--This ubiquitous and delicious root helps just about any digestive problem you can think of. Use it as a general stomach tonic, as an anti-inflammatory for the bowels, as a digestive stimulant, and as an aid for leaky gut. Westerners prefer the dried or crystallized root, but the more potent form is prepared the Eastern way by purchasing a stalk of fresh ginger root, peeling, slicing a one-inch piece into several smaller pieces, and boiling for twenty minutes. Add some honey and drink a cup of fresh ginger tea twice a day."

What is BPA?

How is BPA used?

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical building block that is used primarily to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastic is a lightweight, high-performance plastic that possesses a unique balance of toughness, optical clarity, high heat resistance, and excellent electrical resistance. Because of these attributes, polycarbonate is used in a wide variety of common products including digital media (e.g., CDs, DVDs), electrical and electronic equipment, automobiles, sports safety equipment, reusable food and drink containers , and many other products.

BPA is also used in the production of epoxy resins. Epoxy resins have many uses including engineering applications such as electrical laminates for printed circuit boards, composites, paints and adhesives, as well as in a variety of protective coatings. Cured epoxy resins are inert materials used as protective liners in metal cans to maintain the quality of canned foods and beverages, and have achieved wide acceptance for use as protective coatings because of their exceptional combination of toughness, adhesion, formability, and chemical resistance.

How much BPA is produced?

In 2002, approximately 2.8 million tons of bisphenol A (BPA) was produced globally (Source: Chemical Market Associates, Inc. (CMAI)). Most BPA is used to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins.



Has BPA been tested for safety?

Yes. Bisphenol A (BPA) is one of the most extensively tested materials in use today. BPA has been safely used in consumer products and researched and studied for over 40 years. The weight of scientific evidence clearly supports the safety of BPA and provides strong reassurance that there is no basis for human health concerns from exposure to BPA.



Does BPA pose a risk to human health?

Safety assessments of bisphenol A (BPA) conclude that the potential human exposure to BPA from polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins is more than 400 times lower than the safe level of BPA set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This minimal level of exposure to BPA poses no known risk to human health.

The use of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins for food contact applications has been and continues to be recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food, the United Kingdom Food Standards Agency, and other regulatory agencies worldwide.



Am I exposed to BPA from polycarbonate plastics?

Researchers from government agencies, academia, and industry worldwide have studied the potential for bisphenol A (BPA) to migrate from polycarbonate products into foods and beverages. These studies consistently show that the potential migration of BPA into food is extremely low, generally less than 5 parts per billion under conditions typical for uses of polycarbonate products. At this level, a consumer would have to ingest more than 1,300 pounds of food and beverages in contact with polycarbonate every day for an entire lifetime to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Consequently, human exposure to BPA from polycarbonate plastics is minimal and poses no known health risk.

The use of polycarbonate plastic for food contact applications continues to be recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Commission Scientific Committee on Food, the United Kingdom Food Standards Agency, the Japan Ministry for Health and Welfare and other regulatory authorities worldwide.




Am I exposed to BPA from can linings?

Government and industry researchers have reported that bisphenol A (BPA) is generally not detected in canned beverages and only extremely low levels (generally less than 37 parts per billion) of BPA have been reported to migrate into some canned foods. At these levels, a consumer would have to ingest more than 500 pounds of canned food and beverages every day for an entire lifetime to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Consequently, human exposure to BPA from can coatings is minimal and poses no known health risk.

Can coatings continue to be recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.K. Food Standards Agency, the EU Scientific Committee on Food and other government bodies worldwide.




Does BPA leach out of dental sealants?

Several studies have reported that trace levels of bisphenol A (BPA) may be released from certain dental sealants, but only during a short time period immediately after application of the sealant. In addition, the highest level of BPA exposure reported from dental sealants is more than 50,000 times lower than levels shown to cause toxicity in animal studies. Based on these findings, human exposure to BPA from dental sealants is minimal and poses no known health risk.



What about claims that very low-dose exposure to BPA has resulted in reproductive effects in laboratory animals?

The low-dose hypothesis for bisphenol A (BPA) has been thoroughly tested with a series of comprehensive, carefully conducted studies. This research includes definitive large-scale studies as well as studies aimed at replicating the results of studies reporting low-dose effects. The consistent lack of low-dose effects found in these studies demonstrates that the low-dose hypothesis is not valid.

The weight of scientific evidence clearly supports the safety of BPA and provides strong reassurance that there is no basis for human health concerns from exposure to low doses of BPA.



Is BPA used in pesticides?

No. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency records, bisphenol A (BPA) has not been used as an inert ingredient in pesticide products in the U.S. since at least 1994. BPA's status as an (inert) pesticide ingredient was recently rescinded by EPA, according to the June 11, 1999 Federal Register. According to the notice, BPA was removed from a listing of approved inert substances because it was not in use as an additive.



Is BPA found in the environment?

Although the vast majority of bisphenol A (BPA) is converted at manufacturing sites into products, low-level releases of BPA to the environment are possible. Government researchers have reported that, when detected at all, BPA is found in water at levels generally well below 1 part per billion.

Extensive testing and environmental monitoring shows that BPA is rapidly biodegraded in the environment. The weight of scientific evidence shows that the trace amounts of BPA that are sometimes detected in waterways pose no risk to the environment.


http://www.bisphenol-a.org/about/faq.html

Menstrual-Cramps

Menstrual-Cramps
Natures Solution

Concern: Menstrual-Cramps

Remedy: Ginger Tea

Why it works:

Ginger contains two substances, gingerols and shagaols, that tone the muscles of the digestive tract, neutralize stomach acid and stimulate the production of digestive juices.

Ginger is often used as a general remedy to settle the stomach.

It also has numerous pain-reducing and anti-cramping compounds.

How to use it:

There are several ways to take ginger.

You can eat a piece of fresh, peeled ginger, up to a half-inch piece, four times a day, as needed.

Or you can steep a piece of fresh ginger in hot water to make tea.

Health food stores also carry crystallized ginger, where fresh ginger is infused with sugar to make a sweet yet pungent treat.

Ginger is available in powdered, tablet form as well.

What to watch out for:

Ginger can hinder your blood's ability to clot, so avoid it in the few days before and after any surgery or if you are on blood-thinning medication.

If you are suffering from morning sickness, check with your doctor before self-prescribing ginger.

Other remedies to consider:

Menstrual-Cramps Remedy: Peppermint

Why it works:

Peppermint is prized for antispasmodic and antigas properties, among other benefits.

It's also a mild stimulant, you'll often see it in tea that is labeled "refreshing" or "restorative."

This multitasking herb has a mild numbing effect as well.

How to use it:

Make tea out of one to two ounces of dried peppermint leaf and eight ounces of water.

It's also available in capsule form.

Make sure it's enteric-coated.

Buy it from a reputable health food store and read the package for dosage.

What to watch out for:

Don't use peppermint if you suffer from acid reflux.

Because peppermint relaxes the sphincter between the esophagus and the stomach, it can encourage stomach acid to flow upward, making heartburn or indigestion caused by acid reflux worse.
Menstrual-Cramps Remedy: Evening primrose oil

Why it works:

Evening primrose oil is a good source of gamma-lineolic acid (GLA), an essential fatty acid that is often found to be lacking in women who are suffering from PMS.

The body converts GLA into prostaglandins, which act like hormones to regulate certain bodily functions such as inflammation and muscle contraction.

In Europe, evening primrose oil is often used to treat the bloating, cramping and breast tenderness associated with PMS.

How to use it:

Take up to two teaspoons of evening primrose oil a day, with food.

Menstrual-Cramps Remedy: Raspberry leaf tea

Why it works:

Raspberry leaf tea has been used for many years by women to ease menstrual cramps.

Researchers believe it could be the plant's pycnogenol that helps ease uterine muscle contractions.

Raspberry leaf tea is also a traditional remedy for the discomfort associated with the third trimester of pregnancy and is used to help prepare the uterus for birth.

How to use it:

Brew a tea using dried or fresh raspberry leaves.

Allow it to steep for up to 10 minutes.

Menstrual-Cramps Remedy:

Kava kava (Piper methyscticum)

Why it works:

Kava grows naturally on islands in the South Pacific.

There, it has traditionally been brewed into a beverage and served to promote a sense of calm and well-being.

It is a natural tranquilizer with none of the foggy side effects of other prescription calming agents.

It also has compounds that help relax uterine muscles.

How to use it:

Take a few drops of tincture under the tongue as needed.

What to watch out for:

There have been numerous reports of liver failure in people who take kava kava in Europe.

NOTE *** Do not use it for extended periods of time (more than one month), or at all if you have liver problems, regularly consume alcohol or are on any medication that also compromises liver function.

The Honey You Should Never Buy

The Honey You Should Never Buy - It May Be Tainted with Lead and Antibiotics
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 28 2012

By Dr. Mercola

Bees have been dying off around the world for more than a decade now, a phenomenon that has been named "Colony Collapse Disorder," or CCD.

The U.S. and the U.K. both reported losing a third of their honeybees in 2010. Italy lost half.

The die-offs have spread to China and India, in addition to many other countries.

A third of the U.S. food supply requires the assistance of the honeybee.

The collapse of bee colonies is probably multifactorial, rather than a response to one type of toxic assault.

Although experts don't yet understand all of the underlying factors and how they interact to cause our pollinators to disappear, they agree about one thing: if we allow this to continue, our already-limited global food supply is at risk, which means more than 7 billion humans occupying this planet are at risk as well.

The common honeybee pollinates 130 different crops in the U.S. alone, including fruits, vegetables and tree nuts.

Without our bees, almonds, pumpkins, watermelons and other varieties of melon, and even vanilla, could completely disappear.

Haagen-Dazs donated $250,000 to research into bee colony collapse disorder because it says the honeybees are responsible for 24 of its 60 ice cream flavors, including strawberry, toasted pecan and banana split.

As usual, at the core of the problem is big industry, which is blinded by greed and enabled by a corrupt governmental system that permits the profit-driven sacrifice of our environment. Unfortunately, this motivation reflects an extreme shortsightedness about the long-term survival of the human race, as well as of our planet. Not only are commercial agricultural practices harming honeybee colonies, but your own health is being compromised by deceptive marketing practices about the "honey" you buy, some of which isn't really honey at all, despite what it says on the label.

Honey: Nectar of the Gods

Pure, natural, unfiltered raw honey has an abundance of medicinal and nutritional uses, including the following:

A bounty of nutrition, including enzymes, antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins and minerals Promotes the growth of friendly bacteria in your intestinal tract
Good for your skin
Helps with occasional sleeplessness
Promotes heart health by reducing homocysteine levels
Tames allergies
Can help fight viruses, such as herpes, and bacteria, such as that present in chronic sinusitis
Helps sooth a cough
Helps prevent tooth decay

A special kind of honey that has healing benefits far exceeding that of ordinary honey is called Manuka honey. Manuka honey is made by bees that feed off the flowers of the Manuka bush, a medicinal plant native to New Zealand. Fake honey is unfortunately common in this era of food manipulation and control. Some Chinese brokers sell a mixture of sugar water, malt sweeteners, corn or rice syrup, jaggery, barley malt sweetener or other additives, and label it "honey". A recent report by Food Safety News reveals just how often they get away with this trickery.

Is Your Honey Fake?

In a new report by Food Safety News, more than 75 percent of the honey on American supermarket shelves may be ultra-processed—to the point that all inherent medicinal properties are completely gone—and then smuggled into the country by the barrel drum. Nearly all of this fake honey is made in China. Some of these brokers will even create bogus country of origin papers. All 60 jars of "honey" tested by FSN came back negative for pollen (including Sue Bee and Winnie the Pooh brands), which is a clear sign of ultra-processing.

According to FSN:

"The removal of these microscopic particles from deep within a flower would make the nectar flunk the quality standards set by most of the world's food safety agencies. The food safety divisions of the World Health Organization, the European Commission and dozens of others have also ruled that without pollen, there is no way to determine whether the honey came from legitimate and safe sources."

Millions of pounds of honey that have been banned by the European Union are being smuggled into the U.S. from China. Much of this honey is tainted with illegal antibiotics, including chloramphenicol, which can cause DNA damage and cancer, and heavy metals like lead. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that any product that's been ultra-filtered and no longer contains pollen IS NOT honey.

In their investigation, FSN discovered the following:

76 percent of honey samples bought at grocery stores (such as TOP Food, Safeway, QFC, Kroger, Harris Teeter, etc.) were absent of pollen
77 percent of the honey from big box stores (like Costco, Sam's Club, Walmart, and Target) were absent of pollen
100 percent of the honey sampled from drug stores (like Walgreens, Rite-Aid, and CVS Pharmacy) were absent of pollen

The good news is, all of the samples from farmers markets, co-ops, and natural stores like Trader Joe's had the full, proper compliment of pollen, as did organic brands from common grocery stores. But fake honey—the sorry substitute that it is—might be the ONLY thing even remotely resembling honey that you'll be able to get if we don't find a way to save our honeybees from total global collapse.

HUMANS are Casing the Demise of the Bees

Each year, commercial beekeepers have reported unprecedented losses. Steve Ellis, secretary of the National Honey Bee Advisory Board and a beekeeper for 35 years, had so many abnormal bee die-offs that he'll qualify for disaster relief from the USDA.

The main theories are the following:

Malnutrition of the bees due to destruction of their food supply, causing irreparable damage to their immune systems, which makes them more vulnerable to toxic exposures and pathogens, like viruses and fungi
Toxic pesticides, especially the newer systemic pesticides, insecticides, and genetically engineered crops, are a massive source of toxic exposure to the bees
Microwaves from cellular phones have been shown to cause CCD within 10 days, apparently by affecting the bees' communication with the hive and disrupting their navigational ability
Changing global climate, drought, and migratory stress brought about by moving bee colonies long distances to provide pollination services

The EPA claims that new systemic pesticides are safer for humans because farmers can use less of them. However, experiments show that agricultural chemicals that are safe for bees when used alone are lethal in combination. Farmers increasingly combine sprays. They also destroy nearly all flowering weeds, depriving bees of essential nutrients from different kinds of pollen.

Bee Very Afraid...

While much has been made over the "mystery" surrounding CCD, the problem began shortly after neurotoxic pesticides, which are known to be particularly toxic to honeybees, took over the global insecticide market. These relatively new pesticides are called neonicotinoids. Two prominent examples, Imidacloprid and Clothianidin, are used as seed treatments in hundreds of crops.

Virtually all of today's genetically engineered Bt corn is treated with neonicotinoids. A Purdue University study found multiple sources of pesticide exposure for honeybees living near agricultural fields, including high levels of Clothianidin in agricultural machinery exhaust, in the soil of unplanted fields near those planted with Bt corn, and on dandelions growing in those fields. The chemicals were also found in dead bees near hive entrances and in pollen stored in the hives.

Bee colonies began disappearing in the U.S. shortly after EPA allowed these new, toxic insecticides to be used. Even the EPA itself admits that "pesticide poisoning" is a likely cause of the collapse of bee colonies.

These insecticides are highly toxic to bees because they are systemic, water soluble, and very pervasive. They get into the soil and groundwater where they can accumulate and remain for many years and present long-term toxicity to the hive. They enter the vascular system of the plant and are carried to all parts of it, as well as to the pollen and nectar.

These chemicals affect insects' central nervous systems in ways that are cumulative and irreversible. Even minute amounts can have profound effects over time. Foraging insects may become disoriented and unable to find their way back to the hive.

Jim Frazier from Penn State sampled hives from across the U.S. and found an average of six different pesticides in each hive, with one hive testing positive for 31 different pesticides, some of which are of the systemic varieties. Beekeepers everywhere are concerned for their own livelihood, in addition to being fearful of the broader implications of CCD. But one small Colorado beekeeper has served as a one-man sting operation in exposing the EPA's negligence on this issue.

Courageous Beekeeper Battles Negligent Regulators on Behalf of Bees

Colorado beekeeper Tom Theobald became concerned about the effects systemic pesticides were having on his bee colonies. Theobald discovered that EPA allowed Bayer Crop Science, manufacturer of Clothianidin, to market its pesticide for public use without safety studies. Clothianidin has been used commercially for eight years now, with no good safety studies to back it up. Theobald uncovered the documents proving that Congress gave Bayer a thumbs-up to market their product while awaiting the results of a safety study, promised to be complete within 18 months.

And guess who conducts and funds honeybee studies?

The pesticide companies themselves… the fox is again guarding the henhouse. The EPA merely receives the report from the pesticide company, has its scientists make a recommendation, and then EPA administrators make a decision about product safety, supposedly based on good science. In this case, there is NO good science to be found—at least coming from Bayer.

The supposedly scientific research by Bayer proved to be woefully inadequate. Bayer performed the study on one 2.5-acre plot of land planted with canola seed. However, this is a mere fraction of the area foraged by a typical bee colony. In fact, the average area foraged by such a colony is 28,000 acres! Theobald called Bayer's study a "mockery of science" because it was nowhere near an accurate representation of the bees' natural habitat.

So, Theobald wrote an article for the July 2010 issue of Bee Culture, which created quite the buzz. The EPA changed their tone in response to his article, admitting the Bayer study was deficient. Nevertheless, they haven't pulled Clothianidin from the market. According to the Pesticide Action Network:

"Governments in Italy, Germany, France and elsewhere have already taken action against neonicotinoids to protect their pollinators. And beekeepers there are reporting recovery. Yet regulators in the U.S. remain paralyzed, apparently captive to industry-funded science and a regulatory framework that finds chemicals innocent until proven guilty."

No Simple Answers—Persistence is Key

Saving the honeybee will require much more than removing one or two pesticides from the market. It will require a complete change in the mindset and values of industry, and the regulators they hold captive. There is no force for change greater than that fueled by public outrage, so I encourage you to spread the word. Educate your friends, your family… your grocery bagger!

If the goal of pesticides is to increase food yield to more easily feed 7 billion human beings, this goal falls flat on its face if it leads to the collapse of our food chain.

As Tom Theobald says, we can eliminate this one product, maybe, but that won't solve the problem. In a year or two, there will just be another equally dangerous chemical, unless we can change the conditions that lead to the problem. And this means we must yell loud enough to awaken our government from its stupor.

Some folks are doing just that. Honeybee sanctuaries are springing up everywhere, as the award-winning documentary Queen of the Sun shows. Many city dwellers are becoming smalltime backyard beekeepers. If you are interested in supporting the cause, you can check out some of the following websites to guide you in how you can help.

Queen of The Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us? - Official Trailer [HD]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekoeQodrVoM&feature=player_embedded