Bisphenol A - BPA

BPA (bisphenol A) is regarded as an endocrine disruptor, in other words it can stuff up your hormones. 

For those of you who requires want more info, here it is...

This paper ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23954212 ) implies that exposure to BPA (bisphenol A) can alter estrogen metabolism pretty significantly.  The paper goes on to show that BPA increases 4-hydroxyestrogens, which is the most genotoxic of the estrogen metabolites.  
 
Interestingly, this study found estrogen (Estrone and Estradiol) was higher in men and women exposed to high levels of BPA, but they went on to show that higher percentages of the Estrone and Estradiol were metabolized to 4-hydroxyestrogens and less to the more protective 2-hydroxyestrogens.  

Exposure to a xenoestrogen (BPA), higher levels of  E2 and more 4-hydroxyestrogens is a bad mix for cancer risks.  But wait, they only found BPA in 97.3% of those they tested!  2.7% of us are just fine!  Actually, in all seriousness, the levels in the "high BPA" group were 10 times higher than the "low BPA" group.  That is a lot of BPA.  The average American (from a 2003-2004 study) showed levels of BPA right in between these two groups, so it is a concern.  Higher levels are found in those who develop cardiovascular disease, diabetes and liver enzyme abnormalities. 

This is one solution, by recycling your glass jars and using them for storing your food.

Other references:
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/sya-bpa/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2967230/

Toasted Coconut Flakes

Simple Snack…

Available at Nowra Mall store

Spread coconut flakes on a baking tray, put it on low heat and grill for 15-20mins.

Once it turns light brown, they're ready!

Warning…they're highly addictive!

Chia Porridge with Goji Berries (shared by Alvina Foo)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp Goji Berries

3 tbsp Honest to Goodness organic sultanas

2 tbsp organic cacao powder

2 tbsp raw honey

4 cups of organic almond milk ( may substitute with other milks)

3/4 cup Organic chia seeds

Toppings:

Any kind of berries eg strawberries

Goji berries

Toasted flake coconut 

(You can get most of these ingredients from our Nowra Mall's store, apart from the fruit and milk!)

Method:

• Blend all the ingredients apart from chia seeds in a blender for 1-2 minutes. 
• Pour in the chia seeds. Briefly mix it with a fork for 15 seconds. 
• Blend the mixture for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until chia seeds are thoroughly mixed. 
• Pour the mixture into a container. 

I generally prepare this the night before, because you need to give the chia seeds some time to "swell". In this case, at least 30-45minutes. Before serving, top the porridge up with berries, goji berries and lightly toasted flake coconut. And enjoy!!!

Homemade Chocolate - Dinosaurs and Stars (Shared by Alvina Foo)

Homemade Chocolate - Dinosaurs and Stars

Ingredients:
1 cup of organic cocao nibs or cocao powder
1 cup of organic apricots
1/2 cup of organic coconut oil
1/2 cup organic dessicated coconut
15mL of organic maple syrup (depending on the level of sweetness you prefer)
A handful of organic inca berries

You do not have to use organic if you don't want to. The reason I prefer to use them is because some of these products would otherwise contain sulphur dioxide (E220). My son is asthmatic and any asthmatics should avoid this additive as it can trigger breathing difficulties. It is also found to cause stomach upsets. Even though I'm not asthmatic, whenever I consume products with E220, I start getting wheezy. Therefore I try to avoid them. 

In regards to the maple syrup, 15mL is a very modest amount. Personally, I find that the apricots and the inca berries are going to add to the sweetness. You may prefer to use 20-25mL if you prefer your chocolate to be sweeter. 

 If you are using cocao nibs, pop them in a high powered blender and set it on High to reduce them to powder. The blender I used is Bio Chef Blender, this is 950W. Love it as it's not as expensive as some of the other ones and works as a food processor as well. If you're in the Nowra region and keen to get one, let us know as we can order one for you. 

Place the dessicated coconut in the grill and put it on low heat until it turns light brown. Keep an eye on it as it doesn't take long to toast them. They smell delicious when toasted!

Chop up the apricots.

• Heat up a small amount of water in a saucepan to create a water bath. Place the coconut oil in a glass container and melt the oil over the water. 
• Once the oil is melted completely, remove from the stove.  
• Mix in the cocao powder and maple syrup with the oil. Mix well. 
• If you do not have molds, line baking trays or any containers with grease paper. 
• Spread the chopped apricots and dessicated coconut on the baking trays or molds. I put an inca berry in each mold, as I like its tanginess. 
• Pour the chocolate mixture into the molds or tray. 
• Stick them in the freezer for 30 minutes to harden. If you're using anything else other than the molds, I recommend that you remove them from the freezer after about 15 minutes where it is still soft enough to break them into pieces before popping them back in the freezer again. 

And the results...

The 4 myths about Cold and Flu

The common cold is what we see everyday in the pharmacy. When it comes to recommending a suitable cough and cold product, this area is definitely within our expertise.

Myth #1

"I'm buying a Cold and Flu tablets because I want to "nip it in the bud, before it gets worse".

Truth

Cough and cold products control your symptoms, so that you don't have snot streaming down your nostrils constantly. Yeah, not a good look! Some cough mixtures suppress your cough. Other cough expectorants are formulated to thin or liquify your mucus so that you can get rid of it with more ease. 

In general, they are good for symptom control and make you socially more acceptable when you have a cold! 

Myth #2

"Panadol is good for my kids' cold".  

Truth

Parents are over-using Panadol (ingredient = Paracetamol) or Nurofen (ingredient = Ibuprofen) liquid for cold. Paracetamol and ibuprofen are only for PAIN and/or FEVER. They are called analgesics. 

Myth #3
"I am vaccinated against the flu this year, so I shouldn't get the flu at all."

Truth
There is still a possibility you could get the flu even if you got vaccinated. The ability of flu vaccine to protect a person depends on various factors, including the age and health status of the person being vaccinated, and also the similarity or “match” between the viruses used to make the vaccine and those circulating in the community. If the viruses in the vaccine and the influenza viruses circulating in the community are closely matched, vaccine effectiveness is higher. If they are not closely matched, vaccine effectiveness can be reduced. 

Myth #4
You can catch the flu from the vaccine

Truth

The vaccine is made from an inactivated virus that can't transmit infection. People who get sick after receiving a flu vaccination, were going to get sick anyway, this may be coincedental. The vaccine does takes a week or two to get protection from the vaccine. 

Any natural products that work to control symptoms?

Yes. Depending on your symptoms, you can use different tissue salts or celloids. I love using them because they can be used by the very young, the very old and pregnant ladies. They often don't just control the symptoms, they help you recover quicker too!

I can't afford to be sick, I need to get well quickly!

In my household, no one gets sick for more than 4-5 days. Often people have their cold symptoms for more than a week or two! They're either not getting the right advice, not taking the advice correctly or taking the wrong stuff. 

There are lots of natural remedies out there that work really well to help you with a speedy recovery. So, do come in and ask us how we can make you feel better quicker!

If someone in your family or office is sick, come in and talk to us because it is possible to prevent you from getting sick or at the very least minimise the severity of your sickness.

Do yourself a favour, come in ASAP when you get symptoms!

Bad Cholesterol Promote Cancer

Big Headline...

Recently, there's a study that made the headline , University of Sydney has found that too much low density lipoprotein not only increases the risk of coronary heart disease but it’s also been implicated as a risk factor for cancer.

According to Associate Professor Thomas Grewal from the University’s Faculty of Pharmacy, “Most of the cells in our bodies stick to neighboring cells through the help of ‘Velcro-like’ molecules on their surface known as integrins. Unfortunately, integrins also help cancer cells that have broken away from a cancerous tumor to take root elsewhere in the body.”

The researchers found that elevated LDL cholesterol encourages tiny packets of integrins to migrate outside of cancer cells, which in turn enables cancer cells to spread throughout the body. Conversely, the researchers also found that elevated HDL or “good” cholesterol prevents the spread of integrins outside of cancer cells, which can protect against the spread of cancer.

These findings may help explain why cancer cells absorb more LDL cholesterol than healthy cells — they’re taking up the lipids in order to facilitate their own spread. The researchers believe that treating high cholesterol in cancer patients could significantly reduce the risk of metastasis. They also believe that keeping cholesterol within healthy limits is essential for cancer prevention. These findings could lead to the development of new cancer treatments that stop the spread of cancer cells by blocking their ability to take up LDL cholesterol.

How to manage cholesterol?

Nutritional and dietary therapy, weight loss, exercise, and scientifically proven nutritional supplemention should be used initially to manage cholesterol. If the person do not respond to non-drug treatment and is at high risk or very high risk for coronary heart disease, medication should be used. This is such a huge topic. I'll have to revisit and add more information about the management many times I think!

What are some of the non-drug therapies?

In this blog, I'm just going to touch on two of these. They are Dietary Fiber and mixed Vitamin E.

Dietary Fiber are classified into soluble and insoluble fiber. 

Available in store

Here is how fiber lowers cholesterol: It binds to the bile acid in the gut known as LDL cholesterol, the "bad cholesterol" and limits its absorption back into the body. The soluble fibre that binds to the bile acid passes through the digestive tract and is eliminated as body waste. This means less bad cholesterol circulating in your body and less risk of developing heart disease in the future. Soluble fibre also slows down stomach emptying and will make you feel fuller for longer. To reduce cholesterol with soluble fiber, you'll need between 2-10g per day. 

Vitamin E consists of a mixture of tocopherols and tocotrienols. There are alpha, beta, gamma and delta tocopherols and tocotrienols. Most of the ones you get in supermarkets only consist of d-alpha tocopherol. The tocotrienols have a stronger antioxidant than tocopherols. Tocotrienols are more effective in reducing LDL and total cholesterol if the tocotrienols concentration used is high and tocopherols concentration is low. You may have come across reports every now and again, stating that Vitamin E has not been shown to help in certain conditions? If you look closer to those studies, most of them only used the d-alpha tocopherol. This mixed Vitamin E is also available in store.