So on my random stroll through facebook - I see a post where someone says that if people ate more fruits and vegetables, they would avoid cancer. Wow I guess that means no vegetarians have ever had cancer? Imagine that!
Another helpful individual then states that the cause of cancer is an acidic environment in the body. Seems possible - but again if it were really that easy - we would be rid of cancer once and for all.
Now I know that everyone has great intentions and wishes the cancer patient nothing but the best.
The problem with these posts is that it suddenly creates a case of finger pointing at the cancer patient.
My question is this. Does the person posting these cancer related
posts stop to think that maybe the person battling for their life does
not need to be prodded about how they have failed?
How if they had
just eaten the right foods they would not be in this situation. Or
perhaps that maybe if they had just had a little more information such
as the poster had they would have been immune to the cancer altogether?
And if the facebook posts really are accurate and have pinpointed the
cause of cancer, perhaps the poster can feel confident with the
information that they will never have a diagnosis. Who knows?
I recently sat at a party where someone told me that her friend who drank diet soda was diagnosed with cancer - almost blaming her for her beverage choices and diagnosis. This is where I have to ask , " What makes anyone immune? " Do people really walk around thinking that because they eat half way decent that they are never going to hear the word cancer? That would be outstanding! But sadly I happen to know that it does not work that way.
My other favorite post is where people post about how a cancer patient only wants to live and to
" repost" if you know someone battling cancer or have lost someone to cancer. Newsflash! Cancer patients, survivors, family members and friends do not need a facebook reminder about the nightmare of cancer. And you making a copy to re- post or email in a chain letter is not going to help anyone.
If anything it is nothing but a reminder of the worst nightmare anyone can face.
As a cancer survivor I am amazed at undercurrent of blame that is placed on the cancer patient.
Of course no one really comes out and says it , but when you get to the end of the day and someone is fighting for their life- do everyone a favor - let the person battling for their life do just that ...without also having to question every choice , every meal, ever carrot, whether organic or not that they made over their lives.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Healthy 2011
If you or someone you know has dealt with cancer, you know very well that it is not a road you choose, but one you have to deal with.
For those of us who have survived, and those in treatment, the best thing you can do for yourself is have a positive attitude, and by that I mean knowing that you are interested in living.
Find something that interests you, a hobby, or interest/
There is nothing better than an occupied mind to take it off of the treatment.
Create a vision board of what you want your life to include after treatment.
Looking forward keeps us INspired - or as I like to say IN SPIRIT... so hang in there and fight the good fight!
To your best year yet!
Natasha
For those of us who have survived, and those in treatment, the best thing you can do for yourself is have a positive attitude, and by that I mean knowing that you are interested in living.
Find something that interests you, a hobby, or interest/
There is nothing better than an occupied mind to take it off of the treatment.
Create a vision board of what you want your life to include after treatment.
Looking forward keeps us INspired - or as I like to say IN SPIRIT... so hang in there and fight the good fight!
To your best year yet!
Natasha
Thursday, February 4, 2010
ONIONS??
From time to time I come across information that I feel might be helpful to someone, so here is the latest on ONIONS!
n 1919 when the flu killed 40 million people there was this Doctor that visited the many farmers to see if he could help them combat the flu. Many of the farmers and their family had contracted it and many died.
The doctor came upon this one farmer and to his surprise, everyone was very healthy. When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different, the wife replied that she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then). The doctor couldn't believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and place it under the microscope.. She gave him one and when he did this, he did find the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the bacteria, therefore, keeping the family healthy.
Now, I heard this story from my hairdresser in AZ. She said that several years ago many of her employees were coming down with the flu and so were many of her customers. The next year she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop. To her surprise, none of her staff got sick. It must work.. (And no, she is not in the onion business..)
The moral of the story is, buy some onions and place them in bowls around your home. If you work at a desk, place one or two in your office or under your desk or even on top somewhere. Try it and see what happens. We did it last year and we never got the flu.
If this helps you and your loved ones from getting sick, all the better. If you do get the flu, it just might be a mild case.. Whatever, what have you to lose? Just a few bucks on onions!!!!!!
Now there is a P. S. to this for I sent it to a friend in Oregon who regularly contributes material to me on health issues. She replied with this most interesting experience about onions:
Thanks for the reminder.. I don't know about the farmers story.. but, I do know that I contacted pneumonia and needless to say I was very ill... I came across an article that said to cut both ends off an onion put one end on a fork and then place the forked end into an empty jar....placing the jar next to the sick patient at night. It said the onion would be black in the morning from the germs.. sure enough it happened just like that.. the onion was a mess and I began to feel better.
Another thing I read in the article was that onions and garlic placed around the room saved many from the black plague years ago. They have powerful antibacterial, antiseptic properties.
This is the other note.
LEFT OVER ONIONS ARE POISONOUS
I have used an onion which has been left in the fridge, and sometimes I don't use a whole one at one time, so save the other half for later.
Now with this info, I have changed my mind.. will buy smaller onions in the future..
I had the wonderful privilege of touring Mullins Food Products, Makers of mayonnaise.. Mullins is huge, and is owned by 11 brothers and sisters in the Mullins family. My friend, Jeanne, is the CEO.
Questions about food poisoning came up, and I wanted to share what I learned from a chemist.
The guy who gave us our tour is named Ed. He's one of the brothers. Ed is a chemistry expert and is involved in developing most of the sauce formula. He's even developed sauce formula for McDonald's.
Keep in mind that Ed is a food chemistry whiz. During the tour, someone asked if we really needed to worry about mayonnaise. People are always worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed's answer will surprise you. Ed said that all commercially- made Mayo is completely safe.
"It doesn't even have to be refrigerated. No harm in refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary." He explained that the pH in mayonnaise is set at a point that bacteria could not survive in that environment. He then talked about the quaint essential picnic, with the bowl of potato salad sitting on the table and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick.
Ed says that when food poisoning is reported, the first thing the officials look for is when the 'victim' last ate ONIONS and where those onions came from (in the potato salad?). Ed says it's not the mayonnaise (as long as it's not homemade Mayo) that spoils in the outdoors. It's probably the onions, and if not the onions, it's the POTATOES.
He explained, onions are a huge magnet for bacteria, especially uncooked onions. You should never plan to keep a portion of a sliced onion.. He says it's not even safe if you put it in a zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator.
It's already contaminated enough just by being cut open and out for a bit, that it can be a danger to you (and doubly watch out for those onions you put in your hotdogs at the baseball park!)
Ed says if you take the leftover onion and cook it like crazy you'll probably be okay, but if you slice that leftover onion and put on your sandwich, you're asking for trouble. Both the onions and the moist potato in a potato salad, will attract and grow bacteria faster than any commercial mayonnaise will even begin to break down.
So, how's that for news? Take it for what you will. I (the author) am going to be very careful about my onions from now on. For some reason, I see a lot of credibility coming from a chemist and a company that produces millions of pounds of mayonnaise every year.
Also, dogs should never eat onions. Their stomachs cannot metabolize onions. Please remember it is dangerous to cut onions and try to use it to cook the next day, it becomes highly poisonous for even a single night and creates Toxic bacteria which may cause Adverse Stomach infections because of excess Bile secretions and even Food poisoning.
I hope this information finds you well, and please feel free to leave your comments or pass this onto others.
Natasha Duswalt
n 1919 when the flu killed 40 million people there was this Doctor that visited the many farmers to see if he could help them combat the flu. Many of the farmers and their family had contracted it and many died.
The doctor came upon this one farmer and to his surprise, everyone was very healthy. When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different, the wife replied that she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then). The doctor couldn't believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and place it under the microscope.. She gave him one and when he did this, he did find the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the bacteria, therefore, keeping the family healthy.
Now, I heard this story from my hairdresser in AZ. She said that several years ago many of her employees were coming down with the flu and so were many of her customers. The next year she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop. To her surprise, none of her staff got sick. It must work.. (And no, she is not in the onion business..)
The moral of the story is, buy some onions and place them in bowls around your home. If you work at a desk, place one or two in your office or under your desk or even on top somewhere. Try it and see what happens. We did it last year and we never got the flu.
If this helps you and your loved ones from getting sick, all the better. If you do get the flu, it just might be a mild case.. Whatever, what have you to lose? Just a few bucks on onions!!!!!!
Now there is a P. S. to this for I sent it to a friend in Oregon who regularly contributes material to me on health issues. She replied with this most interesting experience about onions:
Thanks for the reminder.. I don't know about the farmers story.. but, I do know that I contacted pneumonia and needless to say I was very ill... I came across an article that said to cut both ends off an onion put one end on a fork and then place the forked end into an empty jar....placing the jar next to the sick patient at night. It said the onion would be black in the morning from the germs.. sure enough it happened just like that.. the onion was a mess and I began to feel better.
Another thing I read in the article was that onions and garlic placed around the room saved many from the black plague years ago. They have powerful antibacterial, antiseptic properties.
This is the other note.
LEFT OVER ONIONS ARE POISONOUS
I have used an onion which has been left in the fridge, and sometimes I don't use a whole one at one time, so save the other half for later.
Now with this info, I have changed my mind.. will buy smaller onions in the future..
I had the wonderful privilege of touring Mullins Food Products, Makers of mayonnaise.. Mullins is huge, and is owned by 11 brothers and sisters in the Mullins family. My friend, Jeanne, is the CEO.
Questions about food poisoning came up, and I wanted to share what I learned from a chemist.
The guy who gave us our tour is named Ed. He's one of the brothers. Ed is a chemistry expert and is involved in developing most of the sauce formula. He's even developed sauce formula for McDonald's.
Keep in mind that Ed is a food chemistry whiz. During the tour, someone asked if we really needed to worry about mayonnaise. People are always worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed's answer will surprise you. Ed said that all commercially- made Mayo is completely safe.
"It doesn't even have to be refrigerated. No harm in refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary." He explained that the pH in mayonnaise is set at a point that bacteria could not survive in that environment. He then talked about the quaint essential picnic, with the bowl of potato salad sitting on the table and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick.
Ed says that when food poisoning is reported, the first thing the officials look for is when the 'victim' last ate ONIONS and where those onions came from (in the potato salad?). Ed says it's not the mayonnaise (as long as it's not homemade Mayo) that spoils in the outdoors. It's probably the onions, and if not the onions, it's the POTATOES.
He explained, onions are a huge magnet for bacteria, especially uncooked onions. You should never plan to keep a portion of a sliced onion.. He says it's not even safe if you put it in a zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator.
It's already contaminated enough just by being cut open and out for a bit, that it can be a danger to you (and doubly watch out for those onions you put in your hotdogs at the baseball park!)
Ed says if you take the leftover onion and cook it like crazy you'll probably be okay, but if you slice that leftover onion and put on your sandwich, you're asking for trouble. Both the onions and the moist potato in a potato salad, will attract and grow bacteria faster than any commercial mayonnaise will even begin to break down.
So, how's that for news? Take it for what you will. I (the author) am going to be very careful about my onions from now on. For some reason, I see a lot of credibility coming from a chemist and a company that produces millions of pounds of mayonnaise every year.
Also, dogs should never eat onions. Their stomachs cannot metabolize onions. Please remember it is dangerous to cut onions and try to use it to cook the next day, it becomes highly poisonous for even a single night and creates Toxic bacteria which may cause Adverse Stomach infections because of excess Bile secretions and even Food poisoning.
I hope this information finds you well, and please feel free to leave your comments or pass this onto others.
Natasha Duswalt
Monday, January 18, 2010
Don't fight! Surrender!
Ok, so I know that if you are out there with a cancer diagnosis, that everyone has been up your tree about " the fight against cancer" and how you need to " fight" to stay alive...I get it.
I have been there, heard every cliche and come to my own conclusions as well.
For me, cancer was not a fight, but more like a sucker punch in the stomach. By the time I recovered from the hit, another one was coming right at my head, with the news of the chemo I would be taking for the next 6 months. Getting back from the doctor would be another slam right in the chest as I would watch my 2 year old jump on my bed giggling, wondering if I would see him go to kindergarten. The bone marrow test was another cheap shot to my lower back, kicking me while I was down. Each day came with a bully called cancer designed to take me down any way possible. I met with fear, anger, and despair at different points of each day.
After months of suffering and the mental marathon that goes along with the whole cancer journey, I had to choose how I wanted to handle this thing.
My biggest problem is that I felt like my whole life was a fight to survive. I had survived child abuse and neglect, I had lived in foster care, I had watched my mother die on my birthday, and honestly I had really had enough of the " fight" aspect of life.
Now I know that for most people that the " fight" works for them, but for me it was a surrender.
When I was diagnosed, there were moments when I actually felt a bit of relief because now I had a reason to slow down and take care of myself. Before I was always on survival mode, now I had the chance to learn how to actually LIVE!~
For me I had to surrender, completely.
I had to surrender to the fact that I did not have all the answers.
I had to surrender to the fact that someone else was going to be in charge.
I had to surrender to my faith in God and that he knows way better than I do what I need.
I had to surrender to God that I needed him more than I wanted to admit.
I had to surrender that if I did not make it that my kids would be ok, and that my husband would do a great job without me... this was my hardest moment, and it was the moment that saved my life.
A complete surrender means thinking all of the thoughts that you never want to think and realizing that it is ok, no matter what the outcome.
I am still scared, I am not invincible, and still even with all that I have been through, I will tell you that I want to control things all the time, and when I do, is when I am most stressed.
Ok I get it....I surrender!
Remember, cancer is a word, not a sentence...
I have been there, heard every cliche and come to my own conclusions as well.
For me, cancer was not a fight, but more like a sucker punch in the stomach. By the time I recovered from the hit, another one was coming right at my head, with the news of the chemo I would be taking for the next 6 months. Getting back from the doctor would be another slam right in the chest as I would watch my 2 year old jump on my bed giggling, wondering if I would see him go to kindergarten. The bone marrow test was another cheap shot to my lower back, kicking me while I was down. Each day came with a bully called cancer designed to take me down any way possible. I met with fear, anger, and despair at different points of each day.
After months of suffering and the mental marathon that goes along with the whole cancer journey, I had to choose how I wanted to handle this thing.
My biggest problem is that I felt like my whole life was a fight to survive. I had survived child abuse and neglect, I had lived in foster care, I had watched my mother die on my birthday, and honestly I had really had enough of the " fight" aspect of life.
Now I know that for most people that the " fight" works for them, but for me it was a surrender.
When I was diagnosed, there were moments when I actually felt a bit of relief because now I had a reason to slow down and take care of myself. Before I was always on survival mode, now I had the chance to learn how to actually LIVE!~
For me I had to surrender, completely.
I had to surrender to the fact that I did not have all the answers.
I had to surrender to the fact that someone else was going to be in charge.
I had to surrender to my faith in God and that he knows way better than I do what I need.
I had to surrender to God that I needed him more than I wanted to admit.
I had to surrender that if I did not make it that my kids would be ok, and that my husband would do a great job without me... this was my hardest moment, and it was the moment that saved my life.
A complete surrender means thinking all of the thoughts that you never want to think and realizing that it is ok, no matter what the outcome.
I am still scared, I am not invincible, and still even with all that I have been through, I will tell you that I want to control things all the time, and when I do, is when I am most stressed.
Ok I get it....I surrender!
Remember, cancer is a word, not a sentence...
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Life after Cancer..
For many cancer survivors there is an overwhelming feeling of relief when a clean bill of health comes from the doctor.
The other side of the coin is the feeling of " what if" that comes along with the news.
" What if" it comes back? " What if" something else goes wrong. This type of thinking can become so distracting that your daily life can be consumed with fears.
The one thing I try to remember is that anything can happen to anyone at any time.
We have nothing but our ability to look at the best possible scenarios to get us through the days.
And a day with the people you love is worth smiling about.
Remember that cancer is a word, not a sentence, if you have been set free, start living.
You are not defined by your illness, but more in how you overcome it.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Toxins in our cosmetics
Apparently, there are ingredients found in cosmetic products that are possibly causing cancer. My friend Renee sent me this email & I looked it up on the internet wanting more information. Well guess what, there's tons of discussion on this topic. I'll sum up one link, breast cancer tissue was examined and found what could only be a build up of ingredients from topical products. I Googled 'paraben link to cancer,':http://www. health-report. co. uk/parabens. htmhttp://www. mindfully. org/Pesticide/2004/Parabens-Breast-Significance1jan04. htmhttp://www. mindfully. org/Pesticide/2004/Methylparaben-Deodorant-Cancer12jan04. htmThis is from the Health Report webite:'We have been warning people about the potential toxic effects of parabens for ages and how the increase in breast cancer and all cancers could be directly attributed to chemicals in the body. (This includes of course the shocking revelations that HRT was directly responsible for another 20,000 women to contract cancer recently.) Not just from using underarm deodorants either. Virtually all so-called 'skin Care' products have dangerous chemicals in them. Parabens are just one of a large bunch of toxic chemicals that no-one has any idea of what the long term effects are if you use them every day on your skin.' 'If you want to be free of all the toxic chemicals that vested interests tell you are 'good' for your skin and 'safe' don't use them! Period! The only safe products we recommend for use on the skin are Certified Organic products that are made to food grade standards. Yes you could eat them - because they are 100% free of all synthetic chemicals.'Just look in the ingredient listing of your lotions/washes and if you find words ending with 'paraben' it is probably a good idea not to buy this product. I looked at all the face/body washes, masks and lotion in my cabinet finding a few with the 'paraben' ingredient; expensive lines too! One product line in my cupboard didn't show the ingredient in the night-time lotion but had parabens in the day-time lotion. Check your deodorants and shampoo/conditioners too. When shopping you will find a couple product lines are even stating 'Paraben Free' on the front because this is a growing concern. If you shop or do your research online it is really easy to find paraben free products.Here is an excellent resource, where you can look up cosmetics to see how they score on various parameters (including paraben content): http://www. cosmeticsdatabase. com We have to take care of ourselves and each-other. If you have any info on parabens, please let me know.
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