In Remission...Now What?

So you have been through chemo and radiation with success...and are in remission...congratulations!!!

Now what? There will always be the fear of "will it come back"...we cannot shut that switch off in our brain. Yes, we can have a positive attitude... but there will be days. My husband had a morning like this today. Since "our blog" is for his journey, I am going to "talk" to those who have been there, speaking on behalf of your friends and family members asking my opinion of what you can do to ensure your body remains healed. Keep in mind, this is my personal opinion...I am not a doctor or giving medical advice, and by putting my recommendations into action is no guarantee. No one has a guarantee on life..mine can come to end tomorrow just as much as the next person.

I am a book-learned, research driven person...and my recommendations are based on holistic wellness approaches as to what I WOULD DO FOR MYSELF.

For anyone...whether you are in remission, or going through treatment, there is a pretty inexpensive test you can have done that measures the cancer cells in your bloodstream - it is called an HCG test.  Read more about it here, at the Navaroo Medical Clinic. Basically, taken every two months if in a current treatment plan, it will tell you whether or not your treatment is working. For those in remission, I would probably take the test twice a year or as often as you feel comfortable. As long as your number remains constant or goes down...you are on the right path. I am willing to bet your doctor, probably even your oncologist, is not aware of this test.

If this test were done during treatment...it would provide an early on indicator if the chosen path of treatment is successfully working. If not, find a new treatment plan of action.

We just sent away for this test for my husband, and I sent a sample in for myself as well. For $55 I can have peace of mind knowing I have cancer at bay. OR I may get a red alert and will get even more serious about a more healthy eating plan... I know I have sugar too often in one week - I am fueling my cancer cells each time I have a sweet treat.We all have cancer cells once we get past 30 - actually, with today's toxic world I don't doubt my kids have cancer cells as well. However, it is one's ability to switch cancer cells on or off that matter - and fortunately, for many our body is functioning and the off switch is working.

This is what I would do for myself if I were in remission:
- Monitor with the HCG test to measure cancer cell levels
- use pH strips to monitor my acidity to alkaline levels weekly
- eat an 80/20 diet (vegetarian/animal based foods - another way to look at this: alkaline/acidic foods)
- utilize a pure, full spectrum super green food - this will fuel cells with oxygen (more on this Sept 1)
- shop organic as much as possible
- avoid any and all artificial ingredients as well as high glycemic
- use CLEAN and PURE skin care, shampoo, etc
-  avoid chemical cleaners/pesticides in the home, and artificial fragrances (i.e. no artificial candles/plug ins)
- use a full body/organ detox protocol quarterly (look for broken cell chlorella)
- ensure the estradiol to progesterone ratio is in balance if my cancer involved any reproductive organ or breast (ZRT Labs offers test kits)
- monitor vitamin levels, D and magnesium deficiency is prevalent in cancer patients
- support the immune system - diet is key, supplementation often necessary
- utilize infra-red heat or sauna if possible - sweat - turn up the heat, not with strenuous activity, which can weaken the immune, but with heat sourcing products

Truths about cancer:
1. cancer cannot survive in an alkaline environment
2. an oxygen deprived cell fuels cancer
3. sugar fuels cancer - if your doctor says you can eat anything you want - DON'T LISTEN!!
4. cancer cells are compromised at temps over 109.4 degrees F

This is what I would do if I were in remission. I would do pretty much the same if I were in a battle with cancer - but would step up the anti-oxidant, oxygen rich food sources.

May healthy be your new happy,
Rita S.

Embrace the Sun for Its Cancer Protecting Benefits

A common deficiency in breast cancer patients, according to Dr. Russell Blaylock's January 2012 Wellness Report ...is Vitamin D. Vitamin D also plays an important role in preventing prostrate and colon cancers. Dr. Joseph Mercola also discusses the cancer protective benefits of Vitamin D in his article.

Now that summer is here we tend to slather on toxic sunscreen that not only blocks that essential D vitamin from the sun, the ingredients in the sunscreen actually promote cancer cell growth.
We think we are protecting ourselves, when in actuality we are promoting cancer on two accounts.
1. Dumping carcinogens and endocrine disruptors into our body through its largest absorption pathway, the SKIN.
2. Blocking the essential vitamin D from the sun that can kill of existing cancer cells.

Don't be fooled - as adults cancer cells exist because we have spent a life time creating an imbalance by our food and product use choices, and environmental toxins out of our control. The big question for the summer, what are you going to do about it? Fuel those dangerous cells, or fuel your body with pH correct food and products, and get your Vitamin D?

There are safe sunscreens available...but you will need to be wary and make an educated sunscreen choice. My family chooses Arbonne as our safe brand, when in the mid-day sun. As well, all sunscreens don't perform the same and must reapplied as directed, if you are going to spend a day outdoors, whether in the water, or not. But before you apply sunscreen be sure to get 20-30 minutes of unfiltered sun in the morning hours, before the sun becomes too intense, to help your body absorb the essential Vitamin D hormone.

For mid-day, covering up is smart - it not only protects skin from being burned, but it provides an insect barrier as well for those working in gardens and lawns. Wear COTTON clothing, not synthetics.

Vitamin D is essential for hormone balance and nutrient absorption. Check with your local holistic health care provider for options to have hormone levels tested, and include Vitamin D in the panel. My own family has used ZRT Labs, which also provide results with their test kits.

In excess Vitamin D can be harmful, however, an interesting documentary had interviewed a doctor in Florida who finds that most of his patients are deficient. Because we spend so much time indoors during the day, this should not be surprising. Working with a health care provider that understands hormone balance and how to help the body re-balance naturally is ideal for long-term health.

This summer I encourage you to embrace the sun as your friend. Greet it each morning, with an early day walk, or find a place to sit and mediate and pray, read, or enjoy the sound of singing birds.

May you feel great, look great and live great from the inside out,

Rita S.

Are Your Genes Controlling Your Health

Nutrigenomics can overcome your genetic predisposition. Diseased cellls are FUELED by the choices you make, and unfortunately, sometimes those choices are made for us. (As an example, a lawn or city park that is sprayed by chemicals that drift into your "intake zone".  

Genetic tendencies, a family tree laden with cancer, does not mean you are assured of getting the disease - unless you continually think about it and as in many areas of our life, including our health "what you think about, you bring about". Fact is, a very small percentage of cancers are actually from genetic make-up - less than 5%. The majority of cancer is caused by environmental exposures.  This is a topic I have written about in great lengths - if any of you have beared with me on those particular posts.

For those concerned about genetic make up and disease - there is GREAT NEWS!  The field of Nutrigenomics has made great strides in recent years.  Holsitc wellness is CURING cancer whereas traditional treatment continues to poison the human body so that it often manifests as another disease, or different cancer, years later - per the holistic and alternative medicine books and newsletters that  I read.  A book I highly recommend is "Cancer is Not a Disease, It's A Survival Mechanism"..

Our genetic mapping begins in the womb, obviously, and it comes in part from the hormones of both parents...a lack thereof of one hormone or another will affect offspring. Some babies already have predispositions to certain traits, such as brain triggers, type 1 diabetes, from birth and early on in their lives.  This is one reason why, as an adult, having hormones tested is a good place to start if you have a concern of family health history.   DNA chains become genes and many many thousands of genes become cells.  

CELLS DIE. CELLS POPULATE.   100 billion red cells, 400 million white cells are produced every hour.

Back to cell death...apoptosis.  This is healthy...we WANT cells to die.  The trouble starts when cells do not die after they do their job.  This happens 94% of the time, because of environmental factors.  Genetics, as I mentioned, accounts for a scant percentage of cancer. In addition to the chemicals in our foods and hygiene products, X-rays, radiation and medication also play a role in contributing to cancer.  It stands to reason that if new cells are generating and "old" cells are dying and excreting from the body - that we can become a new being over and over again, and healthier every day if we cease exposure to environmental toxins and foods.

This article is three years old, and from all that I have read the science of nutrigenomics has advanced. There are nutrients that can flip the switch on a gene "just like that". 

Hormones also play a role - with estrogen producing the Bcl-2 cancer-causing gene, whearas progesterone produces p-53, the cancer-protective gene (1990 Formby and Wiley research published Annals of Clinical Laboratory Science)

Progesterone, a natural hormone made by both men and women, is the only hormone that can counter excess estrogen. Most people are out of balance, with the body containing more estrogen than progesterone.  Women are usually imbalanced by age 35. For one, we tend to use more hygiene products than  men, most of which have endocrine disruptors. 

Men's progesterone levels decrease by age 50 - allowing estrogen to get out of hand. Testosterone alone does not cause prostrate cancer...a common sense statement by Dr. Michael Platt in his book "The Miracle of BioIdentical Hormones", states that if prostrate cancer were caused by too much testosterone we would have an epidemic amongst 17 yr old boys. The first time I read that it was an AHA moment - makes a lot of sense, don't you agree?  I do believe that traditional medicine is finally catching one a little bit, as they give drugs that prohibit estrogen.  It's too bad, in my opinion, that more oncologists and men don't know that bio identical progesterone can do JUST THAT - keep the estrogen levels in check.    One study referenced in a book shows that enlarged prostrate reduces and prostrate cancer cells die when progesterone is added and brought back into balance.

Many auto immune diseases are also caused in large part by hormone imbalance and dietary choices.  A family history of disease does NOT DICTATE a future of the same.  Educate yourself on the particular "disease", or as author Moritz describes, a SYMPTOM you may be prone too.  THEN change your DNA by nutrigenomics.  Find a knowledgeable naturopath, and if one is not available to you - the books certainly are.  Many are found in your local library for FREE.

Take an ATTITUDE CHECK.  If it is "woe is me....I come from a line of XYZ disease so I know I will get it" - YOU WILL.  I encourage you to be an OVERCOMER!!   Take control of your CELLS - yes, you can! Fuel them with anti-oxidants that can overcome the free radicals that mutate cells.  Avod the endocrine disruptors.  Make healthy choices 80% of the time. Use pH strips to monitor your body's acidic vs. alkaline status, and if is on the acidic side - consume more anti oxidants n the form of vegetables to tip the scale towards alkaline.  Disease cannot survive an alkaline state. Which is another topic I will not get into...thanks for reading, I hope that this post gives you HOPE if you feel you have been dealt a deck of diseased. genes. It's how you play those cards that will determine if you WIN and enjoy health!

To your health, 
Rita S.