We are going to talk over the next several days about managing pain naturally, because it is becoming increasingly important after a pharmaceutical industry has offered so many dangerous choices - even medications for pain relief that have turned out to be fatal in certain cases that had to be recalled by the FDA. 

So, we are going to suggest several natural ways to manage pain, and of course, an herbal pain killer option that helps to manage pain naturally through the use of several natural, purely grown and harvest herbs that fight inflammation and also help interfere with pain receptors and reduce the feelings of pain. 

There are a staggering number of over the counter and prescription medications on the market for pain management.  While many of these pain medications may control the pain for some time, there is the concern of side effects, especially long term, and the possibility of building a tolerance and addiction.
Besides the method of popping pills for management of pain, there are also a number of alternative natural treatments for controlling pain.  There is acupuncture, biofeedback, relaxation techniques, guided imagery, meditation and massage.  These can help with naturally relieving joint pain and muscle pain as well as nerve damage related pain. 

Acupuncture utilizes needles strategically placed to affect the flow of energy.  The needles used are extremely fine so they do not cause pain by insertion.  If considering acupuncture, check the credentials of the practitioner.
Biofeedback is most useful for people with headaches, back pain and arthritis.  A machine measures pain and your response to it physiologically as in tensing up muscles.  A therapist coaches you on relaxation of the involves muscles thus allowing you control of pain and stress.
 

And this time, it’s still not good news, and I have to keep reminding myself that by drinking one of my guilty pleasures, Diet Coke, I may slowly be killing off vital components of my DNA!  Soda has long been under scrutiny for containing a chemical that prevents the soda from molding and acts as a powerful preservative for this type of drink called Sodium Benzoate.  But that’s not Benzene, so what’s the problem, right?  Wrong…

This is something I didn’t know, but Benzene is actually what is the converted end product that comes from Sodium Benzoate when the chemical is mixed with Vitamin C.  The results are nothing short of disastrous when these two mix and create Benzene, because according to multiple studies done on DNA, this combination causes serious cell damage and mitochondria destruction.  Something that may help protect cells and put back intact the myelin sheaths that protect them as well as protect against cell destruction I’d recommend is an Omega 3 dietary supplement.

It actually helps to destroy the protection our DNA offers us, and therefore may contribute to terrible diseases such as MS and other neurologically degenerative diseases and cancers, among many other diseases and illnesses that can occur when our DNA and cells are compromised or weakened dramatically. 

The benzene containted in four sodas was so bad at one time that the formulas for those sodas was recalled because of public health concern, so why are regular sodas still allowed to remain on the market with such high amounts of a volatile and potentially life threatening chemical?  Just one of many questions we ask ourselves every day about this messed up food approval system…..

Well, we have what may be considered a major failure of the FDA drug approval process on our hands. The popular blockbuster drug called Avandia has been in the news the past few days for causing more than a 40% increase in the risk for heart attacks and also death in patients.

Remember the movie Erin Brockovich?  The movie, which came out in the year 2000, featured Julia Roberts playing the outspoken legal assistant Erin Brockovich. 

It was about a legal battle against a plant called PG&E which became a class action lawsuit, one of epic proportions that set precedents for other large class action suits asking for millions in damages, for misleading the area of Hinkley, CA residents about the level of potentially toxic chemical chromium in their drinking water. 

More specifically, higher than acceptable levels of a type of chromium called hexavalent chromium were in the area’s drinking water supply because of their activities and lack of disclosure about the potential hazards of the area drinking water because of the chemical. 

Now, tests on lab animals are finally offering conclusive proof that when this toxic chromium substance is ingested via water, it is indeed a cancer causing agent, and may also infect other areas of the system, causing any array of health issues.  The mice that drank chromium-laced water developed malignant tumors in their intestines as well as in their mouth.

While researchers acknowledge that the levels of chromium were much higher in the water fed to the test subject mice than they were in any human drinking water anywhere, they still say it’s compelling evidence that chromium does in fact have a definite link to cancers. 

This is actually how all chemicals and compounds are tested as to whether they are safe in drinking water, with sky high levels of the chemical being tested, so researchers can get a cumulative effect feel and also see whether the chemical has any statistical relation to the occurrence of certain types of cancer and tumors. 

Many studies were showing that drinking in moderation was good for a person’s health.  Most of these studies claimed that moderate drinking actually helped to keep your heart and arteries in good condition.  Also, alcohol was noted to be beneficial in decreasing tension.
 Now, even newer research is focusing on another area as it relates to alcohol use, our brains. The very latest findings show that alcohol use, even in moderation, cumulatively over time, causes brain shrinkage.  While drinking moderately may benefit our heart, it is detrimental to the brain.  In the Framingham study, 1,839 people had MRI brain scans to determine the effects of their drinking habits on the brain.  The participants in the study ranged in age from 34 to 88.
 The findings showed that the heavy drinkers had signifigantly more brain atrophy than the moderate to light drinkers.  Only the participants in the study that were abstainers had no alcohol related brain shrinkage.  The effect of alcohol on the brain was more pronounced in the women than the men.
 Next time it’s cocktail hour or you have that evening glass of wine or two, consider the brain drain and think if it’s worth it.  For anyone abusing alcohol, especially women who are more vulnerable to adverse effects, the proven brain atrophy is one more sound reason to seek help for breaking the addiction.