Minerals List & Their Food Sources

Natural Health Treatment (NHT) highly recommends an "all round mineral" supplement, Vemma’s New Vision brand Ionic Minerals. The brand has (1) trace minerals (2) in their ionic form (3) which taste good but (4) have a sugar-free option for diabetics, and (5) are free from heavy metals.

I'm not advocating this but think it worth posting on as minerals are frequently lacking in our present-day food that is grown in mineral-depleted soil. But following is a listing of minerals that the body needs every day and followed by foods which are rich in the respective minerals. Eating right for one's health is SO MUCH BETTER than popping a pill for two main reasons - (1) the vitamins and minerals in food function synergetically with one another, something that can't happen effectively in chemically formed supplements, and (2) chemically formed supplements, although they are "natural", are still held together by talc and binders that are yes, chemically processed and therefore are in some small or great way toxic to the body. My suggestion, eat your way to good health.

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Common mineral deficiencies and foods for replenishing them:

Word of caution: Eating raw foods to replenish nutrients is the best bet as overdosing and throwing off the body's balance is easy with mineral supplements, but not with food.

Source - click to enlarge

Boron (B): apples, carrots, grapes, other raw fruits (except citrus), nuts, legumes, vegetables in general. Most often used for: arthritis

Calcium (Ca): blackstrap molasses, salmon, green leafy vegetables, almonds, sesame seeds, cheese, yogurt and other dairy products, broccoli, nettles, burdock root, parsley, raspberry leaves, yarrow, marshmallow root and yellow dock. Most often used for: osteoporosis, muscle cramps, heart palpitations, arthritis, brittle nails, pregnancy support, eczema, and high blood pressure. Note: Many types of calcium supplements are on the market, but choosing the correct one is essential as excess can cause high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, arthritis, and kidney stones.

Chromium (Cr): New Vision Ionic Minerals, blackstrap molasses, beef and other meats/poultry/fish, brown rice, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, dulse (seaweed), and  mushrooms. Most often used for: anxiety and nervousness and other serious mental challenges, ADD, depression, type II diabetes, hypoglycemia, heart diseases associated with coronary artery problems and infertility

Copper (Cu): blackstrap molasses, parsley, New Vision Ionic Minerals, Standard Process Labs brand Chezyn, almonds, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, oats and other whole grains and legumes, nuts, seafood, sunflower oil and whole wheat. Most often used for: anemia, baldness, joint problems, improper cholesterol ratios, aneurysms, and retinal degeneration

Germanium (Ge): New Vision Ionic Minerals, mushrooms, seeds, vegetables (especially garlic and onions) and bran. Most often used for: cancer, asthma, arthritis, high blood pressure and osteoporosis

Iron (Fe): blackstrap molasses (maximum 2 teaspoons/day), parsley, leafy green vegetables, sea vegetables such as dulse, kelp and nori wrappers, prunes, black cherries, meat and seafood, nuts, whole grains and legumes, burdock, yellow dock, nettles and raspberry leaves. Most often used for: iron deficient anemia, decreased stamina and energy, weak immune system, digestive disorders (Crohn’s, Celiac, difficulty swallowing) and irritable nerves. Note: Two signs you may need natural iron supplements are ice chewing and a tan chin and cheek area when the rest of the face is a lighter complexion. Parasites can cause anemia.

Iodine (I): sea vegetables (kelp, dulse, nori wrappers), sesame seeds, raw spinach, zucchini, asparagus, Celtic sea salt, soy and soy products, garlic. Most often used for: thyroid problems, fatigue, and weight issues. Note: Some foods block the update of iodine into the thyroid gland when eaten raw and in large amounts. Iodine blocking foods include: Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, peaches, pears, cooked spinach and turnips. For an underactive thyroid, limit the intake of these substances to 4 cups/week.

Magnesium (Mg): blackstrap molasses (max of 2 teaspoons/day), dark green vegetables, potatoes (especially the skin), beans and other legumes, whole grains, almonds and other nuts, meat and fish, soy products, apricots, bananas, coconut (the organic unsulfited kind), dates, figs and avocados. Most often used for: constipation, hyperexcitability, nervousness, asthma, chronic fatigue, glaucoma and retinal problems, high blood pressure, heart problems (congestive heart failure), valve problems, arrhythmias), insomnia, muscle cramping and multiple sclerosis. Note: Potatoes grown on magnesium deficient soils (like Washington) are susceptible to the Potato Scab Virus, the virus thought to be linked with the same virus that causes Multiple Sclerosis in humans. Avoid scabby skinned potatoes.

Manganese (Mn): definitely parsley (1-2 tablespoons/day chopped and raw), green leafy vegetables, oats, pineapple, nuts, spinach, peppermint, apples, apricots, blueberries, celery, egg yolk, and whole grains. Most often used for: tendon and ligament problems (very common problems), tinnitus, skin rashes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, memory problems, diabetes, and breast problems

Molybdenum (Mo): beans and other legumes, dark green leafy vegetables, eggs, whole grains and wheat germ. Most often used for: asthma and gout

Oxygen (O): A diet with a minimum of 1 1/2 cups of raw fruits and 1 1/2 cups of raw vegetables daily will keep the body producing healthy red blood cells stocked with hemoglobin. Exercise or deep breathing exercises are essential to keep oxygenated. Self-test: Look at the little white moons at the base of your fingernails, all fingers except the little fingers should have moons. Without them, the body may not be getting enough oxygen to all the different organs. Oxygen fights off cancer because cancer can’t grow in oxygenated tissues.

Phosphorus (P): eggs, beans and other legumes, almonds, pumpkin seeds (great for prostate and normal hormone function in both males and females), sesame seeds (great for seasonal affective disorder and other forms of depression), bran and whole grains. Most often used for: bone pain, nosebleeds, and trembling.

Note: People who often drink soda pop (more than 4 per week), can easily imbalance the system resulting in too much phosphorus and not enough calcium and magnesium, a common cause of kidney stones and osteoporosis/osteopenia.

Potassium (K): Fresh fruits and vegetables of all kinds, blackstrap molasses, fish, dates, bananas, beans, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, brown rice, and nettles. Most often used for: heart disease, muscular fatigue and weakness, dry skin, depression, edema, insomnia, and counteracting acid bodies and replenishing the alkaline reserve

Selenium (Se): parsley, blackstrap molasses, mushrooms, nuts, salmon and other seafood, sesame seeds, vegetables, wheat germ, chicken, nettles, yarrow, raspberry leaf, garlic and whole grains. Most often used for: immune system stimulation, asthma, thyroid disease, heart disease, high cholesterol, macular degeneration (Standard Process brand Chezyn is an awesome product for this containing chelated zinc, copper and selenium in a natural food-based formula), abnormal pap smears, cancer and liver diseases

Silicon (Si): horsetail, radishes and other root vegetables, New Vision Ionic Minerals, whole grains, brown rice, soy and soy products and green peppers. Most often used for: weak nails that break and tear easily, healthy skin and hair, pliable blood vessels, Alzheimer’s disease, and osteoporosis

Sodium (Na): celery, kale, sesame seeds, Celtic sea salt, apples, carrots, and hot peppers are all good sources of organic sodium which replaces the inorganic molecules we get from salted and prepared foods. Most often used for: high blood pressure, glaucoma, dehydration, and brain dysfunctions such as memory, depression, confusion, hallucinations, seizures, and poor coordination. 

Sulfur (S): eggs, garlic, onions, dried beans, cruciforms (cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale) and soy. Most often used for: arthritis, asthma, back and joint pain and skin disease

Vanadium (V): parsley, snap beans, mushrooms, radishes, soy and soy products, olives, whole grains, seafood, corn and gelatin. Most often used for: diabetes, bone and tooth development, and dental health

Zinc (Zn) (the most common mineral deficiency): pumpkin seeds and other nuts, oatmeal, eggs, parsley, wheat germ and Standard Process brand Chezyn.  Most often used for: Prostate health, healthy immune function, impotence, menopause and perimenopausal health, memory, skin disease, pancreas and thyroid health, macular degeneration and other eye disorders, and bowel dysfunction. Note: A significant amount of zinc is lost through perspiration.

Once mineral deficiencies are noted, checking the entire periodic chart to see if the body is harboring any excesses in heavy metals and gasses is necessary.

The information on this page comes from Natural Health Treatment, in a slightly condensed and more succinct form.

Potassium, Vital for Cell Development

In our fast food and convenient instant food world today, millions are suffering the consequences of the commercialized, processed foods that by their denaturing are potassium deficient. In result, skin and muscle tone become bad, the flesh does not cling firmly to the body's bony framework, lines and wrinkles fill the face and skin. One common ailment visible in many today is the prolapsing eyelids, that is, flabby excess skin starts to hang over the eye and making thousands turn to eyelid surgery every year. Droopy eyelids, wrinkled skin and loss of skin and muscle tone are the signs of potassium deficiency, not specifically related to the aging process.

Too bad potatoes are too starchy for me ... but there
so many other vegies that I CAN eat (see below!)

Potassium helps prevent hair loss, brittle teeth and nails, sinusitis, runny nose, toxic waste in the body, plus stunted growth. Potassium is vital for cell production and cell growth as well as the maintenance of the body. "Potassium deficiency is a proven contributing cause of many illnesses including: arthritis, kidney stones, atrial fibrillation, adrenal insufficiency, celiac disease, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, ulcerative colitis, hypothyroidism, irritable bowel syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, Crohn's disease, lupus, atherosclerosis, diabetes and stroke." Linda Page, ND, PhD Healthy Healing (www.healthyhealing.com). Parkinson's patients, people with systemic candida, IBS and cancer patients all need the revitalizing of potassium-rich foods to combat the evil happening within their bodies due to disease onset.

The human body can be likened to a flower or vegetable garden. Potassium is necessary for the health production of the substances that lend rigidity to plant stems and increase their resistance to the myriad of attacking diseases. Likewise, potassium is the element that changes seeds into plants and fuels the blooming of flowers. Without sufficient potassium, plants become stunted, and if the insufficiency continues, plants wither, turn yellow and die. In the same way, humans (and animals) also suffer from slow degeneration leading to cell death from potassium deficiency.

The healthy human body, balanced with vital potassium and other vitamins and minerals, can better withstand the attack of diseases and the aging process. People create their toxins by their eating and living habits. The properly nourished, healthy body gets a new bloodstream, a river of life continually circulating nutrients throughout the body, every 90 days. Every 11 months a set of billions of miraculous blood cells are replaced, and every 2 years the body rebuilds an entire new set of bones and hard tissues. The two great enemies of this recreation of the body are the toxic poisons from foods, air, water and soil that we ingest and the nutritional deficiencies created by an unhealthy diet. The truth of "we are what we eat" is exemplified by our dietary choices.

Potassium could be called the great detergent of arteries. It slows down hardening and clogging processes that cause harm to the whole cardiovascular system, and makes the flesh healthier and tenderer. There is little doubt, in animal or man, that the main function of potassium is to keep the tissues healthy, soft and pliable, as well as work to head off heart attacks and strokes. It can be said that potassium is to the soft tissues what calcium is to the hard structures. Potassium keeps the body young and supple, calcium keeps our frame strong and erect.

Body signs of potassium deficiency

• bone and muscle aches and pains, especially lower back
• the body feels heavy, tired and moving is an effort
• dizziness and/or shooting pains when straightening up after leaning over
• morning dull headaches upon arising and when stressed
• dull, faded-looking hair that lacks sheen and luster
• scalp itchiness and dryness; dandruff; premature hair thinning or balding
• hair is unmanageable, mats, often looks straw-like, is sometimes dry and sometimes oily
• eyes itch, feel sore and uncomfortable and appear bloodshot and watery
• eyelids may be granulated with white matter
• eyes tire easily and will not focus as they should
• physical and mental tiredness with the slightest effort
• loss of mental alertness and onset of confusion, making decisions difficult
• memory failure, even familiar names and places are easily forgotten
• easily impatient and irritable with family, friends, and people in general
• nervousness, depression, in a mental fog, difficulty accomplishing things due to mental fatigue, even the slightest effort leaves exhaustion, upset and trembling
• at times, hands and feet are chilled, even in warm weather, a clear sign of potassium deficiency

Much of this information comes from the insightful book Apple Cider Vinegar: Miracle Health System by Bragg and Bragg.

Anti-inflammatory Kimbap

Kimbap (Korean) or sushi (Japanese) - call it what you will, but this version has different oils and different ingredients for filling so it's not the "traditional" seaweed laver rolls found in Asia. Typically laver rolls are made with white rice - inflammatory as it's a processed starch that quickly converts to sugar in the body - and the rice is deliciously flavored with sesame seed oil, an inflammatory oil, at least for people with problems of inflammation, for instance, people with rheumatoid arthritis, SLE (lupus), MS and other related autoimmune diseases. Then the vegies inside are typically pickled - very inflammatory! Strips of highly processed meats are added - processed meats are loaded with sulfites! And then processed salts, which most often include MSG are then added. Yikes, but I react to it all! So I made my own version of kimbap, an anti-inflammatory version.

Anti-inflammatory Kimbap (almost raw)

1 sheet unoiled, unsalted seaweed laver

1/2 cup sticky brown rice, cooked

2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

sea salt

1-2 mustard leaves

1-2 kales leaves

1/4 ripe avocado

2-3 cherry tomatoes

1 thin strip cucumber

Mix the cooked brown rice with the lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic and a little sea salt. Then spread the mixture out on a sheet of seaweed laver. The oiled and salted seaweed laver of course tastes better BUT it has been oiled with corn oil (inflammatory) and salted with processed salts which likely include MSG and certainly contains chemicals from the processing. The unoiled, unsalted laver isn't as tasty but the good side is that it doesn't tear as easily when spreading the moist rice mixture AND my eyes won't burn afterwards as a reaction. Also when spreading the mixture, leave a 3/4-inch strip of laver free of rice. After rolling the laver roll this strip will adhere to the roll, making the roll retain its own shape.

 

After the rice has been spread out thinly and evenly, pile the vegies on the lower area of the riced section. Don't pile it too high or the roll will be too fat to role and will tear.

 

Next, role the vegies tightly to make a roll. A little moisture could be added if necessary to the strip of exposed laver at the end to make it seal.

With a very sharp, serrated knife, cut the laver roll into 1/2 - 3/4" rounds and lay them on a plate. Serve with a little extra garnish - tomato, wedge of avocado or even on a decorative bed of greens.

Unfortunately, because I have to watch my carb intake in order not to feed the evil bacteria in my system too much and gradually "starve" it, I can't eat more than one kimbap roll at a time. That's a bummer because they taste so good!

5 Stages of Candida

The Wellness Guru site analyzed candida in a way that few other wellness centers, sites or practitioners do. The Wellness Guru categorized candida in stages or categories based on how badly the yeast has affected the human body. This is a reason why when people with candida go online to find a diet to help them eliminate their problem they find diets that conflict with one another, e.g. one says don't eat meat and others say do; don't eat tomatoes, but other sites say eat them; many sites say don't eat peas or winter squash or potatoes while many others list those starchy items under vegetables to be eaten; and then the most conflicting one to me is the very few sites that say don't eat dairy or even yogurt because of the lactose (another form of sugar) and hormone content of milk and yet the vast majority of sites assert that yogurt is loaded with the good bacteria and will help build more good bacteria. Hmmm, in my case milk especially but all dairy immediately makes my twisted pinky joint swell and I get achy and my throat phlegmy. Maybe it's just me, but I think not. With all the conflicts over what is "good" for the body, and what isn't, no wonder people are confused.

Well, Wellness Guru has an eye-opening 5 category analysis of candida as a progressive disease. The analysis is certainly not comprehensive but it is thought-provoking. On their website after the 5 categories are analyzed, they also posted dietary recommendations and restrictions per each category. I would post those here also, but there are a few points in the listings I don't agree with and since I already posted a Strict Candida Diet once, I'm not going to post what I think is a more careful diet for each of the categories. Their diet recommendations, however, are certainly worth taking a look at. They might very much help someone decide when a food item should be assiduously avoided ... or added back in.

The 5 Categories of Candida (not comprehensive)

Category #1 - The individual is probably not experiencing any major discomforts or ailments but may once in a while not feel 100%. This person would benefit from a modified yeast free regime to prevent future problems and to fine tune the occasional imbalances; however, it is not essential.

Category #2 - The individual is beginning to experience small irritations and occasional discomforts such as digestive problems, PMS, food and environmental sensitivities and allergies, headaches, fatigue, sinus and bronchial problems, anxieties, canker sores in the mouth, thrush in the vagina or mouth, athlete’s foot, an itchy groin in men or women, vaginal discharge, mild skin irritations.

Category #3 - The individual is experiencing a number of problems on a weekly basis such as gastrointestinal problems, hormonal imbalances, food and environmental sensitivities and allergies, headaches, fatigue, sinus and bronchial problems, anxieties, occasional sleep disturbances, pain and discomfort in the joints and limbs, canker sores in the mouth, thrush in the vagina or mouth, athlete’s foot, an itchy groin in men or women, vaginal discharge, skin irritations or have had surgery on an organ.

Category #4 - The individual may be suffering sleep disorders including difficulty going to sleep and/or waking up during the night, depressions, constant fatigue, pain and discomfort in the joints and limbs, temperature fluctuations, eye-sight problems, chronic gastrointestinal problems such as constant constipation, presence of cysts, endometriosis, irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, ulcers, kidney stones, serious skin conditions, migraine headaches, nightmares, elevated sugar or cholesterol problems, high or low blood pressure, arthritis and rheumatism.

Category #5 - the individual has been diagnosed with a serious heart condition, HIV, AIDS, cancer, MS, Parkinson’s, or any other life threatening condition.

In my wide readings I found one other site that also categorized candida in 5 stages. I don't recall much about the stages except that stage #4 was when the candida yeast/mold had compromised a few or many organs in the body and they were starting to badly malfunction or shut down. Stage #3 was pretty extreme too, something like extreme insomnia, restlessness, racing heart and other problems that I had experienced at disease onset. I figure that when I was at my absolute worst and almost completely disfunctional that I probably was in stage #4 in this other candida classification heirarchy. I was eating only vegetables and forcing myself to walk in the freezing weather every day (when I could) and oh so slowly I started to get better. Thank goodness too, because I didn't diagnosis myself for many more months or come across that staging until even after that. Stage #5 on that web page was pretty scary, death. When the yeast/mold totally engulfs the organs, they can't function. For the Wellness Guru the stage #6 unspoken category would also be death. Very uncomfortable to think about.

Vitamin A Deficiency Affecting Diseases

Hurray, hurray, hurray! I've been fighting vitamin A deficiency for almost 2 years now, to no avail (discussed in Huge Vitamin A Deficiency). Candida destroys vitamin A, but then also many of the candida killers I was using (oregano oil, grapefruit seed extract and I strongly suspect Barlena's Olive Leaf extract) also destroy it. I tried taking large doses of vitamin A in oil gels and later in the dry form, but had no results. Then I bumped into a passage in the book Supplements Exposed that said that taking the supplement vitamin A will not boost vitamin A but will actually impair it. I had just gone through a lot of vitamin A gels and thought I'd test that theory, because I didn't know what else to do. So for the two months almost every day I gobbled up more high potency vitamin A capsules (the dry kind this time), retested, and yup, the outcome showed virtually no change. I know that vitamin A needs iron, oil and other nutrients in order to become assimilated well so there might be other underlying problems why I didn't absorb any of the nutrients. So, I decided I would do it solidly through a diet saturated in vitamin A-rich foods.

So for the past 2 1/2 months I have been taking large doses of Pure Hawaiian Spirulina Pacifica, rich in vitamin A among other large doses of immune building nutrients like vitamin K for the bones and heart, vitamin B12 which vegetarians and vegans especially need, iron which is so important for women, and 2 trace minerals, manganese and chromium. [On the Hawaiian spirulina label the suggested amount is 1 teaspoon up to 3 times a day. I took 1 heaping tablespoon once a day.]

Ah, synergy of vitamins in their natural state and working in correlation with one another rather than just the isolated vitamin A in supplement form! Almost every morning I ate 2 tablespoons of chia seeds [the packaging suggests 1 tablespoon a day and elsewhere I've read to not eat this daily beyond one month as side effects are unknown]. The chia seeds are said to be rich in vitamin A (I've never found out nutritionally how rich though, but hey, I can't eat the vitamin A-rich foods like carrots, winter squash, sweet potatoes and other highly glycemic foods so I just went with hearsay on this). Anyway, my wonderful vitamin A outcome just came back .... NORMAL!!!!

January 20, 2012 - my outcome at .18 (extremely low!)
April 3, 2012 - my outcome at .42 (.30~.70 is normal)

That's a whopping increase of .24 in just 2 1/2 months!!! The last 2 1/2 months I've really gobbled up tons of vitamin A-loaded asparagus too, tried to include a little oil in each of my green smoothies to help with vitamin A assimilation, and faithfully drank my spirulina and ate chia seed pudding. Yes! Finally!

And just a comment on that "normal" range above for vitamin A. I've been testing at the same clinic (a testing practice which assures a more standard reading of test outcomes) for the past 2 years, and until just a few months ago, the "normal range" for vitamin A listed on test results print-outs was .36~1.20. However, about 6 months ago that range got drastically shifted, and shockingly the "norm" for vitamin A was reduced! The "normal range" now reads .30~.70. I can understand why the range was lowered - there is great fear of vitamin A toxicity, and in fact, many of the symptoms for toxicity and for low vitamin A are the same. Go figure that one out! But for the range to actually be lowered indicates to me that the USDA/FDA/who? is becoming more accepting of the lower and lower numbers of vitamin A and is accommodating their figures to match the common, a.k.a. "normal", populace. A big study on this needs to take place.

Vitamin A Deficiency Affecting Diseases

Animal Pharm, a site dedicated to blogging about nutrition on global issues, detailed a list of diseases that low vitamin A plays an instrumental part in. But before I reintroduce the list, the site also presented that the marbling of meat - human abs, glutious maximus and biceps as well as beef - is a direct cause of insufficient vitamin A in the body. Now everybody wants to present tight shapely muscles, and yet people tend to go for the choice cuts of well-marbled meat. These two desires are in direct opposition of each other and reflect two opposing standards. Humans have the standard of desiring no marbling in their own muscles (and therefore, have the unknown desire to have adequate amounts of vitamin A) while they desire the appealing look of well-marbled meat, a grade A cut (which unfortunately could be an indication of a vitamin A deficiency in the meat, and therefore in actually a substandard cut!). This blog entry is a must read!

Now, for the diseases that result in vitamin A deficiency or possibly are a partial result of vitamin A deficiency...

Who might be vitamin A deficient?
..... vegans
..... those who eat 'low fat'
..... those who don't consume a lot of wild seafood/grassfed meat
..... children less than age 4 and women
..... those with cancer
..... chronically ill
..... those with infections or high CRP (chronic restrictive pulmonary)
..... those with Hashimoto's hypothyroidism
..... those with other autoimmune diseases: Grave's, RA (rheumatoid arthritis), SLE (systemic lupus erythematosus), Sjogrens, MS (multiple sclerosis), NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), primary biliary cirrhosis, CAD (coronary artery disease), etc
..... those with skin conditions (again, autoimmune origin and wheat-triggered): eczema, rosacea, skin cancer, poor wound healing, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, dermatitis herpetiformis, porphyria cutaneous tarda
..... those with gluten enteropathy, (known vs. unknown) wheat/casein allergies, 'leaky gut' and a poor intestinal barrier which prevent absorption of fat and fat-soluble vitamins
..... those without a gallbladder who may not produce sufficient digestive enzymes to absorb fat and fat-soluble vitamins
..... those who take Orlistat/Xenical or OTC Alli (weight loss pills which block fat and thus fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, K1, K2)
..... those on antiseizure drugs (valproic acid, carbamezepine, phenytoin which increase metabolism/elimination of vitamin A)
..... those who have had gastric bypass which unnaturally cuts out a great portion of our most important absorptive surface area for fat and nutrients, the duodenum
..... diabetic-induced rats fed vitamin A deficient lab chow
..... Inuit children with frequent lower respiratory tract infections and otitis media [the children are probably no longer consuming their traditional H-G-fish Paleo diets but the S.A.D. (standard American diet) grain-based one like Americans]
..... third world countries where night-vision blindness is prevalent

3 Guru Role Models

In regard to my candida, there are three people who have been guru models in shaping my decisions about how eagerly to pursue full recovery. One is my younger bro (Bro), another is a church member with Multiple Sclerosis (JB), and the last is a close family friend with Rheumatoid Arthritis (SC).

BRO

Bro got very sick many years ago in his early 20s. I wasn't around at the time so didn't see his bouts with anaphylactic shock when eating peppers of any kind, difficulties breathing when eating other things, difficulty with reflux and I really have no idea of his problems. He was having so many severe reactions to food that of course he would eliminate from his diet all those foods he had eaten in the meal. Pretty soon, he had only about a list of 20 items: apples, oats, a few green leafies and not much else. He had even eliminated garlic and onions because they were in a meal he had a severe reaction to. He was so sick and could hardly perform his job, so took some time off and went to a lifestyle center in Battle Creek, MI that unfortunately is no longer open, and got amazing help.

His body was choked with mercury and toxins because he couldn't sweat, and he went through intensive regimens of therapies throughout the day and even wore charcoal packs around his waist at night to rid his body of pollutants trapped in the skin, intestines, lymph system, everywhere. The kitchen workers cooked special meals for him - fresh ground grains that had no time to mold (wheat was included without reaction) and made many dishes using specially cleaned cutting boards and kitchen equipment because of his huge issues with cross-contamination. He came out of that lifestyle center two weeks later able to eat quite a lot! The docs even convinced him to eat a small slice of pepper, which instead of giving him anaphylactic shock only gave him a mild skin rash. No sugar of any kind, freshly ground grains, tons of fresh fruits and even more tons of fresh vegies, a careful selection of herbs and spices, and only specific oils were the backbone of his no-deviation vegan diet. What a comeback!

Maintaining such a strict diet would keep a person in the kitchen all day, so he's back to having anaphylactic shock with peppers, reflux and other problems ... but no where nearly as bad as before. After 15 years he started eating pure chocolate (absolutely without dairy contaminants), imagine the cravings, and other sweets. But he's been on a gluten-free vegan diet (except last 3-4 years he added some free-range eggs) that is carefully regimented to avoid all those hidden food allergens other people tolerate quite well but which crash his system. BTW, he hasn't been able to eat in a restaurant for most of those 20 years, so when I go home, I try to plan "exotic" meals that he just doesn't have time to fix. I blend herbs and spices I know he can have to create recipes I've experienced in foreign countries or seen online.

So when I got sick almost three years ago, adjusting to a carefully monitored diet wasn't that difficult. We packed lunches for Bro's working days, and carry snack or energy foods with us when going somewhere. So for me to pack and carry a lunch is kind of normal. Bro loves going into restaurants with people (provided there's not a lot of pepper cooking) and he "eats with his eyes", then goes home and tries to replicate. Over the years he role modeled "eating with his eyes" and since I've gotten sick too, my taste buds and senses to mixing foods with herbs and spices has gotten much keener. Bro is absolutely INCREDIBLE! He doesn't whine about his food limitations and cramped lifestyle because of it. He works with it, and leads a pretty active life. He is so AMAZING, and he's one of my biggest role models in life!!!

JB

JB was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when she was about 60 years old. I also wasn't around at the time but heard that she was fighting for her health and sanity. Before she could get treatment, help and maybe even diagnosis, the disease blinded her in one eye and really compromised one side of her body. Her MRI of her spinal cord showed heavy plaque and prognosis was to be soon confined in a wheelchair.

Our Seventh-day Adventist Church teaches a lifestyle that we often refer to as "the health message". Longevity reports come out of Loma Linda, California attesting to this healthy lifestyle. Therefore, believing that nutrition and healing go hand-in-hand, she decided to go to the Black Hills Health and Education Center located in South Dakota, and for some reason, she and her husband ended up staying and working there for the next six years.

At first her system was so run-down that she told me years later, she only could eat lightly boiled spinach to nourish her body as raw vegies were just too hard for her body to deal with. We didn't hear much from she or her husband for about six years when they moved back and again were attending our church. She was ecstatic! Her most recent MRI had shown absolutely no plaque anywhere on the spinal cord, and she had been symptom free for quite a while. They attended our church regularly, joining us in our vegetarian potlucks that did have cheese and other dairy, wheat, unknown cooking oils and sugars. I'm not sure if she maintained the gluten-free, vegan lifestyle of the Black Hills Center at home but after eight months she was experiencing the by-now familiar symptoms of ... Multiple Sclerosis.

She went back to her strict diet and the symptoms were well managed. She had heard that once a person has an auto-immune disease that it is for life. Hers evidently is. So now we're both watching how my health problems are going to ultimately work out. Will I be able to lick the candida problem? Or has it already rewritten my DNA and I will fight this for life? I'm still hoping for the complete cure ... and no, I don't plan to go back to my former diet, not that I wouldn't like to indulge upon occasion in some foods not permitted at the moment. But if I ever recover, knowing what she taught me through experience will be big incentive to keep on enjoying the great foods I'm eating now!

BTW, I have a colleague, about age 50, who had systemic candida so badly as a child that she hardly had an elementary school education for spending so much time at home sick or in the hospital. In her mid-twenties she did the candida diet - months and months of it. She doesn't have much recall of what she did but she does remember having to slug down 4 ounces of some kind of nasty oil at one time in order to coat her GI track to fight the bad bacteria. She's been fine ever since .... so there is hope of full recovery! I'm still clinging to that hope.

SC

The last person who is my role model is very unfortunate. He was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis about 25 years ago, and has been in such pain from serious connective tissues damage that it is evident in the way he walks, from mangled ears and droopy eyes, and from the twisting of his fingers which now are almost perpendicular to their original joints. For a few years he staunchly refused to take any meds, although he occasionally broke down and took some NSAIDS, but finally the pain was too great, and to stay out of a wheelchair he started steroids. He now heavily relies on steroids, refuses any kind of verbal or other help - claiming he's as tough as he always was - disallows that diet can help, and eats out every day and then goes home to eat ice cream, "a treat" for his old age. He's now in his early 80s.

Every once in a while he and his wife (with brittle diabetes) will stop in and eat with us, gorging themselves silly. We're so happy to give them a good meal because they obviously have little other happiness in their lives from their few moments at the same restaurant every day before they go back to their lonely house with overly loud TV.

One day we planned a massive vegetable quiche meal with tons of vegies on the side. I did the cooking - gluten-free, vegan except for the eggs, lots of greens for toxin removal. I wanted them to feel good when they went home ... and wow did they dive into that food! They ate so much, and then dad and SC started talking about the ice cream at home in SC's freezer and how that was his treat almost every day. I was a bit horrified as I know the effects of dairy plus sugar (the devil's mixture) on Rheumatoid Arthritis, or for anyone's system for that matter. Well, mom piped up that we had some nutty buddy chocolate cones in the basement and went down and brought one up for everyone except Bro and myself.

And then I watched the transformation, and it was horrible! SC became louder, perhaps it could be said aggressively so. Ah, speech changes! Behavior changes! His eyes became even more inflamed and very watery. He was constantly blinking them which reminded me of when mine were so inflamed to the point of being dry-painful. I looked over at dad enjoying his cone and his hands were trembling more from his Parkinson's. And, rude though I might appear, I just couldn't help myself. I started asking SC how he felt - a question he hates! I asked him if his eyes were stinging. Well, a bit. I wanted to know if he felt better before he ate that ice cream. He admitted to feeling better. Then I asked him if he thought the ice cream was making him feel badly, and if he always felt this way after he ate his ice cream every day. Well, hem, haw, well, yeah, I guess it does bother me a bit.

I didn't press it, but I wanted mom to see the results of dairy on the system. Bro has an immediate reaction of what feels like sharp nails piercing his stomach and intestines. From milk, I've had mild but gross reflux most of my life and just refused to drink it as a child, much to her frustration because at the time, milk was "known", and oh so falsely advertised, to be healthy. Most people have subtle reactions but obvious if a person knows how to spot them. Anyway, I asked mom afterwards, "WHY did you give SC ice cream when you know that people with Rheumatoid Arthritis shouldn't have it?!" And then I more clearly pointed out the speech changes, behavior changes, the obvious inflammation which she hadn't noticed at all till I pointed the reactions out ... and dad's out.

Well, I know that SC will probably enjoy ice cream and probably every day until he dies. But success was made that day because mom no longer keeps a stock of ice cream cones in the freezer for dad to prevent him from losing weight.

SC is my sad guru. In his miserable old age he's just looking for something to make part of his day better, but even though now he's aware that "that something" is toxic to his system, it's his crutch. Everybody has crutches. Me too, but I’m trying to be like my brother who has learned to “eat with his eyes” and to think of my friend JB who is eating to maintain long-term health while leading an active life. And then when I think of my brother eating oh-so-strictly for over 15 years and JB who must in order to have that pain-free life, the one to two years more of super strict eating seem rather insignificant.

Hair Analysis - 2nd (2011-03-22)

I don't remember having any specific horrendous problems when I had this analysis. By the time I took this, I had been on the anti-candida diet for 4 months. I SHOULD HAVE seen some improvement in my condition by this time, but other than the fact that once I figured out my problem -- bacteria out of control, which I don't know but candida has 81 kinds, or so one website says -- I should have seen improvement on the diet that made my symptoms of 1 1/2 years virtually disappear in one week. But, anytime I tried adding anything, the problems (joint pain, asthma-like wheeziness, and chest tightness, among others) would reappear. The diet, however, was really contolling the problem though! Time for another hair analysis ... but strange that this hair analysis actually shows more (but not as bad) imbalances than my last one.





RESULTS

Out-of-balance ratios:
sodium/potassium (Na/K) [increase] - if potassium low, kidneys reabsorb more sodium and potassium is excreted, and vice versa; result: acute stress or inflammation
calcium/potassium (Ca/K) [increase] - if potassium low, hypothyroidism results which is generally related to hypoglycemis, chronic fatigue, hypotension, melancholia
zinc/copper (Zn/Cu) [increase] - if copper low, cholesterol increases and cardiovascular disease may occur; if zinc is high compared with low-density lipoprotein; lipoprotein with high-density gravity is decreased resulting in fat deposits in arteries, which damages the immune system and/or increases bacterial infection, and in women, irregularity, PMS, fatigue, melancholia, weight gain, headache, constipation, breast pain, anxiety ...

Zinc - excess
Function: essential for male/female hormones and preventing diseases and viral infection; present in eyes, visual nerve, skin, adrenals, bone, brain, heart, kidney, liver, muscle, prostate, testicles (basically the organs)
Symptoms: fatigue, anorexia, hypotrophy, melancholia, apathy, apatheia, diarrhea, hypogeusia, hyposmia, postprandial fullness, anemia, night blindness, delay in injury curing, skin dryness, dermatitis, keratitis, alopecia areata, growth retardation, delay in sexual function matureness, sexual dysfunction (impotence) female infertility, diabetes, liver cirrhosis, increase in cholesterol

Iron - deficiency
Function: generates hemaglobin, maintains intellectual abilities of the brain, essential in activating enzymes concerned in brain neurotransmitters; if bacterial infection, iron sent to organs including bones, liver, spleen, and lymph system
Symptoms: absorption disorder, parasite, malnutrition, drug, deficiency of other vitamins/minerals, anemia, fatigue, fingernail weakening, irregularity, constipation, dysphagia, hypothyroidism, infection by immunodepression, concentration disorders, depressed level of consciousness, brain damage and nervous development problems, ex. excessive behavior
Food: dry laver, coarse tea, curry, boiled hard-necked clam, green tea, dry anchovy, brewer's yeast, dry bamboo shoot, dry salted shrimp, boiled kelp, pig liver, roasted sesame, soybean, powdered beans; herbs: peppermint, chickweed, comfrey root, licorice root, goldenseal
Vanadium is useful for iron, as well as vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C and E. Iron rich in animal protein.

Chromium - deficiency
Function: helps absorption/use of glucose in cells with insulin, so if deficiency an increase in insulin results; relevant to nerve cells and vascular diseases; reinforces muscle and reduces fat
Causes of deficiency: excessive insulin, pregnancy, female hormones, hypothyroidism, hyperparathyroidism, infection, heart disease, anxiety, melancholia, mental/physical stress such as shock
Symptoms: may cause numbness/insensibility of limbs, peripheral neutropathy, arteriosclerosis, increased cholesterol level, interferes with vitamin C absorption, incurs diabetes symptoms, growth disorder, corneal opacity, headache, fatigue, anxiety and uneasiness
Food: brewer's yeast, wheat bread, roasted red peppers, shellfish, potato, wheat germ, eggs, chicken, apple, butter, clam, cheese, banana, carrot, cabbage, mandarine orange
Vitamins/Minerals: intake of iron, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, zinc and vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, A and E increase chromium absorption.

Manganese - deficiency
Function: spread in most body tissues, esp mitochondria in cells which gives the body energy; is an enzyme which activates other enzymes involving synthesis and metabolism of fatty acid, carbs and protein; prevents damage caused by free radicals, esp peroxide free radicals; maintains normal thyroid function
Symptoms: fatigue, headache, lack of endurance, weight loss, asthma, ringing in the ears, decrease in hearing ability, decrease in natural fat and lipoprotein due to metabolism disorders, results in musculoskeletal diseases (posture, growth, joint and waist disorders, tendon disorders, osteoporosis), infertility, degeneration of ovary and testicles, inborn errors of metabolism, ex apply syrup disease and Phenylketonuria; cause dermititis, delay in nail and hair growth, hair discoloration into reddish-brown
Food: brazil nuts, almonds, barley, rye, buckwheat, dry peas, wheat, walnuts, spinach, nuts, raisins, carrots, uncleaned rice, wheat bread, cheese and cabbage; a high protein diet can improve manganese levels

MERCURY (Hg) - increase!
"Please be advised the 30% or more of the permissible range of mercury is deposited in the body!"
Damage to brain, kidneys, nerve system, unborn children. Once mercury enters the body through respiratory or digestive organs, 80% of it is deposited in the kidney and liver and seriously damages the brain.
Sources of mercury: amalgam, cosmetics, hairdye, manometer, thermometer, disinfectant, bactericide, agrichemicals, insecticide, flourescent lamps, manufacturing and transportation of petroleum products
Symptoms:
(early stage) alopecia, chronic fatigue, dizziness, melancholia, uneasiness, impatience, insomnia, anorexia, gingivitis, serious mood changes
(middle stage) alopecia, sterility, abortion, stillbirth, allergy, asthma, hypertension, stenocardia, palpitations, arthritis, nightmare, keratinization of the skin
(late stage) epilepsy, multiple sclerosis
Food: pectin, selenium, zinc, sulfur amino acids, vitamin C, beans, garlic, onion, eggs, parsley
[The only food I now eat at restaurants is small salt-water fish, once every two weeks or so. I also was eating about a can of tuna a week, and these two sources are probably where I got the increase in mercury. Yikes! Time to eliminate the canned fish now :( ]

Letters to a Friend

The first letter to a friend who had alluded to poor health and resulting poor quality of life... She seemed like she wanted to "talk" but was afraid to "open up" about her problems. Being sick is isolating, and causes such confusion, and so I wrote:

Dear R~~ 

...I've been having my own bear of a time. I got dog sick 2 1/2 years ago - systemic candida and the first year it almost wiped me out. I was so sick I couldn't even concentrate, the pain level was horrendous (the whole body but esp the rib cartilage which was breaking apart) and the flaming docs told me to see a psychiatrist cuz the blood work was coming back pretty good ... and not one, and I saw like 35-40 docs, recommended vitamin testing, which eventually proved extremely low vitamins A & D. Osteomalacia, aka adult rickets, fit(s) my bone and muscle syptoms perfectly! And I had seen close to 8 bone doctors and they were so focused on X-rays and non-vitamin testing that they could not give any kind of diagnosis or even a hint! Disgusting!). Long story but now I'm my own doc and am slowly slowly improving. I've learned tons about disease and diet control, and I eat only food that I prepare .... and I feel great! The down-side of all this is that my traveling days are temporarily at a halt cuz I'm so dependent on simple foods that are both gluten free and extremely low glycemic and also only those I prepare. I refuse to let that get me down. I MUST think positive .... and so I just focus on: I feel great! BTW, my favorite word is PROACTIVE :)

My friend responded in a way that I had felt when I was so sick the first year. She was so confused at her symptoms, and so missing her healthy youth. We're the same age and we're both too young to be so sick. She told me she's been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis and these are complicated by spinal and head injuries from a car accident in which she was seriously rear-ended. All her problems were results of outside forces and she's depressed and feels helpless about the tailspin of her former good health. I do know from experience that pain can be managed by a careful diet. I've been managing my systemic candida difficulties with a strict, strict anti-candida diet. People might deride me for having a very limited food selection and say that "I'm not living", but my answer is to smile cheerfully ... and keep toting my lunch to restaurants to eat with friends (or just sitting with friends but not eating). To eat the wrong food is NOT an option. It just plain makes be sick -- first grumpy, then depressed and then the aches start. And so my reply is, "I AM living, and I'm living very well MY WAY."

Dear R~~

I'm sooo glad I decided to respond to your comment! My studies on health have taught me tons about fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis, which btw are related. Careful eating for those is essential for improvement. (MDs dispute it but they were trained by pharmaceutical companies to believe in pharmaceutics, surgery and other invasive procedures to heal - what a load of crap, excuse my language, but I've heard all sorts of nonsense from them concerning my "problems" and early on I even tried some of their treatments cuz I was desperate but I had some horrible reactions to some of their chemical-drugs ... well, hello, bacteria in general and especially candida love chemicals!).

Anyway, let me explain about what I've discovered to be big causes of fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, celiacs disease and the other autoimmune diseases: bacteria. [It seems diff kinds of bacteria or at least bacteria located in diff places in the GI tract are one of the big sources of autoimmune health evils. Nutritional imbalance is another, but then, bacteria overgrowth causes nutritional imbalances, and vice versa ... (I wish someone would do some specific research on this particular disease-bacteria link!) I've only found data on three specific diseases related to three specific bacteria so far: Crohn's disease, a low grade fever caused by a can't-remember bacteria in the lower GI tract, Grave's disease which I was diagnosed with 6 yrs ago & forgot the bacteria also but it's definitely one of many forerunners for systemic candida, and Parkinson's disease which my dad has & is often caused by h.pylori]. The overgrowth of bacteria can come gradually or in my case just explode suddenly within the body.

I'm not totally sure my bacteria IS the much talked about candida albicans (there are about 17 kinds of candida) since it's self-diagnosis and when I've pointedly asked 3 docs in diff fields and who knew my long sick-history, they all told me in quick reply and without any testing "you don't have candida". I knew that doctors don't regard candida as a problem since everyone from about 6 months old has the bacteria (although not out of control). But total disregard to it causing a problem?! Ergh! So much for getting a specific test for diagnosis!!! Docs have been absolutely no help! Many docs also told me I was too food focused and to stop talking about food - hello, that's where my symptoms were coming from!!! So, it took me 1 1/2 years to systematically self-diagnose myself, and when I put myself on the strictest of candida diets b/c any kind of sugar, even small amounts of fruit sugar or root vegie sugar, set me off, within three days my pain was minimized and I could start thinking more clearly!!! Wow, the brain fog was clearing up!!!

Anyway, according to my research bacteria is what's causing the auto-immune disease(s). So to combat the bacteria, you have to stop feeding it, but of course you need to feed yourself or you'll die so you have to nourish yourself on the simplest, lowest-glycemic foods and foods that are not glutinous to your compromised GI track. You have to also eliminate all processed foods - canned, packaged, instant - and eat whole foods and vegetarian foods (meats have hormones out the wahzoo and dairy should never enter the mouth as its a known bacteria carrier).

I hear you when you say you just have no energy to do much and it's easier to go out to eat. I spent about 3 months barely dragging myself home after classes and lying on the floor. Thank goodness for my cat. She knew something was terribly wrong and after I'd lay there for a couple of hours, she'd scream in my face and I had to take care of her ... she was what kept me moving. It was awful cooking during that time and I had almost no ability to plan my classes - 3 hours to plan a lesson that would formerly take me 10 minutes! I got a crock pot and would put beans (only low-glycemic beans: black beans, lentils and chick peas) in it in the a.m. and add some vegies when I got home - eat 1-2 hours later and pack leftovers for lunch the next day. Rice cooker was good for brown rice, 율무 (job's tears), quinoa, sorghum grain, buckwheat and occasionally millet (no barley, oats, wheat, rye or triticale). Breakfast was made in the blender with a massive pile of green vegies (no root vegies cuz of starch, no tomatoes cuz acidic, no peppers cuz of inflammatory capsicum, no squash except zucchini cuz of starch and higher glycemic index ... no fruit for months but 1/2 a green apple later on). Anyway, my kitchen appliances saved me working in the kitchen.

Honestly, R~~, I think you should try the diet for 1 week, and if you feel a difference in the pain level and clearer in the head, you know you're onto something helpful. You have to remember, though, that you have to be strict during that week (no gum, candy, coffee or tea except peppermint tea. It's best not to eat between meals; just give your GI track time to clean out and if you continue with the diet it can heal, at least to some degree.) The first week was hard cuz I didn't really know what I was doing ... had to keep getting stricter and learn by trial and error [not much on the internet for the strict candida diet]. But it's been 10 1/2 months for me ... and like I said: I feel great! BTW, my symptoms before were wild beyond what I mentioned earlier - had bad symptoms for multiple sclerosis (MS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). They're closely related among the autoimmune diseases as is fibromyalgia. Those symptoms just niggle a bit, but with the diet, I am in control; without the diet, they are in control.

... Another secret I've discovered is to stay focused on others and not yourself. Wow, cuz other people's probs are HUGE in comparison with mine ... haha, but then you know, I like my word: PROACTIVE!