Wellness and Beyond

CoQ10: Antioxidant, Energy Booster, Etc., Etc., Etc.,

2006-07-05T21:02:00.000-07:00

Has your doctor told you about CoQ10? I'm surprised we don't hear more about this antioxidant, which is also an energy booster and is great for your immune system. Coenzyme Q10 is considered by some as a wonder nutrient because of its ability to support heart health. It is a natural enzyme which enables the heart muscles to pump blood more efficiently and it has generated much excitement as a possible therapy for heart disease, especially congestive heart failure or a weakened heart. Research suggests that CoQ10 may protect against blood clots, lower high blood pressure, diminish irregular heartbeats, treat mitral valve prolapse, and relieve chest plains. CoQ10 is one of the most potent antioxidants known. It may play a role in preventing cancer, heart attacks, and other diseases linked to free-radical damage. It is used as a general energy enhancer and anti-aging supplement. There are also claims that CoQ10 aids weight loss, treats gum disease, maintains healthy gums and teeth, enhances athletic performance, combats chronic fatigue syndrome, relieves multiple allergies, and boosts immunity.

~Julie
Good Health, Naturally!

Babies, Eczema, and Psoriasis

2006-07-04T14:28:00.000-07:00

Today my hair stylist asked me if any of the many products I sell through my business works well on babies with eczema. Yes, of course, I told her ... I had some customers who told me the baby products I introduced to them quickly cleared rashes and eczema their babies had. I explained that fragrance in products can worsen eczema and the products I have do not contain fragrance. She then asked if they helped with psoriasis on adults. Well, now, how could I overlook recommending my baby products to adults with psoriasis. (I guess you could call it an ahhhaaahh moment.) I have been so in love with the other products that it didn't occur to me to recommend the baby products to psoriasis sufferers. Afterall, they are also for people with sensitive skin. So ... here I am recommending them.

Now, I know there are many people who suffer with psoriasis or excema or have babies that do. If you are one of those people and you would like to sample my baby products, email me and I'll send you some samples - no charge. I would love to have your feedback before I start suggesting to all my customers that my baby products will clear up their skin conditions as well as their babies'.

(Side note: Sunlight is also extremely beneficial to people with psoriasis, but a dermatologist needs to weigh the benefits of sun exposure with the risks of developing other dermatological problems.)

~Julie

To Look Great On The Outside, You First Have To Work On The Inside

2006-07-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

You may think that as long as you are using an expensive skin cream with a bunch of beneficial ingredients that your skin will be properly nourished. That is just wrong! While a good skin care line can provide a number of important substances, it is not enough to ensure proper, all -around skin nutrition. Just as what you eat, or neglect to eat, can have a negative effect on your overall appearance, changing your nutrition can create positive effects, such as slowing down the aging process. What you eat affects every organ in your body, and your skin is the largest organ your body has. Even when you use the best skin care line in the world with the best quality beneficial ingredients, your skin may not absorb the nutrients if it is not properly nourished. Your body needs dozens of nutrients. Vitamins, minerals, and essential amino acids can come from food (or from nutrition supplements for those of us always on the go with no time to watch what we eat), but other nutrients are provided by the body ... provided it is properly nourished. No skin cream can replace that! Nutrients that benefit your skin also tend to benefit other body systems and overall health. Deficiencies of certain nutrients, such as Vitamin A, B Complex, and essential fatty acids, are known to cause various forms of dermatitis and other skin conditions. Mild deficiencies can impair the skin's ability to heal and renew itself. Improving nutrition often results in younger looking skin and partial reversal of some signs of aging.

To sum it all up:

A balanced nutrition is important for maintaining healthy skin.
Neglecting nutrition will make your skin age considerably faster.
Cutting-edge skin rejuvenating treatments are likely to be far less effective or even completely fail if your skin is deficient in one or more essential nutrients.

~Julie
Good Health, Naturally!

Ladies, Hang On To Your Ovaries!

2006-06-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

Did you know that your ovaries are the anatomical equivalent of a man's testicles? That's right! Just as removing a man's testicles is castration, so is removing your ovaries. Yet, if a woman goes to a doctor with premenopause symptoms, she is most likely to be offered two solutions ... drugs or surgery. Both of which could very likely make her problems worse.

According to Dr. John R. Lee in his book, "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause," premenopause syndrome is not a natural or inevitable part of life, but rather one created by our culture, lifestyle, and environment. 50 million women are going through premenopause right now and are experiencing one or more symptoms: fibroids, lumpy breasts, endometriosis, sudden weight gain, fatigue, irritability, depression, foggy thinking, memory loss, migraine headaches, heavy or light periods, cold hands or feet ... to name a few. These symptoms are the result of hormone imbalance caused by an excess of the hormone estrogen and a deficiency of the hormone progesterone.

When women have PMS, estrogen is commonly prescribed. When that causes irregular bleeding or cervical dysplasia, doctors resort to a hysterectomy (castration!) or drugs, such as Prozac or Zoloft. Or, they are given synthetic hormones such as Premarin (which is another topic for us animal lovers to discuss) -- the wrong hormones! All of these can be life threatening to us women.

This is not to say that there is never a case in which a woman needs her ovaries removed. There are instances, such as ovarian cancer, but many surgeries are unnecessary. But the point Dr. Lee is trying to get across is that too rarely are women taught about natural progesterone - a safer route to take for hormone balance. Natural progesterone is essential for maintaining hormone balance, and yet it has been largely overlooked by conventional medicine because of medical politics and pharmaceutical company profits.

Now, I am no doctor, and I don't claim to have the knowledge of one in any way whatsoever. But what knowledge I do have on this topic, I learned from them. I do want to encourage you to do your homework and study it for yourself. You CAN do something about premenopause syndrome besides drugs and surgery.

To your health!

~Julie
Good Health, Naturally!

Hey! Sign my guest book and I'll send you a free booklet titled "The Power of Positive Thinking Condensed" by Norman Vincent Peale.

40% Of People In A Survey Said That "Getting Fat" Was What They Feared Most

2006-06-25T19:03:00.000-07:00

Did you know that at least 65% of Americans are always on a diet? We are gluttons! We have been blessed with enormous quantities of food and we think nothing of the calories we consume daily. In one day we consumme the same amount of calories that people many years ago consummed in an entire week. We eat our way to clogged arteries and obesity. We always have an excuse for going out to eat: had a bad day, had a good day, it's my birthday, too tired to cook, got a promotion, got a demotion, a friend is in town ... the excuses we use to treat ourselves to food are endless. I have used these excuses myself.

We are gluttons and it is dangerous. Why? Because:
1. It is making food and drink more important than other things, including God.
2. It is turning to a substitute to supply our emotional needs.
3. It is the sin of being preoccupied with a temporary state of our physical being.
4. It seems to be a gateway to other things in excess (such as spending money!).

An unknown author is quoted as saying, "It is my conviction that a very large part of mankind's ills, and of the world's misery, is due to the rapid practice of trying to feed the soul with the body's food." This is a powerful statement! So many of us think that food will make us feel better, but it is only a very, very temporary fix.

So what can we do to improves ourselves? We can:
1. Seek to glorify God in our body.
2. Seek to live a balanced lifestyle.
3. Learn from others who have faced other giants in their life.

Gaining self control is the key here. After all, Galatians 5:22-23 says, "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self control. Against such things there is no law." Too many of us are seeking happiness in all the wrong places.

~Julie

Lotions And Potions Are Just Frosting On The Cake

2006-04-03T20:20:00.000-07:00

I saw today an inspirational post from Oprah.com:

"Lotions and potions are just frosting on the cake. If you don't feel gorgeous in your soul, that's where your makeover should begin."

I read this and immediately related it to the positive changes in my life since I became a Christian ... nearly four years ago ... and the better I have felt about myself since doing so. There is no doubt in my mind that true beauty comes from deep within. By having a pure heart and maintaining good health.

~Julie

Good Skin, Good Health, Good Friends!

2006-04-03T20:18:00.000-07:00

To be quite honest, I never thought I would wind up on a blog sharing with others how to be mindful of their health. That being said, for nearly three years now I have been studying how to maintain good health by being aware of what you feed your body ... both on the inside and on the outside. I have learned in those three years that it DOES matter what you put on your skin. What goes on will be absorbed. (If you don't believe this, then just think of the nicotine patch and the estrogen patch.) So it just blows my mind that no one ever told me before (or that I couldn't figure it out on my own) that products that I use on a daily basis could cause me problems in the long run. I didn't stop to think about the chemicals in my makeup that penetrate the skin or about the man-made cumulative sweeteners in my diet Coke. I didn't know that the baby oil that I put on my babies came from the same place that my car oil came from, just much more refined. But now I know and now I must share. Since I have gained this new awareness of maintaining good health, I have made many new friends who share the same concern and I am grateful to God for all the knowledge and friends he has placed in my life.

Thank you for visiting my blog. I truly hope you will visit often as I share how to improve your appearance, your health, and your life.

~Julie