Essential Oils vs Antibiotics

Advances in medicine have come a long way over the last century. We have diagnostic and imaging procedures which were not even thought of back then, not to mention medicine to treat our illnesses and make us well.
But, what if we no longer had these medicines to rely on? Thanks to antibiotic resistance, we might very well be looking at a future without many of them.

Antibiotic and antimicrobial resistance
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines antibiotic resistance as, “resistance to antibiotics that occurs in common bacteria that cause infections.” Going a step further, antimicrobial resistance is, “a broader term, encompassing resistance to drugs to treat infections caused by other microbes, as well as parasites, viruses, and fungi.” When microorganisms become resistant to standard treatment, the results can be devastating, including: prolonged periods of illness, more expensive health care costs, and an increased risk of death.
“The loss of antibiotics due to antimicrobial resistance is potentially one of the most important challenges the medical and animal-health communities will face in the 21st century,” said Dr. Cyril Gay, the senior national program leader at the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service.
According to a report published in The Review on Antimicrobial Resistance, the government of the United Kingdom estimates that by the year 2050, more than 10 million deaths and 100 trillion dollars in global health care costs will have resulted from drug-resistant microbes.

What are essential oils?
The International Organization for Standardization defines an essential oil as, “a product made by distillation with either water or steam or by mechanical processing of citrus rinds or by dry distillation of natural materials. Following this distillation, the essential oil is physically separated from the water phase.”
Essential oils play a pivotal role in the health and survival of plants. While they are still contained in the plant, they adapt their chemical composition to counter potential hazards in the external and internal environment. They do this in a number of ways:

• Attracting pollinators like insects, or acting as dispersal agents
• Releasing chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants in the area around them
• Serving as a defense mechanism by releasing chemicals to repel predatory creatures, like insects and animals
• Protecting the plant from invasion through the use of their antifungal and antibacterial properties

How effective are essential oils for humans?
Research on the effective role of essential oils in treating human health conditions seems to be a growing field of interest. There are many studies currently underway, and many have already been published showing success in the fight against microbes.
An Italian study performed in 2011 showed that using a combination of clove and thyme essential oils to treat bacterial vaginosis was just as effective as the conventional antibiotic treatment. In another study, by the Good Shepherd Medical Center in Texas, it was revealed that staph-infected wounds had a markedly faster healing time when treated with the vapors of tea-tree oil versus usual methods.
Also, in a Canadian study, it was found that MRSA could be removed from the skin by cleansing with tea-tree oil, with equal effectiveness as conventional treatments that bacteria now appears to be developing a resistance against.
In laboratory testing, essential oils have repeatedly been found to have great success at fighting a range of pathogens, such as E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus, among other strains of bacteria. Both by themselves, and when used in a combination with antibiotics, essential oils consistently show impressive results.
Researchers hypothesize that one reason for the success of essential oils may be that they weaken the cell wall of resistant bacteria, inflicting damage or killing the cell.

The future of medicine
According to Dr. Nicole M. Parrish, associate professor of pathology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and associate director of medical mycobacteriology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, the situation is urgent. When she and her colleagues test to find the appropriate medication for a patient, more often than not, they are finding that once-effective antibiotics are no longer working.
“We feel helpless in the face of this growing threat, and the answer as to why we have not made more progress on this front is simple: economics. Unfortunately, the ‘specter’ of monetary gain overshadows the perspective from ‘the trenches’,” said Parrish.
Parrish explains that essential oils have some of the most powerful antimicrobial compounds in existence, and with further testing and research, they could lead to a whole new class of medications.
Of course, unless the situation is dire, using essential oils in their pure, natural state is preferable. To learn more about how essential oils may help combat minor bacterial, viral, or fungal conditions, it can be very beneficial to talk to a natural health professional you trust.
-The Alternative Daily

Lower Blood Pressure with Garlic

Garlic offers a wide range of beneficial properties for the body, with one of the most important being the ability to detoxify – or remove harmful toxins, which is a key factor in overall health as well as longevity.
You probably already know some of garlic’s amazing health benefits. In addition to removing heavy metals and toxins, the short list of benefits includes:

• Stabilizing blood pressure
• Lowering LDL cholesterol
• Reducing atherosclerotic buildup
• Regulating blood sugar levels
• Preventing blood clots from forming to reduce the risk of stroke
• Helping to decrease the risk of cancer
• Reducing the instance of yeast infections

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KzMo7FL0qWg

Prayer and Praise Summit - Praying for Our Community - April 10, 2015

Birth Certificate Clinic

Birth Certificate Clinic

For many homeless families, including those served by PathWays PA, critical items such as birth certificates may get lost in the initial crisis of losing a home or in the move from shelter to shelter. Families who must leave their homes due to domestic violence are particularly vulnerable to losing important identification in their quest to find safety.

Once a birth certificate is lost, obtaining a new one can be costly and time consuming. But without one, gaining access to public benefits, healthcare, or even a driver's license can be in jeopardy.

On Wednesday, March 18, the Homeless Advocacy Project will be holding a Birth Certificate Clinic at Project HOME for individuals who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. The clinic will take place from 9-11:00 am at 1515 Fairmount Avenue. Homeless individuals who attend this free clinic will meet with an advocate who will request birth certificates for them and their minor children free of charge.

Natural Solutions!!! Shedding the Winter Pounds

Food Recipes Health Beauty   Balance Samples     Natural Solutions is here to help!   Let's just start with one of the most glorious statements one can hear after a long winter... SPRING IS ALMOST HERE! Winter often slows us down and with the holidays we tend to put on a few extra pounds. Then spring draws near and we realize we haven't shed those few pounds off yet. And the inevitable happens- that dreaded time when we are faced with swimsuits, shorts and tank tops. And who wants to wear any of those things not feeling like we have our "summer bodies" back yet? Natural Solutions is here to help!     Stop Trying to Lose Weight These days, we're fed so many conflicting messages about how to stay slim and fit—Hollywood beach bodies and celebrity diets abound. But the secret to maintaining a healthy body weight doesn't lie in deprivation or fly-by-night fads. Thankfully, it's a lot simpler: Eat healthy, fresh, seasonal foods in moderate amounts, and get lots of exercise, fresh air, and sleep. Make this a way of life (not a short-lived diet strategy that you're bound to blow off) and steer clear of the five most-common weight-loss landmines, and this year, your lose-10-pounds resolution will actually become a reality.   Beyond the Bathroom Scale For many of us, the number on our bathroom scale makes or breaks our day: joy, if it moves downward a few pounds, and despair if it creeps upward, as we diet, sweat, and stress our way toward that magical number we believe defines our ideal weight. But that number may not carry as much import as people—and many doctors—have long thought. It turns out that what you weigh isn't nearly as important as where that weight is. Learn more about going beyond the scale and body mass index numbers and why they matter.   Detox the Right Way Raise your hand if you've ever dreamed of using a juice fast to lose your love handles or compensate for holiday excesses. You're not alone. Between October 2008 and October 2009, Americans spent more than $100 million on cleansing and detoxifying products in an effort to lose weight, gain energy, or purify themselves of harmful toxins, according to market research firm Spins. The appeal is obvious: Multiday detoxes are advertised as if they were shops where you send your dinged-up old body to be detailed. When you get it back, it's so clean and shiny, it might as well be brand-new. If only it were that simple.   Winter Weight, Be Gone Try these quick tips to help shed some extra pounds. Click here to find out how.   Red Pepper Hummus Try this recipe for red pepper hummus from Ani Phyo, raw chef and author of Ani's Raw Food Essentials. You'll love this light and easy to make snack that you can store in the refrigerator for up to two days. Try it with pita chips! Click here for the recipe.

New Evidence of the Power of Hot Peppers to Fight Obesity

Chile, cayenne and jalapeno for weight loss? Absolutely, says a growing body of research. According to new research performed at the University of Wyoming, the capsaicin found in hot peppers may help to combat our growing obesity epidemic.
Capsaicin is the compound found in spicy hot peppers which makes them spicy hot. It has been found to have many health benefits, and the new research on its relation to mitigating obesity, which was recently presented at the Biophysical Society’s 59th annual meeting, is exciting.
On the research, graduate student Vivek Krishnan explains, “obesity is caused by an imbalance between calorie intake and energy dissipation. In our bodies, white fat cells store energy and brown fat cells serve as thermogenic (heat produced by burning fat) machinery to burn stored fat. Eating calorie-rich food and a lack of physical activity cause an imbalance in metabolism that leads to obesity.”

Through their experiments with mice, Krishnan and his fellow researchers have arrived at the hypothesis that capsaicin may be able to “stimulate thermogenesis” in the cells, and encourage the “browning” of white fat tissue. The researchers hope that someday, capsaicin can be used to help manage obesity and other metabolic ailments. On top of these new discoveries, hot peppers have been found to aid weight loss in several other ways. Previous research has linked capsaicin (specifically in cayenne pepper) to appetite suppression, and reduced cravings throughout the day. Hot peppers in general have been associated with boosting metabolism.
Hot peppers, including cayenne, chiles, serranos, jalapenos and all your frightfully-hot favorites, are also high in antioxidants, which help keep oxidative stress and inflammation down. Chronic inflammation has been linked to accumulation of belly fat, along with many other illnesses. These peppers are also great for detoxifying the body – an important step in healthy weight loss.
Whether you are trying to lose weight or not, with all the health benefits of the many amazing hot peppers out there, it may be worth it to include some in your diet somewhere, even in small amounts. A little bit of fire may be just what that recipe needed!
-The Alternative Daily

Colorectal Cancer Educational Events