Heart Disease, Cholesterol, & EOs- Part One

Butter cookies, gravy, and generous portions of rich meats....'tis the season for cholesterol, right? In Part 1 I will share some facts about the real cause of heart disease and Part 2 we will look at the role of essential oils to support healthy cholesterol levels.
The facts and information below was compiled in a booklet by Ronald Lawrence MD, PhD called 15 New Discoveries That Will STOP Heart Disease



FACT: 150 years ago heart disease was virtually unheard of. Today it is the #1 cause of death in America. It kills nearly 30% of us. In fact, it kills more women than all forms of cancer, chronic lung disease, pneumonia, AIDS, diabetes and accidents combined.

FACT 1 : "High cholesterol alone is NOT the primary cause of heart disease". -Dr. Joseph Mercola

C-reactive protein level is a stronger predictor of cardiovascular events than the LDL cholesterol level.-Paul Ridker, MD, Harvard Medical School

FACT 2: The real cause of heart disease is OXIDIZED cholesterol.

A 2005 University of San Diego study found that high cholesterol only modestly increased the risk of coronary artery disease. But patients with both high cholesterol and high oxidized cholesterol had SIXTEEN times higher risk.

Circulating levels of oxidized LDL are strongly associated with angiographically documented coronary artery disease, particularly in patients 60 years of age or younger. The New England Journal of Medicine

FACT 3 : Free radicals ( i. e., superoxide) in the blood cause oxidized cholesterol.

Feeding a diet spiked with oxidized cholesterol caused a 100% increase in fatty streak lesions in the aorta, according to studies at the University of California. Ilona Staprans, PhD. UC, San Francisco

FACT 4: The world's best-selling drugs for heart disease (statins) only treat high cholesterol and do little to prevent oxidized cholesterol. Lowering cholesterol without reducing oxidized cholesterol can be harmful to your health.

Cholesterol is essential for life. It is:

• The building block of hormones that control blood sugar and mineral balance
• essential for creating testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone
• part of every cell membrane in our body
• precursor to vitamin D
• an essential part of bile salts, required for digestion

Patients with chronic heart failure benefit from having high levels of cholesterol rather than low.

Researchers in Hull, UK followed 114 heart failure patients for at least 12 months. They found that for every point on decrease in serum cholesterol, there was a 36% increase in the risk of death in 3 years.

FACT 6: Some antioxidant whole foods are powerful medicines to prevent and treat heart disease.

NEWSWEEK, January 17th, 2005: "but powerful as statins are, a healthy dose of exercise and the right foods are more powerful still."-Howard LeWine, MD, Harvard School of Medicine

In the next post we will look at some of the most antioxidant substances on earth- essential oils, and which ones support heart health.

This tip is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Dear Readers

Hi there! I am thinking about the new year ahead with lots of ideas for information to share here. I welcome your feedback, so please feel free to post comments requesting a specific topic/essential oil that you would like learn more about.

Also if you have a blog and would like to share my link, please save the pink Oils for Wellness...diffusing the fragrance banner as a photo to post on your sidebar or in a blog entry. Add http://oilsforwellness.blogspot.com/ to make the photo clickable. The html code for the banner hasn't been working in some places, so that is why I suggest using this method!

Thanks!
Jen

Christmas Spirit Giveaway Winner

The winner of the terra cotta diffuser ornament and Christmas Spirit essential oil giveaway is Cathy Davis! Congrats Cathy!

The Essence of Thanksgiving

Since my childhood it has been a common practice to stuff the turkey and let it slow roast overnight. This year I got a 25 pounder to insure that there would be plenty of leftovers to share with other family members. My roaster just barely accomodated the huge bird, but I was pleased that it did indeed fit into my oven. I was looking forward to that traditional turkey fragrance when I woke up in the morning. My nose detected something unpleasant before I was fully awake. As I decended the stairs I could see a smoky haze over the living room. Uh Oh!

The roaster accomodated the meaty fellow, but apparently not all of the oily juice which was now bubbling over onto the bottom of the oven,creating a nasty burnt greasy smoke. Yucky! I flung open the windows, and hoped the stove and ceiling fan would move the smoky air out of the house. Thankfully we have another stove in the lower level, to which I promptly moved Mr. Turkey so he could continue roasting, minus a quart of oily juice. I turned on the diffuser down there which contained Purification essential oil blend and filled another one upstairs with Christmas Spirit to freshen the air.

As much as I dreaded it, the greasy oven was next on my list. Yay! Oven cleaning before my eyes were open, I groaned. First, I wiped out the pooling oil with several paper towels, then sprayed Thieves Household Essential Oil cleaner on the inside of the entire oven. I let it sit for a few minutes, then wiped. I repeated this a few times just with the cleaner and paper towels. It came clean without any harsh oven cleaners or scouring pads. When my family arrived I told them about the scary incident this morning. The house had a pleasant cinnamony scent and everyone said that they could hardly smell any smokiness at all. Whew, essential oils to the rescue and yes, the turkey turned out delicious to my great relief!

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

Avoid Flame Resistant PJs for Kids

Please read this before buying your little ones sleepwear this winter!

http://www.5minutesforgoinggreen.com/299/avoiding-flame-retardants-in-cozy-childrens-pajamas/trackback/

Winterize Your Body With Inner Defense

Just like draining the sprinklers, putting on snow tires, and checking the furnace in preparation for winter, our bodies also require special maintenance during the cold time of the year.

Young Living has pioneered the formulation of therapeutic/medicinal essential oils for internal use. In Europe, the internal use of essential oils is commonly called aromatic medicine. Here in the US, it is still a fairly new concept. First of all, few essential oils are available that are pure enough to be called a supplement. If you plan to take an essential oil internally be certain it has a white "supplement facts" label on the bottle otherwise it isn't meant for internal use.

Inner Defense was put to the test for me last winter. A friend and I decided to do a mid winter getaway to stay in a cabin( yes, it was heated-somewhat!) for the weekend. It was 20 below zero outside and when my friend got home she developed bronchitis and used an inhaler and antibiotics for a few weeks. I immediately started taking Inner Defense 3 times a day with meals. I could tell something was trying to lower my immune system on our trip because my throat was starting to get a little scratchy. Long story short, I took these high powered oils for about 10 days and never got sick even though I was directly exposed to the germs/virus all weekend besides being chilled in subzero weather.

What is Inner Defense?

These liquid gel caps are filled with some of the most potent immune supporting essential oils.

Including Thieves Blend: Clove, Lemon, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus radiata, Rosemary

Thyme, which is a rich source of thymol, a substance known to create an unfriendly environment for yeast and fungus.

Oregano, which is high in carvacrol, known to support well-being when the body is distressed.

Citronella has mild cleansing properties.

Don't let the cold and flu season get you down; winterize today with essential oils on the inside!

Available on my website or contact me for more information.

Essential Tip of the Week-Freshening Bathrooms

No need for those synthetically fragranced toilet paper roll deodorizers!

Simply apply a few drops of your favorite essential oil to the inside of the cardboard tube. The fresh scent can last for days while purifying the air.

For bathrooms with moisture/mildew issues, I recommend Purification Blend.