Dr. Steen's December Newsletter
Acid vs. alkaline… There’s a lot of convincing talk in the world of natural medicine that says our American diet has too much acid, and that we should endeavor any means possible to become more alkaline. The truth is, without acid in the digestive process food will not get digested and will remain in the stomach longer, which creates more trouble. All too often when a person has been diagnosed with “excess stomach acid”, a vicious cycle of taking anti-acids is initiated. This often leads to worse digestion, decreased absorption, and worse overall health due to malnutrition. This malnutrition is not because of lack of food, but lack of absorption of the food. There are various natural ways to improve digestion without adding acid. For example, the following can be taken with meals: digestive enzymes, digestive teas, papaya enzymes, bromelain (natural pineapple enzymes), or a spoonful of apple cider vinegar, which is a very mild acid. Once a digestive tract has really become sensitive even these might be irritating. To remedy this dilemma I offer the Standard Process Okra Pepsin E3 as a unique healing digestive aid.
Okra Pepsin is a little mentioned digestive aid that was originally developed for patients with stomach ulcers or colitis. The vegetable okra helps a person digest food, especially protein. It also has nutrients that help a damaged digestive tract heal. Its action is quite unique, in that it coats the intestine with mucilaginous ‘goo’ that helps lift ‘gunk’ stuck on the intestinal villi. This vegetable coating has a healing and nourishing effect on the villi. Probiotics can then work more effectively because the intestine becomes a healthy environment for the probiotics. Pepsin used to be sold in a gum form as a digestive aid. Some of you might remember Pepsodent gum. The E3 adds a powerful tissue repair factor.
Potato juice can lessen a fever… A little known folk remedy to bring down a child’s fever is to have them sip on the juice of a skinned red potato. When taken a spoonful at a time, something in the potato juice reduces a fever, especially a teething fever. Once a potato is cut, it oxidizes (turns brown) quickly, so use the juice immediately. Adding a couple of drops of lemon juice to the potato juice will help slow the oxidation a bit.
Warning about growth hormones … Young people are experimenting with growth hormones to try to get a physical advantage in sports, similar to the way they tried to use steroids back in the 70’s. Obviously, problems can be caused by taking an unnatural hormone. There are also various internet scams selling “fake growth hormone”. I only mention it here as a warning to parents. Hormones are very powerful molecules in very tiny doses, so you can hardly be too careful with them.
“Cancer Advice, Letter Two”… Following is information from my second letter to a cancer-prone loved one that I hope might also be of value to my newsletter readers. Start eating carrots and drinking no less than two servings of carrot juice a day. This is something I definitely did when battling cancer. Why the focus on carrots? The best explanation I can offer is that there’s something powerful in the vegetable form of vitamin A, but there is probably more to it that is simply yet unknown. There are many whole food nutrient supplements that include carrots as an ingredient for improving other various ailments, hinting at the idea that many expert minds agree on their health benefits. Organic carrots are relatively inexpensive and keep well in the refrigerator. Carrot juice can be mixed with small amounts of other juices like apple, pineapple, orange, pear, mango and apricot juice to give the flavor some variation. Avoid pesticide carcinogens by using only organic produce and juice. In addition to consuming carrots, eat more dark orange vegetables like sweet potatoes and butternut squash, and red and orange fruits and melons like peaches, cantaloupes, and mangoes.
Get a good juicer; a less expensive juicer that separates the pulp to one side will work fine. The fancier stainless steel ones are superior, but it’s good to start with an inexpensive juicer first to see if you end up using it consistently. A good buy on a second hand juicer might be found online on Amazon, EBay or Craig’s List. I bought a used Vita-Mix several years ago because it was the best blender I had ever heard of. It blends the fruits and veggies without separating the pulp, providing maximum nutrition, which I think is the “way to go” for juicing.
Cod liver oil, which also contains vitamins E and K, is a very simple supplement to consider. This nutrient helped the pioneers endure the harsh winters in northern climates. Get good quality oil and be consistent about taking it. Unlike vegetable sources of vitamin A, it IS possible for a person to over-consume animal or fish sources of it. Sorting out whether the cod is contaminated with mercury or other pollutants can be tricky. In general, the colder the water where the fish was harvested, the better.
Water is one thing to be diligent about. Drink plenty of good pure filtered water. Water treatment plants long ago abandoned the idea of trying to get all the treated water perfectly potable. While the average tap water is healthy enough to not spread disease and to use for cleaning other things, it is not healthy enough to drink eight glasses a day of it. There are “bits of stuff” in it you don’t even want to know about. Trust me; there are entire books that have been written based on these facts. There are many different filters available that vary in price and efficacy. A water distiller removes everything, including healthy minerals. I was told that this can lead to receding gums and other health problems, even if you take mineral supplements. Still, many insist distillers are the most pure way to go. There are two costs to consider: the original cost, including installation, and then the cost of replacement filters. Availability of different types and brands can vary from region to region. I used to go to fill empty bottles at the local grocery store, stocking up on a week’s worth at a time. Eventually, I ended up getting a filter that fits under the kitchen sink, with a separate faucet for drinking water and cooking water. To make it more appealing to some, the flavor of water can be enhanced by adding sliced cucumber, lemon or strawberries.
Another consideration regarding water is in the shower or bath, where the skin absorbs substances that are in the water it’s exposed to. There are filters that can be attached to the place where the shower water comes out that will filter out chlorine and other toxic chemicals used in water treatment systems. It’s not ideal, but better than nothing, and surely is better for your skin. Typically, these filters need to be replaced every six months, up to a year, depending on use.
Thank you… for your generosity! With your help, we raised over two hundred dollars for Help the Needy! In addition, we would also like to thank you for helping us put together six boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Due to the holidays, we will not hold a Saturday fundraiser during the month of December. Do stay tuned for the return of our Saturday fundraisers after the start of the bright New Year ahead!
Okra Pepsin is a little mentioned digestive aid that was originally developed for patients with stomach ulcers or colitis. The vegetable okra helps a person digest food, especially protein. It also has nutrients that help a damaged digestive tract heal. Its action is quite unique, in that it coats the intestine with mucilaginous ‘goo’ that helps lift ‘gunk’ stuck on the intestinal villi. This vegetable coating has a healing and nourishing effect on the villi. Probiotics can then work more effectively because the intestine becomes a healthy environment for the probiotics. Pepsin used to be sold in a gum form as a digestive aid. Some of you might remember Pepsodent gum. The E3 adds a powerful tissue repair factor.
Potato juice can lessen a fever… A little known folk remedy to bring down a child’s fever is to have them sip on the juice of a skinned red potato. When taken a spoonful at a time, something in the potato juice reduces a fever, especially a teething fever. Once a potato is cut, it oxidizes (turns brown) quickly, so use the juice immediately. Adding a couple of drops of lemon juice to the potato juice will help slow the oxidation a bit.
Warning about growth hormones … Young people are experimenting with growth hormones to try to get a physical advantage in sports, similar to the way they tried to use steroids back in the 70’s. Obviously, problems can be caused by taking an unnatural hormone. There are also various internet scams selling “fake growth hormone”. I only mention it here as a warning to parents. Hormones are very powerful molecules in very tiny doses, so you can hardly be too careful with them.
“Cancer Advice, Letter Two”… Following is information from my second letter to a cancer-prone loved one that I hope might also be of value to my newsletter readers. Start eating carrots and drinking no less than two servings of carrot juice a day. This is something I definitely did when battling cancer. Why the focus on carrots? The best explanation I can offer is that there’s something powerful in the vegetable form of vitamin A, but there is probably more to it that is simply yet unknown. There are many whole food nutrient supplements that include carrots as an ingredient for improving other various ailments, hinting at the idea that many expert minds agree on their health benefits. Organic carrots are relatively inexpensive and keep well in the refrigerator. Carrot juice can be mixed with small amounts of other juices like apple, pineapple, orange, pear, mango and apricot juice to give the flavor some variation. Avoid pesticide carcinogens by using only organic produce and juice. In addition to consuming carrots, eat more dark orange vegetables like sweet potatoes and butternut squash, and red and orange fruits and melons like peaches, cantaloupes, and mangoes.
Get a good juicer; a less expensive juicer that separates the pulp to one side will work fine. The fancier stainless steel ones are superior, but it’s good to start with an inexpensive juicer first to see if you end up using it consistently. A good buy on a second hand juicer might be found online on Amazon, EBay or Craig’s List. I bought a used Vita-Mix several years ago because it was the best blender I had ever heard of. It blends the fruits and veggies without separating the pulp, providing maximum nutrition, which I think is the “way to go” for juicing.
Cod liver oil, which also contains vitamins E and K, is a very simple supplement to consider. This nutrient helped the pioneers endure the harsh winters in northern climates. Get good quality oil and be consistent about taking it. Unlike vegetable sources of vitamin A, it IS possible for a person to over-consume animal or fish sources of it. Sorting out whether the cod is contaminated with mercury or other pollutants can be tricky. In general, the colder the water where the fish was harvested, the better.
Water is one thing to be diligent about. Drink plenty of good pure filtered water. Water treatment plants long ago abandoned the idea of trying to get all the treated water perfectly potable. While the average tap water is healthy enough to not spread disease and to use for cleaning other things, it is not healthy enough to drink eight glasses a day of it. There are “bits of stuff” in it you don’t even want to know about. Trust me; there are entire books that have been written based on these facts. There are many different filters available that vary in price and efficacy. A water distiller removes everything, including healthy minerals. I was told that this can lead to receding gums and other health problems, even if you take mineral supplements. Still, many insist distillers are the most pure way to go. There are two costs to consider: the original cost, including installation, and then the cost of replacement filters. Availability of different types and brands can vary from region to region. I used to go to fill empty bottles at the local grocery store, stocking up on a week’s worth at a time. Eventually, I ended up getting a filter that fits under the kitchen sink, with a separate faucet for drinking water and cooking water. To make it more appealing to some, the flavor of water can be enhanced by adding sliced cucumber, lemon or strawberries.
Another consideration regarding water is in the shower or bath, where the skin absorbs substances that are in the water it’s exposed to. There are filters that can be attached to the place where the shower water comes out that will filter out chlorine and other toxic chemicals used in water treatment systems. It’s not ideal, but better than nothing, and surely is better for your skin. Typically, these filters need to be replaced every six months, up to a year, depending on use.
Thank you… for your generosity! With your help, we raised over two hundred dollars for Help the Needy! In addition, we would also like to thank you for helping us put together six boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Due to the holidays, we will not hold a Saturday fundraiser during the month of December. Do stay tuned for the return of our Saturday fundraisers after the start of the bright New Year ahead!
