Feels Good to Feel Good Magazine, Spring 2023

Cheryl Meyer

Thank you for subscribing to It Feels Good to Feel Good Magazine, inspiring a healthy life. Welcome to the ultimate destination to discover pathways to health, where ownership, perseverance, and tenacity are the keys to success.

This magazine is a passion project for me. I want to inspire others who are feeling sick and tired and ill, struggle with various pesky relief from their healthcare practitioner. Instead, what they are getting are more prescriptions thrown at them. Pharmaceuticals only mitigate the symptoms, they do not cure, but solutions are available to help you restore balance to your body and return to wellness. You have more power over your health and your body than you have been permitted to believe.

I know the frustration and loneliness of having terrible pain and not having my conventional MD “hear” me or believe me that something was wrong. After multiple testing, my allopathic MD came back to me and suggested mental therapy because my tests showed nothing was wrong with me. However, she wanted to give me steroids because I said I hurt. What the heck? Why would I take steroids if nothing was wrong with me? And I knew something was wrong with my

Friends and family did not understand why I was no longer sociable and withdrawing from life. I was in a long-term relationship with a man who did not want to change or accommodate new healthier eating or lifestyle habits. I felt so lousy it began to impact my solopreneur business. I did not want to travel overseas or domestically to see customers or continue creating and selling my product. I was girl interrupted.

When I started my Wellness Journey, I had no idea what I was looking for. But I believed in myself and knew that if I researched, the answers to return to wellness.

My goal with this magazine is to inspire you to begin your journey back to wellness, and I want to give you hope that there are answers and solutions to your symptoms and ill health. You do not have to have a life of pain and pills. Nothing is impossible. Believe there are

Take back your power. I want to encourage you to adopt the pillars of health now for your future health and your family’s health.

I have learned that health is not a destination, it is a journey, and I wanted to share some of my stops along the way to encourage you keep seeking until you resolve what is putting your body out of balance.

I am still a work in progress. Many of the paths I present in this magazine are parallel and collaborate well with each other. I want to inspire you to be open as you seek your answers.

The key is to inspire you to keep looking for your

puzzle pieces and for you to implement them as you move forward.

Look at the list of pesky symptoms in the article Signs That You Are Not as Healthy as You Think. Most of us feel lousy but think it is a normal way to feel. However, if you resonate with any of these signs, even just one, this is your body’s way of communicating with you. It’s time to become proactive now before you slide into Chronic Illness.

In this magazine, you will discover a healing way to eat by eating from the farmacy. And I have included articles on sustaining your new healthy eating and still having a social life. And I have addressed the poor health of our children solutions.

And in this magazine, I am honored to introduce you to the impacted my health journey.

You will meet my functional MD, Dr. Silpa Sayana, and why she practices root cause medicine. This doctor saved my life. You will meet my Naturopath, Dr. Dan Young, and his unique methods of body and how proper diet, supplementation, and other holistic solutions can return you to health.

You will discover a Tao holistic approach to health from a warrior who had a botched back surgery and was completely girlinterrupted. She discovered a series of holistic modalities, and she and her partner became award-winning that chronicled the impact of these modalities on herself and many others. Love Heals, the movie, will be on PBS this year.

You will meet Marilee Nelson and her remarkable team at found them because they created a completely toxinfree cleaning concentrate made from plant enzymes, which eliminated many of the toxic chemicals in my home and worked like a charm on my laundry,

mirrors, and toilets.

I researched toxins the hard way by looking up every ingredient of every product in my home one by one on EWG.org. However, Marilee and her team have created a “Toss the Toxins” course that will cut through how to remove many toxins in your environment. My husband and I have audited this course, and it is brilliant.

I included an article of resources I have discovered that you can utilize to research cleaning up all the poisons in your life that are making you sick. And the toxins are everywhere. Knowledge is power, and I want you to know where to clean all the poisons out of your life.

And you will also meet the CEO of

organic color to balance the energy centers in your body (the chakras) for health. I will also explore the importance of releasing stress, the magic of massage, and other important modalities to enhance your wellness. We will take deeper dives into the pillars of health. You can do many things to heal your body from the inside out. Join my

I see you. I hear you. And I value you. Together let us take back our health.

I will love to hear from you if you implement the ideas in this magazine. Let me know what did and did not work for you. I want to

My word for this year is self-love. Love yourself enough to be healthy. Be your best, most authentic self. Loving yourself sets the stage for how others will love you, and self-love begins with healthy habits.

Ten years ago, I was a solopreneur with my own jewelry design business. When I woke up one morning and could not get out of bed, I had terrible pain in my joints and muscles. My conventional doctor ran many tests but had no clue what was wrong with me. She believed that there was NOTHING wrong with me and that I should seek mental therapy.

It ended up I had autoimmune not practicing any self-care. I was as I was working all day. My diet was processed food, processed frozen food, and processed restaurant food. It was making me sick. My stress was so out of control my cortisol was almost to Addison’s disease. Finally, I was a girl interrupted, and something had to change. I could not function.

my lifestyle and eating habits, and ditched my pain of autoimmune disease. Although I have a BA from UC Berkley, it was in English. I a health coach so that I could help you with everything I had discovered about health. I lost 65 pounds without dieting. I allowed my body to return to balance by eating the rainbow of organic, whole foods.

I wrote 2 award-winning books about my get-well journey that

combined have won 25 awards. It Feels Good to Feel Good, Learn to Eliminate Toxins, Reduce

And Feeling Good, Living Low Toxin, which shares tips on how I sustain my new healthy lifestyle.

I sold my jewelry business so that I could be all in on health. Best of all, I no longer have pain.

I work with clients with chronic illnesses to help them regain balance and wellness. Eating the rainbow and adopting my 20 pillars of health, I no longer have pain from my chronic disease, and I feel great. I want others to enjoy feeling great as well. I have books, classes, podcasts, cookbooks, and coaching to support this process.

solutions for missing puzzle pieces to return clients to wellness. This magazine is a roadmap for the

Nothing is Impossible. Embrace the possible.

It Feels Good to Feel Good. So, join me on the road to health and discover the magic.

I mentor others to return to wellness through:

My award-winning books have won 25 awards.

My courses:

My cookbooks:

My podcasts: Facebook:

Contact me at cherylmhealthmusegmail.com for your initial complimentary consultation. First, I need to listen to your story and what you have tried in your health journey to date. And then we dig in.

I coach lifestyle change to improve wellness.

My private Facebook group: feelinggoodlivinglowtoxin

Linked In: Private mentoring - My solutions for missing puzzle pieces and coaching clients to succeed in their health using lifestyle habit changes.

Contact me at cherylmhealthmuse@gmail.com for your initial complimentary consultation.

Health is a journey. It is not a de ination.

WELCOME CHERYL MEYER’S BIOGRAPHY

I AM YOUR HEALTH MUSE

By Cheryl Meyer

SIGNS THAT YOU ARE NOT AS HEALTHY AS YOU THINK

DITCH THE STANDARD AMERICAN DIET AND SAVE YOUR HEALTH

EAT THE RAINBOW RAISE HEALTHY, VIBRANT CHILDREN THE 20 PILLARS OF HEALTH

GO

MASTERING DINING OUT FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE

By Shilpa Sayana, MD

BEYOND MODERN MEDICINE

By Dr. Dan Young, BCN, CNC

THE BIRTH OF A HEALTHY CLEANING PRODUCT LINE

By Marilee Nelson

THE CASE FOR TOSSING THE TOXINS

By Marilee Nelson

BECOME A TOXIN DETECTIVE AND SAVE YOUR FAMILY

FROM SPINE SURGERY VICTIM TO AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER

By Krisanna Sexton

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY

By Tamara L. Hunter

Acknowledgments

- Editor

And I am especially blessed to have John Gins as my partner in life and for all my projects. He is brilliant and methodical and makes all the pieces come together perfectly. What a gift he is to me every day.

- Photographer

Laura Harstad is a Virtual Photographer who helps entrepreneurs elevate their brand and stand out with professional photos - all through the magic of a virtual photo shoot! Learn more: www.lauraharstad.com

Laura took the Magazine Cover picture of Cheryl at the Meyberg Waterfall in the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens and other photos of Cheryl throughout the magazine.

Cheryl Meyer

I Am Your Health Muse:

Let Me Inspire You to Live Your Healthiest Life!

When I woke up in extreme pain 10 years ago, I decided not to live out my life on pills and in pain.

I know how frustrating it is to seek medical care and be limited to a 5-minute appointment, not to feel heard, and after all, was said and done, to be told nothing was wrong with me. But I knew something was

I changed. I researched. I learned. I implemented.

Change did not happen overnight, but each step I took was one step closer to how I wanted to feel.

I joined a yoga class to help relieve my stress. I learned breathing exercises because my cortisol was almost to Addison’s disease, and I knew I was in trouble.

I needed real live whole foods. That was almost like a no-brainer. I researched whether it needed to be organic and what GMO meant. I made lists of conventional food I would never buy when I went to the market and carried them in my purse.

I owned my health.

night’s sleep.

I started moving my body. I bought what I call my mini trampoline and started bouncing. (On a rebounder)

I even broke up with my 10-year didn’t want to change how he ate, even when I explained that I had no choice. I wanted to heal.

I went looking for a partner who wanted to go on a “Get Well Journey with me” and found my future

husband.

paths to wellness, but they have complemented each other’s journey back to health.

Why am I sharing all of this with you?

My mindset changed. I was not going to let anything get in my way. I hurt. Every muscle and every joint in my body hurt. And although my conventional MD had no idea what was wrong with me, I never answers and solutions.

And here I am today. Happy in my marriage with no pain. I wanted to help others so they did not end up like I did, in bed, scared and in despair, without a clue what to do to change it, and with an allopathic medical MD who didn’t acknowledge that I was sick, let alone know how to help me other than throwing pills at me.

I now know that I have autoimmune disease similar I no longer have pain. I have gone from acute Type II Diabetes to pre-diabetes and no longer have a fatty liver. I have lost 65 pounds without dieting. Best of all, I feel great.

And if I could do it, you can do it too.

Why should you want me as your health coach?

For two main reasons:

1. You will be heard and valued if you come to me. I know the frustration of having pain and not being heard or valued by will listen to you and then help you discover answers to your health issues.

2. And secondly, because I have been there. I had no idea what I was looking for 10 years ago when I started, and I have information, how to implement it, and how to get around or through any barriers that pop up in your way. As a result, I can help you implement healthier habits and recommend what will make you successful. And

I have many happy clients who have returned to wellness with my assistance.

There are so many coaches around who are not experts. I have 10 years of research behind me, solving my health puzzles. When I returned to school to be a health

like you. I sold my jewelry business so that I could be all in.

summits and listened to multiple functional and integrative doctors looking for my clues for health. In addition, I have been an avid reader of Functional and Integrative expert books.

I have two award-winning books on Amazon and Walmart.com that have won 25 awards combined.

I worked with a health coach and understand its value. I then found a Functional MD and a Naturopath to assist me in my wellness journey. I can be a liaison with your practitioners as I understand their do lifestyle change, and that in itself can have a tremendous impact on your health and well-being.

I have explored holistic methods and used breathing, yoga, mindset, and exercise for my wellness.

I have experience with and have implemented all 20 of the pillars of

health that I teach. (See my article on what these are.) These lifestyle

in your health journey. I have explored many ways to implement and get results for each one.

I am fully committed to eating the organic rainbow and “clean” meat and have found solutions to most situations I have encountered to stick with that eating approach. I have a course that I teach quarterly with remarkable success with dozens of clients changing how people eat, and I have researched to explain why it’s so important for your future health.

have partnered with Meridian Valley to test if sensitivities are one of your puzzle pieces.

my 50s. So I want you to know just how good it feels to feel good. And I know that it is possible.

Who better to work with than someone who started at ground zero and learned and overcame all the obstacles to return to health? I have learned many tips that I can share and inspire you.

I have a proven track record and happy clients with results. So I will keep you focused on also getting results, hold you accountable to your goals, and make suggestions for you to succeed each step of

the way. I want you to win.

Do you want to way to eliminate the unhealthy symptoms that are plaguing you? What are you willing to do to change your health and your life? Are you open to discovering a better way? Are you open to change? Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?

I do my best work with clients with Chronic Diseases. However, I have also had success with clients who want to implement healthier habits for their future health.

If you are considering trying my approach to regain your power over your health and want guidance, accountability, and appointment with me is free. I need to hear your health history. I need to know what you have tried that has and has not worked. I promise to “listen to your health history, and I will hear you.” I will ask you many questions. I have had people hug me after a session because,

and are not crazy that they have all these crazy symptoms that their

Conventional MD is poo-pooing.

If you decide to work with me, and if I believe that lifestyle changes can a partnership to build your new path to health.

If you are proactive in changing and improving your health, and if you implement lifestyle changes, I recommend that we dig in at your pace. In a short time, you will begin to feel better. Of course, healing takes time, but your body will start to respond within weeks so that you know you are on the right track.

I am a researcher. My superpower for their health.

of wellness through lifestyle change.

This is an endorsement that I got from a client:

want to say thank you and (big hugs). Your information may have saved my life. I’m 45 years old and have been struggling with unanswered symptoms for at least 5 years, and all conventional doctors want to do is wash me away with medication. You have saved some of the best years of my life with your information and coaching. Thank you so much.” ~Lisa

I am the right coach if you are considering a holistic approach to

regain your power over your health.

Another endorsement

“Cheryl is an amazing health coach. We had no idea how much sugar and chemicals were in the food we were eating or how lousy we were truly feeling. My husband and I could have never broken the addiction to processed foods alone. But, after we succeeded, we were physically, emotionally, and spiritually in a much better place.

“We got some blowback from our adult children and grandchildren

Cheryl had suggestions every step of the way for us not to dictate to them to our improved health. In the

everyone else. Now 4 of our 5 children are feeding their families whole organic foods from the rainbow, and they are all seeing shifts towards wellness.

“Thank you, Cheryl, for your tireless love and non-judgmental support.”

And another endorsement from a client:

“You are one of the MOST GENEROUS, loving, and informed people I know. You have singularly changed my understanding of foods, what is happening to our food and water

sourcing, and my journey into a healthier lifestyle. I am still working on managing stress, but your breathing exercises make a big patterns are greatly improved. Thank you for being my health muse.”

~ Emily

And another:

“As I try things, I trust Cheryl more changing. The biggest thing is my arthritis is better!!!!! I walk better. But I am not fast. (Falling didn’t do me any good.) And my gut is better. I know what to eat and what NOT to eat. And yes, I know if I cheat, I will pay for it. Big Pharma doesn’t want you to know these simple things. They want you to buy drugs and make them rich.

“I am telling you, eating organic is the best thing Cheryl has taught me. The And when I remember to be Gluten Free, I lose weight easily.

“I also love love, love the belly button wand. I use it before bed and sleep better than in years.” ~ Joanie

pathways. I have books and deepdive podcasts. I also have podcasts where I have interviewed others who have had a chronic illness, made lifestyle changes, and returned to wellness. I did those because I want to give you hope. You, too, can do this. In addition, I have 3 courses, Ditch the Standard American Diet, Food Quality Matters, and Foster a Healthy Lymph System, all of which are foundational for health. The next courses will be on the liver (I have reversed my fatty liver) and on how to lower your stress so that you can live long and thrive.

I can help you reach your goal if you hire me and are willing to to the results.

Always keep your eye on the encourage you every step of the way.

If you are looking for someone to get you outside your box and think who will help you make sense of

the symptoms you are facing and that your body is communicating to you, someone who will show you a better way forward, let’s set up the complementary call. I have found solutions for all the things causing

body, and I would love to work with

NOTE: Marilee Nelson, in this magazine, is an environmental toxin coach. She can help you discover what toxins put your health out of balance in your environment and guide you on detoxifying your home. Read her experience and background. She might also be the perfect coach to help you with your toxin issues causing dis-ease. See her article on the birth of a non-toxic cleaning solution and also her article about her new Toss the Toxins Course. Her Toss the Toxins course is a must-do. And also, see my article on resources to discover the toxins in the products in your life.

Signs That You Are Not as Healthy as You Think

By Cheryl Meyer

What are the signs your body is sharing with you that now is the time to prioritize healthier habits in your life?

This is an important list to review to see if you have any of these symptoms. I made this list to give you a stronger WHY to adopt healthy eating habits, ditch the SAD (Standard American Diet), and start eating the rainbow diet with “clean” meat*. And to also adopt the other healthy lifestyle habits I advocate for in this magazine.

manifestation of a problem; they are the last straw when your body can not compensate further.

I missed all these warning signs –

the symptoms my body shared with my brain, and I just pushed through them.

Are you doing that as well?

Thinking back, I made a list of all the symptoms I was feeling and ignoring.

practicing self-care, and traveling internationally with little or no time to recover after trips. I was eating with the speed of light and just shoveling processed and fast foods into my body at mealtime. My body was not getting adequate nutrition. I made no time for other lifestyle habits. I was always hungry.

Are you running so fast that you

have not stopped to think about how lousy you feel? could not get out of bed because I hurt and could not function. This toppled over into Chronic illness. I could no longer avoid “listening” to what my body was trying to communicate.

Are you listening to yours?

manifestation of a problem; they are the last straw when your body cannot compensate further.

“Now the accumulating damage begins producing symptoms.

“Once that ball starts rolling, the problem only gets bigger and bigger unless you stop it.

“It probably took years for your body to let you know something was ‘not normal’, and thus it may take a similar amount of time to reverse the damage.” Tom O’Bryan, Functional Doctor, The DR.com Instructor at the Functional School of Medicine.

These are all signs that I missed 10 years ago until that fateful morning. Remember, these are all dash light on your car dashboard signaling that something is wacky with your body. They are not bad;

they warn you to pay attention now. But then, if you ignore them, they start screaming at you to communicate that your body is out of balance and heading toward danger.

autoimmune disease, heart disease, liver disease, cancer, Type II diabetes, memory diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, arthritis, and more. The sooner you react and adopt healthy habits, the severe issues. But, like your car, you do not want your body to suddenly strand you on a dark road where you cannot get help and have a steep mountain to climb.

This is also why I encourage everyone to converse every morning with themselves in the

First, tell you that you love yourself. Say it out loud. I want you to “hear” it.

Then ask yourself, “How do you feel?” Get quiet, go inside, and wait for your body to answer. Remember, it speaks in symptoms. Wait until you can acknowledge each symptom your body communicates with you.

Then ask your body, “What can I do for you today?” Then, again, get quiet and be honest and listen to your body. I was amazed to discover just how smart my body was.

will make your body feel better. Start right away on that very day. To take action to improve how you eat, what you eat, how you sleep, how you move, how you breathe, how you reduce your chronic stress, how you get out into nature, how you practice gratitude, how you practice mindfulness, and how you foster a supportive community all of which will make an enormous

These are the signs I now pay careful attention to, and you should too! And I do adjust immediately. I do not ever want to return to feeling lousy ever again.

1. You hurt. You are taking more and more over-the-counter medications to “mask” the pain. You ensure you are never without them in your purse or your pocket so that you can function.

2. You just do not feel well. And when you stop to think about it, you are unsure how long you have felt lousy.

3. You are more tired when you get up than when you went to bed, and you were tired then.

You are struggling with what you think might be Chronic Fatigue.

5. You have anxiety and tons of

stress. You worry all the time about something.

6. You cannot lose weight. You have tried everything, and nothing works. You do not seem to have any willpower to stick to “a diet”.

Or, the opposite, you are losing weight despite your high-calorie diet. You have GERD or other digestive problems all the time.

10. You have gas.

11. You are often constipated. (This

12. You are going back and forth between constipation and diarrhea, and you do not know what is causing it, and sometimes it is embarrassing you.

13. You are always hungry, and you crave sugar. (Even after eating a large meal, you want more— ”the big hunger.” And you want something sweet. And then you open up a package, whether you want it all or not, and you eat the whole thing, so that you feel yukky.

You are getting more and more headaches.

15. Your knees are bothering youa lot.

16. In fact, you always have knee pain, headaches, and back pain; something in your body is screaming at you, and you are NOT listening. Instead, you are trying to ignore it. Or you told your MD, and he prescribed lots of pills. And your doctor is talking about surgery if the pills do not work.

You are getting arthritis. It seems impossible to get a good night’s sleep.

You snore. You just found out you have sleep apnea.

20. You have skin problems like eczema, psoriasis, or acne.

21. Your skin is starting to look old.

22. You are getting random skin rashes.

23. You have terrible hay fever. You have irregular periods.

25. You have a lot of body odor. In fact, your deodorant does not work very well, and you keep changing brands.

26. You have bad breath. You are getting lots of muscle cramps.

Fragrances and chemicals breathing. You can gain 5 pounds overnight when you eat something that does not agree with you.

30. have food sensitivities.

31. You are losing your hair.

32. You are becoming forgetful, or the answer to what you want to remember does not easily ball of your mind.

33. You have high blood sugar, triglycerides. You have Type II diabetes or hypoglycemia.

35. You are dealing with mood swings or with depression. It is more than your blood sugar. Processed food mucks around with all your hormones.

If you even have one of these symptoms, read my article on Ditching the SAD, eating the Rainbow, and adopting the 20 Lifestyle habits to promote good health.

You can also take my course to Ditch the SAD and break the addiction to CRAP (Carbonated,

You can take the Toss the Toxins course introduced in this magazine to lower your toxic load.

You can read my two key books, “It Feels Good to Feel Good” and “Feeling Good Living Low Toxin”, both available on Amazon.

You can listen to several of my podcasts on YouTube and watch some of my interviews with other people who owned their own health when they discovered they had a big issue, and you will get hope from what these people share about how they turned their health around.

for you, a Functional MD or a Naturopath who can help you begin the process of returning to balance. You will need support from someone who “hears” and values you and can help you.

You can hire a health coach like me to hold you accountable for your new healthy habits and explore the puzzle pieces to return to wellness. I can help you implement what your Functional MD and your naturopath encourage you to do.

others with the same chronic illness and get and give support to each other.

Take control of your health and love yourself enough to start caring for your future health today.

There are many paths to wellness. Health is a journey. It is not a destination. Explore it from every angle until your body congratulates you for how great you feel.

It does feel good to feel good. Commit to returning to that feeling again.

*What is “clean” meat? The animal has eaten the diet he was created to eat. Cows eat grass, not grains. Bison also eat grass. Chickens should be pastured to eat grass, bugs, and berries. Lambs only eat grass. Although pigs can eat anything, I want pastured pork, preferably from Heritage breeds.

hormones and antibiotics.

DITCH THE STANDARD AMERICAN DIET AND SAVE YOUR HEALTH:

By Cheryl Meyer

The foundational piece for health is what you eat. My mission is to change the way America eats and to inspire healthier lifestyle habits. You must start with food because eating the standard American diet, and C.R.A.P.

processed) makes us all sick. “The number one cause of death in the United States is the Standard American Diet.”

~ Michael Greger, M.D. How Not to Die

I want you to start eating from the “farmacy,” moving away from the pharmacy and popping pills to

feel better. If you start eating real organic food of all the colors of the rainbow, your body has the correct fuel and building blocks to function and heal, your medical scores improve, and you can move away from all the medication and start to feel GREAT. You need real nutrients for your cells to have healthy energy systems, and your cells are constantly dying and replacing themselves, so they need quality building supplies.

• Your intestines cells, which it is very corrosive, are replaced every 3 days.

• Your gut lining replaces itself

every 6 days, And the lining is thinner than tissue paper.

• Your tastebuds get replaced every 2 weeks.

• Your skin replaces its cells every 2-3 weeks.

• Your body continuously replaces red blood cells, but the

• The surface of your lungs gets replaced every 3 months.

• Your liver replaces all its cells every 5 months.

times over your lifetime.

• And your brain replaces some cells daily.

Processed food consists of sugar and fake chemicals made to taste like real food. They are destroying our bodily systems and our ability to function. The net result is a huge epidemic of Chronic illnesses in this country- autoimmune disease, cancer, heart disease, liver disease, Type II diabetes, arthritis, and many other metabolic disorders.

I started researching all these 10 years ago when I got autoimmune disease. After running multiple tests, my conventional MD did not think anything was wrong with me.

I knew something had gone very wrong with my body. I hurt, and my life was interrupted. I had extreme pain and did not want to get out of bed. I had researched my mother’s rare disease, Multiple System Atrophy, years earlier so that I could converse with her doctors. I had read all the studies available on that condition, so I knew it was

I completely changed my diet over the next 5 years to eating a rainbow of organic, whole foods and simultaneously eliminated dozens of toxins in the products in my home. At the end of this MD, Shilpa Sayana, MD, who ran that I had all the markers for autoimmune disease, and gave medical attention to my entire body to solve my core issues. In addition, she made medical and

holistic suggestions and helped me return to relative wellness. (Read Dr. Sayama’s article on Functional medicine in this magazine.)

I no longer eat many processed foods but only food with real ingredients. I learned that food is information. Food is molecular information that tells your body what to do (changing gene expression, being part of cell signaling pathways, triggering hormones, etc.) Casey Means, MD

Your body gets defective code if you are not eating the highest

quality foods because Food Quality Matters. If you eat processed foods or much of our conventionally farmed produce and meats, you eat poison with every bite from the pesticides and the herbicides that Big Ag uses on our food supply.

Stop eating the S-A-D. That stands for the Standard American Diet, which is really very sad.

I want to discuss everything I have discovered about the SAD. I am sharing what I have discovered to inspire you to change what you eat for your future health.

What is the SAD diet? It is fake, processed, fast, and processed frozen food; believe it or not, it is restaurant food that is not farmto-table. Restaurant food comes in little baggies, gets zapped, and then gets arranged on your plate in many restaurants. It is also restaurants utilizing conventional crops and factory-ranched animals that come with GMOs and synthetic chemicals. The factory-ranched animals also come with growth hormones, antibiotics, and stress hormones from being raised under appalling conditions.

“The problem with ultra-processed foods/highly processed foods is that during processing, they reduce properties of the food (like vitamins damaging parts of the food (like of compounds in the food making them disease-promoting (like oxidized fats) and add in stabilizers, chemicals to make them more ‘palatable’ and shelf-stable. What this means is that the food is not really serving your health as a good building block for the body and is not good molecular information for your body to know how to function properly.” ~ Casey Means, MD

When you consume processed food, you eat synthetic, industrial chemicals formulated to taste, smell, look, feel, sound, and enjoy as if they were real. Still, they are chemicals, and they are empty calories. They have little nutrition. Many of these chemicals are also harmful to our bodies. The food patenting these processed foods. Roundup is heavily used on most of our crops and in these foods. Roundup is known as glyphosate, which we now know creates some cancers in the human body. Yet to be researched are other harms of Roundup, but most likely exist. You also eat other harmful pesticides and herbicides sprayed on our crops. (“cides” mean kills) Processed foods also come with the pesticide BT toxin, used in GMO plants to kill bugs and chelate all the good essential nutrients out of your body and then replicate in your gut, interrupting your health.

Eating real foods and animal

products from factory farming also comes with harmful poisons utilized in farming and raising our animals. The chemicals are also robbing our soil of many of the essential nutrients we get from our plant foods.

And all those foods are interrupting your health and eventually making you ill. They are committing homicide to your cells. The SAD diet contains a lot of sugar, salt, chemicals, poisons, and synthetic ingredients that you cannot recognize and do not know what they are. If you do not know what they are, your body does not know what they are either. Therefore, your body cannot utilize them for nutrition. They do not promote a healthy body. You need real food sans the chemicals (organic). You need all the colors of the rainbow of organic, whole foods in diversity because together, the phytonutrients in these foods create a synergy that fosters health. You need the essential nutrients that you get from real food.

“Processed foods are making us sick. Is it time for the government to step in?

“That’s the argument made by the authors of an editorial in the Harvard Public Health journal. They point out that there are to ultra-processed foods each year—’more deaths each year from our food than all the combat deaths from the Revolutionary War through the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.’ Processed foods also

‘For instance, two-thirds of severe COVID cases resulting in hospitalization have been attributed to four diet-caused

diseases: obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and heart failure.’ The authors suggest that current regulatory guidelines require the FDA to take action when food additives or methods of preparation threaten the health of Americans—which ultra-processed foods clearly do. What do you think?” ~ Chris Kresser, Functional doctor.

overweight or obese. Americans are overweight because our bodies are out of balance. I believe that health IS balance, so this is at the root of our ill health.

sick with an autoimmune disease that if I was overweight, the reality was I was starving my body. I was confused. How could I be starving my body if I was overweight? Well, I was not feeding my body adequate nutrition. It was holding onto every morsel of nutrition it WAS getting because it went into starvation mode that it might never get another morsel of nutrition again.

When I started eating real whole organic foods, real phytonutrients, minerals, and vitamins, I discovered how incredibly smart my body was. It communicates in symptoms. I gradually began to feel much decreased. Unfortunately, our overweight status is closely associated with the numbers of heart disease, stroke, autoimmune diseases, liver disease, Type II diabetes, certain types of cancer, and premature death. I learned that if you eat the standard American diet, you will likely get a standard American disease, as I did. It could have been cancer, heart disease, or other chronic illnesses. Or it could

have even become multiple system chronic diseases. And if you keep eating this empty SAD food, you will go on to die the standard American death, most likely after a prolonged illness. So, you need to eat real whole organic foods from the farmacy to feed your body health and heal from the inside out.

By design, food that is impossible to resist lures Americans, even those with this knowledge. It is convenient, and it tastes good.

Two recent studies, one at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill and the other at Brigham Young University, showed

Berkman, a Ph.D. in Utah, attributes it directly to the standard American processed food diet. “What does metabolically unhealthy mean? It means that you have poor metabolic health and a higher chance of developing diabetes, heart disease, or stroke.” If you are healthy today and eating the standard American diet, you are on your way to getting one of the chronic diseases listed

are-metabolically-unhealthy-saysutah-scientist-heres-what-to-dopercent-of-american-adults-aremetabolically-healthy-carolina-

Berkman states, “We are eating the wrong kinds of food in all the wrong quantities, and it is making us not only fatter but sicker.”

Corporations have weaponized your food. “Environmental factors, like advertising, lack of menu labeling, and more, and the addictive properties built into industrial food, all add up to override our normal biological and psychological control mechanisms. Being fat and obese has become BIG business.” Big Food, Big Pharm, and Big Agriculture do not want you to win at health. They do not want you to lose weight. That would be bad for business.

I have discovered that we must break the addiction to these foods, the SAD foods we eat, and return to balance to regain a more normal weight by eating real, organic,

whole foods. Eating from the “pharmacy” returns our bodies to balance and can restore health.

I lost 65 pounds by concentrating on eating the rainbow of organic, whole foods and pastured meats.

when I began to eat the diverse rainbow of organic fruits and vegetables, my body began to heal, many of my symptoms of poor health began to dissipate. My pain lessened. My husband eating with me became non-diabetic, my fatty liver healed, and I have gone from being a full diabetic to being prediabetic. All my joint and muscle pain from my autoimmune pain is gone; my fatigue and mood swings are gone. My erratic digestive disruptions are gone. I no longer feel lousy. I feel great. My husband and I joke that we feel better than in our 50s. My Functional MD recently joked I am aging backward.

I have had clients get better thyroid test results, lower A1C results, lowered pain, improved sleep, reversed IBS, and eating this way even helped put one client’s cancer into remission; most have had a

reduction in other gnarly symptoms dissipating. In addition, most have lost some weight without dieting. One is no longer hypoglycemic. Another is no longer diabetic.

addictions of sugar and chemical addictions built right into processed food. Sugar, chemicals, MSG, and more are all addictive. Avoiding them for a short time breaks the addiction.

I learned in the book “Hooked” that Big Food does not like the term addiction. They claim that food lacks some of the technical narcotics have. So instead, they prefer words you will love, like alluring, crave-able, and smackable, but the aim is the same.

In “Hooked”, a book by Michael Moss, he states that Big Food

their foods not bland but well-

blended. This way, people do not get full too fast or stop eating too soon. If your taste buds are overstimulated, you will stop eating, and Big Food wants their snacks consumed continuously until the entire package is gone. And then your body is begging for more. Fullness or satiety is a serious enemy of Big Food. They always want to leave you wanting more. (Dampening our hormones, Ghrelin and Leptin accomplished never being full. See comments below)

“If you get the perfect formula, the right amounts of salt, sugar, and fats, it sends you over the moon and makes their products totally irresistible, so you get hooked,” states Moss. (Hooked: Food, Free Will, and How the Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions Hardcover by Michael (March 2, 2021))

Remember the billboards, “I bet you can’t eat just one.” They purposely build that craving into their food so that you buy it repeatedly, and the net result is you are overeating whatever that food is.

Cheetos are an excellent example. There are so many taste sensations in that cracker. You cannot stop

the entire box. Food scientists know that an intense taste at the front drives you to retaste whatever that wonderful taste was that you have lost. The food industry is even researching the connection between the taste receptors on your tongue and the corresponding chemical reaction that occurs in your brain. They can now replicate the chemical reaction on your tongue and the aroma. They stimulate the taste of something without it ever being real.

The crunch it makes is also crucial. There is an auditory element to eating food. They have discovered that if chips do not have the right crunch, you eat less because you do not register that it is that good.

crackers are loud when you chew

something. This is because your jaw and ear bones connect. So, you hear the crunch very loudly when you bite into it. It distracts you, and that is all good.

It helps if the food dissolves quickly in your mouth, causing the brain to believe there have been no calories consumed, so it is now called vanishing caloric density. The goal is to reach your bliss point.

around with the formulas until they hit that perfect spot of just enough and not too much sugar, just enough and not too much salt.

And they know that their products will be irresistible if you add GMO fat, a cheap, unhealthy Omega-6 oil, to get this perfect mouth feel and

you to eat more. So, food from Big Food needs to have that melt-inthe-mouth appeal. Food scientists have even studied the architecture of your mouth. So, they want to increase the bliss point from every angle.

Salt, sugar, and fat are the three pillars of the processed food industry. They are the three pillars of the SAD diet. And now you will understand why I say it is SAD if

that is what you eat. They trick the brain into tasting something that is not there and not tasting something that IS there.

Moss notes that the brain gets so deceived that when they hit the perfect amounts of each ingredient, we, consumers, buy more and eat more. So, we need it, crave it and cannot wait to get it, and we store it in our kitchens and go from bag to bag to bag and overeat, and as a

MSG is not good for us, right? But names, so you do not know that is what you are eating. And MSG

taste includes sweet, sour, bitter, and salty; it means the essence of deliciousness, and MSG does all that for us. But MSG is a neurotoxin that is addictive.

Pandora’s Lunchbox, by Melanie Warner, a New York Times food editor, was curious about why processed foods and fast foods do not rot. Weird, huh?

There is also something in processed and fast food called

is usually MSG. We all know that

Her book takes a close investigative look at research labs, university food science departments, and the factories that are developing our food. The book opens at a convention of cheap fake food products available for Big Food to use instead of real food ingredients. These fake food products taste consistently fabulous. Why use

Because they are in business to whether it is making you unhealthy. The cheaper the fake ingredients they use in their food, the more money they make.

Warner looks at how decades of food science have resulted in the cheapest, most abundant, most addictive, and most nutritionally inferior food in the world. As a result, she uncovers startling evidence about the profound health implications of packaged and fast foods we eat daily.

Bill Bradley, a former high-level marketing executive for Big Food companies, left Big Food because he got disgusted that this food was synthetic, completely contrived, and created. He states, “Because of that, there are so many problems. Our bodies are tricked, and when our bodies are tricked repeatedly, dramatic things begin to happen, like weight gain or endocrine disruption or diabetes or hypertension or chronic illnesses.” Bradley says in his blog, “There is no free lunch. Over the long term, you always get what you pay for. Cheap food is very expensive once you add up the true costs — like the taxes you pay to subsidize Big Food companies, health consequences like obesity or diabetes, the devastating harm to our environment, and the inhumane treatment of animals raised within the industrialized food system.” So, he left Big Food and became a real organic, whole-food Bradley has three observations from his years as a processed food marketeer.

1. Bradley shares that Big Food

However, he wants you to think critically.

2. Advertisers design most Big Food companies’ claims in advertising on television or in magazines to manipulate you. He used to do the manipulation. So, read your labels and do your research. And my rule, as a health coach, is if there is an ingredient on the box and you cannot pronounce it or know what it is, you put it back on the shelf. You do not put it in your body because your body cannot use it. This includes synthetic vitamins.

3. There is no free lunch, not in anything, but especially not in the food you eat from the Big Food industry. So, you always get what you pay for over the long term.

Big food is cheap but only cheap on the front end. It is not cheap on the back end because of what happens when you eat Big Food’s processed food. Cheap food becomes very expensive when you add up all the true costs, like the taxes you pay to subsidize the Big Food and Big Ag industry. So, they are not only paying conventional farming to poison us, but we are subsidizing all these Big Food companies that make us sick.

By the way, I advocate that you become an “army of one” (coined by Howard Lyman- an American farmer and animal rights activist known for promoting vegan nutrition and organic farming coined the phrase to promote change from the bottom up) and control what you eat and cook so you do not hand your health over to these corporate giants. Over the long term, you always get what you pay for. There are also the health

consequences like obesity or diabetes, the devastating harm to our environment, and the inhumane treatment of animals raised within the industrialized food system.

Check out Bruce Bradley’s Pinterest advertising is.

It would be best if you control your own life and your health. You also need to control that the food you put into your body only has quality ingredients.

Our healthcare system requires repair. Why is our healthcare system broken? As a result of the incentives paid to every level of our society, to the food companies, to the pharmaceutical companies, to the agriculture companies, to the medical schools both for programming and to skew studies, to our media gets more than mentioned businesses; to our laws that subsidize the poor quality depend upon them all creating confusion to gaslight us into maintaining the status quo. Even our Health Insurance companies do not want this to change. Big bucks

politicians get enormous funding from Big Corporations to legislate food policy. Even the healthcare system is involved. This is a HUGE business, and trillions of dollars are protected. They do not want us healed. They want us to continue to need their services and products. to eat the SAD diet, which is only making more of us get sick and putting a bigger and bigger burden on our healthcare system.

One of the things the SAD diet does is mucks around with all your hormones, starting with all your feel-good hormones. It mucks around with the dopamine in your brain; it lights your brain up like a pinball machine, and you get high and then crash, causing you to eat more to repeat the high, so you release more dopamine because you love that feeling. The sugar and chemicals directly impact your dopamine, a chemical released in the brain that makes you feel good. Having the right amount of dopamine is important for your body and brain. Dopamine helps nerve cells to send messages to each other.

It is also mucking with all your other hormones. It mucks around with your serotonin, which is your feelgood hormone. Your gut makes it, but a vagus nerve connects to your brain. This can lead to depression. Eating all this C.R.A.P. dampens your serotonin, making you feel bad. Serotonin plays a key role in

The synthetic ingredients and

sugar muck around with your GABA. If you do not have adequate GABA, you get anxiety, and it also mucks around your mood. These chemicals and sugar also muck around with your insulin. Because you have eaten more sugar than your system can handle, your body makes excess insulin to encourage your overloaded cells to take more in. This impacts your moods, which are now all over the place, and you get diabetes which has many long-term harmful impacts on your body.

because you begin to feel great and do not want to go back to feeling lousy again.

The bottom line - “Processed foods are factory-made science projects that resemble food but are not. The convenience is killing us.” ~ Dr. Mark Hyman

Restoring balance in the body is crucial for health. For example, eliminating all the chemicals and sugar in processed food from your diet stops the assault on our cells that is causing us to get chronic diseases.

Change how you eat. Only eat and love food that loves you back. And understand how rigged the system is. Food quality is foundational for health and the key to a happy

The biggest discovery I made; we have two hormones I had never heard of, which is why I was never successful with weight loss programs. Processed chemicals make these two hormones inactive. They are ghrelin and leptin. These are your hunger hormones. If you can harness your hunger hormones and stop processed food from dampening them, you can break the addiction to sugar and chemicals. You can walk away. Your taste buds come back. You start feeling fantastic. You are not hungry all the time. Your brain registers when you are full, so you stop eating. Real fruits and vegetables taste yummy, and it gets easier to eat real food and cook

If you want to discover my howto Ditch the SAD and Stop Eating C.R.A.P Class, I teach this class quarterly and have phenomenal endorsements. I now have proof of concept and multiple success stories.

EAT THE RAINBOW

Feeling Healthy Looks Good

By Cheryl Meyer

“Health is multi-factorial. All nutrients, phytochemicals, minerals, electrolytes, and fatty acids work synergistically to create resistance to disease and a sense of vitality.

“No one ingredient alone can shoulder the burden.” ~ Jonny Bowden,

Functional Nutritionist.

And where do we get all those luscious ingredients that create health in our bodies? From real food.

I have shared that I want to inspire you to Ditch the Standard American Diet and stop eating that dead chemical-laden food. My mission is to change the way America eats.

What do I recommend you eat instead of the SAD and CRAP

processed?) to support your body and future health?

You cannot expect to feel like a million bucks if you eat from the dollar menu. You need all the gifts of the plant world to support and nourish your body.

EAT REAL FOOD

It is not complicated. Let’s eat organic, whole foods of all the colors of the rainbow. Suppose we adopt the other lifestyle habits I discuss (See my list of the top 20 pillars of health in this magazine) and we take our health into our hands. In that case, our bodies can

heal from all the essential nutrients and phytonutrients available in these foods. Learn to trust your instincts and listen to your body.

“We should be eating fruits and vegetables as if our lives depended on it because they do.” ~

Michael Gregor, How Not to Die

Eating a whole diet of organic fruits and vegetables and quality protein is the long-term key to wellness.

“Next time you chomp down on something, ask yourself if you are for the long term. If not, do not ingredients you can, ingredients that help you thrive.” ~ Mark Hyman, MD

What can eating real food do for you? Food is code for your body. “Food is not just calories or energy. Food is information with instructions that upgrade or downgrade your biology at every bite.” ~ Mark Hyman, MD

“Eating real, unprocessed, or minimally processed foods is one of the best things we can do to live a healthy and happy life. This means foods that are whole in the sense that they have not been stripped of any part of them. I don’t consider blending, cooking, and chopping to be highly processed because all parts of the original food are

Casey Means, MD

This is eating from the “farm-acy”.

Eating real organic food from the “farmacy” can, over time:

• Reverse chronic illnesses

•

• Improve brain function

• Support healthy hormone function. All of them: insulin, serotonin, Gaba, leptin, ghrelin, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, thyroid, cortisol, and more, are supported by essential nutrients and the phytonutrients that are provided by real whole organic foods.

• Build an immune system that keeps you healthy and protects you from illnesses and super viruses. Eat to build a strong structure and metabolic health. Why would you build your body from defective fake ingredients? You only have one body to live in. Take care of it.

• Weight loss without dieting

• Better moods

• Less pain

• Improved sleep

• Better skin

• Improved digestion

• Lowered risk of depression

• Lowered risk of dementia

• Better cognitive function

• Less brain fog

• Newfound energy

• Diminished chronic fatigue

• Slowed aging

• Fewer medications

• Greater happiness

The advantages of eating from the “farmacy” are endless. “By eating an array of colorful fruits and vegetables, you can provide your body with everything it needs.” ~ Ocean Robbins, Food advocate. In fact, the variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables may be more powerful for your health than any pill. Once you start eating all the rainbow colors from a farm as close to you as possible, you can harness all the amazing phytonutrients, essential minerals, and vitamins in real organic foods without any chemicals. This is

It is a synergy that occurs that creates health in your body. As a result, your toxic burden lowers, and your body adjusts to your “factory settings” of feeling great again.

It will help your body return to balance, and in doing so, it returns to wellness.

According to the Holistic Mom Md, these are additional advantages of eating organic rainbow foods:

• It keeps our bodies alkaline.

• They are packed with disease-

•

• They lower heart disease.

• They keep things running smoothly.

• Plant RNA regulates our RNA.

• They help normalize our weight.

• They prevent cancer.

• They feed our healthy gut biome.

• They support a healthy liver. The health of our liver impacts every organ in our body.

• They support a healthy lymph system and cardiovascular system.

• They support cognitive function.

And best of all, your body starts to celebrate because it starts to feel good, and it feels good to FEEL good!! (And to no longer feel “lousy”.)

Now all of this does not happen overnight. It took you years of eating CRAPpy (carbonated, processed) food to get into the unhealthy place that you are in. Let me share why I believe this is the only way to eat and why it’s not complicated.

First, you must cook and choose your own chemicalfree ingredients. This way, you control what you are putting into your body, and you can begin to focus on eating for your future health. There is a learning curve to sourcing healthier ingredients. I have published cookbooks in my store to get you through detox and sustainable cooking phases with recipes geared toward your health. What makes these cookbooks

recipes. Instead, I link you back to

the original cook. Instead, I share all my sourcing and preparation tips

After cooking from my suggestions, you will be ready to take any recipe and understand how to “clean it up” and make it in the healthiest way possible with quality ingredients.

You will be cooking “yummy” food. You will still be a “foodie”. You will simply be switching to quality ingredients that have real nutrition and, as a result, are great for your body.

First, you must break the

“addiction” to sugar, chemicals, synthetic ingredients, Omega-6 oils,

in processed foods. And like any addiction, you will go through an initial withdrawal. But once you break that old dead grey processed food’s hold on you, then the fun

begins. Your hormones balance out, you are less hungry, and you regain food freedom (processed foods no longer call your name from the kitchen). Your tastebuds are no longer dulled, and you begin to taste how delicious whole foods are, and now you begin to get creative to make more dishes that fuel your body and also taste delicious. You incorporate all the colors of the rainbow into your diet, cooking and eating healthy food that helps your body thrive.

And it doesn’t take long before you begin to feel better and some of your symptoms begin to subside. So now you are encouraged to keep going and understand why shopping for quality ingredients and cooking your own food is worth it. And you understand the value of eating organic.

Julia Child once said you don’t have to make complicated recipes to be a great cook. However, you must cook with quality ingredients. You can be a fastorder cook or

make a more complicated, leisurely meal and still get delicious results.

“A variety of colorful food can provide us with the complex compounds that our body needs to optimally function.” ~ Deanna Minich, Ph.D., Functional

should be fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables use their substances they contain. The colors work synergistically together and functions of our bodies.

You need to include all the available colors of food, and within each vegetable or fruit and each color, you need to strive for a wide diversity in your diet.

Whenever possible, buy local. The minute a plant is harvested, it begins to lose some of its

phytonutrient gifts. So, by buying locally, you are buying produce grown for its health-giving properties and not buying plant food by Big Ag that was grown for its shape or ability to travel long distances without consideration

buying local, you are saving some plants from being phased out altogether, the plants that Big Ag does not value. These plants are great for our bodies. They taste great, but they do not store or ship well.

Our gut needs diversity because a variety of foods is better to feed the good gut bacteria and keep them healthy.

The more colors you eat in your plant food, the more anticompounds you will eat for your health.

These plant foods are the greatest medicine for your health, which is why it is called eating from the “farmacy”.

It would be best if you also ate quality protein. It could be animal protein, but only animals that have been able to eat their species-

that have only eaten grass, bison that only ate grass, pastured pigs, lamb (they only eat grass, so they are good), and chickens that are pastured and eat grass, berries,

You are what you eat; in animal protein, you are what your animal eats.

If you are vegan, it means eating plant proteins that are not GMO and, if possible, organic. You do not want Glyphosate (Roundup)

plant foods. And junk food is junk food, whether it is regular or vegan.

And you need to be using Omega-3 oils, not Omega-6 GMO oils. This means real olive, avocado, pastured butter, ghee, coconut, nut, and

If you eat dairy, it needs to be fullfat dairy from organic pastured cows.

You are eating from nature’s natural medicine box, and thanks to their potent phytonutrients and antioxidants, you create health in your body.

Color is the language of the plant kingdom, so make sure that you incorporate an array of colorful plant foods into your diet. The colors of fruits and vegetables indicate what vitamins and nutrients are in that plant. By getting various colored fruits and vegetables, you are guaranteed diverse essential vitamins and minerals and health-giving properties.

However, remember that just because a vegetable is red does not mean that every red vegetable has the same phytonutrients. This is why we need to stay mindful of diversity and variety.

The color signals that it has vital nutrients that appear red to the world, so they’re important. You need to eat a variety of red fruits and vegetables to get a variety of the phytonutrients available in the

red produce family. This is true of all color families.

“The rainbow of whole foods from nature unlocks the spectrum of healing potential in the body.”

What ARE phytochemicals, otherwise called phytonutrients?

Phytochemicals and chemical compounds produced by plants generally are in that plant to resist fungi, bacteria, and plant virus infections and to control consumption by insects and other animals. They are not there for us. But nature is amazing because they also serve our bodies.

them more palatable. But some phytonutrient-rich foods like onions and garlic have little color, and you do not want to discount them. White is also a powerful color story.

Seventh-day Adventists, with their pure vegetarian diet, have a lower incidence of heart disease, diabetes, and certain cancers.

More recently, the Mediterranean diet, which consists of olive oil, recommended to return to wellness from chronic illnesses.

Scientists are still working mechanisms of how phytonutrients work.

plant foods. Phytonutrient-rich foods include colorful fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, tea, spices.

activities. Phytonutrients also bolster immunity and communication between our cells. In addition, they help repair DNA damage from exposure to toxins, and they detoxify carcinogens. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) notes that consuming a phytonutrient-rich diet seems to be

cancer, heart disease risks, and other chronic illnesses.

Look for deep-hued foods like berries, dark greens, melons, and spices. These foods also are rich

Phytonutrients are an emerging started researching, they thought there were 10,000 of them. Two years ago, they thought there were 25000 of them. Now it is believed that there are more than 100,000 of them. However, only a small fraction of the phytonutrients have been closely studied.

An average serving of vegetables might cost four times more than the average serving of junk food, so people will say to me, “I cannot

expensive”, and I think that the appropriate question is, do not ask why vegetables are so expensive, ask why processed food is so cheap. (And consider the expense of your health issues down the line)

Junk food and processed food are so cheap because there’s nothing real in them that your body can use. So what would you rather put in your body? According to Michael Gregor, MD, in How Not to Die, if you look at veggies, you can

more nutrition for only four times more cost than the junk food or processed food you have been eating. That is a good reason to eat real live food, so on a cost-forsix times more nutrition per dollar than highly processed foods.

You need all the real food to get the nutrients and for your body to thrive, so look at your budget

save money to buy real fruits and vegetables.

According to Dr. Gregor, spending just 50 cents more per day on fruits

drop in mortality.

What are the general gifts of each color family?

According to Dr. Deanna Minich, Ph.D. and one of the originators and promoters of the rainbow diet:

• Red Foods improve our immunity. They protect against cancer and heart disease.

• Orange foods improve our reproductive capabilities, improve our eye health, and builds immunity.

• Yellow foods are for our gut. They also improve eye health and build immunity.

• Green foods are for our heart. They are also important for lung, liver, and cell health.

• are for our brain and cognitive health, bones, healthy aging,

• White foods are for bones, and a strong circulatory system.

Each color has many more place to start to explain its importance.

I am about to unveil a course called Food Quality Matters, which will teach you everything you want and need to know

about eating whole foods.

Where to buy it? When is it in Season? How to not waste it? How to pick it? How quickly does it begin

When to buy it organic? How many toxins are sprayed on it? How to store it and what to store it close to, and what to avoid placing it near? How to utilize all of it? How to not waste it? What are essential nutrients in each plant food, and what do they do for us? What are the gifts of each color in our plant food and the gifts by each plant? What are the phytonutrients, and in? Finally, what are the gifts of the key phytonutrients for our body, and what do we believe they heal? It will roll out in seven multi-class in my store.

Eat the rainbow of real fruits, vegetables, and healthy meat, and look forward to a long, healthy life. Eat for your future health. Only love food that loves you back. Eat yourself happy and healthy.

I eat Nutritious, Delicious, and America eats, and now I gained back my health.

Much of this has also been shown in the Blue Zones study, where National Geographic studied the healthiest people in the world and their commonalities.

I have a how-to ditch the SAD and Food Quality Matters courses I teach. You could also hire me as your health coach. See the ad on my courses and the article on why hire me as your health coach in this magazine for details.

Raise Healthy, Vibrant Children: Act Now to Protect Their Future

By Cheryl Meyer

Ihave discussed the Standard American Diet and how it is interrupting our health, and I also wrote an article to share the solution to regain our health, to eat REAL WHOLE FOODS of the entire rainbow from a farm as close to us as possible.

However, I would be remiss not to write an article about food and how the Standard American Diet disrupts our children’s health and future.

And it all goes back to you, the parent. I don’t say this to shame; because advertising tells us that processed food is considered nutritious, cheap, and convenient, so it seems appealing. However, I hope to get your attention now so that you know how to change your health habits regarding food. You were not responsible for what you did not know yesterday. Now that you know this, you need to reckon with the fact that healthy eating habits in the family begin with you. children’s eating so that they have a better tomorrow.

This should be a big enough WHY to change how you shop for food and to encourage you to COOK real, organic, whole foods. If you are

a parent or a prospective parent, please protect your children and start only eating healthy food in your home. Children mimic what they see you doing.

I dug in and started researching children’s health when I came across a post from Moms Across

our children now have a chronic illness. That certainly stopped me in my tracks. It does not have to be this way, so I wrote an entire section about children and their health in my second book. (Feeling Good, Living Low Toxin)

Whole organic food can make our children well, but

the Standard American diet makes them sick. Children are getting

of their food processed.

Let me share a few of the statistics with you.

A majority of our children are chronically ill. These are the frightening statistics:

“There are two gifts we should give our children. One is roots, and the other is wings.”

~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

a cellular dysfunction.

• diagnosed with learning disabilities. 2021 Study by the NCLD (National Center of Learning Disabilities) (See Ad for Dr. Suki Stone, who teaches children with learning disabilities to read without

• seizures.

•

• By the time our children are pounds of chemicals in their little bodies.

Here are a few more stunning facts:

• our teens. According to a CDC study, the share of American high-school students who say they feel “persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness” rose

• #2 cause of death for teens is depression and suicide.

• taking Psychiatric Drugs

• liver disease.

• asthma.

• ADHD.

• allergies. Although there are no statistics on how many of our children have food sensitivities, estimates are as

• Newborns are born with more their mothers’ bodies through the umbilical cord. Of the in umbilical cord blood, we are toxic to the brain and cause congenital disabilities or abnormal development in animal tests. The

toxins are from both the mother’s and the father’s bodies.

• diabetic. This is not a result of “personal choice” - because our rigged food system is loaded with sugar, causing insulin resistance. Observational evidence shows associations of prediabetes with early forms of nephropathy, chronic kidney diabetic retinopathy, and increased risk of macrovascular disease. Prediabetes, typically levels above normal but below diabetes thresholds, is a risk of developing diabetes.

• developmental disability ~ Calley Means, Harvard MBA, Past executive with Coke Corp, and whistleblower.

• atherosclerosis, were found fulltext) Dr. Michael Gregor, author of How Not to Die, “For those of us older than ten years of age, the choice likely isn’t whether to eat healthy

to prevent heart disease. It’s whether or not we want to reverse the heart disease we likely already have.” ~

Michael Gregor, MD

The list goes on and on. Two new our population is metabolically illnesses, and chronic illnesses.

“We have convinced younger Americans that rampant fatigue, obesity, anxiety, depression, and infertility is a normal part of daily life that are curable with drugsinstead of warning signs of larger cellular dysfunction that can only be cured by root cause solutions.” ~

Calley Means

So, what can we do about this?

It begins with the lifestyle habits of the parents.

The new thinking in Epigenetics is that chronic diseases may be in our genetics, but we can turn those

what we eat and our other lifestyle habits. In other words, chronic diseases only run in families because lifestyle habits run in families.

Toxic load for a child begins before conception. Therefore, the baby is right from the start. Toxic load to chronic illness.

So, if you and your spouse’s life were laden with toxins when you conceived, if you were not eating “clean” and were around a lot of toxins in your food, your cosmetics, your water, your cleaning supplies,

and in your home, pre-birth, this all gets passed to your child.

• “A developing child’s chemical exposures are greater poundfor-pound than those of adults.

• “An immature, porous bloodbrain barrier allows higher chemical exposures to the developing brain.

• “Children have lower levels of some chemical-binding proteins, allowing more of a chemical to reach ‘target organs.’

• “A baby’s organs and systems are rapidly developing, and thus are often more vulnerable to damage from chemical exposure.

• “Systems that detoxify and excrete industrial chemicals are not fully developed.

• “The longer future life span of a child compared to an adult allows more time for adverse

MD

And as noted above, by the time a of toxins, according to Mark Hymen, MD, a leading functional practitioner. No wonder they are getting ill. Their little bodies cannot handle all these toxins.

Remember, Big Food, Big Chemical, Big Pharma, and Big Ag are in

not in business to promote health. The solution is for you to control what you and your family eat and for you to eliminate the toxins in your environment.

Once born, limiting toxins in the childʼs food and environment is also important.

In my article about processed foods, I explained how corrupted our food has become. So, stop eating processed foods and fast foods. Please read my article about processed food in this magazine for the full picture. The operating code our children are eating is corrupt if they consume the SAD.

What we feed our children is often a bleak diet of fructose, diet or sugar soda pop, chemicals, and

this diet is increasing disease in our children. Fatty liver disease is on the rise in children setting the dismal stage for liver transplants, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and abnormal cholesterol later in life.

The Functional medical community recommends that when your child is two, he should not eat more

real organic whole foods early in life eliminates the addiction to processed foods that interfere with healthy eating habits later in life.

When we feed children the eaten are fruits and vegetables, and we ensure that the child eats the full spectrum of colors of whole foods. Go back and read the article in this magazine on how to harness the power of eating the rainbow to get complete guidelines on how to do this for your future health and the health of your children. Then, enroll your children in the process.

Once the child breaks the addiction to the SAD and CRAP, they will enjoy the fruits and vegetables in their meals.

In addition, by cooking and eating real, whole foods, you avoid food additives that hinder learning. The SAD has additives, food coloring, other harmful chemicals that add no value and are addictive. These ingredients impede your child’s health. Studies show that these additives are partially responsible for ADHD and learning disabilities.

It is also possible that your child has a food sensitivity that interrupts their learning. Food

a leaky gut, leading to autoimmune disease, heart disease, fatty liver disease, cancer, and other Chronic Diseases.

“A healthy diet can profoundly them maintain a healthy weight, have strong immune systems, avoid certain health problems, stabilize their moods, and sharpen their minds. A healthy diet can also

mental and emotional wellbeing, helping to prevent conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and ADHD.”

Include omega-3 oils, which are crucial for cognizance, and your child will have the nutrition to improve his energy and ability to

nature and extent of the role of nutrition is important because it is one factor that we can modify in order to optimize cognitive development.” ~

Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., and Lawrence Robinson

Include exercise and foster good sleeping habits; you are now on your way to rearing a healthy child.

Eating the rainbow impacts the child’s mood. What we eat is also

what our gut microbiome eat. The gut-brain axis determines our mood. The gut organisms that we foster send chemical signals to our brains. Since we are what we eat, we must emphasize eating plenty of plant foods to help our children be healthy and happy.

It would be best to make food fun when your child is small. Make faces and pictures out of food on their plate and let them eat them examples of food art on Pinterest. My cookbooks have examples of fun ways to serve food to toddlers and early elementary school-age children. Available in my website store.

allow your child to choose whether to eat them. If they pass, serve it again the next day and then the next until they try the food. Eating diversity is also important.

WHY ORGANIC?

Your family does not need a dose of pesticides or herbicides in their food “cides” (means kills) are used in conventional farming.

How to start:

• You can pulverize organic, real food from the entire rainbow to feed your infant or toddler with a couple of kitchen machines. A Bullet would do that trick, or what I call my mini chop by Cuisinart will; it is a small food

processor that I use to chop herbs and garlic for cooking, but it is also the ideal size for making baby food with real fruits and vegetables high in phytonutrients. There are several organic cookbooks for infants and toddlers available on Amazon. This way, you feed your child all the building blocks their body needs to replenish. Every cell has a shelf life, so you want the best possible building supplies in your child’s body for their growing years. You also want every cell in your child’s body nourished with real phytonutrients and essential nutrients.

• By making your child’s food, you avoid heavy toxic metals and all the sugar, GMOs, Omega-6 oils, synthetic ingredients, and additives added to food.

• A healthy diet will help disease and help them build a healthy immune system. It protects their hormones, restores balance, and lowers insulin resistance. As a result, they have healthy “happy” hormones, dopamine, serotonin, GABA, and thyroid hormones. In addition, by not eating all the sugar in processed food, their hunger hormones, Lectin and Ghrelin, function properly so they do not overeat.

• A recent study showed that most baby and toddler food had suspicious ingredients

and disclosed toxic metals in the food. First, the liver tries to handle them until they are too great a quantity in the body, and then the liver sends them bones and fat. Eventually, they start leaching out and circulate through the child’s body again. The toxic impact on the body continues over the months and years to come.

• As the child ages, it does not take any longer to prepare and cook real organic, whole foods than to jump in the car to go to a fast food restaurant, and the rewards are enormous. You are now preparing nutritious homecooked meals. With planning and experience, there is a rhythm to cooking real food, and the outcome is worth it.

• When you are cooking, add vegetables and fruit to everything. I add spinach everywhere, including my eggs and my smoothies. And I add bananas to baked goods and smoothies. The more colors of the rainbow you can feed your child, and the more vegetables and fruits you encourage them to eat, is a win for your child’s health. Your child needs the diversity of many foods in each color range because the gifts vary. This also ensures that your child gets adequate

evicted from the liver jump

on board and ride out of your digestive system. They feed the good gut bacteria in your gut.

you eat less food. Fiber helps you maintain healthy sugar levels in your blood, and they help maintain a healthy weight. The SAD is devoid of healthy

their school lunch, but only take them shopping for food with you. Please encourage them to be Mommy’s helper in buying healthy food. Shop the perimeter of the grocery store so that they are choosing mostly from whole foods.

follow with what you eat. Share your meals, which encourage love and community. Please encourage your child to share their day with you, and then respond with the values you want to instill in them.

1. Stop allowing your children to eat processed and fast food. Stop eating it yourself. Instead, talk to them about why you are not eating or serving it. Make it positive. You want them to be little superheroes.

2.

a treat or as a reward. That connects that sugar is a reward for good behavior.

3. If you are serving processed foods, you are electing to feed them for convenience and not for nutrition and their health. Plan ahead with car food in case your child gets hungry. I always carry apples, peanut butter packs, nuts, seeds, and healthy protein bars. If I get caught without any of that, I stop at a grocer and buy Applegate organic lunch meats, a head of lettuce, and an organic tomato and make a healthy “sandwich” for the child. I teach this and other tips in my Ditch the SAD class.

Encourage your child to help you in the kitchen. Let them choose what they want in

5. Even at a young age, teach them to read labels. I had one mom share that her child at 3 would pick up a box, glide their and then put the box back on the shelf. They were mimicking their mother’s behavior. This continued when they could read the box.

6. Cook for your children. Control what you are feeding them and yourself. Cooking is an act of love.

It does not take that long to make food with real live food.

You do not have to cook fancy; you must use quality ingredients.

Eliminate all the toxins you can from your and your child’s lives. Give them real food that grew in the earth.

10. Sit around the dinner table for the years your child has at home. Be the example that they can

11. Do not dictate what the child should eat or how much the choices but make them all healthy options.

12. Teach them to stop eating

13. Teach your child to be grateful for the food, for the world it grew in, for the plants and the animals that they are lucky enough to eat, and to be thankful for the people that helped get it to your table. It could be saying “grace” or just a declaration of gratitude, but gratitude is an essential ritual for your family to practice. Gratitude also fosters happiness.

These are the keys to good health. Remember, children are little pitchers:

basket on your kitchen counter.

15. 15. Put healthy dips and cut up organic veggies at eye level when your child opens up the fridge to eat. (I note possibilities in my two cookbooks for sale on my website.)

16. Only serve healthy desserts, berries with coconut whipped cream, apples, cherries, pears, citrus fruits, and bananas—dark organic, sustainable chocolate. Make occasional treats with sugar (low glycemic).

Other things to include in your and your childʼs life:

1. Go to your local farms. Make friends with your farmer. Take your children.

2. Go to the ranch and purchase your meat. Talk to the rancher and understand his commitment to health.

3. Take your children to pick fruit in season. You can take them apple, pear, and cherrypicking in California. Let your kids get their hands into the dirt. You probably have some local fruit growing in your area. Research and take advantage of whatever is available in your area.

Google U Pick Farms. I see several states that have them. Look for Birthday Parties at the Farm, Pick-Your-Own Produce, Educational School Tours, not to mention special harvest festivals, and many have farmto-table dinners at the farm.

5. Look for places where you can watch cheese get made. The was in Tillamook, Oregon. There is also a place in the Seattle Pike Street Market where you can watch cheese making.

6. Explore Public Markets like the Seattle Pike Street and Grand Central Market in LA because they may have other foods you and your children are unfamiliar with. I used to love to see the Geoduck clams in Seattle’s open market. They are fascinating and delicious and create quite a bit of humor just seeing them. (Look them up. *smile*)

When I lived in the Seattle area, we used to go clamming. What a fun excursion that was. We would look for little holes in the sand and dig like crazy. Then, when we got the clams home, we would soak them overnight so that they would spit out their sand and then steam them for dinner the next night.

there are trout in your streams you live close to an ocean, take

If you live in New England, you can take a licensed boat and catch your lobster.

10. In Louisiana, you can catch your crawdads.

11. There are also catch-andcook programs around the United States. For example, in Louisiana, you can catch and can catch and cook salmon. In

British Columbia, Canada, you can catch and cook Sturgeon, and wow, are they big.

carbohydrates in your child’s diet. Sugar is addictive, so limit what they get to eat. Sugar impacts every organ in the body negatively, so stay away as much as possible.

sugar and therefore are not healthy as well.

Teach your children why you are feeding them the food they are eating. By doing all the above, you teach them where food comes from and how it gets on the table for them to eat. Please encourage them to ask questions. Do not dictate so that when they get out into the world, they understand the advantages of eating real food, and allow them to follow the example of how you eat.

Garden with them. You have several options here. You can till and plant a small plot in your backyard. You can buy a tower and garden on your patio (See below for how). You can grow herbs on your windowsill. Let your children have the joy of planting seeds and then watching the fruits of their labor. They will be thrilled to eat food they have participated in growing.

It is hard to imagine where food comes from unless you’ve been digging holes in the trenches, planting seeds, bulbs, sprouts, or seedlings; then watching these

plants that kids can pick and eat.

1. Start scrap gardens with them. Growing the tops of carrots, the bottoms of lettuce and romaine, garlic cloves, and avocado seeds. Buy organic the stalks. They are great for dips or nut butters as an afterschool snack.) Place the celery bottom in water. It only takes a couple of days to start to grow roots. You can then take it outdoors and plant it in the dirt. You could also plant it in a container on your patio.

2. Kitchen scrap gardening. I am sure that you know that you can put toothpicks into an avocado seed, put it over a glass with the seed in the water, and it will start to grow a mini avocado plant. But did you know you could do scrap gardening with many other scraps? You can

take the seeds of citrus and plant them (and yep, they will grow). You can cut a 1-inch piece of carrot, and its top will grow. Put it onto pebbles. You can also do this with a scoopedout top of pineapple again on pebbles until it starts to root. You can do this with lettuce, basil, fennel, cilantro, onions, and more. Make this a fun project to do with your child. You can grow garlic and herbs,

3. Finally, you could try tower gardening. Juice Plus sells a tower you can plant and have

I just read some people have them in their living rooms. Although I do not recommend Juice Plus itself because I want you to eat the whole real organic plant, I love the concept of their tower, and it would be a great way to grow veggies with your children. There are also inexpensive greenhouses available that might

These are some fun and easy projects to get you started:

work. Then, depending on where you live during warmer times of the year, you could do backyard gardening with your children or join a community garden.

Please work with your school district to start gardens where children grow food for their lunch program.

5. Check out my ideas for a gardening birthday party for your child described in Feeling Good Living Low Toxin. The idea is to make parties fun occasions instead of just focusing on sugary treats.

Bring up your child to be the leader of the pack that eats healthy food. Bring them up to be Junior Veggie Rangers™, eating veggies to grow up strong and healthy and to be future superheroes.

Lower the toxic load in their environment. Look up foods, cleaners, personal care products, fragrances, and water in the EWG.org database and trade out products for lower toxic items. For example, eliminate plastic for water bottles and storage. Instead, get your child their own stainless steel water bottle. Each toxin eliminated is a step closer to health. Toxins impact the child’s brain and slow down the ability to read. In addition, toxins interfere with blood sugar levels and maintaining a healthy weight.

Take the TOSS THE TOXINS course advertised in this magazine and clean up your environment to make a safe environment for your child. Environmental toxin experts wrote it. Enroll your child in the process.

Finally, form a community of likeminded parents who want to raise healthier children and only serve organic, real food to their children. Hold your ground. You are not dictating how other children should eat, but you sure can dictate how your child should eat. It is easier with parents with similar health commitments.

Have a conversation with your child before they go to a party, feed them before some non-food reward for after the party, something for your child to look forward to, like going to a farm, or an aquarium, or into the woods with you for an adventure, or to the beach or the shore. For example, one Mom told

her child did not eat them and brought them home for the mom to decide if they should put them into their mouth.

I listened to a podcast with a group of fathers talking about their children going to parties starting at 3 and eating sugary cake, cookies, and other processed, sugary, dead food. When they declined the food for their child, they got the evil eye. Of course, if you have a supportive community of like-minded parents, you can avoid those situations and the sugar bomb parties. But no matter what, hold to your convictions of what you want your child to eat.

For example, have the party at your house for Halloween and make the event activity oriented. They all still dress up in costumes, but instead of eating 15 candy bars, they bob for apples, eat food art made with veggies, go on a scavenger hunt, play games, and have a jolly good time. Sugar and fun are not synonymous. And if all the parents support within the group is worth it.

Get creative. After all, we are talking about your children’s long-term and future health.

THE 20 PILLARS OF HEALTH:

A Comprehensive Guide to Wellness

“You have the power to control these all with lifestyle habits.”

By Cheryl Meyer

1. Ditch the SAD (Standard American Diet) - I explain why in my article Ditch the SAD and Stop Eating CRAP processed) foods. (See article in this issue) Support your colorful organic foods to help your gut microbiome thrive.

2. Eat the rainbow of organic whole organic foods and Clean Meat that Eats his - Food is code for our body. We need to eat food that supplies all the essential nutrients and phytonutrients that build a strong body from the inside out. Eat from the “farmacy” and reduce the need for

the pharmacy down the line chronic disease. (See article in this issue)

3. If you do eat meat, make it clean meat: Pastured, 100% grass-fed, with no antibiotics or hormones. . If Vegan or vegetarian, avoid veggie junk food; make sure to include non-GMO plantbased protein. Soy must be organic.

4. If it is on the “Dirty Dozen” list, absolutely buy organic. These foods have dozens of toxins on them and in them. You them. If the item is on the

Clean 15, do not worry. Buy conventional. Buy organic whenever possible. Thank you, EWG, for all the research. If it is not on either list, look it up on the USDA website “What’s On My Food”.

www.whatsonmyfood.org/ This site breaks down the toxins in our produce and is an eye-opener. If your item is not on their list, search “what is on my food” and the name of the food. It is often in their database. Avoid GMOs. They have toxins grown right in the plant food. Whenever possible, buy organic. (See articles about eating organic and the toxins.)

5. Cook your own real food. You can control what you put into your body by cooking food and choosing quality ingredients. Food should not only be delicious, but it should also feed your body all the micro-nutrients it needs without the chemicals sprayed on conventional crops. And food needs to be without all the sugar, poor

GMO omega-6 fats, processed salt, and synthetic chemicals from processed foods. Eat all the colors of the rainbow and choose as much diversity as possible. Avoid anything on a label that you cannot pronounce or that you don’t know what it is. Eat real whole foods from as close to the farm as possible.

6. Create a strategy for eating out of your home, going to others’ houses for parties and meals, and eating out at restaurants. To go to other’s homes: Take your own food and take a larger container with the same dish to share with other guests. Enjoying community has nothing to do with what you put into your mouth. See the article on how

to eat out at restaurants. (Article in this issue on eating out at restaurants)

7. Sugar becomes an addiction and interferes with every organ in your body, including your brain. The good news to break the addiction, and then you have food freedom. Since it has no food value, your body doesn’t register when you have eaten it. You are still hungry, and you want more. It mucks around with all your hormones, including your hunger hormones. It impacts every organ in your body and destroys your cane sugar, corn syrup, and agave in your diet. There sugar. (www.virtahealth.com/ blog/names-for-sugar) Also, eliminate “fake sugars”. (The blue, pink, or yellow packets) They are chemicals harmful to your body. Replace them with Stevia, Monk Fruit, occasional small amounts of raw honey, maple syrup, and coconut sugar. These sweeteners can still give you a sugar high but also gives your body some needed nutrients.

8. Avoid unnecessary use of antibiotics or over-thecounter painkillers. They destroy healthy gut bacteria and are harmful to a healthy microbiome.

9. Only use Omega-3 oils

Coconut oil, MCT oil, avocado oil, Olive oil (extra virgin, a dark olive color), nut and seed oils. Pastured organic butter, Ghee. Avoid Omega-6 oils that are GMOoils.

10. Never use conventional salt. Use sea salt, Celtic salt, Kosher salt, or Himalayan salt. They provide wellneeded minerals. Cooking eliminates the excessive salt in processed foods.

11. Cook with organic garlic, onion, and fresh herbs as much as possible. They have numerous healthdiversity and complexity to your cooking. They add phytonutrients to your diet.

12. Drink lots of water, with a little lemon juice in it. The

in ounces. At least drink 60your body. Every cell in your body needs H2O, and most body functions need water. The lemon is to make it alkaline in your body. Avoid water sold in plastic bottles. They are leaching poisons into your water. Instead,

to take out pollutants. Or water for drinking and cooking. We put on a full

Carry your water with you in stainless steel water bottles.

13. Toss the environmental toxins in your home. (See toss the toxins article and the Branch Basics article in

this issue) Stop using toxic tools in your kitchen—no cooking on coated cookware. away. No, more using cheap black spatulas or spoons. Eliminate plastic wraps and aluminum foil. Cook on enamel or stainless steel, use stainless steel metal utensils and use unbleached parchment paper. Use silicone glass containers to avoid toxins trickling into your food. Mine have silicone lids. (See Toss the Toxins Course in this issue)

14.Do stress exercises twice a

stress. We all have stress, but it is important to release it regularly, like the pressure of an instant pot. Do the the 5.5 perfect breath, or use a belly button wand midmorning and mid-afternoon. It’s a 5-minute break that will promote health in your body. Control your ANTs (Anxious Negative Thoughts). Replace them with thoughts of gratitude. Nourish your inner champion to drown out your inner critic. References:

www.youtube.com/ watch?v=p8fjYPC-k2k

www.youtube.com/ watch?v=WQSZYnUv1mE

www.bellybuttonhealing.com

15.Stay active. Move. You do not need to run a marathon but walk or move 30 minutes daily.

16.Spend at least 30 minutes outside enjoying nature. Grounding has become an important concept for health. Get your hands in the dirt.

in your yard or pots. Walk in your neighborhood and appreciate all the beauty around you outside. Use all your senses when you walk. Get some natural sunlight whenever possible. Get around trees. They emit chemicals that are healthy for us. Optimize your natural light exposure. Get sunlight

possible. Natural light (via our eyes) signals the body’s master clock, which plays a big role in hormone signaling and many other processes.

17.Get at least 7 hours of continuous sleep. Why We Sleep, the book that chronicles a UC Berkeley

hours is imperative to health. That last hour is when your brain sweeps the plaque out that causes dementia. (https:// amzn.to/3K0ypMX)

18. Work to make all your relationships healthy and supportive. Toxic relationships negatively impact your health.

19. Build a healthy community. Community

your health. Stay true to your healthy habits and life. Keep old friends but add new friends with healthier habits into life. See the article in this

the power of community. The Blue Zone project by National Geography on

the healthiest communities in the world considers a healthy community to be #1 for your health.

20. Love yourself - Love yourself enough to practice regular self-care. Love yourself enough to buy and eat organic, cook, move, do stress exercises, get adequate water and sleep, get into nature, control ANTS, foster healthy relationships, surround yourself with a supportive community, and realize being with friends and loved ones have nothing to do with what you feed your body. Control what you eat. Be mindful. Make conscious

choices. Practice gratitude and kindness. Laugh often. Love yourself every day.

Continue to search for the puzzle pieces of your health. Explore Functional Medicine, Naturopathic Medicine, Holistic modalities, and Lifestyle changes with a health coach. Stay committed to your path toward health until you realize how great it feels to feel good. The journey to wellness is

answers are out there. Health is not a destination; it is a journey, and I send you love and light to discover your path.

JAR SALADS TO GO

Quick and Easy Meal Prep for a Healthy, On-the-Go

Lifestyle

By Cheryl Meyer

I am committed to healthy eating no matter where I am.

I got an autoimmune disease and years.

eliminating toxins and by eating real food. I stopped eating the Standard American Diet of processed and fast food. My body was starving for nutrients, and I ate prime nutrients by eating organic fruits and vegetables. I now buy organic locally from a farm as close to me as possible, and I eat the full spectrum of the colors of the rainbow. I cook to control how it is prepared.

Jar salads are one of my tips for maintaining my new healthy eating habits.

I started to feel great eating real food. I learned that my body

wanted to heal, but I had to give it the right building blocks to use.

When you start eating healthy, you begin to feel fantastic—no more SAD (Standard American Diet) for me. could eat real food while away from home.

A jar salad is how I carry lunch headed for an airplane. I also take these when I attend meetings or summits.

I have unbleached bamboo food out of the jar to eat.

I take my salad dressing. On a plane, it might be just olive oil, a whole lemon, and seasonings I

have put into a little baggie so I can get through security. (I buy tuna in glass jars from Tonnino at Whole Foods or Walmart. Way cheaper at Walmart, and they deliver. Their jars hold a little over 6 oz of tuna in olive oil. I USE THE TUNA JARS TO CARRY MY SALAD DRESSING

ounces of liquid in a container that I have been measuring 3 ounces of quality olive oil and then taking lemon with me to use as a salad dressing. Then I take seasonings in little stainless containers with silicone lids and viola; I have a lovely dressing for my salad. Long answer, but you get the gist. Security doesn’t stop my jar salad from going through if I don’t put any liquids in the jar.

If I am not going on a plane, these jars perfectly hold my quality olive oil and organic red wine vinegar salad dressing. And by the way, the Tonnino Tuna in olive oil is delicious. (So, the jar is a bonus.)

I could sell these jar salads since everyone wants to know where I “bought” them. How can they get one?

The key is that I am committed to eating the rainbow and avoiding processed or fast food. My body LOVES that I am eating the rainbow.

step of the way. You can do this too.

HOW TO MAKE JAR SALADS

When buying ingredients, follow the Dirty Dozen card at a minimum; therefore, only use organic tomatoes, peppers, berries, celery, and cucumbers. If the produce

15 card, you can decide if you purchase organic or not. I look up the fruit or veggie on the USDA website “What’s on My Food?”

The key to long-term health is that Food Quality Matters.

social, which has nothing to do with what I feed my body.

The rainbow jar salad was born.

By using Ball jars, my salads are secure and beautiful. I layer the veggies so that the rainbow is appealing.

Below, I share the tips that make my jar salads work best. I have learned that my salads work best if I build the salad bottoms up, with sturdier vegetables on the bottom and more fragile vegetables and fruits on the top. This way, my salad, veggies, and fruit remain crisp and fresh. Then, I keep homemade dressings and condiments in separate containers that are yummy and clean.

I carry my condiments in small stainless-steel containers with silicone lids or small tuna jars. I also carry my salad dressing securely in stainless-steel containers or small jars. I get the stainless containers

breaks down how many pesticides and herbicides are sprayed on that food and what they are. Are they neurotoxins, carcinogens, hormone disruptors, developmental or reproductive toxins, and even toxins killing our bees? No pollinators, no food. Knowledge is power. Protect your body.

I started to make salads in Ball canning jars. (Ace Hardware stores). I travel with my food this way. The possibilities are endless. This is how I prepare “food to go” to stay true to my healthy eating. I pack the jars in an insulated carry bag with ice packs to keep them fresh. If I am going onto a plane, I carry the cheap ice packs that come with some shipped foods I buy. Then, before I go through security, I throw the ice packs away. My salad jar veggies stay fresh up to the last moment this way.

I do not expect others I join for lunch or dinner to eat as I do. However, I will not compromise how I eat either. This allows me to maintain my healthy diet. In addition, I can join friends and be

(see the note above for the variation if I am boarding a plane and going through security)

The possibilities are endless, and the items in my salads are quality organic real food items. Remember, Food Quality Matters.

1. As discussed, I added crunchy veggies to the bottom of the jar - Celery, carrots, cubed bell pepper, and jicama. It keeps the softer veggies layered above from getting soggy.

2. Next, layer the softer veggies as you can in rows. The rainbow presentation is very appealing.

3. Top with your greens. Use a variety.

Add protein

5. Finally, add the toasted nuts last to keep them crunchy. Or I carry those in the small separate containers.

6. Seal the jars with lids and store them in the refrigerator. Now they are all ready to go to grab on the way out the door. When you are ready to eat, shake it up, pour it into a bowl, and enjoy!

For one, they are so pretty! But more importantly, these readyto-go jar salads make eating a healthy weekday lunch easy. I’ve been prepping some mason jar salads on Sunday or Monday each week to prepare healthy

week. (Depending on what you put in your salads, they will last 3-5 days. For example, the one with chicken stays fresh for 3 days after you cook your chicken.)

These ready-to-go salads in jars make it easy to eat a healthy lunch on busy weekdays. Having these ready to eat during my lunch break on busy workdays is wonderful.

I use Primal Palate organic

I use Ocean’s Halo Organic No Soy Soy-free Sauce (Soy is a sensitivity of mine, but no matter what, soy

anyway.

Tip: Sometimes, I use Whole Food Salad Bar veggies and cut them up for fast prep. Only if their veggies are organic. In California, I get organic ingredients from their salad bar, but in Sedona, they only use conventional produce, so I buy the organic and chop up my own. Check with the store manager of each store. Things can change.

Fast food salad bars are sprayed with toxins.

For meat or protein

• Organic or Kosher chicken (Trader Joe’s) or Whole Foods (I bake myself, or a Mary’s cooked chicken at Whole Foods.

• ground beef that I cook myself. (Why buy grass-fed beef that

important.)

• Or, on the top, Applegate cold cuts that are organic. I especially like their boiled ham, but they also have several healthy turkey and chicken cold-cut options.

• Tuna salad made with jarred Tonnino Tuna in olive oil in a kept cold with cold packs.

• could also make salmon salad out of it with organic mayo. I use soy-free Follow Your Heart Mayo. Celery, onion, carrots, and red pepper all go into my seafood salads. If you do make a salad out of it, it goes to the bottom of the jar. Or I carry it in a separate stainless container with a silicon top and pack it in need to be kept cold.)

• I also make crispy Applegate organic Sunday bacon at times, to carry separately in a stainless container with a silicone top.

I use Primal Kitchen salad dressings

I use Violife Vegan cheese. If you are not dairy sensitive, use organic or European cheeses.

Organic tofu is a good option, tofu is GMO, and you do not need those chemicals in your body.

• Organic beans you prepare and cook yourself or out of BPA-free cans. I love White Northern beans, drain them and then marinate them in olive oil, seasonings, and vinegar. First, I marinate them in olive oil www.thefuriesoliveoil.

seasonings, and red wine

Then, add seasonings and hard-cubed veggies and onions to the beans. I carry these in a separate stainless container do not marinate the beans. You cannot have the liquid or pack them in another Tonnino into a single quart baggie and combined.

• Hardboiled eggs. I use organic pastured chicken eggs. Sprouts carry them already hardboiled, but often I hard boil them myself. Why pastured eggs? Cage-free chickens are squished together and live in abhorrent conditions. And I do not want an unhealthy dose of their stress hormones. I have plenty of my own. Pastured chickens eat their berries, and bugs, not GMO feed. Conventional chickens sometimes are fed arsenic— Food Quality Matters.

• The balance of the salad should include all of the colors of the rainbow, starting at the bottom of the jar. Next, cut the pieces into cubes for easy eating.

Types of salads to make in Ball Jars (Use organic ingredients whenever possible):

• Cobb Salad - romaine lettuce, blue cheese, hardboiled pastured eggs, chopped tomatoes.

• Barbecued chicken saladcorn, black beans, chicken, BBQ sauce, lettuce, cheese, and tortilla chips. BBQ Sauce should be Primal Kitchen (no sugar)

• Greek Salad - spring mix, feta cheese (I use vegan from Violife, kalamata olives, cucumber, tomato

• Taco Salad (with separately carried organic tortilla chips. We like organic blue tortilla chips), iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, taco seasoned grasscooked with organic jarred tomatoes, organic defrosted corn kernels, celery, carrots, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, black beans, guacamole in a separate container. Colby cheese shreds (I use Violife) (Carry salsa in a separate container.)

• Spinach Salad with feta cheese (I use vegan from Violife,) organic dried cranberries, hardboiled egg, tomato, pecans, and red onion. Buy organic cranberries at Nuts.com

• Burrito Salad – cooked Lundberg brown rice, red organic beans (both on the bottom of the jar), corn, avocado, onion, cheddar cheese shreds (Violife), or organic dairy cheddar cheese.

• Waldorf Salad - chunks of pastured chicken, red grapes, red onion, celery, walnuts, romaine lettuce, creamy mayo, I use Follow Your Heart

• Quinoa salad - put the quinoa on the bottom of the jar and then layer rainbow vegetables and fruits on top. Add nuts and quality meat. Add cucumber, colored bell pepper squares, and purple onion. Home-

Cherry tomatoes, Bok choy, celery, multicolored carrot circles, jicama, dried organic blueberries (Nuts.com), and apples, and make a lemon and olive oil dressing with herbs or a dressing of your choice in a separate container.

Why no soy? 95% of Soy is GMO.

• Shrimp Sushi Salad - sushi rice, seaweed salad or nori strips, Pre-cooked shrimp, red cabbage, green onion, sesame seeds, matchstick carrots, cucumber, avocado, wasabi, pickled ginger, no soy soy-free

Cucumbers must be organic, and the shrimp should be wildcaught.

• Pasta Salad with organic Cannellini Beans and spinach, celery, carrots, beets, and onion, or use your imagination and make your favorite pasta salad in the jar.

• Oriental Salad – 2 tbsp. Sesame-ginger dressing (I use cooked organic pastured chicken, shredded multicolor carrots, cooked quinoa, or cooked translucent rice noodles, mushrooms

My favorite salad dressing is Danielle Walker Ranch Dressing. Her cookbooks are amazing for making beautiful, healthy food in general. Non-dairy. Garlic cloves, onion powder, fresh parsley, fresh chives, fresh dill, and lemon juice. Follow Your Heart no soy Mayo, a small can of coconut cream. Sea salt and Primal Seasonings Steak Seasoning. www.againstallgrain.

are very dirty sprayed with tons of pesticides. The other advantage of organic red wine vinegar, I buy one with the mother, which are probiotics good for my gut, and the taste of this vinegar is outstanding.

give it a whirl. I carry these in little leftover tuna glass bottles that are small and secure to carry salad dressing. Always bag the jar so that it does not leak into your purse.

I did a cooking demonstration

salads to go. It’s fun to watch and loaded with wonderful information. The second part of the podcast discusses why to buy local, the big advantages of eating fruits and vegetables just picked, and the many other advantages of Saladtogorainbowinajar

Or, I make a homemade salad dressing using my Cuisinart

Mini Chop, 3 cloves of garlic, a piece of shallot, a small piece of purple onion, Frontier Organic

is extra virgin, and a nice olive color (https://bit.ly/furiesoliveoil), organic red wine vinegar (grapes

MASTERING DINING OUT:

How to Sustain Your Healthy Eating Habits

By Cheryl Meyer

Once you commit to healthier eating, you don’t want to break your standards and eat “CRAP” again because your body will know and react to chemicals for me.

Since much of restaurant food is also processed food from the food industry, learning how to eat out at restaurants has become an important skill for me to relearn. I am hard to feed because I no longer eat like most Americans. I now eat for my health. Eating out is easiest when it is just John and me, and we can control where we eat. But we are both very social, so eating out with friends has been an important skill to learn.

what John and I eat. That way, I KNOW what has gone into my food, and it’s self-defense to make our food myself.

Learning about and avoiding my step back to a world without

These foods are kryptonite to me, so I will NOT eat them in restaurants and avoid them like

the plague.

John has his own set of 13 sensitivities.

Despite all our restrictions, John and I are Foodies, and we love to eat good, clean, delicious food. I like to eat out as much as the next gal, so I want to share with you how we do that. This is especially tricky since neither of us eats the “SAD” anymore, which is the Standard American Diet. (As noted in an earlier article, the SAD is why I believe chronic illness is rising.)

Making conscious decisions about what to eat no matter where you are is important to maintaining sustainable health. However, this becomes complicated when you enter the outside world because most things others eat freely are processed and unhealthy.

To sustain healthy habits, must research ahead of time. Understanding restaurants and how to eat out healthy is a skill

want to share my tips with you.

sensitivities, so I have printed

a business card with all my sensitivities. (Vista Print.) (My picture is on it, so the waiter remembers who gave it to him on his way out of the kitchen.) These are the foods that create

other words, I react to them. They can cause me pain or

pounds overnight if I eat them. Having a preprinted card saves time and saves the waiter from multiple trips to the kitchen to see if something is “safe” for me to eat.

This is the smartest thing I have done since I got Fibromyalgia. I have so many sensitivities sometimes I do not even remember to tell someone all of them since it is quite a long list, so I keep these cards in my purse in a separate business card holder and then hand them out at a restaurant to save time and trouble.

I recommend you print a card with things you truly want to avoid in addition to your sensitivities and allergies. For example, my card includes ingredients like agave, canola oil, and GMOs. This way, the restaurant can steer you away from problematic ingredients

you refuse to eat.

I get a positive reaction when I hand these cards in a restaurant or to a friend. Restaurants appreciate knowing before preparing the meal if there are ingredients that are problems for you.

TIP - You do not want to be ravenous when you go out. You will make poor food choices, so eat something small before you head out. I always keep emergency foods in my car should I need them when I am away from home. (Apples, peanut butter, healthy protein bars, nuts, and other healthy snacks. My cookbooks have a list of healthy travel food.)

Don’t be afraid to ask for exactly what you want. Be polite but be forceful. And then show gratitude.

To start, we live in Los Angeles and will travel for food. We go Mediterranean Kitchen), who farmer’s market. We know she buys her vegetables organic from our farmer’s market, and we business for 30 years, and she

in the ocean without all the hormones, antibiotics, and fake substances. We trust her.

We might drive 1 hour across town to Venice to a vegan restaurant (Plant and Wine), making the most visibly beautiful meals I have ever seen. There is a restaurant in Toluca Lake (Aeirloom Bakery) close to my

for breakfast and lunch (closed for dinner). It is an organic bakery and does everything right. They use pastured eggs, bison, grass-

vegetables, and organic bakery goods. These are standbys where I know I can get a delicious meal and not react.

There is also a fantastic vegan restaurant in Studio City called Sun Café, which we enjoy, and it is where we get takeout for guests at the Hollywood Bowl. (It is considered one of the top 10 restaurants in LA.) Many of their food is clean and delicious.

All these restaurants are one hour from home.

Pasadena, nearby, has a few restaurants I can enjoy carefully. I take my olive oil to have a salad at one because they use organic canola oil, which I do NOT want

in my body. They carry organic salads and grass-fed, grassis an issue. (Tender Greens) There is also a vegan restaurant where there are a couple of dishes without soy that I can eat. (Sage Plant-Based Bistro). Before I discovered that artichokes were a sensitivity for me, I used to order their artichoke appetizer, and it was to die for.

We are also lucky to have a Dr. Andrew Weil’s True Foods restaurant, and I can enjoy some

beautiful, and his food is always delicious and clean.

a beautiful restaurant in South owner ahead of time; he made sure that he could feed me organic and pastured meats, and he was thrilled to do it. We had a lovely meal there. I just had to we were coming.

If you are in an unfamiliar area, become familiar with restaurants that serve the quality of ingredients that you are looking

walking through the internet. In Sedona, AZ, where our second restaurants where the produce is organic and farm-to-table, and

they serve pastured meats, so

eat at one of these restaurants. This does not mean I can eat everything on their menu. Still, I can eat something very enjoyable at these establishments, and it is a pleasure to go out there—my choices in Sedona range from organic vegan pizza and organic Italian to healthy Mexican. I can also eat organic Thai food in town. A new burger joint is near our home, with organic buns and pastured beef. There is a restaurateur in the town named Lisa Dahl, and she has

farm-to-table. Her restaurants are also lovely, so she makes eating out special. There is also a vegan restaurant in town with all

garden in the back for dining. Feeding me in Sedona is easy, which is one of the reasons I am so happy we bought our second home there. Mago, the Tao retreat outside Sedona, where we take workshops, is all organic

For very special occasions in Sedona, we go to the Enchantment Resort. Picture sitting surrounded by red rocks that you could almost touch from your table, and the food is farmto-table and pastured. We have not tried L’Auberge de Sedona yet, and although I could not order directly from their menu,

I am sure that if I called ahead since they are farm-to-table, they could accommodate me.

All the food above has in common is that I do my research and am not afraid to ask for what I want. So now the question becomes, what do we do to scout out someplace new or a restaurant in a location where we haven’t been before? These are the tips that I believe will be most useful to you.

is organic restaurants. Then, depending on what comes up, I check them out individually. Often, they are NOT organic, or there is nothing to eat at that restaurant, so next, I Google healthy food. Each step of the way, I look at the menus and see if there are possible choices that I can eat at that restaurant. As I go, I make a list of possibilities.

Keywords I am looking for:

• Organic

• Farm to Table

• Vegan, but sometimes those are problematic because soy is one of my sensitivities.

vegan restaurants are also heavily soy.

• Happycow.net Happy Cow is a website that allows you

• •

restaurants and health food stores worldwide.

• I realize just because restaurants pop up in any of these categories, I still Organic and Farm to Table are my best bet, but now I look at menus.

Tips when you are researching restaurants:

• Ask to speak with the chef, the owner, or the manager. Ask where the restaurant buys its produce.

• Ask what is made-ahead and what is made-to-order., You can usually get a chef to combine made-to-order items.

• Ask if they have any organic or grass-fed meat options. What are their healthiest dishes? It may or may not be something you want to eat, but it is a great place to start. Ask what whole foods are available. This way, you know what you can order where they have not added any unhealthy ingredients.

• Ask for steamed, poached, or roasted preparation.

Ask for wild-caught, pastured, organic, sustainable, locally sourced, or farm-to-table.

• Do not hesitate to ask if you

Let them know you will request something simple and easy to make but clean. Explain that you eat very healthily. I share that I have an autoimmune disease and sensitivities.

• I am not gluten sensitive. If you are, then you need to be asking about that that well. I know that gluten sometimes is greater than wheat, so learn about the cross sensitivities and add them to your list to inquire about.

Organic

If I can get an organic salad at the restaurant, I call and ask about oils. Many restaurants

of canola oil is GMO. However, even if the canola oil is organic, it is not good for your health. I read that the Canadians named it Canola because it comes from Canada and rhymes with Granola to make people think it is healthy. Read the note below. I will call the restaurant and ask what they use. I take my olive oil in a small container or, if it is a blend, in a bottle. I

take several small tuna jars with quality olive oil if we are on a road trip. (If traveling on a plane, I pack several olive oil bottles in

have that might be ok, and since restaurants do not want a problem with allergies, they are especially careful.

Just a note: sometimes, they are overly cautious. John and I went to a Nobu in San Diego because I can always eat sashimi. It is just both were young, and he was starting. I have enjoyed watching his amazing success.

baggies in my luggage.) If I am in a restaurant and have not asked ahead of time, I ask to see the bottle. Remember, real olive oil has a greenish tint. The blends do not. In the worst-case scenario, I ask for lemon wedges and eat my salad with fresh lemon.

Farm to Table

These restaurants are usually a safe bet that there will be things I can eat. I still peruse the menu and, if necessary, call ahead and ask to speak to the owner or the chef. Once we have chosen a restaurant, I give my sensitivity card to the waiter when we arrive. I put my photo on it so that he remembers who I am when he returns from the kitchen. The waiter will come and comment on what they

Well, they sent the chef to me to ensure I would not die if I came in contact with soy. I assured them it was a sensitivity, not an allergy. (An allergy can kill. Sensitivity is a slow burn.) Then they sent the assistant manager to talk to me - the same conversation. Finally, the manager approached me to tell me they could not feed me. Good grief, I pointed out

course, they could feed me. He hesitated, so I pulled out my “I know Nobu card.” Ultimately, I had a marvelous soy-free dish that was just wonderful. You must be pushy about what you want in both directions.

Sushi

Sushi is always a possibility, but I carry my non-soy soy sauce by Oceans Halo. It’s not as good as soy sauce, but it doesn’t have soy, which I react with hostility

to, so it works for me. It is also not GMO. I order brown rice in

for sushi. I do not eat things with cream cheese. I avoid the mayo, again usually made with soy. I do not eat edamame. (GMO) or the miso (GMO). I avoid California Roll unless a real crab is an ingredient. The fake crab is not healthy for you. Sushi and sashimi are good choices. “Do not order the seaweed salad unless you know it does not contain food coloring. Food coloring is added to make that bright green color, as are additional harmful preservatives. Yellow #5 has the strongest link to severe allergic reactions, and Blue #1 has caused brain cancer in lab animals.”

How to Eat Healthy at Chinese Restaurants

• Ask for brown rice

• Ask for beef and broccoli with steamed veggies. Carrots and snow peas are good; ask for no sauce or a white sauce.

• Chicken is also a good choice with veggies if you can eat chicken.

• Buddha’s Feast with brown rice

• Ask what they can make for you without soy sauce.

• Ask if they use MSG in their food, and if they do, ask if they can make something without MSG. If not, identify the recipes with MSG; if all their dishes include it, leave

somewhere else to eat.

• Carry your Dirty Dozen list with you at all times, and avoid veggies on the list in your restaurant food.

• We have a Chinese restaurant close by that has soup dumplings. I eat those, and they are yummy. They also have many veggies, which we order and are yummy. My favorite thing is steamed dumplings. I go for it if they can make them without Soy and MSG. I eat them with white rice wine vinegar. They are a treat. This restaurant does not use msg in their cooking. Ask.

Mediterranean

Mediterranean restaurants are usually a good bet because they have lamb (sheep only eat grass). They also have hummus, which I can eat, and an eggplant dip that I can usually eat. Still important to ask what ingredients go into it and if the beans are organic. Many beans are GMO, so they have BT Toxin grown in them. We recently went to one

Mediterranean restaurant, and the eggplant dip had feta in it, so I could not order that since

countries call eggplant dip called moutabal; sometimes, it is called Babganoosh. SHIRAZ and Fatoosh salads and tabbouleh are also good choices.

Greek salad full of fresh spinach, grilled chicken, or calamari with lots of fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil drizzled on top. (I do not eat the chicken since I am sensitive to it, but you can. Chicken is an unusual sensitivity. So, I substitute calamari or shrimp if available.) If I am really hungry, I order additional grilled vegetables on the side.

If I go to the restaurant from home, I take a small glass container with my vegan feta crumbles to add to the dishes.

I recently had quail in a Mediterranean restaurant. They prepared in olive oil, so they were both good choices. I was not crazy about the taste, but they were both “clean.”

on the menu, which reviews say is wonderful. That is something to try on another visit. Their rice was made with vegetable broth and was amazing.

Perk up grilled calamari, salmon, shrimp, or even a grilled whole

in Mediterranean restaurants are Atlantic Salmon and Cod. Unfortunately, both are farmed and raised disgustingly, so I refuse to eat either. “Souvlaki, plural souvlakia, is a popular Greek fast food consisting of small pieces of meat and sometimes vegetables grilled on a skewer. It is usually

still hot.” Souvlaki is another good choice. Leg of lamb or lamb chops are an excellent choice.

Stay away from sauces.

Mediterranean restaurants.

Mexican selections. A Mexican restaurant in Sedona uses grass-fed beef, so I greatly enjoy their Mexican food. However, this Mexican restaurant

is the exception to the rule. A Fajita would be a better choice in other Mexican restaurants. Skip the sour cream and eat the guacamole instead. Ask for extra roasted veggies. I would skip the meat unless it is pastured. This is a time that I would eat beans for my protein. If you are dairy sensitive, you want to avoid cheese. Ceviche is also a possibility in a Mexican restaurant.

Italian

A nice green salad with lots of roasted veggies would be a great start. Pasta Fagioli is a good choice. I must ask if the soup base was chicken to avoid it.

olive oil is a lovely entrée. But, of course, you would want it to be

in chemicals. Ask if the pasta is organic. Italian pasta usually does not have glyphosate in it.

Pasta Primavera is an excellent choice.

Pasta with marinara sauce is good. But the tomatoes are probably GMO—no cheese for me. But, on the other hand, if the cheese is imported, it will be without hormones, so go for it.

Di Mare - Shelled clams, black tiger shrimp, fresh garlic, Roma tomatoes, angel hair pasta, served in an olive oil white wine sauce. This is a possibility to ask the waiter about.

Ask for plain Italian pasta drizzled with olive oil, salt, and pepper and topped with steamed veggies.

Ask for a cheese-free pizza loaded with vegetables. I have found a wonderful vegan cheese with a I have taken it with me to eat out. I shred it ahead of time and take it in a small jar.

Seafood seafood has been corrupted with chemicals. I do not eat Atlantic or Scottish salmon, which is farmed.

Shrimp is possible, but I prefer wild shrimp as a better choice. They could also be farmed. Ask where they are sourced. You want them sourced in the Gulf of Mexico, if possible. I love Petrale wild salmon or wild halibut. We love boiled crab-type restaurants where they put the crab pieces on the butcher paper before me. Eat and carrots not on the dirty dozen list.

Note - If I am with a group of people, it helps if I have researched and led the group to a restaurant where I can eat. They will enjoy it too.

How to order food at a restaurant in general:

Once you are at the restaurant, you want to get a healthy meal. First, make sure you are not overly hungry. I have travel food available

hunger feeling. Have a healthy snack before you go out to dinner, like an organic apple, and take the edge

before you even walk in the door. You do not want to be ravenous. You will make poor food choices, so eat something small before going out.

Do not be afraid to ask for exactly what you want. This is especially important if you have not had a chance to call ahead. Ask all the questions you need answered about sourcing and preparation. I have found that restaurants will go out of their way to make me happy. Is it uncomfortable? It is a little at to know what you’re putting into your body, and your waiter’s responsibility to know what goes into the food they’re serving. The more you ask, the easier it gets, I promise!

Focus on eating REAL FOOD. Many restaurants now buy their food in baggies, and they warm up the food and arrange it on your plate. That food tends to be saucy and loaded with chemicals. Please keep it simple. I have even carried ghee in a small jar in my handbag to whip out and use on steamed veggies. Ghee is butter that has had the milk solids removed, so there is no whey or casein in it, which I am sensitive to in dairy. It is stable and does not spoil without milk solids, so it travels well. And ghee is a healthy oil for autoimmune diseases.

Always ask if the soup is made from scratch. Avoid soups that use a pre-made base or, even worse, are straight out of a can. Premade bases can be full of MSG, ingredients. In my case, I also ask if the base is chicken broth since it is one of my sensitivities.

Set your mind to stick to the principle learned from Blue Zones that you only want to eat until you

happy. The easiest way to do that is to eat until you are just at the line of no longer being hungry. If you eat until your brain recognizes you are full, you have overeaten.

Instead of bread, ask the waiter for raw cut-up veggies to start the meal. You do not need a dip, but it helps to have something crunchy to munch on.

Ask for water right away and get lemon to put into your water. Unfortunately, not all restaurants will automatically bring you water now unless you ask.

Once you know what the restaurant chef recommends for you to eat, ask for simple food preparation. Grilled or steamed preparation is great. Poached is also an excellent

grilled. Good preparation methods are steamed, baked, roasted, braised, broiled, and seared.

Avoid any menu description that uses creamy, breaded, crisp, likely loaded with saturated fats.

Other “beware of” words include buttery, sautéed, pan-fried, au gratin, Thermidor, Newburg, Parmesan, cheese sauce, scalloped, and au lait, à la mode, or au Fromage (with milk, ice cream, or cheese). Also, beware of pan-fried, crispy, dipped, scalloped, breaded, creamed, and alfredo, as they are unhealthy cooking methods.

Ask for olive oil to use on your food, but again ask to see the bottle to ensure it is truly olive oil. Nine times out of 10, it is a

make sure you know what you are being served. Again, real olive oil is a green-tinged oil. I often carry my own in a small bottle, double-bagged.

Instead of starches, ask for double veggies. For example, I hesitate to eat even a baked pesticides used on a conventional potato. So I try to avoid the veggies on the Dirty Dozen (Strawberries, Spinach, Kale, Nectarines, Apples, Grapes, Peaches, Pears, Tomatoes, Celery, Potatoes, All Peppers, Cherries, Cherry Tomatoes, Lettuce, Cucumbers, Blueberries, Plums, Green Beans) or the GMO

sugar (beets)), summer squash, potatoes. papayas (from Hawaii), Canola).

Avoid sauces, dressings, and dips. These are usually laden with hidden sugars, unhealthy oils, gluten, and dairy.

Stick to reasonable portion sizes. If your plate has too much food, get a takeout box immediately and put the extra food aside so up eating it. (My father always told us people in Europe were starving, so I had to eat what was put on my plate as a child. It

wherever the starving people were, they were starving whether I overate or not. I still catch myself moving food around my plate until it is gone. Better for me to remove it from my plate upfront.)

Eat mindfully and eat slowly. I and then sit down to eat my evening meal at full speed. Relax, enjoy the company of who you are with, and be mindful of each bite and how delicious the true

praying or gratitude are lovely traditions before a meal.

The other suggestion is to eat something bitter before the meal, like parsley or cilantro. That wakes our stomach enzymes

from our eating. Then, chew the bitter and swish for 2 minutes to appropriately wake your digestion.

Focus on protein and vegetables, no matter where you are eating. Then, ask for berries for dessert.

Drink water or iced tea (unsweetened) with lemon - no colas or sugary drinks. Hot tea is a good choice, but paper bags are best. (Or loose) Those cute little triangular bags are plastic and emit toxins.

I want to tell you a story if you think I don’t want to be this pushy when I eat.

John and I traveled to Ohio to visit with his family. However, we still stayed in hotels to control some of our food and time.

of saying grace is that we slow down and signal our body that it is safe to eat and for our bodies to put attention on digesting our food. It is a form of gratitude;

There was a very special hotel, and restaurant that John wanted to share with me called The Golden Lamb in Lebanon, Ohio. The hotel and restaurant are 200 years old, and 12 US Presidents have stayed there. John knew I loved old places with history, so

this was a must.

Besides, I had a friend from my jewelry days who lived just a little north, so we invited him for dinner. We were going to eat there, so I was nervous about what the restaurant could feed me.

As soon as we arrived (the day before our dinner), I spoke to the front desk about my dilemma and asked if I could speak to the head chef. He arranged a meeting that day.

When we met, and I gave the chef my food card, I admit I was awkward and nervous. But my company was coming no matter what.

He read the card, looked at me, smiled, and said, “Oh goodie, I get to cook something new, fresh, and interesting. I get so bored always cooking the same thing. So, leave it to me.”

So, we met our guest, and John and Michael ordered, and then the chef bought out our dinners. My meal was sensational and gorgeous, and clean. Michael commented he wished he had known; he would have also ordered my meal. But we all had a sensational meal, and everyone was thrilled. There was nothing to be hesitant or embarrassed about. So, ask. The worst thing

that can happen is that they say no. My mentor is always saying, “get your ask on.” Do not be afraid to ask for what you need. Let them surprise you.

Since I have learned that eating out with friends is about enjoying their company and not about what I am eating, had he said no way, I would have eaten something ahead of time and then enjoyed a salad while my friend and husband ate.

I have similar stories to tell from when we traveled in Europe. Even the French were more than happy to accommodate me.

The point is to ask for what you want and then adjust accordingly. Finally, sometimes I do not control where the party eats. But, since I eat “clean” the rest of the time, I make the best possible choice from the menu I can.

Remember, it is all about toxic load. Do not get twisty. One meal will not kill me. Eating with friends is always about community, so enjoy the people you are with and do not make them uncomfortable about their food choices. Do not lecture them or judge what they choose to eat. Just eat as clean as possible for you. Remember, you always have your emergency food-pack if you are hungry

when the meal is over.

Note: The photo is from Saddle Peak Lodge in Calabasas, CA, in the Malibu Mountains. John and I go there for special occasions.

celebration. They are farm-totable and always use quality organic ingredients. I took my sensitivity card and gave it to the waiter, Steven. He went and conversed with the chef, and they checked with me several times throughout the dinner to make sure my food was perfect for me. They were delightful, and I had an excellent dinner. If restaurants have the right ingredients in-house (which is why the vetting comes in beforehand), they are more than happy to accommodate me to make me a fabulous meal. So, we got to relax and let them handle how to feed me. You can do this too.

I translated my sensitivity card into French and Italian when we went to Europe. They were also extremely accommodating to make sure I avoided my sensitivities. In addition, they appreciated that I came prepared with a list for them to follow.

FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE: A Balanced Approach to Optimal Health and Wellness

By Shilpa Sayana, MD

Iam a Functional Medicine

internist. I am forever grateful that I discovered Functional Medicine early in my medical career, which has fundamentally impacted how I practice Medicine and my lifestyle choices. Let me explain how I got here. I was born in Southern Africa to parents who are of Indian origin and were working as global health physicians. Toward the end of my high school years in Africa, the county we were living in, Botswana,

AIDS pandemic, and it shaped my choice to assist in wanting to

HIV. I came to the United States for college, then proceeded to do my Masters in Public Health at Yale University, focusing on International Health, and then completed medical school at the University of Vermont School of Medicine. Finally, I moved to sunny California to return to my roots of living in warm temperatures

Medicine at the UCLA - SFVP in Southern California. Staying true to my initial reasons for entering Medicine, I completed a fellowship in HIV medicine, which allowed me to travel globally and teach other physicians how to treat people

who were HIV+ with antiretroviral medications.

During this intense part of my career, where I frequently traveled internationally, caring for a panel of HIV-positive patients in Los Angeles, being a mother to an infant, a wife, and a daughter of aging parents, I lost balance between work and my health. This was when I was found to have a mass in my neck. I had to pause my work to go through the medical investigations to assess if it was cancer or something else. This

on the other side of healthcare, it was an eye-opening journey, and I realized even more the importance of kindness, compassion, and connection between a healthcare provider and a patient. It was a time of uncertainty and a confrontation with the fragility of life. Thankfully after a biopsy, I was diagnosed with a benign nerve tumor in my neck.

This was a time of reassessment career. It pushed me to ponder the following questions: Was I truly living my most authentic life? Was I truly helping my patients with their health? Did I understand the WHY of my patient’s symptoms? Was I the best mom, partner, and daughter I could be? Was I taking

care of myself? I dug deeper into why I had developed this neck tumor. There were no answers in the Medicine I was trained in, and it was chalked up to a random occurrence. I had no family history or obvious medical risk factors, and these tumors are seen as sporadic medical occurrences. This was when I began to dig deeper into the WHY in Medicine and what could have been the root cause of my own health experience. It is where I discovered the connection

toxins, and stress. I kept searching deeper. I collected a few more Board of Integrative and Holistic Medicine & Obesity medicine). Finally, I was lucky enough to have found a mentor who directed me to Functional Medicine, which is where I learned a systems-based approach to assess and evaluate a patient’s root cause of why they may be experiencing their current medical condition symptoms.

Functional Medicine is the greatest compliment to my Internal Medicine training. It provides the framework to attempt to understand the connection

and exposures that trigger an epigenetic occurrence of symptoms

or disease. Functional Medicine provides a more extensive battery of lab testing that measures

before what we in Internal Medicine

autoimmune disease. This way, we can treat patients using lifestyle principles and supplements that

long before a traditional medicine lab test turns positive. Functional Medicine provides us with a canvas to understand the complex interaction between a patient’s life experience, genetic predispositions, stress perception, diet choices, gut health, traumatic experiences, and toxins exposure that have created the perfect storm to switch on the epigenetic presentation of their current symptoms.

In Functional Medicine, we test adrenal hormones, which is the gland that produces your

and a complete thyroid panel which are 6 tests for the thyroid function as opposed to 2, which is our conventional approach, sex

antioxidant levels, an extensive panel of autoimmune antibodies, Toxins are often overlooked as a root cause in conventional Medicine. However, they can act as endocrine disruptors that impact one’s hormones, gut health, and neurotransmitters or may be an additional cause for weight gain.

These panels of tests give us a deeper understanding of how taxed one’s stress hormones (adrenal hormones) are, which could be due to chronic life stress, anxiety, toxic relationships, nutritional majority of my patients have the start of an autoimmune disease discover due to extensive testing. If we do not address the root causes as to why this has developed for them, there is a high likelihood of them developing a second autoimmune disease. For example, a common autoimmune condition we diagnose is Hashimoto’s

be improved by lifestyle choices, such as diet changes consisting

of a reduction in processed

patients will initially present with multiple low levels of autoimmune autoimmune disease. If we address their root causes with a Functional Medicine approach, we can often get these autoimmune markers to resolve with marked improvement in their symptoms and health.

I founded Sayana Medical & Wellness Center over a decade ago, where we practice primary care through a functional medicine lens. The name “Sayana” (शयन) is a Sanskrit word referring to “a resting place”, a place of sanctuary. I had the vision to create a safe place for all who come to feel heard and discover the power of healing. The same passion that drove me to champion equitable antiretroviral access and education during the HIV pandemic drives me today to increase awareness and access to Functional Medicine for more

conventional disease pattern yet. A Functional medicine framework has provided my patients and me with the tools and hope to address their root causes successfully, resulting in true healing. It all starts with truly listening to their life journey and being able to extract patterns, possible exposures, and choices to test the right markers and connect the dots.

A big barrier for people accessing Functional Medicine is being overwhelmed with making lifestyle changes and investing in their health. Working with a team of healthcare providers, including health coaches that understand functional medicine principles

their approach, is critical to seeing improvements in one’s health. At Sayana, we believe in choices and aim to provide patients with the tools to achieve that. We provide State-of-the-art tests that can help one understand what your body is saying. We hope to inspire patients to make small but important lifestyle changes. And we would like to be their guide in helping them decide what healing tools are best for them - medicinal and natural options.

As part of my passion for making Functional Medicine more accessible, we are launching the Sayana Medical Programs in April 2023. Most new patients already have a primary care doctor they like but want to complement this with a deeper dive into their health using the best conventional medicine and functional medicine tools to address their symptoms. These medical programs will focus on patients who want to understand their symptoms with our guidance better. The cost of the programs will include all medication, and education so that patients can be empowered with information and treatments to reclaim their In addition, we scholarship program for patients Medicine.

If you are someone who has symptoms that Conventional Medicine has not been able to address or you are simply trying

a Functional Medicine practice to partner with, where you test for your current health status and have shared decision making on your diet, lifestyle choices, optimizing gut symptoms, reducing toxic exposures toward optimal health and well-being.

Endorsements

“I am so happy to have found Dr. Sayana. She is incredibly thorough and knowledgeable. She really tries to treat the root cause of the issues and not just the symptoms, which I really appreciate. She is also very kind, and I believe she truly cares about her patients. She always ensures that all my questions are answered and that I understand everything she suggests. I could not ask for a better Doctor.“ ~ M R.Los Angeles, CA

“Dr. Sayana is the most brilliant and caring doctor I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen over 50). She’s been

and has helped me resolve several health issues when other doctors only wanted to give my prescription medications to mask my symptoms

She takes her time to listen to me and my long list of symptoms and

to a potential root cause and is open to various testing that a lot of Western MDs wouldn’t think about doing. If it weren’t for her which included a lot of dedication to following her protocol on my side (Functional Medicine isn’t a magic bullet and takes time to heal), my quality of life would have

been horrendous and taking care of my kids would be impossible.

“Yes, she suggests several supplements, which I love because I prefer natural supplements to heal me than pharmaceutical drugs with

“She also has greatly improved my dad’s quality of life when all other his debilitating symptoms.

“My family is very grateful for her help and genuine concern for us and our well-being.” ~ Patty D. - Los Angeles, CA

“Shilpa Sayana is a wonderful, gentle, thorough doctor. She takes the time to listen to your concerns

and addresses them individually. She asks excellent questions and ensures that she has answered all of yours. Upon follow-up appointments, she uses her notes to ensure that all your past issues are still resolved. I simply love her!”

“Dr. Shilpa is lovely. She is very knowledgeable. She is thorough. She asks many questions about your health and actually listens to your answers. She doesn’t try

your problems. She very obviously cares about her patients. I highly recommend her.”

Cheryl’s Note:

In full disclosure, Dr. Sayana is my Functional MD; I believe she saved my life. One of the reasons I wanted to highlight both the holistic naturopathic and the functional medicine approach to healing is that I encourage everyone reading this magazine to own their health and continue to seek solutions. My Naturopath, who is also writing for this magazine, is also phenomenal and takes a completely holistic approach. My Naturopath and my Functional MD are on parallel approaches. Still, they are headed from both of their expertise.

If you are not getting the desired results for your wellness, keep pursuing additional options.

BEYOND MODERN MEDICINE:

Understanding the Role of a Naturopath in Today’s World

By Dr. Dan Young, BCN, CNC

Mdrawn to natural approaches to health restoration

grandfather had Parkinson’s, and the modern medical approach produced no meaningful results. So, my father began exploring alternatives to help his father-in-law with this problem.

This journey introduced us to the world of herbal remedies and, ultimately, Naturopathy as a viable alternative to the seemingly endless but narrow approach of drug therapy with pharmaceuticals. Although we started this journey too late to have a meaningful

impact on my grandfather, the positive results our family has experienced are ongoing.

my father started the Country Doctor Nutritional Center in Torrington, Wyoming, later locating the primary clinic in Cheyenne, Wyoming. I joined the clinic as an intern in 2001 and, for the past 22 years, have witnessed many changes, advancements, and retreads come into this amazing

“Overview Excerpts from the Council on Naturopathic

So let’s begin by sharing with you, the reader, the answer to the question “What is a Naturopath?”

A naturopath is an individual healing arts that use non-invasive approaches to help clients resolve chronic illness concerns. Naturopaths are not recognized like modern medical doctors practicing orthodox medicine but provide adjuvant therapies alongside primary care principles.

Traditional Naturopaths pursue programs on a variety of subjects such as anatomy, physiology, counseling, dietary evaluations,

nutrition or biology, acupressure, muscle relaxation and structural normalization techniques, homeopathy, iridology, exercise therapies, Hydrotherapy, oxygen therapies, many others all of which prove to be maintaining the philosophy of non-invasive approaches.

In actual clinical practice, traditional Naturopaths tailor the healing experience to meet the individual needs of the client. These methods have proven themselves acute problems. Naturopaths also cooperate with other branches of medical science, referring clients to other practitioners for appropriate.

Traditional naturopaths use various tools to evaluate the client’s lifestyle, nutritional and dietary needs, and protocol selections in clinical practice. Naturopathy is based upon the belief in the body’s innate God-given, natural ability to heal itself when given the

appropriate internal and external healing environments. Therefore, Naturopaths are not involved in the practice of medicine and do not use drugs or pharmaceuticals, nor do they perform any invasive procedures, like minor surgery. Historically, Naturopaths are referred to as “drugless doctors.”

A Brief History: A Quote from the Council on Naturopathic Registration

“Our industry widely acknowledges the contributions made by Dr. Benedict Lust founding the American School of Naturopathy in New York City and graduating of other schools were organized, than 20 naturopathic colleges and over 10,000 practitioners. However, this gave way to the allopathic medical schools, which had the backing of the pharmaceutical with large endowments and the political clout which comes with wealth. Due to lack of funding,

naturopathic education began to decline, and only recently has the disenchantment with pharmaceutically trained doctors led people to, once again, begin exploring and embracing natural, remedies found in naturopathy.”

Today’s practice of naturopathy promotes optimum health through education and the use of non-invasive natural agents. The primary focus is to “Do No Harm”. As you may know, this is taken from the Hippocratic oath. We can all agree that anybody

illness should consider avoiding a therapy or treatment that can harm them since modern prescription medication can potentially make a well-man sick. How can they be expected to make a sick man well?

We choose to recognize the healing power of nature. The human body is created with the capacity to heal itself and maintain harmony. There is a healing power, and nature in this principle

is the basis for all naturopathy. Naturopathy is a system designed to work in harmony with nature to restore and support this inherent natural healing process found in everybody.

Educate Rather Than Treat

The education process clients are taken through in a naturopathic outcomes in mind. First, if we do not know what the cause of the problem is, then how can we come

Naturopathy involves the entire person in the process of identifying the underlying potential causes. We recognize the physical, emotional, and other symptomatology as just that. It is a Symptom, a natural outcry from the body that harmony cannot be maintained based on current stress patterns and

Naturopaths are aware a person may have a physical, spiritual, or emotional illness. In order to achieve and maintain lasting optimum health, all aspects of a person and their physical, emotional, and spiritual status

must be considered in order to render resources to the client and they’re seeking.

Naturopaths are not in the business of getting people well. We are in the business of positioning people through proper education and the right resources to achieve harmony and wellness. The naturopathic philosophy places the responsibility for wellness on the individual. Unfortunately, most of us have never been positioned to be proper stewards of our bodies. The Naturopath acts as a trusted advisor and teacher standing in the gap between the person’s current erosive habits and behaviors surrounding diet, lifestyle, and emotional stress related to work or family, and in time develop the new habits which will take the person towards physical, emotional, and long-term well-being.

When we look at a very simple germ theory approach to illness, we realize the underlying cause of a well person becoming sick is not the germ’s fault. The germ is opportunistic, seeking out devitalized tissue to support its presence. Understanding germs are part of the normal ecosystem of this earth and have been put

here by the creator to destroy sick or devitalized tissue is a distinction made in naturopathy. This helps explain why only one gets sick when two people are exposed to the same germs (the person with devitalized tissue).

Prevention > Correction

The need for prevention education is higher than ever in our society. The naturopathic wellness care system, based on natural restorative methods, is the preferred approach for the body. However, when the body does experience imbalances and the resulting consequences, naturopaths are prepared to advise clients on simple disease prevention principles designed to produce health and avoid the destructive consequences of violating those principles. The principles we educate our clients on are our diet, movement, rest, and stress management. These principles are coupled with the right nutritional therapy resources, herbal remedies, and whole-food nutrition. Another important aspect of getting well, which most people are unfamiliar with, is the

time it takes to properly support their bodies and achieve stability through diet, lifestyle, habits, changes, and consistency so that the body can restore optimum function.

This process takes the following amount of time, or at least this is our clinical experience. However, the average client demonstrating a high degree of compliance and using the resources we provide will see a noticeable shift in how months. We call this moving from the support phase into stability. It’s important not to get faked out by this newfound vitality and wellness because it takes 1 to 3 years to get well.

What You Can Expect

In conclusion, when you consult person committed to the holistic approach to health. Your intake should be driven by proper education on what the process will look like for you in the future.

Should you choose this approach to restore your health. The basic history of your diet and stress levels will be gathered along with other vital statistics, depending upon the State and what is required by law.

The most important aspect of seeing a practitioner is the ongoing educational resources and support this individual can provide.

There’s an old saying credibility is a combination of two things, results and time. We have been so blessed to be in this industry for over 20 years and maintain a high success rate with every case we handle. However, we do not accept every case. We understand the importance and professionalism of only excepting cases we are

Here are a few of my success stories:

Stomach/Sleep/Intestinal: “Before coming to the Country Doctor, I was a mess. I couldn’t do anything but experiencing a lot of stomach and intestinal problems. I had problems breathing, and my back hurt all the time. I had trouble standing and walking. I was depressed-my moods were very blue and lasted very long periods of time. After visiting Dr. Dan, I am improving. Life seems worth living. Sleeping much better at night. My back pain is reduced, and my stomach and intestinal problems have improved.” ~ MV

Ulcerative Colitis: “My threeyear-old son had constant bloody diarrhea, lethargy, and very foul gassiness. A pediatric gastroenterologist diagnosed him with ulcerative colitis. Rather than put him on immunosuppressive medication for the rest of his life, we visited the Country Doctor to explore more natural options. We followed a supplementation and natural food diet. One year later,

the symptoms. A recent visit to his gastroenterologist gave him a clean bill of health. The doctor said, ‘Classic teaching indicates that UC does not go away, but whatever you’ve done seems to work. He’s very healthy.’ Thanks to Country Doctor for my son regaining his health and childhood!” ~ AHCheyenne

Digestion/Pain/Energy: “When I tired, and my stomach and head were a constant bother. I wasn’t sleeping very well at night. I just felt as if I had no energy. I quickly learned that I wasn’t feeding my body the right things. My bad eating habits were making me ill. Now things are running much smoother. I sleep through the night; my stomach feels better, and the pain in my head is gone. I have

the energy to get through my day. I feel more focused and alert.” ~ S.H

Cardio Health: “It is very insulting when doctors discount what you tell them or just want to give you some drug as a ‘Band-Aid’ for a symptom instead of trying to deal with the underlying issue. This is what makes the Country Doctor so unique, at least in my experience. They truly care about their clients regaining their health. I still have a long road to travel to get to where I want to be, health-wise. But now I not only have hope, but I also have

Right now, I feel at least 10 years younger than I did just 6 weeks ago!” ~ CF Cheyenne

A note on how great my supplement line is: and herbs saved my life!” ~ BD

I wish to thank Cheryl Meyer for the opportunity to write this article for her magazine. If you desire more information on the resources we provide, please feel welcome to

dyoungctn@gmail.com

For a Clinical Overview, you may

orientation class, which all our new clients attend before coming to our

Thank you again, and To Your Great Health, Naturally

Dr. Dan Young, BCN, CNC

ANMA Member

AANWP Member

Dan Young, BCTN, BCN, CNC

Cheryl’s Note:

In full disclosure, Dr. Dan is my Naturopath. I am working with his team to evict mold contamination of my body from my previous of my lymph system. One of the reasons I wanted to highlight both the holistic naturopathic and the functional medicine approach to healing is that I encourage everyone reading this magazine to own their health and continue to seek solutions. My functional MD, who is also writing for this magazine, is phenomenal and always begins with the holistic approach, and she also does have pharmaceuticals in her tool kit. If she prescribes a drug, it intends to encourage lifestyle change

so I can eventually ditch the pharmaceutical. My Naturopath and my Functional MD are on approaches. Still, they are headed from both of their expertise.

If you are not getting the desired results for your wellness, keep pursuing additional options.

If you are a practitioner, you are invited to visit and join Dr. Dan and Country Doctor as a countrydoctorwholesale.com is a product line that has been clinically proven to perform naturally. You will also gain access to business

else. As a practitioner becoming a

wholesale member with Country Doctor Herbals, you gain INSTANT access to both. As part of the initial launch of It Feels Good to Feel Good Magazine, schedule your complimentary strategy session with Dr. Young. Explore your objectives, plug into proven resources, and receive all the support you have been looking for. Complimentary. Just 2 simple steps: 1. Email Dr. Young at dyoungctn@ gmail.com, and mention the Feels Good to Feel Good Magazine in the subject line. 2. Dr. Young will to schedule your call. It is just that simple. I look forward to hearing from you.

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By Marilee Nelson

Iwould never have imagined I would one day be involved in the formulation of a cleaning product because my ten-yearold son was catastrophically chemically injured. Before the exposure, he was a calm, obedient, athletic, and brilliant child. Soon after, he was uncontrollable, unpredictable, uncoordinated, and unable to spell simple threeletter words and do simple math. The doctor treating the victims of Gulf War Syndrome said my son would never recover from the brain damage he had sustained and would be a bubble boy for the rest of his life because he could no longer detoxify the harmful chemicals we are all exposed to in everyday life. I refused to accept that diagnosis and respectfully told the doctor I wouldn’t be subject to what the medical world had to child. I was a single-minded mom to get my son back. Thankfully,

my son’s experience opened my eyes to the importance of creating a truly healthy home. And the severity of his case resulted in the discovery of critical factors crucial to his full recovery and also revealed just how much having products with harmful ingredients in the home impacts air quality, undermines health, and hijacks the body’s ability to heal.

I did not realize then that I had my – a canary in the mine - who was so sensitive that he could tell me if a product was truly safe or not. It didn’t matter if I was using the product or if it was just sitting in the house. My son would start coughing, itching, choking, become

blinding headaches. He might become irrational, confused, depressed, mentally and physically

think, etc. All products with harmful ingredients had to be removed for him to stop reacting.

I had to start digging deeper into the ingredients to understand why even the non-toxic products caused him to react. I discovered that almost all of the “non-toxic” cleaning and skin care products then and even now are preserved with chemicals that undermine health. Many contain EPAregistered pesticides from the isothiazolinone family (MIT, BIT, etc.). They are neurotoxic and skin irritants. Fragranced products were especially problematic as the single-word fragrance is a proprietary recipe comprised of hundreds of potent chemicals linked to skin irritation and shown to be asthmagens, carcinogens, neurotoxins, endocrine disruptors, and obesogens. Essential oils may be processed with solvents, can pick up phthalates from processing equipment, and

addition, naturally derived synthetic surfactants used in the non-toxic formulas may be harmful and very toxic to aquatic life, rated very

high as skin irritants, and have toxic by-products that are known

My son’s sensitivity made it clear that there was a need for truly safe, fragrance-free products that did not cause reactions or irritate the skin, eyes, nose, and lungs. The consequences of chemical exposures on his mood, behavior, and learning ability were eyeopening. I discovered that non-toxic

on a label is not enough.

After recovering my son and seeing client after client (including my niece, Allison, and her best friend, Kelly) have their health issues improve and even resolved after removing products with harmful chemicals from their homes, a mission-driven company was born – Branch Basics. Allison and Kelly joined me as co-founders of

Branch Basics. One of our goals

fragrance-free, safe cleaning concentrate that didn’t irritate the eyes, skin, or lungs and could replace every toxic cleaning product in the home.

Our biggest challenge was longterm product stability. We rejected preservatives that are typically used in “non-toxic” cleaning products. We based ingredient choice on my research over thirty years, where I learned what ingredients were and were not safe. The emerging science of epigenetics that states exposure to even small amounts of one chemical can alter DNA and

the experience of my son and my clients with chronic health issues. Unfortunately, the chemical industry and even chemists working on non-toxic formulas are rooted in the outdated toxicology model that states - the dose makes the poison - and continues to claim that low-dose exposure to hundreds of chemicals simultaneously is safe. Their encouragement to use just a little bit of “this” because it would not matter did not work for us.

as our guiding principle. Our goal completely safe product with no compromise. Human health and safety were our top priorities.

We searched high and low for a preservative that would be safe and least likely to cause reactions.

Our formula is self-preserving using what is called “hurdle technology”. Through the control of several factors, including good manufacturing procedures, pH, and natural ingredient synergies (chelators and antioxidants),

the formula is unfavorable to microbial growth without the use of traditional preservatives. Several ingredients in the formula contribute to its preservation. It is the combination of these ingredients, the large amount of chamomile (which has antibacterial properties), the sodium phytate which helps allow the chamomile to penetrate the cell wall of any contaminate more easily, and

that results in a stable preserved product. This combination allowed us to avoid using an EPA-registered pesticide, which sets us apart from other “non-toxic cleaners”.

Branch Basics hopes to establish a standard in the cleaning industry by raising awareness

through comprehensive endproduct testing. Non-toxic on a

determine a product’s safety. After over a HUNDRED formula

with no eye, lung, or skin irritation, fragrance, or residual odors. It cut grease, removed stains, and worked as well or better than

step was to have very sensitive people test the formula before we decided to go with it. After an overwhelmingly positive response from testers, we went the extra mile. We did thirdparty end-product testing where our product was put into direct contact with human-like skin and eye tissue for a period of time. To our amazement and surprise, our results were better than any the

testing company had ever seen.

control, showed absolutely no skin irritation, and was also not an eye irritant! We also completed

the formula is non-GMO, has no corn DNA, and that our product is stable-preserved. Next, we applied

their stringent standards, rigorous analysis of each ingredient source, and end product considerations that look at human health, screens for bioaccumulation, environmental aquatic and animal toxicity. We are very proud of our Made Safe EWG. We teach people how to use EWG Skin Deep for vetting product ingredients. We want to empower people to be their own product

experts!

clean and transforming lives! The colors our decision-making process in ways we may not even realize. You may be thinking about using non-toxic products, but if your idea of a clean house is based on getting rid of germs and how your home smells because you love the scent of fragrance, bleach, etc., that will drive your purchase which may have direct repercussions on your family’s health. The “dirtiest” place in your home may be the invisible air you breathe, study states that cleaning your home with conventional cleaners is like smoking 20 cigarettes a day!

house-may-be-as-bad-as-smoking-

Branch Basics products are a vehicle for our mission to educate and inspire people to Toss the Toxins and Create a Truly Healthy Home and Diet. They are products with a purpose, as they facilitate the removal of every toxic laundry and cleaning product in the home. Then, to replace them? We have a one-stop shop starter kit for all your cleaning needs. It comes with our Oxygen Boost Powder, an and odor remover that replaces toxic bleach and scouring powders. Our Concentrate is diluted in reusable glass bottles and mixed in purposes – from oven cleaners to your life! You save time, space, energy, and money using one multitasking, non-toxic Concentrate and Oxygen Boost. This simple act

of removal and replacement results in better air and health which is the

The non-clinical laboratory of human experience with my son and years of consulting with clients provided solid repeatable results that revealed an absolute truth –ingredients do matter, and products sitting in the house that have harmful ingredients impact a family’s health! Branch Basics’ goal is to empower people with tools that enable them to take proactive preventive care of their health, be their own product experts, provide safe cleaning products, and guide people through a categoryby-category removal of harmful products so they can create a truly healthy home!

Basics

Transform Your Life

Discover the Power of Pure Testimonials

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=GEOsqERzg1Y

"I can't compliment you enough on the cleaning success I've experienced with Branch Basics!

"Three examples:

"1) 35-year-old toilet has stains that only Clorox can attempt...but bleach kills our septic system. So, I used BB concentrate and the Oxy booster, let it set, and Wow! What a transformtion!

"2) I tipped an entire pot of WET planting soil on our living room carpet. After vacuuming, I tried Dawn and water to no avail. Then it occurred to me, why not try BB?

The horrible black 3'x3' stain lifted

immediately from our apricot-tone carpet!! (Apricot? Yes. We built the house in the '80s and haven't changed anything yet!)

"3) NYS is loaded with Lyme disease ticks. Since BB is safe when diluted, I sprayed the all-purpose dilution on my dog's furry legs, under, and backsides. I planned to "slipperify" his fur so the ticks couldn't stick. All I can say is, so far...no, ticks!

Thank you, Branch Basic designers. How DID you concoct such an amazing product? Only in America! :)"

Regards, ~ Pam P.

"I just used my products for the first time today, and WOW :starstruck: After suffering from infertility for almost 3 years and having a recent miscarriage, I went down the rabbit hole of having a healthier lifestyle and home. I'm so glad I found your products and feel safe using them. I cleaned my bathroom without having an asthma attack or feeling like I needed a 30-minute break to let my lungs rest. I had to do a triple-take at the mirror because it was so shiny and clean. And the way it broke down the toothpaste residue on my 6-year-old's sink :raised_hands::raised_hands::r aised_hands:

"I will never switch to anything else"

"This is such a huge benefit! No worries about pets either." ~ Thecleanbedroom

"Thank you for making a sample of the Concentrate available--enough to make a whole bottle of AP cleaner! This allows us to give the product a good test run without sinking a fortune into it. I just received my sample today, and I love it. I'm using it for everything! I want to eliminate the toxins (my

husband has prostate cancer) and downsize cleaning products."

"Quick testimonial - My 2-year-old was suffering from eczema. Our pediatrician started him on a topical steroid. They planned to add an even higher steroid dose and use the two simultaneously when that didn't work. This didn't sit right with my mama's heart. I took him off all steroids and switched our products to Branch Basics, especially our laundry detergent. Less than two weeks later, he was eczema free and has been ever since :heart: Thank you for making amazing and safe products! My 2-year-old loves to clean and cook, giving them confidence and great learning skills. Branch Basics cleans so well, and it is safe for my child. Win!" ~ NW

"My reasons include my littlest nugget putting her mouth and hands on the windows. All my kids touch the counters, chairs, windows, faucets, and any surface they touch that I clean. And because we all, including our dog, walk barefoot in the house on floors, I don't want toxins on the floor transferring to our feet and into our bodies. Or my dog licking her paws with toxic cleaner on them. So many reasons, ha-ha. Branch Basics saves us all." ~

Dailydetailswithdena

"We are out of town, and my daughter spilled blueberry Syrup on her brand-new shirt. I quickly remembered having a travel-size bottle of branch basics in my backpack. I immediately sprayed it on the blueberry stains, and they came out! Thanks! " ~ Katie

Branch Basics has been endorsed by:

Dr. Terry Wahls, M.D.

Ways To Lower The Total Load Of Your Toxin Burden (https:// terrywahls.com/talking-toxins/)

Dr. Ana Marie Temple

Cleaners - Home Care (https:// shop.dranamaria.com/home-care/ cleaners.html)

This is a Toss the Toxins endorsement link:

The Life-Changing Power Of Tossing The Toxins (branchbasics.com)

(https://branchbasics.com/blogs/ toss-the-toxins/the-life-changingpower-of-tossing-the-toxins)

Certifications

EWG - Branch Basics Products

Bleach - Branch Basics Oxygen Boost - Score: VERIFIED

Dishwasher Detergent - Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance-Free - Score: VERIFIED

General Purpose Cleaner - Branch Basics The Concentrate, FragranceFree - Score: A

MADE SAFE Certification - the strictest standards in the industry

https://madesafe.org/collections/ branch-basics

Branch Basics Concentrate and Branch Basic Oxygen Boost

See the ad for the Branch Basics Cleaning line.

Safe Cleaning Made Simple

“I have mast cell activation syndrome where I go into anaphylaxis from smells, chemicals, disinfectants, etc. This is the first product I have found to safely clean with!”

CHRISTINA

LEGACYJETS

The Case for Tossing the Toxins

By Marilee Nelson

There is a question often asked that is usually meant to be rhetorical. “Is there anything new under the sun”? And, of course, you are expected to answer “NO” to yourself. But, unfortunately, today, we face an unprecedented situation. An emergency healthcare crisis so severe and of such a magnitude that it has already started to and will eventually completely revamp consumer behavior and the way we practice medicine.

Each of the great healing traditions in history arose in its own culture to help resolve the health issues of that day. If you were to combine all the best elements of each of these traditions, they would not be

able to accommodate what we face today. We need to reform our point of view in our medical practices to meet the healthcare challenges of the 21st century. We must rise to the occasion and develop a system that works for our day. So, what exactly are these challenges?

First, we must acknowledge that today’s healthcare crisis is a cry for change. What we are doing is not working! Chronic diseases and disabilities have reached epidemic proportions, men, women, and children. To put this in perspective, that is more than one-half of the U.S. population. One in two American children has some diagnosed chronic health condition. Autism spectrum disorders, asthma,

allergies, learning disabilities, childhood diabetes, depression, and obesity are increasing at alarming rates. Cancer is the #2 killer of children after accidents. We are losing our children! The American Cancer Society states that 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women are projected to get cancer in their lifetime. We are not winning the war on cancer! Neurodegenerative diseases in adults, such as ALS, MS, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s, are skyrocketing. This list does not include all the people who are not feeling well or have not been diagnosed.

The game has changed, and we have to adjust. Two additional

will change how we diagnose and treat illness must be acknowledged.

First, our world is thoroughly contaminated with chemicals that impact animals and people. For example, polar bears have PCBs, heavy metals, pesticides, and other contaminants stored in their body fat. Sadly, all people have a toxic body burden. A study by the Environmental Working Group submitted to Congress in March 2010 states that American newborn babies are born with up to 232 toxic chemicals already in their system, including endocrine disruptors, carcinogens, neurotoxic agents, etc. Second, we are now surrounded by a sea of electromagnetic frequencies never before experienced in the history of human civilization. With our constantly emerging wireless technologies, scientists estimate that your daily exposure to Electromagnetic Field Radiation is over 100 million times higher than

in your Grandparents’ time.

Scientists are now linking this unprecedented rise in degenerative disease to exposure to harmful chemicals in our food, water, air, and products.

Why is this happening?

Since World War II, the volume and number of manufactured chemicals have multiplied exponentially. We currently have American industry that have never been tested for safety. The with radio waves, has exploded phones, devices, Wi-Fi, and now 5G permeate the globe. The American public has been bombarded by the allure and glamour of the

marketplace at every turn. Products containing these chemicals and smart technologies make life easier and have revolutionized our lives. But, allowing the production and release of these toxic substances understanding their full biological ominous situation.

The inconvenient truth is that we are facing the unintended consequences of the wonders and convenience of our modern life.

birthright and potential, distort who we are, steal from our lives, and hijack our ability to heal.

Our challenge – how do we solve this problem in a focused, systematic way?

Years ago, two potentially lifethreatening events that had no good medical answer awakened me to revolutionary discoveries in that my thirty years of experience with the chronically ill. These revelations were so simple, based on common sense, and literally right under my nose. Eating food with harmful chemicals and living in a home with harmful products undermines your health.

In my twenties, I had exploratory surgery that revealed endometriosis so extensive that I would never have children, needed to go on dialysis, and would need a kidney transplant. I couldn’t accept that and was determined the transplant and recovered from many lifelong chronic health issues, including asthma, hormone disruption, extreme allergies, chronic ear infections, fevers of

unknown origin, and skin problems just by eating a nutrient-rich, realfood diet. I had been a sugarholic, junk food junkie, and removing harmful chemicals from my diet transformed my life. Years later, my son was catastrophically chemically injured at age ten and had what the doctor said was irreparable brain and immune system damage. I was to give him twenty-three shots daily and medications to control him. He had been a calm, obedient, coordinated boy. He was brilliant, but now he couldn’t even spell a three-letter word or do simple math. He was deemed a “bubble boy” as he could no longer break down and detoxify the common chemicals we are all exposed to in our everyday life. I was determined to recover him even though the

brain’s neuroplasticity then. The doctor had never seen anyone recover from such an extensive chemical injury.

I had changed my career, became a medicinal cook, and already used food as medicine, but this was not enough for my son. It turned out that the answer was literally right under our noses, not what he was eating, but what he was breathing. The doctor told us we needed to create a safe room for him with nothing in it but an organic bed. We decided we wanted him to be able to be in the entire house. As I struggled to create a safe haven for him, I did not realize that creating a healthy home wasn’t a ISN’T! I can say from experience

this nebulous ambiguity doesn’t cut it! The doctor said to wash our everything from our home that could be an immune stressor, and only use non-toxic products, yet he kept reacting.

In the meantime, we found he got relief in the clean country air. We were sleeping outside on cots (he reacted to tents) because my son felt agitated in the house and had why – what had we not done or left out? We had virtually stripped our home and had almost no products. One night, around midnight, as I looked up at the stars, I had a nagging thought – “Get up and get that box in the closet out of the house.” I was tired and tried to

talk myself out of it. Finally, after mentally arguing against getting up, I removed the box containing some of my favorite perfumes and skin care products I had put away in a closet. I thought I would bring them out again when my son recovered.

I didn’t tell my husband or son about the removal of the box because they would have thought I was crazy. The next day when my son came into the house while I

what did you do?” My ears perked up, and I said, “What do you mean?”

I do not feel agitated like I want to leave!” I acted dumb and said, “Oh really, well, just stay until you feel like you want to go outside.” I immediately started thinking, this is insane, this is just coincidental, BUT he continued to stay and even slept in the house!

The next day, I was perplexed and questioning myself. I didn’t dare say what seemed to have happened. It didn’t make sense that the box in the closet could impact him. But then, a few days later, I had a major aha moment when I walked past the grocery store aisle containing the cleaning products. I almost skidded to a halt and went – “That’s it! Those cleaning products are not only closed, but they are also sealed, yet I can smell the VOCs escaping from the bottles. I realized that was what was happening with the products in my box – their VOCs were escaping, and Douglas was reacting to exposures to

chemicals at minute levels that spread throughout the house from that box!” Once that box was removed, we had no products with harmful chemicals in the house that caused him to react and hijack

created a baseline – a home that he didn’t react to, could sleep in, and start to recover. I had learned how important it was to remove every harmful product from our home but didn’t realize that even more, critical learning was about to come.

After we cleared the house and he could sleep, Douglas gave warnings every time he was exposed to even tiny amounts of chemicals. We had created an environment where he was stabilized. Still, his

emotional, and physical well-being were vulnerable to deterioration whenever we inadvertently brought something into the house that had harmful chemicals. It was clear-cut

this baseline, it was all a blur - we did not understand that exposures

to products or chemicals caused his continual reactions. We learned that we had to take a shower, wash our hair, and change clothes if we went anywhere, like Walmart, because he would react to the chemicals picked up on our clothes and hair at the store. We also had to air out (outgas) the bags and any products we bought to remove chemicals picked up from the air in the store. It also became clear that he was reacting even to products with a non-toxic label. I realized I had my own little canary in the mine* that alerted me to what was not safe. The problem was he was reacting to everything I brought into the house.

to help him fully recover. Since the body naturally heals on its own, I reasoned he needed to recover from a chemical injury. Maybe it was like being cut. If you take a knife every day and reopen the cut, it doesn’t heal, but if you stop irritating it, the injury will naturally close up and heal. So likewise, we had to give his body a break when we were not irritating the

thought, “That is why it was not only essential to have a safe haven – where the body is not bombarded by chemical exposures and can rest and repair - but to really repair and recover, we had to keep him in a state of no exposure as much as possible.

I was

convinced that maybe he would heal if he didn’t keep having exposure to chemicals he couldn’t

to try! We had to be vigilant. We could not say – “Oh, I am too tired to shower, wash my hair, change clothes, etc. We had to go the extra mile, try our best to prevent exposures, and be as consistent as possible. (This was going against the doctor’s prognosis that it was impossible for him to recover.)

I had to do a deep dive and become a materials, EMF, and environmental specialist to learn about immune stressors and ingredients in products and the home. Bringing in some products caused him to go berserk and hyperactive, cry uncontrollably, become angry, or be depressed. Other products would make him sleepy, unable to focus, have blinding headaches, or be super sensitive to light and sound. I learned preservatives in many nontoxic products were neurotoxins that impacted the brain. Any product with fragrance, even essential oils, would cause extreme

and emotions. Later studies by Dr. Anne Steinemann on “green,

experience with Douglas and clients over the years that it is vital to go completely fragrance-free to create a healing environment. Further research into surfactants, chelators, etc., revealed a list of chemicals to avoid. He continued to be on a mental, physical, and emotional roller coaster until this was all

experiment. I observed a severely disabled child drop physical, emotional, and mental symptoms and improve without exposure. If he had an unintended encounter, it might cause any number of symptoms – irritability, spontaneous crying, rage, depression, splitting headaches, wheezing, insomnia, extreme ADHD, hyperactivity, hypoactivity, lack of concentration, and distractibility. Then, when the source was removed, he would gradually return to normal. Slowly but surely, my loving, calm, intelligent, coordinated child began to emerge as we learned more and more about what was safe and what was not. He not only recovered but super recovered, which was nothing short of incredible. He went on

to graduate from the U.S. Naval get into both from an academic and physical standpoint. He then went over 200 intelligence missions over Afghanistan, Turkey, Iraq, and the Far East. He now has a wife and three children.

During his recovery, I started to have the deep conviction the harmful chemicals we put in, on, and around our bodies that had to be removed for my son to heal completely undermine everyone’s health. My husband and I realized that we were continually gaining more and more energy, stamina, and well-being as we learned more and more. I began to think about all the children with health issues on medications to control their behavior and focus their minds. I

potential-hazards-hidden-greenproducts)

I felt like I was in the middle

began to realize that all Americans are unintentionally eating food with harmful chemicals and living in homes with a low-level chemical soup that they must use energy to detoxify continually. This would later be proven and borne out with my thirty years of work with clients, studies.

Word of my son’s recovery spread, and I began working with people with chemical injuries, children with health issues, and other chronic illnesses. Most people had seen numerous doctors and felt they had done everything possible but didn’t have the desired results. Without fail, upon questioning, I discovered that even if they said they were eating healthy and using safe products, they didn’t know how to evaluate the safety of a product. And even though they were buying what they thought were organic and non-toxic products right and left, they still had maybe even hundreds of toxic products throughout the house under sinks, in drawers, closets, and cabinets, creating that low-level chemical soup.

Therefore, I developed a categoryby-category approach to remove foods and products with harmful chemicals that were stress-free, easy to accomplish, didn’t take much time, and only had to be executed once. People started improving, sometimes immediately, and removal and safe replacement proved essential to their healing. I found that completely removing products with harmful ingredients from your home is just as important as eliminating harmful chemicals from the diet. Combine the two, and the results can be even more spectacular! We now

call that process Toss the Toxins. I soon saw that the elephant in hinders recovery for everyone - the nagging chemical load from food eaten and emitting from products that create a chemical soup throughout the house. Creating a safe haven enables a person to go out into the world where we all get exposed but have a place to return each day where the body can recharge, rejuvenate and heal.

a healthy college student, and about a week after starting her sophomore year at the University of Texas, all of a sudden, she was

riddled with mysterious symptoms – neck pain, excruciating back pain, burning in her face and numbness that ran down her calves and arms. She started losing motor control and, for two years, sought help

nationwide. She was told she might have everything from lupus to Multiple Sclerosis. No doctor or therapy helped her. She had to numb the pain with increasing medications, but it worsened. Allison and her best friend Kelly ended up coming to stay with me, and in just two months after getting back to basics – eating only real food, using safe products, and staying in a home that contained

no harmful chemicals her life was transformed. She was out of pain and ready to go. And THIS IS IMPORTANT because Kelly, who considered herself healthy but symptoms she just accepted as normal, like menstrual cramps, dry, itchy eyes, headaches, muscle aches and pains, tight neck, and shoulders, all disappeared! She was shocked they all vanished when she was in a toxin-free environment. Because of the radical change in Allison’s condition and the unexpected changes that Kelly experienced, they decided to shift the course of their lives, join me and dedicate themselves to helping people transform their lives. That is how our mission-driven company Branch Basics was born.

The transformation that happened to many of my clients and us through the years demonstrates how important it is to toss the toxins. This concept is now being substantiated by cutting-edge

the exponential rise in degenerative disease to exposure to harmful chemicals in our food, home water, and products we put on and around our bodies. Unfortunately, applied in the medical community.

We can’t wait for this information accepted by our healthcare system. America is facing an emergency healthcare crisis now!

The longer it takes the medical establishment to grasp this vital point, the direr our situation will become. It will take more and modalities to recover health. Relapses will become inevitable as the ever-present toxic background is not fully understood and addressed. The non-clinical laboratory of human experience with myself, my son, and clients has provided solid repeatable results that reveal a mechanism of disease that is insidious, which has largely not been recognized but is now supported by the science of epigenetics. This is the human body’s widely variable, environmentally induced deviant responses to the current unprecedented exposure to chemicals and how the complete removal of these exposures can result in the improvement, reversal, and sometimes full resolution of

research, in study after study, is validating these contentions and documenting the principle of the power of epigenetics - that

exposures to even tiny amounts of even one chemical can impact behavior, mood, and physical well-being, alter gene expression, and even the ability to turn cancer

be eye-opening and encourage questioning. But how long will it take the medical world to make a full application?

Do we have to wait for pharmaceutical-driven research and results from costly doubleblind experiments that drive the direction of medicine? No, we should apply the Precautionary Principle! We already have vital information gleaned from the recovery of children with disabilities, the chronically ill, and the chemically injured - and we can act now on this information!

Branch Basics is releasing our Toss the Toxins to Create a Healthy Home and Diet course. It is the same process I have used with my clients for many years. However, it is presented in a focused, systematic way that untangles the confusion and greenwashing in the industry. We empower and teach people how to be their own product experts and take them step by step. As a result, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

This simple one-time process will change the course of your life.

This is a message of opportunity! Creating a healthy home and diet is foundational to health and essential in this time of unprecedented chemical exposure. This removal immediately dramatically improves a home’s air quality. It is recommended for anyone with health issues or who wants to optimize and protect their health. It eliminates products in the home that hijack the body’s healing potential. The process is liberating, system, and reduces the body burden of all family members.

We do not know how much these harmful chemicals impact us until they are removed!!! So we want to inspire a healthy home and diet revolution to turn around the

* The canaries released into the coal mines served as a warning to protect the coal miners. The canaries would die when exposed to poisonous gases – this warned the miners to stop and turn around because the area was unsafe. We need to listen to our canaries.

When given vital information, we stand at a crossroads – we can turn and head back down that road that holds future health consequences for many generations, or we can choose a “new” path that recognizes and acts on this information now. We believe that the poem by Robert Frost, “The Road Less Taken,” illustrates how tossing toxins has transformed our lives.

I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

Note: When the public, the food industry, the product industry, and the medical profession understand the impact that these chemicals and EMFs have on our health, then that will be the beginning of a new era in medicine. Until then,

that many are experiencing will only grow worse as we continually unintentionally increase our body’s toxic load.

Case study

Noelle Haddad came to us with various health issues, including

American healthcare crisis family by family!

constant stomach aches, frequent sinus infections, painful periods, mood issues, sleeping issues, fatigue, brain fog, allergies, and digestive issues.

was to help Noelle toss the toxins

tossthetoxins). She had never heard of toxic body burdens and the importance of removing chemicals from home.

First, she ran tests to see where her body was at.

Her biomarkers indicated fatigue, anxiety. Although her microbiome issues.

The biggest change we made was removing products from Noelle’s home. We went through her home

using the method in our course, Toss the Toxins, which included toxic cleaning products, pesticides, laundry products, cleaning products, fragrances (candles, perfumes, scented trash bags), personal care products, pantry, and fridge products, things with BPA, sunscreen. We also focused on food packaging (removing her plastic water bottles and plastic food storage), and Noelle started

We removed 2 huge boxes from Noelle’s home. (Please refer to what pantry-and-refrigerator.)

She got tested again 3 months later.

Her endocrine disrupters were lessened, and she no longer had

cramps. In addition, her digestion was greatly improved; she had no more bloating, she and her husband were sleeping much better, they felt their air was cleaner, and their allergies were vastly improved. It changed their health dramatically.

Her glyphosate levels were 6x lower (Roundup)

Her DPP, an endocrine disruptor,

Her chemical levels went down.

Her perchlorate (disrupting her thyroid) was no longer detectable.

Slowly over time, Noelle introduced safer products into her home to replace the others. However, this whole process was more about removal than anything!

Get the TOXINS out of your home. It will transform your life. Take action now.

The following is one of our success stories.

“My name is Emily. I stumbled across Branch Basics 2 years ago after going

me with eczema and an ear infection. It was on the inside of my ears. I had ear infection after ear infection. It wasn’t until I looked at the Branch Basics Kit, the blog at Branch Basics, and I tossed out all the toxins, got rid of everything, learned to check the ingredients, and changed my diet, that I started feeling better. It’s been two years, and I have not had an infection. Tossing the toxins was the best thing I ever did.” ~ Emily

See the ad for the Toss the Toxins Course

Become A Toxin Detective and Save Your Family

By Cheryl Meyer

How to be an “Army of one”.

We live in a toxic world, and our government is not protecting us from all these toxic substances.

Our conventional food is being sprayed with poison in the form of pesticides and herbicides.

Our water has all these toxins that seeped down to our water table and into our water supply, along down the toilet and other industrial chemicals that have made their way into our system.

used in our everyday products. Companies are allowed to selfregulate, so looking up those ingredients was certainly an eyeopener. Fragrances are poisons that go through our lungs and our skin. Most cleaning products do us harm whether we are touching them with our skin or whether they

I have decided that health is balance and that the things that throw us out of balance create disease. For example, toxic chemicals throw our bodies out of balance and cause “leaky gut,” which causes disease. The liver is the workhorse of our body and evicts all the toxins as best it can until it cannot keep up.

It would be best to take ownership of what you allow into your body and home to achieve long-term health.

Be a toxin detective and search where toxins are in your life. Then, eliminate them and your toxic load and save your health.

“A Detective, or Investigator, is responsible for seeking out information and researching the circumstances of a situation to solve crimes or uncover details about a civil matter. Their duties include examining evidence.”

I want to shed light on the available tools to discover where the toxic substances are in your world. Your health depends upon them. They were where I started when and lowering my toxic load was an important step back to wellness. I found hundreds of toxins in my world. I discovered that they had an unacceptable amount of toxic ingredients. And all combined, the toxsynergy [sic] made me sick.

I am proud to introduce Marilee Nelson, and Branch Basics’ new course, Toss the Toxins. I have audited the class, and it is brilliant. Branch Basics Concentrate was one of the low-toxin products I discovered when I started replacing

some of the poisonous products I used before getting autoimmune disease. Please take advantage of their systematic approach (and amazing products); you will likely “feel” immediate relief by getting all those poisons out of your home. This is a huge step towards recovery with the logical system been available when I got sick 10 years ago.

If you have any of the symptoms on my list from my article “Signs You Are Not As Healthy As You Think”, you need to do two things:

1. Use the Toss the Toxins Course information to remove toxins from your environment.

2. Please change what you eat and follow my advice in my Eat the Rainbow article.

Most Americans are walking around feeling lousy and do not slow down enough to notice. The symptoms get louder and louder until the twoby-four comes down in the form of one of the Chronic Diseases. Best to react now.

Finally, pursue medical support from a practitioner who will “hear” you and respond to what you share with them. These medical champions have solutions for you to return to wellness.

Start to adopt the other 20 lifestyle habits that will change your health. (see my article)

If you want to learn from my detective process, which is really It Feels Good to Feel Good, Learn to Eliminate Toxins, Again, details, the book is available

on Amazon and Walmart.com. I am convinced that eliminating toxins and lowering my toxic load saved my life.

I encourage everyone to be proactive about their health.

The question remains, where can you research beyond these two resources? There are some nuances to some of the tools I have come to depend on, so I thought I

get you started in your new venture of being a TOXIN DETECTIVE for you and your family.

suggest you read my article Ditch

the SAD and Stop Eating CRAP article about what Big Food has done to corrupt our food supply.

TIP

Read every label. If there are words on it that you cannot pronounce and do not know what they are, put it back on the grocer’s shelf – Do Not Buy It.

If there is an ingredient on the box, be it at the grocer, in the freezer, at a fast-food restaurant, or in a restaurant where they are not serving farm-to-table, and if I do not know what it is, I put it back, and I do not eat it.

in processed foods. Some you will recognize, and some you will not. Sugar is toxic no matter what, so whether you know if it is sugar or not, put it back. If you do not know an ingredient, do not eat it. You do not need that poison in your body. Sugar negatively impacts every cell in your body and your brain. So please put it back and do not eat it. Period!

If you cook and use quality wholefood ingredients, a little sugar is not the problem. Instead, you want to avoid the enormous amount of sugar hidden in all the Big Food products.

Next, do you know that all the vegetable oils in processed foods

have poison grown right up in the plant, and then more poison is used to get them out of the plants?

oil, and peanut oil are all GMO

they either have BT Toxin grown right up in the plant or have been heavily sprayed with Glyphosate, which is Round-up, and which we now know causes cancer. That is a reason to avoid processed food. I will not even dignify it by calling it food because it is all fake, and nothing is real about this imitation food.

Suppose you follow my advice to not buy it when you are unfamiliar with the ingredient. In that case, you also avoid all the synthetic vitamins in the food that your body cannot utilize and all the synthetic

look, smell, sound, feel, and taste like the real thing. It is a dupe, and there is nothing real about it. These ingredients give your body no operating code to function on, and you not only do not need them but can also harm your body. You need the real thing from real organic, whole foods.

Avoid MSG that is in processed food. It is now marketed in

I could list them all here, but if you follow my rule, you do not have to remember or check this lengthy list. You do not know what it is, so you will not eat it and put it back on the shelf. It is a neurotoxin,

so it damages our brains. It has been connected to autism. It is an Umami that Big Food adds to their food to addict you and to hook you in—another layer of addictive become a smart shopper and do not eat processed food with these unknown ingredients. Easy peasy. One of the terms that MSG hides under is “Natural Flavors.” I do not know what that means, do you? I have discovered that it is often MSG, but not always. So, call the

and do not want to discard the product. Do not give up. Sometimes they do not want to disclose that it IS MSG so that they can be rather cagy about it.

But let me give you an example, and since this had a happy ending, I am even going to share the brand. I teach a Ditch the SAD (Standard American Diet) class, and on my snack list, I have recommended a Keto bar called Good Fats. It has Erythritol in some, which I cannot eat because it is like a baby laxative in my body, so I only eat the ones that do not have that sweetener. There has been controversy about Erythritol recently. Although the headlines said do not eat it, as it causes heart disease, I now read that the study is misconstrued, so the jury is out on the sweetener. However, looking closer at the ingredients for the bars I cannot eat, I discovered the old “natural

So, I wrote Good Fats. I got a sweet reply that they were looking into it, but nada. I wrote again. I wrote a third time and got a sweet reply that customer service had not heard back yet, and they replied that they had not forgotten me. Several requests later (I will admit I got my answer and was pleasantly surprised. They had written to all their suppliers to make sure no MSG was used anywhere by any of them. It got a thumbs up. I appreciate that they took my request seriously and passed it on to all my clients.

As an FYI, I eat very little that is processed. What processed foods I eat have real ingredients spelled out on the box and nothing suspicious, like products from Simple Mills.

Now onto the next area where foods. Conventional crops are heavily sprayed with pesticides and herbicides. “cides” means poison. I do not want them in my

more pain from my autoimmune disease, but I still have the disease.

I have it under control). So why would anybody want to eat poison purposely? They change yearly and list the 12 dirtiest foods you really MUST buy organic and then the cleanest 15 of the batch that are ok. So, if you do not want to always spend the extra money on organic, these items are safer.

I start advising new clients to avoid the Dirty 12. I give them cards with lists and GMO items, which I will get into immediately.

the clean list last year, it is not on the dirty side of the card, but it is no longer considered “clean”. I have found another great research database called “What’s On My Food” by the USDA, where I look up produce. And, yikes, broccoli has 33

• 3-Known or probable Carcinogens

• 16-Suspected hormone disruptors

• 6-Neuro toxins

• 6-Developmental or Reproductive Toxins

• pollinators, no crops)

I certainly do not want those toxins in my body, so now, whenever possible, I buy organic broccoli. Look when you are on this site at what poisons are on each of our veggies and our fruits.

This is the link to the What’s On My Food website, where you can look up the pesticide and herbicide residues on the plants:

-things that would never have happened in nature but have been changed due to science.) These items have toxins grown right into the center of the plant, or they have been engineered to be “roundup” ready, which means they get drenched in this carcinogenic substance. I avoid all of these. Instead, I look for the Non-GMO

For real foods, be aware of which ones are problematic and avoid these unless you buy organic.

Those foods would be:

• GMO Summer squash (all)

• GMO Rice

There is a drop-down menu to the right. I have discovered that some items are not on their drop-down menu but are in their database. I search google with “what’s on my [food vegetable or fruit]” and see what pops up. This is a great guide to encourage you to buy everything organic if possible. It is eye-opening to learn just how many toxins are on each food.

So far, we have discussed pesticides and herbicides and the Dirty

not discussed the full list of GMOs

• GMO vegetable oils

• GMO corn

• GMO alfalfa

• GMO cotton (Remember toxins go through the skin)

• GMO Yeast

• GMO peas

• GMO sugar beets

• GMO tomatoes (Conventional tomatoes are also heavily sprayed, so ONLY buy tomatoes organic)

• GMO salmon (They are much bigger and nastier, and if they escape, they could dramatically

•

• GMO potatoes

• GMO apples (the blossom is sprayed, then grown with BT toxin right in the plant, a double whammy.

• GMO papaya (Only Hawaiian after a crop was almost devastated by bugs)

And the most insidious

GMO Wheat - all conventional wheat products are drenched in Glyphosate, and none is washed

cookies - and it is drenched because, in addition to killing bugs, it puts the plant under stress, so the growers get a much bigger yield from the fronds. DO NOT eat conventional wheat products. Only organic. Organic is starting to be more available.

Congress did not pass a law that would have labeled GMOs on processed foods. Instead, they protected industry in what is known as the Dark Act, keeping this information hidden, so be aware and avoid them all. This is all done for gaslighting. They do not want you to know while the Big Chemical and Big Food companies make a fortune.

There are also a couple of apps to scan products on your phone that will highlight toxins and help you decide whether or not to buy a

Living app by EWG. You can scan a QR code and get the important

information. There is also a new app that another health coach shared with me called YUKA. Made Safe is a company that does a rigorous process to ensure safety.

When you go to the EWG.org site to manually look up a product, have your product at hand. Start at the bottom of the ingredient list (the smallest amount in the product) and work your way up. Any toxin is too much toxicity. When you come across an undesirable ingredient, stop and know that this is a product you will want to replace with a better product. And get it into a bin and out of your home.

So, let us talk about how to use

15 lists.

EWG.org will become your friend. Utilize it. They have put together an amazing database. It has gotten more user-friendly over the last few years. However, there are many problematic ingredients. EWG has an enormous database, and you can look up whole products for a toxicity rating or look up ingredients if the whole product is not listed there. It can be tedious to look up the individual ingredients, but it is worth it.

They have a major database for foods, cosmetics, chemicals in systems, etc. It would be best to look up all your cosmetics (Skin Deep), liquid and aerosol cleaning products (Healthy Living), personal care products, etc., in their database, and there is a Food Data Base. Remember, Big Chemical, Big Pharma, and Big Food do not want you to know what is in their products, so there are some

of the data in the EWG data Base. Please do not believe them. EWG does meticulous research. Protect your body and your family, and opt out of any ingredient or product that EWG calls out for toxicity. And always be diligent in looking things up before you buy.

A few things to know:

• Food companies can use all these toxic and fake ingredients that Food Engineers have formulated for them.

• Cosmetic companies selfregulate. Look up ingredients on your products. What they consider acceptable is often not what I want on or in my body.

was my foundation from a very expensive French company.

Yikes, it opened my eyes to the importance of being a diligent investigator.

• Fragrances are all poison. Whether you are spraying it on your body, in your room, or using products with pretty smells, they are poisoning you. Whether it is laundry detergent, fabric softener, shampoo, cosmetics, cleaning supplies, etc., you do not want it. Even the one that takes scents out of the room is toxic.

And since I cleaned up my food and as many toxins as possible in my home, I rarely have body odor, so I do not need fragrances. Body odor is a sign of toxic load.

Chemicals in cleaning products are often not disclosed under the banner of a proprietary blend. Many refused to share their ingredients with EWG. If they do not disclose, do not use them. You have a right to know what you use in your home and your body.

What do you use instead? Branch

Basics has a recommended list of products on their website that they do not manufacture but personally use and have researched to be clean, so check out their list before choosing a replacement item. I also listed products I used as replacements when I went through was discontinued, and I chose a replacement item recommended by the team at Branch Basics. I love it.

The Big Corporations have so much money that they pay universities and scientists to do studies and dictate their required results upfront. Since Universities rely heavily on large amounts of their funding to come from Big Corporations, they oblige.

Toxin detectives

These are a couple of examples given by Calley Means, Stanford grad, Harvard MBA, and Coke Corp Executive turned whistleblower:

Foundation (SRF) paid Harvard researchers the equivalent of $50k to refute sugar’s role in heart disease, and researchers happily produced the results they were hired to produce. Instead of blaming sugar, Harvard and the SRF

blamed cholesterol and saturated fat. Today, after 60 years of fat-isbad food policy, Americans have never been in worse health, with no shortage of studies vindicating fat — including saturated fat.”

“Soda companies spend 11 times more on nutrition than the NIH. Eighty-two percent of independently funded studies show harm from sugar-sweetened industry-sponsored studies said no harm (this info is from the excellent book Food Fix).

most recent nutrition guidelines pharmaceutical companies.”

And this quote from the National Institute of Health“Industry funding of nutritionbias conclusions in favor of sponsors’ products, with potentially This is true of commercial products as well.

at MIT, has been studying to understand the root cause of autism. She made an observation I want to share with you because I believe it puts toxins into

perspective. Individual ingredients are studied for toxicity, but that is not the full story. It may be that many poisons in small qualities combine in a toxic cocktail that is far more damaging to our body and interrupts our health. Each toxin, each pesticide, and each herbicide has been studied individually. Still, in our world, no one has studied what happens when they combine with others in our environment or our bodies. A toxsynergy happens when they get together to create havoc in our bodies. Try to avoid as many toxins as possible, even in small amounts.

I love Marilee’s approach in the Toss the Toxins course. Get them out of your house. Do not let the

toxins impact your health.

Final Thoughts:

I would tell you that you only need to look all your products up once, but formulations change, so you might want to review them every so often to ensure that what you are using is still safe. Being diligent about toxins is important to your long-term health, whether in your food, cleaning supplies, personal care products, cosmetics, or the air you breathe. Our government is NOT protecting us, so please be vigilant, research, and care for your body and your family. Your body is the only place you have to live; you want it to be as healthy as possible

for the rest of your life.

We each can make better decisions for our lives and our families. So I am asking you to be an agent of change and to become An Army of One.

1. Spread the word.

2. Join the movement.

3. If you are a parent, join Moms Across America.

Vote with every product you purchase.

5. Call your congressperson and senator often and demand cleaner air and water, that we ban toxins in our food and label GMOs, and control Big Pharm from price gouging. Do not call once. Call often. Be active. We do not have to take it anymore. Make yourself heard.

6. Support EWG, The Organic Consumers organization, organizations working on our for our health.

Knowledge is power. We need to support these organizations

to keep us informed.

Purge the toxic substances from your life, one by one, until they are gone. The Branch Basics Teams’ “Toss the Toxins” approach will save your home and your air. Follow the doctors and other “It Feels Good to Feel Good,” for constant updates that will impact your health. Then, go to their website and join to receive their newsletters.

10. Please share your knowledge, but realize each of us gets to decide for ourselves what to do. You can only change what you do and be the change you want to see. You can be an example.

11. Educate your children to make better choices. Their lives depend on it. They are little pitchers and will mimic what they see you do.

From Spine Surgery Victim to Award-Winning Filmmaker

By Krisanna Sexton

This is how I would sum up our journey over the past several years.

My partner Dana went from laying in our living room recovering from spine surgery to being the main character of a documentary focused on healing.

I could have never imagined this amount of pain could lead to the life we have today, a life in which we are experiencing healing and helping spread hope to those still

spine surgery. She was completely traumatized after two incredibly invasive surgeries only six weeks apart, thanks to a mistake in the

Because she had been alone in the ICU as no visitors were allowed during the pandemic, she had night terrors and couldn’t be alone. So after she came home, I would lay beside her with my hand on hers and make sure she knew I was always there.

In those moments, when the days felt like years, and the darkness seemed to last forever, I prayed for hope. I prayed for an answer to the question, why - Why her? Why did this beautiful person I loved and

thought we were good people - why did such awful things happen to good people?

The questions went on and on, seemingly unanswered. My brain was searching for any bit of meaning. I recall telling someone I knew that no matter what the future holds, it would never make sense WHY we had to go through this. I was angry and frustrated and felt we were victims of these awful circumstances.

After some time, Dana began to improve slowly. Although I was a up a camera in months as I spent most of my time caring for Dana. At some point, however, I felt compelled to document parts of our journey.

I believed she would eventually be in a better place, and I felt the show progress. Eventually, Dana could walk longer distances and even go up our stairs. However, her

what it was like after my partner Dana came home from her second

Sometimes our greatest suffering leads to our greatest awakening.

pain was still worse than before surgery, and we had many regrets about agreeing to the surgeries in

As we neared the 1st anniversary call from a producer interested in hiring me to create a documentary on healing. She worked directly for Ilchi Lee and said he wanted to struggled through the pandemic.

Ilchi Lee is a world-renowned author, spiritual teacher, and humanitarian from Korea. He established a retreat center in Sedona, AZ, called Sedona Mago Center for Well-being and Retreat, and we knew of him because we had attended a life-changing retreat there years earlier.

I had done some video projects for the retreat center, and after seeing my work, Ilchi Lee decided I would

At this point, Dana was on disability and unable to work, so she came with me to meet and discuss the

healing when we were still trying to

The day before we met with Ilchi Lee, I was in meditation and felt strongly that Dana should be the mentioning it, but as Ilchi Lee got to know us, he said the same thing.

forward, and we began production immediately.

We were given full creative

to be much more than just our stories. We wanted to show how others had healed themselves and also see what was possible for those experiencing these healing

didn’t know how it would unfold, but we trusted the Universe to be our guide and set our intentions on creating something to help spread hope and healing to the world.

As we worked on a title for the

wanted the world to know that “you are your own best healer and the power of self-love.” Out of these Love Heals, and it couldn’t be more

The most powerful part of the production was bringing together

who had never tried immersion in ancient practices such as yoga, tai chi, qigong, and meditation. These individuals were all struggling in some area of life and seeking healing. Witnessing and documenting the transformations in a 5-day retreat was remarkable, and I was forever changed.

was still very much on her healing journey as she still experienced quite a bit of nerve pain in her body. It was very important to me that Dana has an authentic experience and does not feel the pressure to “heal” or be out of pain closure.

So we intentionally determined a production so that we would let the authentic journey be our guide regardless of the outcome. I’m so grateful for that intention because it allowed Dana to be herself fully and provided an awakening about what it means to heal.

we receive notes from people worldwide sharing how much the needed for their journeys. They share that Dana’s vulnerability helped them heal parts of themselves and put less pressure on themselves to get to a certain place.

And isn’t that what love is all about?

We released Love Heals in January

2022, and the response has been incredible.

11 languages, shown in person and virtually to audiences worldwide,

most recently was accepted for release on public television by PBS sometime this year.

In those dark days at the beginning of 2020, I could have never predicted how much our darkest days would lead to the greatest life I’ve ever known. Dana and I have found our life’s calling and are more committed than ever to spreading hope and healing

We have begun production healing power of horses as it

relates to heart coherence, and we couldn’t be more excited (to follow our journey, check out RescuedHeartsFilm.com).

I now feel overwhelming gratitude for this journey and every challenging moment as it led us to where we are today. Dana relationship with challenging times, as we now see them as important moments paving the way for something remarkable.

The truth is that this season helped us tap into something inside of us that only knows limitless potential, too.

Bios

Krisanna Sexton is the awardwinning Director of LOVE HEALS

and video content since she was 16. She is the primary cinematographer for LOVE HEALS and did the editing, audio mastering, and color correction herself. She believes in the power of storytelling and pours her heart and soul into each story she has the privilege of sharing.

Dana Croschere is the awardwinning Producer of LOVE HEALS and is featured as the main inspirational and full of obstacles, including two unsuccessful spine surgeries in 2020. Yet, while she still experiences some chronic pain, Dana has been able to harness the power of these ancient mind-body practices to facilitate continued healing in her body which has rippled out into every area of her life.

Synopsis

LOVE HEALS is an award-winning documentary that will be nationally broadcasted on PBS starting in 2023. LOVE HEALS follows the journey of Dana, a chronic pain

Together, they travel the country to understand how ancient mind-body principles have helped so many heal and to see what is possible for those experiencing these practices

With a combination of experts, energy healers, master trainers, and everyday people struggling

the research of acclaimed scientists like Dr. Bruce Lipton with the

wisdom of globally renowned energy healers like Ilchi Lee. This Water Up Fire Down: An Energy Principle for Creating Calmness, Clarity and a Lifetime of Health” by NY Times best-selling author Ilchi Lee. Water Up, Fire Down refers to a balanced

a clear mind, open heart, and more power. Our mission is to

by introducing ancient energy principles that empower them to and acceptance for themselves, and take charge of their health and well-being. We also hope to inspire a movement to create peace, harmony, and healing in their lives, with those around them, and for our planet.

Endorsements

“If you’re looking for a light in the darkness of your healing, THIS FILM IS IT!” ~ Dani

Fagan - Mind-Body Coach + Yoga Instructor

“This is not just a documentary. It’s a healing documentary.” ~ Dr. Les Aria - Pain Psychologist

“The overall message - that we all have the power to heal ourselves through self-love is transformational.” ~

Dave Beal - Speaker & Author

my healing process and the healing of the world.” ~ Jenny

Cusack

“Words cannot fully express my reaction to this epic journey that was not only masterfully produced but holds the promise of changing countless lives.” ~ Michael

Sexton

“I’ve always been a huge advocate of self-love and holistic health, but

to practices that allowed me to connect to my body in a way I’ve never experienced.” ~ Leah Rachel

Boquilon

When I say the word “community,” what is your

Some may think back to their “hometown.” Others may say it is a group of people sharing something in common such as music, books, genealogy, or any hobbies or interests. You may tell me it is your professional organization. Any or all may qualify. Today I want to share how I see community and why I have dedicated my life to it.

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN LONELY?

“We have all known the long loneliness, and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community.” ~

Dorothy Day

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY: How Connections and Support Improve Your Health and Wellbeing

By Tamara L. Hunter

Have you ever been alone? I mean alone, so alone that it is painful. The painful that is associated with feeling as though you are the only person alive on this planet.

Ever heard of the TV show “The Twilight Zone”? There was an episode that left a lasting impression on me. I originally watched it in re-runs. The name of it is “Time Enough at Last.” It shares the story of an anti-social bookworm Henry Bemis, played himself alone after a major worldchanging event. The story goes about how he was so depressed until he found his “community” in the form of books. He seeks out his favorites. They are authors who speak to his heart. Their timeless words give him hope. Do these books qualify as a community to Henry? You tell me. After planning

out his book reading schedule, he has an accident and can no longer communicate within his community. You see, he wore reading glasses and could not see without them. When his glasses shattered, he found himself once again utterly alone. During the show, you witness his complete despair. You see it in his face, feel it from his soul, and know he is now alone and completely hopeless.

Loneliness can steal from us. If we allow ourselves to continue to be isolated, it can result in more than sadness. It can make us sick!

IN SERVING OTHERS, WE FIND OURSELVES AND POSSIBLY OUR PURPOSE.

“One of the marvelous things about community is that it enables us to welcome and help people in a way

we couldn’t as individuals. When we pool our strength and share the work and responsibility, we can welcome many people, even those in deep distress, and perhaps help healing.” ~ Jean Vanier

many people were excited to hear about cancer stories all the time, yet they were about how people are helping each other. I found people were looking for and craving HOPE!

HOW DO YOU CREATE A GLOBAL COMMUNITY?

“inspiring story of those inspiring others.” I was with “Service Hero #1,” Kris Miller. I have now recognized nearly a thousand “Service Heroes or Service Hero Concepts.” I believe that we all have a “Service Hero” inside.

I started sharing these stories with the world because of my that had started the year before,

I am the Co-Founder and President of an online global support community for those facing cancer and other life-changing health events, both the patient and those that love and support them. Not

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” ~ Coretta Scott King

Humor, hope, heart, hugs, and a whole lot of love are how we do it! Miracles happen when you allow the “law of attraction” to occur. My background was in recruiting. I am a second-generation headhunter, so I went to my roots and started recruiting “buddies.” When they

out who they were. What are their dreams? How do they want to serve? This was surprising to many. Why? Because most were coming to be served.

When I would visit with a new them. They knew we were just starting, yet loved the concept of what we were building. So many were in treatment when they showed up and were looking for something. By the time we were done visiting, they felt heard and valued and could serve another. They felt empowered to live! What a concept. Give them a reason to continue.

Let me give you an example. One of the new buddies got on the phone with me. She started to tell me this was the second time she was facing cancer. She had stage four vaginal cancer. It was painful, and her doctors were not giving her much more time. I asked her what she wanted, given the fact she was in so much pain. Without hesitation, she told me she wanted to live. I said great. I need your help. She engaged immediately to help others. Over the next two years, she was there with me, building

and compassionately serving our growing “buddies’ network.” Her doctors kept re-testing her and asking what she was doing to stay alive. Finally, she would say, “I am a Service Hero and the Senior Ambassador for Chemo Buddies for Life. I have to live.” Her name Senior Ambassador.

The day her mother called me to tell me Sharon had gained her wings, her mother continued to thank me. I was in tears with the news, yet I could hear her mother’s loving smile through her words. She told me that she witnessed Sharon’s time with our community as the happiest two years of her daughter’s life. She felt valued and loved and that her life had a purpose. She was on a mission to serve others every day, and she did throughout the world.

To answer the above question, you create a global community one “buddy” at a time.

EVERYDAY COUNTS!

“I am in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.” ~ Louise L. Hay

Are you a planner? You know what I mean, right? You plan out your month towards the end of the previous month. You plan out your week the Sunday night before. You plan out your day the night before. How do I know these patterns? Because that was me! Yes, I was a major type A+ personality. Total disclosure, I still plan, yet now I have a balanced approach to my planning.

I haven’t shared that I started the

had a near-death allergic reaction I was saved, and that experience changed the direction of my life.

Making each day count is my mantra. I have a deeply spiritual

belief system where I listen for guidance daily. Turning on a dime is a trait that I have gotten extremely good at. Why? Because I now know that there are answers to our questions if we ask for them. In asking, we must be willing to do the work, and when we need a course correction, make it.

Another case in point.

community, we have a large group of dedicated volunteers, buddies, ambassadors, and supporters. Simply put, they are incredible! One evening in what we call our “Chat,” we talked about meeting face-to-face. This was pre-COVID. During that time together, we came up with the full vision. The name “The Tour of Love.” We would come together in the middle of the United States in a retreat-type setting. There would be plenty of humor, hope, heart, hugs, and a whole lot of love.

were submitted, places we visited, and we were serious. Then a pandemic. Everything changed. Many in our community were facing cancer. There were few answers to what was happening, yet we sought the answers. We didn’t even miss a beat. We were up and going that evening and wave. The results were incredible. We did not lose one buddy. In fact, many came out of it even better than when they started.

The Tour of Love was not forgotten. It went onto the back burner. When we came to a place where we could breathe, we did. The Tour of Love became even bigger than it had

event, then became a show. Now we will be announcing soon that it is going even bigger again. It is about being in the right place, at the right time, and doing the right thing; together!

Be watching for more about the “Tour of Love.”

TODAY, TOMORROW, AND BEYOND!

“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~ Melody Beattie

Within any community, the attitude of gratitude must be a staple! We practice it throughout ours. We are grateful for all our buddies who join us, our volunteers, those who donate their time and funds, and so much more. But mostly, we are grateful for LIFE! We understand how precious it is, and we recognize it!

I am grateful that we have created a space where someone can come today and be honest with themselves and others. Let’s be real. If you are facing cancer, it can be tough. Many may even say it can be the scariest diagnosis someone may ever receive. I have witnessed buddies who have come into our community nearly paralyzed by fear and stress—the kind of fear that can change a life. But I have also seen how replacing fear and stress with hope can

heal. When these types of miracles happen repeatedly, it becomes an environment where those who experience them want to share them with others. By abolishing fear and stress, you allow for life.

Let me share a story of how allowing for healing changes the outcome of someone’s life story. After calling a local cancer in my local area. I was looking a make-up artist how to create eyebrows during chemotherapy. I was thrilled when I received the call that someone was open to said you might want to meet this woman soon because she is a stage IV breast cancer patient. My heart sank. Can we take care of this fast enough, and was this a good decision? We were still newer, and I thought, ok, let’s do this.

Denise McBride came to my home to meet me within a week of the call. She had never had this type of experience before and was excited to in the time she had left. Denise was open about her situation. Her doctors told her that she only had a

day. She felt beautiful after. She said she had never felt so beautiful in her lifetime. We became fast “buddies.”

Denise and I started spending a lot of time together. Her family loved it. They noticed she started having more energy and a will to show up daily. I would drive over and pick her up for adventures. We would take local trips or drive out of the area to meet with other buddies. She loved all the interaction with our buddies.

One day she told me the story of her life. Without going into personal details, I will say I was taken aback. After hearing her story, I decided I would help her

help her life feel complete. She had been searching for these answers

her whole adult life. That night I found them. I called her the next day, which put into motion a series of events that took place over many months. Denise’s life changed. She became the person she always wanted to be.

In the end, Denise gained her wings, yet she lived longer and better in the last of her life than she had to most of her life. The last time I saw her, she told me she fearless, and hopeful for what would come. Sometimes the best we can do for each other is to help to overcome fear and stress and

That is exactly what happened with Denise. Her family told me that she had gained her wings peacefully.

You may say she gained her wings. Yes, she did. She found the answers

she had been seeking her whole adult life. Once she did, she was ready. We all will someday gain our wings. That is a fact. Yet, if being a part of a community can help

disease, that is where the power of Denise’s case, her life was forever changed, and her healing took place deep within her heart and soul. She was not ready to move beyond this life until she received the answers she sought. Once she did, she felt surrounded by love and could go in peace.

I am grateful I have been there for those who were preparing to gain their wings. I have also been there with many buddies who have become survivors and now serve those going through diagnosis. It is a circle of love we have created, and I am grateful every day that we are witnessing the power of healing through connections.

What are you grateful for? Do you have a gratitude practice? If not, I suggest you start one. I do. Every day, I write down at least grateful for. Then I create a daily intention and check in with myself in the morning and evening. I do all of this to stay on track. I have a huge life purpose. That purpose is the reason I believe I was saved.

There is power of community. I understand the importance of “Healing Through Connections.” I know we are stronger together. And together, we are the ones who will change the world with our hearts. JOIN

Tamara L. Hunter is a cancer survivor on a mission to change the community, CB4L.org. The “First Global Next Impactor.” CEO of Impactor Press and creator of “My Big Dream Life Workbook and Journal Series.” Producer and Host of multiple TV Shows airing on the e360tv network, including her newest, “Let’s Talk Fab…ulous with Tamara.” Three-time best-selling author. Keynote speaker, Emcee, and Red-Carpet Interviewer. Please learn more about Tamara at www.tamara360.com or her websites at www.TamaraLHunter.com www.CB4L.org.