With the holidays coming up quick it can be hard to decide what to give to a friend that will actually help them and not some kind of toxic substance or contribute to ill health. We get asked all the time to point out some great stocking stuffers or whatever you want to put your holiday loot in.

From our health and Beauty department we have a new line of skin care products in all kinds of exciting scents. You can see all of Bausc's products following this link Bausc. We know that 40 plus products can be slightly overwhelming so we put together two Bausc bundles. A Bath and Body 'choose your own scent' which is great for the ladies and a Re 'Pear' Anti-Aging collection including a moisturizer, cleanser, toner and serum to help restore skin.

On the educational side we offer a great overview of integrative medicine, 'basic concepts of integrative, complementary & alternative medicine" By Dr. Gant or consider a 16 part series on Detoxification by Dr. McClure of NIHA. The series includes online videos and course material to help educate you on detoxification for better health.

Electromagnetic radiation is all around us and GIA offers a few different devices designed to neutralize stress in your body and the effects of electropollution exposure. GIA Cell Guard for cell phones, Bluetooth and PDAs. For broad coverage consider the GIAlife Pendant which employs proprietary ERT technology (GIA) to provide you with a bioenergetic resource to deal with debilitating stress.

Whatever gifts you find may you find joy in the holiday season!

In a recent article in Food Safety News they purchased more than 60 containers of honey and had them analyzed by one of the nation’s best melissopalynologists (the study of pollen contained in honey and, in particular, the pollen's source, Vaughn Bryant, a professor at Texas A&M University.

Among the findings were

• - 76 percent of samples bought at groceries had all the pollen removed, These were stores like TOP Food, Safeway, Giant Eagle, QFC, Kroger, Metro Market, Harris Teeter, A&P, Stop & Shop and King Soopers.
• - 100 percent of the honey sampled from drugstores like Walgreens, Rite-Aid and CVS Pharmacy had no pollen.
• - 77 percent of the honey sampled from big box stores like Costco, Sam's Club, Walmart, Target and H-E-B had the pollen filtered out.
• - 100 percent of the honey packaged in the small individual service portions from Smucker, McDonald's and KFC had the pollen removed.
• - Bryant found that every one of the samples Food Safety News bought at farmers markets, co-ops and "natural" stores like PCC and Trader Joe's had the full, anticipated, amount of pollen.
• - And if you have to buy at major grocery chains, the analysis found that your odds are somewhat better of getting honey that wasn't ultra-filtered if you buy brands labeled as organic. Out of seven samples tested, five (71 percent) were heavy with pollen. All of the organic honey was produced in Brazil, according to the labels.

The results show that the pollen frequently has been filtered out of products labeled "honey."

The removal of these microscopic particles from deep within a flower would make the nectar flunk the quality standards set by most of the world's food safety agencies.

In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration says that any product that's been ultra-filtered and no longer contains pollen isn't honey. However, the FDA isn't checking honey sold here to see if it contains pollen.  Read more about the study, and previous studies at (http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/11/tests-show-most-store-honey-isnt-honey/)

Diet strongly affects human health according to studies published in Science Magazine, partly by modulating gut flora microbe composition based on several studies conclusions. Abnormal bacterial communities have been identified in several human diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases, colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Three distinct microbiomes were identified, which had characteristic signature organisms:

• A Bacteroides-dominated community was associated with people who ate animal protein and saturated fats,
• Ruminococcus tended to be linked with alcohol intake and polyunsaturated fat consumption,
• Prevotella was found in people who enjoyed a carbohydrate based diet.

A controlled-feeding study of 10 subjects showed that microbiome composition changed detectably within 24 hours of initiating a high-fat/low-fiber or low-fat/high-fiber diet, but that enterotype identity remained stable during the 10-day study. Thus, alternative enterotype states are associated with long-term diet.  You Are What You Eat (SCIENCE VOL 334 7 OCTOBER 2011)  http://www.sciencemag.org/content/334/6052/105.abstract

Probiotic Pearls help your body achieve a balance of healthy bacteria to boost its natural defense capabilities and long term colon health.

1.    Stay away from tick infested are such as wooded areas, leaf piles, underbrush and the unmowed edges of yards, parks, playgrounds, golf courses, soccer fields etc. where field mice, and therefore ticks, are most likely to be hiding. Do not sit on woodpiles or logs. Walk in the middle of trails.
2.    Remove yard waste, wood piles, old leaves, underbrush and plants that attract deer or mice. Keep brush and bushes away from house and edge of grass. Keep grass mowed.
3.    Wear light colored clothing to see ticks more easily. Wear long sleeve shirts, long pants and socks and tuck pants into socks to avoid having ticks crawl up your pants.
4.    May use insect repellent that contains DEET. Ask your doctor before using anything with DEET on children.
5.    Inspect pets as they can carry ticks into the house. Talk to the veterinarian about monthly flea and tick repellent. Keep pets off the furniture and bed.
6.    CHECK YOURSELF and CHILDREN for ticks after being outside in possible tick infested areas. Deer ticks are tiny, about the size of a pinhead, and may be hard to see. The best thing to do is strip off clothing immediately upon entering the house and do a complete body check. Wash clothes or place in a sealed trash bag to launder later. Do not leave clothing on the floor.
7.    If a tick is found, remove it properly. Wipe the area with alcohol before removing. Use tweezers and grab the tick as close to the skin as possible, and pull straight out. Do not use a match or irritate the rest of the tick’s body. Save the tick in a container or plastic bag and call your doctor immediately. Ticks can be tested for Lyme disease and co-infections that they may carry.

Awareness of Lyme disease and prevention of tick bites is the first step in reducing the incidence of Lyme infection. More information on an integrative medicine approach to Lyme disease can be found at National Integrated Health Associates (NIHA) website, http://www.nihadc.com/health-programs/lyme-disease.html

Lyme disease is transmitted by a tick bite and can be a debilitating disease if untreated. Often tick bites go undetected, or symptoms are mistaken for flu or other common illnesses. Symptoms can range from fevers, chills, headaches, fatigue, and rash in the early stages to joint pain, muscle pain, heart problems, memory loss, eye problems, and neurological symptoms in the later stages. Lyme can be difficult to diagnose but early treatment is important. Therefore, a doctor should always be consulted if a tick is found on the body (remove and save the tick) or if one has any flu-like or rash symptoms, especially in the spring or early summer when most cases are transmitted. However, ticks can bite and transmit Lyme disease and insect-borne illness any time the weather is mild, and less than 50% of those infected ever see a tick bite or bulls-eye rash. Early treatment with antibiotics may be started before blood tests can confirm Lyme disease or symptoms develop.

An NPR program, Science Friday recently had John Cryan, from the University College, Cork talking about his recent paper on probotics.

A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science compared two groups of mice, one fed with Lactobacillus rhamnosus, a probotic, and the second group were fed a diet not spiked with the microbes.

The researchers then tested the mice for confidence and lack of anxiety and found the ones taking the probotics were happier than the ones without.  When Dr. Bravo cut the animal’s vagus nerves, used for transmitting signals between gut and brain the effects vanished between the two groups.  Another interesting fact mentioned was this effect varies between strains of probotics and one should not read too much into Lactobacillus rhamnosus as the ‘feel good miracle microbe’

Probiotic Bacteria Chill Out Anxious Mice: Changes in the gut alter brain chemistry and behavior in mice, according to a new study. (first broadcast Friday, September 2, 2011)

http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201109021

There was a time when giving your teacher an apple was a good thing. A new study by the Environmental Working Group identifies the 'dirty dozen' of pesticide exposure in vegetables and fruits. The report also provides information on the 'clean 15' of fruit and vegetables. Unfortunately our much loved apple is at the top of the pesticide dirty list.

For many years pesticides have been used to make fruit and vegetables look better or to make it possible to grow reliably. Consumers have long demanded perfection in fruits and vegetables that just does not exist in the organic world. Some fruits, like apples are very difficult to grow without the use of pesticides and fungicides. As a matter of fact the dirty dozen reads like a horticultural book on the most problematic food crops that usually require pesticides or very intensive labor farming.

Some organic pesticide alternatives exist but are not always effective or present even an even more lethal dose than petrochemical based products. One of the old time pesticides was and is Nicotine. Most organic farmers do not use organic pesticides and instead rely on hand picking pests off the plants and using netting to keep the bugs at bay. Imagine trying to pick bugs off of an apple tree or even netting one? This is one of the reasons why organics are so expensive.

Even with the new study by the EWG it's important to remember that passing up an apple for a Twinkie is not a healthy choice. Nor should one eliminate the dirty dozen from their diet. It's all about quantity and the health tradeoffs. Also consider a detoxifcation program that includes chlorella and Cilantro from your health provider.

The dirty dozen, recommended by the EWG to buy organically

1. Apple
2. Celery
3. Strawberry
4. Peach
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines
7. Grapes
8. Sweet Bell Pepper
9. Potato
10. Blueberry
11. Lettuce
12. Kale

And the clean 15, which according to the EWG study are the lowest in pesticides

1. Onions
2. Sweet Corn
3. Pineapple
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet pea
7. Mango
8. Eggplant
9. Cantelope
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet Potato
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushroom

We've moved from our nihadc.com sub-domain, products.nihadc.com to a new domain, www.worldwellnessstore.com over the weekend to provide you with greater site speed. We recommend you update your browser bookmarks to the new URL for quick access.

Thanks!

World Wellness Store launches a new blog to provide information on health supplements, nutritional tips and highlights on cutting edge health concerns. 

Health Directory