Lauri Ann's New Life

I can't believe what I received in my inbox this morning. It was a letter from a doctor imploring people to not purposely expose themselves and their children to the Swine flu or H1N1 Virus, whichever you prefer.

Does this really have to be pointed out? I'm old enough to remember the days when my mother sent me out to play with every sick kid in the neighborhood so I could catch the chickenpox, measles, etc. and get it over with. People, if you think getting the swine flu now will save you later, that's not how the swine flu virus works. Not only that but if you have some underlying medical issue, maybe one you don't even know about, it can kill you! Of course the regular flu is deadly for some also, but this stuff is too dangerous to mess around with.

If you read my last post that started out about Obama Healthcare, as you read down further it explains about how I feel about the swine flu vaccine. To me that's sort of like playing Russian Roulette. They haven't tested it properly. The drug makers are not responsible if people die from it. I think that's 2 good reasons to stay away from it right there.

Like everyone else is pushing these days, the best protection from the swine flu is to wash your hands often and keep them away from your face (specifically eyes, nose, and mouth). Try to stay away from overly crowded public places. Build your immune system. I myself am lucky enough to be a distributor for the #1 vitamin maker in the world so I take my multivitamin, echinacea (I know they tried to say echinacea doesn't work, but in our family this particular one has been a Godsend), and Calcium with Vitamin D. Of course, the best vitamin D is from sunshine, but now that it's starting to turn cold and getting dark earlier, a lot of us can't get what we need from the sun. Like anything, the better quality your vitamins and supplements are, the better your immunity to the swine flu.

For a comprehensive list of swine flu symptoms and the swine flu versus the regular flu, please see my post "Swine Flu-Fact or Fiction?" I have the basic symptoms to watch out for broken down in the various age groups.

Anyone who has followed me for any length of time, knows I love these little sales letters that come in the design of a magazine trying to sell you something, usually a book. I just got my new copy of "Healing Gazette" and thought I would share some of it's newest bizarre "health secrets".

The fact that the flu season is coming is known to anyone over the age of 6. These are a couple of things you may not know to help fight it.

1. This one's my favorite. You'll see why in a second. Over and over again I have expounded on how wonderful I believe echinacea is. Well it seems all this time I could have been getting it to work even better if I mix 1 1/2 oz. of echinacea root, 3/4 cup of water and 3/4 cup of vodka. Now the book warns not to take echinacea for prolonged use or it will lose some of it's effectiveness. It doesn't mention anything about turning into an alchoholic with the vodka. LOL
2. Some of these can be pretty stinky, but if they work, hey... Also for fighting the flu, it says to coat the soles of your feet with olive oil, then rub a sliced garlic clove on them. Put on a pair of socks and you wake up the next day feeling like a new person!
3. For stuffed sinuses it says to use fried salt. I've never really heard of fried salt like you would fry and egg, but here you go. After you fry it, spread it out on a clean towel. Fold it up and lay it on the bridge of your nose. (I wouldn't use to big a towel).
4. Also for stuffy noses it says to apply a thin layer of olive oil to the bony part of your nose, and then follow with a couple drops of eucalyptus oil in the same place. Then place a hot washcloth on your face for 15 min. and the congestion will clear.
   
5. To fight fatigue with the flu, add 1 TBSP. olive oil to 3 or 4 drops of peppermint oil and massage into your feet. I wonder if Rachel Ray knows about that one for her EVOO?
   

That's about it for today. If you're like me and afraid as hell of the flu shot, maybe these will help. In the meantime, wash your hands often and don't let anyone cough in your face.

I'm getting a bit spooked lately. We're coming to the end of summer and soon the leaves will be turning color to bring our attention to fall. The children are getting back to school and soon will be bringing home the sicknesses ever present when a bunch of school children first get back together. In most places October marks the beginning of flu season and we see the warnings and advice to get our flu shots before the flu gets us.

What spooks me this year is they are already talking about getting flu shots and making it mandatory for school children due to the Swine Flu breaking out last year. I'm supposed to believe that this year's flu vaccine is perfectly safe for my children, my 78 yr. old mother and myself, even tho I can't see how they have had time to go through any testing or trials. Usually it takes years for Big Pharma to bring a product to market, even when they fudge the tests and lie about the outcomes. How is it that they can have a flu vaccine that is going to protect, is perfectly safe, and not harm my family even though they've only been working on it since last year?

As if that is not scary enough, they are suggesting Tamiflu for pregnant women. This is because complications may arize from the flu that require hospitalization. One example I saw on the noon news, they were actually giving the woman a double dosage, even though they have no idea what the effect will be on her unborn child. According to the "Patient Information" sheet supplied by the maker of Tamiflu, "Tamiflu is normally not recommended for use during pregnancy or nursing, as the effects on the unborn child or nursing infant are unknown." We're supposed to put our faith and trust in these doctors.

Once again I will have my family skip flu shots this year and use natural health measures to boost immunities rather than take a chance on Big Pharma's help. I don't want to find out later that it's hurting more people than helping as in the case of when they were going to make Gardasil mandatory.

First up is more Vitamin D. From an article I read they have basically come to the conclusion that flu season hits when it does because we are not out in the sunshine as much. The days are shorter and colder and our exposure to sunlight, especially on rainy days is minimal. A nationwide study in the U.S. found about 9 percent of the children were vitamin D deficient but 61 percent of them were vitamin D insufficient. Researchers are looking at possible new recommendations regarding how much Vitamin D and calcium we should be taking given these new statistics. Right now the recommendations are to aim for 800-1000 IU of vitamin D each day with at least 400 IU coming from food sources if possible. A multivitamin-mineral supplement may be the way to go to make up the remainder if you find that you are low in other key nutrients as well. If not, you could take a vitamin D supplement with calcium to help with healthier bones as well. When selecting a vitamin D supplement, select one that contains cholecalciferol or D3 if possible because of its better absorption. In addition, to maximize your supplement absorption, take your supplement with a meal or snack that contains some fat.

Even though it's taken some bashing in the papers, I personally am also a big fan of Echinacia. It comes in either a tablet or liquid form. For my family it has helped cut short colds and stopped colds from taking over when taken in advance to being exposed. I also believe in taking plenty of vitamin C. Being a smoker I use up just about all I take in. They say if you smoke you should take up to 3000 mg per day. The current recommendation from the FDA is only 250 mg which is just what's needed to prevent Scurvy. The more useful recommendation is approx. 1000 mg. per day according to the studies I've read.

One of the biggest things is to not believe everything Big Pharma puts out. Do some research on your own, and don't panic. For more information regarding symptoms, etc. see my post Swine Flu-Fact or Fiction