Immune

#4 Corona Virus 101

Liz James · March 12, 2020 ·

Post #4 Corona Virus 101….. Diagnostics

Last night our President declared corona virus a national emergency here in the USA. He also declared that a very small population overall appears to be at high risk. If you are generally a healthy person, that lowers your risk category considerably. (Either way, please refer to Post #3/ Demographics in this series if you aren’t sure.)

If you develop flu like symptoms while we are under the umbrella of this declaration, it is prudent to continue to examine the facts:

Fact #1: It’s still cold and flu season throughout the United States (and probably the world), and symptoms of a cold, flu, or corona virus are all very similar. Additionally, depending on your overall health status, all illnesses may not look the same…. mild cases of all 3 may not even have much of a fever, while severe cases could technically settle into secondary bacterial infections in some people.

Fact #2: Right now, testing is still sketchy. Some people have been tested as many as 6 times before testing positive. Testing kits from the CDC are faulty according to reports… with a 50% accuracy rate.

Additionally, I’ve read that mutations of the original virus have already occurred at least once (common with viruses), so my personal confidence level in testing will likely remain low throughout this situation.

Fact #3: If you are “kinda sick” but don’t feel awful…. but that inner fear is driving you to want to know…. do I have “IT”?……. is it worth it to go to a dr’s office and sit in a germ infested waiting room where you might actually catch something worse than what you have? …. all to receive a test that may not yield accurate results? #rememberwhatcuriositydidtothecat

You do you of course, but my gut tells me, this would not be in my plans for personal care. 😉

Fact #4: Let’s just say you DO have “IT”, but don’t feel much differently than if you had a cold… and THEN, you go to the dr’s office to get tested and you, my friend, become the vector and spreader of germs to someone who quite possibly has an existing immunocompromised situation. …… all to receive a test that, again…. may or may not yield accurate results.

Be kind to others. Please keep your germs to yourself.

Fact #5: Mild illness is not the same as serious illness, and only you know your body and when your symptoms would constitute seeking medical attention. By all means…. go. Be kind tho to others as you evaluate your decision and put your plan into action.

(Please refer to my disclaimer below…. you do you.)

Fact #6: Certain masks are marginally helpful in preventing the spread of this virus. The N95 respirator masks are hard to come by these days, but are the only ones being recommended by the CDC. They filter particles down to .03 microns. (One of the “gain in functionality” issues of the corona virus is its particle size…. which has been found to be anywhere from .05-.02… smaller than what this type of mask is capable of filtering).

Keeping your hands clean, washed, and away from your nose, mouth, and eyes, is really your best option… as well as utilizing an immune boosting lifestyle, which starts with what you put into and on your body on a daily basis (please refer to Post #3 for basic lifestyle tips).

Tomorrow (or perhaps even late tonight if I have time), I’ll unpack what we know to be true about viruses and how to create an inhospitable environment for them. I’m spending today working at the pharmacy…. without a mask.

xoxo ~ liz

#wearenotcalledtoaspiritoffearbutoffaith
#knowbetterdobetter
#ThanksYL
#itsnevertoolatetoincorporateahealthylifestyle

#3 Corona Virus 101

Liz James · March 12, 2020 ·

POST #3 Corona Virus 101…. Demographics
Based upon current info, this is what we can safely deduce…

👉 Most cases are hitting ages 30-79 years old, But the fatality rate was 14.8% in people 80 or older, likely reflecting the presence of other diseases, a weaker immune system…. LONGER EXPOSURE to pollution, toxins, and cigarettes or simply worse overall health. (see how this might skew the above overall stats?)

👉 Virus symptoms appear to be mild in ~80% of cases in children (a group not at risk!…. perhaps in part because they have had less exposure in their short lives to pollution, toxins, and cigarettes?)

👉 Pregnant mamas? Info gleaned in a small group study revealed that the virus appears to be more mild in pregnancy…. But mamas can transmit to their babies. As for the mothers, “Covid-19 seems not to be especially severe in pregnant women, at least based on the small number in this study,” the scientists wrote. Well this is good news! I might also add that pregnant women in China know enough about 5G that they wear special clothing to protect their unborn children. For real!

A bit further digging (and a tiny bunny 🐰trail!), and I found that you can buy radiation protective clothing here in the US too!

👉 Personally, my greatest concern lies within this last group…. the immuno-compromised. 👈These people … these are the ones that are going to need all of our help. The virus is real, and although it does appear to be relatively mild if you are a healthy individual and are taking care of yourself, but the reality is that we have ALOT of unhealthy people in our world. Who would qualify as immunocompromised? According to the CDC…. that would include:
HIV/AIDS
Cancer & Transplant Patients
Rare inherited diseases that affect the immune system
(that’s pretty much their list 😳 )

My list of those who might qualify as being immunocompromised is quite a bit longer…. We here in the USA have been encouraged to be vaccinated against pretty much everything under the sun, and yet, we are one of the sickest first world countries in the world. #truthbomb This is another topic I have plans to discuss at some point… not now. But my concerns are on point. Really, anyone who is diabetic, has heart disease, compromised pulmonary function, an autoimmune disorder that is not well managed…. if you know anyone in these categories, I encourage you to encourage them to #dothethings that will help boost their immune systems.

There’s no time like the present to start boosting your immunity now. Details to come beyond what I’m about to write…. but let’s simply start today with the basics:
1.🍖 Fresh (not processed) foods
2.Clean filtered water (not soft drinks, junk juice etc)
3. Regular exercise
4.☠️🍞🍟🍭🎂🍩💉☢️☣️Remove as much of the toxin load as possible in food, beverages, household cleaners, synthetic air fresheners, body care products, and even cosmetics and replace these things with immune system boosting products whenever possible, or at the very least “green and healthy” products.

If you are a Young Living member, I do not need to fill in the blanks for you…. if you are not a YL member, I encourage you to reach out to someone you know and trust who can help with the immune supportive cleaning supplies, cosmetics, and alternatives for air fresheners that Young Living provides for everyone. Many of us have been toxin dumping for years, and we can guide you thru what we ourselves have successfully done.

Studies have shown that toxin load reduction begins decreasing within days of implementing the above 4 steps.

Stay tuned…… lots more to talk about.

xoxo~ liz

#knowbetterdobetter
#healthismoreimportantthantoiletpaperwhenprepping
#ThanksYL

Black Box Warning

Liz James · March 4, 2020 ·

t’s certainly an upside down world we live in………

Today, I read yet another article about yet another 💊medication that is getting its very own black box warning.

Montelukast (Brand name: Singulair)….. a medication used for seasonal allergies and asthma. Given to big people and to little people 👶👧….. as young as 2 yrs old (although I’ve seen prescriptions for even younger).

The warning labels for the prescription bottle have included a statement about change in mood or behavior in tiny print for years…. so really, this is nothing new to the FDA.

In the retail pharmacy world, montelukast is considered a “fast mover”…. meaning LOTS of people are on this medication for allergies and asthma.

Today…. the FDA announced it was finally acknowledging that this medication needed stronger wording and would get its black box. ….. a medication that has been around 22 years.

I have quite a few questions swirling in my head:
After 22 years. Why did it take so long for the FDA to come to this conclusion, especially given the millions of people that have taken it?
The children…. how do they even know how to verbalize how they might be feeling while on this medication? #blesstheirhearts
Why did it take public outcry in the form of a petition to get this warning updated?
Why is it still ok to prescribe to little people who can’t even verbalize how they might be feeling in their little heads?

Did you know that homes using standard commercial cleaners, air fresheners, glass cleaners etc that are toxin based have a 30-50% greater risk of having an asthma or allergy sufferer living under the same roof?

OR…. that the risk increases as the chemical soup thickens if you use multiple products?

I’m wondering how many prescribers ask this simple question before writing the prescription:
“What have you done in the way of removing respiratory irritants from your home?”

Presently, 1 in 10 children in the USA has asthma. (It was 3.6% in 1980). There are many reasons for this tremendous increase…. but the quality of our home/indoor air is one thing that we can ALL control. #dothethingsthatmatter

Have you ever heard of Thieves Household Cleaner?
👉NonToxic
👉Non Irritating to the Lungs
👉Plant Based
👉Immune supportive instead of harmful
👉Ultra concentrated / economical
👉Effective… heck, we even use it to clean our cows udders around here, and we drink our milk raw. THAT ought to tell ya my confidence level 😉

We mostly use Thieves simply… a capful or two in a standard spray bottle. That’s it. Easy peasy.
If you are a DIY’er or a healthy minimalist, there are lots of ways to clean with this one simple product:

Thieves Household Cleaner…. it actually does a body good.

Hugs and love friends, liz

#ThanksYL
#YLisahealthylifestylecompany
#andtheFDAthinksLavenderisdangerous #SMH

medscape article

Plenty of Ways to Avoid the Flu

Liz James · January 29, 2020 ·

spent all day yesterday working at the pharmacy, and I’m not going to lie…… I filled more antibiotics, antivirals, antinausea and (gallons!) of cough syrup than I have in a very long time. People are sick and the flu is kickin’ butt and taking names.

Surrounding that hectic day was the constant mention of the coronavirus in China that’s making the news everywhere you look.

Can we chat for a minute and put this into perspective? I bring the following information to the table not to minimize the current illness state of affairs, but to truly wonder at the power of the media……

😷The coronavirus (as of yesterday) has a current mortality rate of 2.3% of those 4520 affected.

😷 This year’s flu strain (the most recent stat I could find) has a current mortality rate of 0.049% of the estimated 9.7 million affected.

YET…. poor diet is killing people in the United States faster than both viruses combined. An estimated 11 Million people a year die in the USA as a result of a poor diet… that’s 1 in 5 people, people. THAT bothers me. A LOT.

Maybe people would pay more attention to healthy living if the media poured this type of information into us instead of the fear based stuff we’re getting.

And oh… by the way, there are plenty of ways to avoid both the flu and the coronavirus, and they 100% depend on a healthy diet especially containing natural and supplemental sources of the right kinds of magnesium, Vitamin D, C, & E, selenium, and iodine, an adequate pH in the body leaning towards a mild alkalinity, and keeping known toxins out of the body. All of these basic steps will actually go a long way towards healing what ails ya too 😘.

hugs and much love~ liz

#knowbetterdobettergetbetterstaywell
#stayawayfromthesugarespeciallywhenyouaresick
#Godgaveusallweneedifonlywedothethings
#fearmongeringreallybothersme
#ThanksYL

Probiotics Uncapped

Liz James · September 4, 2019 ·

How do you feel about your gut?

Did you know that you have roughly 100 trillion bacteria (3-4 lbs worth!) sharing your personal space with you?…. more to the point…. inside you? Our “friends” within us are terribly important to our health. They keep the bad bacteria (aka: the bullies) in check. When our gut is healthy, approximately 80-85% of our bacteria is good, and 15-20% are bad. At this ratio, the good bacteria are able to keep the bad bacteria “in check”. The good bacteria are team players. When they are healthy, and there are enough of them, they are able to keep the bad bacteria from overpopulating and causing damage, dysfunction, and disease.

In addition, good bacteria in the gut play a major role in many body functions…. including digestion and pooping, preventing inflammation of the intestinal wall, AND helping prevent leaky gut syndrome. Surprisingly, our little bacteria friends also play a large role in our mental health. Poor gut health has been found to be directly correlated with OCD, ADHD, depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, learning disabilities, memory, and mood…. not to mention general poor gut health. Our gut population is also responsible for approximately 80% of our immunity, AND not having enough good bacteria can lead to autoimmune disorders, allergies and infection. Good gut bacteria is also important to our weight!

Gut health plays a huge part in overall body inflammation. When your intestinal lining is compromised, total body inflammation or inflammation in certain parts of the body… including the brain is virtually guaranteed. Inflammation within the brain is painless, and yet it is a factor in Parkinsons, Alzheimer’s, MS, and Autism.

Finally, as we age, our good bacteria tend to naturally die off… and this is not good…not good at all. (Everyone “of a certain age” should be on a probiotic for optimal health). Go back and re-read the paragraphs above…. is it any coincidence that the elderly have regular issues “being regular”, having brain fog/memory lapses, sleep disorders etc?

There are many ways we unintentionally damage and abuse our gut bacteria on a regular basis:

Overuse of antibiotics. If you must use them…. Always, always always use a heavy round of probiotics both during and following antibiotic use (making sure to separate the antibiotic and probiotic dose by at least 2 hours).
Alcohol, processed foods, refined sugar, and refined carbohydrates. All of these products feed bad bacteria and promote inflammation
NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). They cause gut inflammation, damage the gut lining, and recent research indicates that their use induces gluten sensitivity.
Antacids and Acid Reducers. (Did you know that most of these are not FDA approved for use longer than 8 weeks). Long term use promotes Candida (yeast) overgrowth.
Minimize and control your stress levels. High levels of stress can cause major GI damage over the long term.

And finally…. when we reach ‘a certain age’, our good gut bacteria begins to naturally die off. When this happens, our overall body health is compromised unless we supplement!

Young Living offers one of the finest probiotics on the market: Life 9. And no, not all probiotics are created equally. Case Adams PhD, wrote a book: Probiotics-Protection Against Infection. In his book, he outlines what to look for in a good probiotic….. The type of capsule (HPMC), the diverse strains of bacteria (YL has 9 strains: 4bifido, 4lacto, and 1 strepto), the quantity of bacteria per capsule (10-15 BILLION Colony Forming Units is recommended for maintenance dosing), the container itself (glass with a metal lid…not plastic), and a moisture control (calcium carbonate). All of these requirements are so important… and they cumulatively make Life 9 the powerhouse for our health that it is. I know that there are tons of probiotics on the market, but MOST do not follow this advised criteria. Do your homework and then pick up a bottle of Life 9!
So, in a nutshell… we truly ARE what we ingest! But the zoo within us needs regular TLC and protection. Without that, you may end up with a gut gone rogue…. and that, my friends, is one of the worst things that could happen to your overall body health.

Hugs and Love~ Liz
(PS: Young Living makes a top notch probiotic for kiddos too…. it’s called Mighty Pro. ;))