The Plain Truth's: Your Health Today ONLINE

Stress Hormone Affects Immune System

A new UCLA study suggests the decline in an individual’s immune system after facing chronic stress is due to the stress hormone cortisol. Scientists found that cortisol suppresses immune cells’ ability to activate their telomerase, an enzyme within the cell that keeps immune cells young by preserving their telomere length and ability to continue dividing.

Every cell contains a tiny clock called a telomere, which shortens each time the cell divides. Short telomeres are linked to a range of human diseases, including HIV, osteoporosis, heart disease and aging. Read More

Man Dies from Drinking Water!

So when do we put warning labels on water bottles?

A 44-year-old man died after drinking 9.6 liters of water in eight hours, the equivalent of four-and- a-half soda bottles, London’s Daily Mail reported Tuesday.

Andrew Thornton, of Bradford, England, was drinking the cold water to relieve his sore gums, which were brought on by gum disease, according to an inquest.

Thornton drank the water to avoid taking painkillers, said his mother, Alice, 65 Read More

Ladies, give your breasts a rest, research says

Permission to skip self-exams a relief for some, perplexing for others

msnbc.com

By Diane Mapes

Like many women, I’ve felt guilty about my slipshod breast exams for years. Sure, I’ll give the girls a good once-over in the shower now and then, but I’ve never diligently gone through all the motions (circular and otherwise), month in and month out.

So it was with a certain amount of relief that I read a new analysis confirming that the breast self-exam (or BSE) truly doesn’t make much of a difference after all. Read More

Did You Know All the Drugs in Your Milk?

Dairy products from cows treated with Monsanto's genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST) could sharply increase the risk of cancer and other diseases, especially in children.

The chemicals are already banned in most industrialized nations, and it was approved in the United States on the backs of fired whistleblowers, manipulated research, and a corporate takeover at the FDA. This film (split into two parts above) includes footage prepared for a Fox TV segment that was canceled after a letter from Monsanto's attorney threatened "dire consequences."

Are There Deadly Superbugs in Your Pork?

There’s plenty of medical research that backs up religious advice to avoid the “other white meat,” pork. Scientists are beginning to detect antibiotic-resistant bacteria in pork, pigs and some veterinarians, raising the issue of whether these so-called superbugs might find a new route to infect farmworkers or even people who eat pork.

Coke Or Water?

YOU DECIDE!

Wonder why so many are sick?

WATER

75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.
(Likely applies to half the world population.)
In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak
that it is mistaken for hunger.
Even MILD dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism as 3%.
One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs
for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of
Washington study.
Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.
Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of
water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain
for up to 80% of sufferers.
A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term
memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on
the computer screen or on a ! printed page.
Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of
colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast
cancer by 79%., and one is 50% less likely to develop
bladder cancer. Are you drinking the amount of water
you should drink every day?
Coke or Water

COKE

In many states the highway patrol carries
two gallons of Coke in the trunk to remove blood from
the highway after a car accident.
You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of Coke
and it will be gone in two days.
To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the
toilet bowl and let the "real thing" sit for one hour,
then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes
stains from vitreous china.
To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers:
Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds
Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.
To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour
a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble
away the corrosion.
To loosen a rusted bolt: Apply a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola
to the rusted bolt for several minutes.
To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into
the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake.
Thirty minutes before ham is finished, remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix
with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.
To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of Coke
into the load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run
through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen
grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your
windshield.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION:

The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid.
It will dissolve a nail in about four days. Phosphoric
acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major
contributor to the rising increase of osteoporosis.
To carry Coca-Cola syrup! (the concentrate) the
commercial trucks must use a hazardous Material place
cards reserved for highly corrosive materials.
The distributors of Coke have been using it to clean
engines of the trucks for about 20 years!

Now the question is, would you like a glass of water?

or Coke?

Hidden Names for MSG

Foods always contain MSG when these words are on the label:
MSG

Gelatin

Calcium Caseinate
Monosodium glutamate

Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein

Textured Protein
Monopotassium glutamate

Hydrolyzed Plant Protein

Yeast Extract
Glutamate Autolyzed Plant Protein

Yeast food or nutrient
Glutamic Acid Sodium

Caseinate Autolyzed Yeast

Foods made with the following products often contain MSG.
Malted Barley (flavor) Flavors, Flavoring Modified food starch
Barley malt Reaction Flavors Rice syrup or brown rice syrup
Malt Extract or Flavoring Natural Chicken, Beef, or Pork, Flavoring"Seasonings" (Most assume this means salt, pepper, or spicesand herbs, which sometimes it is.) Lipolyzed butter fat
Maltodextrin Soy Sauce or Extract "Low" or "No Fat" items
Caramel Flavoring (coloring) Soy Protein Corn syrup and corn syrup solids (somecompanies use another process to make their product, saying itis MSG free)
Stock Soy Protein Isolate or Concentrate Citric Acid (when processed fromcorn)
Broth Cornstarch Milk Powder
Bouillon Flowing Agents Dry Milk Solids
Carrageenan Wheat, rice, or oat protein Protein Fortified Milk
Whey Protein or Whey Anything enriched or vitaminenriched Annatto
Whey Protein Isolate or Concentrate Protein fortified "anything" Spice
Pectin Enzyme modified "anythng" Gums
Protease Ultra-pasteurized "anything" Dough Conditioners
Protease enzymes Fermented "anything" Yeast Nutrients

Are you crazy enough to succeed?

Obsessive and compulsive behaviors can make you — or break you

By Jeremy Katz

updated 12:01 p.m. ET, Sun., July. 13, 2008

I sit in the glass-walled nurses' station, waiting for my day to begin. A steady stream of people — all living with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD — approach the half door and utter some variation of "I have to go to the bathroom." The attractive young woman on duty smiles and hands over a small quantity of toilet paper, a squirt of soap in a specimen cup, and a paper towel with a cheery "Here you are!" This is what grade school must have seemed like to George Orwell. Read More

Beijing takes dog off the menu for Olympics

I guess they figured Michael Vick wasn't coming

BEIJING (Reuters) - Beijing has asked hotels and restaurants in the city to take dog meat off the menu for the duration of next month's Olympics and September's Paralympics.Read More

Russert's Death Saved My Life, Man Says

NBC newsman Tim Russert's sudden death last month gave some of his fellow baby boomers a scare when it comes to their own health and mortality. In a New York Times article, an ABC News producer credits Russert with saving his life, helping him to recognize his own heart attack before it was too late.

> Full Coverage