Vitamin D: Am I Getting Enough?
Posted by Michelle Moquin on January 19th, 2010
Good morning.
One of my sources sent me this article and I wanted to share it with you. Vitamin D has been a popular subject here, and in conversations with friends. I love the sun as you all know, but is it giving me enough Vitamin D? Who Knows. I take a liquid Vitamin D3, but how do know if I’m getting enough? And according to this article, even having your Vitamin D levels tested may not give you the answer.
Vitamin D dose myths – 6 fun factoids
As the mountain of vitamin D research (showing its importance) grows to Everest heights, you may be wondering about some statements that are thrown around as “truth.” Here are some fun vitamin D myths to pass along (by email, twitter or facebook) to friends, family and loved ones, because, when it comes to vitamin D, you want to get your dose (even of information) JUST RIGHT:
1) Just go out in the sun, already. That will fix everyone’s vitamin D levels. Right? Is it true that you can get enough vitamin D from the sun? Um, well, that depends on who “you” is. For example, our media tends to assume we’re all Nicole Kidman pale – hence the widely cited recommendations that 10-15 minutes of daily sun can suffice. If you’re darkly pigmented (whatever your ethnic background), studies show that, if you live north of L.A., you would need to be out, at minimum, from November to May, fully naked, for TWO SOLID HOURS at midday to get enough vitamin D. Yikes…talk about a recommendation being far off the mark! For many working, non-Nicole-Kidman Americans, it would be actually physically impossible to get enough vitamin D, using the sun only.
2) Okay, I hear you, but I get a lot of sun – that should do it, right? See, the stinker is that you can get so much sun, you’re sunburned, and STILL not get enough vitamin D. How exactly, is that? Vitamin D is blocked by sunscreen, by glass, by shade, by fog (I’m talking to you, San Francisco!), and even by tall buildings. That means you can get sunburned through a car window and still make almost no vitamin D. In fact, once your skin begins burning, it starts to actually off-load and break down the vitamin D it just made! Even if you’re low!
3) Hey, isn’t sun bad for you? The interesting thing is that vitamin D, sun, and that worst of all skin cancers – melanoma – appear to be nastily snarled together in a three-way physiologic tug-of-war. What does that mean? Turns out that LOW vitamin D levels are associated with INCREASED risk of melanoma (even when you control for lifetime sun exposure), but that more sun (especially burns) means more risk of melanoma. All together, the paradox between vitamin D and melanoma may explain why sunscreens (which block vitamin D) have been shown, in several studies, to actually INCREASE the risk of melanoma. So what do you want for optimum health? Probably, to have a great blood level of vitamin D, and (if you’re Nicole-Kidman-pale), as little sun as possible.
4) Just drink milk, already. All this talk of supplements is clearly a ruse to make money. Right? First, no one should be sucking down lots of full-fat milk – not for optimum health. Second, even if you go the non-fat-milk approach, how many glasses would a non-pregnant adult need to drink to get the generally acknowledged 1,000 units a day for vitamin D maintenance? Any guesses? Try 10 (count ‘em – 10!) glasses a day! Urk. The amount of vitamin D put into milk was chosen so that small toddler-kiddies would NOT be overdosed on vitamin D. Unfortunately, lactose intolerance is also very very real – and much more common among African Americans (estimated at 70%). Which means that, in our infinite idiocy, we, as a nation, chose to put vitamin D additives in the ONE place where the population that needs it MOST couldn’t get it…sheesh.
5) So if my blood test is normal, that means I’m okay. Right? For all those of you who are staying up with your vitamin D checks, congratulations – you’re taking a simple, cheap and side-effect-free way to promote your health. However…you may want to find out what “normal” means to your lab. Even your personal doctor may not be aware that almost all labs report “normal” based on the average (or median) of all that lab’s test results. With as many as 80-90% of African Americans vitamin D deficient, your lab’s “normal” may actually calculate out to “low.” So what is “normal”? For one thing, it’s higher than almost all lab cut-offs. How do we know that? First, some studies looked at how high a human’s vitamin D level needed to be to block your body from sending out a distress-type hormone (called PTH). That blood level was way higher than a lab’s calculated “normal.”
Second, studies that looked at how high a vitamin D level needed to be to stop some of the problems of low vitamin D (like receding gums – yes – that’s a well-studied result of too-low a vitamin D), found that blood levels had to be much higher than (you guessed it) a calculated lab’s “normal.” Finally, researchers went to the source – when they checked the blood levels of equatorial agriculture workers in Third World countries (who still live the way almost all humans did only a few generations ago), they found, as you could predict, levels that are much higher than our labs’ “normal.”
6) Vitamin D prevents fractures by strengthening bones. Right? One of the best things about vitamin D is that it can reduce the number of fractures in the elderly. But what was a shocker to researchers was that it achieved this result, weirdly, by preventing falls from ever happening in the first place. Vitamin D is crucial for normal muscle function, and when it gets really low, people can get something called a hip girdle sway – if you’re wondering what that looks like, imagine that slow, painful-looking, Frankensteinish, entire-leg-hip swing a frail elderly person in a wheeled walker does to take a step. Replacing vitamin D allows muscles to repair and function so that people actually don’t fall.
Bottom line? You CAN overdose on vitamin D. There are reasons, despite all the mountains of encouraging research, why no one, officially, has said (yet) how much every person should take every day. The first reason is that no public official wants to step forward and be the one to say that, in order to be “normal,” vast numbers of Americans need to take a supplement…for life. The second, better, reason is that (as the sun discussion, above, shows), we’re not all the same. Personalized vitamin D replacement and maintenance is the way to go. Get your blood level tested, get good advice on your result and replacement, then make sure it’s re-checked (and re-checked again) to verify you stay in a healthy range.
What do you think? Do you think vitamin D is all it’s cracked up to be? Is it a vast supplement conspiracy, or, instead, a failure of modern medicine to care for those most affected? Share in the comments section – and keep up on the latest health issues in the news, and healthcare reform insanity/hilarity by signing up for a Doc Gurley RSS feed with the tiny orange button at the top. Look for future weekly Dodging Death articles here at Doc Gurley – discover the weird, the wacky and the everyday symptoms you want to know about, as well as practical expert tips on staying well. And do you want to be on the inside, fast track of news and tips? Get on the Twitter bandwagon and follow Doc Gurley! Also check out Doc Gurley’s joyhabit and iwellth twitter feeds – so you can get topic-specific fun, effective, affordable tips on how to nurture your joy and grow your wellth this coming year.
Got a thingie on your doohickey? Or are you pondering how to tell your doctor he’s a jerk? Send your burning healthcare questions to Doc Gurley by emailing docgurleyatgmaildotcom. Doc Gurley cannot answer every question, and she cannot practice medicine through a keyboard (not even with her stethoscope pressed firmly against the monitor) but be assured – your questions will be kept strictly confidential and identifying traits are changed.
| January 09 2010 at 01:26 PM Read more: Click here.
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Readers: Anything you want to share in regards to this?
Hi Ruth: Good to hear from you again. It sounds like everyone has been pretty busy with the holidays and now ‘just life’. I understand about the posting. No worries. It is frustrating for me too when I know my readers have a lot to say on a subject and they can’t get in. I know I am busy and if I were in your shoes, I probably would not have the time to continue to repeat my entries either.
I was excited to hear that the girls are interested in everything -Nice. I’m sure being in their new home, and with you, exposes them to all…and unfortunately all is not a bed of roses, but that is life, as you say. However, there is enough challenges in life as it is. I was just sorry to read that racism has now entered into their lives. Please give the girls a big hello from me.
Janet, Mike, Peter, Anna: Thanks for continuing to post your very informative and interesting articles. I appreciate you all taking the time to keep us informed.
Hey Zen Lill: I am sorry that we haven’t had the chance to catch up again like we had talked about. Where did the time go? Thanks for checking in here. It is evident your health advice is missed. Speaking of…
…I just wanted to say that I take resveratrol – have taken it for the past two years. I have never been a big drinker and I can no longer drink red wine so I decided to start taking this for its antioxidant benefits. First in a capsule form from Dr. David Williams; Here’s the link just in case you or my readers are interested. And now I take it in liquid form. I really like it. I hope that your biz trip goes well.
Thanks Evelyn: How are you doing?
Donna: Hmmm…a serious education? Maybe. There are many topics discussed on my blog, so stick around. You are sure to learn a lot. I certainly do. :) Oh…and I wouldn’t take the ‘dumb’ remark to heart from a 6 yr-old. Not knowing something does not mean you are dumb. But I certainly would’ve taught her a thing or two about being disrespectful. Rude behavior is just not acceptable.
Irene: No response from the men yet.
Urte: Hello. Is there any more you can tell us?
See ya later…
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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January 19th, 2010 at 10:59 am
THE NATURAL WAY TO WITHDRAW FROM ANTIDEPRESSANTS
The numbers inform us — we are indeed a “Prozac Nation.” In 2007 alone, doctors wrote a staggering 232.7 million prescriptions for antidepressants, such as Prozac, more even than medications for high blood pressure. Without question, the drugs can be of benefit. But, many who take them complain about the side effects (weight gain, dry mouth, nausea, decreased libido and others) and for some people, the meds aren’t even helpful. Choosing to step away from medication can be a very good decision for many who don’t want to be on these drugs, but it is not as simple as deciding not to take an aspirin for your headache today.
James S. Gordon, MD, a Harvard-educated psychiatrist and founder and director of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC, and former chairman of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy, experienced his own severe bout of depression some 40 years ago when he was a medical student. In time and with considerable effort and the guidance and support of a skilled therapist, he recovered from the depression. In the years since then, he has treated thousands of others who’ve suffered from depression and anxiety, helping the vast majority of them not only to recover, but also to feel better than they ever have, without the use of antidepressant drugs.
Now, in his new book, Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey Out of Depression, Dr. Gordon clearly outlines the step-by-step system that he has developed to help his patients move through and finally overcome depression.
When we spoke, Dr. Gordon’s first words of advice were: never go off the drugs cold turkey. Withdrawal from these medications is a process and it takes time, several weeks at the very least and often more. Stopping suddenly can cause extremely uncomfortable symptoms — agitation, anxiety, diarrhea, nausea, dizziness, headaches, fatigue – and sometimes, more severe depression. Even gradual withdrawal is usually accompanied by uncomfortable physical sensations and not infrequently a period in which depressive feelings may be heightened.
STEPS TO SUCCESS
To avoid problems and increase the likelihood of success, advance planning is critical. First, Dr. Gordon advises identifying a person to be your “Guide,” with whom you can work throughout the entire process of overcoming depression and withdrawing from drugs. This should be a professional with the ability to understand what you are experiencing, someone who provides encouragement, understanding and support. In his book, Dr. Gordon describes in detail the characteristics you should look for in such a Guide — among them are a willingness to see depression, confusion and anxiety as the beginning of a journey toward wholeness rather than the endpoint of a disease process… an appreciation of your strengths and your capacity to help yourself… a sensitivity to your vulnerability… and the knowledge and skill to give you the kinds of tools you need to move through and beyond depression. A variety of professionals, including physicians, psychologists and social workers, can act as your Guide, but Dr. Gordon also emphasizes the importance of finding additional sources of support from family and friends who will be regularly available to you. Support groups and, in moments of crisis, hotlines can be helpful as well.
Lay a firm physical and emotional foundation for the journey through depression by righting imbalances in mind and body. Dr. Gordon recommends numerous ways to do this. Meditation, he explains, creates biological changes in the brain and body that will help you diminish your level of stress and gain perspective on your fears. Cognitive approaches will help you to identify and move beyond negative beliefs. Expressive activities, including writing in a journal, drawing and dance can bring relief from distressing emotions and help you find solutions to problems that have stymied you.
Foods and supplements can help improve and maintain mood. Among them are a number of vitamins and minerals (for example, B vitamins, magnesium, chromium and selenium) that may be deficient when you’re depressed or anxious. Omega-3 fatty acids, Dr. Gordon tells us, have been repeatedly shown to improve mood in depressed people. He gives more information in his book about how to use these to stabilize your mood. Many people find sustenance and inspiration for dealing with depression’s challenges by studying spiritual wisdom and practices from a variety of religions around the world.
LEAVING THE DRUGS
Dr. Gordon says that he finds that people who follow his program generally feel significantly better and stronger and ready to reduce their medications within one to three months of taking the above steps. However, he says, others, typically those he describes as being “profoundly depressed,” may need considerably more time to get to this point, even with adequate therapy and emotional support. Respect and follow a timeline that feels right to you and your Guide.
Before you begin decreasing your dosage, be sure you feel improved enough that you and the medical professional with whom you’ve chosen to work (who could be your Guide) agree that you are ready. You need medical supervision — possibly from the doctor who prescribed the meds for you initially or another who is familiar with the withdrawal process and who supports the approach you’d like to take. Choose someone who is an MD or an osteopathic physician who describes him or herself as “integrative” or “holistic” or a naturopathic physician, says Dr. Gordon.
As you go through the challenge of actually withdrawing from the drugs, Dr. Gordon stresses the importance of following the suggested regimen of healthy eating, frequent exercise, meditation, self-expression and the like. Many people also find that having acupuncture treatments is very helpful, he says. It enhances relaxation, improves mood and also decreases the physical stress that may accompany withdrawal.
NATURAL ANTIDEPRESSANTS
If you still find yourself feeling shaky, blue and/or unbalanced, there are natural substances known to help ease depression. The supplement Dr. Gordon prefers to use is SAMe (S-adenosylmethionine), because it is efficacious for many people and also one of the most thoroughly researched of the natural products. SAMe works by releasing a substance that is essential to the production of neurotransmitters that antidepressant medications also target — serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. While certain pharmaceutical drugs block reuptake of these brain chemicals, SAMe encourages production of them. Dr. Gordon says SAMe’s possible side effects, which might include headaches, gastrointestinal hyperactivity and emotional numbing, are far fewer and less troubling than those of the drugs and withdrawal symptoms are also less intense. Again, it is important to work with your doctor as you decrease your antidepressant and begin to take SAMe. This is important because SAMe and antidepressant drugs work on the same neurotransmitters. When you buy SAMe in the health food store, you should look for brands that indicate they have been produced with “good manufacturing practices” (GMPs).
Other substances Dr. Gordon reports as helpful include tryptophan and 5-HTP, precursors to serotonin that increase neurotransmitter production, and St. John’s wort (Hypericum), a popular herb for treating depression. Even though these are easy to buy at drug stores or health food stores, they are powerful substances and should be taken only under ongoing supervision of a physician, nutritionist or herbalist experienced in their use. (For more on natural mood lifters, see Daily Health News, May 12, 2008.)
PART OF LIFE
While it would be great to believe that all depression can be overcome, there are people for whom intractable clinical depression is a lifelong challenge, who may need medication to live successfully with it. However, even so, Dr. Gordon generally suggests that if you and your Guide don’t feel after several months that you are able to withdraw from your drugs, you still may be able to do so in the future. Remember, he advises, that change and healing are always happening and that you can follow the suggestions in his book even while you continue to take medication.
That said, Dr. Gordon shares his perspective on depression: Bleak times and feelings, including even the darkest depression, are not separate from the rest of life. They are a part of it. Understanding that sometimes pain needs to be felt and worked through, rather than medicated, can help you avoid getting on the pharmaceutical merry-go-round in the first place. “With the right tools people can deal with the hard times and also learn to celebrate the good times,” he says.” Even the most disturbing periods in life can be positive and life affirming and full of intense and powerful growth.”
Source(s): ?
James S. Gordon, MD, psychiatrist and founder and director of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC, and author of Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey Out of Depression (The Penguin Press). He is former chairman of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy.
January 19th, 2010 at 11:35 am
This is an urgent notice to those of you with parents, relatives, and friends who have school age children on Guam. Please urge them to to complete the annual Parent-Pupil Federal Survey and return it today.
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Parents Urged To Complete Survey
Parents are urged to complete the annual Parent-Pupil Federal Survey to help the Department of Education determine the number of “federally connected” students in the public school system. These students are children whose parents or legal guardians:
Reside and/or work on federal property;
Reside in federal low-rent housing, not including Section 8 housing; and
Are members of the uniformed services but reside off the military base.
Parents of more than one student must fill out a survey for each student under their care. The survey responses are tied to the federal aid that the education department receives each year. The surveys will be distributed to all students in DOE schools today and must be completed and returned to the school by tomorrow.
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Call home and remind everyone how important this is.
Hafa Adai
Anna
January 19th, 2010 at 11:49 am
As you can see from the article below the right is below using celebrities to disseminate lies and hate messages to their flock.
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Save Lives in Haiti, End Lives in America?
By Chuck Norris
While White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was announcing Friday all that the present administration was doing to save lives in Haiti, he reported that President Barack Obama was meeting with both the House and Senate Democrats to resolve how they could provide federal funds via Obamacare to terminate more American lives in the womb.
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Is it not incongruous to anyone else that our president, who professes to be an advocate for all minorities, isn’t one for the most disadvantaged to survival? What type of “health care” is that for the least among (and within) us?
Save lives in Haiti, end lives in America? What an utterly contradictory presidential plan and policy, especially for a man who claims to be an activist for the underprivileged. What a stark and tragic contradiction in agendas, aids, ethics and the value of human life.
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You think the morons who follow these crooks would ask themselves why the people who profess to care so much about life in the wound are always pushing guns to snuff out that life as soon as it exits the wound.
I guess hypocrites get what they deserve – advice from hypocrites.
Mike
January 19th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Michelle
A friend in the states who reads your blog sent me this and asked me to post it. I don’t understand why he couldn’t do it himself. I know that he is a big fan of yours. When he isn’t touting your writing skills he is raving about how beautiful you are. But he is a man, so who knows.
And no _____ I won’t reveal you identity. And yes she is a happily married woman? Only a man asks another woman to find out if another woman is committed to her relationship.
Oh, here’s the article:
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Reflux study misses the mark
Ask most doctors, and they’ll tell you that when it comes to gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), you have one of two choices: drugs or surgery. But a recent study should have them – and you – considering a third option.
After following patients for 12 years, the researchers determined that “both treatments leave room for therapeutic improvement.”
That’s one way of putting it. Of the patients who had surgery, only about 50 percent remained in remission, and only 40 percent of the patients on meds remained in remission.
But even then, postoperative difficulties had many patients trading one set of symptoms for another: heartburn and regurgitation for difficulties in swallowing, excessive flatulence, and the inability to belch or vomit. And to make matters worse, many of the surgery patients (38 percent) eventually had to go on drugs anyway.
If you think this makes acid-suppressing drugs like Prilosec look like the best possible option, you’re not the only one. Dr. Sutart Jon Spechler of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas said, “I find it difficult to fathom why a typical GERD patient would opt for a potentially hazardous surgery to fix a problem managed almost as well by a reasonably safe medication.”
Of course you’d expect him to say that. The study was funded by AstraZeneca, the maker of Prilosec.
If this study was all you had to go by, you might come to the same conclusion. Fortunately, there’s plenty of other information on this drug.
For starters, Prilosec is only approved for short-term use. The manufacturer itself doesn’t recommend using beyond 14 days. Could that be because long-term use of the drug in rats led to an increase in gastroinstestinal cancers? Or maybe because it can cause joint, muscle, and leg pain? Or possibly it’s because of the diarrhea, abdominal pain, and nausea?
Whatever the reason, I can’t think of one person who only took this drug for 14 days. The study itself examined patients who had been taking it for 12 whole years! Even if patients tried to stop taking the drug, they’d be on it again before long because it doesn’t fix the problem. Once you stop taking it, all of your old symptoms are likely to flare up again in less than a week.
The bottom line is that drugs like Prilosec will come up short every time. It’s part of a class of drugs called proton pump inhibitors that work by reducing stomach acid to around 10 percent of normal levels. Problem is, you need stomach acid. And in reality, many of the people who have reflux problems are actually suffering from too little stomach acid – not too much. Which is why, as contradictory as this might sound, you should actually be looking for ways to increase your stomach acid levels.
One of the great pioneers of stomach acid is Dr. Jonathan Wright, and you can learn more on the real causes of heartburn, acid reflux and GERD from his website, http://www.wrightnewsletter.com. For a more detailed explanation – and a solution – pick up his book, “Why Stomach Acid Is Good for You.” It’s widely available from bookstores, online booksellers and libraries. v In the meantime, try some DGL, or deglycyrrhizinated licorice. You can find it in a vitamin shop or health food store, where it’s often sold as a chew. Just don’t confuse it with sugary licorice candies – they’re definitely not the same thing.
Many people who use DGL get the quick relief they’re looking for… with none of the problems of meds.
Reflux study misses the mark
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Hope it helps someone.
Evelyn
January 19th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
Michelle
i take lots of vitamin D. My doctor advised me a year ago to get the liquid. I like your article about the new kind of D. I will talk to my doctor about it.
Thanks, you always have good articles. Even the ones I didn’t like some of my friends loved. So agradecimentos para tudo você faz.
Jorge
January 19th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
HI Mischa, I do not know where the time went but it blew by, didn’t it? It’s that ‘life gets busy’ syndrome, I’m trying very hard to now STOP doing the time wasters that made it onto my 2010 STOP list! The continue list was easy and is going just fine, the START is about to breakthrough any day now…or at least by March 1 : )
Re: Vitey D, yes 2 hours it is individual – that being said, if it isn’t summer in LA I take 2 tablespoons of lemon flavor cod liver oil, never use sunblock and I always take a vitey D3 supplement, that’s the one that fakes out tests and most older people in particular lose first. Most people are vitey D deficient and lack symtoms, Misch – you and I are very fortunate to have that olive skin, I go a good half hour in full summer sun before I put on sunblock, I rarely burn.
Ruth, loved hearing about the girls, forgot to say that myself : )
Donna, I agree with Mischa, that 6 year old’s (and many other kids I have encountered unfortunately) could use a lesson in manners. I’m like supernanny : ) I let kids know right away, as soon as you enter my front door, my rules apply and here they are – I list them starting with no screaming and end by telling them that every request within reason will be fulfilled here with the usage of the words ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ – if you forgo those words your at risk of a definitive NO, oh yeah and no name-calling – ever – though I do allow ‘stupid’ as it applies to inanimate objects that you stub your toe on : )
…and just for good measure, the word ‘should’ is banned also, that’s just a personal thing with me, you can suggest what could be done, might be done, but don’t tell people, and children are people, what they SHOULD do, if something must be done – then just say ‘you must do _____ now” – and doesn’t ‘you could do your report this way’ sound way better and less condescending than ‘you should do your report this way’ (it begs the question: oh says who, you?)there could be a new creative way YOU haven’t thought of to do the report (or whatever, you get the gist)…and please, feel free to add your own ‘rules’ bc believe me when I tell you that I am all about the fun with kids, my girls’ pals always want to come back here, but when they know what you expect from them (like respectful behavior and attitude) and they tend to like bahavior parameters (contrary to popular beief) they will try to please you, and then you have the opportunity to please them by praise that great behavior (rather than pointing out obvious ‘bad’ behaviors) as I always say: no need to point out my faults, trust me I know what they are better than anyone, hahaha…
Sorry if I’m wrong, but I think it is Victoria who is the newcomers to the MM blog – ZL life program (bc it isn’t just exercise and food here) – based on that just joining, I’m thinking when I have time next week I’ll write a review for those just joining, today I have time for an exercise, an observation and a quickie meal recipe…
This is for your hip flexor muscle, you can hold onto a wall or a friend but try it using your own balance first then go with a ‘practice makes perfect’ attitude moving forward, like yoga moves, some days yo will be more naturally balance than others, focus on the muscle and carry on, not to worry, tormorrow will be better balance (or not and still we will carry on) – stand tall, shoulders up and back, ta’s up, buns squeezed, lift your right leg up with bent knee, knee to the ceiling, toes pointed down, rotate your knee as far to the right as you can, and touch/tap that toe to the inside of your left foot, and immediately lift back up, rotate back to front and lower that leg, repeat this 5 times on each side, you will be holding that bum muscle tight for the entire exercise and it will be a slow 6 count to complete each one. If you’ve ever suffered hip joint pain and you do this to the best of your ability I will bet my life you will have not only improved mobility but less pain overall very soon – the key is slow deliberate movement and only going as far to the left or right as it takes to feel a stretch not pain, your range of motion will improve over time. An older woman at my gym does a very modified version holding the wall with her knee only up slightly but she gushes enthusiastically about this one. I’ve got another to add next week but add this to your warm up ebfore your walk and definitely before your tennis shuffles whenever your doing them.
OK, here’s your Quinoa recipe, if you’re going veggie, leave the chicken out. first – let’s make chicken that you can leave in the fridge in containers of 4 ounces each, I make 4-6 chicken breasts this way at a time, leave in fridge or freezer for easy eating…spray olive oil or 1 tablespoon in a pan, sprinkle lemon pepper in the pan (or another fave seasoning, I like this one) drop in the chicken and brown it on that side, sprinkly a little lemon pepper on top side and turn it, when both sides are browned, add 1/2 cup white wine (don’t use shitty wine, it just makes your chicken taste shitty too) and lower the heat for 3-5 minutes till cooked. You can chop all of it into 1 inch bites or leave whole, your choice.
Add 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups water or chicken stock, with lid on, bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes, shut off burner and let it stand for 5-10, then fluff it with a fork. Take pesto sauce, store bought or your own, add 3 large tablespoons to the pesto and blend or just stir together.
In a bowl, put 4 ounces of the plain quinoa, add 4 ounces of the chicken, then top with your new improved pesto sauce and voila’ – it’s so tasty, without the chicken is just as good.
…and there you have it, I will catch up with you when I can but I’ll be working on the review for next week so we can get more beginnners and keep the followers in maintenace mode : ) I’m so pleased that it has worked so well for so many here, my roomie has lost pateince with ‘having to do this all the time’ – it’s not hard once converted and committing to feeling better, the side bene of looking good, losing weight and being sexually more active speak for themselves.
On that note, almost forgot, I wanted to share this TAOist (not the alien TAO’s) thought which I wholeheartedly agree with…sex is not about releasing energy, stress or emotion (though it can seem to be) but more the opposite: sex is meant to replenish sexual energy and ensure physical, emotional and mental well-being. They (and I) also believe that sex can be a spiritual experience (no jokes about ‘oh God’ here!) it’s a meeting – a feeling of unity of heaven and earth, yin/yang, fire/water. This is simply my own observation, if you deplete your sexual energy without the above mentioned approach and personal attitude to replenish, you create the atmosphere for requiring all kinds of stimulation from other sources to help fill that sexual energy need…it can manifest as drug/alcohol over usage, porn over usage, necessity for multiple partners past forty : ), etc…all which further deplete rather than rebuild sexual energy, it’s just my theory…do with it what you will.
Hi to Howie and Al, I’m sure your reading and laying low till you have something to say ; )
PLuvness, Zen Lill
January 19th, 2010 at 1:18 pm
Anna did you read about Corey?
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by Sabrina Salas Matanane
Guam – After waiting three days Joseph and Corina Paulino said they finally received an email from their son in Haiti informing them he was fine. “It was troubling” Paulino told KUAM over the phone, about not knowing how his 22-year-old son Corey was doing. Corey does missionary work for the Haitian Project.
According to the non profit organization’s website the Haitian Project is a Catholic, co-educational boarding school in Port Au Prince that educates and nurtures academically talented and motivated students from the poorest Haitian families to maximize their potential and enable them to work toward building a Haiti where justice and peace thrive.
Joseph Paulino says his son started working in Haiti after he graduated from Seattle University. He was hired as a Professor of Biology. Paulino says because of limited communications in Haiti, Corey’s e-mail message was brief, only stating that he was fine and helping treat at least 200 refugees in the camp where he is stationed. He added that Corey was at a soccer field near his camp when the earthquake struck.
As for efforts to bring Corey home, his father says he wants to stay and continue his work there and help the victims of the earthquake.
Corey is from Talofofo and is 2005 graduate of Father Duenas Memorial School.
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We were all excited to hear the news.
Rico
January 19th, 2010 at 6:08 pm
Who are the Oio?
January 19th, 2010 at 6:11 pm
If you ever feel a little bit stupid, just dig this up and read it again; your confidence will be restored!