Organic food was the only option for thousands of years. Now, with pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and genetically-modified foods, organic is still the best option.
Genetically-modified foods were unleashed on the environment and the public by corporations like Monsanto without prior testing to determine their safety. In other words, eating genetically-modified foods (which most people in in large amounts) is participating in a long-term, uncontrolled experiment. Choose organic to avoid participating in this experiment.
The Cornucopia Institute, through research and investigations on agricultural and food issues, provides needed information to family farmers, consumers and other stakeholders in the good food movement and to the media. We support economic justice for the family-scale farming community – partnered with consumers – backing ecologically produced local, organic and authentic food.
Our feline friends provide us with more than just emotional support. House cats may actually be contributing to our physical well-being. When a cat purrs within a range of 20-140 Hertz, nearby humans may be therapeutically benefiting from these vibrations. Purring has been linked to lowering stress, decreasing symptoms of dyspnea, lessening the chances of having a heart attack, and even strengthening bones.
Pet therapy is apparently gaining momentum in many medical communities, and according to Animal Planet’s website, there is scientific research that suggests pet owners live longer than those without pets.
It seems that our own animals have the ability to relieve us of our troubles, or at least make our worries seem less important. The bond between pets and their owners may never be fully understood (cats in particular have always struck me as magical and mysterious–and now they have healing powers?!) but it’s nice to know having a furry confidant around can add years to our lives.
Alternative medicine is any practice that is presented as having the healing effects of medicine, but is not based on evidence gathered using the scientific method. It consists of a wide range of health care practices, products and therapies. Examples include new and traditional medicine practices such as homeopathy, herbal medicine, naturopathy, chiropractic, energy medicine, various forms of acupuncture, Traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, and Christian faith healing. The treatments are those that are not part of the conventional, science-based healthcare system.
The scientific community has criticized alternative medicine as being based on misleading statements, quackery, pseudoscience, anti-science, fraud, or poor scientific methodology. Promoting alternative medicine has been called dangerous and unethical. Testing alternative medicine has been called a waste of scarce medical research resources.
Critics have said “there is really no such thing as alternative medicine, just medicine that works and medicine that doesn’t”, or “Can there be any reasonable ‘alternative’ (to medicine based on science)?
The eighth chakra is located 24 inches (61 cm) above the crown of the head and functions as the energy epicenter of the entire chakra system. The purpose of this chakra is to protect the physical, emotional, and spiritual body.
Also known as the aura, it serves as the root of all the divine energy and compassion that course through the system.
From a physical perspective, the eighth chakra, unlike the other seven major chakras, does not reside on the body. Instead, it hovers over the top of the body, above the crown chakra located at the highest point of the head.
Chakra healing experts believe that this chakra can be glimpsed through the third eye and resembles a light-filled orb with a slightly orange radiance.
~Connect to Your Higher Self~
Your 8th chakra is the doorway between your immortal soul and your earth-bound personality. If you’ve done the requisite self-work — through meditation or energy healing or other methods — you should be able to talk to your higher self and ask her the questions you most want answered.
Your higher self can give you access to the Akashic records, help you find your true life purpose, and remind you that you are a perfect being made of love and light. Opening your 8th chakra and stepping through the veil that separates your earthly self from your eternal soul will open your eyes to the vast space beyond physical plane boundaries.
~Clear Your Karmic Residue~
Karmic residue sounds pretty gross, and it lives up to its name. It’s the leftover karmic energy that builds-up after lifetimes of clinging to the same patterns. These tired and worn-out routines keep you rooted to this planet. Since your 8th chakra is the gate that leads to the divine, it is the last chakra that holds the human information that is not needed or desired in the expanded universe of an opened 8th chakra.
Residual energy sticks around, waiting for you to clear it out once and for all before you move on to connect with your higher self and beyond. Activating your 8th chakra can help you shed those patterns that keep you reincarnating and are not useful any more, release that icky karmic residue, and connect with the greater spiritual universe that starts with your higher self.
~Uncover Spiritual Gifts~
As your connection to the greater spiritual community grows with an activated 8th chakra, your awareness expands, and you may find that you develop new abilities. Perhaps you’ve always been intuitive, but with an open 8th chakra, you’ll discover your powers of intuition increasing. Other latent talents may reveal themselves as you continue to widen your 8th chakra, including astral travel, telepathy, clairvoyance, and even energy healing.
At first, these new capabilities may seem overwhelming, but please don’t worry! Your higher self would never bestow these gifts upon you unless you were ready. Taking healing courses or other spiritual workshops, and working with an energy healer or other type of spiritual teacher can help you control, manage, and develop your newfound abilities.
~Learn Your Soul’s Purpose~
The 8th chakra is like the record room for your soul’s contract, which is another way of saying your life purpose. Your soul enters this world with a goal, which has to do with learning lessons in order to evolve. Your soul’s purpose is always clear to your higher self, but may not be as obvious to your personality once it incarnates onto the physical plane. It takes the activation of the 8th chakra to get in touch with your higher self enough to be let into that record room for a glimpse at your soul contract.
After your 8th chakra is activated and open, don’t be surprised if you begin to feel like you need to shift your focus, especially if you have spent years ignoring your true passion. That nagging voice that tells you to follow your true path is really your higher self offering guidance, nudging you to get to work on whatever your soul is meant to do while in this body at this time.
~Experience Divine Love and Spiritual Compassion~
When you start to understand that you are truly a soul living temporarily in a physical body rather than a body with a soul, your capacity for deep compassion and divine love begins to blossom. As the 8th chakra expands and this knowledge is fully absorbed, you become more spiritually compassionate because you now know that everyone else is on the same journey.
Each soul plays its own important role in the interconnected community we’re all a part of, and by activating your 8th chakra and peeking at that huge spiritual tapestry, you experience true unity, which is followed by unconditional love from the Divine. Once you feel the power of divine love, you will reflect that love in your actions and it will spread like ripples in a pond. Imagine what the world could be like if everyone had golden halos from their open 8th chakras beaming love and compassion. It starts with you.
The conflicts of a human’s life are directly proportional to the distance at which energy of personality exists separately from the harmonic frequencies that emanates from the divine spark or soul. The Seat of the soul, the eighth chakra holds the ancient knowledge of our soul contracts and ultimately, our life purpose. The 8th Chakra is the energy center of divine love, of spiritual compassion and spiritual selflessness. The seat of the soul is the major core star of our energetic system, also holding the records of on what our souls had agreed as specific lessons in our upcoming lifetimes and past lives.
Hugs are very important to me. My life would be colorless without them. They are shows of affection between family, friends and loved ones. They show support and convey feelings of love. They celebrate life’s events, sports victories.
A hug is a near universal form of physical intimacy in which two people put their arms around the neck, back, or waist of one another and hold each other closely. If more than two persons are involved, this is informally referred to as a group hug.
~~Description~~
A hug, sometimes in association with a kiss, is a form of nonverbal communication. Depending on culture, context and relationship, a hug can indicate familiarity, love, affection, friendship or sympathy. A hug can indicate support, comfort, and consolation, particularly where words are insufficient. A hug usually demonstrates affection and emotional warmth, sometimes arising from joy or happiness at meeting someone or seeing someone long-absent. A hug can range from a brief one-second squeeze, with the arms not fully around the partner, to an extended holding.
Hugging has been proven to have health benefits. One study has shown that hugs increase levels of oxytocin and reduce blood pressure.
An unexpected hug can be regarded as an invasion of a person’s personal space, but if it is reciprocated it is an indication that it is welcome. Also, a person, especially a child, may caress and hug a doll or stuffed animal. Young children will also hug their parents when they feel threatened by an unfamiliar person, although this may be regarded as clinging onto rather than hugging because it demonstrates a need for protection rather than affection.
~~Ten Reasons Why We Need at Least 8 Hugs a Day~~
The nurturing touch of a hug builds trust and a sense of safety. This helps with open and honest communication.Hugs can instantly boost oxytocin levels, which heal feelings of loneliness, isolation, and anger.Holding a hug for an extended time lifts one’s serotonin levels, elevating mood and creating happiness.
Hugs strengthen the immune system. The gentle pressure on the sternum and the emotional charge this creates activates the Solar Plexus Chakra. This stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body’s production of white blood cells, which keep you healthy and disease free.
Hugging boosts self-esteem. From the time we’re born our family’s touch shows us that we’re loved and special. The associations of self-worth and tactile sensations from our early years are still imbedded in our nervous system as adults. The cuddles we received from our Mom and Dad while growing up remain imprinted at a cellular level, and hugs remind us at a somatic level of that. Hugs, therefore, connect us to our ability to self love.
Hugging relaxes muscles. Hugs release tension in the body. Hugs can take away pain; they soothe aches by increasing circulation into the soft tissues.
Hugs balance out the nervous system. The galvanic skin response of someone receiving and giving a hug shows a change in skin conductance.The effect in moisture and electricity in the skin suggests a more balanced state in the nervous system – parasympathetic.
Hugs teach us how to give and receive. There is equal value in receiving and being receptive to warmth, as to giving and sharing. Hugs educate us how love flows both ways.
Hugs are so much like meditation and laughter. They teach us to let go and be present in the moment. They encourage us to flow with the energy of life. Hugs get you out of your circular thinking patterns and connect you with your heart and your feelings and your breath.
The energy exchange between the people hugging is an investment in the relationship. It encourages empathy and understanding. And, it’s synergistic, which means the whole is more than the sum of its parts: 1 1 = 3 or more! This synergy is more likely to result in win-win outcomes.
I’m a student of the main seven chakras in our body. I have read, posted and worked with them on a consistent basis. As I was looking for a topic for this “At the end of the day ….” post, I learned something new.
I found the video included at the end of this information.
I hope that you, dear reader, consider this an interesting topic which may motivate you for further research.
~~Subpersonal chakras~~
(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Subpersonal chakras are five chakras, in addition to the usual seven, that some yogis assert are located in descending order below the feet as far as about four feet (about 1.3 meters) below the feet.
Credit for this image
This image is copyrighted to Transference Healing, 2005.
~~Earth star chakra~~
The Earth star chakra is a chakra believed by some New Age and Neo-pagan groups to exist in line with one’s spine six inches (about 40 centimeters) below the feet (thus, one would be carrying it with oneself six inches below the surface of Earth wherever one walks, and of course six inches below oneself wherever else one goes, as for example when flying on an airplane or doing rock climbing).
However, others describe the Earth star chakra as being “two arms lengths” below the feet, which would make it about four feet (about 130 centimeters) below the feet.
The five subpersonal chakras are numbered from the nearest one to the body, a few inches below the feet, to the fifth one, two arms lengths below the feet.
Incarnation Point Chakra (a few inches below the feet) – practical implementation of the soul journey for the current life Incarnator Chakra (about 40 cm below the feet) – connection to ancestry, tribe, clan Subpersonal Leadership Chakra (below the feet at an arm’s length) – Anima, in contact with the female archetype Earth Centering Chakra (below the feet at an arm’s length) – links to the archaic earth energy
Earth Star Chakra (below the feet at two arms’ lengths) – exchange and relationship to the Earth goddess
Tony, a 13 year old tiger, is used as a roadside attraction at Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, Louisiana. Please support efforts to give Tony the life and home he deserves at a big cat sanctuary.
~Mission~
The objective of the Facebook page is to keep Tony’s story in the public eye, provide information and updates, and discuss ways we can help Tony legally and ethically to the home and life he deserves.
The Facebook page, Free Tony The Tiger, was created SOLELY FOR TONY.
~Company Overview~
Tony represents 1 of the thousands (estimated at appx. 5000*) of privately owned tigers in the United States whose numbers exceed tigers left in the wild. These captive tigers are: bred for profit, kept as “pets,” found in roadside zoos, attractions and circuses, tiger cubs are exploited in photo ops and exhibitions, others are condemned to canned hunts and sold on the black market. *Reference: http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/tigers/captive-tigers/
We can help stop the abuse and exploitation of these magnificent cats by supporting The Big Cats & Public Safety Protection Act:HR 1998
This bill would prohibit private possession of big cats except at highly-qualified facilities like accredited zoos where they can be properly cared for and safely managed.
Take Action at this link with the easy contact form courtesy of Big Cat Rescue
Free Tony The Tiger is dedicated to raising awareness for Tony and to securing his release to an accredited big cat sanctuary where he can receive the care, home, diet, enrichment, medical care and respect he deserves.
It is also the mission of Free Tony The Tiger to bring attention to the severe problem of privately owned tigers in the United States.
There are more tigers in captivity in the United States than left in the wild. We can help stop the abuse and exploitation of these magnificent cats by supporting The Big Cats & Public Safety Protection Act
This bill would prohibit private possession of big cats except at highly-qualified facilities like accredited zoos where they can be properly cared for and safely managed.
Take Action at this link with the easy contact form courtesy of
Urgent update: Pending a veto from Governor Bobby Jindal, Tony the tiger will continue to languish in a cage as a roadside attraction. Please act NOW and tell Governor Jindal to veto Senate Bill (S.B.) 250 and send Tony to a sanctuary!
Tony the tiger has been caged and used as a tourist attraction at Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tête, La., for more than 10 years.
Tony is a 13 year old Siberian/Bengal tiger used as a roadside attraction at Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete Louisiana. Tony’s owner, Michael Sandlin, has bought, sold, bred, and exhibited tigers for OVER 20 years. In 2003, because of violations and fines, Mr. Sandlin and the USDA made an agreement where 3 of the 4 tigers he owned, Toby, Khan and Rainbow, were sent to Tiger Haven in Kingston TN. The USDA reduced the fines and allowed Michael Sandlin to keep one tiger, Tony.
Unfortunately for Tony, Louisiana Senate Bill (S.B.) 250 was designed to appease owner Michael Sandlin and allow his continued custody of the suffering tiger, despite the fact that his captivity of Tony was declared illegal by a state court of appeal. The Louisiana legislature should be ashamed of itself for creating a loophole to skirt its own state’s animal-protection laws just so that a truck-stop owner—who has repeatedly violated federal law by failing to provide tigers with adequate veterinary care and safe and sanitary housing and by handling tigers in a way that causes them undue stress or trauma—can continue to use a caged, deprived tiger as a sad “mascot.”
Tony deserves the chance to roam an area that is measured in acres instead of just feet and inches.
PETA is calling on Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal to veto the legislature’s ludicrous move, and as we have offered for years, PETA stands ready to help transport Tony to a sanctuary that will give him a real life.
Please call Governor Jindal at 225-342-7015 or 866-366-1121 and tell him to stand up for Tony.
Pick up the phone now! Take just a few minutes to make a brief, polite call to Governor Jindal. You can simply say, “Hello. I’m concerned about the welfare of captive tigers in Louisiana. I would like for you to veto Senate Bill 250.”
Tony is still “living” at the tiger truck stop in Louisiana, it’s very important that we the public keep the pressure on the government agency which decides the fate of Tony.
“So often we look outside of ourselves for answers. On one level this makes sense. If we don’t have an answer, surely someone else must. However, is that really true? Or, do we already have much of the knowledge we need in order to make the decision that is best for us?
I believe we have access to more answers than we can immediately perceive; however, we block ourselves from this knowledge for various reasons:
I believe we have access to more answers than we can immediately perceive; however, we block ourselves from this knowledge for various reasons:
We live too much in our left-brain (logic and reason)
Monkey-mind: a large amount of mental chatter crowds out beneficial thoughts
We’ve become disconnected from our spirituality
Ego: we believe that we already have all the answers and have stopped looking
Fear: that we might find an answer we don’t like, or even that we might find an answer within!
Now, I’m not talking about “how-to” problems such as how to use a computer application or write a book. I’m talking about the really important things in life.
A few of the questions I’ve answered introspectively, through meditation, are:
How can I make myself better, and have a strong, positive impact on everyone we touch?
Should we move now or wait?
What is the best way to connect with the people we can best help?
I’ve received answers to those questions and many more. And you can too!”
If you are seeking, seek us with joy For we live in the kingdom of joy. Do not give your heart to anything else But to the love of those who are clear joy, Do not stray into the neighborhood of despair. For there are hopes: they are real, they exist — Do not go in the direction of darkness — I tell you: suns exist.
Written by Rumi
Music by Iqbal
For example, psychological stress is associated with greater risk for depression, heart disease and infectious diseases.
But, until now, it has not been clear exactly how stress influences disease and health.
Normally, stress sets off a chain reaction in your body that includes the release of the hormone cortisol that helps you handle stressful situations (fight or flight). Cortisol also helps regulate your immune response.
In small doses, your body’s reaction to stress is protective; higher or unrelenting amounts of stress have the opposite effect.
Studies have showed how chronic stress may damage the body’s ability to regulate immune function. They found that autoimmunity results when chronic stress alters the effectiveness of cortisol to regulate the inflammatory response because it decreases tissue sensitivity to the hormone.
Specifically, immune cells become insensitive to cortisol’s regulatory effect. In turn, runaway inflammation promotes the development of autoimmunity.
Moreover, the researchers found that exposure to high levels of corticosterone (the equivalent of cortisol in rodents) simulating chronic stress reduced the number of immune cells. This increased the number of cells that encouraged damaging inflammation compared to those that inhibit it.
This mechanism appeared more pronounced in females than in males and may explain, in part, the higher rates of autoimmune disease in women than in men.
This study also supports previous research that found that a high proportion (up to 80%) of patients with autoimmune disorders reported uncommon emotional stress before disease onset.
Unfortunately, not only does stress cause disease, but the disease itself also causes significant stress in the patients, creating a vicious cycle.
~~Take Away~~
The researchers say the results of this study suggest that while a high level of cortisol may generally protect against the worsening of autoimmune diseases, in those exposed to chronic stress, steroids could lead to a worsening of their symptoms.
Therefore, even though steroids is one of the treatments for chronic inflammation, use of such a treatment – particularly in patients suffering from chronic stress – should be carefully weighed and considered.
It Is What It Is 