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Why medical screening is dangerous
21st March 2008
As you know, I'm not one of those 'holier than thou'
health nuts.
When it comes to food, I think life is about having a bit
of what you fancy. No point in spending our days
beating ourselves up about our indulgences, or
panicking about everything we eat.
Otherwise you live a life of guilt. Unhappy, stressed...
and therefore UNHEALTHY.
You know what I mean? As you sidle into the kitchen,
pretending that you're only there to make a herbal tea,
you think....
'Shall I have that biscuit?'
[BOOMIING VOICE: No! It's evil, you're weak!]
'Oh dear, for some reason I'm now holding the
biscuit.'
[BOOMING VOICE: You FOOL, you'll suffer for it!]
'Hmmm.... that's weird.... now I'm eating the biscuit. It
feels good.'
[BOOMING VOICE: You shall PAY for this! You will
become as big as a whale, your teeth will fall out, you
will spend an eternity in biscuit limbo!]
And as you wipe away the crumbs, your heart sinks.
'Ah, now I feel bad. Very bad.'
When bad is actually GOOD
Going on like that, you'll end up like a Medieval monk,
wandering about in a horse hair shirt, whipping your
own back.
Instead, I believe that we should all make informed
choices. If we know what's in food, and how it works,
we can eat well, and enjoy a treat when we need it.
If you know when you are indulging, and accept it as
part of a balanced and otherwise healthy diet, there's
no need for selfflagellation.
Most occasions, you'll also discover that common
wisdom is totally wrong, anyway.
What many people call an 'indulgence' is actually good
for you.
For instance...
How to eat a healthy Easter egg
Chocolate high in cocoa solids (70% or more) is not at
all bad for you... in moderation.
* It contains nutrients like iron, calcium and
potassium, and vitamins A. B1, C, D, and E.
* It contains magnesium. A lack of this mineral
in your body has been is linked with
hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, joint
problems and premenstrual tension (PMT or
PMS).
* The fat in really good plain chocolate does not
actually clog up your the arteries.
Chocolate also stimulates your taste buds, relaxes
you, sends waves of pleasure through your body, and
releases endorphins... those pleasuredrugs your body
makes itself.
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(Here I go again, getting myself excited!)
If you prefer milk chocolate go for something with a
minimum of 30% chocolate solids.
Don't pick cheap brand name chocolate that has less
than 20% chocolate solids. These things are high in
sugar content and saturated fats.
Or go mad with a watercress egg!
While looking into this subject, I read a very weird
story.
Britain's first ever 'healthy' chocolate Easter eggs are
being made with watercress
Wendy Akers from the Watercress Alliance said: 'This
is the first time watercress has ever been used in a
chocolate egg.
'It's great to combine something healthy with
something a little more indulgent.
'I'm sure it will be delicious - it just shows how
versatile watercress is.'
Hmmm... sounds intriguing, but I think I'll stick with my
70% cocoa chocolate egg!
'Now,' as Monty Python used to say, 'onto something
completely different.'
Why expensive health check-ups
could be dangerous
A while back (when I still had a proper job and more
hair), my company paid for one of those health MOT
things.
You know... where they hook you up to all sorts of
contraptions that go BING and WHIRRRR while men
in white coats stand around, shake their heads, and
make notes?
At the time I thought nothing of it.
In fact, it made a bit of sense.
I was in my late thirties, my body hand started to
disobey me ('In stomach, IN! Why won't you listen?),
and my health was suddenly something I thought I
should pay more attention to.
But now, I'm not so sure.
A team of senior doctors has discovered that these
check-ups can be misleading.
The report was from the Royal College of Pathologists
and three other respected medical and scientific
groups.
They said that while many tests have great diagnostic
value for people with symptoms.... they are 'clinically
irrelevant' for those who are well.
For example, CT scans (which X-ray your body from
various angles at the same time to spot any
abnormalities), involves exposing the body to
radiation.
And out of every 2,000 people who have one of these
scans, one will develop a fatal cancer.
Yes, it's still important to diagnose disease....
But how much of these check are down to
a desire to make money?
Private medical screening is a multimillion-pound
industry. Companies advertise scans and tests that
they claim can detect diseases before too much
damage is done.
But it's not necessary for the fit and health to go
through this.
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Instead, here are some natural ways to protect
yourself from most of ailments that these health MOTs
check for:
- Heart disease - full body CT scans are used to
detect heart disease in early stages, but if you
look after your heart properly, you can reduce
your risk of heart disease considerably.
Add cayenne pepper and garlic to your diet.
Cayenne stimulates the heart and strengthens
arteries, whilst garlic reduces the likelihood of
clotting and lowers blood pressure.
You might also want to try Hawthorn, a tonic used
by the ancient Greeks. The flowers can help
protect weak or old hearts, and can help regulate
an erratic heartbeats.
- Prostate cancer - a prostate antigen test is often
used in a health MOT to try and detect early signs
of prostate cancer. The problem is, this test has a
huge occurrence of testing positive when there is
no cancer present. This leads to an unnecessary
biopsy, which can lead to all sorts of trouble such
as impotence and incontinence.
To protect yourself against the risk of prostate
cancer, start upping your intake of lycopene, an
antioxidant that's found in tomatoes, watermelon
and pink grapefruit.
And if you suffer from prostate problems and want
to stop them dead in their tracks, try this brilliant
all-natural remedy. It's packed with practically
every herb, nutrient and vitamin that's needed to
make your prostate healthy and well.
http://www.prosteasehealth.co.uk |
- Liver disease - a liver function test is often
performed at these health checks (and you can
buy kits for £150 and do it at home), but the
results can be skewed. Besides, you can get this
test on the NHS if your doctor thinks you need
one.
In the meantime, milk thistle contains strong
antioxidants that can repair damage to liver cells
caused by cirrhosis, alcohol and prescription
drugs - but always check things out with your
doctor before taking any herbal remedy.
- Cholesterol test - this common blood test
checks for levels of LDL (bad cholesterol), which
is a main culprit behind hypertension and heart
disease. But yet again, this test can be easily
done by your GP, so go and have a chat before
you shell out any money on a private test.
And there's a lot you can do to lower your bad
cholesterol naturally. Eat plenty of onions,
sunflower seeds and oat bran - all of which help
lower cholesterol levels.
Oh, and if you're up for it, take a cold bath. Just
run enough water to cover your hips and plunge
in for ten minutes, twice a day.
Hardly a substitute for a crème egg is it, but at
least they don't add dangerous colourings to our
bath water yet. Well, not as far as I know...
That's it for this today. Enjoy yourself, indulge yourself
and have a great bank holiday!
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