Keep up with the newest discussion about natural medicine and the health care revolution! Subscribe to our RSS feed. Want to know more about RSS feeds? Read about why you should use RSS, and how to do it!

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is not our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talented, and famous?

Acutally, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.
Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.

There’s nothing elightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.
We were born to magnify the glory of God that is within us.

It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.

Jeffery Smith will reveal the health dangers of GMO foods and political and industrial influence and political that continue to allow them on the market. Hailed as the great resource on the topic, many believe that the revelations in this book can topple an industry.

Dr. Russell Marz, NCNM and Trader Joe’s presents this explosive expose` by Jeffery Smith author of Seeds of Deception - the real truth about safety of genetically engineered foods.

Wednesday Oct 3rd, 6:30-9:30 in the NCNM Great Hall.

For further details, visit www.taborhillclinic.com

Dalai Lama?!

To come and speak

in Portland, Oregon?

Voicing his thoughts on a

sustainable infrastructure

involving health care…?

Sure, I’d love to help.

All I have to do

is fill out a postcard

sharing my thoughts

about how a dialogue with him

about medicine and healing

would benefit the next generation

of health practitioners and respective patients?

(which includes me!)

Dude!

What an opportunity to be heard

… and by the Dalai directly.

Count– me— in—- !

Well, heck, I’ll give my two cents.

Oh, I can donate 30 cents for postage? No biggie.

That’s a small sacrifice for such a grand cause.

Thanks

??s kbrown@ncnm.edu

JeremyS,

And so the dialogue begins, thank you for taking interest in a topic that needs a bit of attention. After reviewing your comments, I thought long and deep about how to respond about the American Cancer Society (ACS). I have decided to dedicate a full letter to you so that the forum can continue in a way that adds insight for the average health-seeking layman. To answer your question bluntly, yes, I’m saying exactly that: if ACS works directly and more intimately within the public realm, this will expedite the process of preventing cancer, and that this can be achieved by educating the populace at an individual, grassroots level.

In the initial stages, when I first began preliminary searches into resources supporting cancer patients, I found solace in the recommendations described by ACS’s “The Complete Guide: Nutrition and Physical Activity”, thinking that this was a wonderful place to advocate for a person’s health. The initial paragraphs do describe some terms and conditions a person could employ in order to achieve a basic bill of health; and don’t get me wrong, this is valuable information. However, as I read more deeply into the different disease states, the advice appears rather bland, focused on a broad audience. It is presented in a cookie-cutter format: not really addressing how to adequately and effectively treat at the individual level, and not really covering all the bases for good healthcare management. These are not good details to miss when attempting to prevent or to treat a debilitating disease. This is where I see a limitation in ACS’s methodology, and a great opportunity for implementing a positive change.

An acute example of this discrepancy is located within the section describing “pancreatic cancer”, a disease where insulin plays a rather large role in most cases. The obvious details of avoiding foods containing high levels of sugar, like soft drinks, refined and processed foods, and other high-glycemic items like the potato go strangely missing. Its commentary focuses on studies that “may” do this or that, walking a line that creates vague distinctions for a person wishing to avoid cancer.

I say this, because basic instructions, aimed at a general population, and an ill-defined treatment or preventative approach can lead to: a poor plan of action for an individual who is seeking to be healthyand, more importantly, harmful consequences.

In all honesty, there is no advice presented on this level of generality that could replace specific and tailored guidance at the individual level. Overall, I found the information somewhat helpful, but in turn problematic, as it could cause a poor set of circumstances for an uneducated individual. Luckily, both of these points are aptly addressed when focus is placed upon individual-to-individual interactions. This is the area that I am concentrating, and likewise trying to get ACS to focus its attention upon.

We are all unique human beings and how we move and interact within our environments makes us who we are: the good, the bad, and… the ugly. Cancers are unique to each individual. The term “breast cancer” does not encompass all the different forms that breast cancer can take, nor does it address the metabolic blueprint for every individual affected by this particular form of cancer, or how the cancer developed in the first place. A systematic approach to treating cancer will lead to unnecessary side effects, greater risks for other diseases and ailments. Moreover, individuals who really need specific direction will fall through the cracks, and ultimately end up as dissatisfied customers. Therefore, it seems natural that to treat cancer successfully, we must begin with the individual, in the community areas where s/he interacts on a daily basis.

This is why I recommended working through grocery stores and school systems, as well as protecting people’s health by supporting products that do not harm the environment or the individual directly. I would even go so far as to send a shout to NCNM, my alma mater, a Natural Medicine school focused on treating ALL patients as individuals, each with a unique treatment plan, with a primary focus on treating the root cause of imbalance. Each of these areas seems like obvious places to invest.

The ACS has ample amounts of funds to divert towards these issues, but instead advocates that:

“Public, private, and community organizations should work to create social and physical environments that support the adoption and maintenance of healthful nutrition and physical activity behaviors.

1. Increase access to healthful foods in schools, worksites, and communities.

2. Provide safe, enjoyable, and accessible environments for physical activity in schools and for transportation and recreation in communities.”

Yes, this is a fabulous idea, in fact, I suggesting just that.

Let’s take their community oriented programs and bring them closer to home. Community based formats are actively being pursued in several small avenues, but this, unfortunately takes money. This is why these avenues have remained small and not the rivers of change, not the conduits of information to the public that we so desperately need.Advocating for a little funding from the ACS to support these organizations makes sense, especially because:

“The American Cancer Society is the nationwide community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and service.”

If ACS invests more heavily here, into these community based fronts, there will not only be a decrease in cancer, but other debilitating diseases as well. In some regards the ACS has taken steps towards this direction, I am simply advocating for a stronger presence into these areas.

Thank you for taking the time to respond, it keeps me thinking, assessing, and making sense out of all the information that is out there. I must admit, that it can be difficult being an educated consumer, however the rewards of knowledge are far-reaching and profound. Thanks for stretching my noodle.

Have a brilliantly beautiful day, JeremyS.

C. Biscuit

As an aside, in my search for answers to your questions, I found a website, also aimed at preventive measures for cancer: The Cancer Prevention Coalition (CPC), which pointed out a few of the forgotten pieces not presented by the ACS. CPC’s board members are a collection of international doctors and professors with diverse and appropriate backgrounds. An MD out of Chicago, Dr. Samuel Epstein keeps this resource updated and provides advice to consumers ranging from protection against chemicals, pharmaceutical drugs, food additives, as well as environmental toxins. Epstein also acts as a watchdog for cancer-preventative based agendas, and keeps his audience updated and informed about the politics behind organizations like ACS, the US National Cancer Institute, and US governmental policies.

Open letter to the American Cancer Society
To Whom It May Concern:

A small disclaimer to set context to my text: it is not my intention to appear as snide or sarcastic in this commentary, rather much to the contrary. I am approaching the topic of a cure for cancer in a matter-of-fact manner in an attempt to provide a few helpful suggestions. Hopefully, in turn, leading to a reduction in the number of cancer cases, and an alleviation of any compounding strains to your mission of studying this rather difficult topic of interest. Please note my truest intentions are listed below and are meant to offer help for your cause. All thoughts expressed are within a similar healthcare vein, as we are both actively seeking to help people get better. So, with clear communication established, allow me to begin.

First and foremost, I wish to express my gratitude for your efforts of taking on the enormous endeavor of finding a cure for cancer.

The subject of cancer immediately impacts directly or indirectly humans on a personal level, and that the awareness of cancer is recognized by most, if not all humans. Your organization’s endless plight has come to my attention through many formats, specifically your ribbon campaigns, superstar endorsements, and various races and walks have alerted me to your vocational pursuits. Awareness of cancerous conditions is critical in the strategy to understanding the diseased state itself. However, despite this awareness, the cure for cancer has continued to illude us, and unfortunately, the prevalence rates of cancers remain on the rise.

Personally, I believe that the cure for cancer is a pretty large request and given the current circumstances, odds are not in your favor. I would venture to leave the “cure” for cancer well enough alone, as it seems like a rather large, unwieldy project to undertake, but taking all circumstances into account, the topic of cancer is a rather valiant one to touch upon. This brings me to my point, how can we approach the topic in a slightly different manner, allowing the capability for a “cure.” Luckily, it remains possible to create a bigger and more holistic perspective of cancer, by sifting through the sandbox a little, perhaps finding the illusive cure.

Let begin by redefining cancer with a definition that allows us health practitioners room to operate, by giving a dynamic point of view rather than an end result definite definition.

All of the brainstorming below requires “out of the box” thinking for a moment, therefore a suspension of any assumptions about cancer would be beneficial in the interest of creating a plausible mental shift. In other words let’s take cancer out of the “box” that has “exact and discernible physical limits” according to Webster. An important reminder to note is that nothing is really ever static and that everything is dynamic. And as you read through this exercise, allow displacement of old with new, and new with old, consider the possibilities of an alternate way of thinking in order to solve this troublesome predicament that we humans seem to find ourselves within.

In my Grandmother’s 1956 Webster’s dictionary, cancer’s first official definition describes a constellation between Gemini and Leo, then goes on to describe its appearance during the summer solstice, followed a brief flirtation with the sun as it declines in the northern sky. The second explanation of cancer illustrates a more static approach to defining cancer, one that we adhere very closely with today:

“A malignant growth of tissue, usually ulcerating, tending to spread and associated with general ill health and progressive emaciation; specifically, a carcinoma, or a sarcoma, or especially formerly, any other malignant tumor growth.” *

Please note how the interpretation of cancer focuses on end results, a collection of symptoms commonly seen after a period of neglect of a particular organ or body tissue. The current state of cancer and its relationship to management of its condition aptly demonstrates an application of this definition for the word cancer. This approach in logic has lead to the dead-end way of thinking that, well, limits our attempt to find a cure for cancer.

Now, consider the third and final definition, a rather concise, no-nonsense, and dynamic approach to understanding cancer:

“A malignant evil that corrodes slowly and fatally.”

The words malignant, evil, and fatally are all tempting to highlight because each personifies cancer as we know it today, and upon further inspection of my Grandmother’s worn blue Webster I discover why. Malignant refers to causing harm or death; evil tends to work through injurious, calamitous, and morally corrupt ways; and fatally, well, that is a no-brainer. These words are worth mentioning here because each adds into an atmosphere that remains far from desirable, and more importantly, conditions best if avoided all together. Equally pertinent to our discussion of a cure for cancer are the words corrodes and slowly. Please examine the definition of corrode and an implied definition of slowly through the following:

“1. To eat away by degrees, as if by gnawing; to wear away gradually, as by the action of strong acid, caustic alkali, or other chemical; also, formerly, to erode.
2. To consume; to impair.”

Judging by these statements, cancer appears to be a gradual process starting with an initial imbalance or disharmony that results in the consuming of healthy tissues and organs, ultimately leading to impairment. At this time, if clarification is necessary, please refer to cancer’s most commonly cited list of illustrating symptom complex, conveniently found in definition noted with an * above.

Now, imagine if you harness the momentum you’ve already gained for your cause through your “cancer awareness” campaigns, and how your organization can thoughtfully approach cancer from multiple angles. For instance, visualize the potential of combining an awareness about cancer with that of preventative medicine; in essence you are stopping a malignant evil from ever getting to the point of corroding organs and tissues. Here are some specific examples that you could use:

1. Focus a good portion of your resources into understanding and advocating preventative medicine.

2. Channel funds into local and organic food sources so that a diet based on balanced nutrition could be available to more people.

3. Educate individuals about diet, nutrition and exercise in a fun and interactive way. If you need a few suggestions, the farmer’s markets in Portland are a great place to find a plethora of ideas. Same goes with our New Season’s and Whole Foods supermarkets, they have numerous options for understanding lifestyle and nutrition, taking on big issues with simple changes.

4. Chemicals in our environment are big culprits for causing cancer. How about investing in companies that produce natural and sustainable products for everyday use, like lotions, cleaning products, and cosmetics?

If we can truly teach individuals how to be thoughtful about their choices, and to re-introduce quality into lives, this will place a genuine focus on health for the human race. As for your organization, you can take advantage of the already existing infrastructure of food markets, school curriculum, naturally based product lines. Ultimately, this thoughtful approach would avoid huge and costly medical expenses, and most importantly cancer. This would, in effect, be a great form of strategy your organization could employ on your path to finding a viable “cure.”

Are we truly in the dark ages of plaguing cancers?

After contemplation of the subject of cancer, it did appear frighteningly realistic considering the odds each individual now has for developing cancer. However, recalling that everything is dynamic, and nothing is static, allows the reader, researcher, patient, practitioner, whomever a little breathing room when it comes to finding a potential “cure” for cancer. Our current state of reality creates a sense of alarm for the general population, and this red flag is somewhat necessary to make changes in our awareness. Awareness plus knowledge about balanced health will create a true potential for the Holy Grail that you seek.

Hope this helps.
Highest Regards,

C. Biscuit