Oneness

Oneness is our ability to be one with something yet a completely different being.
Today I will be talking about our oneness with our surroundings and our environment as a whole with a focus in Holistic Nutrition.

In buddhism we learn that we are all connected by energy. This is true considering we are all basically made of the same stuff. All the trace elements, and biochemical reactions. We depend on our surroundings for sustainability. According to scientific thought we all evolved from a one single cell organism. This was due possible thanks to all the other organisms that helped create Oxygen and compose our atmosphere. Without plants we wouldn't be able to breath and without animals we wouldn't be able to have a controlled and balanced environment. Even the smallest members of our ecosystems bacteria and viruses are important for our survival or balance. It wouldn't be a shock that by altering this excellently balanced system we will see changes in our surroundings.

Our body is also a balanced system composed of many reactions that help us survive.
A wise women (Nutritionist) ones told me that we are what we eat. Honestly I was 15 when she told me this and I couldn't really get a grip on it. Until one day (18th Birthday) I had an epiphany. Every time I consumed an alcoholic beverage I would see an immediate (30min) reaction. My vision would become foggy, my ideas simply rushed in and out of my head, you tend to feel numb and you become "buzzed" and this is just from 3 Long Islands which don't even constitute 1/3 of what we consume on a daily basis. So this is when I noticed that its completely true. What we consume has a direct and quick effect on our biochemical reactions.
Diabetics tend to know this more than anyone considering there glucose monitoring.

And its a sad truth that we don't have the knowledge to make healthy conscious decisions when it comes to our dietary patterns.

I encourage you to go out to your grocery store and pick only fresh or frozen produce like fruits and vegetables. Limit your consumption of salty foods which most of them tend to be canned goods. Avoid baked goods except for whole wheat bread. Drink mostly water even tho I find a cup of apple juice in the morning to be very refreshing and awakening. Instead of going to a fast food for lunch, why not bring food from home. Enjoy a nice baked fish with vegetables. Or baked vegetables with a side of fruit.

Nature is the best nutritionist, find items that arent processed and are closest to nature. !

Enjoy Life to the Fullest and remember to always Listen to your body and your surroundings ;)

Environmental Change and its Impact on Society

Many of you have heard the famous 2 words: Global Warming ... What does this mean? Global warming is an action and a moment in time where our atmospheric temperature is rising due to the concentration of heat, by heat unable to leave the atmosphere. Our planet is surrounded by an invisible shield made up of different gases that allow the planet to receive and send heat waves in and out of our planet. This whole system is regulated by our own planet. Due to the constant pollution in our planet, the emissions of CO2 gases and toxic chemicals emitted by pharmaceutical, texture and petroleum industries. All of the man made pollution in our planet can be prevented. back in the 50's this would have never been predicted, yet now thanks to the creation and expansion of Green Chemistry and Sustainable design we can limit or prevent the emission of toxic chemicals into our environment.

How does this affect me ? Well all of these toxic chemicals being excreted our being concentrated in our atmosphere and in our air. Our AIR, one of the most vital elements, oxygen. OXYGEN, is being replaced by these poisons. These toxins are inhaled by all of our population and concentrated into our biological system. Most of these chemicals either have adverse effects on our systems our they HAVEN'T EVEN BEEN TESTED to check for any interactions.

This is alarming ... As a biology student I believe we must always check human interactions considering we are the ones using it and producing it ... And to add to all of this we arent the only ones in this planet nor the only ones affected. Plants and Animals are also affected by this phenomenon. Agricultural crops are being affected. There growth has been affected and due to the contamination of soils, all of these contaminants that our in our atmosphere eventually get brought down to the earth by rain. Our food animal supply eat from these plants and therefore they also get a shot of the contaminants into there system. ... So ... We are being contaminated not just by the air that we breathe but also by the food that we eat.
Amazing... what can we do, in these world full of dangers ... do we wait ? do we .. change ?

Well we need to stand up and make a change. Take back our government and its regulatory affairs. After all we are the ones that make the economy go round by slaving our self at the office,lab,building etc... If we are going to slave ourselves at work to pay for the stuff that we eat it should be healthy and safe !!!

Environmental change is real and its already here. Let's start making a change by using safe products which are free of toxic chemicals. We need to reduce our consumption of unnecessary materials which only end up in the dumpster. Boycott companies that use unsafe methods of production and who don't have a method off sustainable line production. Adopt a more vegetable based diet, considering the animal industry produces the biggest amount of CO2 into the atmosphere. Small everyday changes make a huge difference in how the world turns. So let's all get together and make a change.

Let's take Control of Our Life and of Our Planet !!!

The Ocean as a Balancing Agent.

For many years people have been going to the beach for entertainment. To whine down from a long week or a summer past time. Personally living in a small island in the caribbean, going to the beach was as common as taking a shower.
Sea water is composed of mainly salt ions and traced minerals and some particulate metals. Our bodies are composed of about 65% water, in that mix we find salts, proteins, minerals and metals.
As you may have heard our bodies can be balanced by metals. This is possible do to our intricate balance of traced metals in our bodies. The flow of metals in our bodies helps our circulatory system flow with ease. This action helps us feel softer and at ease, making everyday and more complex tasks easier to manage.
The ocean is our natural water based magnet. It can help us concentrate our inner energies. Going to the beach is more helpful to our health than going to chlorine filled public pools. Its a stress free environment where you can socialize with your friends or make new ones.
As with any outdoor health activity you must always be prepared. UV light from the sun can cause skin cancer if overly exposed, specially if your skin isn't used to it regularly. Always where a natural based sunblock or wear a wet suit. Natural based sunblocks our easier on our skin and don't clog your pores with unwanted chemicals. After sun exposer a nice shower is always a must, but remember to apply a natural moistening cream like kiss your skin or any natural based product containing aloe vera and vitamin E.

The sea is our friend and some even say we came from the sea. Its always good to head to the beach, soak in the salty waters and the suns rays.

When we get sick Mother knows best and therefore we must always listen to our Mother Nature when we are ill.

Garlics Antimicrobial Effects

Medicinal botany has been the way to go medicine for thousands of years, yet today in our modern medical system, natural medicine isn't seen as what it ones was. I had the opportunity to work in Medicinal Plant Biochemistry and trust me the field is everyday expanding. There are many questions left unanswered and some of them who already are. I worked in researching the antimicrobial effects of garlic (Alium sativum}. The research took me about 4 months to finish and it was long, and tiring yet fruitful. My lab and I found that garlic and its hybrid forms, have compounds that inhibit the growth of fungi in in vitro. Meaning that by consuming garlic regularly you are less prone to fungal disease like candida. The research model was small and we didn't get to test many fungi, but all the ones that where tested, all where inhibited by garlic.

So eat garlic bread, marinate your veggies in garlic sauce and enjoy this enticing herb. Do it for your health.

P.S and always remember to take some mints with you just in case. ;)

Organics vs "Ordinary" Fruits and Vegetables

Manny concerned parents and grandparents come running to the Medical Office (Integrative General Medicine)where I work at talking about Organic products and there safety against regularly produced vegetables and fruits. As a Biomedical Biologist we are told that pesticides have little to no effect on the human body considering that we wash our fruits and vegetables. There is truth to this fact. Buying regularly grown fruits and vegetables are safe enough to eat as long as you take the time to wash them thoroughly and that doesn't mean simply rinsing it, but actually scrubbing it ! If your still worried about pesticides you may simply buy organics which are always the best choice or peel of the skins of non organic produce.

Always remember to eat a bunch of fruits and vegetables daily because they are truly the nutritious part of any meal ! Try a Meatless Monday in where you only eat vegetarian foods for a whole day ! Adopting this nutritious lifestyle helps you lower your chances of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cancer, and renal problems.

So go out and take a bit off nature !!! In a good eco friendly kind of a way ;)

 

Just a little something to freshen up the Blog. This is a Naturalist view of Life !

Medicine at its Roots

Medicine is an intricate part of society. Without it we would give in to Disease and Pre-mature death. Thanks to our (US/PR) Public and Environmental Health system we don't come in to the ER with conditions that are the #1 killers in the world like Water Poisoning and Malnutrition. But in a world full of commodity and flashy colored pills and liquids we have lost the true nature of what really was to be healthy and in the Physicians stance, what really meant to be a Healer. In todays pharmaceutical industry millions of dollars are spent on Biological, Chemical and Physical Research to find the next new 'Drug". Many of these miracle pills usually had a plant base but sadly the line of medications that we have been given for 20+ years are purely artificial. Our bodies are divine ! We have been created to create and to survive. Our bodies defenses are to admire and "aww" at. We can withstand millions of daily attacks of Bacteria, Viruses, Fungi and Parasites. If it weren't for our divine bodies we would literally be sick daily or not last very long in this planet.

As Napoleon ones said :" Water, air, and cleanliness are the chief articles in my pharmacopoeia."

Our Creator has given us an Environment compiled of all that we need to survive. The Sun gives us energy, plants give us food and Medicine and our Knowledge has given us the power to thrive and to conquer and we have become the Largest Species of this planet and not to mention the ones who "Control it".

We must try to ween ourselves from a lifestyle full of drugs, processed foods, and unhealthy habits to reach an optimal level of consciousness and health.

Just because we Control the Planet doesn't mean we Own It !

A simple exercise that helps me get in tune with my inner self and with all the external factors that compromise our home called Earth, is to STOP, CLOSE YOUR EYES, BREATH, and LISTEN... Listen to your surroundings, listen to the wind, listen to the animals, listen to yourself ! Ones you have Listened you can now Speak, you can now Act, and you can now Be.

Healthy habits like holding a Natural Diet, "Green" Living, Humanitarianism, Sharing, Helping, and Listening make all the Difference when it comes to Health and your place in the Circle of Life.

So always remember to Listen before Speaking !

God Bless U All !

Introduction = Hello !

As I entered a new stage in my life, I experienced a need to share ... I need to open up and remind myself that the world is bigger than just a small island in the Caribbean.

I'm a Biology major and Pre-Medicine Student at the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey . I research in the areas of Microbiology, Medicinal Plant Biology, and Environmental Health. I work for FreshmarT as a Nutritional Supplements & Herbal Medicine Associate. I'm the President of TMED (Clinical Laboratory Professionals) and an Active member of the Biological Honor Society (BBB). I consider myself a New Agist, meaning I believe that things are much more than what they seem.

I keep an open mind to things ... As a student researcher I need to learn how to understand, analyze and re-do many things which I don't necessarily understand at first. I've embraced a new path of Green thinking. Considering I've worked in Environmental Health and know the impact the Environment has on living organisms including Humans, Animals and Plants it is more than obvious that I must step out of the Lab and enter the World of Action.

This will be my medium of Education in Biological and Ecological topics and a means of saving my experiences for future scrutiny of my inner self.

Thanks for your Time,

Luis E. Alvarado Poventud