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A few weeks ago I went to see

speak about

and

. It was jam packed with tips on how to lead a healthier and happier life and I wanted to share some of them with you. Tyler Tolman is the son of Don Tolman, known worldwide as the

.  Both Tyler and Don talk about the ‘

and how certain foods can prevent disease, feed the brain and improve memory. Being disease free and having a better memory are two subjects that interest me immensely! The first thing that struck me about Tyler was his energy. Lets face it, most of us could do with more energy and if a change in diet can energise you as well as improve your health and memory, then most of us probably need to make some changes! I’m going to share some of the points made by Tyler. Where applicable, Tylers references have been included (but have not been independently verified by GreenLifeOrganics):

• one person dies every 60 seconds from cancer (Institute of Cancer Research)
• Cancer is the chief cause of death in children under 15 (American Cancer Society)
• Research shows that most disease is preventable through simple lifestyle choices such as diet and exercise (Institute of Cancer Research)
• Only 2 out of 10 people follow the nutritional guidelines established to prevent cancer (American Cancer Society)

The nutritional guidelines to prevent cancer include:

• 5-7 fruit and vegetables every day
• 6-8 glasses of water
• Moderate exercise

One of the major issues that we face today is the amount of additives in our food.  I’ve mentioned additives in a previous

, but it’s worth mentioning again as this is such an important subject. Additives which we should try and avoid include:

• Food preservatives such as sodium benzoates, which is found in certain fruit juices, soy sauce, toothpaste, flour, beet, pickles and medicine.  Sheffield University cites laboratory tests that suggest that benzoates can trigger allergies and can lead to leukaemia, cirrhosis of the liver and Parkinson’s disease.
• BHA (Butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) are synthetic preservatives that are found in cereals, vegetable oil, snack food and meats.  The International Agency for Research on Cancer claims that BHA and BHT carry carcinogenic properties linked to cancer and other chronic diseases.
• Sodium sulphite is another preservative commonly used to preserve fruit, peppers, vinegar and wine and has been linked with headaches, allergies joint pain and cancer.
• Carboxymethylecellulose is a stabilizer used in some ice cream, chocolate milk etc and is a suspected carcinogen.  For more reasons to avoid some ice creams, click here.
• Sodium nitrite is used for curing meats such as ham, sausages, bacon etc.  The FDA notes that it can worsen asthma, and decrease lung function and is also carcinogenic.  Use of nitrites in food products is banned in Norway, Sweden, Canada, Germany.
• Aspartame is an artificial sweetener found in many soft drinks, and when above a certain temperature forms methanol, formic acid and formaldehyde.  There are links with vision impairment, tinnitus, epileptic seizures and aspartame has even been attributed to Gulf War Syndrome.
• MSG is a hydrolyzed vegetable protein and flavor enhancer found in many food types, including seasoning, spices, snack food, malt etc.  It increases the amount of insulin that the pancreas creates and is linked with diabetes and obesity and other side effects.
• Coal tar dyes are used as food colorings in cordials, sweets etc, and studies suggest that coal tar may cause leukemia, non hodkins lympohoma, and multiple myoma.

Tyler also talked about chemicals to avoid including Sodium Laurel Sulphate (SLS) and Propylene Glycol, but I’ll save this for another blog…..   If you are keen to find out more, then The Chemical Maze can be downladed as an ipod Application and there is a full list of chemicals to avoid

. The presentation ended with Tylers seven principles of health, which are:

1. Air – big deep breaths of fresh, energised air!  Introducing plants into our homes, such as Peace lilies, Erica plants and Money plants are good for detoxing our homes and purifying the air we breath
2. Water – clean, purified, fresh water
3. Sunshine
4. Exercise
5. Wholefoods – lots of fresh seasonal fruit and veg and whole grains
6. Healthy loving relationships
7. Passion and pleasure in all you do!

If you have read this far, then well done and don’t despair!  You don’t need to go and throw everything out of your cupboard and fridge, but you may need to start reading labels more carefully and add some more wholefoods to your diet.  A good reference source for additives to avoid is Julie Eady’s

. Tyler will be back in Australia later on this year presenting his two day Self Care Express. For further details click

. To keep up to date with healthy events, visit our

!

This information is not intended as medical advice. Everyone should make their own health care decisions, with advice from qualified professionals.