I just ran across a great health info blog by Dr. Erika, who specializes in hormones and hormone replacement therapy. Every woman, every doctor, and many men should read Dr. Erika’s blog.

It is easy to read. It is full of great info and links to more info. It is also a real eye-opener.

Please go to Dr. Erika’s blog and subscribe to it or bookmark it. If you are a woman who cares about her health, this blog should be one of your favorite sites:

http://drerika.typepad.com/

In case you didn’t realize it, what we think we know about hormones and hormone replacement (and other health issues) is often carefully shaped by big drug companies and fed to us by the corporate media (TV networks, radio, magazines…).

That is done not only through advertising but also through canned video news releases or prewritten PR scripts that appear to be part of the news. Ever wonder why Dan Rather took the time to warn you about the “dangers” of using herbs when there are wars, famines, and other important events going on around the world?

Much of what passes for programming on morning talk shows is also simply PR for drug companies. The networks are in cahoots with their biggest advertisers. And the drug companies supply a lot of free programming that looks good, because it is expensively produced.

There is a lot more money to be made in disease and designer drugs than there is in natural health and wellness. So we are often criminally propagandized and misinformed to keep us buying drugs that do more to harm us than the diseases they are supposed to cure.

Worse, the FDA, which is charged with ensuring our health and safety, is actually working for the other side. FDA has recently banned bio-identical hormone replacement therapy, even though it has been medically proven to be safe and effective. Now they have banned therapeutic use of the natural hormone estriol, which has also been proven effective and safe.

So take a look at Dr. Erika’s blog, especially if you are a woman over 30. It might just save your life or that of someone you love.

If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Just when European drug companies have made herbal remedies and potent vitamins almost impossible (or illegal) to buy in Europe, and U.S. drug companies are doing their best to catch up, there’s this news.

According to recent medical studies, black cohosh, a cheap, common herb that some women take to prevent unpleasant symptoms of menopause, actually slows the growth of breast cancer. I hope more people read this story and draw the obvious conclusion: We ought to be able to take whatever herbs and nutritional supplements we choose. Sometimes the old ways are the best.

We must not let corporations deprive us of the right to natural remedies that have stood the test of time as safe and effective treatments for which no prescription is necessary. Of course, healthy people don’t buy as many drugs. So natural remedies and good nutrition will never be popular with ruthless capitalists in a society dominated by corporate interests.

Hmmm. Maybe you should plant an herb garden while you still can. Read the following article, and then decide.

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Hypnosis has been a controversial topic in many circles since the 18th century. What it is and how it works have been misunderstood and sometimes hotly debated for centuries. Hypnotists are often portrayed on movies and TV as mind-control masters who can compel their subjects to do bizarre or horrible things against their own will.

In the 20th century, though, hypnosis gradually came into its own as a technique for psychotherapists to help patients recall traumatic incidents that were continuing to affect their lives. Often, recalling the origin of a mental problem helped the patient deal with the issues involved.

Physicians and dentists learned that hypnosis could be used to ease pain and even allow patients to endure otherwise painful procedures without the use of anesthetics.

Then law enforcement officials jumped into the act, using hypnosis to coax testimony from forgetful witnesses. That led to still more controversy when it was discovered that witnesses could easily, even accidentally, be led to “remember” things that never happened. That meant hypnosis was not a reliable tool for coaching witnesses for court testimony.

With all that going on, there were still those in the medical establishment who did not believe hypnosis was useful, or perhaps even real. Now, after all these years, the verdict of medical research is in: “Hypnosis works. We don’t know why.”

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If you have ever studied yoga, you know that it is an ancient technology of mind and body. Certain postures are said to realign or stimulate internal organs. And that’s not all.

Adept yoga practioners can stop arterial bleeding if they are wounded. They can hold their breath underwater far past the time when anyone else would have drowned. And their bodies remain agile, flexible and strong well into old age.

Now there is medical evidence that practicing yoga can help control chronic pain. That is great news for those many people who are unwilling or unable to take strong pain medication.

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Kevin Jones injured his foot last season while playing running back for the Detroit Lions. Even after two surgeries, doctors did not know when he would be able to play again.

Determined not to miss the start of the regular football season, he tried an alternative therapy, heat acupuncture, and made a rapid recovery. Jones attributes his amazing progress to Dr. Ping, a martial artist who uses a practice that he calls “heat acupuncture” for healing.

Update: Jones was put back on the active roster in time for the first regular season game.

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