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Autumn Newsletter,
2012
Autumn: Preparing for Winter and
Voting our Conscience?
Can you believe it is already late autumn? Summer is the
time of bounty from our gardens or farmer's markets and
long, hot days whereas autumn is the time of cooler and
shorter days and different seasonal foods. Autumn is the
season for slowing down and for nourishing ourselves to
prepare for winter. This is the also the season for voting
on our political preferences or principles.
So although I don't normally comment publicly on
political issues, I must follow my conscience and discuss
my thoughts on such an important topic as labeling food
that has been genetically modified.
Please read my thoughts below on California's Proposition
37, our Right to Know Act.
To a nourishing, calm autumn,
Sheryl Sanchez, L.Ac.
Local Community Events
Have you heard of Let's Move! Paradise
(LMP) around town yet? It is a program
sponsored by Paradise Community and
Wellness Connection, the CSU-Chico
program SCNAC and Network for a Healthy
California - Champions for Change. The
goal of the Let's Move! movement is to
reduce childhood obesity and support
mindful eating in the local
community. There are many ways to do
this! One program we are partnering with
is the Sawmill Creek Farm to Food Pantry
project. Volunteers are needed in all stages
of farming, from toiling the soil to planting
the seed, to watering and weeding, to
protecting the plants, to preparing the
bounty for eating! Give them a call at 8775734 or find out about this and other
opportunities to help your community at
our next community forum: Tues,
November 13, 6:30 pm, at the
Paradise Library.
LMP also just partnered with Feather River
Hospital to sponsor their annual Strides for
Diabetes Walk/Run and Prevention Fair held
in October. We even had a team of over 15
Preparation for Winter
participate in the walk! LMP also
participated in the Feather River Hospital
In autumn, our diet should move from the cooler,
Health and Safety Expo in October and
uncooked foods of summer, such as salads and fresh
HH&A participated as well.
fruit, to the warmer, cooked foods such as soups and
steamed vegetables, including the bounty of the seasonal HH&A also was busy this fall participating
in the Paradise Chamber's Johnny
fall squashes. We should also start our day with a hot
Appleseed
Days, which is always a good
breakfast, such as oatmeal or eggs, away from cold
cereals, yogurt and fruit.
time. I really connected with people, got
some Joy Lyn Candies' jalapeno peanut
brittle (which is unfortunately not glutenfree due to Sierra Nevada's beer used as a
magic ingredient, but we must splurge
sometimes!) and was well-attended by the
community.
In Chinese Medicine, this time of year represents the
Lung energy, which governs immunity. The Lung also
governs the skin, the outer layer of our body, which
protects us. The Lung energy also includes the nasal and
sinus passages, which are our first-line defense against
the pathogenic influences we may encounter. Now is a
good time to boost the immunity before the winter hits,
Additionally the Paradise Grange held its
with herbs such as Astragalus, Cordyceps and
80th anniversary event, which had great art
Schizandra, and medicinal mushrooms, such as Shiitake
for sale, great music, great food, and great
and Reishi. (See the sidebar for products I recommend
raffle items. However, it was very quiet that
which contain these herbs.) One recipe I give to patients
day for HH&A, although I actually did
that uses both astragalus and shiitakes is this Astragalus
acupuncture 'trials' that day and I got a tip
Tonic Soup recipe. I like this recipe since it is a typical
of a large glass of 100% apple juice, from
American healthy soup recipe vs. a true Chinese
Noble Orchards - boy, it was so refreshingly
medicinal one, so all the ingredients are easily obtainable
tasty!! (Said the Grange had good food
(and Astragalus can be obtained from any Chinese
that day!) My specialty hot apple cider that
herbalist, such as myself). Meanwhile, here are a few
gets rave reviews is just unfiltered organic
fun and healthy pumpkin recipes for the season also:
apple juice heated with organic spices such
as cinnamon and cloves and will again be
Gluten-free Pumpkin Blender Muffins
served at this year's Paradise Business
Grain-free Pumpkin Porridge
Association's Holiday Preview, held on Nov
16-18 (HH&A only open 11/16)... a fun
way
to shop locally! Enter to win one of
Properties of Food and
several
large raffle baskets as you visit all
Genetic Modification
the participating vendors that weekend!
Nutrition is the most important way to heal, support and
nourish the body. Diet or nutritional planning, or food
therapy as we call it in Chinese Medicine, is how we do
this. In Chinese Medicine, we look at the properties of
food to more specifically nourish the body. Everything
we consume - all plants and animal proteins, including
dairy - have specific, individual properties.
Correspondingly, each of us has specific, individual
properties as well. One can think of it as our
'constitution'.
When we have health problems, whether as simple as a
common cold or as complex as an auto-immune disorder,
there is an imbalance in the body. In Chinese Medicine,
we discuss balancing 'patterns of disharmony', which
correspond to the weak or excess nature of the organ
systems. For example, when an organ is weak in the
body, we will strengthen it, whereas when there is
excess, such as a pathogen, we will eliminate it and
therefore our natural balance will occur and health will be
restored. In food or herbal therapy, we can balance the
body by knowing the diagnosis, or pattern of disharmony,
and then recommend a treatment plan based on the
properties of the food or herbs.
Lastly, I am proud to announce an event, A
Relaxing Retreat into Ancient Healing Arts,
that I and two local esteemed colleagues
have organized. Participants will have a
relaxing afternoon of Acupuncture, Tui Na
massage, Qi Gong and Meditation. It will
be Sat, December 1, 1 to 5 pm, at the
Paradise Senior Center. For more
details, see
http://www.facebook.com/events/1213402
34688989 or click on the link above.
Quick Links
Heavenly Herbs and Acup
Heavenly Herbs and Acup Blog
What is Acupuncture?
What is Herbal Medicine?
Educational Background
But the properties, or energetics of our food is being
altered. One example is the hybridization of wheat since
the 1940's which has resulted in a plant with more gluten
proteins (and hence more gluten intolerance and the
myriad of health conditions that can arise), other nongluten proteins and enzymes that can cause allergic
reactions, asthma and dermatological conditions,
increased joint inflammation, and the creation of
exorphins which are opioid-like compounds that cross the
blood-brain barrier, resulting in an addictive effect.
These are all research proven changes to wheat.1 So one
has the natural next question - how do you think the
genetic modification of plants will affect them? Especially
when the current primary genetic modification is
implanting pesticides into the plant? I cannot postulate
as to exactly how the energetics of the plant will be
affected. Wheat was mainly genetically modified for a
altruistic goal - to raise more wheat to feed the hungry of
the world. Other modifications were related to enhance
its baking characteristics, a seemingly innocuous goal
itself also.
My logic tells me that we need to be very careful in
allowing modifications to our food supply in such a large
scale as already has been done in the case of genetically
modifying corn with pesticide genes. I can postulate that
the the energetic changes would not be positive since I
believe that there are unknown consequences of such an
action. A few countries believe so also, such as Russia,
which just recently banned the import of GMO corn,2 and
France.3.
Over 60 countries in the world require labeling of
genetically modified food.4 So far, research has shown
such things as increased risk of tumors5 and signs of
hepatorenal (liver and kidney) toxicity6. Additionally, we
may need to be concerned about how these modified
plants affect our soil and organisms in the soil, and how
the animal proteins we consume are affected by
consuming these foods as well .7
I urge for people to look at the data that is available and
agree that we as consumers have a right to know if we
are purchasing and consuming a genetically modified
food. We are already consuming a lot more GM foods
then we realize.8 I believe this choice will eventually be a
choice affecting our health.
Those opposing labeling of GMOs believe that the cost of
food will rise, which shouldn't occur anyhow, but I think
the cost of our long-term health is of a much more
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significant consequence. Don't you? One more thing of
note - the American Medical Association supports the
mandatory premarket safety testing of genetically
engineered foods.9 So please consider voting Yes on
California's Proposition 37, Genetically Engineered Food
Labeling Initiative.
Announcing Heavenly Herbs and Acupuncture Blog
I am formally announcing my blog!! It can be found at
http://www.heavenly-herbs.com/blog. My goal with this
blog is to provide and share information about natural
medicine, in its many forms. It isn't designed as a typical
blog, where people can comment on my thoughts, but
rather it is an information resource, hence being named
"Integrative Medicine Resources". I hope it will be used
as a tool to help people help themselves with their health
problems - and when more medical expertise is needed,
they can always contact me! It will always be a work in
progress, as there will always be more information to
share. It is set up to be a database of natural medicine
knowledge, but not where one can subscribe to it and
see postings as they occur. Rather eventually I will
integrate it with Facebook, so that all blog postings will
also be posted there, so people will be able to follow my
postings that way. (I apologize to those not on Facebook
- but I don't think I could manage it all any other way).
It consists of research on Acupuncture, both Chinese and
Western herbal medicinals, Homeopathy and other
natural healing modalities, references to journal articles
and scholars or teachings I respect, diet and recipes,
patient handouts, recommended books and book
reviews, and other interesting health-related facts and
news. It is organized by medical condition and also has a
search option. Check it out and let me know what you
think and what other health topics to cover!!
References
1 http://www.heavenlyherbs.com/blog/2011/12/07/wheat-belly-book-review/
2 http://rt.com/business/news/russia-monsanto-cornban-005/
3 http://rt.com/news/french-ban-gm-crops-368/
4 http://www.carighttoknow.org, last accessed October
30, 2012.
5
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027869
1512005637
6 http://www.biolsci.org/v05p0706.htm
7 http://farmandranchfreedom.org/sff/Huber-May2011Acres.pdf
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8 http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/how-toavoid-genetically-modified-food-zmgz12onzphe.aspxl
9
http://www.consumersunion.org/pub/core_food_safety/0
18433.html