in other words
Natural Path to Health: Nourishment
By Dr. Carol McIntyre
Happy New Year Everyone!
I hope that you have all enjoyed the
holiday season and have a renewed spirit
and outlook on life. Of course, we are all
making New Years’ resolutions… Aren’t
we?
Well, mine is to remember
one simple word on a daily basis,
Nourishment. We all must nourish
ourselves and it is more difficult to
do than you may like to admit. Most
everyone would agree that they enjoy
feeling nourished, whether it be from
a good home cooked meal or a warm
embrace when you need emotional
support. There are many ways to nourish
ones’ self. Today, I will talk about how to
nourish your liver.
The liver is considered the
body’s first line of defense when it comes
to detoxification. Over the holidays
we often indulge ourselves in food and
drink. Sometimes, we don’t even need a
holiday! Never the less, it is important
that we take time to understand how
important the health of our liver is for
our overall health.
Because the liver is our first
line of detoxification, it basically filters
everything that is put into our body.
This includes environmental toxins,
drugs (prescription, over the counter
and recreational), foods and vitamins/
minerals. When the liver is taxed, every
other system in the body is affected.
With saying that, the liver is also the
only organ in the body that can literally
regenerate itself!
In Chinese medicine the liver
is known as “the General”. Any of you
who have been in the military or have
had family members or friends in the
military know that the General is the
one person who gets the job done and
is in charge of keeping everyone else
in line. From a Chinese perspective, if
the liver is not flowing properly, it will
not be able to “keep everyone in line”
and there will be pathologies that arise
including everything from hypertension
to delirium.
Most of us are lucky because our
liver is SO diligent that we hardly notice
when it starts to slow down or become
dysfunctional. Often, it will take years
for liver disease to develop. However,
there have been more cases of acute liver
failure occurring due to the increased
use of NSAIDS (Non-steroidal anti-
inflammatory drugs) than ever before.
These are drugs like Ibuprofen, Tylenol
and so on that people use every day. This
shows us that the liver is not invincible
and we should be mindful to take care of
it.
There are many supportive
herbs and nutrients that aid proper
liver function. Milk Thistle (Silybum)
actually has the ability to regenerate, or
produce new liver cells! It has been used
for thousands of years as a therapeutic
agent to treat disorders of the liver,
gallbladder and kidney. Silybum can be
taken for long periods of time with no
adverse side effects and is wonderfully
supportive for those with any type of
liver disease, both chronic and acute.
Dandelion root is also very
supportive for liver function. You are
welcome to dig them from your yard
but please be advised that you never
want to eat them from a yard that has
been treated with pesticides. Again, we
are trying to support the liver for proper
function, not burden it with more toxins!
Other supportive foods include
artichoke, beets (the meat and the greens)
and burdock root. Any of these can be
used in form of a stir-fry or stew/soup
as a nourishing liver supportive meal.
Green tea is also very supportive for
january10
2012
9
proper liver function, as well as having a
multitude of other health benefits.
Please be aware that if you actively
begin to support your liver with foods
or therapeutics, you should consult with
your doctor before doing so. Much of the
time, when you begin to address liver
support therapeutically, other drugs will
process differently in your system. This
means that if you are on prescription
medications, your dosage may need to
be altered. Don’t be afraid of this fact!
I would rather see drug levels being
reduced in the body than people avoiding
artichokes because they are afraid it will
alter their medications.
I plan on nourishing myself
more this year. For you this may mean
that you remember to drink more water.
Maybe you take a relaxing hot bath once
a week. Perhaps you begin a realistic
exercise program for yourself that
you actually like and will stick with!
Whatever it may be, remember your
body, Internally. It’s not often we have
to stop and think about how our body
functions from moment to moment,
but we should try from time to time.
Everything enjoys Nourishment.
Thank you ~ Be Well.
The Gun Doctor: Firearm Maintenance – Part 1
By Wolfgang Rotbart
One of the most common tasks
I perform is to Clean, Lube & Inspect
(CLI) firearms of all types. Most quality
firearms using quality, factory-loaded
ammunition do not require a great deal
of maintenance. Unfortunately, this
often lapses into “none.”
Some maintenance should be
performed by a qualified gunsmith,
especially an occasional inspection
for safety issues, unusual wear, etc.
However, routine maintenance can be
generally accomplished by anyone who
has a bit of mechanical skill and a few
simple, readily available tools.
Unfortunately, it is well beyond
the scope of this article to give specifics
as to cleaning and lubing all the myriad
firearms available. However, in Part
2, I’ll go into some of the specifics of
firearm cleaning & maintenance.
Firearms become fouled mainly
by powder residue (especially with .22
cartridges), dried oil that essentially
turns into thick grease and foreign
materials, such as pine needles & dirt,
that work their way into the action.
This fouling can cause the firearm to:
Fire erratically or not at all.
Jam, fail to feed, extract, or
eject.
And most importantly, can
interfere with the safety mechanism(s).
This last one is generally the
most dangerous as the owner often does
not even realize the safety mechanism(s)
have been comprised. I’ve had several
firearms in my shop that had discharged
when the owner put the Safety in the
“On” position! This was unnerving to
say the least and underscores the need
to always follow the Four Basic Rules
and always keep a firearm pointed
in a safe direction. In each of these
instances of unintentional discharge, no
one was injured because the owner had
the firearm pointed in a relatively safe
direction when it occurred.
A word of caution: most gun
cleaning products on the market today
contain volatile organic compounds
(VOC’s) that are quite toxic. If you use
them, be sure to follow all the prescribed
protection protocols such as wearing
chemical-proof gloves & safety glasses,
have plenty of ventilation and even
wearing a VOC-rated breathing mask.
Be sure to keep children out of the area
during use and safely store the cleaning
agents when done. Chronic exposure
to VOC’s can adversely affect the
central nervous system, kidneys, liver,
etc. Since I clean firearms on a regular
basis, I use a plant-based product that is
relatively safe.
As you can see, proper
maintenance is a vital part of firearm
safety. If you have access to the
Internet, it is generally possible to
download a copy of the owner’s manual
or at least some instructions on how to
disassemble, clean, lube and reassemble
most firearms.
If you can’t find this information
or would like more information on
performing these tasks, please contact
me and I will be glad to be of service.
Master Gunsmith and a NRA-certified
Basic Pistol Course Instructor. He
works as a gunsmith and as an Oregon
Concealed Handgun Safety Course
Instructor. You may visit The Gun
Doctor website for more information at:
http://www.wolfgangthegundoctor.com/
I welcome ideas for topics
for these articles. Please email them
to:Wolfgang@WolfgangTheGunDoctor.
com, or call me at 503-429-7342 10:00
– 5:00 M – F
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