How Garlic Can Save Your Life

Research on garlic indicates that it may provide an ideal low-cost and safe alternative to drugs and vaccines in reducing the three most common causes of death in the world.

In a world mesmerized by the false promises of pharmaceutical industry marketing copy, as well as inundated with aggressively marketed dietary supplements, many of which are manufactured by the same companies making a killing off patented chemicals (Bayer owns One A Day, Pfizer owns Centrum), it is reassuring to know that the kitchen pantry will never fail us...

Inexpensive, time-tested, safe and delicious, many spices are attaining recognition for being, quite literally, 'life saving,' which is likely one reason why, in ancient times, many were worth their weight in gold.

This time around, the health benefits of ancient 'folk remedies' like garlic are being confirmed by straight-laced men and women in lab coats. Which, when it comes to the conventional medical establishment, blighted as it is by the epistemological disease known as myopia, is considered the only valid way to ascertain the truth. Never mind the countless millions of people who, since the beginning of time, have used a different standard of proof: if it works and it is safe, then its true.

We all know that garlic is not shy to make its presence known. The smallest culinary dose is enough to suffuse the entire body with its aroma. Garlic also permeates the research literature: the biomedical database known as MEDLINE, provided by the National Library of Medicine, contains 4245 study abstracts on garlic, a number of which we have indexed and organized for your use on our site:Health Benefits of Garlic.

A cursory perusal of the literature there indicates that garlic has a significant role to play in preventing or treating well over 150 health conditions, ranging from cancer to diabetes, infection to plaque buildup in the arteries, DNA damage to mercury poisoning.

In fact, a strong argument can be made (pun intended) that expanding the availability of garlic around the world as both a food and a medicine could prevent millions of deaths annually. According to World Health Organization statistics, the populations of poorer countries die manly from causes directly connected to communicable infectious diseases, which incidentally are not caused by a lack of vaccines, rather, primarily through under-nutrition and malnourishment, lack of sanitation and hygiene, as well as the adverse physiological consequences of the depression and stress associated with poverty.  The greater use and availability of garlic might provide a perfect alternative to global vaccine initiatives, the use of which are driven less by compelling scientific research, and more by political and economic forces. Garlic is easier to acquire and distribute, and can often be grown by the affected persons or communities affected, making it essentially free.

Garlic Versus #1 Cause of Death for the Poorest Countries

As far as the research goes, garlic has immensely powerful anti-infective properties, experimentally confirmed to kill the following:

This is an impressive smattering of research, but it is likely only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to garlic's ability to fight infection.  Remember, a lack of scientific proof does imply a lack of efficacy. Given that conventional antibiotics are not only failing, but driving bacteria and viruses into greater lethality, we can't wait around for the multi-billion dollar clinical trial-based drug approval process to turn its attention to a non-patentable natural substance.  Such a profit-oriented approach would be highly unethical. 

Garlic Versus the Developed World's #1 and #2 Killers

The research on Greenmedinfo.com shows garlic has value in 167 health conditions or disease symptoms, but the greatest density of research indicates garlic's role in preventing and/or treatingCardiovascular Disease and Cancers, the two primary causes of death within high-income countries.[27]   

This is an interesting finding. The drug industry has been fantasizing about a so-called 'polypill' for quite some time, an idea involving mixing various patented medicines together for a condition like heart disease (e.g. blood pressure, cholesterol, blood thinner), but to no avail. Patented chemicals have far too many side effects, so when you mix them together, you only compound their multitudinous chemical toxicities. Natural substances, on the other hand, and especially those which play a role in culinary traditions as "spices," appear to have the opposite karma. Namely, they have far more 'side benefits' than 'side effects.'

Garlic's cardioprotective effects include:

Here is a quick review of the cancers that garlic has been found to kill:

Garlic, like so many other complex foods, contains a wide range of phytocompounds that articulate at least 150 distinct physiological responses in the mammalian body (see our 157 pharmacological actions list on the Garlic Research page).

How can this be so?

One explanation is that all foods contain not only physical building blocks, e.g. carbs, proteins, lipids, and are not only a source of energy (caloric content), but contain gene and epigene regulatory information. There are 'packets' of energy and information contained within the conformational state of the biomolecules found within these plant tissues. Our co-evolution with the plant kingdom for the past half a billion years has resulted in the very genetic/molecular fabric of our body depending on certain key compounds from plants in our diet, delivered in natural form, not irradiated, overly-cooked, petrochemically-farmed. Garlic's ability to fit like a key, into many different types of locks (an impossible feat for monochemical 'magic bullets'), reflects an likely infinitely complex intelligence in the relationship between plant and animal species. Which speaks to how important foods are not simply as 'medicine,' but that from which our bodily health grows organically, and without which disease is a natural consequence.

Source: GreenMedInfo

Brain Scans Show The Real Impact Love Has On A Child's Brain

Image: www.ittybittygiggles.com

PreventDisease.com

You comfort them over a skinned knee in the playground, and coax them to sleep with a soothing lullaby. But being a nurturing mother is not just about emotional care - it pays dividends by determining the size of your child's brain, scientists say.

Shocking: According to neurologists the sizable difference
between these two brains has one primary cause - the way
were treated by their mothers. Image: pnas.org

Both of these images are brain scans of a two three-year-old children, but the brain on the left is considerably larger, has fewer spots and less dark areas, compared to the one on the right.

According to neurologists this sizable difference has one primary cause - the way each child was treated by their mothers.

But the child with the shrunken brain was the victim of severe neglect and abuse.

Babies' brains grow and develop as they interact with their environment and learn how to function within it.

When babies' cries bring food or comfort, they are strengthening the neuronal pathways that help them learn how to get their needs met, both physically and emotionally. But babies who do not get responses to their cries, and babies whose cries are met with abuse, learn different lessons.

The neuronal pathways that are developed and strengthened under negative conditions prepare children to cope in that negative environment, and their ability to respond to nurturing and kindness may be impaired.

According to research reported by the newspaper, the brain on the right in the image above worryingly lacks some of the most fundamental areas present in the image on the left.

The consequences of these deficits are pronounced - the child on the left with the larger brain will be more intelligent and more likely to develop the social ability to empathise with others.

This type of severe, global neglect can have devastating consequences. The extreme lack of stimulation may result in fewer neuronal pathways available for learning.

The lack of opportunity to form an attachment with a nurturing caregiver during infancy may mean that some of these children will always have difficulties forming meaningful relationships with others. But studies have also found that time played a factor--children who were adopted as young infants have shown more recovery than children who were adopted as toddlers.

But in contrast, the child with the shrunken brain will be more likely to become addicted to drugs and involved in violent crimes, much more likely to be unemployed and to be dependent on state benefits.
The child is also more likely to develop mental and other serious health problems.

Some of the specific long-term effects of abuse and neglect on the developing brain can include:

• Diminished growth in the left hemisphere, which may increase the risk for depression
• Irritability in the limbic system, setting the stage for the emergence of panic disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder
• Smaller growth in the hippocampus and limbic abnormalities, which can increase the risk for dissociative disorders and memory impairments
• Impairment in the connection between the two brain hemispheres, which has been linked to symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Professor Allan Schore, of UCLA, told The Sunday Telegraph that if a baby is not treated properly in the first two years of life, it can have a fundamental impact on development.

He pointed out that the genes for several aspects of brain function, including intelligence, cannot function.
And sadly there is a chance they may never develop and come into existence.

These has concerning implications for neglected children that are taken into care past the age of two.
It also seems that the more severe the mother's neglect, the more pronounced the damage can be.

The images also have worrying consequences for the childhood neglect cycle - often parents who, because their parents neglected them, do not have fully developed brains, neglect their own children in a similar way.

But research in the U.S. has shown the cycle can be successfully broken if early intervention is staged and families are supported.

The study correlates with research released earlier this year that found that children who are given love and affection from their mothers early in life are smarter with a better ability to learn.

The experiences of infancy and early childhood provide the organizing framework for the expression of children's intelligence, emotions, and personalities.

When those experiences are primarily negative, children may develop emotional, behavioral, and learning problems that persist throughout their lifetime, especially in the absence of targeted interventions.

The study by child psychiatrists and neuroscientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, found school-aged children whose mothers nurtured them early in life have brains with a larger hippocampus, a key structure important to learning, memory and response to stress.

The research was the first to show that changes in this critical region of children’s brain anatomy are linked to a mother’s nurturing, Neurosciencenews.com reports.

The research is published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.
Lead author Joan L. Luby, MD, professor of child psychiatry, said the study reinforces how important nurturing parents are to a child's development.

Sources:
childwelfare.gov

preventdisease.com

This Tea Naturally Protects Your Bones and Fights Off Osteoporosis

Margie King | greenmedinfo.com

Image: www.deltalabsusa.com

Green tea is one of the latest superfoods making its way into bottled waters and energy drinks.  You'll even find it in energy bars, mints, chewing gum and ice cream. It has many claimed health benefits.  Texas researchers add to the list with evidence that green tea aids in the prevention of osteoporosis.  Especially when coupled with a tai chi practice.  

Green tea is full of compounds called polyphenols which are known for their potent antioxidant activity. Studies have shown that people who consume the highest levels of green tea polyphenols tend to have lower risks of several chronic degenerative diseases such as cardiovascular disease.

Animal studies suggest that the mechanism behind this correlation may have to do with lowering chronic levels of inflammation.  These studies show that green tea may benefit bone health by mitigating bone loss due to aging, estrogen deficiency, or chronic inflammation.  That in turn may improve clinical symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, normalize bone metabolic disorders, and impact trace element metabolism.

In humans, the Mediterranean Osteoporosis Study showed that drinking up to 3 cups of tea per day was associated with a 30% reduction in the risk of hip fractures in women as well as men over 50 years of age.

Researchers at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center believe bioactive components in green tea might decrease the risk of fracture by improving bone mineral density.  These compounds may support osteoblastic activities (bone building) while suppressing osteoclastic activities (bone breakdown).

Focusing on postmenopausal women, the researchers investigated the potential for green tea to work synergistically with tai chi in enhancing bone strength.  Tai chi is a traditional Chinese form of moderately intense aerobic fitness activity grounded in mind-body philosophy.

They conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, intervention trial involving 171 postmenopausal women with a mean age of 57 years.  The women had weak bones but not full-fledged osteoporosis.

Subjects were divided into 4 groups:

Placebo: starch pill (placebo) and no tai chi
GTP: green tea polyphenols (500 mg/day) and no tai chi
Placebo+TC: starch pill and tai chi (3 times/week)
GTP+TC: green tea polyphenols and tai chi

The results show that consuming 500 mg of green tea polyphenol improved bone health after 3 months and muscle strength at 6 months.  That dosage is equivalent to about 4-6 cups of steeped green tea daily.  

Participants in the tai chi group improved their markers of bone health and muscle strength within 6 months.

But participants who combined both green tea polyphenols and daily tai chi practice also showed substantial effects on markers of oxidative stress, which is the main precursor to inflammation.

The authors of the study concluded that there is a favorable effect of modest green tea consumption on bone remodeling in pre-osteoporotic postmenopausal women.  They also suggest that green tea and tai chi may help reduce the underlying cause of not only osteoporosis, but other inflammatory diseases as well.

Green tea is one of three main categories of tea.  The other two are black and oolong. Green tea is the least processed of the three and is steamed but unlike black and oolong, is not fermented. As a result, green tea is about five times higher in EGCG, a catechin or antioxidant, which is also found in red wine, chocolate, berries and apples.

The caffeine content of green tea is about half that of coffee and it's also available in decaffeinated versions.

Source: greenmedinfo.com

Garlic Soup Made With 52 Cloves of Garlic Can Defeat Colds, Flu and Even Norovirus

by JOHN SUMMERLY | preventdisease.com

Image: commons.wikimedia.org

Forget the flu shot. A soup based on more than 50 cloves of garlic, onions, thyme and lemon will destroy almost any virus that enters its path including colds, flu and even norovirus.

As we sneeze and cough our way through these dark months of contagious nasties, garlic is being hailed for its powers to halt viruses in their tracks.

It has gained its reputation as a virus buster thanks to one of its chemical constituents, allicin.

A recent and significant finding from Washington State University shows that garlic is 100 times more effective than two popular antibiotics at fighting disease causing bacteria commonly responsible for foodborne illness.

When the garlic is crushed, alliin becomes allicin. Research shows that allicin helps lower cholesterol and blood pressure and also helps prevents blood clots. Garlic can also reduce the risk of developing atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Compounds in this familiar bulb kill many organisms, including bacteria and viruses that cause earaches, flu and colds. Research indicates that garlic is also effective against digestive ailments and diarrhea. What’s more, further studies suggest that this common and familiar herb may help prevent the onset of cancers.

‘This chemical has been known for a long time for its anti-bacterial and anti-fungal powers,’ says Helen Bond, a Derbyshire-based consultant dietitian and spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association.

‘Because of this, people assume it is going to boost their immune systems. Lots of people are simply mashing up garlic, mixing it with olive oil and spreading it on bread.

‘But how or whether it may actually work has still not been proven categorically.’

Indeed, scientists remain divided on garlic’s ability to combat colds and flu. Last March, a major investigation by the respected global research organisation, the Cochrane Database, found that increasing your garlic intake during winter can cut the duration of cold symptoms — from five-and-a-half days to four-and-a-half.

But the report, which amalgamated all previous scientific studies on garlic, said it could not draw solid conclusions because there is a lack of large-scale, authoritative research.

The problem is that pharmaceutical companies are not interested in running huge, expensive trials — as they would with promising new drug compounds — because there is nothing in garlic that they can patent, package and sell at a profit.

Modified Garlic Soup Recipe

Serves 4

26 garlic cloves (unpeeled)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) organic butter (grass fed)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
1/2 cup fresh ginger
2 1/4 cups sliced onions
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
26 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup coconut milk
3 1/2 cups organic vegetable broth
4 lemon wedges

Preheat oven to 350F. Place 26 garlic cloves in small glass baking dish. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and toss to coat. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake until garlic is golden brown and tender, about 45 minutes. Cool. Squeeze garlic between fingertips to release cloves. Transfer cloves to small bowl.

Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions, thyme, ginger and cayenne powder and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add roasted garlic and 26 raw garlic cloves and cook 3 minutes. Add vegetable broth; cover and simmer until garlic is very tender, about 20 minutes. Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return soup to saucepan; add coconut milk and bring to simmer. Season with sea salt and pepper for flavour.

Squeeze juice of 1 lemon wedge into each bowl and serve.

Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

If garlic were found to be a wonder drug, consumers could simply buy it in the supermarket for 30p a bulb or grow their own in the garden.

Nevertheless, garlic has a long and proud tradition as a medicine. The Ancient Egyptians recommended it for 22 ailments. In a papyrus dated 1500BC, the labourers who built the pyramids ate it to increase their stamina and keep them healthy.

The Ancient Greeks advocated garlic for everything from curing infections, and lung and blood disorders to healing insect bites and even treating leprosy.

The Romans fed it to soldiers and sailors to improve their endurance. Dioscorides, the personal physician to Emperor Nero, wrote a five-volume treatise extolling its virtues.

One of the most interesting of the recent findings is that garlic increases the overall antioxidant levels of the body. Scientifically known as Allium sativa, garlic has been famous throughout history for its ability to fight off viruses and bacteria. Louis Pasteur noted in 1858 that bacteria died when they were doused with garlic. From the Middle Ages on, garlic has been used to treat wounds, being ground or sliced and applied directly to wounds to inhibit the spread of infection. The Russians refer to garlic as Russian penicillin.

More recently, researchers have unearthed evidence to show garlic may help us to stay hale and hearty in a number of ways.

Last June, nutrition scientists at the University of Florida found eating garlic can boost the number of T-cells in the bloodstream. These play a vital role in strengthening our immune systems and fighting viruses.

And pharmacologists at the University of California found that allicin — the active ingredient in garlic that contributes to bad breath — is an infection-killer.

Allicin also makes our blood vessels dilate, improving blood flow and helping to tackle cardiovascular problems such as high cholesterol.

An Australian study of 80 patients published last week in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported that diets high in garlic may reduce high blood pressure.

In 2007, dentists in Brazil found that gargling with garlic water (made by steeping crushed garlic cloves in warm, but not boiling, water) can kill the germs that cause tooth decay and gum disease.

But they hit a snag: the volunteers refused to continue the experiment, complaining that the garlic gargle made them feel sick. Looking at the garlic soup recipe certainly made me feel queasy. Still, it gave me an excuse to use up my ample supply of garlic.

Though last year’s awful weather caused crop failures on my allotment, I enjoyed a bumper harvest of garlic.

Among its many other virtues, garlic kills slugs and snails. Researchers from the University of Newcastle believe it contains oils that may cripple the nervous systems of these slimy creatures.

There are two schools of thought as to the best way of preparing garlic to make the most of its medicinal qualities.

Argentinian investigators found it releases its allicin-type compounds when you bake the cloves, while scientists at South Carolina Medical University believe peeling garlic and letting it sit uncovered for 15 minutes produces the highest levels of compounds to fight infection.

So you can simply peel half of the garlic cloves and roast the other half with the kitchen door tightly closed (to stop the pong permeating throughout the house).

After an hour-and-a-quarter’s industrious soup-making, sprinkle lemon juice over a bowl of steaming, grey gloop and tuck in.

The heady aroma certainly revs up the appetite and the first spoonful does not disappoint. Delicious as it is, however, one large bowl of home-made soup is a more than ample meal.

As for the soup’s cold-preventing powers, only time will tell. Regular bowlfuls may very well keep me free of winter ailments, thanks to the virus-killing compounds they contain.

Or it could just be that my nuclear-strength garlic breath will keep everyone who is infectious far out of sneezing range for months to come.

John Summerly is nutritionist, herbologist, and homeopathic practitioner. He is a leader in the natural health community and consults athletes, executives and most of all parents of children on the benefits of complementary therapies for health and prevention.

Sources:
nlm.nih.gov
healthy-holistic-living.com
smittenkitchen.com
dailymail.co.uk
wikipedia.org

Original source of the article: preventdisease.com via getholistichealth.com

The Top 11 Health Benefits of Sex

Regular sex cannot be underestimated as a factor for reducing stress, bolstering self-esteem and fostering feelings of intimacy and bonding between partners.

But the real point of this article is the fact that a healthy sex life can provide for a longer, healthier and, most would agree, more enjoyable life. Among the many health benefits of sex are:

1. Improved Immunity

People who have sex frequently (one or two times a week) have significantly higher levels of immunoglobulin A (IgA).¹ Your IgA immune system is your body's first line of defense.

Its job is to fight off invading organisms at their entry points, reducing or even eliminating the need for activation of your body's immune system. This may explain why people who have sex frequently also take fewer sick days.²

2. Heart Health

Men who made love regularly (at least twice a week) were 45 percent less likely to develop heart disease than those who did so once a month or less, according to one study.³

Sexual activity not only provides many of the same benefits to your heart as exercise but also keeps levels of estrogen and testosterone in balance, which is important for heart health.

3. Lower Blood Pressure

Sexual activity, and specifically intercourse, is linked to better stress response and lower blood pressure.⁴

4. It’s a Form of Exercise

Sex helps to boost your heart rate, burn calories and strengthen muscles, just like exercise. In fact, research recently revealed that sex burns about 4 calories a minute for men and 3 for women, making it (at times) a ‘significant’ form of exercise.⁵ It can even help you to maintain your flexibility and balance.

5. Pain Relief

Sexual activity releases pain-reducing hormones and has been found to help reduce or block back and leg pain, as well as pain from menstrual cramps, arthritis and headaches. One study even found that sexual activity can lead to partial or complete relief of headache in some migraine and cluster-headache patients.⁶

6. May Help Reduce Risk of Prostate Cancer

Research has shown that men who ejaculate at least 21 times a month (during sex or masturbation) have a lower risk of prostate cancer.⁷ This link needs to be explored further, however, as there may have been additional factors involved in the association.

7. Improve Sleep

After sex, the relaxation-inducing hormone prolactin is released, which may help you to nod off more quickly. The “love hormone” oxytocin, released during orgasm, also promotes sleep.

8. Stress Relief

Sex triggers your body to release it’s natural feel-good chemicals, helping to ease stress and boost pleasure, calm and self-esteem. Research also shows that those who have sexual intercourse responded better when subjected to stressful situations like speaking in public.⁸

9. Boost Your Libido

The more often you have sex, the more likely you are to want to keep doing it. There’s a mental connection there but also a physical one, particularly for women. More frequent sex helps to increase vaginal lubrication, blood flow and elasticity,⁹ which in turn make sexual activity more enjoyable.

10. Improved Bladder Control in Women

Intercourse helps to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, which contract during orgasm. This can help women to improve their bladder control and avoid incontinence. You can boost this benefit even more by practicing Kegel exercises during sex (a Kegel squeeze is performed by drawing your lower pelvic muscles up and holding them up high and tight, as if you’re trying to stop a flow of urine).

11. Increase Intimacy and Improve Your Relationship

Sex and orgasms result in increased levels of the hormone oxytocin -- the “love” hormone -- that helps you feel bonded to your partner, and better experience empathic connections.

Source. Mercola

Men, Try THIS Before Reaching for Viagra

Varying degrees of erectile dysfunction (ED) are common in men and can significantly interfere with a healthy sex life. Often, it is simply a manifestation of stress or emotional problems, but it can also be a sign of an underlying health problem like heart disease. It is important that you work on finding out the foundational cause, and also that you resist the urge to simply pop a pill like Viagra as a quick fix. Viagra does carry a risk of potentially serious side effects, including:

Headache	Upset stomach	Flushing of the face
Blue/green color blindness	Blurred vision	Vision sensitivity to light
Sudden decrease or loss of vision in one or both eyes	An abnormally long-lasting erection that may cause permanent damage to your penis	Sudden loss or decrease in hearing, sometimes with ringing in the ears or dizziness
Heart attack, stroke, irregular heartbeat and death have occurred in men taking Viagra

As far as natural alternatives go, there are many options to consider including L-arginine, an amino acid that is the precursor tonitric oxide, a natural compound that helps relax your blood vessels. Nitric oxide signals the smooth muscle cells in your blood vessels to relax, so that your vessels dilate and your blood flows more freely. This helps your arteries to regain their elasticity and stay free of plaque.  L-arginine may also lead to increased microcirculation in genital tissues, which results in stronger erections and better sexual responsiveness, via this nitric oxide mechanism.

Scientific studies have shown that L-arginine can be particularly effective when used in combination with another natural agent,pycnogenol, which resulted in significant improvement in sexual function in men with ED, according to a Bulgarian study.¹⁰Similarly, a pilot study published in the journal European Urology found 6 grams of L-arginine combined with 6 mg of yohimbine, a compound found in the herb yohimbe, was successful in treating men with ED.¹¹ Aside from L-arginine, other natural alternatives include:

·         Panax ginseng and maca root, which have been used for centuries as libido-boosting tonics

·         Choline and vitamin B5. The neurotransmitter that triggers sexual messages in your brain, whether you're male or female, is acetylcholine (ACH). With too little ACH, sexual activity goes down. One way to safely and effectively enhance your ACH levels is to take choline supplements (1,000-3,000 mg) and vitamin B5 (500-1,500 mg).

Source: Mercola

7 Most DIsgusting Ingredients Used to Make Vaccines

As you read this list, understand cell lines and vaccines do become contaminated. This is often hidden under the term "adventitious agents."

Disgusting Ingredient #1: Cells From Aborted Fetus

Aborted fetal cells, listed on vaccine package inserts as "Human Fetal Diploid Cells." Two aborted fetal cell lines, WI-38 and MRC-5, have been grown under laboratory conditions since the 1960s.

The cells are used to grow viruses used which are then collected from the cell cultures and processed further to produce the vaccine itself.

Terms to Investigate: PERC6, MRC5, WI-38, HEK-293

Which Vaccines? Adenovirus vaccine, DTaP vaccine, Hep A vaccine, Hep B vaccine, MMR vaccine, Rabies vaccine, Varicella (Chickenpox) vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #2: Serum From Aborted Calf Fetus Blood

One of the more grotesque methods involved in vaccine manufacturing is the collection of fetal bovine serum. The purpose for serum is providing a nutrient broth for viruses to grow in cells.

How is the blood collected?

According to the Humane Research Australia website:

"After slaughter and bleeding of the cow at an abattoir, the mother's uterus containing the calf fetus is removed during the evisceration process (removal of the mother's internal organs) and transferred to the blood collection room. A needle is then inserted between the fetus's ribs directly into its heart and the blood is vacuumed into a sterile collection bag. This process is aimed at minimizing the risk of contamination of the serum with micro-organisms from the fetus and its environment. Only fetuses over the age of three months are used otherwise the heart is considered too small to puncture.

Once collected, the blood is allowed to clot at room temperature and the serum separated through a process known as refrigerated centrifugation." [1]

Terms to Investigate: Fetal Bovine Serum

Which Vaccines? Adenovirus vaccine, MMR vaccine, Rotavirus vaccine, Varicella (Chickenpox) vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #3: Cells From Armyworms

The FDA approved the Flublok vaccine on January 16, 2013.

This new technology is being touted as the wave of the future. It utilizes an insect cell line (expresSF+®) that is derived from cells of the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda.

The vaccine package insert for Flublok also mentions:

"Each 0.5 mL dose of Flublok may also contain residual amounts of baculovirus and host cell proteins (≤ 28.5 mcg), baculovirus and cellular DNA (≤ 10 ng) ..." [2]

Terms to Investigate: insect cell line (expresSF+)

Which Vaccines? Influenza vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #4: Cells From Monkey Kidneys

As mentioned above, monkey kidney tissue is used to support the growth of certain viruses used in vaccine production. There remains a huge controversy over using these cells and their role contaminating the polio vaccine in the 1950s.

The story is best told in the Congressional papers of a courageous scientist, Bernice Eddy. The Executive Reorganization and Government Research of the Committee on Government Operations United States Senate, Ninety-Second Congress, Second Session [1972] states on page 500:

"The next and only serious vaccine crisis that has occurred since the polio episode was the realization in mid-1961 that a monkey virus later shown to cause tumors in hamsters was contaminating both polio and adenovirus vaccines. The virus, known as SV40, was entering the vaccines and, just as in the polio case were surviving the formalin treatment.

There were several states by which the full extent of the SV40 problem became known. First was the discovery in 1959-1960 by a DBS scientist, once again Bernice Eddy, that an unknown agent in the monkey kidney cells used to produce polio and adenovirus vaccines would cause tumors when the cells were injected into hamsters."

Page 502:

"In 1954 Eddy, as a polio control officer, found live virus in supposedly killed polio vaccine; in 1955 she was relieved of her duties as polio control officer ... After her discoveries concerning the SV40 virus, her staff and animal space were reduced and she was demoted from head of a section to head of a unit."

Page 505:

" ... even when the contaminating virus was found to be oncogenic [cancer causing] in hamsters, the DBS [Division of Biologics Standards] and its expert advisory committee decided to leave existing stocks on the market rather than risk eroding public confidence by a recall."

and:

"There has been a tendency on the part of certain higher government circles to play down any open discussion of problems associated with vaccines ... " [3]

Terms to Investigate: Vero (monkey kidney) cell culture, SV40, Bernice Eddy

Which Vaccines? DTaP vaccine, Japanese Encephalitis vaccine, Polio vaccine, Rotavirus vaccine, Vaccinia vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #5: Cells From Dog Kidneys

On November 20, 2012, the FDA approved the seasonal influenza vaccine, Flucelvax, manufactured by Novartis. [4]

This vaccine is mass-produced using the continuous cell line Madin Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) as vaccine cell substrate. [5]

Terms to Investigate: Madin Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK)

Which Vaccines? Influenza vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #6: Mouse Brain

Viral vaccines prepared in tissue culture or mouse brain have been used in many Asian countries. According to the CDC website, the inactivated mouse brain-derived JE vaccine used in the United States since 1992 is no longer available. [6]

Of course, with any vaccine, the adverse reactions are rarely tracked and downplayed by medical authorities. However, the injuries from vaccines can be quite serious. [7, 8]

Terms to Investigate: inactivated mouse brain (IMB), suckling mouse brain (SMB), JE virus (Beijing-1), acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)

Which Vaccines? Japanese encephalitis vaccine, Rabies vaccine

Disgusting Ingredient #7: Chicken Embryos

Chickens and their embryos have long been used in the production of vaccines.

These methods were popularized in the 1920s and 1930s by Thomas Rivers and others at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. [9]

Terms to Investigate: Chick embryo

Which Vaccines? Influenza vaccine, Rabies vaccine, Yellow fever vaccine

References

1. http://www.humaneresearch.org.au/campaigns/fetal_calf_serum

2. http://www.fda.gov/downloads/BiologicsBloodVaccines...

3. Executive Reorganization and Government Research of the Committee on Government Operations United States Senate, Ninety-Second Congress, Second Session. Page 499-505. April 20,21; and May 3,4, 1972.

4. http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom...

5. http://www.novartisvaccines.com/downloads...

6. http://www.cdc.gov/japaneseencephalitis/vaccine/vaccineChildren.html

7. http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/59/3/316.full.pdf

8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2480758/

9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2131891/pdf/465.pdf

Source: GreenMedInfo