Category: Articles

By Evan Symonds

Essential oils are indispensable to me…I’m absolutely hooked and totally head-over-heels in love with them. We owe gratitude to the early geniuses who found how to capture the essences of plants by distillation, etc.. By essential oil, I mean only pure essential oil, not a scent or fragrance which one sees at fairs and festivals, mall stores, sometimes even in health food stores, etc. Grrrr….as if they do any good. No, pure essential oil and nothing less.

The essential oil is the essence of the plant. Some say it is its hormonal fluids. However that may be, the essential oil contains all the plant chemicals in their exact proportions. It reveals to us the plant signature, all its powers and uniqueness, in an elixir of awesome power. I feel it contains the basic being or thought of that plant, too – its emotional stamp, its intentions (and I know I do sound kinda wacky here). I can’t help but conclude that these plants intend something. They are alive, right? The essential oil for me is a living imprint of all that particular bit of life and bears its vitality, its singular beauty and perhaps even its purposes. Thus when I reach for essential oils, I do so with a reverent and quiet universe (my universe, myself). I observe and listen. And I do perceive what I’ve just described. Perhaps some of the most loving, generous communication I’ve ever been privy to. Pay attention in this way when you reach for and use essential oils. I feel that there are simple messages there.

Whenever you dispense an essential oil, keep in mind its concentration: a tiny bit goes a looong way. Sometimes, massive amounts of plant matter go into making an essential oil. A field of roses might distill down to just a few pounds of rose essential oil; thus its ouch-y price. But any essential oil is a strong concentrated essence. You just don’t need a lot. Withe the elderly and children, about half of what otherwise. With babies, a tiny, tiny bit. (Notice my DreamBaby products are not at all as strong in scent as other baby products. I’m not trying to please the mother’s nose…I’m making what’s safe for an infant.)

Essential oils have virtually limitless uses in the home, for travel, for health, hygiene and well-being, for pleasure and perfumery, you name it…an essential oil can handle that area. With a knowledge, one can create safe essential oil blends. Without both wide and specific, practical, time-tested knowledge, I honestly wouldn’t try it. I would love to pass on some info to you guys as I do have lots of hints and good uses to share with you. Let me know when you’re done how you like this topic, OK?

One essential oil in particular has almost universal use. That’s lavender. Gentle, amazing lavender. I would not do without it in my home and purse. I keep some in my kitchen and bathrooms. Lavandula angustifolia. although there are other varieties, is my fav. Only organically grown since pesticides permeate a plant and thus the essential oil. Wildcrafted is usually the strongest in plant chemicals.

Lavender has more uses than just about any other plant and here, without my spending much time now to research or double-check, are some of them. To me, it’s feels motherly, like a loving, caring, calming reliable mother. Lavender makes you feel better mainly because it encourages a healthy, flowing nervous system and immune system, it helps regenerate and heal, and even smelling as beautiful as it does, it cleans up a storm.

While lavender is useful for nearly any- and everything, if you, for any reason do not like its scent, then this is not the oil for you to use, as ubiquitously as I suggest, anyway. Your sense of smell – what you like and don’t like – is an indisputable guide and you’re well advised not to push past it.

You can use lavender, a drop alone or mixed as so: two drops of lavender, one of peppermint… a bit of that mixture, to dissipate a headache, even a migraine. Place it around your head and neck. You can use up to three drops of so on your pillow or hankie placed within smelling-distance to help you fall asleep at night. You can help calm children or anyone stressed or acting hyper by diffusing some lavender. If someone has a contagious illness, diffusing lavender purifies the air incredibly effectively…lavender is one of the very most antimicrobial, antiseptic, anti-yuckies essential oils that exists.

Example: I keep a sponge or wash cloth for washing dishes clean by washing it out with dish soap, rinsing and wringing out as much moisture as I can, then dropping one or two drops of lavender on it, mooshing the cloth all around to spread the essential oil through it. Lavender moves the cloth’s cleanness up from passable to good to awesome. Then, to keep bacteria from growing in it, I let the cloth air dry by hanging the it or placing the sponge tilted against something so that air gets all around it. If this seems silly for me to mention, then you already let your kitchen sponge or cloth air dry. To my surprise I have found few people who do this. Any moisture left in it is a perfect breeding ground for yucky-poos.

Lavender water: This is not the plant water called hydrosol produced by distillation – it’s my loose term for water with a bit of lavender essential oil in it, a disinfectant wash. You can make lavender water by filling a pint bottle with water (I use purified) and adding a drop or two of lavender essential oil. You really don’t need any more essential oil in there unless you’re taking on a really blecchhy job. But this is enough for a lovely job of disinfecting the dinner table, counters and stovetop and knobs, cupboards, faucets, walls, refrigerator door, etc. Lavender is less solvent than, a citrus oil so a very light mix such as this is also great for dampening a dust cloth and if only slightly damp (you know how that goes) safe for furniture (or so it has been for me). I have a thing about window sills and windows collecting dead bugs and such. Not fun to look at. So I put a bit of my lavender water on a paper towel to wipe these down.

For laundry, use Astonishing Powder. It’s more powerful by a lot than only lavender essential oil added to some other laundry soap. But here’s a great laundry tip: if you hand-wash a wool dress, for example, use Astonishing in your cold or cool water to clean it, rinse well, and then fill the sink with water to which you add one drop of lavender essential oil. Now soak your garment in this lavender water. When it is dry, the lavender will help ward off moths, make the wool feel softer, be less prone to smell even if you do underneath it, etc… Astonishing itself would have that effect, but wool clothing needs special tending to.

Here is another benefit: lavender wards off ants and many other bugs. (So do peppermint and several others; I can tell you more another time.) Routinely cleaning with just this tiny bit of lavender dropped on the towel does a lot to dissuade bugs from taking up residence. I also might fill the essential oil bottle’s cap with a few drops essential oil and allow a few drops to fall directly onto areas where bugs might dare to venture.

When you travel, how about fill a smaller bottle of lavender and bring it along in your purse? I always have some lavender on hand. If you feel dizzy, overtired, anxious, tummy-achy, virtually anything bad, open it and take a whiff.

Hope you don’t mind me mentioning public toilets, bathroom door handles and such. I’m not squeamish, I just like cleanliness and am realistic. Lots of people do not wash their hands after going potty these days…notice that? Before you go to the toilet (In public bathrooms, I have mastered the fine art of balancing my body above the seat with careful aim. :o) I’ll first get a bit of toilet paper, put about one drop of lavender (it’s in my purse) on it and wipe the flushing thingee. If you have to sit on the toilet, even if you cover it with a seat cover or toilet paper, first get some TP (enough not to have to touch anything, ewww), apply two or three drops of lavender to it and wipe the seat. Now cover the seat with the paper. The paper is not particularly effective but the lavender is.

Lavender is useful also for wiping your hands if you cannot otherwise wash them or even if you did but you need even more assurance of having zapped germs. Simple soap handles germs adequately. But maybe the soap bar is in a icky, germy setting. Do NOT use antibacterial soap. It is dangerous! Since lavender is one of only two essential oils safe to apply directly to the skin (the other is tea tree oil, melaleuca alternifolia), you can get some lavender from your little bottle and rub a drop or two all over your hands, around your ails, etc.

And guess what? It’s excellent for beautifying your skin, too! If someone doesn’t know which DreamSoap to get, my first suggestion is lavender and it is the variety we put into Intro Kits. That’s because it helps every skin type and situation. Say midday, you’ve been in air conditioning or out getting sweaty or whatever, and you feel your skin either dry, oily, dirty, as the case may be. The solution that makes for the most complexion improvement is to use my Skin Perfection Mist. Keep that in your purse (buy the once-oz., bottle and keep the bottle and sprayer when done, wash ’em out, and fill from your larger bottle to take in your purse). But let’s say you’re camping or traveling and don’t have the mist near. Take a cloth, get it wet with pure water (do not expose your gorgeous mug to chlorine) and a wee bit of lavender, one drop should be enough, and wipe over your face. Very good for a skin pick-me-up. Breathe in the oil, too.

Lavender wards off mosquitos and other pests. There are even more potent bug-repellant mixtures you can make with essential oils but you’re traveling light and lavender will do the trick. Take some onto your fingertips and wipe over ankles, behind knees, wherever you find mosquitos bite you. They will not. I have put this to the test. Under our house (up on stilts) is the laundry room. Moths love to visit as do mosquitos, spiders…we’ve entertained there some of the natural world’s most illustrious luminaries. 😀 If I don’t apply lavender during mosquito season, a trip to the laundry room will leave me badly bitten. If I want to wade through the tall grass in my backyard (I know, I know, I need to cut it more often!) I apply lavender to my feet and legs. I never get bitten when I use lavender. Just don’t splop it all over you…it can be a bit much for the body to deal with a lot of it. It’s skin-safe but in small quantities and fact is, you don’t need a lot. essential oil’s are strong.

Lavender is antiseptic. Apply it directly to an ingrown toe, a hangnail or paper cut, etc. Apply lavender to your skin for basically anything: burns, cuts, bruises, just about anything I can think of. Now, the products I created use lavender but include the other ingredients that assure even more effectiveness. So I don’t want to dissuade you from getting these as I know you’ll be blown away far more than using lavender by itself. Read testimonials for All Better, Honey, BackBetter, Herpules, CrampBetter, PsoriAssist, Athlete’s Friend, and the like. I am so proud of these! But isn’t it comforting to know that you have help for so many thisses and that’s with some plain ole lavender around.

What versatility! I made a concoction for a friend’s child who was tormented with severely itchy chicken pox. It was a tiny bit of lavender and German chamomile added to calamine lotion….immediately effective and the next day, her pox were gone.

You can apply small amounts, as I said, to the skin, but avoid mucous membranes, eyes, ears, etc. You can put a few drops in a bath, diffuse the essential oil, put drops on a cotton ball or hankie, etc.

Lavender is also helpful for heart problems! I am not a doctor. If you have this, see a doctor but a naturally oriented one. Just know that the literature has lavender as good for the heart: palpitations, circulation problems, high blood pressure and other cardiac problems.

If your digestion needs some help, say you have gas, nausea, diarrhea, constipation, etc., lavender can help. This is especially useful for children and the elderly as lavender while effective takes a gentle approach.

Since lavender purifies the air, bring some along if going to the hospital. Also, I once created an essential oil blend to diffuse to help a woman through an easier delivery. The results amazed the family. It’s key ingredient was lavender. Lavender can make quite a difference in the speed, calm and relative comfort of delivery and would also tend to be calming to the staff and…to the baby. Slight amounts in a diffuser.

Also, for womanly discomforts, lavender can help with PMS and menopause.

Lavender in its kindness is analgesic. It can help with pain even to breathe it. Sore muscles, leg cramps (it’s part of CrampBetter), inflammation, arthritis, strains, sprains, lavender can help. The best of all for this is, truthfully, the mixture I created called All Better, Honey. Read its testimonials (and there are lots more not up there yet). But lavender all on its motherly own does magic.

I feel like the “ginsu knives” guy! Wait, there’s more! :o) Lavender stimulates the immune system. It can help protect or heal infections, viruses, bacteria, colds, sore throats, lung ailments even asthma, and so on. You can boil some water, out it in a bowl and drop some lavender essential oil into the bowl and leave that in the sick person’s room. (Of course, other essential oil’s like eucalyptus, thyme, oregano, etc., can help vastly, too.)

The reason I rely so often on lavender is that it is so versatile, if something else is going on along with the known problem, lavender may help that also. And it is calming, reassuring, balancing.

The last thing to tell you about this plant I love so is that it is one of the few that can be used even around newborn babies. Just one word about that: a baby is very sensitive to smell so vastly reduced amounts are needed.

I hope this helps widen your understanding and appreciation of lavender. Let me know and tell me your special uses and ideas!

Much love,

Evan

by Evan Symonds

Aging is a fact that we make efforts to come to terms with. It may be exciting for the youth to whom it represents more self-determinism and independence, but aging is not fun once it means “getting old.” Resources of energy become more precious and so we conserve. No matter how boundless the energy we reveled in as kids, as we age we do tend to think twice before leaping off swings. Joints stiffen and it takes all our best attitudes to not let our minds follow suit.

It is completely natural that we want to look younger. Mirrors can be so annoying. If we feel full of spit and fire, if we feel sexy, if our gusto has not particularly diminished, it’s a drag to see as our physical calling card an image that belies how we feel “inside.”

Of course we want to look and feel young. We associate with youth the existence of a future in which we have time to mess up and yet get it right. We associate with youth sexuality and the promise of future through procreation. We associate with youth a carefree attitude that can get buried under the burdens of maturity. Plus as women, we want to keep our men interested and we like to look and see a woman, not an old lady, in the mirror.

As youth looks forward, so does age look back. We wish to look forward but it may get harder to live this way. Can we do anything to step aside from these considerations and simply live with the attitudes of youth relatively unmitigated and intact?

Throughout my life, I’ve given this much thought, as I’m sure you have as well. As a child, I observed grown-ups and decided what sort of adult I would be and how I would treat kids.

As a youth, I searched for useful wisdom in hopes of expanding whatever elements of generosity I may have had; I had seen people, even young ones, harden to the concerns of others. I prayed I might retain what insouciance (lack of worry) did lighten my life. I intended never to lose a light, spontaneous, sincere heart which is the essence of youth.

As a person toting around an older body now, I have found my attention swerving toward this issue of how to keep a youthful appearance while not losing sight of the relative unimportance of this (as compared to character). If I have debated with myself over these issues, so may have you.

In the quest of looking younger, I had to be honest. It is not just a matter of face creams. These help, that I know, and I make an awesome youth cream which I want all of you to buy! 🙂 But there are really a few levels of causes that we are viewing when we see an aging face. One level is the body. I’ve been fortunate enough, working in the herbal healing field, to learn some great health data. This may help you maintain a more youthful look and get healthier.

The face reflects the health of the body. My favorite reference for this is Michio Kushi’s Your Face Never Lies, which has the scoop on what those lines, spots, inflammations and what-not relate to in terms of the internal condition of the body. With this illuminating data, you can plan cleanse-and-nourish projects, much like cleaning, tuning/repairing and polishing your car. With good nutrition, just like good gas and oil for the car, the body can pretty much hum along with energy enough to do your will and it can sleep enough to clean out at night.

There are a few more things to say about nutrition here so as to provide you with the most useful and important help. A good start is to increase consumption of raw, whole foods, organic and plant-ripened when possible. Contact us, as we have some good references and tools.

Here’s another health basic you already know, I’m sure – and the secret of models’ flawless skin, along with the air-brushed make-up: drink lots of pure water. The water category does not include sodas, alcohol, not even juices (in place of the water, that is). We should drink at least 8 to 10 big glasses of water a day.

If you don’t do this, many effects leading to poorer health occur, one of which is that the body cannot dump poisons. It then must whisk them off away from the main channels of the body’s communication and away from the vital organs. Where does the body stow toxins? Usually in fat – stuffed nicely out of the way of important functionings.

Fat provides a vitally important solution here, but I sure don’t like to see it, do you? When we eat good fats, our body fat releases toxins to be filtered out and evacuated plus if we have been drinking enough water, the toxins have a flow to follow out of the body. So eat those good fats and drink water and watch your body trim and the complexion improve as your innards clean up.

Exercise, massage, sunshine (yes, it is natural and important to health in many ways) and salt baths also contribute more than I think is commonly recognized to detoxification and to recreation of health. These are elements that have always been natural for us “hewman beans” and it’s wise to incorporate them in our life routines as much as possible.

Regarding salt baths, I am not referring to the usual “sea salts” which are little more than bleached sodium chloride. Actual unrefined sea salt is a treasure trove of minerals including all the vital trace minerals in their naturally balanced state. You’ll find these in Celtic Sea Salts, Dead Sea Salts and the ocean itself. (You might want to check out our Sea Baths… the real, revitalizing thing.)

Despite our resolve and good intentions, when we go to implement these good health ideas, convenience becomes an issue – time, availability of organic, fresh foods, cleansing herbs and such. Another challenge comes from our resistance to making dietary changes, which is a toughie for probably everyone.

As to changing your diet, I do have some well-earned advice for you (been there, done that).

For us imperfect mortals, change is often a drag. Literally, since we can mirror the inertia of the physical universe: a body in motion tends to remain in motion, a body at rest tends to remain at rest… remember that datum from Mrs. Priggleschnauser’s elementary science class? The scary fact: inertia seems to be catchy… it can apply to us! We can start acting like just another piece of clod! Who hasn’t experienced the need to downright force self to action? Sometimes, especially when there’s a change, you’ve gotta kick start yourself, pump yourself up, just do it despite your own unreasonable resistance. Once you’re in motion, it tends to become routine, easier and easier, pretty soon you’re groovin’ with it… it’s the way you now live! Inertia, both kinds.

There are two other reasons that dietary change is a rough one. One is that the internal pH of the body, acid or alkaline, has much to do with one’s taste preferences. The body should be slightly alkaline (you can test your pH on any day… write me and I can tell you how to find yours and track its changes). Eating refined foods, sugar, excessive animal proteins, processed foods/poisons, even physical stagnancy and other things can bring the pH to acid.

Time for Evan’s Frightening and Astounding Facts! As usual, the body has a solution, but get this: if the blood goes the slightest bit more acid, we croak on the spot. So… to handle this, more calcium. Calcium counterbalances the pH of the blood, returns it to the one, only correct blood pH for us to stay alive (I think that pH is about 7.9), but I’m not positive. My body sure is positive, though, as is yours).

Well, where is calcium stored? In our organs and, you got it, in our bones is the only calcium that has been processed by the body and is now available to the blood for these emergencies. Our bones may end up like lace, but at least we’re still alive. Knowing this, we can eat in a way that keeps our bodies just slightly alkaline, our organs and bones aren’t invaded for their calcium and as the clock ticks on we might feel like sprightly old chicks (and roosters).

While we’re on the subject, drinking regular milk (and cheese) as we know it in this homogenizing, pasteurizing, corporate-run world makes the internal pH more acid and so brings on osteoporosis rather than helping handle it.

Anyway, after that digression, here’s what I wanted to say about acid-alkaline. With an internal acid pH, the palate (meaning here what tastes good) will lean you away from fresh foods and toward the garbage (I admit that on learning this years ago I had a teeny weeny naughty thought: “Oh, good! I can eat all the junk and really enjoy it!”). Anyway, the body takes its time to move from one direction to another. It’s that fussy inertia again… the train is screaming down that track and it isn’t going to easily slow down or turn around. Any changes in the palate happen gradually as the pH adjusts. When our internal pH turns to slightly alkaline, necessary for health, the palette is different. The fresh stuff tastes great; the garbage tastes just like… garbage!!

I experienced this when I began an intestinal cleanse a few years ago and started eating a lot of fresh juices and salads. Mostly it was the carrots; they were revolting to me… tasted sour, ewwww, nasty. I was so amazed to find that after a few days they began to taste less disgusting and day after day they tasted better and better… finally they were so yummy, I loved them. My internal pH had shifted. Sugary stuff was now revolting. I was stunned. So if it is hard at first, stick to it; it will get easier and become what you want.

The other reason that diets can be hard to change is something that is sickening to consider, but by now most people know about these true contenders for control of our bodies: parasites. I saw an article in the Smithsonian Magazine (great mag) a few years ago that blew my mind. There was a photo of an ant atop a long stem of grass. Explanation in caption: it was waiting and had been for a loooong time. Guess what it was waiting for? I turned to the text. It was waiting for a cow to come along and gobble it up.

Why? Because the ant carried a parasite inside its own body that was able to reproduce only inside the guts of a cow. The ant was complying to the point of suicide in order to grant its parasite’s demand! Mind-boggling, eh?! The article gave more examples of people and other creatures satisfying parasite needs. Think of this the next time you want a dessert or candy bar… who or what is wanting it?? Another important and thoroughly disgusting fact brought to you as a public service from Evan’s Garden! giggle!

Now consider this: not only is sugar what viruses and bacteria (parasites of sorts) live on, but it’s high on the favorite foods list of intestinal parasites and molds. Candida albicans, the yeast or mold that holds us in its thrall and is at the source of so much debility and illness, thrives on sugar! When we eat sugar and other garbage like white flour, we feed them as if they were our little, unseen, pernicious pets. Then when that intestinal colony is too crowded, candida passes through the intestinal wall to migrate to where sugar resides (sort of the “land of plenty” for molds): mainly the liver, brain and of course bloodstream (blood sugar) from whence it can vacation to (settle in) any organ in the body. Imagine that… moldy brains!(Sounds like the makings of a good and silly horror movie! )

When I did a candida cleanse, I found surges of sharpening alertness as the molds were conquered. Evicting candida IS that important to health – it’s vital to a sound night’s sleep, to dealing with rashes, to regaining energy, to eradicating bad food and drink cravings, and, yes, to your complexion. (We carry cleanses, since our purpose is to help us all attain better health naturally).

There is a natural enemy to candida in your body. Let’s hear it for your Intestinal Flora: hip, hip… hoooray!! Most people no longer have it or much of it, though, since chlorine, antibiotics (and other things we were not meant to be exposed to) kill these beneficial bacteria. You can replace them easily. (You got it… check on our site… how can we have beauty if not health?). You can do something about low energy, a bad complexion, and the resistance one feels to dietary change. It gets better; it gets easier.

Skin Care and Body Care Products

We can also do something positive by refusing to apply garbage to the body’s outside. The facial and body products I make are devoid of bad stuff (cheap, of course). On the good side, they do contain whole plant, organic nutrients galore to deal topically with the skin’s nutritional needs.

Ever notice that, whether a government or any such institution confers official approval, facts are still facts? One such fact that remains stubbornly unrecognized officially but is, well, still a fact is that, poison or food, what we apply on the skin is awfully likely to go inside. There it does something, good or bad, to the skin and to the rest of the organs, hormones, etc. So, of course, use unpoisonous, beneficial stuff on your body if you want to look good. I like the idea of it anyway, as it makes you feel better just to know that you’re making this pro-survival choice.

Even with this information, I veer off in my pursuit of health often enough: I get detoured by “the fun factor. ” I try to do what I can (in the food department, at any rate) to bring myself greater health without worrying too much about it and to have pleasures even though they may break the rules, you know? I believe (but admit that this may be just a convenient belief) that this fun factor generates more health than it erodes. But overall I stick to doing what makes my body healthier, since a creaky, slowing, bothersome, aging body can bring me down emotionally by ever reminding me that it only serves for so long.

Okay, that is the physical approach, tending to the body’s needs. There is far more to dive into on this subject of physical health, but in my book those are some of the topmost points.

Beyond the Physical

The other causes for a healthy body and youthful complexion may be even more important. Not that we want a wrinkly face, goodness no! But to put this into perspective, have you ever known or seen someone who was so enlivened in attitude and expression that the wrinkles didn’t even impose themselves on you? My tennis coach’s wife was one such. Despite the tough, tanned, wrinkly skin, her countenance was so open, so promising of understanding and mirth, her eyes so full of affection and good humor, her smile so immediate and natural, and her hugs so available and warm, that she was youth itself and wisdom, both.

In my understanding, beyond the importance of what we do to take care of the body, more relevant even is what we do to keep our mental and spiritual “houses” clean and happy. No drugs can make you happy or eradicate memories or pain. They can only bury them. But… the truth is not as harsh as we make it. The truth is that life is literally we, us, in us, with us, it is we ourselves and right now. No matter what misdeeds we’ve committed or allowed to happen in the past, no matter how deeply we may have sunk, no matter how we wish we had known or chosen differently or taken another path or lent a hand or said something, or, or, or… we are NOW fully capable, fully alive, fully changeable, with the decision to be so and with the strength which does reside in us innately.

I have always had very little sympathy for people who coddle themselves and nurse old wounds continuously. I finally reached the conclusion that the person who bemoans his/her fate relentlessly is not intending it to improve. I’d prefer to uphold a standard of living that states that I can make things improve and so can you. This lets me just get busy… frees my attention to get on with the job at hand, see?

A sniffling misery is, most sadly of all, not based upon the truth of who we truly are and what we are capable of. Especially when you get a person alone, not in a group (groups can exert influences on him/her that are easy to succumb to), you will likely find that person to be of good intention. I’m sure you also have found that the great majority of people mean well, wish to help and will help. When people are put to the task, in sudden emergencies or when the volume of caring is turned up high, they’re capable in ways they hadn’t credited themselves with. And despite how socially unacceptable it may be to show delight over one’s own abilities and creations, people are creative by nature and do take delight in sharing their inspirations and fun. I see that we have abilities we hide and let atrophy, but they are there if whistled into action.

Forgive me if I vary from your concept of man, but this view works for me – and we must speak and live by our own perceptions of truth.

Incidentally, be suspect of and hold at arm’s length someone who preaches to you that you are working too hard or are too active or a “Type A” or whatever. So were Einstein, Beethoven, Edison, Galileo, da Vinci. Would it have been best to tell them to quit working so darned hard? What is life without purpose? How soon do people die after they give it up? What juices us up more than the hope of making it better? What makes us happier than seeing hopes materialize?

And, what does this have to do with the face and its complexion? A lot. You and I know that. Life is not an easy ride. Failures, worry over impending troubles or past ones, feelings of inadequacy, being hounded by the demands of life, employers, false “friends,” and so on… these cause stress when not recognized, bravely confronted and handled by us. The stresses show up on our faces, distorting, marking and wrinkling, as, inside, our organs take the brunt of our woes. We can be left with less verve and looking it, too.

About failure: is there a less troubling way to deal with failure? What works for me is neither being easy to excuse it (that perpetuates the errors and seems to make us somehow more glorious for them) nor getting all hung up on the “failingness” of it, and then, God forbid, slandering my own image to myself. Blame is just more of the soggy, at times self-serving attitude I wish to avoid at all costs. Failures are a drag, let’s not lie about that, but they are at least useful as material to study and learn from. We can leave the bummer of it behind best if we find what went wrong and now amend our policies and procedures of living, to do it better next time. A few apologies might be a relief to make, including to oneself. But we’ve got to let ourselves move on and this is what has worked for me.

As far as aging is concerned, if we can move on after loss and failure, with attention on the present and future, we retain that much youth. Future orientation to my understanding comprises youth. Guilt? Hey, who doesn’t have a checkered past to some extent? I hate to say it, I believe no one has a perfectly gleaming past and if so, all right, you needn’t read this section with us sullied (dirtied) homo saps. Sheez, who hasn’t lost control, been mean, selfish, scheming, jealous, downright rotten? But what pertinence does this have to Right Now? None. Thank God we can change and be what we mean to be at any moment of our lives. It’s a supreme ability. To me, contemplation of the ability to improve life beats at the heart of religion. This is the basis of ethics: there can be improvement and what I do matters. We can observe rather than look askance, we can choose to say plainly what we see, we can decide and make it so and we can change.

It’s funny, the attitudes that feel so young – high interest, willingness to change as deemed necessary – can be as strong or stronger for all the experience confirming them in a truly mature personality. So what we are really looking at is what is ideal, not just youthful. Mark Twain remarked, “Youth is wasted on the young. “I didn’t really start feeling grounded and mature in my attitudes until I was in my forties!Hard to admit that, but when I look back at my thirties and earlier, I was easier to sway, easier to hoodwink, and less aware, frankly. I was hungrier for “stuff” then than I am now. I let myself wallow more. I was less forgiving, more stuck. Life was paler. So what really happened to me is I grew up and got younger!

At the core of beauty, the place from which beauty comes upon our appearance, are qualities that no creams, beauty rituals or make-up can deliver: the likes of integrity, generosity of spirit and levity (I mean lightness, good humor that does not mean to belittle).

Acknowledge that the body presents limitations but as the souls of so many philosophers throughout all ages and cultures tell us: ignore them in the main, the constant limitations and reminders of limitations; defy those very limitations by cultivating spiritual life, which means cultivating you. No one is perfectly nonchalant to the reality of aging. The fact of it sits on this chair and types these words. I am not immune to the urge to keep my body young forever and I use my youth cream as avidly as anyone else. The challenge is not to buy the evidence.

What is aging? Aging in terms of moving toward death could be described as giving in. We’ve been born; we horsed around and wanted to learn everything; we’ve burned with desires as we developed into the adults of the species and we probably produced progeny; we’ve reared them; we’ve been busy as all heck being enterprising and earning wherewithal to keep these bodies-plus-souls maintaining and on the playing field; we’ve started to decrease in energy as it seems to be a losing proposition and we’ve become uncertain that we can create energy in ourselves and inspiration in life; we look to the past for any glimmer of vitality and power of sensation; we throw in the towel. This oversimplified rundown may or may not apply to you as bluntly or as harshly as I write it – or perhaps you feel it does not apply to you. Yet as I see it, the cycle of life experience does go something like this. And this is where philosophy and religion happily save the day, eh?

Okay, okay, I know we each die anyway, but in my viewpoint that is the body that we shed. We do not just vanish from the world of consciousnesses, whether you believe that we go to God or that we live on or whatever. Sure, I’d rather go on with a healthy body for far, far longer if not forever, making something of life and tracking all my connections and polishing those things I have acquired and finishing all the plans I’ve concocted, but since dying is a fact, I can differentiate that it is the body that dies and not me.

The complexion? If I get a wrinkle, I can get very busy getting rid of it; but after all, it is a wrinkle in this crust, this name tag, this puppet I am sometimes calling “me”… it has a mar… but this is not me ultimately or even at any time. It’s been helpful to know this. So as we discuss keeping skin youthful, how can I suggest to you only what to do physically? For that, I send you to my website to read up on my skin care. It is the very best I can make it be. But skin care is just one of the ways to “youthen” your appearance and it’s not the most profound. The best youth treatment is an unstudied laugh, an expression of admiration, attention extroverted along a magnanimous and self-chosen line of purpose.

It’s actually true that the body reflects us, our mental and spiritual states, faithfully. When we’re bummed out, stressed, holding onto resentment, listless, uncertain (you know the list), then do muscles slacken, the trash gets less efficiently taken out and our blood and organs left more toxic and sluggish. Recently, it was shown that with bad news, the immune system is instantly depressed. Yet, the body of a truly jovial person is likely to hum like awell-tuned car.

Back to handling the body. A basic part of achieving this state of mind is to set yourself up to be able to be calm and happy. It’s almost impossible to feel good when attention is sucked into a tired, hungry or ill body. We’ve discussed food. Another point is, don’t let your body run too short of sleep. I am so fussy and error-prone when I’m tired!

Eating too late in the evening counters digestion and the effort to digest distracts from sleep. It may be helpful to know that as the day progresses from noon to midnight, our digestive juices gradually diminish; by late evening there are almost no digestive juices to be had and so our food cannot be assimilated. To sleep deeply, as mentioned before, get rid of parasites – their activity blocks a good night’s sleep. Replacing the intestinal flora is a big help, for, aside from chasing out parasites, they produce B-vitamins, the calming ones, right there in the intestines. Another help to achieving a good night’s sleep is to walk or exercise enough during the day.

More ideas you may find helpful for a good night’s sleep: Shut off or unplug electrical things to reduce the electromagnetic “noise.” Our VCR emits a little green light which is bound to keep me up. Firmly shut curtains so lights outside do not shine in the room. I like a beautiful, natural environment – and sleep very well with some lovely essential oils (lavender and other calming ones) diffused into the room before hitting the sack. However you do it, make it a must to get a good night’s sleep and good nutrition.

Permit me to slip in here that drugs lead to more dependencies and they don’t deal with more than symptoms. Drugs leave the causes of illness to continue causing the illness, even if that now occurs below the level of our perceptions. Herbs and food are much kinder, more familiar approaches and more effective.

These basics give us a healthy body and allow us to operate less tethered to it. It’s a great idea, as you may already do, to resolve to learn the basics so you can take your health and well-being into your own hands. And these you can learn about and with care, use yourself.

Writing this article has been helpful for me, for I have had to view the issue of aging in perspective and remind myself of the principles I try myself to adhere to. I hope you have enjoyed this and I would love to hear from you!

Love,

Evan

Toss Those Bottles!

A customer of ours recently asked us to share tips on choosing vitamin supplements. We’re happy to oblige!

The first principle in selecting vitamin supplements is, in general: DON’T.

Simple concept, isn’t it!?

Now before we start an email war on this subject, let’s elaborate on our position.

First of all, we’d like to call to your attention that vitamin supplements have only existed for a few decades. The human race was getting along quite nicely in many ways before supplements came on the scene.

In particular, certain native cultures where the people ate an omnivorous diet (omnivorous means they at all kinds of things, a wide variety) of mostly raw (and of course organic!) foods enjoyed long life and great health. For more info on what these people ate, we suggest an excellent book to be found in the bookstore on our website: “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration” by Weston A. Price.

If people could be healthy without taking vitamins, why should we take them now?

The usual answer is that today’s processed foods are no longer nutritious, so of course we need supplements.

Of COURSE processed foods are not nutritious. They have had their nutrition stripped out of them in favor of other considerations such as shelf life, marketing appeal, corporate profit margins, etc. Furthermore, processed foods are nearly always loaded with toxic chemicals, colors, preservatives and “flavor enhancers” such as MSG.

But notice that we’re not told the obvious answer, much more sensible than supplementation: we can simply eat UN-processed foods in the first place! Grab a tomato and eat it raw. It’s loaded with vitamins, minerals, natural anti-cancer plant chemicals, etc. Why take a pill for these things?

Now the second argument for supplementation: Modern foods are grown in deficient soils, so of course they lack nutrients. Thus we need supplements.

Of COURSE foods grown by “Industrial Farms, Inc.” factory farms lack nutrients. Typical corporate farms use dead fertilizers that have only THREE minerals vs. the 70+ that should be there. We need things like selenium in our diets to help prevent cancer, for instance. Forget about getting it from regular produce.

Furthermore, industrial farms are now typically growing toxic, genetically engineered “Frankenstein foods”. These may cause a host of problems, many of which are as yet unknown since adequate research was not done before these were released.

But again, we’re not told the fairly obvious answer to eat ORGANIC produce that is fertilized naturally (by critters), that has trace minerals, earthworms and friendly bacteria in the soil that help grow healthy plants without pesticides.

Now the third argument for supplementation: people today are in such a rush that they have notime to prepare whole foods, and most people don’t take the time for a leisurely meal, don’t chew enough to release the nutrients, etc. SO, of course they need supplements!

Whew, this is getting tiring! There IS an answer to this last point. If eating a good amount of fresh, organic, raw produce is an important key to health, and if this could be done in a way that was FAST and CONVENIENT, then people could actually adopt this healthful lifestyle.

But before we take that up, let’s mention the key things that are actually NOT GOOD about supplementation:

1. Supplements are nearly always synthetic, and not assimilated by the body. Most end up flushed down the toilet. Wasted money that could have been spent on quality whole foods.

2. Supplements, taken as they often are in arbitrary amounts, can actually create serious imbalances in the body and cause damage. For instance, a person may take massive amounts of Vitamin C and thereby create an imbalance of calcium. How is the body supposed to deal with megadoses of vitamins it was never designed to handle?

3. Supplements are not accompanied by their pals, things scientists call “cofactors” that assist the vitamins to do their jobs. One vitamin may have several or even dozens of cofactors in the whole food it comes from. The ONLY way to get all these is from whole foods!

THE SOLUTION:

Whole food concentrates.

Hope this helps!

Evan

 

Most anyone over 30 wants to enjoy younger-looking skin. Here are some simple things you can do to accomplish this.

1. Avoid excessive sun.

Note that we say “excessive” sun. You NEED some sunlight to maintain health. The trick is to limit exposure to about 10 or 15 minutes a day at the start of the sunny season and build up your exposure time gradually. Also, never let yourself burn, for that’s damaging to the skin. Wear broad-brimmed hats and light clothing if you chance burning.

Sunscreens are generally a bad idea due to the toxic chemicals used in them. But be sure to use high-quality natural moisturizers whenever you’re in the sun. And be sure to drink plenty of water and replenish minerals (electrolytes, trace minerals) Celtic sea salt is great for this purpose.

2. Keep your weight as constant as possible.

Some people’s weight goes up and down like a yo-yo! Gaining and then losing a lot of weight stretches and then slackens the skin and eventually it loses elasticity, contributing to wrinkling and sagging.

To help control your weight, try to consume a balance of fresh, organic, nutrient-dense foods, limit carbohydrates, avoid sodas and coffee and excessive alcohol.

Read the book The Metabolic Typing Diet to help you zero in on the diet that is right for your own body chemistry. The easiest way to attain and maintain your ideal weight is to learn your own unique dietary needs and follow them.

3. Use high-quality, natural body products that contain such ingredients as antioxidants, nourishing oils and other real-food nutrients.

Regarding oils, they are most nutritious when cold-pressed, unrefined and from organically grown plants. “Refined” is a nice-sounding word (marketing!) that really means “nothing much of any good left” and some nasty garbage picked up in the “refining” process. Cold-pressed oils contain more of the life of the plant. Organically grown crops provide more nutrients (this was proven in a Rutgers University study a few years back) than their commercially grown counterparts. And “organic” means the oil doesn’t have traces of bug spray and other serious poisons.

Nutrients available from whole plant sources are necessary to being healthy and feeling and looking young. Live food nutrients have tremendous healing powers. They can do so much to protect, fortify and rebuild skin and other cells.

When choosing skin care products, make sure they contain no chemical preservatives such as parabens or cheap industrial compounds such as propylene glycol that may be toxic or irritating. Let the real produce of Nature be what touches your skin.

It’s important not to use products that contain (or mask the scent of) rancid oils at any time, but especially so when you’re going in the sun. Evan is very particular in using only very fresh oils.

4. Consume the right balance of dietary oils.

Oils supply vital nutrients called fatty acids. The ones most often missing or out of balance in our modern diets are the omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 supplements are available mostly at health food stores.

Adding omega-3 to the diet can help normalize skin oil levels, maintain moisture and assist skin repair. So this is important for a youthful body.

5. Increase your intake of anti-oxidant foods.

Fresh, raw, organic vegetables, fruits and berries such as blueberries and super “green foods” such as chlorella, wheat grass, barley grass and others provide a bounty of natural plant chemicals, vitamins and minerals that fight damage and that slow aging.

To make it practical to consume a lot of fresh foods, get a high-quality processor such as a Vitamix. These machines can do practically anything and may last 20 years or more. Ours is arriving in a few days! We’re very excited!

Also drink enough pure water.

6. Periodically cleanse your innards.

An intestinal cleanse (every 6 months to a year or however you may wish), for starters, is a huge step toward improved health. After cleaning the intestines, you can cleanse the kidneys and bladder, the liver and gall bladder and the blood and lymph. (The cleanses we carry are all herbal.) We clean our houses, our cars, our feet, our carpets — well, let’s clean the vital organs of our bodies, too! How can we expect them to function smoothly if they’re dirty and clogged up inside?

What does this have to do with your youthful skin? The skin reflects oh so faithfully our internal health. Even wrinkles may appear where the organs that relate to those places on the “map of the face” are in less than optimum condition.

A fascinating reference about this is “Your Face Never Lies”, an eye-opening work by Michio Kushi. Did you know, for instance, that the nose shows the condition of the heart? (Our bodies actually have several maps, including the feet, hands and ears!) The position of a wrinkle (or other blemish and so on) can clue us in to the need of a health boost in the corresponding internal organ. Anyway, doing a periodic or occasional cleanse normally brings one’s health way up and the internal improvements really show in the clearness, suppleness and radiance of the skin.

As you can see, some lifestyle adjustments can help us all look and feel younger. We hope you find these tips workable and wish you great success and enjoyment in applying them.

Let us know if you have any comments or questions. We love to hear from you!

In this issue we’re covering the exciting topic of nutrition and mental balance. While there are a number of factors that affect this, nutrition has been found extremely important, especially according to recent research.

Here is news that appeared on ABC a few years back:

Omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish, may hold the key to naturally easing depression.

In the past, studies have shown that in countries where large amounts of fish are consumed, rates of depression are low as compared with countries where little fish is consumed. This has led researchers to examine whether omega-3 fats found in the fish are responsible for the decreased evidence of depression.

One study followed patients with bipolar disorder. Half of the participants were given fish oil tablets and the other half received a placebo. After four months, half of those on the placebo had fallen into depression, but only two out the 15 people given fish oil were depressed.

Other studies have shown similar results indicating that omega-3 fatty acids may in fact relieve depression, and some psychiatrists are now recommending that their depressed patients increase their consumption of these fatty acids.

In addition to its positive effects on depression, studies have linked omega-3s with improved cardio-vascular health, as well as shown them to be a potential prevention and treatment tool for certain cancers an inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.

(Source: ABC News of Sept 17th 2002)

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READING:

The Omega 3 Connection by Dr. Andrew L Stoll, M.D.

A must-read for anyone dealing with depression, The Omega-3 Connection by Andrew L. Stoll, M.D., strikes yet another blow against the standard American diet. We already know that years of noshing on highly processed foods have saddled us with sky-high rates of heart disease, obesity, and related conditions. But, as we’re starting to understand now, our eating habits may also be subtly altering our brain chemistry, leaving us vulnerable to anxiety disorders and depression. Only in this case, it’s not just what we’re eating–it’s what we’re not eating: foods containing omega-3 essential fatty acids–the “good fats” that help maintain optimal brain function.

In his book, Stoll, the director of the psycho-pharmacology research lab at Boston’s McLean Hospital and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, suggests that restoring our body’s natural balance of omega-3s may help alleviate (and prevent) many types of depression. Omega-3s may also prove helpful with other problems, such as the inability to handle stress, memory loss, and cognitive decline. The book contains a “renewal plan” designed to help readers put Stoll’s concepts into practice, recipes for omega-3-rich dishes, advice for choosing supplements, and dosages for therapeutic use.

OTHER FACTORS OF IMPORTANCE

Exercise, sunshine and blood sugar levels can all play significant roles in mental equilibrium.

Other factors such as stress-causing personalities in the family or workplace can unbalance some people. However, nutritional factors can have a huge impact. Bringing the levels of omega-3 nutrients up to optimum can help the individual withstand more stress.

Our hats are off to Dr. Stoll and others doing this vital nutritional research. With recent discoveries about the role of nutrition and basic environmental factors in mental balance, it is becoming abundantly clear that drugs are unnecessary for the treatment of depression and other mental disorders.

To Mother Nature we are once more indebted!