A VERY USEFUL WEBSITE

I get a lot of pleasure out of Robert Mercola's website. If I want some info on a health topic I'll often end up at the Mercola site - along with the other 600,000 subscribers that he has. He is a prolific and, in my humble opinion, authoritative correspondent. If you're interested in keeping yourself fit and healthy I recommend you get his newsletter.

You can sign up by clicking here.

He sends out an email newsletter a coupla times a week and there's usually a gem or two in there somewhere.

Below is an excerpt from a newsletter I received this week on the desirability of adopting a drug free approach to keeping yourself healthy. It goes against the current grain, I must say!

We've reached the point in history where it's easier to take a pill to mask a symptom than it is to do whatever needs to be done to stimulate the body's own recuperative power. One of the reasons for this is that our Government promotes and subsidizes drug treatments for ailments rather than hard slog and clean living. It taxes your gym membership.

Yet readers of this newsletter know that there are very few things that contribute to a feeling of wellness and vitality than that which come from a physically active way of life and eating from the topov the Hourglass.

And whatever you think about his attitude to habeas corpus, reconciliation, the republik, children swimming in the Indian Ocean, junk food advertising, weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East or succession planning, when it comes to keeping in good shape and enhancing your vitality level, take a leaf out of John Howard's book - discipline, persistence and consistency. It was his 67th birthday this week and he looks in pretty good shape.

And here's Mercola's 10 healthy life recommendations

A better and safer alternative for you: Eliminating your risks by following a proactive, drug-free approach and following my list of recommendations:

1.  Control your insulin levels: Make certain that you limit your intake of processed foods and sugars as much as possible.

2.  Get appropriate amounts of animal-based omega-3 fats, and make sure you use cod liver oil if you don't have regular access to sun exposure.

3.  Get appropriate exercise. One of the primary reasons exercise works is that it drives your insulin levels down. Controlling insulin levels is one of the most powerful ways to reduce your cancer risks.

4.  Normalize your vitamin D levels with safe amounts of sun exposure. This works primarily by optimizing your vitamin D level. If you have regular access to sun exposure then you should use fish oil, not cod liver oil, as your primary source of omega-3 fats. Ideally, it would be best to monitor your vitamin D levels.

5.  Eat according to your metabolic type. The potent anti-cancer effects of this principle are very much underappreciated. When we treat cancer patients in our clinic this is one of the most powerful anti-cancer strategies we have.

6.  Have a tool to permanently erase the neurological short-circuiting that can activate cancer genes. Even the CDC states that 85 percent of disease is caused by emotions. It is likely that this factor may be more important than all the other physical ones listed here, so make sure this is addressed. Energy psychology seems to be one of the best approaches and my particular favorite tool, as you may know, is the Emotional Freedom Technique.

7.  Only 25 percent of people eat enough vegetables, so by all means eat as many vegetables as you are comfortable with. Ideally, they should be fresh and organic. However, please understand that, frequently, fresh conventionally grown vegetables are healthier than organic ones that are older and wilted in the grocery store. They are certainly better than no vegetables at all, so don't use that as an excuse. If you are a carb metabolic type you may need up to 300 percent more vegetables than a protein metabolic type.

8.  Make sure you are not in the two-thirds of the population who are overweight and maintain an ideal body weight.

9.  Get enough high-quality sleep.

10.  Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins like pesticides, household chemical cleaners, synthetic air fresheners and air pollution.

11.  Boil, poach or steam your foods, rather than frying or charbroiling them.

Save your health and your money. You work too hard to waste either one on "miracle" drugs and cures.

So there you have it. And I think No. 1, 'control your insulin levels' is probably the most important. That's one of the key benefits of a regular and vigorous aerobic fitness training program.

Do that and you'll save yourself from all manner of body system dysfunctions.

In the meantime stay tuned; highly tuned and remember that the junk food industry walketh around like a roaring lion seeking whom it may devour.