I have to wonder at the timing of the re-introduction of the Australia Card.

It just so happens that this issue, which has also been previously put to rest, happens to resurface at the same time as the Children in detention issue.

Does our Government really think we have such short memories??? 

Dear Howard,

The Australian public are not goldfish.  Apart from the fact that we do not have gills, and the vast majority of us are not orange, with or without black markings, I can only assume that you have mistaken us for Goldfish for some bizarre reason only you can fathom. 

Goldfish have 3 second memories.  They can swim from one end of a tank to the other and back and feel like they are somewhere totally new.  Not so the Austrailan puclic.

If I was a conspiracy theorist, I would say that the timing is perfect.  The Govt may well think the same bunch of people who will get all uptight over the Children behind the razorwire of the deftly named non-detention centres on Nauru and Manus Island are the same people that will get their knickers in a knot over the Australia Card.  (Stroke of brilliance, that naming thing.  Stroke of brilliance, that naming thing. Can't say kids are in detention if we don't call them detention centres can they!? Har!) It's all stuff like human rights and rabbiting on about freedom, after all. Hopefully there are not enough of them to make too big of a stink on all fronts at the same time, so maybe we can sneak something through when "they" aren't looking.   We managed to slide the whole Workplace "reforms" thing through when people were more interested in the war, so it may well work this time around, too.  After all, why do the masses need all these human rights and non-exploitation and freedoms and privacy anyway.  Fighting "terror" is much more important.  After all, we have to protect ourselves from extremists who would threaten out way of life, don't we??

As soon as you buy a wheelchair, I bet you'll be able to walk again!

You are just too worried about never walking, it's all in your head! If you stop thinking about it so much, it will happen.

The more convinced I am that something is terribly wrong with our diets, and at this stage I believe that it's iodine.

Today there was another interesting article in the paper about childhood obesity.  It backs something I have been thinking for some time.  Our culture has not changed dramatically in terms of amount of exercise over the last 5 years. 

The article.. The Shocking truth of Childhood obesity states in part:

The study of 5407 students from 90 public schools in NSW, commissioned by the State Government, contradicts the "urban myth" that children are increasingly inactive and hooked on sedentary pastimes. They are exercising much harder than in the 1990s, and yet still stack on more weight.

Dr Booth found 23 per cent of girls and 26 per cent of boys were overweight or obese in 2004 – both up from about 20 per cent in 1997.

But the children, aged four to 16, were exercising harder. More than 80 per cent in years 6 to 8 were adequately physically active – spending at least an hour a day in moderate or vigorous activity – compared with less than 60 per cent in 1997. "This flies in the face of what I think was an urban myth that children were inactive," said Dr Booth, who was so surprised that he ordered a recalculation. "Like everyone else, I believed the urban myth …"

That leaves over-eating as the main culprit, and throws the spotlight on the promotion of fast food and snacks.

Although I don't doubt that diets have degraded over the last few years, I don't believe that fast foods and snacks are the main culprit.  I think it's more likely that the nutritional content (including iodine) has decreased over the last few years (I have read a number of studies to that effect) and what we are seeing is an increase in the volume of food children eat because they require that much extra volume to get the same nutrients that their predecessors were obtaining from less food.

Two articles on Dioxins appeared in SMH today..

Dioxin tests for fishermen families

How these toxins build up and contaminate our food chain

Commercial fishing was banned in Sydney Harbour in January because of high levels of dioxins found in seafood, and the Government warned that it was not safe to eat more than 150 grams of Sydney Harbour seafood each month.

On average, Australians consume between 5 and 22 per cent of the amount of dioxins that the National Health and Medical Research Council says is acceptable.

In animals dioxins cause endometriosis, genital deformities, reproductive problems, and damage the immune system. The exact impact of average dioxin exposure on most people, however, is still being debated by scientists.

While there is no clear indication that normal exposure is causing disease, the Environmental Protection Agency in the US has also pointed out that a lack of evidence does not necessarily mean a lack of effect.

Ah yes.  Innocent until scientifically proven guilty.

Sepia is the ink from a squid. The squid usually lives alone, it is an independent individual. In case of fear or danger they surround themselves with a hiding cloud of dark ink.

When we project this image on human beings we find that the homoeopathic Sepia suits people who need (more) personal space around them, who cherish their independence, and who surround themselves with a dark emotional cloud of negative temper in case they don't get it. Sepia especially turns out to be a remedy for women. There are two types of Sepia women: one is the independent and ambitious career minded woman, and the other one is the mother who feels that the responsibilities for her family ask so much that there is no time left for herself. Women who need Sepia can also be a combination of both types.

Sepia

Sound like anyone we know????? Good job I'm on a full dose of it. Between this and the Nux Vomica, I'm generally a quite relaxed little bunny indeed.

At the moment I'm working on lowering the pesticide load on my body, psudo-estroegens in particular. We've started to microwave stuff in glass containers and drink water out of glasses instead of plastic bottles to reduce the intake of SE that way.

I'm also only eating organic chicken (and organic everything else) to reduce the hormonal intake from there as well. So.. on my recent trip to Woolies I noticed that there are never any organic chicken breasts there. Whole birds, thigh fillets, but no tenderloins or chicken breasts. There isn't even a space for them to go. Woolies never stocks them.

I really want to know where the chicken breasts have gone? They must be somewhere!

Pseudoestrogens are endocrine disruptors that either occur or are released into the natural environment and influence or mimic the function of hormones.  They are found in pesticides, synthetic hormones, plant constituents, plastics, detergents, and environmental pollutants.

http://www.uni.edu/pubrel/newsroom/op-ed/chemdep.shtml

"Estrogen is produced not only by the ovaries and adrenal glands, but also by abdominal fat cells that convert other hormones (particularly testosterone) into estrogen. The more weight a woman carries, particularly around the abdomen, the more estrogen circulates in her body.."

And how do you get a disproportionate amount of abdominal fat?  My nemisis, Adrenal Exhaustion, of course.

Is the answer.  Even if I feel like crap, I need to exercise more. 

www.shdc.com.au recommend 1 hour a day.  This is what they say…

Lack of exercise and poor nutrition are the biggest contributors to poor health.

One of the keys in using exercise to normalize insulin levels with secondary benefits of weight loss and normalization of blood sugars, is to make certain minimum thresholds are met. It is my experience that most people are not exercising enough.

Many people have told me they thought they were exercising enough when they were actually seriously under-dosed. This may be because many have not previously competed in an aerobic sport, which allows you to understand the feelings of "training" and how hard you have to push yourself to obtain aerobic and insulin benefits.

There are three important variables with exercise:

• Length of time
• Frequency
• Intensity

Assuming people can exercise, I encourage my patients to gradually increase the amount of time they are exercising to one hour per day.

Initially the frequency is daily. This is a treatment dose until they normalize their weight or insulin levels. Once normalized, they will only need exercise three to four times per week.

How the h*ll am I going to find an hour a day to exercise??  Geeps.

I read yesterday that Diabetes has exploded over the last 5 years.

Although I believe that our lifestyle has changed over time, this 5 year explosion of Diabetes in Australia is really interesting, simply because it was about 5 years ago that our diet in Australia started to become iodine deficient. I think there is a link.

Re-emergence of iodine deficiency in Australia http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/bsc/ajc/2001/00000010/00000003/art00254

.. found evidence of mild to moderate iodine deficiency in pregnant women, patients with diabetes and a small group of volunteers attending a Sydney teaching hospital… indicating that widespread mild iodine deficiency threatens to affect the most vulnerable in our community. The key factor in the genesis of iodine-deficiency disorders is decreased production of thyroxine from the thyroid gland (hypothyroidism). http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/171_9_011199/eastman/eastman.html

Iodine is needed for the body’s production of thyroid hormones by the thyroid gland. This gland regulates many of the body’s activities including its ability to burn fat and produce energy. Iodine deficiencies have been linked to breast cancer, fatigue and weight gain. http://www.diabetic.com/education/articles/nutrition-archives/minerals-3.htm

Symptoms of hypothyroidism: Fatigue, Weakness, Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight, Coarse, dry hair, Dry, rough pale skin, Hair loss, Cold intolerance (can’t tolerate the cold like those around you), Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches, Constipation, Depression, Irritability, Memory loss, Abnormal menstrual cycles, Decreased libido. http://www.endocrineweb.com/hypo1.html