July 10, 2002
FibromyalgiaGREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS from Arnold's Way!
The ground shook with reverberation,
An abbreviation of nonsensical folly hid
in the bushes of nondescript nonsense.
Crowd gathers-birds whisper-the pain was
too much to bare.
Every day, every moment woman wince
The name of disbelief cries in utter shame
Fibromyalgia-no longer has to be a dirty word.
It is the end that began when it begun. Each week, each thought, sirens ring out and bombs keep quiet under the midnight air. Fibromyalgia had to be this week's subject. There are too many stories, too many women affected, too many hush-hush stories that cringe when discovery is near. Fibromyalgia is a medical researcher's nightmare. For whatever reason, the hush-hush disease brings forth anger from my soul, a bare knuckle fist looking for a bag to prove wrong. Fibromyalgia is a hidden disease that creeps, stares, and then conquers without any fight whatsoever.
It's one of those fancy words that when so-called named, the victim relinquishes their healing power. As a health food store owner, I see the after effects when one is diagnosed. It's almost like a resignation that nothing can be done.
It's on such a premise that we begin our journey. To fly upward on the wings of due diligence, to discover why such resignation, why there is such little hope, why fibromyalgia affects mostly women, and why it has become so popular that we have to even write about it.
So, I begin-reading-researching, desperately seeking any hint of "why" to so many questions. What came as a slight surprise is that the information is just not out there. My first break came in Alternative Medicine presented by Barton Goldberg. It's one of those big fancy books with over 1000 pages, and it has the appearance of being the crème de la crème for the last word on "why" diseases and what are the healing options. Unfortunately, this was not the case for fibromyalgia. It was mentioned once in a statement that barely touched what is fibromyalgia exactly? As quoted, "the most common reactions are found to be produced by the mercury amalgams used for fillings", according to Dr. Arana, is fibromyalgia. One thousand pages and one line is written! To those who have fibromyalgia, hold this statement in thought and review the possibilities with your dentist.
The funny thing about this newsletter, the answer is already known. The facts are already there, the proof is already there. Those in the know, already understand that changing to a raw food diet, dramatic improvements begin to occur. These proofs are not told. These proofs are not shared. This is what we request, to share the possibilities of healing, without drugs, without medication, without doctors, without suffering. So, we research, we read the standard procedure. We read the statistics as quoted by the Merck manual 17th edition. "Fibromyalgia indicates pain in fibrous tissues, muscles, tendons, ligaments and other sites." This seems standard jargon until we read further on why. To say I was astonished by the statement would be a disservice to the word "Merck Manual 17", the most advanced medical journal not only in this country, but the world. It states why women, not men are affected by all this pain as quoted, "likely to occur in healthy young or middle-aged women who tend to be stressed, tense, depressed, anxious, and striving." The sad part, these are the answers given to women, to girls, to anybody who would believe that their doctor knows best. We keep silent, knowing better, we keep silent about the 30 women who changed their diet from a standard American diet to a mostly raw diet and their symptoms disappeared. We read the futile standard approach to learn why thousands if not millions of women suffer needlessly day after day, month after month.
Merck manual 17th edition quotes "relief may be obtained from reassurance and explanation of the benign nature of the syndrome". As a female patient, I would be insulted if my doctor would state that the pain, although had, is really not that bad. But these are the answers given. These are the reasons why very little information is given on fibromyalgia; its causes, its cures, its prevention. We hold the statistics on the 30 women who made a remarkable come back once they went on a vegetarian diet. We review David Wolfe's book, "Sun Food Diet", the chapter on food and karma, the chapter that talks about how cows are slaughtered, how chickens are killed, how milk is gotten from a cow. How the word inhumane becomes so blatantly blaring, how the karma becomes known with every bite, every taste, with every morsel of dead animals going through our system as quoted "one also ingests the fear, the pain, the exhaustion and the sorrow of those innocent beings which manifest itself within the consumer as negative attitude". This is not some made up thought process. Can we as a people truly ever be happy when we are causing so much pain to other living animals? Pain is loosely stated since killing is the reality and eating is the result. These are manifestations of a daily lifestyle that our body has to contend with. I sit in horror as I hear the stories of those women who suffer from fibromyalgia and are unwilling to change their lifestyle. The truth of the matter is-pain is not normal-suffering is not normal!
There are options, there are possibilities. As a novice medical researcher, the information necessary to create health come quickly to those who are serious. I listen to the words of Anna Innez, who runs a health and education center in upstate Pennsylvania. "We are playing Russian roulette with out dietary choices". We can't become victims and let someone else decide our fate.
My mind wanders for I have come to understand. I see the pain, I know it can disappear. I hear of the sleepless nights, I know it can go away. I feel the suffering; I know it can go away. So, I write, and write, research, and research-that is my choice, my fate, my destiny. I know not what else to do.
We continue talking to Anna Innez who speaks from experience, who speaks from success, who speaks of a deep knowing that fibromyalgia, like most diseases does not have to be. She explains the first thing one has to do is to get off of caffeine since it is the #1 contributor to neuromuscular disease. What is even more interesting, why mostly women have fibromyalgia rather than men-a 3 to 1 ratio, representing about 2% of the population; meaning like millions of people. It is not because of the gender factor according to Anna, but the chocolate factor. Jumping Jehosophat! There's an eye opener that discombobulates the sweet tooth factor. Chocolate has caffeine. Women more so than men, go to their chocolate, which in turn, like coffee or tea, and after chocolate go towards drinking because of the guilt factor in not wanting to be tired. These are statements of understanding, statements of insight, a real eye opener. Fibromyalgia occurs mostly in women because of these two factors. Coffee, tea, chocolate, as well as colas, and aspirin all contain caffeine, which is a known vasodilator. In easy English, caffeine causes one's blood vessels to expand. This is a body's defense mechanism because caffeine is poisonous. The body has no choice in the matter but to expand the blood vessels so the caffeine can leave the system as soon as possible.
The second major reason for fibromyalgia according to Anna Innez is heavy metal. Heavy metal, as in mercury-is found in everything and everybody. It's one of those sentences which at first glance seem almost impossible to comprehend. Until we begin the research. Mercury, besides being found in fish, which according to Neal Barnard, M.D., "Food for Life", "Another problem with fish is mercury". The metal settles in rivers and oceans and according to Consumer Reports is in 90% of swordfish and a typical can of tuna contains about 15 mcg of mercury! Now we have some idea why 2% of the women in the U.S. suffer from fibromyalgia. Between chocolate binges, late night snacks on all those chocolate goods, constant diet on all the diet colas and eating those tuna fish sandwiches. I am surprised it's only 2%.
Other hidden sources of mercury and heavy metals is in water (say it's not true), mercury dental fillings, deodorant, and believe it or not, pots and pans. We as a people are eating food that is poisonous, chemical loaded, and are suffering the consequences. When there is a lack of water rich food in our diet, the muscles according to Anna Innez, become shorter and become painful, we become restless tired and have a hard time sleeping, hence fibromyalgia. By changing our diet, wonderful things start to happen. By eating a mostly raw diet, wonderful things start to happen. There are absolutely no accidents in our bodies. Disease doesn't just happen! They are created by our daily life choices.
Anna Innez gives a prime example of one of her clients', Ruth, (a fictitious name), was 52 years old who suffered for 10 years with fibromyalgia and was getting worse. Her medications were not working, her treatments were not working, and her life was about pain all the time. She was taking 15 pills a day for pain, for sleep, for just getting through the day. She was under her doctor's care, who's only treatment was pills. No mention of change in dietary habit, no mention of getting rid of coffee, tea, or other caffeine substances like chocolate, or colas as well as stop consuming the heavy metal foods. This was her life and she had to live it with no hope for a better tomorrow. As a health food store owner, these are stories I hear daily-no hope, plenty of pain and nothing can be done. Luckily for Ruth, she heard about Anna and was willing to change her lifestyle. She was put on a 5 week transitional diet. Anna's first goal was to have Ruth sleeping. It's a must, a major requirement for healing. She had to give up all chocolate, all coffee, all tea, all colas, all stimulating foods. These are really not foods but drugs. When one stops these drugs, they literally go through drug withdrawal. So, Ruth did just that. Three days of living hell-the headaches, the swollen eyes, the nausea, the "I can't believe I'm doing this". After three days, Ruth was somewhat clean, somewhat able to focus. She was somewhat ready for the next five weeks of getting off her typical American diet and switching to a mostly raw diet. After ten days, Ruth got her strength back, she wasn't as tired, and she wasn't in so much pain. She saw hope and possibility where there never was that option. She continued day after day getting rid of the cooked food and replacing it with plenty of salads, plenty of fruit, and some nuts, seeds, and sea vegetables. At the end of the five weeks, Ruth got her life back! She lost some weight; she resumed her tennis playing, and was able to play with her grandchild. In other words, Ruth became a happy camper. The pain did not go away totally, but in time it will-that simple, that easy, and that possible.
The evidence is there according to a scientific study, BMC Complimentary and Alternative Medicine in conjunction with Hallelujah Acres Foundation. They defined fibromyalgia as "patients in a downward, reinforcing cycle of unrestorative sleep, chronic pain, fatigue, inactivity and depression". The study was given on whether a mostly raw vegetarian diet would significantly improve fibromyalgia symptoms. Knowing what I know, it was a no-brainer. Knowing what Anna Innez knows, it was obvious. Knowing what Ruth experienced, there was no question about it. These are answers which require no questions. As I repeat myself so often in the almost 50 newsletters I have written, lifestyle is almost everything. What we eat influences our daily zest for life. Dead food=dead energy=pain=suffering=disease=death.
There are choices; there were 30 people who partook of this study, of all ages. The bottom line as quoted, "this dietary intervention shows that many fibromyalgia subjects can be helped by a mostly raw vegetarian diet". On a more finite basis, those participants who stuck with the program for 7 months as quoted, "scores for all scales except bodily pain were no longer statistically different from norms for woman ages 45-54. The study used was almost the same diet implementation as recommended by Anna Innez. There were a couple of exceptions, but basically the same.
In conclusion, we live, we eat, we dream. A life full of hope, gladness and a wondrous opportunity to participate fully in the joys of living. Imagine being able to be without pain, without suffering, without the daily ritual of trying to make it through the day. The choice is ours.......
I thank you for your time.
Arnold
References:
1. Research Article
Fibromyalgia syndrome improved using a mostly raw vegetarian diet-Michael S. Donaldson, Neal Speight, Stephen Loomis
2. God's Way to Ultimate Health-Dr. George H. Malkamus with Michael Dye
3. Alternative Medicine-Burton Goldberg
4. Sunfood Diet-David Wolfe
5. Food for Life-Neal Barnard M.D.
Interview:
Anna Innez-Director Health & Education Center 570-739-2940
Notice:
Arnold's Way Vegetarian Raw Café Presents an Evening of Grecian Cuisine
Join us on Friday, July 19, 2002 as Gourmet Raw Foods Chef Benjamin Rachunas presents a Colorful Array of Cuisine from the Greek Isles.
Where:
Arnold's Way Raw Vegetarian Café
319 West Main Street, Lansdale, Pa 19440
215-361-0116
When: Friday, July 19, 2002
Dinner will be served at 7:00 pm. A Demonstration will be presented at 6:00 pm for those who wish to learn how to prepare the foods.
Cost: $15.00
Seating is limited, so reserve your space today!
For more information, call Arnold at 215-361-0116, or check us out on the web at www.arnoldsway.com