Studies show that water containing chlorine is hazardous to your health. When chlorine is added to water supplies it mixes with other chemicals in the water and and forms compounds that can trigger free radicals and cause a number of health problems. Many people are concerned about drinking chlorinated water due to these health concerns and they filter their drinking water accordingly or they buy bottled, thinking it is “cleaner”. Yet they overlook one important area of chlorine exposure. The simple truth is that showering/bathing with chlorinated water may be an even bigger concern.

When you shower or wash in chlorinated water the heat from that water opens your pores allowing those chemical compounds to sink into your skin. In addition, breathing in the steaming chlorinated air can affect your lungs and bronchial tubes. Here are just some of the problems that chlorine in your water can cause.

• A higher risk of cancer
• problems with circulation
• lung and breathing problems
• increased asthma attacks
• thyroid problems due to blocked iodine receptors

In addition, to these life threatening problems chlorinated water in your shower or bath can also cause your hair to become rough and brittle and lose color, cause your skin to dry out and flake, and dry out the fluid in your eyes and cause eye irritations. Is it any wonder that our skin is prone to dryness and irritation in the winter, when we are more likely to turn our bathrooms into mini chlorine saunas? No.

While you can avoid drinking chlorinated water by filtering your water via your Brita pitcher, you are probably thinking that there is no way you can avoid that chlorinated water in your bath or shower. However, you couldn’t be more wrong. There are a variety of bath and shower filters on market today that you can use to reduce your risks from chlorinated water.

Benefits Of Chlorine Filters For Showers And Baths

Chlorine filters for showers and baths remove chlorine and other toxins from the water in your shower and bath. The benefits of these filters should be obvious. By filtering the chlorine out, the steam you are inhaling won’t cause irritation and damage to your bronchial tubes or to your lungs. It also means that there won’t be chlorine compounds coming out of your showerhead massager and pounding into your skin and your pores. You are better protected from all the hazards associated with continued chlorine exposure.

In addition, you will be reducing the drying effects of these chemicals on your hair and skin and in the long run end up saving money on all the beauty products you buy to try and mitigate the damage.

You may not be able to prevent the city from adding chlorine to the water supply, but you can help to protect your self from the damage that chlorine causes with a chlorine water filter. Save the chlorine for special occasions like the pool, it has no place in our every day lives.

Most people think of ginger as the spice that is used in baked goods or Asian soups for it’s wonderful almost woodsy flavor. But, people in other countries have not only used ginger as a spice in their food for centuries, but for its medicinal benefits as well. While some of the health benefits of ginger are well known throughout the world new benefits of this incredible spice is being discovered all of the time. Here are some of the health benefits and uses of ginger.

Ginger Tea For A Variety Of Ills

Ginger is a wonderful digestive aid and tea made with ginger is used to help digestion, ease menstrual cramps, and soothe stomach upset. Drinking a cup of ginger tea before going on a car trip can help prevent or ease motion sickness. Because ginger tea aids digestion scientists now think that it may actually aid in weight loss which makes sense since ginger is what is known as warm spice and may increase metabolism which aids in weight loss.

Inflammation And Pain Relief

Ginger also contains properties that make it helpful in reducing both inflammation and pain. People suffering from arthritis who eat food seasoned with ginger and drink ginger tea report a reduction in both joint pain and inflammation. This is important because it decreases their dependence on subscription and Over the counter drugs which often have negative side effects.

Studies also suggest that ginger can help prevent kidney damage for people who diabetes. This is extremely good news because this means that diabetics may well live longer healthier lives.

Ginger Fights Cancer

In studies done at the University of Michigan and the University of Minnesota it has been proven that ginger may well prevent or slow certain types of cancer. The University of Michigan study showed that when ginger powder was applied to ovarian cancer cells they induced the cells to die. While more studies need to be done this is good news for cancer researches and may help to reduce the incidents of ovarian cancer in our lifetime.

The study at the University of Minnesota was just as promising. This study showed that ginger could actually slow the growth of colon cancer. Again more studies need to be undertaken in this area, but further studies may find that the right amount ginger may well kill colon cancer cells as well. In addition, earlier studies suggest that colon cancer may have it’s start in poor digestion and since ginger aids digestion it just may help not only treat colon cancer, but prevent it as well.

Who could have guessed that that simple spice sitting in your kitchen cabinet could be so good for your health or have so many benefits. Maybe it’s time you took a new look at what ginger can do for you.

Suggested Reading: Ginger: Common Spice and Wonder Drug

The following is a guest post by Dahn Yoga. If you are like me and spend far too much time at a computer, maybe some of these yoga poses will be helpful.

People who sit in front of computers all day often underestimate the number of things they can do right in their own office to alleviate stress once the tension begins to rise. There’s no need to grit your teeth and bear it, because yoga poses to reduce anxiety can be done without leaving your desk.

The mountain pose – perhaps the most simple of all yoga positions – begins by standing with feet hip- width apart. Tuck your tailbone in slightly to align the hips and spine and open your chest while keeping your arms by your side, palms facing outward. Close your eyes and take a series of deep breaths, helping to coordinate your mind and body.

When you begin to feel the hours spent typing on a keyboard in your back and shoulders, try this simple stretch. Reach your right arm in front of you and cross it to the left over your chest. Hook your left arm over it until you feel a gentle pull, then bend the elbow of your right arm so that your hand is pointed toward the ceiling. Remain in this pose for however long you need, then repeat on the other side.

If you begin to feel like your back is hunched over, try standing or sitting on the edge of your seat and clasp your hands together at your lower back. Straighten your arms, then lift them upward until you feel your spine straighten, you may even get a very distinct sensation of your vertebrae coming into alignment and your shoulder blades come closer together.

Head rolls can alleviate neck discomfort during those long working days. Close your eyes and let your head drop toward your chest, rolling it in a full circle until you’re back in starting position. From there, roll it in the opposite direction. This can be a fluid movement or one in which you pause in positions that feel good to you, as you may be stretching muscles that you didn’t even realize were tense.

In order to maintain leg strength and tone even when working a desk job, try the aptly named chair pose. Stand with feet close together and lower your hips as if you are about to sit in a chair, but stopping halfway. Swing your arms upward so that your hands are pointing not quite to the ceiling. Hold this for as long as you can, because it’s a great way to keep the legs and core strong.

Author Information - Dahn Yoga is one of the largest yoga and tai chi companies in the world with its own unique style and brand of yoga. Dahn Yoga is rooted in the rich history of an ancient Asian mind-body practice, Sun Do, and in the wisdom of the Chun Bu Kyung.

Illnesses do not come upon us out of the blue. They are developed from small daily sins against Nature. When enough sins have accumulated, illness will suddenly appear. – Hippocrates

A few weeks back I wrote about the winter blues and how the seasons affect our moods and energy levels. At the time I couldn’t help but think about how so much of the solution comes from simply removing ourselves from the insulation of our homes and getting outside more. A disconnect from our planet can be making us moody, depressed, and unhealthy. We nature lovers talk a good game about how important it is to rediscover nature but most people cannot be bothered which what they perceive as “nominal” benefits. Being cooped us is making them moody and tired? Pft! They would rather get their energy boost from a can of Red Bull because they are simply too busy to go outside and commune with Mother Nature.

It got me thinking about how many health issues are directly related to a lack of connection to nature. I don’t mean something like the disconnect with our food chain, which makes us buy processed foods, which leads us to consume sugary crap and go down diabetes row. I was looking for more glaring instances… ala removing my wiggling toes from the loose soil of my garden and putting on shoes leads to this. Having a roof over our heads instead of the moon results in that. This curiosity led me to some further research, which then led me to a couple different books I hope to share here. The first is an amazing book called Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever?

This book essentially talks about the natural energy in our body and the natural energy that runs throughout our planet. More and more scientists from varied fields… geophysics, biophysics, electrophysiology, electrical engineering, medicine… are seeing how the electrical energy that emanates from the earth controls our own bodily frequencies. The book likens the earth’s control of our bodily energy to the way a conductor controls the cadence of an orchestra. It ensures a balanced, rhythmic flow. What happens to that flow when we remove ourselves from that energy by wearing insulated shoes and we spend all our time in buildings and in beds that disconnect us from the earth’s surface? The book likens this to a light bulb with a loose connection. We flicker, we shine weakly, our light may go out.

This book was everything I hoped to find and more. As I read it I couldn’t help but think about how many people have no concept of our electrical roots. Well, maybe they give it a little thought if they saw The Matrix movies. If you haven’t seen the movies, basically humans in the future are used as batteries for heat and electricity by sentient machines. Movie aside, it shows how we as humans are bioelectric in nature. The earth’s subtle ground currents and electrical potential rises and falls with the position of the sun. The intensity is more positive (energetic) during the day and less positive in the evening. The earth’s energy helps to regulate our own bodily energy. Our sleep patterns, our hormones, our health… all of it, is tied to this flow and regulation of energy. Without it, we are a flickering light bulb. Earlier humans instinctively knew this, even if they didn’t know what electricity was. Just think about all the ancient peoples, tribes, clans etc. that worshipped nature and viewed the earth as sacred. They knew it has a life force or an energy that they could tap into. They knew that they needed to maintain a connection with it. Earth worship is probably the oldest “religion” there is in fact. They knew something that we seem to have forgotten along the way or that we have been programmed to ignore.

The premise of this book is that a connection to the earth remedies an electrical instability and an electron deficiency we are not aware we have. Connecting to the earth is also not accomplished as many commonly think, by hiking, camping, and gardening to get closer to nature. Earthing is a term that actually means grounding. Grounding defined: to place on or cause to touch the ground. When our ancestors slept on the ground or walked barefoot, they were grounded, touching the earth. Earthing then means that we make it a practice to sit on the ground (not on a plastic chair), walk barefoot through dirt and grass, and also use conductive bed sheets and floor pads in our house. I had never even heard of such things before and now I totally want them!

The bed sheets and mats are linked by a wire to the grounding rod outside/under your home. I assume you must have grounded circuits for this to work though. The first place we moved into here in Ohio was so old that it did not have grounded circuits. Anyway, you ground yourself the same way you ground an appliance. Electricity always seeks the ground/earth (coincidence?) and with appliances you want to ground them to prevent yourself from getting shocked or electrocuted.. ala the electricity will go to the ground rather than go through you. Grounding yourself by earthing protects your bioelectrical circuitry, free electrons and stabilizing energy signals are transferred to your body, and it recharges and balances you. The sheets are obviously used to ground you to the earth while in your bed, so you don’t have to go sleep outside. The mats are for you to rest your feet on while you watch TV or for your feet or arms/hands while sitting at a desk/computer. You literally plug yourself into the healing powers of the earth.

Okay, so I just barely scratched the surface of all the wonderful info in this book. It has many, many real life examples of people who have healed themselves of various things with earthing… pain, inflammation and inflammatory disease, insomnia, low energy, stress, headaches, hormonal issues, and more. It discusses inflammation as a starting point for many diseases and also the well researched hypothesis that much of the disease in developed countries is due to ravaged immune systems. I completely agree and would have numerous reasons to cite for our poor immunity, vaccines, poor diet, no exercise, lack of sleep, etc but I would also add a lack of physical contact to the earth after reading this book. I envision the human race as having evolved with an umbilical cord that attaches us to our planet and we are carelessly severing that cord with our modern lifestyle. Sever that cord that tethers us to our planet and you are cut off from that nourishment and healing energy.

It was fascinating to read the personal story of one of the authors, Clinton Ober. He was the owner of a huge cable TV operation and worked for years in the installation of these systems. Working with electricity was a huge part of his life until he got very sick and he reevaluated his life and priorities. A sudden thought he had in Sedona about how much of the earth’s energy people wearing rubber shoes were missing lead him to a variety of personal experiments. He actually walked around with a voltmeter to see how his body was being affected by electrical energy in his home. When he would get close to a lamp or some other appliance, his EMF voltage would go up. At one point, while lying in bed he registered the highest EMF levels yet and he decided it must be due to all the wiring in the wall that this bed was up against. He immediately deduced that the electric fields were preventing him from getting sufficient sleep, which at this point was elusive unless he medicated first. With that knowledge he ran a ground wire out to a stake in his yard and fastened it to his bed with a metallic duct tape grid. He put the voltmeter on his chest and it zeroed out. The next thing he knew it was morning. He had fallen asleep with the voltmeter on his chest and this “event” was reproduced every night thereafter.

From there he asked friends if he could ground their beds and he was getting great reports, including one friend who was convinced that his arthritis pain was receding. He started remembering little tidbits from his childhood near a Native American reservation in Montana. The grandfather who dug a pit in the ground for his granddaughter to sleep in when she had a fever. The admonishment from a mother to her children that shoes will make you sick. He knew he was on to something and the book Earthing is the culmination of years of research spurred from a chance thought and a few experiments.

Also discussed is research into shoes and how they have been devastating for human health as well as the benefits animals get from being pastured or allowed to roam wild as opposed to confined in barns, coops, and outbuildings. Also the results of a study done on grounding as it relates to cortisol levels. Cortisol is known as the stress hormone and many studies have also linked it to weight gain issues. Grounding, as demonstrated in the study, returned Cortisol levels to a natural, normal rhythm. Ironically this study was initiated by a doctor who read about Earthing via a scientific journal and wanted to prove it was not possible to benefit from such a practice. He could not do so. Also studied was the impact of Earthing on inflammation and by extension heart disease as well as our ability to heal from cuts and wounds faster by Earthing.

I could go on much, much longer but this post has gotten large enough I think. I highly recommend Earthing for a great read. Even if you don’t end up trying it, I think the book has lots of food for thought and lots of great research into how the disconnect from our planet is hurting us. I hope to post more in the future as I try it myself.

A couple weeks ago I wrote about The Winter Blues or more specifically Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and what to do if you suffer during the winter months. One of the things I mentioned that I was doing to combat SAD on my part was to fill the air with negative ions. Quite simply negative ions create positive vibes. Columbia University has done extensive research on these invisible molecules that you typically find near waterfalls, mountains, and beaches. Just think about how the image of those three things effect you. I just think about breathing in the air around a waterfall and I get happy. These places tend to make us euphoric. But why? The studies have lead researchers to believe that negative ions produce biochemical reactions in our blood stream that increases levels of serotonin. A boost in serotonin helps alleviate depression, stress, and it gives us a boost of energy during the day.

So it goes to follow that if you use a negative-ion generator in your home you can benefit from the negative ions and the biochemical reaction they will create inside your body. Negative-ion generators also usually (from what I have seen) tend to be coupled with air purifiers. The air is cleaned of pollutants and allergens and it gets dosed with the happy molecules. I have been using air purifiers to do just that in my own home for well over a month now and have been VERY happy with the results.

I have two of the Permatech Ionizing Air Cleaners by Bionaire. With those we use Aer1 Ready Air Purifiers that get rid of germs and allergens. We have cleaner indoor air, it smells nice and clean in the house, allergens and germs are being filtered out, and optionally you can use the negative ion generator to fill the air with mood boosting negative ions. Typically I let the machine downstairs run for most of the day with the ion generator running for 3 to 4 hours in the morning. In the late evening I turn on the unit upstairs and we all breathe in fresh air while we sleep. They are slim units so we don’t worry about space. They have a washable pre-filter, which helps maximize filtration by the HEPA-Type filter, a filter service reminder, speed options, and a remote control. I can remember that I forgot to turn it on or off while I am sitting at my desk and just click the remote control to take care of that. Time to turn off the ionizer? Done in one click.

I think I have already seen a big improvement in my mood since using them but how to do verify something like that? Especially when you are also doing a variety of other things to combat moodiness as well. I can only say that I think they help. I KNOW they help with making the air cleaner and fresher though. We recently took a fake Christmas tree off the hands of some family members and it had been stored in their really musty basement. When we set it up at our house it stank to high heaven and made the whole house smell like rank basement. My first instinct was to break out the “birthday cake” soy candle and that worked only as long as it was lit, to mask the smell. Then I remembered (DUH!) that I could turn on the air purifier. Within 24 hours the smell was gone and I haven’t noticed it since. It was silly of me to forget because when we first moved to Ohio we were living in a 150 year old house and it smelled really old. My parents brought a similar but bigger air purifier into the house and within a few days all we smelled was clean air (no scent at all).

All in all, we are pleased as punch to have these purifiers. I had high expectations, hoping it would be a mood booster AND clean the air but it works on all counts, I am pleased to say. When we finally get a dog (my daughter is allergic) we will see just how well they filter out allergens too.

Disclosure: I received a free air purifier from Bionaire and Aer1 Filters (click for a filter coupon), plus several free filters to review, all words and opinions are mine of course. Many thanks to them for their generosity!