Healthy Me

I hit the five pound weight loss today...yippee!!

5 Down, 20 More to Go. Oh my.

According to Merck, the makers of the vaccine, Gardasil, these are the ingredients of the Gardasil vaccine:


"GARDASIL
[Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16, and 18) Vaccine, Recombinant] 9883609 3
The ingredients are proteins of HPV Types 6, 11, 16, and 18, amorphous aluminum hydroxyphosphate sulfate, yeast protein, sodium chloride, L-histidine, polysorbate 80, sodium borate, and water for injection.

Manufactured and Distributed by: MERCK & CO., Inc.
Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889, USA
Issued December 2008"

I thought I would look up some of these ingredients because I have no idea what they are. Here is what I found:

SODIUM BORATE:

According to Wikipedia, it is: "Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.
Borax has a wide variety of uses. It is a component of many detergents, cosmetics, and enamel glazes. It is also used to make buffer solutions in biochemistry, as a fire retardant, as an anti-fungal compound for fiberglass, as an insecticide, as a flux in metallurgy, and as a precursor for other boron compounds."

According to the Health Guide at How Stuff Works: "Sodium borate is the main ingredient in boric acid. (Powdered boric acid is often used to kill cockroaches.)

Sodium borate poisoning can be acute or chronic. Acute, accidental sodium borate poisoning usually occurs when someone swallows powdered roach-killing products that contain the chemical.

Poisoning may also occur in those who are repeatedly exposed to sodium borate. In the past, boric acid was used to disinfect and treat wounds. Patients who received such treatment over and over again got sick, and some died. Because boric acid is now known to be a dangerous poison, it is no longer commonly used in medical preparations. However, boric acid is contained in some vaginal suppositories used for yeast infections, although this is NOT a standard treatment."

OK, these words stand out to me for sodium borate: fire retardant, roach-killing, dangerous poison. Remember, sodium borate is in the Gardasil vaccine. Has anybody looked into if this ingredient could be a contributing factor in the adverse reactions reported around the world to this vaccine?


L-HISTIDINE:

According to About.com: "Histidinemia is an inherited metabolic disorder in which there is a deficiency of the enzyme histidase, which is necessary for the breakdown of the amino acid histidine. Without histidase, histidine builds up in the blood and urine."

So, if you have this metabolic disorder, what happens if you add L-Histidine from this vaccine into your body, which can't metabolize it? Is it a problem or not?

I was in Wal-Mart the other day and stopped in the vitamin aisle to look for Lil Critters Omega-3 Gummy Fish that my kids love (it's the only one I've found that they actually like). I saw something new in the aisle called Voots. The box said it has three servings of fruit and vegetables in each two tart serving. I figured I'd give it a try since my kids gag just looking at vegetables. I found this online about them:

I finished reading Thyroid Solution: A Mind-Body Program for Beating Depression & Regaining Your Emotional & Physical Health. It had some good points in it but I am glad I didn't buy it since there is a newer copy out called The Thyroid Solution: A Revolutionary Mind-Body Program for Regaining Your Emotional and Physical Health which I would rather have on my bookshelf.

I'll go on with some important notes that I made on the rest of the book (to see my notes from the beginning of this book, click here):

• After your thyroid levels are brought within normal range, you still should exercise and eat right. I need to do this more myself.

• Thyroid & Sexual Health: Hypothyroidism can lead to lack of interest in sex, which may decline a bit or vanish completely. If you have never been tested for thyroid imbalance and are exhibiting loss of interest and your gynecologist can't figure it out, have your blood drawn. It's as simple as that to rule out your thyroid being the problem in the bedroom. I am thankful this hasn't been a problem for me or maybe because I was a bit oversexed to begin with, it just brought me down to a more normal sex drive, lol. If you have the opposite problem - a raging libido - could be hyperthyroid. Get a blood test! Dr. Arem suggests that if you are still having problems after your hypothyroidism is fixed, to consider a T4/T3 combination (which can also help with persistent depression).

• Your Thyroid & Infertility/Miscarriage: Having an overactive or underactive thyroid can make it hard to conceive and it may be overlooked. The book talks of couples going through years of infertility treatments (and debt) only to find out it was as simple as a blood test to check thyroid levels! This was a big one for us. Despite having four kids, three out of those four children were difficult to conceive. It took about a year for our first child to be conceived. It took over a year for my son to be conceived. My third child was conceived the first month after we decided to try for a third child (during a big fight with my husband's sister...husband was being loving and consoling me and voila! A baby!) It was after this third child that I developed thyroid disease though I do wonder if my thyroid levels had been off just enough prior to diagnosis to cause problems conceiving my oldest two children. After diagnosis, it took almost two years for my last child to be conceived...the doctor was getting ready to give me infertility treatments when I finally got pregnant before he was to do that.

Merck is trying to get their controversial vaccine, Gardasil, approved for males age 9 to 26. I haven't heard if they've done that yet. I'll be watching and waiting to see.

Merck estimates making 1.6 billion off of this drug this year. Boy, imagine their profits if they get it approved for boys too.

There are too many questions regarding this vaccine. I believe that if parents read all the reports on adverse reactions and deaths, they would think twice about giving this to their child. I know when our pediatrician asked me about it, I could have said "yes", trusting that she knew what was best without knowing much about the drug. I told her, "No, I need to research it a bit first because I'm not too familiar with it." That was a couple years ago. My daughter just turned twelve so I am sure there will be another push from her pediatrician to get the vaccine.

Risk her health and life on a vaccine, whose adverse reactions are being ignored by the makers and government, to prevent what a condom could prevent? I don't think so. The CDC and FDA have received these reports, however, they feel the benefits outweigh the risks. I am sure the parents of one of the dead children wouldn't agree with that! One less, one less doesn't only mean one less risk for cervical cancer. For some families, it means one less child when their child dies after receiving this vaccine.

If you would like to read more about Gardasil's adverse reactions from families who have had them and lost children to them, use my google search in the sidebar. Search "gardasil" and it will bring up all my gardasil posts with links for you to research yourself. Don't believe me, but don't blindly believe doctors who get kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies either. It's your job as a parent to research everything fully before making your decision, whichever way you decide.

I am not against all vaccines in general. I just don't think this vaccine should be on the market yet. It's not safe enough yet.

Wouldn't that be nice?

According to a study found here, cleaning the house is risky for women with asthma. Here is what HealthDay News says:

SATURDAY, Feb. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Housecleaning products may pose a threat to women with asthma, U.S. researchers say.

During a 12-week study, they compared cleaning-related health effects in women who did and did not have asthma and found a higher number of lower respiratory tract symptoms among the asthmatic women.

Dr. Jonathon A. Bernstein, of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and colleagues found that "women in both groups exhibited increased upper and lower respiratory tract symptoms in response to cleaning agents rated mild in toxicity, suggesting a subtle but potentially clinically relevant health effect of long-term, low-level chemical exposures."

The researchers recommended "that women with asthma should be routinely interviewed as to whether they clean their home and cautioned about the potential respiratory health effects of these activities."

The study was published in the January issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.

Asthma affects about 20 million people in the United States. Death rates from the disease are higher among women than men. In many homes, women are the primary cleaners.

Authors of the study concluded that "longer, prospective studies of nonprofessional household cleaners are needed to determine whether there is an association between household cleaning agent exposure and the development of asthma."

Yes! Another pound gone! I seriously think it has to do with my thyroid. I ran out of my prescribed thyroid medication and my doctor was late in getting my renewal sent in. So, I was taking my old thyroid meds for a couple days (had them in the cabinet still) until my prescription was refilled which it was a few days ago. I don't know if it was the mixture of them (I've heard that many people use two different types of thyroid meds as it works the best in maintaining normal levels of thyroid hormone in their system), or what, but I've dropped three pounds this week.

I am not sure how my family doctor would feel about it. I don't think she has that much experience with it to tell you the truth, but I couldn't go several days without any thyroid hormone at all. I get sick when I've missed pills for a couple days.

I am definitely going to talk to her about adding a different type of thyroid pill to my current treatment. I've heard a drug called Cytomel (for T3) is used, along with the more standard thyroid treatment, for hypothyroid individuals with success. I am going to ask her about it. Wouldn't it be nice if after almost eight years, the right combination was found that actually made me feel like I wasn't in a brain fog most of the time and that reduced the size of the nodules/goiter in my neck!

Another pound and some change bit the dust. It feels nice to be able to take that calorie counter at the top of my blog down two pounds! Wish it did tenths or halves of a pound cause I've dropped more than two but less than three and I want to show it on my counter, lol.

I've been writing about the Gardasil vaccine on my other blogs for awhile. Now that I have a health blog, I am going to start putting it here since it involves the health and safety of our children.

If you read my previous post, you know I am against this vaccine. Reports continue to come out on this vaccine and I am going to continue to share them here, hoping that it will help somebody or save somebody's child from horrible adverse reactions or death. Until they investigate this vaccine more fully and change it to where it is no longer a threat to our children or remove it from the market, I am going to continue to do so.

Here are some more recent reports:

• Wichita Teen Says She's Dying From the Vaccine (see her video here)
• Gardasil Recalled in Spain After Two Girls Fall Ill
• Vaccine Awakening
• Beautifil Jessica Ericzon, "Died as a Guinea Pig for Gardasil"

I don't have any experience with serious weight loss. As a kid, I was always a string bean. After having each child, until my last one that is, I was able to lose the weight without too much effort. After my third child, I developed thyroid disease slowing my metabolism. After the birth of my fourth child over three years ago, the weight stopped coming off. After 3-1/2 years, I still have it.

Now, my goal is 25 pounds and if I get really motivated, I may go for another 5-7 pounds after that but it's not totally necessary. I'll be happy with 25. So what is the point of this post?

The point is, am I going to lose my "chest" with the weight? I've had four kids, nursed one of them for a few months and nursed my fourth child for two years. Are they going to head south if I take off this weight? I kind of like having a little more up top, ya know? I don't want to look like flattened sunny side up eggs when this is all done.

Does anybody have any personal experience with weight loss, nursing, and the final consequences after both are completed?

I was able to take a pound off my weight loss ticker above! Celebrate!! I am so glad it didn't go up...that's all it has been doing lately so I was pleasantly surprised to see it down a bit more than a pound today!

I have found a very informative web site for your thyroid ills. Check out Stop the Thyroid Madness!!

It has a wealth of information on it for people new to their thyroid diagnosis or for those of us who've had it for many years and still struggle with the symptoms and doctors who won't listen.

I am supposed to be losing weight (see the weight ticker at the top of my blog?) but it's not happened. I've gained weight -about five pounds. Now, I have stayed pretty much consistent with my weight for the last couple years. I'm not eating MORE. Why am I gaining weight?

I am pretty sure it is my thyroid. My (men, shut your eyes for a minute) menstrual cycles are almost non-existent the last few months which is the exact opposite of the super heavy, seem to last forever periods I was used to the past few years. They're there, but barely. My skin feels horrible. My memory is worse...might as well be diagnosed senile at this point.

So, I contacted an endocrinologist to make an appointment. I haven't had one since we moved here almost three years ago. Our family doctor has been managing the meds. I was advised they won't schedule me an appointment without a referral from my family doc. OK, whatever. I call my family doctor and am advised my family doctor will look over my request and if SHE agrees to it, she'll write the referral. I will tell you right now that if she DOESN'T agree to send me to an Endocrinologist, I will find a new family doctor to get that referral. With Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, Hypothyroidism, goiter, and nodules and still having symptoms...I need an Endocrinologist. I knew this when we moved here but we live in the boonies and they are all a drive away so I was hoping the local family doc was enough. It's not because my symptoms are returning.

Then what does my husband do? Brings me my favorite donuts this morning. This was after he brought some home two days ago. He asked me if I was going to eat any of them that he bought for me. I asked him if he wanted me to be 200 pounds? I already weigh more than he does now! His response was "more of me to love." Yeah...he says that now. I haven't eaten any of the donuts...had a salad for lunch:)

I have wrote several posts in the past about adverse reactions to kids after receiving Gardasil. Since I recently started this health blog, I think it is important that this receive its own category on my health blog.

In addition to everything I've wrote about it before on my other blogs (please read that here), I have come across new information.

According to this article:

"Comparing serious adverse event reports to the federal Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) following Gardasil (HPV) and another vaccine for meningococcal (Menactra), the National Vaccine Information Center (www.NVIC.org) found that there are three to 30 times more serious health problems and deaths reported to VAERS after Gardasil vaccination. As reported by CBS News, the longtime vaccine safety watchdog group is calling for action, including an investigation by the Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS) and the U.S. Congress into the fast-tracked licensure and government recommendation that all young girls and women get Gardasil vaccine.

“Merck only studied the vaccine in fewer than 1200 girls under age 16 and most of the serious health problems and deaths in the pre-licensure clinical trials were written off as a 'coincidence,'” said NVIC co-founder and president, Barbara Loe Fisher. “If the new Administration and Congress want to make government recommended health care safer, more effective and less expensive, a good place to start is by looking into the human and economic costs of Gardasil vaccine.”

From this same article, some information on a couple of the deaths:

"A 15-year old gymnast, cheerleader and honor roll student in Kansas has been diagnosed with Gardasil vaccine-related brain inflammation after receiving three Gardasil shots. Her first symptoms included muscle and joint weakness and pain, numbness and tingling in her hands and feet, severe headaches excessive fatigue, rash, dizziness, and loss of concentration after the first shot. After the second and third shots she began losing her hair and developed seizures, bouts of paralysis, mini-strokes, partial loss of vision, and severe chest pain, memory and speech loss.

A 21-year old Maryland artist, athlete and honor roll college student died suddenly without explanation in June 2008 after her third Gardasil shot. She is one of the 29 Gardasil death reports in VAERS. "


According to a news article from The News Record on February 8, 2009:

"...all women had received it prior to their deaths. Some of the deaths were linked to blood clots, seizures and heart failure, which are side effects of the vaccine.

The CDC also reported that Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), a disorder that causes muscle weakness, has resulted from the vaccine.

The CDC and the Food and Drug Administration encourage users to report all side effects to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) and as of June 30, 2008, the FDA had received 9,749 “adverse events” reports after the injection of Gardasil."


According to a CBS News report on Feb. 6, 2009:

"If I'd have known, we never would have gotten the shot," said Emily Tarsell, whose daughter, Chris, died three weeks after her third Gardasil shot. She was one of the 29 fatalities reported in two years. "And she'd be here to hug."

Barbara Loe Fisher, co-founder of the NVIC, said: "Now we know from this report that there are more reactions and deaths associated with Gardasil than with another vaccine given in the same age group. It's irresponsible not to take action."

Merck, the FDA and CDC question the value of the new analysis, say they continue to review the data, Gardasil remains safe and effective, and its benefits outweigh the risks."

I think trusting my daughters' health to the FDA and CDC over this vaccine would be one of the worst things I could do for my girls. There is obviously a problem here and they are not doing enough about it. Risking serious harm or death because government agencies say they are safe...yeah, because the government has done so well with everything else! I will hand them condoms before I'll give them this vaccine!

If you haven't done so yet, check out all my other information on Gardasil here.

• Blood Pressure: 115/75 being optimal.


• Belly Fat: Dr. Oz says that belly fat is a barometer of how you handle stress in your life. I've read this before, how stress keeps cortisol levels high in your body which means more fat is deposited in your belly area.


• Breathing: You need to do belly breathing to manage stress. If you're sitting in a stressful situation, take a few deep belly breaths and help decrease the feelings of stress.


• No Smoking: No explanation needed there.


• No White Foods: Eliminate white flour, white sugar, etc. Dr. Oz says that the food you eat should look like it did when it came out of the ground (which automatically eliminates all the processed crap we put into our bodies).

My husband is a cyclist. He was racing before I met him and he continued to train regularly and faithfully for most of our marriage. He raced for several years into our marriage (with way too many to count First Place's) but now just keeps himself in training mode without the races. I don't have any interest in cycling myself but I did learn something from his training - to train every other day to give the muscles you've worked recovery time. They need time to repair what you've done to them. In other words, don't exercise the same muscle groups every single day.

I looked it up at Wiki since people are more apt to listen to a well-known source and not my husband's ideas through me, lol. Here is what it says:

"Too much exercise can be harmful. The body parts exercised need at least a day of rest, which is why some health experts say one should exercise every other day or 3 times a week. Without proper rest, the chance of stroke or other circulation problems increases, and muscle tissue may develop slowly. It has also been noted by the medical field that expectant mothers should never exercise two days consecutively.

Inappropriate exercise can do more harm than good, with the definition of "inappropriate" varying according to the individual. For many activities, especially running, there are significant injuries that occur with poorly regimented exercise schedules. In extreme instances, over-exercising induces serious performance loss. Unaccustomed overexertion of muscles leads to rhabdomyolysis (damage to muscle) most often seen in new army recruits. Another danger is overtraining in which the intensity or volume of training exceeds the body's capacity to recover between bouts."

There is also the nutrition factor:

"Proper rest and recovery are also as important to health as exercise; otherwise the body exists in a permanently injured state and will not improve or adapt adequately to the exercise. Hence, it is important to remember to allow adequate recovery between exercise sessions. It is necessary to refill the glycogen stores in the skeletal muscles and liver. After exercise, there is a 30 minute window critical to muscle recovery. Before doing anything else, one should drink something for recovery. Liquids are ideal after exercise and there are several studies that show low-fat milk and chocolate milk as being effective recovery beverages because of its ideal 4:1 combination of carbohydrate and protein that fuels and replenishes our muscles the best."

Here's another article on the World Fitness Network.

Here is another calorie calculator, like I mentioned in my previous post, but it is by MSNBC.

How do you figure out how many calories you've burned doing an activity? I wanted to know so I went 'net searching to find a site that could tell me. I found a site that will tell me on all kinds of activities, activities you wouldn't think of looking up, such as housework, horseback riding and even sex (and more). Of course, you have the usual too like football, soccer, step aerobics, swimming, etc. Check out the calorie counter here. There was one a few years ago that a friend gave me but I can't find it online now. It was similar to this one but I liked it better.

Too bad this one didn't include shoveling snow!

Remember MRSA - the resistant bug that caused panic in parents last year? It's back. It tends to like high school kids in sports best according to Reuters. I know we had a few kids develop it in my kids' school last winter and they weren't all football players.

MRSA symptoms depend on where you are infected according to WebMD. I'd check them out, understand them, so you can take appropriate precautions without getting panicky or neurotic (I tend towards the neurotic myself).

MRSA stands for: methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

If you are a nurse in a hospital, are you aware that you have a higher incident of developing asthma? It's due to the cleaning products. I can understand that. I can't even use regular cleaning products because it triggers my asthma. So, I can imagine that it would also cause enough problems breathing in all those chemicals that it'd do some damage. It is why I use vinegar, water, and baking soda to clean most stuff. What I can't (the bathrooms generally) do with those products, my husband cleans.

That's not a bad deal...hubby cleans the bathrooms. Woot! for me!!

Read the story from Reuters.