Can Organic Food Save Your Life? Madame X says it's helping her.
Madame X is a friend. We've met only once face-to-face, but that was enough to start the email chain. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in about 5 months ago and wants to share with other women how she raised her white blood cell count by just changing what she ate. She also wants to keep her identity a secret as the the scar of "health-liability" with any future employer is bigger than the bodily scars of a breast cancer survivor bears.
Disclaimer: Seek a physician’s advice before starting any nutritional program. The information presented here is based on the experiences of the author and are not intended to replace medical advice.
MADAME X:
As a public advocate for integrating sustainability into business, and long time consumer of organic whole foods, I have recently found myself in the unlikely and sometimes unbelievable seat of battling breast cancer.
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I am the 1 in 8 women who were diagnosed last year with breast cancer. I am now in the midst of chemotherapy treatment, perhaps an unlikely path for such a strong advocate of organics. Leading an organic lifestyle didn’t keep me from getting cancer, it has clearly given me the good health and strength to endure and survive this battle.
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From the onset I decided two things to continue to feed my body whole organic foods and to use supplements sparingly, if at all, since there is very little information on the potential interactions of supplements with chemotherapy http://www.cancersupportivecare.com/herbal.html
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I have had extraordinary results from blending organic whole foods; fruits and vegetables in a Vita-Mix. This process using the Vita-Mix has allowed me to heal quickly after a recent bout with the flu, specifically consuming the same fruits and vegetables that I had been eating to raise my white blood counts with success, now in the blended format, has yielded extraordinary results in just a few days.
White blood cells (WBC) act as your body's protectors, providing it immunity against infections. The normal count of white blood cells in the body is measured at 4.1-10.9. When WBCs fall below 4.1, the immune system gets weak, making it susceptible to infections. When undergoing chemotherapy, the most important aspect of the survival game is to keep your treatments on schedule, low counts can delay or even cancel treatments.
Using the Vita-Mix plus the list of foods (organic) and recipes noted below, I was able to raise my white cell count from 1.8 to 14.5 in just 3 days; my counts did level off, to a normal range. I did have success with eating versus blending these same foods, but was only able to raise my counts 2-3 pts in a week.
A long time organic foods consumer, I also avoid GMO food, [genenically modified] whether it is fresh or food made. The 5 main GM crops are: corn, soy, canola and cotton (cottonseed oil), and sugar from sugar beets. http://www.responsibletechnology.org/GMFree/Home/index.cfm I also look for Non-GMO certified and labeled preferred foods. http://www.nongmoproject.org/
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So how do you know what fruits and vegetables are Organic? You can look for the “USDA Organic” seal or other approved labeling. http://www.ota.com/definition/quickoverview.html
In addition you can also use the PLU (Price Look Up) sticker codes found on fruits and vegetables.
PLU code stickers are placed on virtually every piece of fruit, every vegetable including every type of potatoes and every head, bag or container of lettuce. The PLU code indicates whether the item is;
• Conventional
• Organic
• Genetically modified (GM) crop.
The codes are based on four-digit numbers for conventional produce. An extra digit is added at the beginning of the code to indicate Organic or GM status.
If the number begins with a 4 it is grown conventionally. If the number is five digits beginning with a 9, then the item is organic. If the item is five digits beginning in 8, then it is a genetically modified crop.
An example would be a PLU sticker code number such as 4011 indicates conventional bananas. 94011 indicate that they are Organic bananas, and 84011 would indicate that the bananas are genetically modified.
Some Foods That Increase WBC Count http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/how-to-increase-white-blood-cells-4064.html
• Yogurt
• Garlic
• Pumpkin
• Squash seeds
• Shitake mushrooms
• Spinach
• Carrots
• Melon
• Oranges
• Beet root
• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower
• Strawberries
You Are What You Eat Vita-Mix recipes.
1.) 1/2 Cantaloupe no seeds-no rind
2 Oranges peeled
About 4oz water
2.) 2 Pears
2 Apples
1/2 Cantaloupe with seeds no rind
Keifer as base maybe 6-8 oz
3.) 1/2 Cantaloupe no seeds-no rind
6 Strawberries
1 Orange
Keifer as base, about 6 oz
4.) 6 Carrots
1 Apple
Water as base, about 4-6oz
5.) 3 stalks of Celery
1 large Cucumber
1 4x4 piece of a head of Broccoli
1 Apple
Base, 6 oz wheat grass drink (powder)
6.) 2 large leafs of Kale or Spinach
2 large carrots
1 medium apple
Base 6 oz of water
A regular scheduled mammogram, resulting in an early breast cancer diagnosis, will make me one of the lucky 2.5 million breast cancer survivors living in the US today. The most significant risk factor for breast cancer are gender (being a woman) and age (growing older). http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/understand_bc/statistics.jsp?gclid=CJjfld6oiJoCFRBbagodswmmFA
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Thanks Mary, for the space to share my success. This journey is a complete healing process for the Whole Person: Body, Mind, Spirit and Soul and requires a great support system of family and friends.
