Now that winter has shown its frosty face to people across Canada and the US, let’s talk about the top immune system boosters we sell on our site. This is good stuff. We promote it because we use Immunocal and other Immunotec products, and we’ve heard many testimonials from others about how these supplements have changed them for the better. Even though cold temperatures don’t give you the cold or flu, they put added stress on your immune systems and perhaps more importantly, coop you up with people who may be sick.

Immunocal: The Top Immune Enhancement Product

Immunocal (formerly known as HMS-90 in Canada) is a whey protein isolate that delivers cysteine: the biochemical precursor to the key antioxidant glutathione. Our bodies manufacture glutathione, but their ability to do it depends on the cysteine our metabolisms use as raw materials. Antioxidants neutralize free radicals: chemicals that damage our cells on the molecular level (see our article about antioxidants for a more detailed discussion). Taken as directed, Immunocal can prevent cell damage that inhibits our immune systems. Immunocal is used by people with compromised immune systems and athletes alike to maintain their immune systems even while under extreme physical stress. In many other cases, ordinary people have attested to feeling better while taking it, too.

Buy Immunocal at a discount through our storefront today and see the results for yourself.

Omega-3 with Turmeric

You can buy Omega-3 with Turmeric on its own or as a part of the Daily Essentials Pack, combined with our Vitamin and Mineral Supplement and Pure Milk Calcium.

Omega-3 is an essential fatty acid that modern diets provide low levels of, relative to the fatty acid Omega-6. If these fatty acids are out of balance, your body fails to take advantage of their natural anti-inflammatory and other immune enhancement properties. An Omega-3 supplement is important because it restores the balance between the two essential fatty acids. Turmeric contains the active ingredient of curcumin: a natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory that inhibits viral replication in laboratory studies.

Which Should I Get?

With its scientifically proven effectiveness, Immunocal is the most effective immune enhancement supplement we sell.  If you are older, an athlete or have a history of illness we especially recommend it. Otherwise, if you’re serious about supplements, this is for you.

Omega-3 with Turmeric is a gentle, healthy general wellness supplement, especially when you combine it with the other components of the Daily Essentials Pack. Omega-3 is an important dietary supplement that will ensure that you get the most out of anything you eat. If your main health focus is diet, you should consider it. Additionally, it interacts well with Immunocal, since they each hit different aspects of your total health.

Whatever you choose now is a great time to get serious about your immune system — because this is the season where it really gets challenged.

Much of the information around the Immune System Booster Immunocal (formerly HMS 90 in Canada) focuses on its benefits for individuals suffering from compromised immune systems and other illnesses, where it has demonstrated positive effects in multiple scientific studies. Many people also feel their general health improves after adding it to their daily routine. They feel more energetic and free from numerous small illnesses.

Our first experience with Immunocal - the event that made us want to share it with other people – didn’t start with illness. Be Well Or Else proprietor Dr. Catherine Owens suffered regular, severe muscle cramps in her calves during her regular running program. In 1998 she gave up running because nothing she tried could get rid of the cramps – until she started taking Immunocal. That’s when her calf cramps passed and she got back to running.

Everyone from elite athletes to fitness buffs report similar successes after adding Immunocal. (Take a look at an article about boxer Steve Molitor using Immunocal for an example.) The source of these benefits is glutathione: an amino acid that reduces muscle fatigue and shortens recovery time after a bout of physical exertion.  Multiple studies show that exercise depletes glutathione levels, so scientists studying human performance examined whether glutathione supplements would trigger athletic improvements.

Research has been promising but before Immunocal, there was an important problem to consider: Glutathione can only be effectively administered through injections. Our bodies naturally create it, so they aren’t adapted to absorb it orally. Fortunately, scientists have known for some time that our bodies build glutathione out of dietary cysteine. Immunocal is a bioactive cysteine supplement, so it gives us the raw material we need to create glutathione. When that happens, the results on athletic performance can be spectacular. One study of Immunocal showed a 13% increase in muscular work capacity and peak power in subjects who used it along with a fitness program.

You may not be an elite athlete or exercise fanatic, but Immunocal will benefit you as well. Maintaining muscular strength and endurance is one of the core elements of a healthy lifestyle, and grows especially important as we age, since it allows us to stay active and prevent injuries.  That’s why we use and recommend it, and why we’d like to offer you Immunocal at a discount. Click on the link to purchase it from our web store.

Melatonin has a subtle, but powerful effect on your body. This hormone helps regulate your sleep/wake cycle. High levels of melatonin make you drowsy and low levels are associated with wakefulness. That’s why it’s important for melatonin levels in your body to follow your sleeping schedule, and why a melatonin supplement like our Concentrated Tart Montmorency Cherry Juice can really help you.

Before the modern age it wasn’t hard for your melatonin cycle to synch with your sleep. People went to sleep soon after it was dark and woke up with the sun. This fit the way melatonin naturally ebbs and flows through your body, because it’s controlled by your pineal gland. The pineal gland is a light sensitive system located near the center of your brain. It senses light transmitted from your retinas through your optic nerves. When it senses low light levels it releases melatonin, which makes you sleepy.

These days, artificial light interferes with the pineal gland’s natural function. It doesn’t know when to increase melatonin levels and as a result, you may find it difficult to sleep. Aging may also be a culprit, as the pineal gland shrinks and can even calcify as we get older. These and other factors such as stress and shift work mean that many people don’t have melatonin levels that back up the sleeping they want to do.

Decreased melatonin levels may interfere with more than just your ability to sleep. Melatonin is an antioxidant, so it serves as a protective factor against cell damage. One study indicates that sleeplessness and shift work are associated with increased cancer rates. This may stem from poor melatonin levels that not only prevent proper sleep, but don’t impart protection to your body’s cells. Other studies have found possible links between low melatonin levels and Alzheimer’s, autism, ADHD and perhaps most relevant for this time of year, seasonal affective disorder.

Melatonin supplements are being considered as possible treatments for all of these health problems, but for the average person coming into the winter season, proper sleep is probably the most relevant thing melatonin can help you with. Cherry Tart Concentrate is a natural source that might do more than just help you sleep, because melatonin affects your health on so many other levels.

Xtra Sharp’s herbal energy comes from a unique mix of ingredients designed to offer short term energy and long term health support. We think it’s the best energy drink because it doesn’t give you a rush and then crush your energy level. Instead, many people find that long term use makes them feel a little better every day. Here’s what its active ingredients do:

Guarana: Guarana is a close relative of caffeine that also promotes improved breathing, circulation and thermogenesis (the rate which your body “burns” stored energy) without the jitters and addictive potential of caffeine.  This makes it popular for weight control as well as herbal energy.

Glycerophosphate Minerals: Xtra Sharp includes the glycerophosphate forms of calcium, iron, and potassium - all essential minerals. It performs a function missing from other energy drinks, by dealing with the dietary aspects of your energy needs.

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa): Alfalfa contains vitamins A, B, C, and K, and is a natural source of calcium, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. Like its minerals, Xtra Sharp’s Alfalfa provides dietary support for increased energy.

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale): Dandelion is an oral anti-inflammatory, useful for preventing or treating joint or injury related ailments. Lab studies indicate that it may also be useful in lowering blood cholesterol levels, which promotes proper circulation.

Ginseng (Panax ginseng): Ginseng is a core treatment in traditional Chinese medicine. The herb is known to regulate the immune system and stimulate hormone production.

Polygala (Polygala senega): This herb clears breathing passages by stimulating mucus membranes. It’s long been used by native North Americans to treat respiratory ailments and promote energy.

Sarsaparilla (Smilax aristoloch): Sarsaparilla is perhaps best known as an herbal remedy for psoriasis. This application comes from the same properties that help it support an energetic lifestyle, as the active ingredients in the herb bond with endotoxins: bacterial fragments left in the body. Thus, the herb helps you flush these energy-reducers out of your system.

Give Xtra Sharp a try today through our Discount Storefront.

After years of patient waiting (but it was worth it), Health Canada has approved Immunocal as an immune system enhancer.  No more confusion with one product having 2 names; now Immunocal is the same on both sides of the Canada/US border.  Along with the new name comes the following claim: Immunocal is the only proven way to maintain and sustain a healthy immune system.

For many people, autumn is cold season, though the fact is that low temperature alone doesn’t cause the cold. Colder weather stresses us out, weakens our immune response and definitely encourages people to stay inside and huddle up. That makes it easier for cold viruses to spread, but it’s the virus that makes you sick - not the temperature. It’s easy to see where the idea that you can “catch a chill” from low temperatures come from. People traditionally load up on Vitamin C when they feel a cold coming on or want to avoid one. That’s not a bad idea, but if you’re in this position you should also consider a zinc supplement.

Zinc is distinct among natural wellness treatments in that there is a great deal of mainstream medical literature suggesting that it can at least ameliorate cold symptoms. This medical study is one of several that support the use of zinc as a cold treatment. The jury’s not out yet, but something good is happening, and using zinc for this purpose is actually more practical than Vitamin C, which demonstrates its best effects in “megadoses” that might not be palatable for the average person. You should also take zinc in moderation; high doses (such as you find in lozenges) sometimes have annoying side effects like stomach upset. The best solution is to take it regularly, in moderate doses. That’s the role our vitamin supplement plays for general immune enhancement. Our formulation combines zinc with Vitamin C, a B-complex and mineral nutrients.

Zinc is for more than just colds. It’s a neurotransmitter, antioxidant and is used by your body for vital biological functions. For example, the zinc finger chemical structure binds to DNA to relay genetic information. (Note, too, that the zinc finger commonly binds cysteine, so proper zinc levels maximize the effectiveness of Immunocal/HMS90, which provides cysteine supplementation for immune enhancement). So no matter the season, it’s a good idea to take zinc regularly.

Like antioxidants, Omega-3 fatty acids are a popular wellness buzzword. We’ve all heard that they’re good for you but the average consumer doesn’t necessarily know why. Since we sell Omega-3 with Turmeric as part of our Daily Essentials Pack it’s in our interest to tell you! Let’s explore what Omega-3 fatty acids are and what they do.

Omega-3 is called an essential fatty acid (EFA). Unsurprisingly, EFAs are derived from vegetable and animal fats (solids) and oils (liquids). Unlike other, non-essential fatty acids, EFAs do more than provide calories for fuel. They power basic biological processes, including:

• inflammation response
• your immune system
• mood regulation

Your body can’t make EFAs. You have to consume them in your diet - and that’s where things get tricky. There are two EFAs - Omega-3 and Omega-6 - and they interact in your body. You need to strike a balance between them for your body to function properly. Unfortunately, modern diets take in far more Omega-6 than Omega-3, leading to a number of health problems. For example, one Omega-6 byproduct promotes inflammation. Controlled inflammation is a good thing because it’s an essential part of healing, but as anyone with a recent injury or arthritis knows, excess inflammation is painful, even debilitating.

Numerous studies show that an Omega-3 supplement has broad health benefits that influence everything from joint health to weight control. The Daily Essentials Pack bundles Omega-3 with turmeric to combine Omega-3’s benefits with the anti-inflammatory properties of curcurmin, turmeric’s active ingredient. We explained curcurmin’s benefits in a past article. If you review them, you’ll see that it promotes many of the same health effects as Omega-3. Take them together and you may feel a powerful boost to your well being.

Note: In part one of this article Linda S. Clark talked about the physical effects of detoxification.

By Linda S. Clark

Surviving and Appreciating Your Healing Experience

First it is important to know that the people who experience uncomfortable healing reactions are in the minority. Second, it is important to appreciate that a person who has a noticeable detoxification reaction is likely to experience profound health benefits in the long run.

If you experience detox discomfort you have three possible options:

1) Drink water! Drink water! Drink water! And by the way, DRINK WATER to help flush out the toxic debris.

2) Just keep going with HMS 90 / Immunocal and tough it out. Some people are delighted that the toxins are finally clearing out their system, and they want to continue to cleanse as fast as possible. Rest assured that the detoxification will proceed rapidly and the uncomfortable effects are usually short lived.

3) Cut back, but don’t discontinue, the daily amount of HMS 90 / Immunocal. Find a level where the experience of detoxification is acceptable for you. Some seriously toxic and reactive people start with as little as 1 teaspoon of HSM 90 / Immunocal per day, and slowly increase from there.

Detoxifying with a GSH Enhancer

GSH (glutathione) is clinically documented to neutralize free radicals and toxic substances and carry them out of your body. HMS 90 / Immunocal is clinically documented to support the creation of GSH within the cells. As of this writing, 65,000 medical research papers are available relating to glutathione and different health conditions. See http://www.pubmed.com.

HMS 90 / Immunocal is produced from cow’s milk, minus the cheese-protein (casein), butterfat, and 99% of the lactose. If you can digest any dairy products, you can digest HMS 90 / Immunocal. If you experience “symptoms” of any sort when using HMS 90 / Immunocal, it is a promising sign of detoxification. These “symptoms” are typically short-lived. HMS 90 / Immunocal is not “making you sick”. The only people who should not use HMS 90 / Immunocal are those with a full organ transplant who are using cyclosporine to prevent organ rejection.

Dairy products produced from standard pasteurized milk have lost their GSH building blocks and their capacity to help detoxify your system. HMS 90 / Immunocal is created under unique pharmaceutical-grade conditions. It is carefully designed to preserve the GSH building blocks in the milk. It is also a superior source of bioavailable protein. When you take HMS 90 / Immunocal, your cells manufacture the GSH they need and do their “internal closet cleaning”.

Celebrate!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To Your Health! Bonne Santé!

By Linda S. Clark

Symptoms of Illness, Symptoms of Healing

Many people in Western society assume that if they don’t feel “right”, then something is “wrong”.  It is important to understand the difference between a “symptom” of illness and a “symptom” of healing.  This paper is designed to help you understand the difference, and to know how to respond to “symptoms of healing”.

Stored Clutter

I’m sure you have had the experience of finding it easier to just keep stowing things in a closet, instead of dealing with them.  The house might look neat, but the closet becomes more and more stuffed, until it’s impossible to find anything.  It might even be hard to close the door without things falling out!

Eventually the time comes when you decide to clean out that closet.  During the cleaning process, there are piles all over the place.  You might even be tripping over them for a few days before everything gets sorted out.  You’re not concerned about the mess though.  In fact, you might even be excited, because you know that once it’s taken care of you’ll have lots of extra space, and you’ll be able to find things again.

My Body Has Closets?

The organs that “take out the garbage” are your liver, skin, lungs, and intestines.  When there is insufficient water to flush out toxins, or insufficient GSH (glutathione) to escort them out, the toxins build up in those organs of detoxification.  For a while, you can keep storing away toxins, and not even know it.  After a while though, you feel run down.  There is simply too much toxic buildup for your system to function well.  If the toxins continue to build up, you are prone to serious illness.

Glutathione Facilitates Detoxification

When you start an internal cleansing program, for example by taking HMS 90 / Immunocal, the increased glutathione pulls toxins out of the organs where they have been stored.  These toxins must then be disposed of, just like the stuff that you emptied out of your closet.

If your system can’t dispose of the toxins quickly enough, symptoms may appear.  It is really important to appreciate the beneficial nature of these symptoms.  They are not signs of illness.  They are not signs that HMS 90 / Immunocal isn’t good for you.  The exact opposite is true!!  They are signs that toxins are being set free in preparation for excretion from the body.

Possible Reactions During Detoxification

Depending on where toxins are stored, and how your body chooses to excrete them, there are a number of different “symptoms of healing” that you could experience.  Here are some of them:

Digestive Discomfort

Before the debris is moved out through the feces, it can cause discomfort.  In rare cases, there is an immediate “stomach cleansing”, causing vomiting.

Changes in BM’s

Rapid expulsion of irritating toxins = diarrhea.  An excess of toxins and insufficient water = constipation.  Sometimes mucous appears in the stools, because this is the body’s way of shielding itself against irritation and toxins.  You might even pass gall stones in your stools!

Liver

The liver processes and stores more toxins than any other organ in your body.  When the liver starts cleansing, it dumps toxins into your bloodstream en route to the kidneys.  Before they are filtered out and expelled in the urine, these toxins can make you feel “crummy”, tired, sluggish, or nauseous.

Respiratory Tract

Runny nose, congestion, and coughing are typical.  If you develop these in your first few weeks of using HMS 90 / Immunocal, don’t be fooled.  You’re not sick; your respiratory tract is cleansing.

Skin

You might have skin eruptions as the body expels toxins though the skin.  You might also smell chemicals on your skin that you used months or even years ago.

Eyes

Your eyes could become watery, crusty, or itchy as toxins are expelled through the tears.

in part two of this article, we’ll talk about ways to cope with detoxification symptoms and the improved health that results from going through the process.

If you’re looking for natural health products you’ll quickly encounter a host of scientific (or at least, scientific-sounding) terms. Some advertisers act as if everyone knows them but many people have only learned to identify them as buzzwords. “Antioxidant” is one of the most common examples. HMS 90/Immunocal, Concentrated Tart Montmorency Cherry Juice and the Daily Essentials Pack are all products with notable antioxidant properties. You’ve heard that’s a good thing, but what do antioxidants actually do?

Your body produces chemical energy through a form of oxidization: the same chemical process that creates fire and rust, among other things. The molecules that make up your body also oxidize in the presence of environmental stimuli, especially toxins like pollution and radiation. Useful metabolic oxidization and toxic oxidization both produce free radicals. You’ve probably heard of those, too. To understand antioxidants, you’ve got to learn about free radicals.

Free radicals are unstable molecules. This means that their component atoms easily spark certain chemical reactions with other substances. Your body occasionally produces free radicals to kill viruses and bacteria, but this shows you that they have destructive effects on living things. In fact, they attack life at the molecular level.

If you remember the structure of the atom from school, you know that electrons orbit an atom’s nucleus, forming a “shell.” Molecules made of stable atoms won’t easily react with other substances because their atomic shells have a full complement of electrons. Free radicals are unstable because they have room for more electrons in their shells. They seek out stability by stripping nearby substances of electrons to fill in the gap.

This is very bad for you. When free radicals steal electrons from the substances that make up your body’s tissues, it turns them into free radicals and destroys their normal biochemical properties. You could say that free radicals turn your own tissues into poisons one molecule at a time. This causes a broad range of ailments; some scientists even believe free radicals are responsible for most of the symptoms of aging.

Antioxidants protect your body from free radicals by providing electrons for them to “steal.” This turns free radicals into stable substances that won’t harm you. Unlike other substances, antioxidants do not become free radicals themselves when they lose electrons. They stay stable. This makes antioxidants so important that your body produces them to maintain your health, but as we age this function breaks down. Furthermore, modern pollutants contribute oxidization and free radicals above and beyond what our bodies can handle. This is why antioxidant supplements are an important part of maintaining health. Without enough antioxidants, free radicals literally turn your body against you.