All Hail Cinnamon!

According to a recent article in NaturalNews,

The USDA in Maryland has reported cinnamon`s ability to stop or minimize the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.

Make sure you're using organic cinnamon, and not irradiated. If so, cinnamon also has the following healing properties:

• stops medication resistant yeast infections
• inhibits food spoilage with its anti-bacterial properties
• anti clotting properties
• regulates glucose
  

A Boy Named Trevor

Seven years ago, a boy named Trevor Schaefer was diagnosed with brain cancer. In his small town in rural Idaho, several others were suffering from the same disease. Trevor's family suspected environmental contamination as a likely cause for this cancer cluster, but they couldn't find any established means of improving their
community's situation.

Trevor became a champion for the protection of children and small towns from industrial contamination. He met with politicians while battling cancer, and he soon befriended California Senator Barabara Boxer. According to a recent article in PRNewswire,

Senator Boxer said: "Whenever there is an unusual increase in disease within in a community, those families deserve to know that the federal government's top scientists and experts are accessible and available to help, especially when the health and safety of children are at risk. I am pleased to be introducing this
legislation today that will enable communities to get the answers they need as quickly as possible."

Senator Boxer recently filed legislation that will establish a "streamlined process to investigate and address disease clusters across the U.S." To honor Trevor Schaefer, the Strengthening Protection For Children and Communities From Disease Clusters Act is now known as "Trevor's Law" for short. To read more about this story,
click here.

Trevor has also gone on to found the Trevor's Trek Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to raising awareness about disease clusters and environmental toxins.

Dealing with Fatigue

Fatigue is a common side effect of chemotherapy. This can result in a
major lifestyle change for cancer patients. This week, Mayo Clinic
posted a podcast interview with experts in the field on the topic of
fatigue management. Click here to listen to the entire six-minute podcast.
Otherwise, I've outlined the important points for you below:

The following can reduce fatigue:

• Decrease stress


• Maintain balanced diet


• Follow up with regular appointments


• Exercise routinely

Regarding the exercise: don't push your body with extreme workouts,
but gently keep your body in shape. They recommend low-impact,
repetitive activities. Walking or casual bicycling are good examples.
Some studies show that relapse is much less likely if regular exercise
regimens are continued, both throughout the treatments and after.

Lacrosse for a Cause

Eastern's lacrosse match on October 10 is about more than just the game. This event, the 44th annual Nick Colleuori Classic, will honor the Ridley High School student who was passed away from NHL. All of the proceeds of the tournament go to the HEADstrong Foundation.

According the HEADstrong Foundation's mission statement, HEADstrong is dedicated to raising money for cancer research, to give grants and help to cancer survivors and to financially assist those looking to enter the medical field.

The HEADstrong Foundation was envisioned by the late Colleuori. He drew the HEADstrong logo - a lacrosse stick on the inside and a cancer ribbon around the head - while waiting to enter the operating room. On November 28, 2006, Colleuori lost his life at the age of 21. (The Waltonian)

It's Official!

Hot off the press, September is now officially Blood Cancer Awareness Month:

The House of Representatives has heard the pleas of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's advocates and on the evening of Wednesday, September 22, passed a Congressional resolution (H. Res. 1433) naming September 2010 as Blood Cancer Awareness Month! (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Alert)

Spread the good word!

Microsoft Co-Founder Beats NHL

Paul Allen is a pretty incredible man. In case you haven't heard of him, he co-founded Microsoft in the 80s and then founded the Allen Institute for Brain Science in 2003. This research center focuses on mapping genes, and Paul has "pledged $100 million to support the institute," according to seattlebizjournals.com.

Paul recently struggled with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. As of this past week, however, his cancer appears to have gone into remission. According to the Associated Press, he feels better than he has in a long time, which is great timing on Paul's part. He will be making one of his first public appearances since announcing his victory over NHL at the first annual summit for brain sciences, sponsored by Allen's very own institute.
Congrats Paul!

Veggie-Based Diets Reduce Buildup of Industrial Chemicals

For all you meat lovers out there (myself included), I have some unfortunate news. As we all know, PCBs and other industrial chemicals are stored in fat tissue, resulting in bioaccumulation up the food chain. Vegetarian diets avoid this pitfall altogether by staying away from meat in the first place. A recent study showed that "just five days on a vegetarian diet can significantly reduce the levels of antibiotics and toxic chemicals in the human body."

According to NaturalNews.com,

Scientists recruited 25 people to stay at a Buddhist temple for five days, living the same lifestyle as the monks residing there. This lifestyle included adhering to a strictly meat-free diet... Researchers took urine samples from all participants both 48 hours before and immediately after the five-day Temple Stay. This urine was tested for antibiotics and their metabolites, as well as six chemicals produced by the body upon the breakdown of phthalates. Phthalates are industrial chemicals used in the manufacture of pesticides and soft plastics.

Researchers found that the levels of five of the six phthalate metabolites tested for significantly dropped after going meat free for five days. To read more about this depressing discovery, click here.

Steak, I am going to miss you dearly.