Celebrating the Circle of Life

Celebrating the Circle of Life
Through the Teachings of The Medicine Wheel

with Deborah Frances R.N., N.D. / Beautiful Little Dancing Crow
Naturopath, Herbalist, Lakota Elder

When: Saturday and Sunday
February 9th & 10, 2019 • 10AM - 5PM

Where: PrayerPHarm
Ashland, OR

Class participants will have an opportunity to experience the Healing Power of Spirit and Nature as we circle through each of the Four Directions of The Medicine Wheel with ancient Earth-centered teachings and shamanic journeying. 

Plant and Animal Spirit Medicines will be welcomed through each of the Four Directions and teachings will be shared.
Students will participate in building a Medicine Wheel on the land.

Tuition:
Sliding Scale: $150 - $250

Older children are welcome to attend and price includes on-site childcare for younger ones. Let us know ahead if you will need this service.

To Register:
Using Paypal - Send $50 deposit to deborah.frances@yahoo.com
Please be sure to include your NAME & PHONE number

For more information please contact Dr. Frances at 971-322-9626

To read Dr. Frances’ blog go to:
www.drdeborahfrances.wordpress.com/blogwww.drdeborahfrances.wordpress.com/blogCelebrating the Circle of LIfe Throught the Teachings of The Medicine Wheel.pdf

Toxic Mold Summit & Some Basics On Mold & Related Illness

I thought many of you would be interested to see there is a mold summit being put on by Jeffrey Smith. (The same person who educated so many people on GMO dangers in the past.) 

Don't forget I have a ton of data about mold and how to prevent water damage in your home, how to clean it up if you already have it and the steps to take if reacting to a water damaged building and the treatment process at my website (I will be moving my website soon and changing the name).

You Are Actually Dealing With Much More Than Mold

There is so much more than mold in water-damaged buildings that cause this biotoxin response that we call a "mold" illness/susceptibility. It is technically more appropriate to call it CIRS (chronic inflammatory response syndrome) due to a water-damaged building, rather than "mold illness" or toxic mold illness or mold susceptibility. However, "mold illness" is largely what it is called by people. It is important that people realize they are dealing with much more than mold. Water-damaged buildings have a variety of nasties growing in them and releasing biotoxins. They contain a variety of pathogens inflammagens and toxigens. Secondary metabolites of mold and bacteria have been found in carpeting, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, wallpaper and dust. 

Culprits in a Water Damage Building That Causes the Illness

Some of the specific nasties you can find in a water-damaged building are mold, bacteria, amoebas, actinomycetes and mycobacteria. Additionally, the chemicals in the building materials can create an environement that alters these oranisms as well as adds to the release of toxins. You can have a release of mycotoxins, bacterial endotoxins, beta glucans, mannans, proteinases, hemolysins, c-type lectins, spirocyclic drimanes, and volatile organic compounds. It is thought that the combination of these various toxins from a variety of organisms is what causes the illness. Indeed, mycotoxins which are the toxins molds make, have been identified in body fluids as well as tissue samples of people exposed to water-damaged buildings. Indeed in one clinical study Ochratoxin A (a mycotoxin) was found in 83% of over 100 individuals tested with chronic illness and a history of water-damaged building exposure. Since it is so hard to test for all of the offending organisms and their biotoxins they release into the environment and there are not tests to test for many of them in body fluids, it is easier to test for the inflammatory reaction to these toxic elements. I will talk about this in a later blog.

Today We Will Examine What Mold Really Is

Molds are a type of fungi. They are multicellular and grow in filamentous hyphae (long thread-like branches). Networks of these hyphae form a mycelium which is considered a single organism. They produce airborne spores. They break down organic waste and are therefore an important part of natures recycling system. They cannot photosynthesize and just like humans they rely on organic matter for nutrition. 

Mold can grow on virtually any organic material as long as moisture and oxygen are present. There are molds that grow on wood, paper, carpet, food, and insulation. Because mold eats or digests what it is growing on, it can damage a building and its furnishings. If left unchecked, mold eventually can cause structural damage to building materials. 

They reproduce using both sexual and asexual methods. Molds may produce mycotoxins which can be harmful to our health as well as our animal's health.

Yeast is not mold: Yeast is also a type of fungi but it is not a mold. They are single celled microscopic fungi with an oval shape. They reproduce by mitosis (budding). There are different types of yeast such as Saccharomyces in wine and beer or Candida albicans (can bud and also grow via hyphae as well as make chlamydospores) which creates opportunistic infections in humans and animals. Candida and other yeasts, like molds may produce toxins which can be harmful to humans and animals.

It has been known for some time that fungi and the mycotoxins they create can cause health problems. However, we have focused mainly on mold allergies and mold infections (colonization). We were aware of the internal exposure to fungi such as Candida overgrowth in our intestines, or athlete's foot, as well as the infectious growth of various unusual and more serious molds seen mainly in immunocompromised individuals. There are also chronic rhinosinusitis problems caused by fungi such as Aspergillus, Chaetomium, Fusarium, Penicillium, and Trichoderma. It was Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker that brought our attention to the mold toxicity in our environment which has been causing illness in genetically susceptible individuals. This illness has been overlooked for many years by practitioners simply due to our ignorance of it. It is my opinion that much of what we call "Chronic Fatigue", Chronic Lymes", "Fibrolyalgia", and "Morgellans" is really "Mold" Illness or more specifically illness due to water-damaged buildings. I also have no doubt that this susceptibility is associated with many other inflammatory diseases. 

The Bottom Line

"Mold Illness" is a biotoxin illness caused by exposure to a water-damaged building. 

Other Illness That May Cause Similar Symptoms

Mycotoxins (mold toxins) are a subset of biotoxins. There are other biotoxins besides mycotoxins that can cause a similar disease symptomology as mycotoxins do. They can come from toxic algae, a bite from a toxic insect or snake. I will discuss this in the future.

Learning About Mold Susceptibility

Some years back I realized I had a mold susceptibility and was reacting to water-damaged buildings. No one seemed to know much about it in the medical community and initially it was hard to find data. However, I read all the research I could find on the subject (There was more than I would have thought, but hard to find.) and all of Dr. Shoemakers data as it was being made available. He was not teaching Docs at the time or I would have taken his classes. I took his wonderful clinical data, the research I read mixed with what was known about biotransformation (detox) processes in the body and put together enough knowledge to help myself and others by using a  mix of binders, herbs, diet, supplements and lifestyle changes. If you think this may be an issue for you or someone you love, I suggest you learn more about "mold illness/susceptibility" as something can be done about it. You can read some prior blogs I wrote on my own experience as well as more details on mold susceptibility here:

Mold and Your Health. What you don't know can hurt you.

Mold Related Illness From Water Damaged Buildings

I have also made it my new years resolution to educate folks more on mold, so you will be seeing more blogs on this very soon. Additionally, I have a book in the works.

FluMist ® Quadrivalent - The Cautions & Side Effects

If you or your family members get immunized for the flu, you might want to take a quick look at the possible complications  and  the contraindications for FluMist ®  Quadrivalent as listed by the company that makes it. Usually your practitioner does not have time to tell you about these cautions and may not even have time to read the cautions and side effects themseleves, so I am taking some pertinent points from the manufacturers data and sharing it with you. I have organized them below. None of this is my own personal opinion. This is all from the manufacturer and I have provided links to their "Prescribing Information" so  you can fact check yourself if you like or get more details.

Just The Facts

• Contains MSG -monosodium glutamate - Here is the inactive ingredient list: monosodium glutamate, gelatin, arginine, sucrose, dibasic potassium phosphate, monobasic potassium phosphate, and gentamicin. (gentamicin is an antibiotic)

• Contains egg residue. If you have an egg allergy, you should not be using it.

• Do not give to children and adolsescents up to 17 years of age who are receiving aspirin therapy due to the association of Reye's syndrome with aspirin and wild-type influenza infection.

• There is a risk of hopsitalization and wheezing in children under 2 years of age who receive FluMist ®  Trivalent and they list this as possible with the Quadrivalent also .

• Children younger than 5 years of age with recurrent wheezing and persons of any age with asthma may be at increased risk of wheezing following FluMist Quadrivalent administration. 

• FluMist Quadrivalent has not been studied in persons with severe asthma or active wheezing.

• If Guillain-Barré syndrome has occurred within 6 weeks of any prior influenza vaccination, the decision to give FluMist Quadrivalent should be based on careful consideration of the potential benefits and risks.

• The most common solicited adverse reactions (occurring ≥10% in vaccine recipients and at least 5% greater than in placebo) reported after FluMist were runny nose or nasal congestion in all persons 2-49 years, fever >100°F in children 2-6 years, and sore throat in adults 18-49 years. Among children 2-17 years who received FluMist Quadrivalent, 32% reported runny nose or nasal congestion and 7% reported fever >100°F. Among adults 18-49 years who received FluMist Quadrivalent, 44% reported runny nose or nasal congestion and 19% reported sore throat

• How Does FluMist ®  Quadrivalent  work? Immune mechanisms conferring protection against influenza following receipt of FluMist Quadrivalent vaccine are not fully understood; serum antibodies, mucosal antibodies, and influenza-specific T cell may play a role. 

• FluMist and FluMist Quadrivalent contain live attenuated influenza viruses that must infect and replicate in cells lining the nasopharynx of the recipient to induce immunity. Vaccine viruses capable of infection and replication can be cultured from nasal secretions obtained from vaccine recipients (shedding). FluMist Quad FluMist  and trivalent has not been studied in immunocompromised persons. The effectiveness of FluMist has not been studied in immunocompromised persons.

• The safety of FluMist Quadrivalent in individuals with underlying medical conditions that may predispose them to complications following wild-type influenza infection has not been established.

• Management of Acute Allergic Reactions Appropriate medical treatment and supervision must be available to manage possible anaphylactic reactions following administration of the vaccine

 FluMist ® Quadrivalent may not protect all individuals receiving the vaccine. I did not see a test of effectiveness for FluMist Quadrivalent but did see this one for FluMist 

The primary endpoint of the trial was the reduction in the proportion of participants with one or more episodes of any febrile illness, and prospective secondary endpoints were severe febrile illness and febrile upper respiratory illness. Effectiveness for any of the three endpoints was not demonstrated in a subgroup of adults 50 through 64 years of age. Primary and secondary effectiveness endpoints from the age group 18 through 49 years are presented in Table 8. Effectiveness was not demonstrated for the primary endpoint in adults 18 through 49 years of age.

One last list of cautions from their paperwork:

Who may not be able to get FluMist Quadrivalent?

Tell your healthcare provider if you or your child: are currently wheezing, have a history of wheezing if under 5 years old, have had Guillain-Barré syndrome, have a weakenedimmune system or live with someone who has a severely weakened immune system, have problems with your heart, kidneys, or lungs, have diabetes, are pregnant or nursing, are taking Tamiflu®, Relenza®, amantadine® or rimantadine®. (Remember that your practitioner may not even know these are issues regarding FluMist®  Quadrivalent and you may need to educate them.)

For more details or to check up on my data, here is the manufacturers disclosure and prescribing information.