psychetruth

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On the whole subject of general health and wellbeing there is one site that goes by the name of Psychetruth that deserves to be subscribed to. It has many professional contributors which cover an array of informative and intuitive videos with topics covering the fields of pharmacology, nutrition, psychology, fitness and spiritual matters.

Labelling claims

By now many of us are aware of the benefits of a balanced diet and recent claims that go along with support of this. But what of the now numerous claims being made by manufacturers of partially or fully processed foods. Can their claims as stated on the labels be given equal validity? It's a grey area since it boils down to the `care wording' as to how the message is laid out in the first instance, and to which degree does it constitute a medicinal claim. The article `Health claims: food or medicine?' by Choice puts this issue under the microscope to find out how much of what is being claimed by the food consortium's as to it actually being relevant.

Pumping the manpower

Testosterone levels are the lifeblood and benchmark for all males, in fact it lies at the very core of the male psyche and what it is to be a man. Both sexual drive and stamina are highly effected by any inclinations in production. With this it makes good sense to not only protect existing testosterone production but also to boost it's levels. The article entitled 5 Easy Ways to Increase Your Manpower by Men'shealth gives insightful reminders to maintaining the male libido and some sound tips with which to achieve this.

Take heart

Nutritionist and dietition Rena Shukla has always provided us with solid practical advice for health and wellness maintenance, and her latest article `Get the pulse' is no exception. Whilst it is brief it does instill the importance of getting into the habit of keeping a watchful vigilance on our own heart rates. This essential organ can tell us many things about out status in the wellness stakes and should not be overlooked. This is of particular significance should we be taking up an exercise routine after a period of inactivity. So take heart and be considerate to yourself.

A silent killer

There is no denying that stress can be a killer. It's ramifications on our overall health is detrimental to put it mildly since at some point the overwhelming negative emotions involved begin to manifest themselves into physical illnesses. However the good news is that armed with some sound advice one can alleviate and indeed in some cases even eliminate the need for a stressful lifestyle. Tracee Cornforth has produced a very thoughtful article tackling this modern psychological menace of city living entitled `Stress Busters'.

Sleep your way to a better memory

Further to the previous article `Power nap yourself from the sleep deficiency nightmare' comes the article `Catnaps boost our memory' by David Derbyshire reporting new studies that have been undertaken by Dr Olaf Lahl of the University of Dusseldorf, Germany which would suggest that short sleep periods can aid concentration and memory recall. I feel assured we can all benefit from a better and clearer memory, this does indeed sound like good advice to me.

Mining plant resource information

Plants have been part of humanities culture even long before we developed agriculture. Plants are as diverse in chemical properties as they are their differing species. There importance in every culture across the globe has aided in defining, impacting and shaping every culture on the planet through the ages. The subject of plants and indeed herbs and the encompassing science of biology, and of their uses is so monumental I seriously doubt any one website could tackle it as a whole.

Whilst considering this issue I searched for particular sites which were informative and diverse in their approach and came up with the following which serve well. The below mentioned sites clearly come at this topic from uniquely varying angles of expertise and cover a host of useful idea's from their application in beauty, home remedies, culinary usage to preparation and the cultivation of plus much more.

Ayerhelp
Anita's Garden - Holistic Health and Beauty
Bodychannel
My Mysterious Garden
Pioneer Thinking

Nutrition education

After reading yet another `junk food' hazard orientated article `Fast Food: The Fast Track to Organ Damage' which it seems is just one of many you can find really did make me wonder. Yes I see the merits in focusing on the negatives of this lifestyle, and indeed sometimes by doing so it can inherently show us that which can be detrimental to our health. But really, how many more do we need to see? There seems to be far to much of a fixation on what is bad rather than good, or is that just me? Is this an education to fast tracking coronary heart disease?

If the law of attraction is engaging here then this showing of what is bad only compounds the situation measurably. Personally I'd like to see more articles on the beneficial aspects of our diet. Just like the lawn that has a growing weed population; the solution is not to pull out the weeds, more so to plant more grass seeds. The result being that through the law of survival of the
fittest, nature herself will eliminate them.

The engaging 2004 documentary/movie Super Size Me by film maker Morgan Spurlock encapsulated the dangers very well albeit rather drastically but without doubt proving the point. So why more surveys are needed I will never know. There is a counterpoint to this however, which comes in the form of the Raw for Life video made by a dedicated group of film makers under the guidence of executive producers Mark Perlmutter and Keith Lyons of the Raw for 30 Days website. Here we see the opposite in which eating foods primarily in their raw (or uncooked state) can substantially cause a turnaround in health given that it was not 100% on the offset. This team gets my heartiest support in intelligent guidance and information on the monumental topic of nutrition.

Reference: 1.

Exercise your way to better sex

With over 14 years of experience as a personal trainer and bodybuilder Raphael Calzadilla (pictured left) should know a thing or two about exercise and bodybuilding techniques. Geared towards the female libido he has formulated a series of exercises that will effectively increase fitness levels whilst spicing up your sex life in the process. There is no denying that physical fitness can vastly improve performance as Mr Calzadilla's report entitled `Exercises That Make You Feel Sexy' clearly shows. From belly dancing, cardio strip tease to belly fusion (which is a contemporary fusion of traditional and modern dance movements). All of which it seems are aimed at the adventurous and passionate at heart.

Fountain of youth

There can be no doubt that time and gravity can be our greatest enemies in respect to maintaining a youthful complexion which could also include our own environmental lifestyle in there, indeed the afore mentioned effect our bodies considerably. However whilst we cannot halt the process we certainly have a degree of control over it. Brook Phelps, an eDiet contributor penned an article entitled `10 Secrets of Looking Younger' which does represent some thoughtful advice on this topic. After perusing it I gather this information mainly pertains to women, however though since men have skin also I believe it could equally apply, and this has nothing to do with being a sensitive new age guy either, it just makes sense right?

Whilst it did have it's merits, the advice offered mainly concentrated on facial and neck complexion. This is all well and ok however health and youthfulness radiates from inside to out. In as much we should consider diet and regular exercise as part of the whole equation to looking good. Articles such as this are like pieces of a large puzzle and as such help us all on our path to a lasting healthier lifestyle. After all it makes no sense at all if our total wellbeing is in order if it does not express itself outwardly also. To look further for a moment at the `whole' self, absolute wellbeing is pivotal on 6 foundational factors which are:

1. Thoughts
2. Breathing
3. Hydration
4. Food
5. Exercise
6. Circadian rhythms
   

These (in order of importance) form the `backbone' of total wellbeing and are explained in further detail by Holistic Health Coach Terence M. Carfrae in his profile entitled Metabolic Typing.

Reference: Metabolic Typing explained

Fitness FAQ

Lucia Schwarczova of Dante Gym and Fitness is without doubt the absolute embodiment of her beliefs and practices. After finishing her video profile I suggested (given her extensive knowledge in personal fitness coaching) that a contributed FAQ on the subject would be most beneficial to many seeking advice in this arena. With the original intent of publishing it to this blog. However it would seem that I had grossly underestimated the final result. It was far more extensive than previously imaged, and as a consequence to this it has been added as a continuation to Lucia's own profile page.

Not being just a simple FAQ, it goes into some detail and in the process debunking a few common myths concerned with not only loosing weight but in gaining physical strength also. It's resourcefulness will undoubtedly benefit many looking to create a healthier and fitter lifestyle.

Power nap yourself from the sleep deficiency nightmare

The following article by the Sydney Morning Herald titled `The blanket lifted on a health nightmare' so brings to the surface a dilemma of living in a modern age. Whilst these stats are alarming they at the same time come as no surprise. Speaking personally I have in the past been reduced to getting only 5 - 6 hours of sleep a night, due to work commitments. While there may be other contributing factors I firmly believe that longer work hours and stress related factors are huge culprits to this problem.

Without saying more than needs to be said most would be well aware that sleep deficiency is detrimental to both mind and body and can over longer periods seriously reduce our concentration and work performance. Is there a solution here? One which I have found useful is the `power nap', a short half hour - hour rest period preferably where one will not get disturbed. Trust me this really does give you are boost, especially if you suffer from sleep deficiency.

References 1. 2. 3.

Is your sex life normal?

Sexologist Yvonne. K. Fulbright (pictured left) blazes a trail of inquiry as to the sexual habits of Americans in an article entitled `Is your sex life normal?' Is there such a thing as normality within human sexual expressions given the fact that what may be considered freaky, kinky, bizarre, abnormal, weird and or downright disturbing to some may be entirely acceptable or dare I say it `normal' to some, whilst others could not even imagine such acts. It's really a question to the extent that an individual or couple will go to sexually gratify themselves. Personally I believe such extremes are only healthy as long as both individuals fully endorse and are in agreement with such actions and the other being that no physical and or mental harm arises because of such actions.

Throughout the ages humans have been torn by two forces, firstly their own internal natural drives and needs to express themselves fully and the external so called `social values' to be conformed to. External pressures then where usually forced upon us by religious doctrines through the ages. Out of these doctrines arose many accepted myths and beliefs which where perpetuated by the church and it's leaders to keep us in line.

There have been many individuals in history who have attempted to liberate us by setting the records straight. One such was the now legendary 18th century French aristocrat Donatien Alphonse-François de Sade, better known as the Marquis De Sade. Clearly in his day he was persecuted for many of his writings, which resulted in his enforced 32 year imprisonment. However if anyone (dares to) take the time and read say the classic `Justine' for example De Sade was merely holding the `mirror of contempt' to the established order of the day and revealing their so called outwardly displayed values as being nothing more than hypercritical and deceitful.

De Sade lived in a world wherein the nature of the deeds in his writings was indeed actuality not fiction and that various sexual vices were used by those in power to control and manipulate the less fortunate and poor within society, in particular younger persons of both genders, purely for their own gratification and sexual perversions. However despite all his efforts his works were systematically destroyed by the crushing religious dogma of his time and he was labeled as nothing more than a protagonist of pornography and filth.

However one more advocate for sexual liberation of the masses was non other than the more recent Alfred Kinsey who once again rocked the establishment, although this time far more successful in breaking down the barriers. Without such daring individuals we would still well an truly be gripped within the oppressive mindset of the those that seek to control our freedoms. Our needs to feel accepted `and know our place' within the scheme of things continues to this day as can be seen by the ongoing surveys published in women's magazines such as Cleo.

So in conclusion once again we must ask what is normal? Normality I believe is an illusion and non existent. Never was and never will be, thats the beauty of being individual, the continual striving for total personal expression. Being only true to oneself.

Age of Sex

Hot on the heals of the recent myth debunking article featured in the last post here comes another. `Age of sex' by Prof Low Wah Yun (subtitled How misunderstandings can deprive an elderly the pleasures of sexual activity) is quite a taboo torn topic. Most younger people cannot or even would not subscribe to the notion that their parents where still enjoying any manner of carnal activity let alone anyone older than them. Yes indeed it may seem quite a conscientious subject, however if most younger people feel that way when they are young then they may be sowing the seeds of a self fulfilling prophecy for themselves later on in life. Is sex only for the young and beautiful as the media would like us to believe and alternatively is sex then which is enjoyed by our more mature citizens considered perverse? I sure hope not, after all it is as natural to us as any other human need. Sure the whole act may take slightly longer than the `quickie' one once might have had but who cares since it's main importance goes well beyond this in long standing relationships.

On the same topic there can be no denying an enduring sex activity with your preferred partner in later years can be good for your overall health just as long as it doe's not include anything to risque such as activities involving a chandelier and or executing a multitude of positions from within the volumes of the Karma Sutra. In the following articles Mark Stibich Ph.D. entitled `Top 10 Sex Tips for Older Men' and `Top 10 Sex Tips for Older Women' is some very thoughtful commonsense advice for individuals and couples who believe that activity within the the bedroom (and anywhere else for that matter) should never cease.

Physical state of wellness

The subject of wellness is a broad spectrum topic part of which was briefly over viewed on the homepage,and from this overall perspective it is the `absence of disease' as defined by the medical fraternity. Moving further back we see that it has many sub components which in time I will endeavour to cover but right now I am focusing on the `physical wellness' aspect. Just recently I came across `The Wellness TV Show' which like cell to cell health covers the topic by speaking to noted practicing exponents of wellness within the field in video format. Above is an informative interview by Jessie Roberts with fitness instructor Lance Breger.

Lance overviews overall physical fitness by subdividing it five distinct categories which are:

1. Physical fitness which incorporates: (i) cardiovascular endurance, (ii) muscular strength and (iii) flexibility.
2. Body composition and nutrition. Ref 1. 2.
   
3. Sleeping patterns. Ref 1.
4. Drug substance use and abuse. Ref 1.
   
5. Sexual behaviour and safe sex. Ref 1.
   

Certainly from a holistic viewpoint when these area's are in balance then they equal by default a balanced emotional wellness state.

Perception of image

Dove `Evolution commercial'



Dove `Onslaught' (sequel to `Evolution')

Reality in itself is an illusion, in fact reality and the perception of the world at large not only in how we see it but also how other individuals see us is well defined by our own image we have of ourselves. This is a freedom that we as humans have been gifted with. This statement to some would seem like an absurd paradox, and the unfortunate aspect is that whilst it can be our greatest strength is can also be one of our greatest weaknesses.

If we are mentally undefined as to the state of our own true `self' then what happens is that it leads us wide open to the subjection of another synthetic reality that is not of our own to be laid upon us. Simply put if we do not control our lives them surely someone else will. The media in general in all of it's differing entities has done a marvelous job in informing us and non more so than in the shear blatant propogandering of how we should look.

What could be worse than the absolute manipulation and distortion of the truth by companies whose sole aim is to profit from peoples vanities. The irony being that the true beauty of an individual is measured by being personally fulfilled with the knowledge of their own self worth, is independent and has trust in their self image. When our own belief system can be viewed in our mind with total clarity then this in turn radiates to our outer being as conscious awareness of our own confidence. This then becomes our reality.

Whilst I am not endorsing such the Dove Self Esteem Fund in conjunction with the Butterfly Foundation have made a positive move for the better in regards to the re-education of the self images of young and old alike. Also the article entitled Media Distortion of Image makes for good reading on this subject matter detailing the impossible ideals that the media machine imposes upon us.