Category: Comments, Rants, Raves & Musings

Do You Mindlessly Rush & Stress or Mindfully Relax? 7 Tips to Calm Down

Join the Conversation. Are you a Rusher or Relaxer? And have you ever hurt yourself mindlessly hurrying?
Last Sunday afternoon, mindlessly stressfully and rushing landed me in major trouble—specifically, major physical pain.
Despite my recent efforts to relish nature’s magnificence, appreciate my peaceful surroundings, and slow down my breathing, last week I temporarily forgot my mindful intentions.
Instead, I was was hurrying and scurrying as in an area I don’t know.
There I was, in the Downtown Disney® Marketplace in Orlando, Florida, speedwalking so I’d arrive on time for the opening keynote of the Launch conference, sponsored by intentional-leadership guru Michael Hyatt and motivational speaker Ken Davis.
I was very eager to attend this event, because I’m a huge fan of Michael Hyatt, author of the fabulous book, Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World, a jewel I discovered, thanks to Hay House, publisher of my most recent book, Beyond Sugar Shock).
Anyhow, although I’d been savoring my meandering for about an hour (even finding some sweet-smelling bath salts), I’d simply lost track of time.
Photos 4-11-11 017So as I was rushing to the Launch conference opening talks, a curb came out of nowhere — well, that’s certainly what it felt like! — and I wrenched my knee. Ouch! Aargh! Eeeks!
I could actually feel my kneecap move around into places where it didn’t belong (although I was wearing a very thin protective brace, because I’d harmed this same knee before.)
In short, I hurt myself because I was in a rush, and I wasn’t fully present or consciously alert.
Otherwise, I would have seen that high-level curb and therefore easily avoided it.
For the next four days, while at the great Launch conference, I regularly iced my painful knee. (I chose not to take the hours it would take to find a doctor in Orlando, get X-rays, etc., because I didn’t want to miss the amazing event.)
Yesterday, after returning back home, I realized that I badly needed medical help.
After many desperate calls to orthopedic surgeons—who couldn’t see me until June or July!—I finally pleaded pitifully enough so that one doctor’s assistant kindly squeezed me in to see a top-notch doctor to whom I’d been recommended.
The Doctor’s Verdict
I have a medial collateral ligament strain, grade 2 (meaning that it wasn’t super-awful, but it wasn’t just a minor injury).
Healing Required
I need to wear a big, monstrous brace while walking (see photo above.
Plus, I have to see a physical therapist a couple of times a week.
And I need to ice 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off.
As for exercise, I can’t do any Zumba or high-intensity spinning or stair-blasting. Okay, I admit, that’s very frustrating!
I also can leisurely walk and in about a week, I may be able to start swimming (not my favorite sport) and I can do slow biking on a stationary bike.
I’ve Also Personalized My Healing Plan
Since I’m a health coach and life coach, I’ve come up with some more healing action steps.
As my awesome tapping consultant, Mary Ayers — who I had to cancel on to see the doctor — reminded me, I need to do lots of EFT on the pain and the feelings associated with my injury.
I also plan to get help from Nick Ortner, author of The Tapping Solution.
I also need to slow down. (See also my 7 Tips to Calm Down.)
My doctor predits that in about 8 weeks — I hope sooner, my knee should be fine.
I’ve Rushed for Years. What About You?
Contorting and twisting my knee while confronting that darn curb made me realize and admit that for years, I’ve excelled at rushing.
I’m a Rusher Par Excellence!
Apparently, I’ve even sought out places to live and a profession where scurrying is a plus—or, rather a must. Yikes!
Just consider:
Up until two years ago (when I moved across country to be with my then-terminally ill mom, who I later lost), I lived in Manhattan, the city where if you rush, you excel. (Okay, I’m exaggerating, but it often seems that everyone is dashing about and running late in The Big Apple.)
Not only that, but as a trained journalist, I’m used to frequent article deadlines. In fact, my editors often leaned on me, saying, “Connie, where is your story? We need it!” Back in my days as a daily reporter, I had to crank out several articles a day.
Now I”m forced to face that this I may have hurry sickness, which, in turn, has made me accident-prone.
The fact is this isn’t the first time that my stressing and rushing have made me accident-prone and then caused me serious physical pain.
While a daily journalist and pushing to meet constant deadlines, striking computer keys so quickly (I’m super-fast) and so often on an ergonomically unsound work station and not taking enough breaks, led to excruciatingly painful carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, tendonisovitis and dystonia. At the time, I could barely move my hands, but my doctor didn’t recommend surgery. Besides, I was was determined to find another route — thank you, acupuncture and B vitamins. Anyhow, I had to take many weeks off work, and and eventually I just quit my job so I could go freelance to protect my poor ailing wrists.
Another time, while racing to meet a deadline to finish my first book, Sugar Shock, I badly injured my back by sitting too long while on the keyboard and by not getting up to stretch often. My amazing acupuncturist helped me get through this time.
Then, once, while dashing for a cab in New York City, I severely sprained my ankle by stepping in a nasty pothole I hadn’t noticed.
Oh yeah, there was also the time, while rushing to get back to my sailing lesson that I rammed head-first into a glass window and suffered a concussion.
Beyond Sugar Shock Book CoverNow, let’s get to the sugar connection, which date to about 1998. While trying to cope with the ever-pressing deadlines of a journalist, I became addicted to sugar and processed carbs, which I call quickie carbs.
In fact, I relied on unnatural sugar and carb highs to give me a buzz, help me think straight and write quickly. (Ultimately, I beat my sugar and carb addiction while creating many easy-to-master tools, which I shared in my book Beyond Sugar Shock. FYI, my quit-sugar-iversary comes uup Tuesday so stay tuned for my upcoming post, “7 Ways Life Improved by Being Sugar-Free for 16 Years.”
Back to my hurry accident. The Universe — speaking through my aching, throbbing knee — is clearly telling me to Slow Down!
Plus, I need to get a handle on what some experts call “hurry sickness.”
As I’ll ll now I nurse my injured knee back to health, I’m more determined than ever to breathe deeply, mindfully relax, and consciously choose calm. Read on so you can join the No-Rush Challenge.
Of course, most of us know that scurrying and hurrying while under stress is just not healthy.
A plethora of research shows the many benefits of slowing down. When you’re mindful, you’re happier, you live longer, and (no surprise!) you’re less accident-prone.
Plus, when you eat more mindfully, you lose weight.
Will you join me in a campaign to Stop Rushing & Start Relaxing? Here are 7 tips to get you going.
7 Tips to Stop Rushing & Start Relaxing
1) Claim Calm.
Before you even get out of bed in the morning, breathe deep into your belly and then exhale. Do this for three to 7 minutes. As you do this, inwardly repeat, “I claim calm now. I claim calm now. I claim calm now.” (If you can’t last that long, just try 7 or 10 rounds.)
2) Stay Calm Even If You’re On Deadline.
Whenever you feel rushed for one reason or another, claim calm for at least three breaths. You can do this even when you’re working, driving, waiting for your kids, walking or preparing that pressing project.
3) Take Relaxing Time-Outs.
Throughout the day—at least three times a day—claim calm again for seven breaths; notice and enjoy the scenery around you.
4) Calm Down Before a Meal.
Every time you eat, take seven “I claim calm” breaths first. Research ven shows that you can even lose weight by eating mindfully.
5) Add time.
Whenever you have an appointment, give yourself an extra 45 minutes to an hour to get there. That way, you won’t get frazzled if you hit unexpected traffic, get lost or encounter other surprising challenges. (You certainly won’t mess up your knee as I did rushing to get there.)
6) Keep Track of Time.
Enjoy yourself, but if you have an appointment, keep an eye on the clock so you won’t have to rush at the last minute as I did.
7) Be Alert for Street and Sidewalk Ruts & Potholes.
What a no-brainer! Wish I’d taken my own advice here.
Join the Conversation. Do you rush instead of relax? Have you injured yourself (like me) because you were rushing?

Mom Berated & Fined $10 for Not Giving Child Grains

Have you heard about the Mom, who was berated and then fined $10 for not including grains in her child’s school lunch?
Seriously! A mother had to fork over $10, because she didn’t add gluten to her kid’s allegedly healthy lunch.
To make the lunch more well-rounded, the school then added some gluten-filled Ritz Crackers.
Ritz CrackersI’m saddened, appalled, and disheartened to discover that children — many of whom may be allergeic or sensitive to gluten, grains and sugar — may be encouraged to eat the very foods that they should avoid.
Admittedly, this is only one such instance (and overseas, too), but I believe this incident exemplifies the problem worldwide.
Both adults and children here in the United States and abroad are often being brainwashed or programmed to eat potentially dangerous, processed grains.
Small wonder then that millions of children and adults worldwide are suffering from obesity, type 2 diabetes and early death.
To learn about the dangers of gluten on your brain, I invite you to listen to this recent Gab with the Gurus Show, during which I interviewed Dr. Perlmutter, author of the bestselling book, Grain Brain.: The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar — Your Brain’s Silent Killers.
Listen now at your convenience.
New Health Internet Radio with Gab With the Gurus on BlogTalkRadio
Special thanks: I’m very grateful to Weighty Matters, Boing Boing,, as well as Mark Freuenfelder and Dr. David Perlmutter, for the heads-up about this sad carb catch.
Join the Conversation
What do you think of the fact that a school fined a mom for not giving he child grains for lunch?
Post your thoughts here.

9 Ways Strategic Social Media Breaks Make You More Social

In today’s world you need to be social even if you’re not naturally gregarious or extroverted.
To spread the word about your book, program, product, or professional expertise, you have to be active in social media in a BIG way, using such tools as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, your blog, Pinterest, etc.
But what if you’re feeling decidedly anti-social, because you’re facing a grueling Dark Night of the Soul?
Should you continue to post regularly on Facebook, Twitter, and your blog when you’re enduring an existential crisis like a terminally ill parent or spouse, the breakup of your long-term marriage, or the death of a cherished loved one?
TwitterWhen you’re shaken up by such a trying situation, I contend, you need to take Strategic Social Media Breaks of varying lengths of time—from a few days to a few weeks.
Something interesting happens when you become deliberately anti-social. Ultimately, after you devote time to yourself and your healing, you ultimately become more social.
In other words, staying away from social media paves the way for you to become active again and to return with vitality, peace of mind, and a better frame of mind.
Gab with the Gurus Large LogoFor my part, I discovered the value and need to take Strategic Social Media Breaks soon afterddiscovering that my mother—who lived on the other side of the country—was terminally ill with stage 4 lung cancer.
Over the next two years, I took several Social Media Breaks—during Mom’s final months when we enjoyed a plethora of plays, operas, and farmer’s markets together, and she taught me how to die with grace and spunk.
Three months before Mom died, I became quite active again on social media when my new new book, Beyond Sugar Shock, was published. But soon afterwards, I needed a longer Social Media Break after Mom passed away and I was grief-stricken and depressed.
Again, I needed more time away from social media when I needed to travel around to find a new, peaceful place to live; and when I needed to Take Back My Power and heal from my mother’s unintentional cancer-driven rage, abuse, betrayal and symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome.
If you’re facing a family crisis, I urge you to step back from social media. Here are nine benefits of staying away from the Web for a few days or weeks.
You can spend precious time with a loved one. (This is especially important if your loved one is very ill.).
You can take ample time to go inward and put your attention on nurturing and nourishing yourself.
Focusing on yourself rather than on posts or tweets allows you to emerge more compassionate and committed to giving valuable information to your fans through social media..
When you’re absent from social media, you can become more fully present in your life.
You can reassess your priorities without getting distracted by social media.
When you shift your focus from serving others to preserving yourself, it’s easier to triumph over your stressful, heart-breaking situations.
When you’re not concerned about the responses you’re getting to a comment, quote or photo you posted on Facebook, your blog or Google+, you have more energy to face your profound pain, which, in turn, will help you move faster away from the dark and into the light.
When you’re not sidetracked by social media, you can gain valuable perspective, insights, and the distance you need to rise above your pain.
A Social Media Break “fills you up” so that you can return with more energy, exuberance, and enthusiasm to serving people.
So how do you know you need a Social Media Break? Youi may benefit from time away from social media if you haven’t regained your mojo, zest, or gusto after your Dark Night of the Soul. In other words:
You often feel anxious, depressed, and devastated after the death of a loved one.
You just don’t have much enthusiasm to share great information with your fans. Rather, you need to focus on healing after your challenging time such as the end of your marriage.
You just don’t feel ready to serve your Facebook fans, Twitter followers, blog readers, etc. Before being so visible ot he world, you need to regain your strength.
Anyhow, now that I’m active again in social media, I invite you to become social with me.
Please subscribe to this Sugar Shock Blog; listen to my Gab with the Gurus Shows on BlogTalkRadio; connect with me on Facebook; and follow me on Twitter.
Share Your Feedback: Have you ever taken a Strategic Social Media Break? Why and for how long? How did being anti-social help you to become more social? Let us know your experiences here.

Why do Millions Have Collective Forgetfulness on Spooky Sugar Overload Day (Halloween)?

It’s that spooky time of year again.
Not because of neighborhood kids masquerading as ghosts, goblins and ghouls.
Halloween candyBut because of scary candies.
Beginning Halloween, through the end of the year — for a whopping two-plus months — millions tend to completely “forget” the fact that too much sugar can trigger harmful effects on your children’s health, including obesity, of course. .
On Spooky Sugar Overload Day – my phrase for Halloween — millions develop collective amnesia about how rates of obesity, type 2 diabetes and other crippling sugar-triggered ailments are skyrocketing.
And every year, at this time, I watch in astonishment at how cool, chic and accepted it’s become to hurl your neighbor’s kids into Sugar Shock.
For instance:
This year 74 percent of households in the United States are expected to hand candies to trick-or-treaters (80 percent of households with children will do so), according to the candy-promoting National Confectioners Association. http://www.candyusa.com/FunStuff/content.cfm?ItemNumber=5137&navItemNumber=4569
Of those sugar pushers, 72 percent of those households will give away two or even three) pieces of candy per trick-or-treater.
Let’s put this in simple terms: On Halloween night alone, the average child in your neighborhood may mindlessly scarf down between 5 to 50 teaspoons of sugar and hundreds of calories.
In short, Spooky Sugar Overload Season starts with Halloween.
Factor in all the sugar that most people will gobble up during Thanksgiving dinners, holiday parties, as well as Christmas or Chanukah vacations.
All this sugar gorging begs these questions:
Why has it simply become un-American NOT to hand out candies on Halloween?
Why is it outright weird NOT to give your neighbors’ kids sugar-filled treats, which will surely send them into Sugar Shock? (Think anxiety, difficulty concentrating, mood swings, temper tantrums, crankiness and much worse.)
Why is candy-giving expected even though just about everyone knows that too much sugar (candies) can lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes and other diseases, which, in turn, can kill you?
Thankfully, a small but growing number of us are urging parents to give out safe, fun toys instead.
Unfortunately, though, it’s far easier to find candies than it is to locate sweet, sugar-free toys such as glow-in-the-dark insects, spooky fingers, Halloween-themed stickers or pencils, rubber worms, creepy fingers, action figures, kazoos and whistles, baseball cards, plastic animals, spin tops, and party favors like engine whistles, key chains, pen, and stickers.
Furthermore, let’s face it, these cool Halloween options cost more than sugar-filled, or high fructose corn syrup-laden candies.
Right now, I urge you parents to take charge. This Halloween, just become more mindful.
Every time you dish out candies, think about just two things.
You are an “enabler” – as drug addicts are to other drug addicts. Your neighbors and you could be paving the way for neighborhood kids to crave candies. For that matter, you could be addicting or re-addicting their parents, too. (A number of coaching clients confessed to me that they stole their kids Halloween candies!)
You could be contributing to soaring rates of obesity and other diseases in your neighborhood.
Do you really want to have that on your conscience?
Instead, why don’t you find ways to help your children and your neighbors’ kids to observe Halloween in a safer, healthier way?
For instance, you could:
Offer your kid(s) a healthy meal with ample protein, fiber and fat before she or he cavorts around the neighborhood.
Give away one candy per trick-or-treater. (Don’t let kids grab a handful of sweets.)
Hand out small bottles of water. That way, you’ll help trick-or-treaters stay hydrated.
When your child or children come home from trick-or-treating, have fun together doing high-intensity play or dancing for at least 10 minutes.
Hug your kids and figure out one or two other ways to give them lasting sweetness.
About the Author:
Connie Bennett, CHHC, CPC, ACC, is a self-mocking former sugar addict and author of two bestselling books, Sugar Shock! and Beyond Sugar Shock.
Her first book, Sugar Shock! How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life– and How You Can Get Back on Track, was praised by Dr. Mehmez Oz and many others.
Her latest book, Beyond Sugar Shock: The 6-Week Plan to Break Free of Your Sugar Addiction & Get Slimmer, Sexier & Sweeter, has been endorsed by numerous luminaries, including Wayne Dyer, Dr. Daniel Amen, Dr. Christiane Northrup, Bernie Siegel, Joe Vitale, Marci Shimoff, Kathy Smith, John Assaraf, Colette Baron-Reid, Janet Bray Atwood, Donna Gates, Alex Jamieson, and Dr. JJ Virgin.
Connie is also a certified health coach, certified life coach, EFT practitioner, widely published jouirnalist, columnist, and and essayist (AOL News, eDiets.com, The Los Angeles Times, www.SheKnows.com, etc.), as well as an in-demand speaker, entertaining TV and radio show guest (“CBS News Sunday Morning,” “Oprah & Friends Radio,” “The Howard Stern Show,” etc.).
In 1998, Connie was a tormented sugar-addicted journalist, who secretly “used” candies galore just to make all her deadlines. When she was bombarded by brain fog, heart palpitations, severe PMS and 41 other baffling ailments, Connie finally turned in deperation to a doctor, who ordered her to quit sweets. Much to her surprise, all her ailments went poof!, and the journalist was reborn, filled with determination to spread the sour news about sugar.
Now sugar-free (mostly) for 15 years, Connie — now known as The Sugar Liberator — had helped thousands of people worldwide to break free of sweets and discover that Life is Sweeter Naturally™.
Get free gifts at www.Connie-Bennett.com. Then discover if you’ve been brainwashed to become a sugar addict by taking The Sugar shock Quiz at www.SugarShockBlog.com.

Before You Indulge this Holiday Season, Consider Nearly 150 Ways Sugar Ruins Your Health

As 2011 winds down and we approach the holidays, we’re about to enter what I call the Season of Overeating and the Season of Sugar Gorging.
So before you over-indulge this holiday season, I urge you to learn the sour news. You need to know that when by continually chomping on delicious desserts, sugar can ruin your health in nearly 150 ways.
Suicide by sugar-pc2Below you’ll find an extensively researched list from my mentor and heroine, Nancy Appleton, Ph.D., author of Suicide by Sugar: A Startling Look at Our #1 National Addiction. Bear in mind that Nancy has been researching sugar’s dangers for more than three decades, and she found (and cites) medical studies to back up all of these claims on this list.
An avid researcher, Dr. Appleton is also the best-selling author of Stopping Inflammation and Healthy Bones. In addition, she lectures extensively throughout the world, has appeared on numerous television and radio talk shows, and maintains a private practice in San Diego, California.
Incidentially, to this day, more than 13 years after I quit sugar myself, I’m grateful to Nancy. In fact, her book, Lick the Sugar Habit, helped me quit sweets back in 1998.
Now review Nancy’s shocking list of nearly 150 ways that sugar can ham you before you continue to overdo it on sweets this holiday season.
144 Ways Sugar Can Ruin Your Health by Nancy Appleton, Ph.D. (Reprinted with permission.)
1. Sugar can suppress your immune system.
2. Sugar upsets the mineral relationships in the body.
3. Sugar can cause juvenile delinquencey in children.
4. Sugar eaten pregnancy and lactation can influence muscle force production in offspring, which can affect an individual’s ability to exercise.
5. Sugar in soda, when consumed by children, results in the children drinking less milk.
6. Sugar can elevate glucose and insulin responses and return them to fasting levels slower in oral contraceptive users.
7. Sugar can increase reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can damage cells and tissues.
8. Sugar can cause hyperactivity, anxiety, inability to concentrate and crankiness in children.
9. Sugar can produce a significant rise in triglycerides.
10. Sugar reduces the body’s ability to defend against bacterial infection.
11. Sugar causes a decline in tissue elasticity and function – the more sugar you eat, the more elasticity and function you lose.
12. Sugar reduces high-density lipoproteins (HDL).
13. Sugar can lead to chromium deficiency.
14. Sugar can lead to ovarian cancer.
15. Sugar can increase fasting levels of glucose.
16. Sugar causes copper deficiency.
17. Sugar interferes with the body’s absorption of calcium and magnesium.
18. Sugar may make eyes more vulnerable to age-related macular degeneration.
19. Sugar raises the level of neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.
20. Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.
21. Sugar can lead to an acidic digestive tract.
22. Sugar can cause a rapid rise of adrenaline levels in children.
23. Sugar is frequently malabsorbed in patients with functional bowel disease.
24. Sugar can cause premature aging.
25. Sugar can lead to alcoholism.
26. Sugar can cause tooth decay.
27. Sugar can lead to obesity.
28. Sugar increases the risk of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
29. Sugar can cause gastric or duodenal ulcers.
30. Sugar can cause arthritis.
31. Sugar can cause learning disorders in school children.
32. Sugar assists the uncontrolled growth of Candida Albicans (yeast infections).
33. Sugar can cause gallstones.
34. Sugar can cause heart disease.
35. Sugar can cause appendicitis.
36. Sugar can cause hemorrhoids.
37. Sugar can cause varicose veins.
38. Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.
39. Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
40. Sugar contributes to saliva acidity.
41. Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
42. Sugar can lower the amount of Vitamin E in the blood.
43. Sugar can decrease the amount of growth hormones in the body.
44. Sugar can increase cholesterol.
45. Sugar increases advanced glycation end products (AGEs), which form when sugar binds non-enzymatically to protein.
46. Sugar can interfere with the absorption of protein.
47. Sugar causes food allergies.
48. Sugar can contribute to diabetes.
49. Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
50. Sugar can lead to eczema in children.
51. Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
52. Sugar can impair the structure of DNA.
53. Sugar can change the structure of protein.
54. Sugar can make the skin wrinkle by changing the structure of collagen.
55. Sugar can cause cataracts.
56. Sugar can cause emphysema.
57. Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
58. Sugar can promote an elevation of low-density lipoproteins (LDL).
59. Sugar can impair the physiological homeostasis of many systems in the body.
60. Sugar lowers enzymes ability to function.
61. Sugar intake is associated with the development of Parkinson’s disease.
62. Sugar can increase the size of the liver by making the liver cells divide.
63. Sugar can increase the amount of liver fat.
64. Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
65. Sugar can damage the pancreas.
66. Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.
67. Sugar is the number one enemy of the bowel movement.
68. Sugar can cause myopia (nearsightedness).
69. Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
70. Sugar can make tendons more brittle.
71. Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
72. Sugar plays a role in pancreatic cancer in women.
73. Sugar can adversely affect children’s grades in school.
74. Sugar can cause depression.
75. Sugar increases the risk of gastric cancer.
76. Sugar can cause dyspepsia (indigestion).
77. Sugar can increase the risk of developing gout.
78. Sugar can increase the levels of glucose in the blood much higher than complex carbohydrates in a glucose tolerance test can.
79. Sugar reduces learning capacity.
80. Sugar can cause two blood proteins – albumin and lipoproteins – to function less effectively, which may reduce the body’s ability to handle fat and cholesterol.
81. Sugar can contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.
82. Sugar can cause platelet adhesiveness, which causes blood clots.
83. Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance – some hormones become underactive and others become overactive.
84. Sugar can lead to the formation of kidney stones.
85. Sugar can cause free radicals and oxidative stress.
86. Sugar can lead to biliary tract cancer.
87. Sugar increases the risk of pregnant adolescents delivering a small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infant.
88. Sugar can lead to a substantial decrease the in the length of pregnancy among adolescents.
89. Sugar slows food’s travel time through the gastrointestinal tract.
90. Sugar increases the concentration of bile acids in stool and bacterial enzymes in the colon, which can modify bile to produce cancer-causing compounds and colon cancer.
91. Sugar increases estradiol (the most potent form of naturally occurring estrogen) in men.
92. Sugar combines with and destroys phosphatase, a digestive enzyme, which makes digestion more difficult.
93. Sugar can be a risk factor for gallbladder cancer.
94. Sugar is an addictive substance.
95. Sugar can be intoxicating, similar to alcohol.
96. Sugar can aggravate premenstrual syndrome (PMS).
97. Sugar can decrease emotional stability.
98. Sugar promotes excessive food intake in obese people.
99. Sugar can worsen the symptoms of children with attention deficit disorder (ADD).
100. Sugar can slow the ability of the adrenal glands to function.
101. Sugar can cut off oxygen to the brain when given to people intravenously.
102. Sugar is a risk factor for lung cancer.
103. Sugar increases the risk of polio.
104. Sugar can cause epileptic seizures.
105. Sugar can increase systolic blood pressure (pressure when the heart is contracting).
106. Sugar can induce cell death.
107. Sugar can increase the amount of food that you eat.
108. Sugar can cause antisocial behavior in juvenile delinquents.
109. Sugar can lead to prostate cancer.
110. Sugar dehydrates newborns.
111. Sugar can cause women to give birth to babies with low birth weight.
112. Sugar is associated with a worse outcome of schizophrenia.
113. Sugar can raise homocysteine levels in the bloodstream.
114. Sugar increases the risk of breast cancer.
115. Sugar is a risk factor in small intestine cancer.
116. Sugar can cause laryngeal cancer.
117. Sugar induces salt and water retention.
118. Sugar can contribute to mild memory loss.
119. Sugar water, when given to children shortly after birth, results in those children preferring sugar water to regular water throughout childhood.
120. Sugar causes constipation.
121. Sugar can cause brain decay in pre-diabetic and diabetic women.
122. Sugar can increase the risk of stomach cancer.
123. Sugar can cause metabolic syndrome.
124. Sugar increases neural tube defects in embryos when it is consumed by pregnant women.
125. Sugar can cause asthma.
126. Sugar increases the chances of getting irritable bowl syndrome.
127. Sugar can affect central reward systems.
128. Sugar can cause cancer of the rectum.
129. Sugar can cause endometrial cancer.
130. Sugar can cause renal (kidney) cell cancer.
131. Sugar can cause liver tumors.
132. Sugar can increase inflammatory markers in the bloodstreams of overweight people.
133. Sugar plays a role in the cause and the continuation of acne.
134. Sugar can ruin the sex life of both men and women by turning off the gene that controls the sex hormones.
134. Sugar can cause fatigue, moodiness, nervousness, and depression.
135. Sugar can make many essential nutrients less available to cells.
138. Sugar can increase uric acid in blood.
139. Sugar can lead to higher C-peptide concentrations.
140. Sugar causes inflammation.
141. Sugar can cause diverticulitis, a small bulging sac pushing outward from the colon wall that is inflamed.
142. Sugar can decrease testosterone production.
143. Sugar impairs spatial memory.
144. Sugar can cause cataracts.
Go here now to find find Nancy’s extensive references, which back up the citations on this list.
To learn more about sugar’s dangers, I urge you to get Nancy’s book, Suicide by Sugar. I also invite you to read my book, Sugar Shock.
In addition, I invite you to learn more about sugar’s dangers by listening to a special Gab with the Gurus Radio Show on which I interviewed Dr. Nancy Appleton.
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Listen to internet radio with Gab With the Gurus on Blog Talk Radio

Experts Industry Association Forms to Guide Authors, Speakers, Coaches, Etc.

If you’re an author, speaker, coach, consultant, seminar leader or information marketer, you’ll want to know about the exciting new organization, the Experts Industry Association.
The Experts Industry Association was created to help authors, speakers, coaches, and other experts to “collaborate, share best-practices, generate new leaders, and recognize and honor excellence and . . . legends.”
According to the association, this is the “world’s first membership community of professionals who make a difference and a living as authors, speakers, coaches, consultants, seminar leaders, and online information marketers.”
You can learn about the association’s code of ethics here.
Check out the roster of amazing leaders and professionals, who served as founders of the non-profit Experts Industry Association:
Brendon Burchard, New York Times bestselling author of “The Millionaire Messenger” and founder and President of Experts Industry Association
Jack Canfield, New York Times bestselling author of “The Success Principles” and co-creator of “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series
Dr. Daniel Amen, New York Times bestselling author of “Change Your Brain Change Your Life” and producer of PBS shows generating over $20m
Darren Hardy, Publisher of SUCCESS Magazine and author of “The Compound Effect”
Reid Tracy, CEO and Publisher, Hay House Inc.
Marci Shimoff, New York Times bestselling author of “Happy for No Reason”
John Assaraf, featured expert in “The Secret” and author of “The Answer”
David Bach, New York Times bestselling author of “The Automatic Millionaire” (and 11 other NYTimes bestsellers)
Brian Tracy, author of “Maximum Achievement” and worldwide best-selling creator of “The Psychology of Achievement”
Chris Attwood, New York Times bestselling co-author of “The Passion Test”
Robert Allen, New York Times bestselling author of “Nothing Down” and “The One Minute Millionaire”
Gay and Katie Hendricks, co-author of many bestsellers, including “Conscious Loving” and “Five Wishes”
Harv Eker, New York Times bestselling author of “The Millionaire Mind”
Jeff Walker, creator of the “Product Launch Formula,” the #1 online marketing training for product launches of all time
Frank Kern, creator of “Mass Control” and the highest paid internet marketing strategist in the world
Joe Polish, creator of the #1 bestselling marketing training in Nightingale Conant’s history called “Piranha Marketing”
Rick Frishman, founder of Planned Television Arts, and Publisher, Morgan James Publishing
Dean Graziosi, New York Times bestselling author and the most successful real estate educator in history
Bill Harrison, founders of Radio-TV Interview Report (TRIR), the twice monthly magazine that 4,000 radio/TV producers read to find guests
Scott Hoffman, literary agent and founder of Folio Literary
Andy Jenkins, founder of “The Video Boss” and online marketing strategist
Jeff Johnson, the #1 online affiliate marketer for high-priced programs in the world
Janet Bray Attwood, New York Times bestselling co-author of “The Passion Test”
Mike Koenigs, founder of Traffic Geyser and creator of Main Street Marketing Machines
Jim Kwik, creator of Kwik Learning and Warmth Marketing
Jon Walker, Product Launch Manager
And more.
The first annual Experts Industry Association Conference is open to anyone interested in learning and mastering the advice and how-to industry. Learn more about RESET, the upcoming Annual Conference, by entering your name and email on this page.

Sugar Shock Blog Now Promotes Quality Foods, Products & Services

As you may have noticed, recently the Sugar Shock Blog began promoting certain foods, products or services with affiliate links or banner ads.
I’ve resisted doing this since the Sugar Shock Blog made its debut on June 7, 2010 because I was focused on bringing you great information and I wanted to maintain the quality of this blog.
Furthermore, I grew weary of being asked to review or comment on various foods or services that did not meet my rigorous standards. You never heard about this before, because I’ve been refusing to write about these sub-standard (in my opinion) foods and products. For years, however, I have, recommended many books I like.
In retrospect, I realize that Ii’ve been doing you a disservice by not seeking out and recommending foods, products and services that I love or respect.
So now, on this Sugar Shock Blog, you’ll find ads or affiiate banners for foods, products, services and events that I consider to be of the highest caliber.
This means that for foods, NONE of them will ever contain sugar, fructose, maltodextrin, agave (which I consider worse than fructose), honey, artificial sweeteners or even organic cane sugar. (At least, as far as I now.) Meanwhile, I’ll also strive to tell you about superior self-growth and other programs and services.
Anyhow, I intend to continue to behave like a woman and blogger of high integrity. To that end, I’d lke to share with you my Sweet, But Stringent Standards.
Thank you for supporting fabulous companies such as Vital Choice, U.S. Wellness Meats and Hay House, which is publishing my next book, Beyond Sugar Shock. Speaking of my new publisher, will I see you at the upcoming I Can Do It Conference in Florida?
Showcase: Hay House, Inc.
I also invite you to visit my new Sugar Shock Shop on Open Sky, where you can find organic nut butters, chia seeds, colorful Buddha Bowls, organic shea butter, organic lavendar bath salts, organic cacao nibs, a yoga mat cover and much more.
If you’d like to recommend a company, food or product to advertise here, let me know. But first, please read my Sweet, But Stringent Standards.

Grateful to Bike!

Gratitude_ornament – from shiningsungardenworks I just came back from my first bicycle ride since slamming head first into glass (while running) on July 4. I’m so excited and grateful that I could get on my beloved bike again.
At the beginning of the week, I was struck by dizziness and ferocious headaches. Then, I held five episodes on my Gab with the Gurus Radio Show about gratitude with 21 amazing experts. Get details about the shows here.
Now, here I am at the end of the week able to work out again! Wow!
Granted I’m pooped out big time and my head is sort of throbbing and reeling and I need to lie down, but I suspect that being so focused on gratitude all week helped me to get better.
What do you think?
And have you ever relied on gratitude to get you out of pain or a mess?

High Fructose Consumption Linked to High Blood Pressure

The evidence keeps pouring in pointing to the dangers of fructose, which are found in soft drinks and most processed foods, from breads to cookies to crackers.
The latest study, which finds that people who consume the amount of fructose found in two-and-a-half soft drinks a day appear to have a higher risk of hypertension, appears in the current issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology
People who took in at least 74 grams (about 18.5 tsp.) per day had 26% to 77% greater odds of crossing various thresholds of elevated blood pressure (P<0.05 for all), compared with lower levels of consumption, according to Diana Jalal, MD, of the University of Colorado Denver, and colleagues. "Limiting fructose intake is readily feasible, and, in light of our results, prospective studies are needed to assess whether decreased intake of fructose from added sugars will reduce the incidence of hypertension and the burden of cardiovascular disease in the U.S. adult population," they wrote online in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. One of the best ways to reduce your consumption of high fructose corn syrup is to just eliminate soft drinks. There is no human requirement for soda! To get a flavor for how soft drinks can pack on the pounds -- one that will make your stomach turn -- watch this "Pouring on the Pounds" ad from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.