Monday, January 30, 2017

Is Wal-mart Organic Foods Any Different From Whole Foods Organic Food?

Jan. 30, 2017

Dear Cathy:

Is there a difference in the quality of organic food at Wal-mart and other health and whole foods stores? Going Organic, Alabama

Dear Going Organic:


When Wal-mart started going organic, it was just a way to grab market share, while driving small stores and farmers out of business. However, whatever Wal-mart does has major repercussions. 

Most important, the vast majority of Walmarts carry a large range of affordable fresh fruits and vegetables. And Walmarts serve many “food deserts,” in large cities and rural areas—especially including farm areas.

Whole Foods currently bans roughly 54% of Wal-Mart's food merchandise due to the presence, in its words, of "unacceptable ingredients for foods." These 78 banned ingredients include everything from recognizable sweeteners like high-fructose corn syrup to everything else.

Consider the following statistics:

- 97% of the soft drinks sold at Wal-Mart contain ingredients that Whole Foods considers "unacceptable".

- Wal-Mart's "Great Value 100% Whole Wheat Bread" contains seven ingredients that Whole Foods scoffs at, including everything from high-fructose corn syrup to calcium propionate. Not one or two "unacceptable" items, but seven.

- More than 80% of the candy sold at Wal-Mart would never be found at Whole Foods due to artificial flavors, while 31% of the bacon and sausage products have been blacklisted due to monosodium glutamate, or MSG.


Even though the Food and Drug Administration has deemed every food product sold in a Wal-Mart store safe for consumption, Whole Foods, however, holds itself to a higher standard. 

And the government itself has been outdated for years so you certainly do not want to listen to any statistics coming from the government.

Is Whole Foods, then, playing the role of Big Brother for health-conscious customers or simply catering to the finicky demands of foodies? The bottomline is Whole Foods is about making healthier food options.


Also don't forget the better food quality - the less doctor's visits so personally I chose Whole Foods. I rather pay the extra dollars for good quality foods, especially if it will keep down my doctor's visits. 

Sunday, January 29, 2017

How Do I Make My Own Videos for My Business?

Jan. 29, 2017

Dear Cathy:

I am an African American female business owner. I know my business need videos but I can't find an expert to help me. How do I make videos for my business? Video Maker, Nevada

Dear Video Maker:

You are right today you do need videos for your business because most people are "visual" and would rather listen and see presentations, instead of just reading about them. 


My answer will be very generic because there are so many people out there, especially Millennials, who are much more knowledgeable than me that can answer this question for you but let me give it a shot.

First of all get a video editing program that you can use. I use www.cyberlink.com, which is a very low-cost and easy program to use, however, there are many more programs out there. To learn how to use it I went on YouTube.com, just like I do when I try to learn how to do other things in regards to my business.

Also today many people use their Smartphones or IPhones for making videos and even editing but you can also buy a video camera on HSN.com or Amazon.com. Amazon has everything out there and they will also allow you to break down payments, just like HSN.com. If you are a Prime member, then you will receive 2 day shipping and other rewards from them.

The problem is as a business owner, you have to wear several hats (Owner, PR/Marketer, etc.) and trying to get a professional to help you with your videos might be extremely hard and expensive. 

You can hire someone else to do your videos for you but if you don’t have the funds, you can use a video editing program and purchase a tripod, lights, microphone, etc. yourself and do your own videos. These videos can also be professional.

Sure you rather spend your time on what it is that you are good at -- however in the world of business today, that might not be possible so instead of waiting around to find the perfect professional to help you make your videos, you might need to do your own videos.

The "Dummies" (www.Dummies.com) series books has a book on everything and again, you can figure out how to do anything today by watching it on YouTube.com.

If that doesn't work, you can get a group of friends to help you with your videos and you can help them, so you can help each other. Again, there are several ways to get things done in the world of business.

For more on how to set up and run a successful business read "How To Take Control of Your Own Life: A Self-Help Guide to Starting Your Own Business" (Series 2) - available as an e-book and paperback.



Friday, January 27, 2017

What Happens When You Don’t Drink Enough Water

Jan. 27, 2017

Dear Cathy:

I am 65 years old but I know I am not drinking enough water so what is happening to my body? Not Enough Water, Arkansas

Dear Not Enough Water:

You body needs water to survive. Over 75% of people are “chronically” dehydrated. Pay attention to your body. If you crave salt, it’s a good chance you are dehydrated. 

If you feel faint, or have purple lips, you are probably dehydrated. If you have thin, brittle hair you might be dehydrated. Many people eat too much food because they are dehydrated. The body is simple saying “give me water.”

Dehydration is a condition that occurs when the loss of body fluids, mostly water, exceeds the amount that is taken in. We lose water every day in the form of water vapor in the breath we exhale and as water in our sweat, urine, and stool. 

Along with the water, small amounts of salts are also lost. When we lose too much water, our bodies may become out of balance or dehydrated. Just remember severe dehydration can lead to death!

Many conditions may cause rapid and continued fluid losses and lead to dehydration such as fever, heat exposure, and too much exercise; vomiting, and diarrhea.


Not drinking enough water can also lead to kidney issues so make sure you are sipping on water every half hour.

Friday, January 20, 2017

Which Herbs Can I Take to Help My Eyes?

Jan. 20, 2017

Dear Cathy:

My mother is having eye trouble. Her mother lost her sight to glaucoma. I take the herb bilberry. Is there any other herbs I can take? Eye Trouble, Louisiana

Dear Eye Trouble:

There are several herbs that you can take for your eyes including bilberry. Many people also take Ginkgo Biloba and Vitamin E, which are great for circulation, which will help the eyes, however, these are blood thinners, which means you can’t take them with certain medications, especially other blood thinners. You only need to take these a couple of times every week.

You also need to inform your doctor that you are taking these if you get scheduled for any type of surgery and if you have any type of injury, you need to inform any medical personal that you are taking these because again they are blood thinners.  


Also remember the kidneys are the organ connected to the eyes so it's important to engage in a regular detoxification program for your kidneys, if you plan on having good eye sight for the rest of your life.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Can I Slow Down My Glaucoma?

Jan. 19, 2017

Dear Cathy:

I am an African American female. I am retired and 60 years old. I take drops for glaucoma and have 2 relatives that have already went blind from the disease. Is there anything else that I can do at this time to take better care of my eyes? Good Eyesight, Georgia

Dear Good Eyesight:

During my research on glaucoma, I found it is a hereditary disease but what you need to keep in mind is that most families eat the same foods and live in the same environments so it’s only natural they have the same health issues and diseases.

Glaucoma is not only hereditary, and are many times found in African Americans, but if the veins at the back of your eyes close down, you will go blind, because there is no way to open these veins back up and this is why you should be checked by a doctor every 3 months.

Now that you are on the glaucoma eye drops, I am sure like most medications, if your eyes started improving then you might be able to get off the drops so again you should be visiting the doctor every 3 months because the drops are considered medications. And because of your age, if you are on any medications, you should see a doctor every 3 months.

What you need to understand once you get on the drops, like most medications, you will start experiencing other health issues and chances are you will be recommended to take other medications.

One thing will happen once you go on drops for glaucoma is your HDL (good cholesterol) number will go down, which means you will then be at risk for heart disease and other diseases of your body. So chances are your doctor will recommend medication for this.

Now more than ever you need to eat a good diet, especially green foods, that builds your body. You need to take a daily multivitamin for women and other supplements for aging women and for the eyes, along with getting regular exercise and plenty of rest.

There are several herbs good for circulation of the eyes but you can’t take these if you are on certain medications or take them away from your medications. 


Your kidneys are connected to the eyes so it’s extremely important that all your organs are working properly, especially your kidneys, so you should engage in regular detox programs for your colon, kidneys, liver and a heavy metal detox.

Since your kidneys are connected to your eyes, once you improve your kidney function through regular detoxifications, eating good foods and living in a clean and natural environment, then your eyesight should improve. Also try drinking alkaline water and once a month buy the natural cranberry juice from health food stores and flush out your kidneys for several days.


You can also go for walks periodically and stare off in the distance for 2 to 5 minutes, which is a good exercise for your eyes. For other great health tips read my first health book "How To Take Control of Your Own Life: A Self-Help Guide To Becoming Healthier Over the Next 30 Days" (Series 3) - available as an e-book and paperback.

Monday, January 16, 2017

Where Can I Receive A Holistic Certification?

Jan. 16, 2017

Dear Cathy:

As a holistic or natural healer, do you offer any options for holistic certifications, if not where can I receive holistic certifications? Soon To Be Holistic Healer, Alabama


Dear Soon To Be Holistic Healer:


You need to know up front, whether you receive a holistic certification or not, you will still be looked down upon by medical industry as a “quack.” Only a third of the U.S. population believe in holistic and natural healing, and this is why there is so much sickness today.

Holistic and natural healers, like our ancestors years ago, have many answers when it comes to healing and taking care of the the human body. However, since the medical industry, and especially the pharmaceutical industry is BIG BUSINESS, this is why they look down on holistic healers because we are actually taking money out of their pockets.

I 'self-educated' myself because I had become sick and that’s why I became a holistic healer. Many holistic healers got started in holistic healing because they too were able to heal their ownself -- like me. So many holistic and natural healers today, don't have any type of certification, like our ancestors, but it doesn't mean we do not understand holistic healing.

There are many holistic certification programs out there and you can always attend naturopathic school, which is a two year course, which should give you a majority of the information that you need. But you need to understand many of these schools and other certification programs won't cover everything so “hands on” training will be extremely important when learning how the human body works.

When you 'self-educate' yourself, you learn by reading books, ebooks or paperbacks, listening to audiobooks, listening to other holistic and natural healers, on and off the internet, including on youtube.com, teleseminars, webinars, seminars, workshops, attending continued education courses in night schools and correspondence programs, etc.

I also made it a point to visit several health and wholefoods stores and 'self-educated' myself on most of their natural products. My health book "How To Take Control of Your Own Life: A Self-Help Guide to Becoming Healthier Over the Next 30 Days" (Series 3) is a good first start if you are trying to learn holistic and natural healing.

The 12 chapters has 12 steps to take. Also try to get mentors and subscribe to holistic healer's websites and read their books and other material. You can also find these groups on facebook.com and other social media sites.