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The
Share Guide: You were trained as a naturopath. The naturopathic
philosophy is more preventive-oriented than conventional
medicine, isn’t it?
Dr. Valerie Saxion: Absolutely. Naturopaths are trained to look at the
body as a whole. If one thing is off in the body, it will throw
the body off kilter. For instance, a toxic liver or a backed up colon
can do so many things to a person’s body. So we look at the
body as a whole unit to take it back to that place of homeostasis,
whereas a medical doctor is going to do just the opposite. They
are taught to investigate and diagnose a problem, and then they treat
it with a drug. If you have high blood pressure they just
prescribe a drug to control it. Many never even look at why you have
high blood pressure to begin with.
The Share Guide: You’ve
written about the importance of drinking enough water. Don’t you
recommend that people drink half their body weight in water?
Dr. Valerie
Saxion: That’s
correct--in ounces. So if somebody weighs 200 pounds, they should
drink 100 ounces of water a day.
The Share Guide: So if we used a 16 oz glass and needed to
drink 100 ounces in a day, that’s six glasses. That sounds doable.
Dr. Valerie
Saxion: Right.
It’s not that hard to do.
The Share Guide: You’re a
proponent of steamed distilled water. Why this over other options?
Dr. Valerie
Saxion: If
it’s good steamed distilled water, it should have a flat
molecular structure. This water will draw out toxins from the body, and
it will make a person urinate more. The toxic level in people’s
bodies these days is pretty high, and the distilled water, being the
purest form, is going to pull those toxins out. I don’t
sell distillers, so I’m not making an extra buck off of
recommending distilled water. Reverse osmosis would be my second
choice. But I’ve seen over the years that distilled water is the
healthiest as far as pulling toxins out. As for minerals, they
should either be supplemented or taken in from your food.
Distilled water also has a really high Ph, and that’s important
because if your body has a high Ph level, it is much less likely
you’ll get sick. I also think it’s imperative that we
drink the right water: 99% of all chemical reactions within the body
are facilitated by water. A 2% dehydration at the cellular level
results in a 20% loss of energy. So if somebody doesn’t
drink enough water, they will notice a difference in their energy
level. If someone tells me they have a terrible headache,
I’ll tell them to drink some water, and they are shocked
that the headache can go away very quickly.
You mentioned Ph levels. Isn’t
the standard American diet too acidic?
Many people
have an acidic diet. The high protein foods such as meat, chicken, and
eggs are acidic, as well as coffee and tea. Fresh fruits and veggies
are very alkaline. The more alkaline foods a person eats, the higher
the Ph in the body, which is good. I recommend the 80/20 rule: eat 80%
alkaline foods and 20% acidic, and that will keep the body in balance.
There are many studies about this. Dr. Paavo Airola wrote about acid
and alkaline balance, and that he would see the difference in patients
that he worked with within days just by changing them to an alkaline
diet. In fact, I think that most people who are seriously ill with a
life-threatening disease should switch to a vegan diet because of the
acidity levels. I don’t think that everybody needs to be
vegan…about once every six months I’ll actually eat red
meat. But once again, I think that the more alkaline a person can
be from eating as much fresh vegetables and fruit as possible--and
good grains, nuts, seeds--they are going to be better off.
You’ve written about the
importance of getting enough oxygen and the health problems associated
with the lack of oxygen. Can you explain this?
The body can live without food for long periods of time, and we could
even go days without water if we had to, but we can only go moments
without oxygen. Oxygen is key to life, and every part of the
body’s function is impaired if there is not enough oxygen.
There are liquid dietary oxygen
supplements available. Can you take oxygen in a liquid form and have it
absorb into your cells the same way as if you were breathing?
Certainly not in the same way; there is nothing that will take the
place of deep breathing exercises. Meditating and deep breathing
can do miracles for the body and there is nothing that will take the
place of that. But I do believe that you can supplement with
different things that will increase oxygen levels. For instance,
Hawthorn berries. . .we know that Hawthorn is an oxygen carrier, and
we know that Hawthorn is excellent for the heart muscle. We also
know that gingko carries oxygen to the brain. So I do believe that
supplements can create an environment where more oxygen is being
carried to the cellular level, which is where it counts.
Dr. Saxion, you’ve also written
about the benefits of fasting.
Fasting is something that has been around since the dawn of man, and
it’s something that most mammals know to do naturally. When
my dog doesn’t feel well he just sleeps in the sun, drinks water,
and doesn’t eat. Hippocrates said “To eat when you’re
sick is to feed your illness.” We are a society of
overeaters. Another great quote is “One-fourth of what you
eat goes to feed your body, and three-fourths of what you eat goes to
feed your doctor.” I believe that fasting allows the body
to slough off dead and decaying cells, to speed up the metabolism, and
to get rid of things that build up over time, even when one is eating
correctly. Studies show that by fasting three days a month, you can
extend your life 5-7 years. I believe that fasting is the
key to health because it allows the body to take that energy and refuel
instead of spending so much energy digesting food while at the same
time trying to break down all the toxins we’re taking in. I
think we should all fast on a regular basis.
How many times a year do you
fast, and for what length of time?
Typically I will fast for three days about once a month. I’m
doing one right now where I’m just having juices and mineral
broths and things like that--all fresh liquids. I have done
3 days, 10 days, even 30 day fasts. I think fasting for 10 days
can thwart almost anything that would be ailing the body. I fast
for different reasons. I’ve been traveling a lot and have
just been a little bit tired, and felt like I needed to revamp
spiritually, physically, and mentally. It certainly clears the mind.
Ann Louise Gittleman has written
that too much sugar is the number one problem with the standard
American diet. Would you agree?
Absolutely! I think sugar is a killer; it’s addictive, and
there’s nothing good in it. We know that sugar feeds cancer
cells, and that it brings the body to a more acidic state. I
think people need to be aware that by eating just small amounts of
sugar, they are causing harm. The sugar that’s in a regular 16
ounce Coke is enough to lower your immune system for six hours.
If you go to the grocery store, and you’ve just eaten a big honey
bun, you’re going to be much more prone to pick up whatever virus
the last person had that touched that grocery cart. Another thing that
I really hate about sugar is that the body cannot utilize human growth
hormone (HGH) when you have sugar within the body. All these people are
wanting supplemental human growth hormone, and I’m thinking: just
stop eating sugar! I see people go to health clubs and then have
a big soda and it really bothers me. They’re going to the gym to
build muscle, and they’re depleting it because of the sugar. The
best time to work out is either on an empty stomach or after eating
something with absolutely no sugar in it whatsoever.
What about things like honey and
stevia?
Stevia is good, but any sweetener is going to inhibit human growth
hormones. I’ve seen a lot of overweight people that are in
the health food business. They have too much body fat, even though they
are eating good foods. We know that toxins are stored in fat
cells. Many people are getting liposuction, sucking fat cells
out, but if they would just stop the sugar and stop the transfats, they
would be shocked at what their body would do for them.
In your book you mention that
after high fructose corn syrup was introduced in the 1970s, our belts
expanded by 250%.
Right! I think high fructose corn syrup is worse than regular sugar,
because there are so many chemicals--we don’t even know
what’s in it. Sugar is bad for sure, but when you start talking
about high fructose corn syrup, it’s a whole other thing. People
really need to watch it because unfortunately it’s even in some
of the drinks at health food stores. It’s a very cheap
ingredient, and when something is inexpensive like that and it tastes
good, it’s very hard for manufacturers not to be drawn to it.
Aren’t white sugar and white
salt the biggest fillers in fast foods and processed foods?
Absolutely. But these days chemical labs are producing more and more
harmful toxins and chemicals as food additives than we ever knew about
10-20 years ago, and look at the diseases that have sprung up.
We’re great at diagnosing diseases, but we’re not great at
treating them. A recent study on salt showed that it isn’t sodium
that is lowering people’s thyroids and raising people’s
blood pressure, it’s the chloride--as in sodium chloride. We
need salt for the body, but it needs to be good sea salt, and people
need to understand that it makes a huge difference.
How do you feel about synthetic
sweeteners such as Equal and Sweet & Low? Can’t these
products actually increase our cravings for sweets?
Yes, they are
terrible. In fact, one study showed that NutraSweet (aspartame)
causes up to 96 different ailments within the human body! These
synthetic sweeteners can cause anything from seizures to problems with
lower serotonin levels and dopamine levels within the brain which
causes all kinds of imbalances.
How do you feel about coffee?
I think a good organic coffee occasionally is fine. Moderation is
the key. People with liver problems can actually benefit from coffee
because it will cause the liver to dump. (But people with any
serious type of liver disease are going to have problems with
it.) Also, coffee enemas are great, if you use good coffee and
good water.
What about a person who’s
drinking a lot of coffee, like those triple lattés?
That is a problem! First of all, look at all the sugar in that. Some of
those coffee drinks have over 1,000 calories. And then people wonder
why they can’t lose weight! It is addictive, and many
people drink those on a regular basis. I think everything should be in
moderation. If you want to have a cup of coffee, go for it.
But if you’re drinking a pot a day, you’re probably going
to raise your blood pressure, drop your B vitamins, and you’re
going to be more stressed out--and you’re probably going to
gain weight. Once again it goes back to the 80/20 rule: do 80% good and
you’ll be okay.
In other words, we can give
ourselves an occasional treat.
Right. I know people that are in bondage to food and I want to run when
I see them coming. They’re so obsessed with making sure
nothing toxic comes near their body that they’re probably raising
their cortisol levels up the wazoo from the stress that they’re
creating within their own mind. Do the very best that you can
most of the time, but then if you want to blow it every once in a while
on birthday cake or something fun, go for it.
You have written that eating
salad last, like the French do, is a good practice. Can you
explain why?
It’s because living food has enzymes. Once food is heated
to 117 degrees, all living enzymes are killed, so we want to make sure
that we eat something fresh--a salad or a plate of fresh fruit--to
break down the cooked food that we just took in, because it
doesn’t have any enzymes in it. Studies show that eating a salad
last is the way to go. Once you start doing it you’ll see a
difference. People that crave desserts will find that if they eat
a salad last, it really cleanses the palette, and they don’t even
want dessert anymore. It really takes away that moment of,
“Ooh, I want something else.”
I love to eat salad, but often
it’s served first.
We’ve had it served first our whole lives, but we just need to
realize there’s a better, healthier way. Once again it goes
back to little changes that we can make just by gaining knowledge that
can be life-changing. At restaurants I’ll tell them to either
hold the salad for later or I’ll just leave it to the side.
What are your thoughts on
vegetarianism?
I think it has to be a personal choice. I think that people need
to get to know their bodies and what their immune system needs. I
do think that people who eat any type of meat, chicken or fish, should
make sure it’s the right kind. I’m more concerned
about the chemicals that people are taking in versus the meat.
With the hormones and antibiotics that are injected these days, that
concerns me a whole lot more. I believe that blood type matters when it
comes to eating vegetarian. I’m a type A. I am not totally
vegetarian, but I eat that way probably 90-95% of the time. I
could go for a long period of time with no meat and could care less; I
just don’t really like it. It’s interesting because my
children are type A blood, and they’re the same way. But I
have a type B daughter, and she’s a real meat eater. She
has high energy and looks great. So it depends on the individual.
You’ve written about the
difference between eating meat from grass-fed animals, which is
healthier, as opposed to those fed on grains, which is common
commercial practice now. Can you explain?
Conjugated linoleic acid (called CLA) is produced in the meat
when cows can actually graze and are eating grass. CLA is key to
fighting cancer cells, burning fat and building lean muscle, and
it’s key to the immune system. CLA is just good for so many
different functions, and it comes from meat. That’s one reason
that you sometimes see people that are vegetarian that don’t look
healthy--CLA is the key. People that eat red meat, especially if
it’s grass-fed, are going to have CLA within their bodies.
I’m not knocking anybody that’s a vegetarian. I know people
that are vegetarians that are extremely healthy, but they watch all of
these things to make sure that they’re getting everything that
the body needs. So if somebody is not eating grass-fed beef, they
need to take CLA supplements, which I take myself. That’s just
one of the differences. There’s also all the antibiotics and
hormones in commercial meats.
Regarding exercise, some people
say that walking is not challenging enough. What do you think?
I think walking is great. Do people need to do more? It depends on the
person--some people are physically active enough and they’re
doing stuff all the time that they may not need it. I think weight
lifting is very good. If somebody is sitting at a desk all day
working on a computer, they probably need to do about three times more
than some of us who are getting physical activity. Once again, I think
it goes back to the individual. It depends on the person’s
desires as well and what they want to look like. I think that
people can gain health and gain a better look no matter what age
they’re at by implementing the right tools. Our bodies
respond at whatever age by just putting the right things in and doing
the right things for the body. You can turn many things around
just by stopping the bad and putting in the good.
What supplements do you
recommend people take regularly?
I think everybody needs to be taking a mineral supplement, and I think
everybody needs to be taking a B complex. I take CLA and selenium
every day. I take DMAE for the brain. A good multivitamin
is also key for people. Those are the basics, and then it depends
on the individual.
NOTE: This is not the website
for Valerie Saxion. To reach her, please call 817-236-8557 or visit her
website at www.silvercreeklabs.com
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