Common food allergies or sensitivities are most common in consuming one of the following foods:

• Dairy
• Corn (including corn syrup and pop corn)
• Gluten
• Soy
• Night Shade foods (potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, tobacco, and eggplant)

Often, by eliminating one or more of these foods for 8 weeks and slowly reintroducing them, you can feel the effects of the culprit immediately.  Then simply keep them from your diet fare for a more carefree style of living with less flare ups. 

But sometimes you may need to test other offending foods to see if they may be contributing to the pain cycle.  By using Dr. Coca's Pulse test, you can go a bit deeper and try to pinpoint other sensitivities in your diet.  Make sure you keep a food diary of each food tested as Fibro Fog may have you testing various foods twice!

His method was simple, check your pulse rate at precise times several times before and after digesting a single food item and look for an increase in pulse rate. This could be a long process to test all possible offending foods, but well worth it!

Get a small piece of the food that you want to check and sit at a table. Rest for a few minutes to allow your pulse rate to drop. Then check your pulse at your wrist for a full minute (time it with the second hand of a clock or watch or use the minutes on a digital clock) and count how many beats you feel. Once you have your resting pulse rate, put the piece of food on your tongue (only one type of food at a time) and keep it there for at least 30 seconds before you check your pulse rate again for a full minute with the food staying on your tongue the entire time.  

If your pulse increases 4 or more beats per minute (3 if you have type O blood), the food is causing a stress response because it is an irritant to you. Don’t swallow that food!

The original pulse test in 1956 asked you to chew and swallow food.  It is believed this is no longer needed.  

You can repeat this test with another food once your pulse has returned to its resting rate.

Here's one of those movies you crave when life is a bit hectic and overwhelming.  Set in the country, you'll be swept away to another place and time as this family battles to keep insanity astray.  

Divorced farmer Stephen Landis has girlfriend Leah and her daughter Roxanne move in with him. His wild and unpredictable 16 year old daughter Dulcie comes for a summer visit. Stephen believes his ex-wife Angela is exaggerating Dulcie's troubles, but comes to worry about her. Dulcie and Roxanne form a friendship, and with the time spent over the summer, grows closer to her father, and the wounds between all three are healed.

Chronic sinus infections are usually the result of bacterial or fungal infections.  Sinus infections are usually treated with antibiotics and steroids.  However, antibiotics only make fungal sinus infections worse.  It is best to have a proactive approach and clean out sinus pathways each day when irritation begins.  

You can use a natural nasal rinse as pictured below.  This gentle spray will free up your passages from any opportunistic pathogens that may be taking up residence in your nose.

Or you can make your own formula and add it to a simple syringe bulb or nasal rinse kit.  Just mix:

• 1 teaspoon of Betadine
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of liquid glycerin
• 15-20 oz. warm water

Draw the solution up into a bulb syringe and flush each nostril several times. Don't inhale through your nose. Let the mixture rest in your nose for a few seconds, and then gently blow your nostrils clean.  Use this rinse once a day for two weeks and then as needed at the first sign of irritation.  

Be sure to avoid all dairy products until you become congestion free.  Dairy products increase mucous membrane production.

I can't stress the importance of taking a trip down Raw Food Lane.  Once your taste buds acclimate as such to healthier fare, you are going to be surprised at how much energy you'll have!  I receive no such motivation from the prepackaged bar types as I do when i make these quick, easy bars.

Not only do these taste great, but once you engaged your body into food that supplies essential nutrients unscathed, you will be amazed of its reaction.  I've had many readers write me and say they actually felt euphoria when ingesting these types of recipes.  It was like their bodies craved it and could not stop eating the bar until every last bite was devoured.  No wonder!  Your body knows what it needs to stay at optimal functioning.  I make these and store them in the freezer to ensure peak freshness.  

1 cup packed dates, pitted (deglet nour or medjool preferably)
1/4 cup raw honey 
1/4 cup creamy salted sunflower butter
2/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup craisins
1 1/2 cups rolled oats 

1. Process dates in a food processor until small bits remain (about 1 minute). It should form a "dough" like consistency that makes a ball.
2. Place oats, sunflower seeds, craisins, and dates in a bowl - set aside.
3. Warm honey and nut butter in a small saucepan over low heat or microwave. Stir and pour over oat mixture and then mix, breaking up the dates to disperse throughout.
4. Once thoroughly mixed, transfer to an 8x8 dish or other small pan lined with plastic wrap or parchment paper so they lift out easily. 
   
5. Press down until uniformly flattened. Cover with parchment or plastic wrap, and let set in fridge or freezer for 15-20 minutes to harden.
6. Remove bars from pan and chop into 10 even bars. Store in an airtight container for up to a few days or freeze.

Immune system disorders prevent your body from being able to fight infections and diseases the way it should. Certain chronic illness like fibromyalgia make you considerably more susceptible to catching viruses and bacterial infections due to consistent fatigue and debilitating pain that weakens your body's defenses.  

The immune system is made up of several organs including your spleen, tonsils, bone marrow, and lymph nodes. These organs make and release lymphocytes, which are white blood cells classified as B cells and T cells. B and T cells fight invaders called antigens. Examples of antigens are bacteria, viruses, cancer cells, or bodily fluids from a sick person. B cells release antibodies specific to the disease your body detects. T cells kill off the cells in your body that are being attacked by disease.

Factors that weaken the immune system

• Adrenal dysfunction causes lowered resistance to all forms of 
  stress and leads to immune resistance.  It can be caused by chronic stress which seems to be the number one zapper.
• Alcohol can reduce the number and activity of white blood cells.
• Food allergies cause the immune system to "ramp up" and become overstimulated, and chronic immune challenges from food allergies may overwhelm sIgA reserves.  Research has shown that allergic foods an cause a 50-percent drop in a person's while blood cell count.  Daily intake of allergic foods can inflame intestinal cells, causing white blood cells to die and release digestive enzymes into surrounding tissues that cause intestinal impermeability.  
• Hypothyroid can reduce the speed and effectiveness of enzymes associated with supporting the immune system.
• Being overweight causes a reduction in bacteria-killing white blood cells.
• Heavy metals, including cadmium, lead, and mercury inhibit the formation of antibodies.  
• Pesticides and other toxins can overwhelm the immune system.
• Acetaminophen, aspirin, ibuprofen, and corticosteroids decrease antibody production.
• Inadequate rest suppresses natural killer cell activity.
• Candida overgrowth may allow toxins to be released directly into the body.  These toxins cause the immune system to become overstimulated.  
• Severe trauma causes vitamin, mineral, and other essential nutrients to become deficient.
• Chronic antibiotic use causes an overgrowth of Candida.  

Boosting your immune system

• Coenzyme 10 a potent antioxidant and aids in metabolic reactions including the formation of ATP, the molecule the body uses to produce energy.
• DHEA has been shown in preliminary studies to improve symptoms in some patients with CFS/ME.
• Essential Fatty Acids have direct antiviral effects and are lethal at surprisingly low concentrations to many viruses.
• Thymus Extract has been proven to be one of the best immune-boosting agents for treating CFS/ME.
  
• Zinc is important to keep T cell numbers up to fight infection
• Antioxidants help prevent free radical damage.
• Astragalus membranaceus is a Chines her used to treat a wide variety of viral infections.
• Selenium supplementation  shows an increase in the ability of white blood cells to target invaders.
• Echinacea is one of the most popular herbal medicines.  It is thought to stimulate the immune system.
• Goldenseal is an herb that has been shown to be a potent immune stimulater. It increases blood flow to the spleen.
• MGN-3, an extract of rice bran is a nutritional supplement that show immune boosting potential.  

Summer is in session, and I can't stress the importance of having highly nutritious food at your fingertips to control nasty flare-ups.  This recipe is light not incorporating all the ingredients that may cause unwanted side effects for those that suffer from fibromyalgia.

Make this for family dinner night or pack it up in one cup containers and store it in the freezer for easy retrieval when you're in a rush.  

Entree

• 1 pound organic chicken breasts
• 2 cups cooked brown rice, cooled
• 2 eggs lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 5 - 7 green onions, separate whites from greens
• 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed and drained
• 1 cup shredded Napa cabbage
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons cold pressed olive oil

Marinade for Chicken

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Mirin Chinese cooking wine
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch

Thinly slice the chicken against the grain (diagonally) and marinate for 15-20 minutes.

Chop green onions and keep the dark green portions separate for garnish.

Heat up a wok or non-stick skillet. Add 1 tablespoon oil and eggs. Swirl to coat the bottom of the pan and cook until no longer runny. Remove this "egg pancake" and cut into bite-size pieces. 

Add 1 tablespoon oil to hot wok. Add the ginger, garlic, and white portions of the green onions and stir-fry for about 15-30 seconds to release the aromatics.

Add the chicken and stir-fry for about 3 minutes until thoroughly cooked.

Add the carrots, peas, Napa cabbage, and rice and stir-fry for about 1 minute.

Add soy sauce, vinegar and egg. And cook for about 1 minute.

Garnish with green portions of the green onions.