Surviving Radiation The Wise Woman Way
c.2002 Susun S Weed
author of Breast Cancer?
Breast Health! The Wise Woman Way
We are adapted to survive mild exposures to radiation. After all, the
sun is a kind of controlled nuclear bomb and it releases a lot of radiation.
Of course, this radiation, and man-made radiation, can also cause cancer
and a host of short- and long-term health problems.
Whether you are worried about the radiation from dental x-rays, a mammogram,
or fallout, here are some Wise Woman Ways to help you stay healthy.
(If you are using radioactive therapies in your cancer treatment, there
is a chapter full of information specifically for you in Breast Cancer?
Breast Health! The Wise Woman Way.)
- Japanese researchers found that diets high in carotenes significantly
reduced DNA damage in humans exposed to radiation. Supplements of
beta-carotene (or of vitamins C or E) did not show this effect. Eating
lots of orange and dark green foods (sweet potatoes, winter squash,
beets, carrots, kale, collards, chard, and spinach, for example) can
protect you from radiation-induced cancers.
- Envision yourself and all your cells protected from damage. (One
woman wrapped herself in psychic lead.)
- Guinea pigs bombarded with radiation lived a lot longer if they
ate broccoli or cabbage. All cabbage family plants - including arugula,
turnips, radishes, cauliflower, mustard greens, bok choy, Brussels
sprouts, broccoli d'rappe, kale, collards, and of course broccoli
- protect your cells from the damaging effects of radiation.
- Choose an image, an icon, something meaningful to you, as a focusing
agent. Put your affirmations, blessings, prayers, visualizations,
and healing love into it, for easy access when you need help.
- Miso broth is the classic food for prevention of radiation damage.
There’s twice the protection if a quarter-ounce/5 grams of dried
kelp seaweed is added to the soup. In scientific studies, seaweed
was able to neutralize radioactive isotopes in the human body. Researchers
at McGill University say radioactive strontium binds to the algin
in brown seaweeds to create sodium alginate, a compound easily and
harmlessly excreted. Common black tea exhibited the same anti-radiation
effects in several Japanese studies.
- In Fighting Radiation and Chemical Pollutants with Foods, Herbs,
and Vitamins (Vitality, 1991), Steven Schecter tells us that both
black and green tea showed "radioprotective effects" whether
taken before or after exposure to radiation. Among other modes of
operation, tea catechins absorb radioactive isotopes and remove them
from the body before they do damage. The action is similar he says,
to that of sodium alginate (the "active ingredient" in kelp
seaweed).
- Eating any amount of reishii (a mushroom) reduces damage from radiation.
- St. Joan’s/John's wort oil protects my skin from radiation
damage. I use it as my only sunscreen (and I am outside a lot) and
find it not only immediately effective in preventing and treating
sunburn, but even more protective with continuing use over years.
- Burdock root (Arctium lappa) removes radioactive isotopes from
the body. A dose is 1-4 ounces/300-120 grams of cooked fresh root,
up to a pint of infusion daily, or several large spoonfuls of vinegar
(but only if made with fresh roots).
- Dried beans, especially lentils can reverse DNA damage done by
radiation. So can red clover (Trifolium pratense) and astragalus (Astragalus
membranaceous) - two powerful members of the legume (bean) family.
- Homeopathic remedies can be taken before and after exposure to
radiation: Plumbum (lead) is said to help those who feel overwhelmed
and in need of protection. Belladonna is used to prevent and relieve
radiation burns and pains - even long after the immediate exposure.
Recipe for "Anti-Radiation Easy Meal" is on page 308 in
Breast Cancer? Breast Health! the Wise Woman Way by Susun S. Weed,
available at www.ash-tree-publishing.com
- Selenium protects DNA from radiation damage and helps prevent damage
to the skin surface, too. Get plenty of selenium by eating a daily
dose of 2 cups/500 ml of nettle infusion, one-half ounce/15 g kelp,
2 ounces/60 g cooked burdock root, or 1 cup/250 ml organic yogurt
daily. Shellfish, green and black teas, and garlic contain significant
amounts of selenium, as do many mushrooms. The best sources however
are nettles (2200 mcg per 100 grams), kelp (1700 mcg/100 g), burdock
(1400 mcg/100 g), catnip (Nepeta cataria), ginseng, Siberian ginseng,
and astragalus.
- In clinical trial with humans, those who took ginseng extract (Panax
quinquefolium) for thirty days following exposure to radiation showed
hastened recovery from injuries to their bone marrow, organs, skin,
and blood cells according to Paul Bergner in The Healing Power of
Ginseng, The Enlightened Person's Guide, Prima, 1996. He quotes Japanese
researcher Dr M. Yonezawa as saying that "ginseng appears to
be the most useful agent available for protection against radiation
damage."
- It’s important to keep yourself well nourished if you are
exposed to radiation. Make it a habit to drink at least two big cups
of nourishing herbal infusion daily. Nettles, red clover, and violet
leaves supply generous amounts of the nutrients you need most: protein
and minerals, especially potassium and zinc.For best results, do not
use capsules of the herbs mentioned in this article. Instead, cook
with them (kelp, astragalus, Siberian ginseng, ginseng, reishii, and
burdock), brew nourishing herbal infusions with them (nettles, red
clover, astragalus, burdock, catnip, and ginseng), make mineral-rich
vinegars with them (nettles, burdock, catnip, ginseng, and astragalus),
or take a high-quality non-standardized tincture of them (burdock,
ginseng, Siberian ginseng, astragalus).
To make a nourishing herbal infusion:
- Put one ounce of dried herb into a quart jar; fill jar to the top
with boiling water and cap tightly.
- Strain after 4-8 hours and drink hot or cold
.
- Refrigerate what you don't drink right away; drink that within
a day.
To make a vinegar:
- Fill any size jar with fresh herb (best!!) or one quarter full
of dried herb (not nearly so good).
- Pour room temperature apple cider vinegar over the herb, filling
jar to the top.
- Cover with plastic wrap or a cork.
- Label with date and name of plant.
- Let sit for six weeks.
- Decant into a pretty bottle and use to season soups, beans, and
salads.
This is the Wise Woman Way the world 'round.
Take good care of yourselves.
Green blessings to all.
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