RE: Stimulants (ginger, cayenne, etc.) and fight-or-flight response [s]

March 24, 2005

Valerie and Ravyne write:

I used to use ginger early on, and it often would seem to have the affect of

making my perspiration rate increase. RE: odor, frequently when I seem to be

going through a kind of detox time, everything, including myself, seems to

smell bad. Usually lasts just a few days, and then things are back to

normal.

I've been avoiding things like ginger, cayenne, garlic, onions, etc., in

general now. I used to love them, but my tastes have changed as my body

changes, I guess!

Peace,

Valerie

Ravyne Hawke <ravyne_hawke wrote:

Hey all! Just a question for some of you who have done juice/water fasts:

have you ever had an experience with constant sweating and/or extreme body

odor? I am not really fasting in a general sense, but just doing what my

body feels like it needs. For the past two days, I have primarily drank

water and a juice combination of celery, pear and ginger. The only exception

to this is eating a banana for breakfast and have a few berries before

bedtime. What I am noticing is an extreme amount of sweating and my body

odor seems almost acidic! My husband says he doesn't notice any difference

in my natural scent (I do not wear perfumes or scented deoderants - just a

tea tree oil deoderant), but for me it is becoming almost unbearable! I've

been showering twice a day, but it still seems to be a problem for my nose.

Anyone have any ideas or suggestions?

Ravyne

_____

I used to love all these things and more, as well. Curry, chocolate, the

list is quite long.

I learned that these substances are all " stimulants. " Then I learned what

" stimulant " actually means. Then I stopped eating all this stuff.

A stimulant is a substance that launches the body into a fight-or-flight

biochemical response. Nature designed this response for emergencies, as when

we are walking across the plains and encounter a lion, tiger, bear, or OhMy.

At that point, we need to run or fight or hide, we need to react quickly, we

need strength, speed, quickness. We do NOT, for the moment, need abstract

reasoning, artistic talent, brilliant elocution, processing of our feelings

about the situation, etc. In fact, distraction into such things could result

in our early demise.

When we put substances (I am NOT calling them foods anymore) into our mouths

that the body regards as foreign matter, the body moves quickly to isolate

and then either remove or at least quarantine the substance. Removal is

always the first choice, but if resources do not permit, quarantine is the

next best thing.

IF the substance is sufficiently toxic, this removal process can become

intense or even violent (vomiting, diarrhea, dramatic jump in body breath,

urine, and fecal odor, accelerated perspiration, shiny skin due to rapid oil

excretion, etc.) When your body generates strong removal responses to

cayenne, onion, garlic, etc. it is trying ever so hard to tell you

something: STOP!!! And it is giving priority to removal of the toxin AHEAD

OF other " normal " bodily functions.

This is not an approach to " health " I would ever recommend.

EXAMPLE

I have explained this phenomenon in the past in terms of salt. We do not

digest salt, we can only eliminate it. But because salt is quite caustic,

the body can only eliminate a small quantity at a time. So the body dilutes

the rest in water (isolation) and transports this brine to engorged water

storage structures, largely under the skin (quarantine). The body then waits

for a moment of physiological rest.

Now suppose you water fast for only a few days. Weight will appear to pour

off your body. It is almost ALL brine coming out. When the brine is out, the

rate of weight release slows to a crawl or even a standstill: body fat comes

off at the rate of around 0.3 lb per day, depending upon your TRUE (fasting)

BMR (basal metabolic rate).

_____

Returning to the fight-or-flight response...Among other things, the adrenal

gland releases cortisol into the system. This chemical communicator triggers

several specific quite specific responses:

1. Blood flow is shifted FROM the viscera (the organs and systems in the

center of the body) TO the extremities (arms and legs). We run and fight

with our arms and legs, not with our gall bladder!!! So while this occurs,

digestion, absorption, elimination, most vital response ( " immune " ) functions

slow to a near-halt. The body presumes that these less-urgent functions can

be addressed once the emergency is past.

2. Blood flow is shifted FROM the forebrain TO the hindbrain. In other

words, support for our " higher brain functions " such as speech, thought,

imagination, feelings, etc. is diminished, and support for our more

instinctive brain functions and our sensory capacities is increased. We

become more animalistic, more capable of violence, less intelligent and

creative/artistic.

3. Almost all vital response functions slow dramatically. Given the

necessity of dealing with the lion, the body has the intelligence, long

before our conscious mind could ever figure it out, to deal with that little

" infection " later.

ASIDE: Medicine calls these " immune responses, " but I eschew the term, as it

is nonsense. We are immune to nothing, and we have no " immune system. " Every

cell within us us a discrete living organism in its own right, and every

cell is capable of various vital responses to preserve and protect itself.

Our " vitality " is our body's present capacity to act in its own behalf,

Best to all,

Elchanan

--

---------------------[ Ciphire Signature ]----------------------

vlinfo signed email body (4510 characters)

on 24 March 2005 at 17:19:59 UTC

rawfood

-------------------------------

: Ciphire has secured this email against identity theft.

: Free download at www.ciphire.com. The garbled lines

: below are the sender's verifiable digital signature.

-------------------------------

00fAAAAAEAAAC/9kJCnhEAAGUDAAIAAgACACBZ36NZd8ice9rJ4ZlYrt6BrEjH8O

zzmKDQLsTNDUWDmAEAhgSkE5NuzzvORJkeFIi/NVXB9GCG1XVfaMj+yPGZ0X0pfd

oD4/GTn0vEWPZGIOM7rq+iYtrbaOCyUjNZnfcKpQ==

------------------[ End Ciphire Signed Message ]----------------

March 25, 2005

Hi, Elchanan, I am away for the weekend, so I'm only checking my email

periodically; just wanted to say thanks again for your time in providing such

detailed responses. It is a great service you provide.

Peace, Valerie

" INFO @ Vibrant Life " <VLinfo wrote: