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Highlights From My Journey So Far (Ultra-low VA)
@liz during my bodybuilding days I had extreme motivation. So even when I was insanely hungry, tired etc.. I was ok with it. Becaues I saw how is my body changing etc.. When I stop the cutting diet I gained slowly because I was not eating like pig. I was still eating very clean foods just a lot of it.. Oh and I also had "cheat days" like once a month where I would eat like 10 000kcal or more in junk food.. 🙂 So during my bodybuilding days I never was on very low calories for long time that would cause metabolic damage. BUT when I stopped with bodybuidling and steroids and everything and I started riding bike a lot and after some time I crushed with adrenal fatigue probably and I started with really stupid detoxes and protocols and I was eating like just vegetables at that time for like 3 months. My calorie intake was like 600kcal maybe lol.. I couldn't think so I was blind to see that I am doing stupid things.. When I couldn't do that "cleansing" bullshit anymore I started eating junk food. I was going from store to store buying food. I couldn't stop eating just garbage foods for like 60 days. I gained a lot of fat I looked like shit.. After that I started eating normally again doing some exercise... Unfortunately for me after some time I stopped with bodybuilding diet (rice, meats, oats, whey protein etc..) to eating "more healthy" so I was doing low carb with a lot of whole eggs, butter/ghee, cheeses etc.. After that Ray peat diet a lot of liver, dairy. sugars from juices, chocolate etc.. That gave me fatty liver 100% and my health was in the toilet again.. After couple of years I learned from Matt Stone blog about Grant and vit A and I started ground beef,white rice and maybe some buckwheat diet. First 12 months were really bad.. Now I can finally work again hard manual labor jobs, build some muscles agan, riding bike and actually live some life lol.. 🙂
Ah yes, refeeds, so very important 👍 Thank you for sharing, I am so glad you are doing well again. I am getting there now after excluding oxalates. Could lift some weights 2 days ago without being floored for days. Hopefully can pick up bike-commuting again soon (only 5k).
It seems like you definately had the starvation experience with the veggie "cleanse" eh? I wonder how many of us (here and on GS's forum) has been through what you went through before snapping out of it. So many smart, well educated people on here who "should be able to see it" but didn't. Kind of shows how easy it is to become brainwashed (talking about myself here).
I have studied people at work during lunch in the cantine. Firstly, it is a very "health oriented" cantine where they focus on vegetables and colors. Second, I swear they put carrots in everything. Third, I have not yet seen one person down there eating what we now can refer to as a "normal" diet with meat and a carb. Everyone pile on carrots and spinach and other vegs rather than "food", and the overweight even more so. Those who bring own lunch still pack on carrots and other "health food". And they eat a lot of liver paté in this country. Also carotenoids added into everyrhing. You would be surprised how much cake and candy they eat at my company weekly. It is insane! I never do because I am satiated now, no need for cake 2h after lunch.
I dunno. The western world is health brainwashed. How the heck did we end up here 🤔
@liz yeah I would say most people that are "eating healthy" getting poisoned with something like vit A for example and don't eat enough calories.. People who live active life and don't care about their diet and just eat when they are hungry and what they like they eat much more calories and they don't eat crazy weird things like organ meats, raw vegetables etc..
I've got a bit "on my plate" at the moment and not much time to keep up with everyone's posts. Please forgive me - I'd like to reply to more comments but I don't anticipate much time to do so until at least December.
Today, I'd like to get back to something you asked me @chickadee. Regarding the copper sulfate pesticides and which is better, conventional or organic produce, well... the short answer is that I'll take my chances with organic crops.
A more detailed response (though I feel it is still just skimming the surface) is:
Both organic and conventional crops are exposed to the same pesticides more or less. What differs is the type of exposure, concentration, and frequency.
Organic crops can be exposed to glyphosate/Roundup residues via contamination (airborne, rain, runoff, drift, etc.). This 2016 article mentions organic farmers' fears of cross-contamination from glyphosate-treated crops and how this could negatively impact both produce availability and price.
Here's a 2020 article discussing how the CDFA pulled an organic fertilizer off the market because it tested positive for glyphosate and diquat. How many organic crops did people buy and consume from farmers that used this fertilizer before it was pulled?
According to this article, some organic farmers also try to get away with spraying glyphosate on their land between crops.
The USDA requirements for labeling a product "100% organic" is based on ingredients only, not on contamination or residues: "Organic certification does not guarantee that the product is completely free of all pesticide residues or genetically modified organism (GMO) contamination." (2012 USDA guide, can't find a more recent version).
In 2021 Canadians expressed concern over the PMRA's proposal to increase permitted levels of glyphosate in foods, including organic foods. For example, the MRL (maximum residue limit) would increase 2.3 fold for oats and 3.75 fold for beans. I don't have time right now to research how effectively these levels are monitored and enforced, but that is another question to ask...
So organic crops get contaminated with conventional pesticides and vice versa. But it still stands to reason that organic is going to have considerably less glyphosate than conventional crops that are sprayed with it, though probably more copper.
CBACs (copper-based antimicrobial compounds) including copper sulfate are used in both conventional crops (circa 1885) and organic, but the latter are more dependent on them since organic farmers can't use glyphosate. So with conventional crops, you are getting crops sprayed with glyphosate and/or a copper compound, plus potential contaminants.
Copper also interacts with other substances: "... the aim of this study was to elucidate the mechanisms involved in the interaction between glyphosate and humic substances that have been previously treated with copper. Copper was chosen because of its tendency for forming complexes and its increasing presence in soils as a result of the disposal of sewage sludge and the use of agrochemicals." (1995 study). How does it interact with glyphosate and other pesticides/contaminants?
There's so much more to get into, not enough time...
Conventional crops are fertilized with sewage sludge (called biosolids) which comes from the cesspool of junk going down our toilets which includes scum, pathogenic bacteria, human excrement, pharmaceuticals, illegal drugs, household cleaners, water treatment chemicals, etc. and now liquid cremation remains. The EPA claims that these biosolids are screened for heavy metals and "carefully treated and monitored", yet the 1995 study referenced above anticipated copper accumulation from sewer sludge.
In Canada, using sewage sludge in organic production is not permitted (see clause 1.5b of Organic production systems, 2021). However, using non-organic manure is permitted with criteria (5.5). Non-organic manure comes from animals potentially eating sewage-fertilized, (glyphosate) pesticide-sprayed feed and given hormones, antibiotics, etc.
Regarding livestock, medications and vaccines can be used on both conventional and organic livestock. Clause 6.6.1f allows vaccines for communicable diseases or for diseases that "cannot be combated by other means". Clause 6.6.2a allows veterinary drugs when the animal is ill, etc. Organic standards in Canada don't allow the antibiotics and hormones used with conventional livestock, but as I've just shown, other drugs have the green light.
This 2022 USDA article states that "vaccines play an important part in animal health -- especially since antibiotic therapy is prohibited" and "... vaccines for animals are important disease prevention tools against many infectious diseases, especially since antibiotic therapy is prohibited in organic livestock".
People hunting wild game may also be impacted, as wild animals have been targeted with oral and vaccine contraceptives for population control (that I suspect might cause "zombie deer disease", same as "mad cow disease"). Wild animals vaccinated since late 1980s include deer, elk, horse, and elephant.
I don't have time to go into vaccines right now, can't do it justice, but the more I dig, the more disgusted I am... peruse this Vaccine Excipient Summary and see for yourself...
Water supply for livestock and crops is yet another issue...
One thing we can do is ask suppliers to put in writing whether they implement any of these practices. I've found that reaching out to them, most of them will "ghost" me. Few will reply. It would be great if more people did make these inquiries so that vendors feel more pressure to answer them. Just because they're allowed these practices doesn't mean they necessarily employ all or even any of them, but the silence speaks volumes.
(shaking my head). This is awful, thanks for posting. A good reason to raise any food you can, just to try to get some pure food.
Last week I had a bad night, and it seemed related to wearing a new shirt. Now I've gone down THAT rathole (all the crappie stuff they put on clothing)...
Does anyone have an idea about how big an impact on human health that meat animal vaccines have? I would assume that close to 100% of the meat I consume is from vaccinated animals.
Hello @boxie-moxie! 🙂 I’m located in Canada, too. How is your skin doing, approaching two years of limiting vitamin A? Does the colder weather affect it? In my case, I had bad acne on my back for the first several years (not something I’d suffered prior to lowering vitamin A), which went away once I increased my omega 3 consumption (from whole plant-based sources: flaxseed and chia). There’s still scaring, but it has started to fade now.
I’m also curious about your experience with iodine supplementation, but I understand how time-consuming it is to write detailed posts and am more interested in how you are. Hopefully well! 😁
Sorry for this very late reply 😊 - I didn't see the comments until @puddleduck tagged me the other day. I generally don't check back unless I'm tagged, just because I tend to be short on time.
@lil-chick - I think the idea of people raising their own livestock and growing crops is great, but many (myself included) are not in a position to do so. Owning shares in an animal is another option, but usually requires transportation to pick up the meat/produce.
I recently came across Rainbow Ranch Farms (RRF) which has a small shop and also offers farm shares (currently sold-out). I've learned a lot exploring their website. I honestly didn't know or recall that the beef industry castrates its bulls. According to RRF, this castration is accompanied by pain medication and a tetanus shot which is a vaccine and this is true for organic meat as well. RRF doesn't castrate or dehorn their bulls, so they go above and beyond the (questionable) organic standards to be holistic and cruelty-free.
They state "When the FDA took the ropes, over all U.S. agriculture (Food Safety Modernization Act 2012), we immediately read the full act and responded within days. This allowed Rainbow Ranch Farms to continue raising livestock without any vaccines, antibiotics or castration (tetanus shots)." About Us
If only more farms were like this one!
Regarding toxic clothing - sorry that happened to you! I've heard of toxic children's pjamas recalled by Disney. I also heard of a woman getting a severe rash breaking out on her feet from toxic Walmart sandals.
Nowadays there is a real push towards "recycling" and making everything from recycled plastics. The majority of people wear plastic on a daily basis (most fabrics today like polyester, nylon, etc. are just plastic). But now the stores are pushing recycled plastic fabrics. Greenpeace reported that recycling plastics actually make them even more toxic! And the recycling process in itself is highly toxic, making many workers very ill.
Product packaging is also being affected as well. Around 2019 a hair care brand called DevaCurl was being exposed by consumers whose hair started falling out and other toxicity symptoms, which were finally traced to the company switching their packaging. The products themselves were okay I think, but after sitting in the toxic packaging in warehouses and on the shelves they became contaminated with formaldehyde.
For those who drink bottled water, some companies like Eska have gone 100% RPET which is recycled plastic. It's so hard to find good spring water in glass bottles. Glass bottles are inert and non-toxic and can be reused - no gigantic costs or toxic recycling fumes needed! Unfortunately companies are now trying to fix the problems with PET plastic bottles by coating the inside with "silicon oxide". How will that be recycled? Won't that divert silica resources away from glass manufacturing, causing more "shortages"?
Leather manufacturers are also being affected. A mini-doc (only 7 minutes) called Apple’s leather announcement STINKS 😷 exposes the oil industry and their agenda to stay rich as the main driver behind plastics and recycling propaganda (disclaimer - the video includes crass language, sorry about that). If they have their way, 'we will own nothing' and we will be sick, while oil barrons be rich SMH... God forbid!
I think it's all part of 4IR but that's a whole other topic for another day perhaps...
@jeremy I don't know what the impact is from eating vaccinated meats. RRF had this to say about it:
There are anti-bodies in vaccines either from live or dead sources. Either way, I could imagine that every time I consume vaccinated beef, my immune system might goes into fight mode. My lymph nodes, primary and secondary immune systems may have to figure out how to identify, destroy and, develop a defense mechanism against those foreign invaders. During this process I'm just not sure if my organs would go into overdrive to try and keep me safe. I do not want to take additional risks. I take enough risks by walking into the cattle fields or, going out into public, breathing the air etc. Grass-Fed/Finished Pasture Raised Beef
Plus there are the mRNA vaccines which are rumored to have been used in livestock for quite some time (e.g. pork).
Some of the vaccines that merchants have told me they vaccinate their cattle with:
- Vira Shield 6 OR Bovi-Sheild
- Ultrabac 7/Somubac OR Covexin Plus
- Safe Guard OR Ivomec
(As an aside, organic farmers will often use vitamins including VA...)
Thanks for the link to RRF. I bought some pork!