I needed to disable self sign-ups because I’ve been getting too many spam-type accounts. Thanks.
Nine Year Update
@henrik It is based on the work and observations of Dr Eck and Watts who were the pioneers of Hair Trace Mineral Analysis who developed this mineral balancing science 50 years ago. Now HTMA practitioners today are still using their original work.
Quote from AlexM on August 23, 2023, 4:05 am“Calcium/Potassium (Ca/K) Ratio:
Called the thyroid ratio because calcium and potassium play a vital role in regulating thyroid activity.
Does not always correlate with blood thyroid tests because hair analysis is a tissue test. Often blood tests will be normal but hair analysis will indicate an impaired thyroid function. Sometimes symptoms of hypothyroidism may be evident, but the hair test will show a hyperactive thyroid ratio. For nutritional correction, it is prudent to follow the hair analysis indication.HIGH CALCIUM/POTASSIUM (Ca/K) AND HYPOTHYROIDISM:
High calcium relative to potassium will frequently indicate a trend toward hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid). The mineral calcium antagonizes the retention of potassium within the cell. Since potassium is necessary for sufficient quantity to sensitize the tissues to the effects of thyroid hormones, a high Ca/K ratio would suggest reduced thyroid function and/or cellular response to thyroxine. If this imbalance has been present for an extended period of time, the following symptoms associated with low thyroid function may occur.”
This is what they included at the end of their CA:K info.
Symptoms of Reduced Thyroid Activity Include:
Tendency to gain weight
Cold hands and feet - tendency to feel cold
Lack of sweating
Fatigue
Dry skin and dry hair
Tendency towards constipation
^ Basically Vitamin A toxicity symptoms because excess Vitamin A can cause hypothyroidism too.
The most important ratio in HTMA:
Sodium/Potassium (Na/K) Ratio:
Referred to as the life-death ratio because it is so critical
Related to the sodium pump mechanism, and the electrical potential of cells which is regulated by sodium and potassium levels
Sodium is normally extracellular, while potassium is normally intracellular. If the ratio of these minerals is unbalanced, it indicates important physiological malfunctions within the cells.
The sodium/potassium ratio is intimately related to kidney, liver and adrenal gland function, and an imbalanced sodium/potassium ratio is associated with heart, kidney, liver, and immune deficiency diseases.
The sodium/potassium ratio is intimately linked to adrenal gland function, and the balance between aldosterone (mineralocorticoid) and cortisone (glucocorticoid) secretion.
Trends Associated with Sodium/Potassium Ratio:
6.+
Severe elevation - inflammation and adrenal imbalance. High ratio can also be associated with asthma, allergies, kidney and liver problems. A high sodium/potassium ratio is considered preferable to a low sodium/potassium ratio.
4.5 - 6
Moderate elevation - tendency towards inflammation
2.5 - 4.49
Mild elevation - good adrenal function
2.5
IDEAL
2 - 2.49
Mild inversion - beginning of adrenal exhaustion
1 - 2
Moderate inversion - kidney and liver dysfunction, allergies, arthritis, adrenal exhaustion, digestive problems, deficiency of hydrochloric acid.
Below 1
Severe inversion - tendency towards heart attack, cancer, arthritis, kidney and liver disorders.
Quote from tim on August 22, 2023, 6:37 pm@jessica2
Yeah vitamin A is a problem for everyone in excess, it's just that the ability to metabolize it varies by the individual.
What I'm interested in is understanding what the optimal range of intake is. There's too many factors involved to work it out via maths equations but if one is willing to they can use serum retinol tests to work out the minimum amount of dietary vitamin A needed to keep them out of deficiency. The optimal intake for them is probably just a bit higher than that.
Same principle with iron. Optimal serum ferritin is probably just a little higher than what causes anemia.
Just understanding what minerals and fat soluble vitamins the liver bioaccumulates clues us in to the nutrients that are more problematic in excess. That's vitamin A, iron and copper.
I suspect but I don't have a firm conviction yet that an optimal diet for many is low (but not devoid of) in red meat, dairy, nuts, fruits and vegetables. A diet where most of the calories come from refined white (folic acid free) wheat flour and to a lesser extent sugar and unhydrogenated lard. A diet with a conservative protein (methionine) intake.
It may turn out that homemade cake made from flour, sugar, lard, eggs and milk is the ultimate superfood.
AND THUS THE MUFFIN WAS INVENTED,
and perfected by old ladies like me. 😉
The invention and perfection of the muffin is an essential aspect of any highly advanced civilization!
@jessica2
Yep I should have said if someone can tolerate wheat ok.
"If casein and whey are molecules fundamentally made out of VA, then VA is OBVIOUSLY not a poison."
Yeah there's never been any evidence for that idea anyway. Retinoids are fat soluble and are found only in the butter fat component of milk.
Horses get Equine Metabolic Syndrome if they eat a lot of fresh green grass. This is taught in natural hoof care, their hooves develop problems from it. It's said that it's due to the sugar content but it's probably actually due to the carotenoid content of the grass. Horses in the wild eat a lot more dry fodder.
This is probably true for cattle as well. So milk from a cow eating lush green grass probably contains more vitamin A than is beneficial for the calf. So yeah vitamin A is a vitamin that is important for the health of the calf but it can easily be present in milk in excess levels.
Quote from tim on August 23, 2023, 7:04 amThe invention and perfection of the muffin is an essential aspect of any highly advanced civilization!
@jessica2
Yep I should have said if someone can tolerate wheat ok.
"If casein and whey are molecules fundamentally made out of VA, then VA is OBVIOUSLY not a poison."
Yeah there's never been any evidence for that idea anyway. Retinoids are fat soluble and are found only in the butter fat component of milk.
Horses get Equine Metabolic Syndrome if they eat a lot of fresh green grass. This is taught in natural hoof care, their hooves develop problems from it. It's said that it's due to the sugar content but it's probably actually due to the carotenoid content of the grass. Horses in the wild eat a lot more dry fodder.
This is probably true for cattle as well. So milk from a cow eating lush green grass probably contains more vitamin A than is beneficial for the calf. So yeah vitamin A is a vitamin that is important for the health of the calf but it can easily be present in milk in excess levels.
Can we at least try to agree on the facts even if we dont agree on the conclusions. I already posted several papers showing the precense of retinol in casein and its used as a carrier vehicle in lab trials. I'm not trying to revive the part of the discussion of whether it is a poison or not just clear up the fact. It Is demonstrably present and its complete strawman to say that casein is "based on vitamian A" as retinol comes in micrograms and nano grams while casein comes in grams.
Im not trying to convince anyone milk is bad, not event to revive the "it's a poison" part, but to claim that casein should be "based on vitamin A" or to say it's not there is just strawman argumentation or pure falsehood.
Iam sorry if it sounds offensive but its important to keep facts from interpretations. We probably partly disagree to wether it is a poiosn and also to what degree it matters that there is some vitamin A in dairy (besides in the fat) , but lets try to keep to the facts. Noone is claiming its based on vitamin A, and theres lots of papers showing its there.
The question is wether it is a problem or not and here there are disagreements
Quote from tim on August 23, 2023, 8:22 amThe whole point of adding retinyl palmitate to skim milk is because of the lack of vitamin A in skim milk.
Yeah they can get retinyl palmitate to bind to casein, what does this have to do with regular non fortified milk?
I dont get your point. Of course adding vitamin A increases the vitamin A content as a lot of the vitamin A in milk is in the milk fat and removing the fat removes a lot of the vitamin A. I am not sure you understood my point or are you saying that the papers are wrong?
Edit: Im sure you understood but to be clearer. Its a very sensible reason to add it. If you belive that vitamin A is needed and a huge part of the vitamin A is removed, they want to add it back in in some countries.
Im a bit uncertain - again - if we actually disagree that much. It's not fundamental to these proteins in any way as far as I can tell. It only has a propencity to bind to retinol. I dont see that as a particularly weird thing. It also binds to green tea polyphenols in the same way, and even vitamin D. Usually bovine milk contains about double or triple the amount (unfortified) of what human milk does and supposedly that is at least partly maybe majorly dependent on the feed of the cows. To me it doesnt matter how it gets into the milk and mercury and other shit also gets into the milk, if its leaking or dumping or whatever seems of little relevance to me - it only makes it sound a bit weird. I dont think the black and white perspective of it is necessary. We have lots of more or less beneficial substances present in milk; heavy metals, pesticides, minerals like zinc but also like lead and cadmium. I agree it quite well reflects the status of the blood even if I dont really agree to the way of presenting it - theres a bit more differences then that. So while I agree it obviously dosent automatically kill us, I dont see why it couldnt contain a problematic substance as it contains lots of other problematic substances. And what if it is poisonous but usefull? Like a stimulating stressor?? who knows. I just dont get the problem with there being several not-so-good substances in milk. Its not some pure divine nectar, its full of stuff just like our enviroment. Its basically a reflection of the enviroment and as you say, the blood of the mother. So just as my blood is full of junk of different kinds so is the milk and this is true even in pristine enviroments (though at lower levels). In the ice-age there was lots of problems with strontium (or was it another radio-active substance) in northern europe affecting fertility etc. But I sort of agree with the doesnt really matter where/how. We are obvioulsy able to deal with a lot of it (like a lot of other substances) but too much, with too many cofactors and bad liver-capabilities can make a tolerable situation intolerable. I mean like sloths eating poisonous leafs - they are eating things that are poisonous too them the majority of the time but they have systems in place to reduce the damage making them live average sloth-lifes.
About egglaying species - wouldnt it be about the same?? the egg reflects the nutrional and toxin status of the mother?? (like in general not only for vitamin A)
Edit. I agree its likely that a normal grass-eating cow will not have problematic amounts of vitamin A in their milk. Its the total shitstorm of factors that makes it problematic. But its worth remembering that hypervitaminosis A occurs in nature as well, especially in tropical species, so overconsumption of it is real (not talking about mothers milk or young animals in particular here). Its my impression that the only question might boil down to "How much is too much?" and for many of us we have experienced "too much" of it and needs to get down again. I mean its not like mankind is going to adopt Grants or my diet anyway
Quote from Jessica2 on August 23, 2023, 5:22 am... I lost the "VA is poison" mentality with the whole milk and dairy thing. If casein and whey are molecules fundamentally made out of VA, then VA is OBVIOUSLY not a poison. I'm asked to believe all mammals start out life with hefty doses of poison? That the sole food of mammals for a period of time, and their most vulnerable time, happens to be based on a poisonous substance??? Hogwash.
That argument seems to rely on some reductionism. Much of how we end up eating toxic processed foods is by mistakenly using the same name for it as the unprocessed foods they came from.
Even at the molecular level there are left-handed and right-handed arrangements of the same atoms. And it makes a tremendous difference in how living organisms respond to them.
Using the example of fresh, unprocessed dairy, or even cream/cheeses made from unheated fresh milk ... from animals that eat a traditional untreated forage with healthy water/soil and plenty of variety in that forage. There are families with very sick children that dropped the pasturized/homogenized milk products from cows that ate unnatural and supplemented grain diets and then experienced recovery of health by obtaining the kind of milk I describe above.
And I believe I recently read a description of how the VA supplement is made to reintroduce to low fat milk. There was nothing natural about adding seed oils and then heating it.
We can't just call everything "milk" when there are such incredible differences.
I know you not quite saying that, but this is where I believe the struggle is the most intense.
Another example, we call modern grains "wheat" and yet they aren't even close genetically to what was eaten 2,000 years ago as "wheat."