WARNING! Vitamin water and Tylenol. Plus thoughts and recipes

  The news on GMA this morning included a warning for those who take Tylenol type products, in extra strength doses. It can cause blistering and rashes that can be fatal, which takes us back to the fact that no medicine, be it prescription or OTC is without side effects. I laugh when I listen to ads on tv that give all the side effects at the end, why on earth would you take things that cause so many other problems?  Going holistic or alternative is a much safer way to treat your body. If you can find and fix the root of the problem, you are so much better off. A lot of foreign countries go this way, learning to treat the whole person, and not a symptom. We are far behind in this country.
  The second warning was on Pepsi's Vitamin Water, it has as much sugar as 8 lollypops per bottle, of course you get energy, a real sugar high. Pepsi is being hit with false labeling on this item. Most of you are aware that pop and bottled water is not only not good for you, but not safe for your health. My favorite way to hydrate is plain water, and I am lucky to have water that comes from a 400 foot deep well, into a mountain spring, so no chlorine, fluoride or chemicals are in it. If I want it flavored, I do it the easy way, just put a flavored tea bag in my glass, let it set a few minutes then add ice. Lipton has a White tea with peach and mango that is wonderful, and I get organic tea from Swanson in ginger, peppermint and chamomile.  Quick, tasty and good for ya. Put a filter on your faucet or water system and your water is better than any in a bottle, which is just someone else's tap water.
  One of my vices is a long soak in my big spa tub once a week, and I love bubble bath. Have a recipe for you to try.  In a container, put 1 and 1/2 cups liquid castile soap(Swanson has this at good prices) 2 Tablespoons liquid glycerin, 1/2 teaspoon organic sugar, and 5 to 15 drops of essential oil of your choice. Shake and add to bath, not all of course, just a little. I keep lavender, rose, citrus etc oils on hand and make what smells nice to me, rose and lavender are my favorites.
  Foods can be healing, ran across some great ideas in a new magazine last week. If you have achy muscles, try adding a good quality olive oil to your daily diet. It has a similar effect to Ibuprofen, without side effects.  3 and 1/2 Tbsp taken throughout the day will help, add to salad, or use in place of butter on veggies.
  If you are fighting bloat, try good old chamomile tea, it improves your digestion and soothes a bloated stomach. Look for an all chamomile one, no mixed blends.
  When you are stressed, you retain more salt and water, a cup of hot tea can help control this problem plus the bloating.
  Need an afternoon pick me up? Find a brand of crackers that  lists 100% whole grain as the first ingredient. Have about 8 of them with a good cheese on top. It helps your serotonin level and is only about 200 calories,
  Headache? Watermelon to the rescue.  This fruit gets key nutrients to your brain, and keeps you hydrated.  It's natural sugar fuels your brain cells and makes you more alert.
  If you are looking for things that improve  your looks, try foods high in vitamin C, like oranges, kale, strawberries,  broccoli, red peppers,  they all help your body make collagen, and that keeps your skin plump and elastic.
 We continue to have rain, but not as much at a time as before. The garden is winding down to some extent, needs more sun and less rain. The squash vines have pretty much molded. Been cutting back all the icky leaves.  Right now the Crepe Myrtle trees are in bloom. They range in color from white to pink to fuchsia and red,  lots of pretty colors.  We seem to have something in bloom most of the summer, starting in March and on into fall. Speaking of fall, school started here yesterday, have to get used to the sound of the school bus wending it's way up our mountain road every morning about 7:20 am. This is kind of a herald of end of summer, it has really gone fast. Been an odd year, my son has found quite a few copperheads as he worked in the yard. Some are really fat, have had good eats obviously.
  The tomato fields in our area are being harvested. Which is what started this blog. I wondered why they were picked green. It's because they would rot in shipping if they were ripe. So they are picked green and ripened in an ethylene gas chamber. then they are processed and canned in white lined cans containing BTU's, so you are getting a double dose of poison.  There are some organic brands that are safer, and omit the lined cans, but if you can get fresh ones you are better off. I am blessed that we can grow so much of what we eat these days, and we have friends at church that way over produce and share their bounty with us. We all kind of swap if we have more than we need.
  Have a good week, enjoy as much summer produce as you can, it will be gone soon and we will be back to imported stuff. Take care, stay well.