When you read the little report below this introduction, you may become afraid of modern foods and meals because you probably now realise they are armouries of poisons which cause most, if not all, of today’s monstrous diseases…pain and premature death. You may find yourself at a cross-roads: if food, like air and water, is poisoning you every time you eat, and you cannot stop eating or improve the quality of the food available to you to eat, what can you do other than go on eating the food of the time, knowing, as you eat it, that you are consuming loads of poisons with it which, someday, may strike a deadly blow at your health, as it is striking at others all around you? Some of the things that can be done to reduce the risk of being poisoned and prematurely killed by the foods we eat are suggested in the second article in this column titled SOME NATURAL MEDICINES FOR POISONS IN FOOD.Those suggestions are just a few of the things that can be done, as regular readers of this column will readily recall. The first article, which gave rise to this subject, was originally written by Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, a Senior Fellow of the Center for Democracy and Development, and a Chair of the Editorial Board of PREMIUM TIMES. The article was posted by Mr. Dotun Akintoye on the GOLDEN CROWN FARMERS CO-OPERATIVE chat group platform. I am a member of the co-operative. He is the President. The co-operative at present subscribes to the Federal Government’s Anchor Borrowers Project, the aim of which is to enlarge agricultural output and make food abundant and cheap. The ultimate goal of this co-operative is organic agriculture and food production, which is in direct opposition to today’s killer conventional agriculture which the post below exposes. Conventional agriculture tampers with Mother Nature’s Code of Life in the foods it tinkers with, to make them bigger, though not necessarily more nutritious, more resistant to disease and more yield per acre. Thus, you would find apples which can stay on the shelf for more than one year without becoming rotten, one major reason I stopped eating apples a long time ago. Thus, you would find chicken wings and turkey parts massively imported into Nigeria. More than 10years ago, I stopped eating them as well. Chickens and turkeys are injected with drugs which are often meant to be discontinued at least 14 days before slaughter. But, to beat market deadlines, this safety protocol is often unheeded. Fish are now killed with dangerous chemicals. I stopped eating cucumbers when I learned from a Nigerian cucumber farmer in Ogun State of Nigeria that we, too, heavily douse cucumber farms with pesticides. I gave up in banana as night cap snack for potassium and some sugar when carbide-ripened bananas almost killed me three times…thanks to the availability of Diatom and Activated Charcoal. Well, I cannot run from the world. Nigeria is still better in terms of these matters than many countries in Europe and America. In a short while, I will tell you about how I managed to get by. Meanwhile read Prof. Ibrahim’s article…
Eat and Quench: Let’s Listen To What Our Food Is Telling US
By Jibrin Ibrahim Premium Times, 6/10/ 2017
“Our food is normally composed of a lot of dirt; poison, dangerous chemicals, GMOs, and we are all rapidly eating ourselves to death. The easiest way of demonstrating this is to refer to research by the European Union on what they found in the food we sent them to eat. They discovered that the items from Nigeria contained glass fragments, rodent excreta and dead insects. They also found high levels of chemicals like dichlorvos, diometrate and trichlorphon in the products.
“Some of these chemicals were used in the planting process; others were used in preservation. The poisonous chemicals did not serve their purpose because microbes such as salmonella, aflatoxins and mould had contaminated the food.
“Nigeria does not meet basic standards of food hygiene in the planting, growing, preservation and transportation of its food. I remember the shock of a Kenyan colleague who saw meat being carried in the open boot of a rusted taxi and shortly after a man behind a motorcycle carrying the leg of a cow on his head without any covering.
“He asked me if we have any organisation that set and monitor standards and I confirmed that we had but as always, they do not do the work they are paid to do.
“It was not surprising that the EU was categorical in its decision in 2015 and 2016 to formally declare that the 42 food items exported from Nigeria were not fit for human consumption. It might well be that the exporters had actually chosen the best from our markets to export to Europe and the reality is that our best is not good enough for human consumption.
“The items included beans, melon seeds, palm oil, bitter leaf, pumpkin, shelled groundnut and live snails. In other words, the things we eat everyday that we were trying to sell to our compatriots in Europe. Had they passed the sanitation test, then issues of not having labels, improper packaging, lack of health certificates and other entry documents would have arisen?
“After the incident, Audu Ogbeh, the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, warned that Nigerians might be killing themselves in installments through the food that they eat.
“Ogbeh listed several of such poisonous foods, including moin-moin (bean cake) wrapped with cellophane (nylon) and cooked in a manner that transfers dangerous chemicals are released into the beans.
“Another dangerous habit of millions of us is consuming sachet water that has been exposed to the sun at over 30 degrees Celsius to multiply the number of liver and kidney failures in our society.
“Currently, there is panic in informed circles that the massive quantities of tilapia fish and frozen chicken consumed in Nigeria have been preserved with chemicals normally used for embalming dead bodies and that’s why they never go bad.
“Not only are we all accelerating our movement to our deaths, we are already embalming our bodies before time. Talking of meat that never goes bad, I have always wondered what xxx (name of product concealed by this column), which we are told is a sausage is made of. Every other type of sausage I know of goes bad after some time but not xxx.
“This week, the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI) revealed that Nigerian peasant farmers spend $400 million annually on the purchase of pesticides. They say that we use them in an improper manner and millions of Nigerians are falling sick due to pesticide poisoning.
“This information is from the executive director of the institute, Professor Olufemi Peters. He lamented that rather than continue to kill ourselves with these chemicals, there are cheaper and healthier forms of storage such as the inert atmosphere silos for grain storage. Sadly, public health was one of the first victims of the collapse of governance in the country.
“One of the most serious threats to public health in the country is the grand entry and dangerous plot to takeover our agriculture by Monsanto, the chemical company that produces genetically modified organisms (GMO) and calls their dangerous products food.
“The Nigerian government has given approval for GMOs to be grown on our land. The National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) into which Monsanto has been pumping dollars has become the advocacy agency for promoting their GMOs and chemicals. Our own governmental institutions are mortgaging our future.
“The first major Monsanto project in Nigeria is to grow glyphosate infused maize. Recent studies have linked glyphosate to health effects such as degeneration of the liver and kidney, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It is unfortunate that Bill Gates with his America First mentality is sponsoring Monsanto’s Water Efficient Maize for Africa, a five-year development project led by the Kenyan-based African Agricultural Technology Foundation, which aims to develop a variety of drought-tolerant maize seeds.
“Why will he not invest in the Institute of Agricultural Research project in Ahmadu Bello University that is developing draught resistant maize that does not have the dangers of what Monsanto is doing? My fear now is that Aliko Dangote who is planning to invest billions of dollars into Nigerian agricultural production is now sucked into this Monsanto project. There are reports that some of the food aid being currently imported into Nigeria is GMO.
“As a first step, the ministers of Agriculture and the Environment should call the National Biosafety Management Agency to order and make them withdraw the authorisation issued for the production of GMO crops. Given our fragile ecosystems and stressed environment, we must take our biosafety seriously and avoid the path of introducing crops that are dangerous to the health of our people and our environment.
“Nineteen European countries that care about the health of their people have completely banned genetically modified crops. Even the Russian State Duma recently passed a bill banning all import and production of genetically modified organisms in the country. We must not allow Nigeria to be turned into a dumping ground for what sensible countries have rejected.
“Sincere scientists have shown evidence that Monsanto’s crops are genetically enhanced to tolerate the use of the herbicide glyphosate which was declared as a possible carcinogen by the World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
“Everyday, more and more Nigerians are falling sick and dying and as we weep for them, we often wonder why so many young people are going. Maybe the question we should be posing is how come some Nigerians are still alive given the intense and systematic way we are poisoning ourselves.
“——A professor of Political Science and development consultant/expert, Jibrin Ibrahim is a Senior Fellow of the Centre for Democracy and Development, and Chair of the Editorial Board of PREMIUM TIMES.”
Some natural medicines for poisons in food
When I was a boy, I hated a meal of beans. It was not for the same reasons as our children do today. Many children of today who hate to eat beans agree to if the meal is garnished with, say, beef, chicken, fish, plantain or those things which gladden the pallet better than just beans in the plate. My aversion for beans arose from those tiny, whitish objects which appeared in the plate and looked like maggots. Who would like to see, let alone eat, maggots in a bowl of food? Apparently, those “maggots” were weavils eating up the beans. Nowadays, those insects are no longer seen in the beans we eat because the grains are preserved with chemicals dangerous to insect and even human life. That is why we often hear reports of people dying after a meal of beans. Apparently, the chemical preservatives were not expired from the beans before the grains were cooked and eaten.
What we observe in beans occurs in practically every food crop or/and even processed foods and drinks. Only recently, there was a legal uproar about some of the products of Nigerian Bottling Company which were rejected, seized and destroyed in the United Kingdom (U.K.) because they contained higher levels of the preservative Sodium Benzoate than is permitted for the safety of health in European Union (EU) countries.
When we look left, right, center up and below, as it were, we find there is nowhere to hide, as we are now immersed in an ocean of poisons from food, air, water and even our emotional responses to every-day friction from living experiences. And this has led many health seekers and researchers to the conclusion that, we’d be entombed in these poisons and die prematurely and gruesomely unless we fight back. At present, there are two major ways of fighting back. The first is to abandon these deadly foods and eat organic, that is naturally grown foods, in their places. But organic foods are scarce and expensive, where available. Besides, there is a lot of deceit in the market place where drugged foods are passed on as organic foods. The second way of fighting back, even where one cannot obtain or afford real organic foods is by aiding the body’s organs of elimination to expel these poisons, and by protecting these organs against these toxins. It is from these endeavours that the following ideas have emerged…
- Detoxification
- Antioxidation
- Mineralisation
- Oxygenation
- Immune boosting
Detoxification
This is a broad field that cannot be exhausted here. It may involve high colonic irrigation with coffee (not edible coffee) enemas or other detox herbs. Largely, I always target the liver, the gastro-intestinal tract, the kidneys and the Urogenital system, the respiratory system and the skin. These are the major organs Mother Nature provides the body for the elimination of wastes and poisons. We must support their work thankfully with helpful herbs and foods, and protect them as well. The liver is the apparent commander-in-chief of the detoxification process. One of the well known detoxifiers of the liver is Dandelion. Its bright yellow flowers provide antioxidants and flavonoids. The exert diuretic action on the kidneys but, unlike pharmaceutical diuretics, do not leach potassium from the blood and create heart and other problems. They are rich in Vitamin A, B, C and Zinc. Dandelion root supports bile production in the liver, which helps the transport of toxins out of the body. In the course of its work of eliminating toxins from the blood, a chemical substance known as Acetaminophen causes oxidative stress in the liver. Many studies have reported that the antioxidants found in Dandelion root, Jerusalem artichoke, Turmeric and Rosemary help this condition. The University of Windsor, Canada, in 2011 experimented with Dandelion root extract on skin cancer cells and found that, within 48hours, it began to kill the cells. Another study in Oncotarget was reported to kill about 95 percent of colon cancer cells in 48 hours. Favourable reports are mentioned, also, in respect of Pancreatic breast, prostate cancers and leukemia. The anti-cancer activity is linked to its antioxidant potential. The leaves of Dandelion support vision health because of its high Vitamin A content.
Another herb good for detoxification is Red clover. It supports toxin break-down in the lymphatic system, the lungs, the blood, the liver and the skin through its diaphoretic (sweat inducing) action. It helps to prevent inflammation in the liver and to help the liver from becoming a fatty liver which cannot process fats because it cannot produce enough bile salts to do the job.
I often suggest Burdock root as a liver and blood purifier because it has been used for these purpose and more for thousands of years. It is diaphoretic and diuretic as well. With more toxins leaving the body through the skin and the urinary system, the workload of the liver, which is also helped by Burdock root, reduces to such a point that enables this organ to not only become more efficient but to also heal itself as well.
There are other great liver herbs such as Milk thistle, Carqueja, Yellow dock, Chanka piedra, Greater celedine, Garlic, Beet root et.c, Grape seed extract, Pawpaw (papaya) leaf juice.
Antioxidation
Free radicals damage cells. Antioxidants wage wars against them and knocks them out, leaving the cells free of molestation. Practically all the herbs and supplements mentioned in this column have one antioxidant potential or the other. The list is endless…Orange peel, Pawpaw leaf juice or Pawpaw seeds, Spirulina, Kale, Wheatgrass, Chlorella and Cilantro, among others. Chlorella and Cilantro, a great herb the Yorubas call efo ebolo (r:d:d) chelate (drag) heavy metals out of the body. Cilantro is a great kidney herb which doubles in other systemic functions as well. We cannot forget Stinging Nettle, that great detoxifier, antioxidant and nutritive herb.
Mineralisation
Poisons in foods make the blood acidic. Acidic blood and tissue make the internal environment inhospitable for the cells, the immune cells and organs inclusive. Green herbs mentioned above bring minerals into the body to neutralize acid. These herbs also introduce oxygen. Germs hate alkaline and oxygenated environment, both of which are liked by the immune system. So, when we aid the organs of waste and poison elimination, when we protect them as well, when we alkalinise and oxygenate the system, thereby empowering the immune system to defend and protect the body, we can overcome the dangers in which we stand in the ocean of poisons in which we live today. People who face prostate gland challenges should clean up with pawpaw leaf powder tea, Stinging Nettle root tea, Cilantro tea and Willow herb tea. Heart conditions need Hawthorn berries tea. The digestive system will run well, for example, on Red Kidney Bean pod powder tea. The list is endless.
