The body absorbs molecules

When was the last time you thought about how the body digests food? If you’re ‘normal’, the last time you probably gave it any more energy than a passing thought was back in seventh grade health class. Back then you probably learned that saliva mixes with you food when you chew it (if you chew it) and then hydrochloric acid in the stomach breaks it all down into a slurry that then passes through the intestines where your body absorbs the nutrients. After that, well, I think we all know what we end up with!

Yet, it’s a bit more interesting than that. That is, if you’re not ‘normal’.

So, today, we’re going to take a closer look at this process. The closer look will specifically be regarding what the body absorbs rather than how the body absorbs. There is a distinction here that is fairly subtle, yet profoundly simple. If that distinction is understood, the process of how the body absorbs becomes a simple mechanical process for what the body absorbs is what’s important.

Sugar Molecules

To start with, everyone knows that food gives us energy. You eat an apple, and we can say you consumed roughly 70 calories of energy. To get to those calories, the digestive process has to break down the plant cell structures to release the (roughly) 20 grams of carbohydrates. Those twenty grams of carbohydrates (a fairly complex collection of molecules) are then broken down into simple sugars (smaller molecules) that can be absorbed into the body.

A simple sugar can look like the following combination of glucose and fructose.

Once in the body, the sugar molecules, that can be of many different forms (molecular shapes), are then dispersed to the cells where they can perform cellular respiration to extract the energy. Cellular respiration is a generally a chemical oxidation process where when sugar is combined with oxygen to release the energy (light), carbon dioxide and water.

In this case, the body absorbed sugar molecules derived from some carbohydrates. Carbohydrates come in many different forms: Monosaccharides, Disaccharides Oligosaccharides and polysaccharides. The following diagram shows a simple combination of one type of saccharide.

Protein Molecules

Amino acids are the molecules that when put together create protein molecules. Amino acids are considered the basic building blocks for the molecules that our bodies build and use. As we all know, during the digestive process, the body breaks down proteins (longer strains of amino acids) into their basic form in order to assimilate them into the body. When it does, these amino acids can be used to not only produce new molecules, but be used to create energy. From Wikipedia:

When taken up into the human body from the diet, the 22 standard amino acids are either used to synthesize proteins and other biomolecules, or are oxidized to urea and carbon dioxide as a source of energy.

The basic common component in a protein molecule can be seen from this Wikipedia diagram.

If you take a look at another diagram they offer at Wikipedia, you’ll notice that amino acids very based on the “R” position of the above diagram. They state:

An alpha-amino acid has the generic formula H2NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent;[1] the amino group is attached to the carbon atom immediately adjacent to the carboxylate group (the α–carbon).

Which is supported by their diagram:

As it turns out, there are essential and nonessential amino acids. The general context in which the essential term applies here is in humans. The cool part about amino acids is that they can easily be combined by what’s called the Peptide bond and that they can be broken down to produce energy through the urea cycle.

The most interesting thing about this class of molecules is that scientists are discovering different forms on a regular basis. It’s as if the key thing that these molecules have in common is the ‘connector’. What hangs off the connector as the organic substituent can have many different forms and, one must assume, different functions for each form.

As it turns out, someone has done a little math giving a rough idea regarding the number of variations.

One cheminformatics study[6] identified 849,574 unique substituents up to 12 non-hydrogen atoms large and containing only C,H,N,O,S,P,Se and the halogens in a set of 3,043,941 molecules. Fifty common substituents are found in only 1% of this set, and 438 in 0.1%. 64% of the substituents are unique to just one molecule. The top 5 consists of the phenyl, chlorine, methoxy, hydroxyl, and ethyl substituent. The total number of organic substituents in organic chemistry is estimated at 3.1 million, creating a total of 6.7×1023 molecules.

These things come across as tinker-toys or Legos and there is a huge number of them.

When you think about the absorption of these molecules in the human, if the body picks them up via their connector, there could be virtually anything hanging off of it as the unique substituent. Even though science has isolated some really basic ones, the set that is available shows that there are a lot more that are yet to be discovered, or, explored to see how they function in the body.

Vitamin Molecules

As it turns out, vitamins are also molecules that the body absorbs and many of them seem to take on forms that are similar to amino acids but they are not considered amino acids. One example that I came across is Vitamin B5 (also known as Pantothenic acid). It looks like this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pantothenic_acid_structure.svg

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) looks like this:

Vitamin b2 (Riboflavin) looks like this:

This list goes on and on, but the key thing here is that these are molecules that are slightly different then amino acids that are key components for different functions within the body.

And, as with the amino acid molecules, new vitamin molecules are named fairly regularly. Any time scientists can specifically outline a process in which the catalyst is discovered, we get to learn about it as a new vitamin.

Mineral Molecules

The area that I find most interesting is the mineral molecules. We all know that minerals serve key roles in our lives, but what most people don’t understand is that there is a difference between bio-available and non-bio-available forms of minerals.

Even though common sidewall in houses is made of Gypsum (calcium sulfate dehydrate), breaking off a piece and eating it doesn’t have the same positive affect that consuming calcium from a green leave might provide. In fact, minerals in their raw form can often be detrimental to the body.

Upon researching this article, I came across a molecule that carries iron; Heme. One form of it looks like this:

This molecule plays a key part in the oxidation process. It works in the hemoglobin to carry oxygen around to the cells so they can use that oxygen to generate energy.

Magnesium is another mineral that finds an organic transporter. That is what we know of as the chlorophyll molecules. There are a number of different types of chlorophyll molecules. This is just one of them:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chlorophyll_c1.svg

Organic life also finds that cobalt is also needed and forms a molecule that’s known as Cobalamin. This is the key part of vitamin B12. It looks like this:

There are more examples, but I’ll get you get the idea. The key takeaway in these molecules is that we find a single atom of the mineral combined with the other organic matter. We don’t find combined minerals (like so often found in the ground) and we don’t find attached clusters – like two iron atoms.

Other common molecules

Another well known molecule is beta-Carotene. Wikipedia states:

β-Carotene is an organic compound and classified as a terpenoid.

As they state, this molecule is of the class terpenoid. If we follow that link we find that:

The terpenoids (pronounced /ˈtɜrpɨnɔɪd/ TUR-pə-noyd), sometimes called isoprenoids, are a large and diverse class of naturally-occurring organic chemicals similar to terpenes, derived from five-carbon isoprene units assembled and modified in thousands of ways. Most are multicyclic structures that differ from one another not only in functional groups but also in their basic carbon skeletons. These lipids can be found in all classes of living things, and are the largest group of natural products.

Plant terpenoids are used extensively for their aromatic qualities. They play a role in traditional herbal remedies and are under investigation for antibacterial, antineoplastic, and other pharmaceutical functions. Terpenoids contribute to the scent of eucalyptus, the flavors of cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, and the color of yellow flowers. Well-known terpenoids include citral, menthol, camphor, Salvinorin A in the plant Salvia divinorum, and the cannabinoids found in Cannabis.

The steroids and sterols in animals are biologically produced from terpenoid precursors. Sometimes terpenoids are added to proteins, e.g., to enhance their attachment to the cell membrane; this is known as isoprenylation.

Which opens up another class of molecules that the body absorbs in subtle ways. Yet, everyone knows that if you eat too much carrot juice you’ll start to turn orange.

Similar to this compound is Lycopene, the latest bus word from tomatoes. Its molecular structure looks like this:

Hormone Molecules

Here is another class of molecules that the human body can absorb. The Wikipedia shows a list of common human hormones that looks to be pretty long. In this list, we find amine-, peptide- and steroid- versions. Here is Testosterone and Thyroxine:

 

In the case of Thyroxine, the molecular formula shows that there are 4 iodine atoms. Testosterone simple contains carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

Other natural molecules

There are other naturally occurring molecules that are small enough to be absorbed in the body, the first one that comes to mind is caffeine.

Or, maybe, the active ingredients in chocolate; theobromine and phenethylamine.

Or what about the active ingredient in pot, Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Summary

I’m sure there are more common collections of molecules that I’ve overlooked here, but the main idea is that when we ingest food, the molecules that exist in the food get absorbed into the body. And, as we’ve all discovered, one type of plant may have a specialized molecule that acts like a trigger to produce some cascading sequence of events that may be witnessed consciously.

For instance, if you eat pot, the active ingredient, THC, is absorbed by the body and the affect is consciously noticeable. Likewise, if you were to consume Viagra, (molecule found here) its affects can clearly be noticed by the body. Caffeine and alcohol are two other really simple examples. In each case, the body didn’t actively produce these molecules, but when they are introduced they trigger responses that may, or may not be desired.

In the standard case, it appears that root molecules are highly absorbable even if it is considered a toxin to the body (alcohol). Mineral compounds are also known to be absorbed even if they are not in a bio-available molecule. Drugs, compounds that the body has never seen before also find their way into the system.

What is still unclear to me is does the body have the ability to absorb amino acid chains? Or, are their larger structures that are seen as ‘safe’ and combine to be brought into the digestive cells only later to find out that it was not useful?

Conclusion

I hope you find this research thought provoking for it helped me gain strength regarding the fact that when humans eat, the body absorbs molecules and it’s not very discerning regarding what it takes in. If you drop a poisonous molecule into your mouth and swallow, chances are pretty high that your body will process that molecule.

This article has also made me think differently about another article that I posted Why people should not eat animals. In that article I stated that the body not only absorbs these ‘simple’ molecules, but it may possible absorb strings of molecules or proteins. Even though I can find specific examples showing that the body absorbs strings of proteins, I have discovered that the body will absorb just about everything else. May there be situations where the protein strings are short enough to make it into the system? I will keep looking for I still believe there may be common situations.

If you have any questions, let me know. Unless, of course, you want to stay ‘normal’.

Liv Delicious Brzday Hugz

There is something about this ‘reality tv’ stuff on YouTube that can really pull at your heart strings! I must be resonating with these videos for they seem to come my way lately.

With this one, we’ve got LivDelicious on her birthday conquering a deep seeded fear – the fear of rejection. She tells the story beautifully. Before spoiling it, I highly recommend giving it 10 minutes.

With no further ado, here it is.

Did you watch it all?

Oh Liv Delicious! The openness of you spirit is carried through this video leaving me with the feeling that we have shared a hug! Knowing that the essence of Being knows no time, you can toggle your counter to 109.

Now, my observation.

As she stated, at the beginning of the video, her fears, the resonance of that fear is clear to read. It’s clearly a ‘truth’ that she’s accepted and incorporated into her life. As she steps out to receive hugs, she’s still resonating that fear. To compound matters, she stated that she wasn’t going to give hugs, just receive.

As time passes and you see the result of her fears playing out, you just want to yell out – you have to give to receive! The birthday sign even comes across as a shield.

After reliving her fears and then confessing, she applies the EFT tapping (just learning about that, but that is immaterial to what plays out IMHO). It’s at this point that a shift can be felt in the video. What I witness is not necessarily her overcoming her fear, but a change in the energy that opens up the flow. It becomes evident as she gives the first hug.

Notice that I said – she gives the first hug.

Her goal was to receive hugs. What I witnessed was her giving hugs. In return for her willingness to give, the hugs came back so she could accomplish her goal.

Liv Delicious, You don’t need to be a coach to live your truths! You resonate the strength to identify your own path in life. Honor that strength and accept what you know deep down inside is the truth. If what you resonate with makes you feel good, go with it. It is yours!

ORMUS as Fertilizer

This year’s gardening project is going to include ORMUS. Thus I figured I’d start the experiment in a public forum – here – to outline the steps and document it over this next growing season.

As any ready long timer reader would know, last year’s growing season really wasn’t all that great. I was able to grow greens, but nothing else really took. There were times during the season when I had to pull plants for they weren’t doing all that well (downright bad to deathly). This year, I don’t want to have to pull anything! I’d rather have the plants good and healthy from the start.

On top of that, I want to consume the healthiest plants! Everyone always says, healthy plants taste better. Well, I’d like to be able to tell the difference. I have to say that last year I got some great tasting veggies, but this year I’ll be looking closer at the taste – if I can get the plants to produce better!

That’s where ORMUS comes in. I’ve followed the ORMUS community for quite a while now and seem to have ‘feelings’ regarding how it should be used. Intuitively, I feel the roll of ORMUS is as fertilizer. I’ll probably go into that feeling in more detail in the future, yet my studies have lead me to believe that the best way to consume minerals is in their bio-available form. That is, as part of a molecule.

If you cut out the metaphysical aspects of ORMUS, what’s left is a great collection of simple minerals. If you look closely at this collection of minerals you’ll see two important characteristics: The magnesium and Potassium levels are fairly high (minerals that are essential for converting sunlight into sugar) and the minerals are in a monatomic form – small enough to be absorbed by the plants.

If you think about it for a while, plants have to get their minerals in their individual form in order to use them in molecules. You don’t see chlorophyll molecules with collections of Magnesium at its core, but you see single atoms there. Thus, placing large amounts of single atom minerals in the soil simply seems to make sense.

It also makes sense to unlock the minerals from its crystalline form – salt. The ORMUS community claims that the sodium-chloride structure captures the monatomic atoms and keeps them locked up. It’s only after you dissolve the water and the minerals are in solution that they become available for use. Unfortunately the sodium-chloride mixture is so concentrated you have to be careful about using it. Thus, the precipitation of minerals that happens during the ORMUS making process allows for the flushing of the ‘salt’.

Doing a little research, I’ve found a website called Sea-Crop that has a bit of information regarding using ORMUS as fertilizer. Their fertilizer is built off Pacific seawater and they’ve got some great results documented on the site.

The problem is that it’s fairly expensive. The website shows it at $60 a gallon. If you consider their application directions, they suggest 2 to 4 gallons per acre.

Yet, when you consider the size of my garden, about 600 sqft relative to an acre 43,560 sqft we see that it’s 0.0137 the size of an acre. Thus, if I were to use the ratio for 4 gallons of Sea-Drop fertilizer, I’d be looking at 4*0.0137 which is 0.055 of a gallon of the mixture.

Now, if you consider that there are 256 Tablespoons in a gallon, 256*0.055 gives 14 Tablespoons of concentrate to place on the garden. 14 Tablespoons equates to about 2 cups concentrate. Thus, to get enough concentrate to fertilize one 50 sqft raised bed, I’d need about 2 tablespoons of the concentrate.

That is not very much!

My experience with precipitating minerals from Dead Sea Salt leads me to believe that one cup of salt will yield about ½ cup precipitate. That’s 8 or so tablespoons, which should be enough.

The only unknown in this equation is how concentrated is the Sea-Crop fertilizer? I’ve bought some before and it looks like the typical precipitate that the wet method produces, but looks can be deceiving. At the same time, I would guess that the manufacturing process would remove as much water as possible as cheaply as possible. Yet, it’s not a paste so they aren’t filtering the water out. If I use just straight precipitate, I’ll have to be careful to measure exactly how much so as to make this study reproducible for anyone else.

Now, what about the salt?

To start with, I’m going to visit Saltworks and see if I can pick up a simple bag of Dead Sea Salt. From their website, it shows that the mineral content shows up something like this:

Chemical Composition:

Mineral Formula Content Range
Magnesium Chloride (MgCl2) 33.3 31.0-35.0
Potassium Chloride (KCl) 24.3 20.0-28.0
Sodium Chloride (NaCl) 5.5 3.0-8.0
Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) 0.2 0.1-0.5
Bromide (Br-) 0.5 0.3-0.6
Sulphates (SO4) 0.15 0.05-0.2
Water of Crystallization   36.4 32.0-40.0

This is perfect. I figure that a good start would be 5 lbs for I only need a cup or two of salt.

To go with this, I’ll need some Sodium Hydroxide for raising the pH so the minerals will precipitate. And, as it turns out, I’ve still got plenty of that for it only takes a few teaspoons to precipitate a cup of salt.

If you are not familiar with the process of precipitating minerals from sea water, it’s outlined in a previous article that I posted called ORMUS, Is this the web method?

Now, for the experiment.

I have a collection of raised beds. In the center of the garden where the sunlight is very similar, I’m going to select two beds to use. One will be the control and the other will be the ORMUS bed. In each bed, I’m going to partition it into a bunch of sections. I’m thinking peas, beans, lettuce, spinach, parsley and tomatoes (or whatever else comes to mind as the season starts) in equal portions in each bed. In other words, if I plant 20 pea plants in one bed, I’m going to place 20 in the other. The locations where the peas go will be the same relative position in each bed.

Here are the two beds as they sit this winter.

As the season progresses, I’ll take photographs of the plants in these two beds. At different points of time, I’ll also count the fruit provided by the plants and comment on the size. If I see a difference (or not) I’ll comment on it here.

One of the main reasons for this experiment is because of the trouble that I had growing multiple different items last year. The weather didn’t play out as normal and the plants where definitely stressed. If we end up with another odd year (which it’s playing out that way so far) I’d like to see if ORMUS minerals will have remove the stress that plants experience.

Stay tuned, for I’m pretty sure I’ll have something to comment on over the course of this season.

How to grow wheatgrass

Once again, it’s time to blog about wheatgrass. This winter I’ve found myself in an abundance of grass, so much so that I’ve even made posts on facebook to give it away! I love having extra flats around for the grass is so vibrant. When it comes to harvesting, it’s now a simple 10 minute process. It probably takes more time to ‘synchronize’ with the juice than it does to make it and cleanup.

If you haven’t ever had a sip of this stuff, you don’t know that it moves you so deep that it will make your whole body quiver. I guess the closest feeling is a shot of pure tequila, but there is no burning sensation. So, each time I press an ounce or so to drink, I pick up the shot and let my body harmonize with the juice before I down it. During that time, while I’m holding it, I’ll notice my body preparing. I might get the sniffles, saliva might start to flow or my stomach might growl or turn (in a good way) so I’ve learned that this is a process by which my body synchronizes with this powerful substance.

I’ve you’ve experienced the quiver that you get after taking a shot of wheatgrass, you might want to give harmonizing with the juice a chance before downing it next time. I’m sure that if my body can adjust by simply holding it in my hand, you’re can too.

Growing Wheatgrass

It was many years ago that I was first introduced to growing wheatgrass. When I did, I grew it for the seed rather than grass. Today, I like the grass better than the sprouted seeds and the grass is pretty easy to grow.

Through the beauty of YouTube, I’ve found a video by Paydes36 that really does a good job outlining how it’s done. So, rather than trying to type out the process, I’ll just include her videos here.

From Paydes36’s Channel:

Part 1:

Part 2:

I love her casual approach to sowing these seeds. She scoops and dumps the sprouted seed without a second thought or concern. Most people would be a little more careful, but as she demonstrates, it really doesn’t matter. What matters is that you – just do it.

Let’s review her steps through.

Step 1: Use organic wheat

It seems obvious, but to grow wheatgrass you have to get the type of wheat that will grow! So, you have to ask yourself, why did she make this comment? As it turns out, if you were to buy wheat somewhere, you’d probably find it as wheatberries or cracked wheat. The common use for these whole grains is in cooking – thus it doesn’t matter if the seed is alive or not. Well, to grow it, you’ve got to find living seed.

But don’t worry about it too much for any relatively ‘new’ seed will be alive and willing to grow. Most whole grain grocers carry living seeds and it’s pretty easy to test them. To do this, simply buy a small amount and start the growing process by soaking them and getting them to start sprouting. If the majority of them grow, chances are you’ll do fine with those seeds.

If you find yourself growing so much that you’ll being nickeled and dimed at the health food store, try a feed-store. And, look for Hard Red Winter Wheat. That variety seems to hold up pretty well.

Step 2: Soak Wheat

Here she recommends soaking for 12 hours, I’d lean more towards 8. Sensitive seeds tend to drown if soaked too long. You don’t want to start out with a bunch of dead seed.

Now, she breezes over the ‘sprouting’ process that happens in her bowl. She says to keep them covered and rinse them twice a day. This is good advice, but it’s a process where the most damage can be done to the sprouts.

To me, the most important thing to do is to make sure that the seeds never sit in standing water. If they do, they will mold (drown). If just a couple seeds go bad, it changes the entire batch. So, no standing water and shake them off the best you can.

I’ve always used sprouting jars. One mason jar can hold about 1 cup dry seeds (to start) and by the time they are ready to plant, you’ve got a full jar (4 cups that she talks about). With the jars, you have to use screen tops (or sprouting lids) so the air flows and when you rinse, you have to make sure to shake out all the extra water. One note of caution, don’t let the sprouts go too long in the jar for they will fill it tight. So tight in fact that you’ll have to dig them out. The seeds can take a lot of abuse, but that’s just a little too much.

Ok, she stopped counting her steps.

Next Step: Soil, use good compose

I’d have to agree. Use the best that you have and when you’re done with your tray of wheatgrass, recycle what you’ve used. But I wouldn’t necessarily recommend buying the soil. If you have some, use it.

Also, an inch deep is a good recommendation. What she’s showing in the video is not an inch of soil. Don’t skimp.

Oh, and the Azomite powder, not sure if it’s really needed. If it helps keep the mold down, great. But ultimately, the grass is going to feed off its own energy sources for the first 10 days or so of its life so what you add to enhance things might not give you the desired affects.

Next Step: Planting

I love her smile when she mentions it’s time to plant. It’s at this point that the ‘work’ behind growing the grass is done. From this point out, you kind of let time take over (and simply water).

Her advice about not being skimpy is – good advice! You’re taking all this time to grow the wheat, you might as well get a really good finished product.

Also, what she says about buying flats that are ‘shallow’ really are disappointing. You want to get 15 ounces juice from your tray, I’ve bought trays that barely product 8. That’s just a downright rip-off.

Next step: Watering

I like her advice of simply taking them outside and hosing them down. But be gentle, for those little seeds will wash away.

Next step: Covering

When I first saw that she used colored ink paper for covering your seeds, I thought that they were the funnies and it made me smile. Upon closer inspection, it simply looks like ads.

But if you’re not into giving your grass ads to read while it’s in its first couple days of growing, consider a brown grocery bag or paper towels. The plastic cover is a good idea.

Next step: Growing under paper

When she says cool dark place she really means dark place where the seeds won’t get roasted. It you place them in a really cool place, it’s going to take forever for them to start growing. If it’s warm, they’ll virtually jump out of their seeds.

Her summary:

When she says it take seven days from planting to harvesting, she means that it probably takes 10 days from soaking to harvesting. She makes this clear when she says ‘here’s planting’ as she holds up the tray of seeds that she just covered with plastic and ‘here’s harvesting’ as she places the tall wheatgrass tray on top for demonstration.

By the way, her demonstration tray looks absolutely beautiful! Don’t expect your trays to look this nice until you’ve practiced for a while. And, like she says, you don’t want to grow your grass too long. You want to catch it while it’s still converting carbohydrates (stored energy in the seed) into simple sugars. Thus, the grass will taste sweet rather than bitter. You simply won’t be able to drink much bitter juice!

Oh, harvesting – use scissors. Knives just don’t ‘cut it’.

In conclusion:

If growing wheatgrass isn’t in the cards for you, if you ask around a bit in your community, you should be able to find someone that already grows it. If you do, I’d expect that you’d find it offered for under 1 dollar an ounce. In other words, if a tray produces 15 ounces juice, you should find it for no more than 15 bucks. If you’re buying larger amounts, you should be able to find it for 8 to 10 a flat.

For me, I’ve been blessed with a source – my father! My abundance this year is directly correlated to my dad’s industrious behavior. Earlier this year, he said that he was going to grow twice as much as last year. Well, last year I felt I got a great amount. This year, the trays are piling up! At this rate, I’m going to have to teach more people about the power of wheatgrass so they’ll want to come over when I offer up ‘free shots’.

So, if you’re going to grow wheatgrass, you’ll probably find that it’s easier than you think and when it comes to juicing, you’ll find that the taste will probably be superior to what you buy at a place like Jumba Juice.

Reversing Cancer in 60 days

I love coming across inspiring stories. Here is a woman that had been introduced to ‘alternative’ healing then found herself in a situation of advanced breast cancer. Without hesitating, she changed her lifestyle and, in response, her body healed. The most interesting part in this story is the change in the blood! Chlorophyll is key in changing (charging) the blood, and there is no place other than greens to get it from!

Take the 10 minutes and give this one a viewing. You’ll be glad you did.

By the way, I’ve never studied the pH Miracle diet. But I have studied the pH process and alkalizing foods! 

Oh!  And she did this in two months!  That’s amazing! Sometimes it just takes getting the EGO out of the way and the body will take care of itself.