MY COLD PREVENTION STRATEGY

  • Whenever I feel fluidy mucuous in my upper nostrils, I blow my nose immediately, thus not allowing the stuff to drip backward internally into my throat. Because that would be akin to offering "free lodging" to "alien germs". The key, is to get rid of the germs outward (not inward)!
  • At night, if the room is cold, or if the air is dry due to forced-air heating, I burrow under the covers, and tuck the blanket under my body, sorta creating a tent out of the blanket with my head inside the "tent" yet with space to breath. This allows me to breath warm "moist" air - very healthy.
  • At risk of repeating myself - I avoid the forms of onion & garlic mentioned in this site.
  • It seems to me that when I swallow anything containing even a hint of citric or ascorbic acid that triggers me to cough. I can't totally avoid it - after all I have to live! I'm only mentioning it as a red flag for anyone else with sensitive throat tissues like myself. It goes without the saying that people with Interstitial Cystitis and sensitive abdominal tissues need to guard against these acids as well.

ONION/GARLIC PROBLEMS: SOME THEORIES

WARNING: If you're not the type to wade through various theories, skip this...

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Theory One: Acid

Raw onions contain pyruvic acid, which I believe transforms to sulfuric acid inside the body. So maybe that causes inflammation (just like citrus can cause inflammation). I don't know whether raw garlic has acid as well. Perhaps a solution for some people would be to use Vidalia onions (or SupaSweet in the UK)? Feedback on this matter is welcome - in the guestbook or whatever...

Theory Two: Copper Deficiency & Sulfur

Are you reactive to Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) as well as the pyruvic acid of onions (which becomes sulfuric acid)? Then perhaps you're copper deficient? This FAcu-Cell Site may be relevant to your situation. Below is the excerpt, but first let me warn you that copper supplementation may not be the answer. Because I have had a serum-compatibility test done, which stated that I'm highly-reactive to copper. So even though my hair analysis results indicated that I have copper deficiency, and even though I'm intolerant of onion/garlic and Vitamin "C", I'm still going to refrain from copper supplementation.

Instead, I'm having my dental amalgams removed, because the mercury contained therein is supposed to foul up minerals, hormones, adrenals, etc. So considering my huge number of fillings (17) this may be the true root of my problems, as many others have found out. Well... it remains to be seen, and I sure am nervous! Anyway, by the time anyone reads this, my dental revision may have been long past - in which case this paragraph will require an update! J OK, now, here's that excerpt:

Of course, in those rare cases when copper is actually deficient, sulfur-containing supplements, just like larger amounts of Vitamin C, should not be used, as they could trigger, or worsen existing inflammatory conditions. In addition, individuals with a tendency for blood sugar disorders (i.e. diabetes) should be aware of possible negative consequences on insulin production when supplementing glucosamine sulfate, which is usually used for arthritis. Possible adverse effects of consuming sulfur foods or sulfur-containing supplements (glucosamine sulfate, MSM, methionine, taurine, cysteine / cystine) include bloating or flatulence at higher amounts, while a very small number of patients have complained of a "stomach burning" sensation.

Theory Three: The Onion-Sulfur Theory

Maybe the sulfur-bearing thiols in onion/garlic redistribute mercury in people with metal toxicity, thus causing the body to "reject" this invasion in the form of allergy to sulfur foods? You can read about mercury's affinity to thiols here:
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I know of a woman who underwent NAET allergy treatments. And she was getting better. But then, upon clearing for egg allergy, she began feeling worse and worse. Then it dawned on her that maybe because she had now started eating eggs, the sulfur thiols within them were binding to her body's mercury and redistributing it, thus causing pain. (This is available for reference on the Maelstrom NAET mailing list archives.)

In a similar vein, maybe people develop calcium intolerance for a similar reason? Perhaps it's because their bones leech calcium into the bloodstream in order to alkalize it to compensate for their depletion of magnesium & potassium? See:
FBioMedx: How Body Acid Displaces Minerals

Theory Four: The Astringent/Constricting Poor-Circulation Theory

It's been my experience that I'd get reactions to astringent foods containing substances which contract or constrict my blood vessels - for example, tannins, tyramine and calcium. Fatty forms of calcium, such as pizza, stiffen my body and cause migraine. Nuts cause me a dried-out effect and also stiffen my body. Red grapes and chocolate cause me a dried-out effect; chocolate stiffens me as well.

So: Maybe onions/garlic (and family) contain a substance which contracts blood vessels (thus closing off my throat and causing headachiness?

By the way, I've recently been chewing on fresh dandelion stems and leaves, since it's said that dandelion is good for the liver. Well, guess what? Though not quite as bad as onions/garlic which cause sore throat, sinus drip and headache, the dandelion caused my throat to constrict very much, sort of like trying to swallow sandpaper. So I speculate that dandelion may share a substance in common with onions/garlic.

If anyone shares these experiences, it's possible that you may have very poor blood circulation, therefore astringent/constricting foods act as the last straw on the camel's back. Perhaps the antidote is arginine, which opens blood vessels? By this I mean arginine supplements, rather than foods which have both arginine and astringents/constrictives. I welcome feedback on this issue, because I know that arginine aggravates herpes, so therefore what do people do if they have parasites and viruses, at the same time as poor circulation?

Theory Five: Liver Related?

This site mentions onion/garlic intolerance as it relates to the liver:
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HEALTH LINKS:

LCD/CRT Monitors Cause Many Painful Symptoms
Harold Kristal, DDS - Calcium is not indicated for Oxidative Alkaline people
Calcium Needs to be Given Judiciously
Dr. Dean Re: Calcium Supplements
How Body Rots & Rusts
How Body Acid Displaces Minerals
Digital Naturopath Re: Liver Detox
Digital Naturopath Coffee Enema
Warm Water + Exercise Activates Intestines, Kidneys, Liver
Garden of Life Products
Liquid Calcium/Magnesium
HypoAllergenic Vitamin C (even this causes me problems!)
Vitamin C & Sulfur Intolerance Can Be Caused By Copper Deficiency
Facts On Various Oils (Note that some people are intolerant of virgin oil despite hype)
Mercury Poisoned
DMPS Chelation Dangers
Electrical Pollution Info
Vibrational Medicine
Energy Medicine
Frequency Machines Testimonial