The white rabbit just came running through here, telling me it's already March tomorrow, and I haven't written my newsletter yet. Fortunately, I have already selected the articles and just have to write my own comments and find appropriate images to go with them. How did February go by so fast?

Perhaps it is because of the March Hare that "Alice in Wonderland" is coming out in theaters in March. One can never have too much Johnny Depp, I suppose, so I am looking forward to seeing it. I recently watched ""Phoebe in Wonderland," which was quite an interesting film. Why not stick with the theme?

This month we will look at probiotics for the feet, edible pine trees, eating with the Chinese clock, thyroid issues, two types of cow's milk (news to me), and more reasons to buy organic (please!).

From NaturalNews.com - "To treat athlete's foot at home, twice a day sprinkle a pinch of powdered acidophilus between your toes and into cotton socks that you'll be wearing. The acidophilus creates an environment that's inhospitable for the fungus, and before long your problem will be gone."

After a lifetime of using Desenex powder, which works quite well (but who knows what sort of side effects it might have), it is great to discover a completely natural treatment for athletes foot. I have particularly curved little toes that tend to trap moisture under them, so I have had occasional bouts with this fungus over the years, just in that spot under the little toes. It can be quite painful, and I shudder to think what it must be like to have it spread over the entire foot, as I've seen in photos. No thanks!

I haven't had a chance to try the acidophilus treatment yet, and I'm hoping I never need it, but I thought I would pass this along for you to try. Let me know how it works. It certainly can't do any harm. And while you are at it, take some of the acidophilus on the inside too, because it is one of the best treatments for any sort of digestive ailment.

I wonder how many of my readers are old enough to remember the immortal words of wild food enthusiast Euell Gibbons, "Did you ever eat a pine tree? Many parts are edible." That was from a TV commercial back in the 70s. It turns out that one part of a pine tree is not only edible, but looks to be quite valuable in helping diabetics preserve their limbs and eyesight.

Pycnogenol pine bark extract has been shown to protect diabetics from swelling, as well as circulation and vision problems. That is good news, since these problems can lead to amputation and blindness.

From NaturalNews.com - "Dr. Robert Steigerwalt, one of the lead researchers of the study, confirmed that not only does pine bark extract halt the progression of diabetic retinopathy, it can cause it to regress by sealing the leaky blood vessels in the eye that lead to the disease. Such results were witnessed in as little as two months. He also noted that diabetics in the early stages of the disease can prevent such complications from ever occurring by supplementing with pine bark extract."

Of course, if you have been keeping up with my newsletters, you know that adult onset or type 2 diabetes is both preventable and reversible with proper diet, weight control, and exercise. A one month raw vegan diet has been shown to turn diabetes around in its tracks. Diets high in refined sugars and flour products, as well as fast foods, meats and other animal products (particularly dairy products), can lead us down the slippery slope of blood sugar imbalances, hypoglycemia, metabolic syndrome, and eventually diabetes.

At least one third of children born after the year 2000 are expected to develop diabetes in their lifetime, yet our government and health care agencies are doing very little to change this trend. Why? We have to wonder. We are talking about an entire third of the U.S. population!

Could it be that diabetes is big business, and so is the junk food industry? Could it be that dollars are more important to some people than the life, limbs, and eyesight of millions of children? Could it be that corporations have been given so much power in the United States, that they can control our food supply as well as the advertising messages that bombard children every time they sit in front of a television?

We can't depend on the government to bail us out of this one. We just basically gave corporations the right to buy elections. And no matter what sort of health care reform our legislature comes up with, there is no way it will be able to keep up with the massive health problems that are developing in the younger generation as a result of their overwhelmingly abysmal diets.

We the people have to wake up and make some changes, fast. That is why I have devoted a significant part of my life to getting the word out about self care and natural healing methods. When it comes to protecting our health, we are pretty much on our own, so we had better get educated and share as much information as we can with each other.

Chinese medicine has been around for thousands of years and they have some things figured out that we in the West are only beginning to understand. One of these is the concept of the body clock. You have probably heard of acupuncture or acupressure. These modalities work on the invisible energy meridians of the body. Each meridian is said to be activated during a certain part of the day.

The digestive system meridians are strongest in the morning, with the stomach strongest between 7 and 9 am, and the spleen strongest between 9 and 11 am. So the best time to eat is from 7 to 11 am. Conversely, the weakest time is 12 hours later, so it is best to stop all eating by 7 pm.

From NaturalNews.com - "When we stop eating at 7 pm, many symptoms, even those which seem unrelated to digestion such as pain and arthritis, will disappear. People often lose weight quickly as the body is able to rid itself of toxins. The meridians balance and naturally become stronger when energy is not drawn into digestion overnight."

Energy is strongest in the gall bladder and liver during the night, from 11 pm until 3 am. If energy is being diverted to digestion because of late meals, these organs will not be able to do their job of cleansing the blood. This can result in indigestion, insomnia, arthritis, aching joints, weight gain, and morning tiredness, because toxins have not been cleared out of the body.

From annlouise.com/blog - "Hypothyroidism (sluggish thyroid) is epidemic today, particularly among women, and the incidence of this condition only increases with age. Fatigue, menstrual changes, brain fog, depression, sensitivity to cold, unexplained weight gain, loss of libido, puffy face and extremities, constipation, delayed reflexes, and dry, thinning hair are only some signs of an underactive thyroid.

"Dietary iodine deficiency, inflammation, radiation, surgery, and some viral infections can cause hypothyroidism. And now environmental toxins have been linked to slow thyroid function."

If you have any or all of these symptoms, the chance is very high that you have an under-active thyroid also known as hypothyroid, even if your blood tests say you are in the normal range. You can test yourself by getting a mercury type thermometer and measuring your body temperature each morning before you start moving. Shake down the thermometer the night before and put it under your arm first thing in the morning for a few days. If your temperature is consistently below 97.8 degrees you almost certainly have an under-active thyroid. This test is considered more accurate than any blood test.

The next step is to figure out why your thyroid is low. It could be an auto immune disease called Hashimoto Thyroiditis (see next article), or it could be due to a number of other factors, including exhausted adrenal glands from too much stress. It is important to get enough iodine from seaweed and/or iodized salt. Avoid soy products and raw cabbage family vegetables if you have low thyroid, because they are said to depress thyroid function. Avoid stress and take a good food-based multi-vitamin like Vitamin Code.

There are homeopathic remedies that have been helpful in restoring thyroid function. Choosing the right one depends on your symptoms. If your thyroid is damaged beyond repair, you may have to take prescription thyroid medication to relieve your symptoms.

Another common cause of thyroid dysfunction is gluten sensitivity. Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley, some oats, spelt, and triticale.

Dr. Rita Marie Loscalzo is an expert on gluten sensitivity, which she believes is a major cause of all autoimmune disorders. Hashimoto Thyroiditis is an autoimmune disorder where the immune system attacks the thyroid, causing the symptoms listed in the above article. The only way to know for sure whether you have it is to have lab testing specifically for this disorder, which is more common than you might imagine.

Avoiding gluten can make a world of difference in your health if you are sensitive or allergic to it. In fact, I decided to avoid gluten and dairy products just as an experiment, and I lost eight pounds in a couple of months without even trying or eating any less. Obviously, these foods were not agreeing with me!

You may find that avoiding gluten and dairy will relieve all sorts of symptoms from aches and stiffness to diseases as serious as Multiple Sclerosis.

To receive excellent free articles on thyroid function and gluten-free recipes from Dr. Rita Marie, visit the link below.

I'm sitting here at my desk enjoying a chorus of frog songs filling the night air as I type this newsletter. I love those frogs and I don't want anything bad to happen to them.

Each morning I am treated to a symphony of chirping birds outside my window. I can't tell you how much I appreciate each and every one of those birds. They fill the morning with joy.

Then I read a NaturalNews.com article that starts out saying, "Estimates from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service indicate that millions of birds and fish die every year from pesticide exposure. Scientists are now discovering that even low level exposure is disrupting the animal kingdom and causing new diseases to develop, threatening many species with extinction."

It makes me feel like crying. How can we as a species be so heartless and stupid as to endanger frogs, birds, bees, butterflies, fish, and innumerable other species, simply for our own monetary gain? We don't need agribusiness chemicals. We don't need to dump poison on our lawns, gardens, and fruit trees. There are other ways to grow food and have beautiful gardens.

One way - perhaps the only way - to stop this insanity is for each of us to make a commitment to buy only organic produce, only organic cotton, and only sustainably farmed foods of any kind. It will often cost more to keep this commitment, but think of the cost of not keeping it. Think of the cost to the birds and the fish, the butterflies and the bees. Or, if you want to be selfish about it, think of the cost to you. How will you feel if frogs become extinct, and there are no birds to sing outside your window in the morning just because you wanted to save fifty cents on a bunch of carrots?

And think of the babies already being born with over 100 different toxins in their bodies, because their mothers live in a polluted world. We are all responsible for this, every time we buy a new outfit made from non-organic cotton, or a new set of towels or bed sheets. We are responsible when we buy any food that is not organically and sustainably grown.

Again, our government is not going to solve this problem. Big corporations are making billions of dollars on the poisons being dumped on our agricultural fields and gardens. Monsanto is doing everything it can to get farmers to use its toxic Round Up, including genetically modifying plants to be Round Up resistant.

We are the only ones who can make a difference, and the only way to do that is to stop supporting the businesses that poison and pollute our water, soil, and air. Please, for the sake of all other creatures, and for the sake of the future of humanity, buy organic.

If you are going to eat dairy products, here is some little-known information you might want to know about. I found this surprising, since I had never heard anything about it before.

From annlouise.com/blog - "Most cows in the United States produce what is known as A1 milk. A1 protein is a genetic mutation found in Holstein and most modern breeds. Dr. Fuchs reports that A1 protein forms a tiny peptide that’s actually a narcotic, which can be linked to various illnesses. No wonder researchers have linked whey protein from A1 cows to diabetes, digestive problems, and heart disease.

"By contrast, the original non-mutant A2 protein—available from Guernsey as well as Australia and New Zealand cows—is easier to digest—and has not been associated with disease, the way A1 protein has. A2 protein also contains the amino acid proline that supports collagen and helps fight aging."

Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman recommends whey protein powder in her fat flush diet books, and has a link in her article to a source of A2 whey. Personally, I don't think dairy products are very good for anyone, except baby cows, but at least the A2 type sounds like it is a safer bet.