Pictures:
1. Lord Leitrim and friends picnicking at Ascot.
2. Mark Kearney celebrity chef showing off one his yachts
3. Ascot a little quieter than usual
Society Knees-Up
Where is the sun? A little bit here and there but some days people are even wearing overcoats in June. I look at my photos from the Cannes Film Festival and long to see the clear blue skies. I remember the fabulous yacht parties and being asked to do group hypnosis with stressed out film directors and financers. I still think about the fabulous organic meals and finger foods prepared by Mark Kearney, the celebrity chef that made these fabulous yacht parties possible. I suppose it's because organic restaurants are so hard to find in London. I heard about a group inLondon that is called Leon. I will be looking to try them out. I am assured they do plenty of organic.
However, the good news was that it didn't rain this year at Ascot. It was a bit cool but the sun did pop out and it was a delight to have the usual Champagne picnic in the famed car park. The pubs open early and the Champagne was flowing from around 10.a.m. I was looking for Sally Farmiloe but didn't have my mobile phone with me to be able to find her group so I joined friends at Lord Leitrim table and it was delightful.
I was supposed to be in Monte Carlo for the month but was badly let down on the apartment so everything has been delayed a month. This made everything last minute but decided to go to Ascot to cheer myself up. I think I would miss it if I didn't make the effort. It is a lovely day and you meet some very interesting people. The hats and clothes are wonderful to see and even the fashion nightmares - people getting it totally wrong – help to make the day. I did notice it was rather quieter than usual but that seems to be the sign of the times.
The wind was playing havoc with many ladies hats and several passed us while we ate our food huddled under a large gazebo. One of the guests said she didn't know which she should choose to save: "hat, crisps or skirt." It would have been impossible to save more than one out of three! One lady had a full black fur coat on as I looked at her enviously. Even I wore a sleeved dress and jacket and yet I was still cold most of the day but most were in sleeveless dresses and didn't look cold at all.
I joined Sally's table at a great charity ball for the Heritage Foundation, a black tie event that was one to be remembered. Jet Harris (from the Shadows), Denny Laine (previously with Wings and the Moodie Blues) played superbly and Robin Gib from the Bee Gees chaired. The music was great no need for special effects just great artists. The crew from the old soap that is doing great guns in the US 'Are you Being Served' were they to gather awards
Using Pesticides in the home or garden can cause Parkinson's
Since we are supposed to be healthier and live longer there are worrying numbers of people dying in their fifties and sixties. Give it a few years and we may see people dying much younger with what is happening to our food and even lifestyles. This column is not meant to be negative but a warning to protect yourself.
It has just been reported that people are 70% more likely to develop Parkinson's disease when near pesticides. It means that using pesticides in the home or garden may have similar results to working with chemicals on a farm or as a pest controller. This new research was first to show a clear correlation and also tested for links between other environmental contaminants including asbestos, coal dust, exhaust, formaldehyde and radioactive material but were none. The study included 143,000 men and women that began in 1982 and was followed up through 2001. "Low-dosepesticideexposure was associated with a significant increase in risk for Parkinson's disease," says lead author Alberto Ascherio from the Harvard School for Public Health. "I think this is one reason to be careful about using pesticides in general."
5/10/2008 - (NaturalNews) Environmental and farm worker groups have now sued the Bush administration for allowing the continued use of four pesticides. They claim that the government brushed aside its own evidence that the chemicals are toxic to workers and children. Check out the 'Pesticide Nun'. Our lady Georgina Downs has just been nominated in Daily Mails inspiration woman of the year. She has been suing our government for the use of pesticides' that have caused her illnesses.
Smelling flowers can be deadly:
Getting a nose full of Pesticides - literally; 5/10/2008 - (NaturalNews) In a 1997 study by the Environmental Working Group they found that conventionally-grown flowers could have up to an enormous 50 times the amount of pesticides allowed for food and even worse these pesticides can easily enter your body through. So keep your eyes peeled for organic flowers to give your lover guys!
The Wall Street Journal(20 June 08) reported in an article entitled "Africa looks for silver lining in Food Crisis" that African nations may profit from an increase in basic food production that would meet their own needs and enable them to profit from sales in a world market. However, most of the article is about how a "Green Revolution" can take place in Africa through the use of "Modern Fertilizers and Pesticides." There is no mention of the possibility for Africans to earn decent incomes selling organic produce on land that has never been contaminated by "Modern Fertilizers and Pesticides."
There are promises from a number of Western Nations and China for financial aid to enable Africans to buy "modern Fertilizers and Pesticides." Again no mention of any kind of financial aid that would go to poor Africans wanting to produce organic crops.
Smoking Ban has cut the number of heart attacks by 41%.
This is according to the NHSfigures from hospital records. Good news for young children worried about their parentssmoking and good news for me, having spent most of my adult life helping people stop smoking. It hits home especially when you have seen someone die of lung cancer and how they suffer. I still remember my friend as he was dying, how terrible he looked, instead of how he used to look. Despite the controversy surrounding the ban, it is saving the NHS a fortune when it costs £5,000 just to treat an emergency heart attack patient.
Dr Mike Knapton of the British Heart Foundation said, "This is significant, I think we can say that this indicates the smoking ban has had a beneficial effect on the rate of heart attacks quicker than many people predicted. It suggests the benefits of stopping smoking are realized faster than you think."
Are you feeling depressed?
Maybe it is a side effects of some prescription drugs you are taking or simply your diet. Professor Jane Plant, a leading scientist from University College London, believes the medical profession are misdiagnosing depression as a mental illness and putting people on anti-depressants that can cause increased depression and even suicidal feelings. She reported that 40% of mental health cases in Britain received the wrong kind of treatment for their conditions.
Prescribing the wrong drug and making things worse: One physiatrist in the US told my friend, who was taken new antidepressants which seemed to be making her worse, to take even more a larger dose. She then became suicidal; thank goodness they changed her medication.
Tips:
I spoke about mobile phones and the dangers last month and now the papers are reporting that 14 people have died and 20 residents have developed tumors in the last eleven years living within a mile of a mobile phone mast emitting one of the highest levels of radiation in the country. It is said that radio waves from the masts penetrate more than an inch into the body's tissues and yet radiation from mobile phones held against your ear are even more powerful and now other headlines say they may be a link with the masts and the recent increase in teenage suicides. That's why I didn't have my mobile phone with me atAscot; I just rarely use one and it's great. In fact dare I say it but I am 6 months in Florida without one.
Food to help you keep healthy: Eat asparagus to help the digestive system, eggs for vision, figs for skin disorders, and kiwi for heart disease. Cauliflower helps stave off cancer as does oregano, potatoes, walnuts, and tea.
Leon's an award winning, mostly organic, restaurant chain in London
http://www.spitalfields.co.uk/eating_leon.phpThank you for reading my page. You can e-mail me at: valerieaustinhyp@aol.com
Please visit my website at www.valerieaustin.com
Valerie Austin Training (founded 1989)
Validated (GHR, GHSC) Hypnosis Training courses at foundation & practitioner level in business and medical hypnotherapy.
Valerie Austin is author of six successful self-help books including SELF HYPNOSIS published by Thorsons
Founder of UKRAH (1992) The UK Register of Advanced Hypnotherapy.
Eds Note: VALERIE AUSTIN is an author, journalist and trainer with an international reputation in the field of hypnosis. Her best selling books and training help people achieve their full potential. She founded the Austin Corporate Stress Management Company focusing on reducing stress and anxiety amongst executives and CEO's. She also worked as a consultant in hypnosis at the Priory Hospital, the UK's equivalent to The Betty Ford Clinic, which specialises in food addiction and alcohol abuse. Valerie's work in the film industry (Hollywood) interviewing movers and shakers, producing TV news segments and publishing celebrity magazines in London gave her invaluable experience for her current Harley Street practice. |
