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check out the Deal with stress swicki at eurekster.com The blog is a friendly place where you'll get the real scoop regarding what's important to us: creating beauty, serenity, achieving our dreams, making a return to a healthier body, mind, and spirit. Please click on the orange button to the Left of your screen to SUBSCRIBE.

check out the personal well-being swicki at eurekster.com

Aug 27, 2008, Another warning about "natural" ingredients

I realize I often warn about suspicious claims advertised in all kind of media. Sometimes, I'm sure, I may come across as paranoid, but truly, I am not. I am a patien advocate and a consumer advocate, and it irks me to no end when shady operators twist facts and play with words in order to extract money from unsuspecting consumers.

Not to mention when the people they target are those who suffer from serious illness and are desperate to try just about anything! I don't know if you can get any lower than that...

Well, here is another warning for all of us; it's the abbreviated version from CBC.ca

About one in five Ayurvedic remedies used in traditional Indian medicine contained toxic lead, mercury or arsenic, say researchers who bought the products online.

When researchers from Boston University School of Medicine randomly chose to buy and test 193 Ayurvedic medicines online in 2005, they found the prevalence of metal-containing products was 20.7 per cent for those manufactured in the U.S., compared with 19.5 per cent in Indian products. At least half exceeded established guidelines for acceptable daily intake of toxic metals, the team reported in Wednesday's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The researchers don't advocate banning the products. Studies show some herbs may help lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels or treat diabetes. But medicines that are supposed to cure sickness should not promote another illness because of the presence of lead or other metals, said co-author Venkatesh Thuppil, director of the National Referral Centre for Lead Poisoning in India. In one type of Ayurvedic medicine, called rasa shastra, herbs are deliberately mixed with metals such as mercury, minerals like mica, or gems such as pearls. Practitioners maintain these medicines are safe and therapeutic when properly prepared and administered. "Several Indian-manufactured rasa shastra medicines could result in lead and/or mercury ingestions 100 to 10,000 times greater than acceptable limits," the researchers wrote.

Aug 24, 2008, Acne: causes and myths, and a very effective soap!

Troubled with acne? Read this page and meet the simple soap that will make a remarkable difference.

Aug 22, 2008, A note of special interest to our Canadian readers

I'm transcribing here, in abbreviated form, a CBC report on 2 popular "natural" products. Please take this warning seriously!

Health Canada is warning consumers not to use two unauthorized natural health products because they are not approved by its department and may cause serious negative health problems that could result in death. The products are Life Choice Ephedrine HCL and Life Choice Kava Kava. Life Choice Ephedrine HCL is packaged in bottles of 60 capsules, with each capsule containing 30 milligrams. Life Choice Kava Kava is packaged in bottles containing 60 capsules, with each capsule containing 150 milligrams. "Consumers who have purchased these products should return them to the place of purchase," it said in a news release on Friday. "Health Canada is taking measures to prevent these products from entering the Canadian market."

It said it has found that the product is contaminated with bacteria that could cause serious and irreversible health effects that could result in death. Individuals with a compromised immune system, infants, the elderly or those with an underlying disease or condition are particularly at risk. Stop sale order The products should also be avoided by pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. It said products that contain kava, including Life Choice Kava Kava, have been associated with serious liver dysfunction and the federal government has had a stop sale order in effect since August 2002. It said kava use has also been associated with adverse health effects, including an itchy, scaly skin condition known as kava dermopathy, muscle weakness and co-ordination problems.

Drugs and natural health products authorized for sale in Canada will have an eight-digit drug identification number, a natural product number or a homeopathic medicine number on the label. According to Health Canada, these numbers indicate that the products have been assessed for safety, effectiveness and quality. Health Canada also advises Canadians to contact the Health Products and Food Branch Inspectorate at 1-800-267-9675 if they find these Life Choice products for sale in Canada. It said it has issued warnings about ephedrine products in 2005 and 2006 and about kava products in 2002 and 2003. If consumers have an adverse reaction to these health products, they are advised to contact the Canada Vigilance Program of Health Canada by phone, 1-866-234-2345, or e-mail: CanadaVigilance@hc-sc.gc.ca.

Aug 21, 2008, Detoxification: foot baths, foot pads or lotions?

Detoxification. What are some of the latest products?

Aug 13, 2008, Je Me Souvien argan oil products: your wait is over

Argan oil products from Je Me Souvien: the finest you can buy

Aug 12, 2008, Psoriasis

At your request, I have added information about some popular prescription drugs used against psoriasis.

Click on the "Acne" page, then follow the link at the bottom of the page which will take you to the Skin Conditions (eczema and psoriasis).

Good information, not aimed at scaring you, but helping you make informed decisions about your skin and your health.

Jul 31, 2008, International orders

I have received many requests from overseas readers asking for clarification regarding placing an order.

I had added an entry to The Blog quite a few months ago, and then deleted it (sorry!). So the questions remain: do I ship overseas? Yes, I do. How does it work/How do I order? Simple.

You must have a PayPal account. If you do not have one, go to the PayPal website and register. I've used Paypal for many years without any problem whatsoever - it is safe.

When you place an order on the website, you will be transferred to the PayPal site where you will complete the order. No need to worry about exchange rates. PayPal does that for you.

I will receive immediate notification of your payment for the products. Once I receive notification, I will prepare the order and take it to the post office.

At the post office I will be given one or more rates for shipping to your country. If only one rate is given I will send you a second PayPal invoice for the shipping charges.

If more than one rate is offered, I will send you an email and give you the options, then you decide.

Pay that invoice, and the order will be on its way to you. I will also include a photocopy of the post office receipt so you can see for yourself that I do not add extra costs.

Please note that I will add insurance - when possible - to the order. It's to protect the 2 of us!

I frequently offer free shipping. Please understand that free shipping, when offered, is available to residents of the continental USA only. All other countries, including Canada and Mexico (as well as Alaska and Hawaii) will receive the additional PayPal invoice for shipping charges.

After 22 requests in one day, I'd better not delete this entry for quite a while!

Thank you. I wish you all a super week-end.

Jul 27, 2008, Tarts/melts -

The candle page has been updated. As per your request, I have added several melts/tarts. This is the ideal way for everyone to give the JMS Candles a try.

Be careful... they're addictive!

Jul 21, 2008, Duhring disease: what is it?

Duhring disease, aka dermatitis herpetiformis, is a rare skin disorder.

Jul 17, 2008, July ezine

Topics: What are all those mysterious ingredients listed on your shampoo bottle?

what are parabens? Is the cancer/paraben link strong?

You tried to be careful, but you ended up with a sunburn nevertheless. What can you do to decrease the discomfort?

No August ezine.

Happy Summer to all!

Jul 16, 2008, Massage through history, for infants and pregnancy

Massage: a brief history and current massage research on infants and pregnancy

Jul 14, 2008, Candle warmers recall

If you own a candle warmer made by the Provo Craft & Novelty Company, please check the product code.

Candle warmers with codes ranging from YD0629 through YD0652 as well as codes from YD0701 through YD0708 have been recalled.

The Company received over 10 incident reports in which the internal heating element detached and melt the plastic casing, causing scorching of furniture and even fires.

These particular warmers were sold between August 2006 and October 2007 only, and you may own one. If so, please contact Provo Craft (888-306-0132) for a voucher worth 120% the purchase price.

Jul 8, 2008, Je Me Souvien specialty skin products

The Je Me Souvien specialty products will help you with your most frustrating beauty problems

Jul 1, 2008, Je Me Souvien healing bath products: therapeutic herbals and minerals

Je Me Souvien offers the best therapeutic herbals and botanicals for a true healing bath.

Jul 1, 2008, Je Me Souvien Candles: simply the best

Je Me Souvien candles offer incredible fragrance. They are aromatherapy at its best!

Jun 28, 2008, Je Me Souvien candles

This page not only offers you a handful of the many aromatherapy candles we carry, but it will also provide you with important information regarding the candle market.

What you'll read may surprise you.

Jun 28, 2008, Skin lightening and firming cream

A short note to let you know that I'm working on the labels for these products. Some team members wish to give input as to design, so that's what we're doing at the moment. I have set a deadline (this coming July 1st) for the final label design. Your wait is nearly over.

If you're curious, these products have always been sold with fairly plain white labels. I always felt there was no need for fancy labeling. The products are simply superb and will "speak for themselves".

Jun 27, 2008, Swedish soap

Recently added an imported soap from Sweden. Its fragrance is lively, spicy green, a bit tart. A superb bar for summer and for your sauna. Take a look at it; it's on the JMS Soaps page. Showering never felt this good!

Jun 18, 2008, Skin lightening and...

Just a quick note to let you know the Je Me Souvien Skin Lightening serum and the Je Me Souvien Skin Firming/Tightening Cream will be available by the end of next week.

Get ready for two amazing products.

Jun 13, 2008, The nightingale story

I was going to publish a page discussing the many odd beauty “secrets”, but quickly dismissed the idea.

The latest, as you may have heard, is nightingale droppings facials which you can have at some salons in New York City for a little over $210!

Yes, you read correctly: if you’re willing to dish out that kind of money, someone will be quite happy to slather your face with poo and let it sit there for approximately one hour.

The facial “active” ingredient is guanine, which was first isolated around 1850 from the droppings of sea birds (“Guano” refers to the feces of bats, seals and seabirds, and it’s considered an effective fertilizer due to the high nitrogen and phosphorus content). In case you forgot, guanine is one of the DNA bases, and it always pairs up with cytosine (G-C). Guano is also regarded as an excellent gunpowder ingredient - like nitro, I suppose (TNT).

Anyway, the long and short of it is that spa owners who offer this "specialty", claim that a facial of bird poo will leave you with a smoother complexion, as nightingale’s droppings are considered good exfoliators. But I ask you: must we subject ourselves to exorbitant prices and get feces on our face in the hope of looking more beautiful? Don’t we have enough exfoliators that are just as good - much better, in fact ?? And what about “purity”? (it seems like a joke to speak of “poo purity“!) How do we know it’s nightingale’s feces? Could it be frogs’? Bulls‘?

FYI, nightingale’s droppings have been used for hundreds of years as Japanese women sought to achieve pale complexions. Now some savvy salon owners in this country will try to make dirt pay… or should I say “will try to make YOU pay for dirt - and a lot!”? You know how the old saying goes, “there’s a sucker born every day…”

As far as I’m concerned, I will continue to enjoy watching the nightingale and listen to its song.

Let the bird keep its poo.

Jun 11, 2008, Have you heard the latest???

There is a new substance which is receiving much attention as the new skin care wonder product. What is it? Nightingales' droppings!!! Yes, you read correctly... What can I say? Years ago it was urine, and now they're trying to sell us poop! Unbelievable. I will keep you posted on this new "discovery".

For the time being, don't expect any poopy product from Je Me Souvien!

May 13, 2008, Wishing for lighter skin?

Thought I'd let you know that testing is coming to an end for the skin lightening lotion.

It'll be great for those of you who wish to do something against hyperpigmented areas,and age spots.

The testers are really excited (they've been testing for months and months!) and hopefully so will you.

This specialty product does not contain bleaches or other harsh chemicals/abrasives, only natural ingredients. You WILL be pleased.

Apr 29, 2008, Herbs and herbalism

Not all herbs are created equal. Here's the deal...

Apr 28, 2008, Healthy skin is a reflection of a healthy diet

A healthy diet containing the right vitamins, is the beginning of healthy skin. Start by reading this.

Apr 25, 2008, April e-zine

The (late) April e-zine will be issued today. It'll include clear, concise definitions of the most common herbal terms. For instance, what is the difference between poultices, decotions, ointments, etc.? You will also learn the difference between the various types of "bath salts" available, specifically the difference between common table salt (sodium chloride), Epsom salts, Dead Sea salts, and boron "salts". Hope you will enjoy it.

There will be no May e-zine. I'm very busy testing various preparations which, when available, will be sold on a made-to-order basis only. This will ensure safety and effectiveness. Nothing but the very best for you, from the House of Je Me Souvien to yours!

Enjoy the beauty of Spring.

Apr 16, 2008, Therapeutic herbs and infused oils.

Therapeutic herbs and infused oils. Why bother with them?

Apr 10, 2008, Does comfrey really help our skin?

Comfrey salve can help with the itching and pain of psoriasis, insect bites, and burns

Apr 3, 2008, Marseille soap, the ugly soap from France

Marseille soap may be ugly, but then beauty is only skin deep, right?

Mar 25, 2008, Je Me Souvien skin care products

Je Me Souvien skin care products. No fancy frills, guaranteed performance, solid results.

Mar 20, 2008, Je Me Souvien soaps, great complexion bars

Here are some of Je Me Souvien's best selling complexion soaps. Indulge!

Mar 19, 2008, Je Me Souvien store products: our best to you

Looking for exceptional quality? Come to Je Me Souvien, your cyber spa store!

Mar 17, 2008, March e-zine/newsletter

The March 2008 newsletter contains information about a form of alternative pain therapy called “cupping”.

You will also find interesting information about nutrition that complements very well with the “Skin and Nutrition” pages. As an example, you will learn that fruits should NOT be eaten with your regular meal.

And to finish, a simple recipe to make a Venus perfume for your own use.

The newsletter will be e-mailed to all subscribers by the end of this day. A great week to everyone!

Mar 5, 2008, Get rid of cellulite?

Do you want to get rid of cellulite? What's available? What works?

Mar 5, 2008, What is cellulite? What can I do to get rid of it?

What is cellulite? With so many products and treatments available, what should you choose?

Mar 5, 2008, Castile soap and Marseille soap

Famous French soaps: Castile soap and Marseille soap

Feb 28, 2008, How to increase metabolism

How to increase metabolism. Safe, effective ways to give it a boost.

Feb 26, 2008, Dark skin problems. Can anything be done?

Dark skin problems can be frustrating. What are they? What can you do about them?

Feb 26, 2008, Gotu kola serum to improve your skin

Gotu kola is considered one of the most rejuvinating herbs in Ayurvedic medicine. Find our why.

Feb 18, 2008, The anti-aging diet: is it too good to be true?

This anti-aging diet does have some merit, but it will not stop the clock.

Feb 7, 2008, Aloe vera: its derivatives in lotions and the false advertising

There is a lot of false advertising when it comes to aloe vera. How much of it is in your lotion?

Feb 5, 2008, How-to erase wrinkles. Collagen and other injectable fillers.

How-to erase wrinkles? Let me help you decide if you're ready for these methods to get rid of your wrinkles

Feb 1, 2008, Dresdner Essenz tropical kiss wellness packet, a tradition of quality

There's a lot of talk about quality bath products, but talk is cheap. This is real...This is Dresdner Essenz

Jan 23, 2008, The oils in your soap

Get acquainted with the various oils in your soap

Jan 16, 2008, January newsletter

I apologize for the newsletter - it's a day late. Had a few computer glitches to overcome, but all is well now.

The January letter contains information about collagen; latest research on coffee and its health benefits; a recipe for a fizzy spa bath that you can make at home, without paying exhorbitant spa prices.

All the best!

Jan 10, 2008, Abra Therapeutics Vitalizer

The Abra vitalizer at Je Me Souvien: an exceptional skin product.