Seb Cha

Unfortunately i don't yet own the trailer and don't want to lock up my resources in another dead end to test the temperature. It's sounding more and more like this plan isn't as viable as i thought. Even outside i'd be concerned. I take them for a walk around the trails and with the humidity they're exhausted by the time we get back. Granted there's some exertion, but i think the humidity is a huge issue. I wouldn't expect them not to be playing alone in an enclosure anyways.

I feel that 100%. I did my undergrad in biochemistry and was unfortunately taken out of commission from pursuing grad school from a "mysterious" illness which after countless hours of research and probing with blood tests turned out to be a fairly clear cut case of late-stage Lyme disease. My doctors were adamant that "it doesn't exist in the south" despite evidence to the contrary. Even after determining this was the issue it's a continuous battle as to the existence of "chronic Lyme" disease and whether further treatment is required. I have actual textbooks (plural) on "stealth" pathogens dating back to the early 80s that set a clear precedent for chronic Lyme. Coupled with the actual animal, human and in vitro studies that support the notion it's then baffling that most doctors continue to assert that "there's no such thing as chronic Lyme". At best the literature says "we're not totally certain but there's some evidence. to be continued". Even the CDC has updated their stance to one of ambiguity. In my case i've actually been forced to seek out herbs with antibiotic properties just to continue to feel normal. So that's probably why I'm a tad defensive of them lol. Within an hour of my first dose my vasculitis disappeared. My other symptoms have been in slow retreat for the most part ever since.


Curious what kind of science you do? I still think about going back into it now and again. Mostly i just enjoy being up to my neck in books and papers though.

Outside Asheville NC. 6 months of the year are totally fine. But the summer does get into the upper 80s and the south can be pretty humid. We were planning on rigging up a fence with welded wire anyways. I still worry it can get too hot outside on the worst days. At their current home they have a door with the option to come in and out as needed. Hard to do on an RV. Another thought we had was building a roof over the RV with an extended covered porch. But i'm not sure if the shade from that would be sufficient to cool it down to where they can be inside without AC constantly on.

"If I became exposed to lead, or to benzene or to rattlesnake venom, there would be a medically appropriate action to be taken. "

This is true for a selection of clear cut cases that usually involves acute toxicity and the field of toxicology is somewhat biased towards that end. What most people are referring to when they use the words "toxins" in the ultra vague sense is more along the lines of chronic low-grade exposure to industrial chemicals, heavy metals, or microbial cell wall components. Nothing is generally done in medical practice for that sort of thing despite the fact that we're all exposed to it. Endotoxin for example is a primary driver of cardiometabolic disease and yet treatment options remain purely symptomatic. And again, i'm not siding with detox woo. But a lot of alternative medicine arises out of real issues to which no conventional approach has been shown effective. Snake oils men are in essence, opportunists. Something conventional medicine has partly allowed by de-emphasizing holistic health.

Hope this is an okay forum, couldn't really find a place to put it. We got ourselves a piece of land a while ago and access issues have escalated meaning we're going to have to set up temporary camp by the edge of the lot instead of the ideal homestead site until we figure out whether to proceed or find a new home. So this means an RV. Main problem for us is we have two dogs and a cat and will probably have to work in town a bit to keep things going. My only real concern is when the weather gets hot. Has anyone had to deal with leaving animals behind in an RV? Most just say "don't do it on a hot day" but that isn't an option if you're scheduled to work. Wondering how novice homesteaders with pets navigated this issue. I'm not sure if it's wise or economical to leave a generator on unattended for that long. Not sure what the other options may be. Whether a roof covering would be sufficient or what

Dale Hodgins wrote:Hucksters will tell you that you are reabsorbing all sorts of horrible things. This is not something that is medically accepted. They are making sales. That's it.
Don't do it.

I don't know what the exact context is here, but enterohepatic recirculation of toxins is actually a real thing. "Toxins" can take on a sort of half-life by which, depending on a variety of factors, they may be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract before being fully expelled. If this is a one time exposure kind of deal then after a few passes it should be clear. If this is a continued exposure then in theory it may build up. The process is pretty elementary and accepted as far as toxicology goes. I'm not saying that justifies daily colon cleanses. Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't. I've not seen any convincing evidence for or against it, but i haven't gone out of my way to look into it either.

Ron Helwig wrote:Humans (and other animals) have been using their kidneys and livers to detox for millenia. No herbs needed.

I'd bet that most of the benefit from "detoxing" comes from fasting or calorie restriction. Of course, those selling the herbs also benefit.

We've been using our immune systems to combat cancer and infectious disease as well, doesn't always work. And especially with the changing land scape of the modern era. For that reason I really dislike this line of reasoning. I will give it to you that the concept of detox is vague and probably abused by the lay. That doesn't mean there aren't potential mechanisms that herbs may play a role whether by directly inhibiting hepatic inflammation, altering the endogenous microflora, preventing enterohepatic recirculation via restoration of normal gastric and barrier function, direct conjugation of toxins in the gut, lipid remodeling, etc. I'm not claiming to know the direct impact of specific herbs on this process, only that their interactions with physiology are pretty complex and astounding and all the above are conceivable at the very least. It's important to remember that the human evolved inseparable from phytochemistry. Some tribes were known to consume up to 93 species of plant year round. On some level, herbs are actually a physiological requirement for functioning correctly and the process of herbalism in many ways is identifying what a person is deficient in. Of course that's generalization and some herbs have much stronger drug-like actions. And again this is not in support of fad herbalism and detox plans. Nothing bothers me more than watching a necessary practice like herbalism be condemned to the realms of pseudoscience and snake oil salesmen