Apple Cider Vinegar: It's Not For Everybody

Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)  goes in and out of fashion and is making a comeback.  

Dr. D.C. Jarvis was the first to praise ACV for its benefits and claim it cured almost everything. Jarvis believed in the health benefits of honey and vinegar.  His book is still available and his work represents that piece of ancient folklore surrounding ACV.  

Twenty years ago, I jumped on the ACV train for all the wonderful benefits promised.  Paul Bragg was really the founder of the modern ACV movement.  His daughter, Patricia Bragg, followed in his footsteps.  

Paul Bragg believed that a clean life could offer a man up to 120 years.  He hoped to live that long but his age at death is not known.  No one knew Paul's age.  To be fair, Paul Bragg was a young man before he started his journey and stated many times that his life may not work as a model.  He lived his youth eating all sorts of things that were bad for him.  It was impossible to know what damage was done and how that would shorten his life.  Bragg only claimed the untainted life from birth could enjoy up to 120 years with a daily dose of apple cider vinegar along with clean vegan eating and vigorous exercise.

This is how the movement began.  Later, the Bragg’s came out with Liquid Amino Acids:  a substitute for the protein missing in most vegan diets.  A close look at the label though tells the consumer there is little protein  in Bragg’s Liquid Amino Acid.  The amino acids touted by the Bragg family were from fermented soy beans; a process that came under close scrutiny and caused outrage in the health community not long ago.  Why?  Natural bloggers everywhere had a 'beef' with the vegan protein substitute that stated "No MSG" on the label.  The process by which the amino acids were made produce an 'MSG broth' and was not suitable as a soy sauce alternative or good source of vegan protein.

Patricia Bragg was never available for comment.  Sales tanked.  Now, I imagine enough time passed for folks to develop amnesia and Bragg products are moving off shelves again.  Paul and Patricia Bragg marketed their specific apple cider vinegar claiming that only pure ACV could guarantee benefit.  The vinegar must contain the ‘mother’.  Filtered vinegars provide flavor but no benefit, they say.  There are other brands of raw or unfiltered vinegar that contain the ‘mother’ but Bragg’s is king.

All that said, is there conclusive evidence that ACV is the cure-all for humankind?  There are a few studies that hint ACV may help reduce your likelihood of diabetes or obesity.  Most ancient folklore about ACV has either been disproved or not researched.  There is no body of evidence proving its benefits ranging from curing head lice to de-crystallizing arthritic joints.  Yet, folks continue to use it.  But, not every remedy fits every person. 

If you are using ACV and benefit from it, by all means, keep using it.  Some may actually get sicker taking apple cider vinegar.  A community of folks who struggle with another common ailment:  Candida Albicans.

Candida Albicans in its simplest form is a yeast infection.  If left untreated, the yeast will spread and cause thrush in your mouth, body blisters, etc.  This is ‘systemic yeast’ and at that stage is diagnosed ‘Chronic Candida’.  The increase of antibiotic usage in the United States contributes to the numbers.  Folks who take antibiotics every time that they are ill run the greatest risk of contracting candida albicans.  It is difficult to eliminate once in your system.  Harsh dietary regimens have to be followed, medications are given, and there are three items above all that the candida sufferer must eliminate:  sugar, alcohol, and vinegar.  These three substances cause yeast to proliferate.  Vinegar is gasoline on an already burning yeast fire.

The trouble with candida albicans is the yeast takes up residence alongside fat in your cells.  The yeast creates a barrier between fat and the outside world denying fat an exit strategy.  Unless the yeast is reduced or eliminated from the cells, the fat molecules will not release.  Current researchers believe more suffer with candida albicans than reported because one can go for years without being diagnosed. 

For example, your only symptom may be weight gain while others may experience a myriad of symptoms.  Candida manifests in each person differently.  When aggravated, the condition only worsens because the acidic stomach loaded with yeast is already sour and ‘making wine’ per se.  Candida sufferers will have a decreased alcohol tolerance.  One or two drinks can intoxicate the candida patient who used to be able to drink more before becoming very drunk.  Another study now links chronic edema with obesity.  When yeast surrounds a cell, it traps fat and water.  More research is needed to find a direct link but work to date is compelling.

ACV is not a cure-all but it can help some people.  If you suffer from candida, I urge you to avoid adding ACV to your diet.  Are you wondering if you have candida albicans?  Take this questionnaire before seeing your doctor:  http://www.yeastconnection.com/pdf/yeastfullsurv.pdf 

The Yeast Connection online is a great resource for those who suffer from chronic illness.  Rule out yeast before grabbing a bottle of ACV.  People are unique and a cure-all may not be YOUR answer.

Be blessed!

The Cycle of Life

With every beginning comes an ending.  This week, my cousin had a heart attack and did not recover.  She passed away at her home in Louisville at the young age of 51 years.  I was dropping off furniture for my older sister when the call came that she was gone.  We had not been able to visit the last two years.  I was in Canada and she was in Louisville.  The new farm puts me closer to the Louisville side of my family and she had priority on the list of visits to make.

Indeed, she will be my first visit.  Instead of laughing and cutting up about when we were young, I will pay my last respects and walk her to that final resting place.  I came home a little too late.  In nature, we witness the last breath of Autumn, the cold and dark places of Winter, await Spring's rebirth, and bask in the adolescence of Summer.  We spend all Winter waiting for our friends to join us next Spring!


If only humans were flowers that we might renew ourselves each Spring!  Alas, we are alike yet different.  The spirit of regeneration is given in place of renewal.  We are here for a time then gone.  Hopefully, that souls crosses over to a life eternal in a glorious place where one day every one will meet again.

Managing the cycles of life for the creations and creatures in your care is ninety percent of the job description.  Farmers are God's caretakers.  It seems easy when discussing cows, pigs, sheep, chickens, and the like.  Yet, so difficult when the life cycle of a loved one ends.  One is never ready to part with family.  Every other instance can be reasoned away but this human loss.

Life becomes more precious when it rests in your hands.  Cradling the head of a lamb while helping it feed or nuzzling open the mouth of a tiny calf who refuses to latch onto the mother or a feeder.  One day, that life will be gone too.  While it is here, it is our job to give God's creature the life that it deserves.  Humans also should strive to help one another lead the lives that they deserve.  Going forward, I will do what I can to help others attain what is right, not what is left, ever mindful of the cycle of life.

In Loving Memory of Anita Rose Mitchell DeSpain
Blessings!