Shyne wrote:
> ...In times when you don't want them (which is 99.9% of the time for me, as
> I am basically a non-drug/alcohol/tobacco/caffeine user - i.e., I only eat
> food and beverages with no mind-altering properties) that is.
>
> Basically I am really annoyed how often I have to _specifically check_ what
> foods and beverages I consume to make sure they don't contain any IRRITATING
> compounds. For example, today I had a couple candy bars (chocolate
> containing) and I had trouble getting relaxed in the evening, thanks to the
> irritants (caffeine, etc) in these candy bars. I'm someone who has dealt
> with mental health issues in the past (in my teens and early 20's) and I
> just recently (4 months ago) quit cannabis, caffeine, and psychiatric
> medications (Risperdal and Effexor) all cold turkey, all at once.
>
> I now try my best every day to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise when I
> can on my days off. What really ****es me off is how our society has such a
> relaxed attitude towards caffeine and its related alkaloids, when in fact
> they are probably one of the biggest causes of heart disease - which is in
> fact the #1 killer of human beings in the United States.
>
> I have come to the conclusion that the U.S. Government only legalizes the
> consumables which are the most deadly, so essentially they are mass
> murderers. Alcohol is a poison, caffeine is toxic, and nicotine is a
> poison. On the other hand, everything that is _illegal_ has some or many
> medicinal uses to keep people healthy, whether that be spiritually or
> physically - cannabis is the most healthy plant known to mankind, coca
> leaves are one of the most nutricious of plants, and opium poppies have
> thousands of medicinal uses. And they are all illegal for citizens to
> possess or consume. Ironic, isn't it...
>
>
>
> -----= Posted via Newsfeeds.Com, Uncensored Usenet News =-----
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Read "Sugar Blues" and you'll lay off the candy bars as well. Good luck
to you. Getting off risperdal and effexor is a brave propostition. You
survived the cold turkey approach, lucky you. With many medications
dispenses for mental health a cold turkey approach can lead to
complications.

Cayenne pepper is an irritant as well but is used to treat a variety of
conditions due to its ability to increase circulation as a direct result
of its irritating properties. One man's poison is another man's
medicine. I use caffeine as an adjunct in my treatment of migraines. I
find Guatamelan, Sumatran and Kona varieties the most palatable ways of
consuming it. I usually use a vacuum pot setup to please the hidden
chemist in me.

>Shyne wrote:
>> ...In times when you don't want them (which is 99.9% of the time for me, as
>> I am basically a non-drug/alcohol/tobacco/caffeine user - i.e., I only eat
>> food and beverages with no mind-altering properties) that is.
>>
>> Basically I am really annoyed how often I have to _specifically check_ what
>> foods and beverages I consume to make sure they don't contain any IRRITATING
>> compounds. For example, today I had a couple candy bars (chocolate
>> containing) and I had trouble getting relaxed in the evening, thanks to the
>> irritants (caffeine, etc) in these candy bars. I'm someone who has dealt
>> with mental health issues in the past (in my teens and early 20's) and I
>> just recently (4 months ago) quit cannabis, caffeine, and psychiatric
>> medications (Risperdal and Effexor) all cold turkey, all at once.
>>
>> I now try my best every day to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise when I
>> can on my days off. What really ****es me off is how our society has such a
>> relaxed attitude towards caffeine and its related alkaloids, when in fact
>> they are probably one of the biggest causes of heart disease - which is in
>> fact the #1 killer of human beings in the United States.
>>
>> I have come to the conclusion that the U.S. Government only legalizes the
>> consumables which are the most deadly, so essentially they are mass
>> murderers. Alcohol is a poison, caffeine is toxic, and nicotine is a
>> poison. On the other hand, everything that is _illegal_ has some or many
>> medicinal uses to keep people healthy, whether that be spiritually or
>> physically - cannabis is the most healthy plant known to mankind, coca
>> leaves are one of the most nutricious of plants, and opium poppies have
>> thousands of medicinal uses. And they are all illegal for citizens to
>> possess or consume. Ironic, isn't it...

Dear Shyne,

My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
(drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
been EXACTLY where you are right now.

Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
Clean and sober for 16 years.

Mike P.

"Mike Petro" > wrote in message
...
>
>
> Dear Shyne,
>
> My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
> group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
> HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
> problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
> caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
> if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
> annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
> ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
> back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
> weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
> that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
> drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
> you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
> (drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
> with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
> from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
> peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
> Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
> possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
> been EXACTLY where you are right now.
>
> Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
> Clean and sober for 16 years.
>
> Mike P.

Thanks. Mike. I couldn't have said it better myself. I come from a family
of drug users- alcoholics. During a very bad period of my life I dated
several dry drunks in a row. Both groups thought drugs were the Devil; the
only thing on which they disagreed was whether alcohol was healthy. quite
frankly I found the dry drunks more annoying- because they couldn't drink or
be near alcohol, nobody could use it. One of them didn't even want me to use
rum in a cake, even though the alcohol would have evaporated during the
cooking process.

Cannabis is not healthy. It's a drug. Caffeine is a drug too. The healthy
opium poppy enslaved much of China, and the drug at that time wasn't nearly
as pure and dangerous as it is now. Cannabis is purer than ever- and I know
plenty of hop heads whose brains are fried. Of course, they think they're
fine- but they don't move as quickly or accurately as others who aren't
habitual users.

Caffeine can be a horrible drug if one is suffering from withdrawal- but
most people aren't using that much of it if they are tea drinkers. It's a
big deal nowadays if I have two cups in a row. There are plenty of people
like me who don't suffer from java jitters or anything else.
In every society, mild psychotropics can be found. Even in the wild,
animals such as apes and elephants gravitate towards fermented fruit and
plants that make them 'feel good'. While there are numerous unfortunate
cases of people who suffer from addiction most people and animals don't.

Coca is not chewed in the US, sending small trace amounts into the body.
It's snorted or smoked or shot- all of which are lethal delivery systems.
Popy juice is not but with wine and used in minute amounts in the US- it's
processed to deliver the biggest hit it has. And as for pot, any grower
will tell you that the plants are bred to give a much higher high than they
did in the 50s or even 70s- the cannibis available now is not mild.
Meanwhile, one can easily buy decaf coffee, tea and cola, and different
types of these products have different levels fo the drug in them. Not a
single person so far as anyone knows has died solely of caffeine poisoning
from drinking too much tea, or suffered brain and/or motor damage. I can
show you plenty of ****ed-up potheads though, just as I can show you plenty
of ****ed-up alcoholics, cigarette smokers, and dope fiends.
>

> "Mike Petro" > wrote in message
Tea wrote: ...
> >
> >
> > Dear Shyne,
> >
> > My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
> > group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
> > HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
> > problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
> > caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
> > if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
> > annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
> > ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
> > back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
> > weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
> > that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
> > drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
> > you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
> > (drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
> > with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
> > from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
> > peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
> > Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
> > possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
> > been EXACTLY where you are right now.
> >
> > Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
> > Clean and sober for 16 years.
> >
> > Mike P.
>
> Thanks. Mike. I couldn't have said it better myself. I come from a family
> of drug users- alcoholics. During a very bad period of my life I dated
> several dry drunks in a row. Both groups thought drugs were the Devil; the
> only thing on which they disagreed was whether alcohol was healthy. quite
> frankly I found the dry drunks more annoying- because they couldn't drink or
> be near alcohol, nobody could use it. One of them didn't even want me to use
> rum in a cake, even though the alcohol would have evaporated during the
> cooking process.
>
> Cannabis is not healthy. It's a drug. Caffeine is a drug too. The healthy
> opium poppy enslaved much of China, and the drug at that time wasn't nearly
> as pure and dangerous as it is now. Cannabis is purer than ever- and I know
> plenty of hop heads whose brains are fried. Of course, they think they're
> fine- but they don't move as quickly or accurately as others who aren't
> habitual users.

Everything is relative. Cannabis is definitely not the killer
that tobacco is. Chocolate is nowhere near as stimulating as
un-decaffinated coffee. The opium the Chinese smoked for relief of
their miserable lives wasn't as dangerous as the acetominophen sold
over the counter in drug stores today. I acquired a salicylate
sensitivity and a mouthwash with salicylates in can wipe me out with
severe leg pains. Salicylates are the class of chemicals to which
aspirin(aceto-salicylic acid) belongs.

Cannabis is maxing out at about 4.5% THC which is about 1.5% more
than was
commonly available in the 1960s. If fools try to smoke it like the 1%
dirt weed
that they bought then they may have a problem. Sensible people adapt
when using
stronger chemicals or herbs by paying attention to what is happening to
themselves.


> Caffeine can be a horrible drug if one is suffering from withdrawal- but
> most people aren't using that much of it if they are tea drinkers. It's a
> big deal nowadays if I have two cups in a row. There are plenty of people
> like me who don't suffer from java jitters or anything else.
> In every society, mild psychotropics can be found. Even in the wild,
> animals such as apes and elephants gravitate towards fermented fruit and
> plants that make them 'feel good'. While there are numerous unfortunate
> cases of people who suffer from addiction most people and animals don't

I went thru caffiene withdrawal several times in the 1970s before
I gave up un-decaffienated coffee. Using caffiene to treat migraines
is problematic because it may cause migraines. It did for me.

> "Mike Petro" > wrote in message
Tea wrote: ...
> >
> >
> > Dear Shyne,
> >
> > My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
> > group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
> > HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
> > problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
> > caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
> > if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
> > annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
> > ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
> > back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
> > weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
> > that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
> > drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
> > you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
> > (drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
> > with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
> > from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
> > peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
> > Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
> > possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
> > been EXACTLY where you are right now.
> >
> > Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
> > Clean and sober for 16 years.
> >
> > Mike P.
>
> Thanks. Mike. I couldn't have said it better myself. I come from a family
> of drug users- alcoholics. During a very bad period of my life I dated
> several dry drunks in a row. Both groups thought drugs were the Devil; the
> only thing on which they disagreed was whether alcohol was healthy. quite
> frankly I found the dry drunks more annoying- because they couldn't drink or
> be near alcohol, nobody could use it. One of them didn't even want me to use
> rum in a cake, even though the alcohol would have evaporated during the
> cooking process.
>
> Cannabis is not healthy. It's a drug. Caffeine is a drug too. The healthy
> opium poppy enslaved much of China, and the drug at that time wasn't nearly
> as pure and dangerous as it is now. Cannabis is purer than ever- and I know
> plenty of hop heads whose brains are fried. Of course, they think they're
> fine- but they don't move as quickly or accurately as others who aren't
> habitual users.

Everything is relative. Cannabis is definitely not the killer
that tobacco is. Chocolate is nowhere near as stimulating as
un-decaffinated coffee. The opium the Chinese smoked for relief of
their miserable lives wasn't as dangerous as the acetominophen sold
over the counter in drug stores today. I acquired a salicylate
sensitivity and a mouthwash with salicylates in can wipe me out with
severe leg pains. Salicylates are the class of chemicals to which
aspirin(aceto-salicylic acid) belongs.

Cannabis is maxing out at about 4.5% THC which is about 1.5% more
than was
commonly available in the 1960s. If fools try to smoke it like the 1%
dirt weed
that they bought then they may have a problem. Sensible people adapt
when using
stronger chemicals or herbs by paying attention to what is happening to
themselves.


> Caffeine can be a horrible drug if one is suffering from withdrawal- but
> most people aren't using that much of it if they are tea drinkers. It's a
> big deal nowadays if I have two cups in a row. There are plenty of people
> like me who don't suffer from java jitters or anything else.
> In every society, mild psychotropics can be found. Even in the wild,
> animals such as apes and elephants gravitate towards fermented fruit and
> plants that make them 'feel good'. While there are numerous unfortunate
> cases of people who suffer from addiction most people and animals don't

I went thru caffiene withdrawal several times in the 1970s before
I gave up un-decaffienated coffee. Using caffiene to treat migraines
is problematic because it may cause migraines. It did for me.

"Tea" > wrote in message >...
> "Mike Petro" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
[snip]
> Coca is not chewed in the US, sending small trace amounts into the body.
> It's snorted or smoked or shot- all of which are lethal delivery systems.
> Popy juice is not but with wine and used in minute amounts in the US- it's
> processed to deliver the biggest hit it has. And as for pot, any grower
> will tell you that the plants are bred to give a much higher high than they
> did in the 50s or even 70s- the cannibis available now is not mild.
> Meanwhile, one can easily buy decaf coffee, tea and cola, and different
> types of these products have different levels fo the drug in them. Not a
> single person so far as anyone knows has died solely of caffeine poisoning
> from drinking too much tea, or suffered brain and/or motor damage. I can
> show you plenty of ****ed-up potheads though, just as I can show you plenty
> of ****ed-up alcoholics, cigarette smokers, and dope fiends.
> >

Yes, prohibition has made people find ways to concentrate drugs to
make smuggling them more profitable. You can thank the Drug Warriors
for that.

"Tea" > wrote in message >...
> "Mike Petro" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
[snip]
> Coca is not chewed in the US, sending small trace amounts into the body.
> It's snorted or smoked or shot- all of which are lethal delivery systems.
> Popy juice is not but with wine and used in minute amounts in the US- it's
> processed to deliver the biggest hit it has. And as for pot, any grower
> will tell you that the plants are bred to give a much higher high than they
> did in the 50s or even 70s- the cannibis available now is not mild.
> Meanwhile, one can easily buy decaf coffee, tea and cola, and different
> types of these products have different levels fo the drug in them. Not a
> single person so far as anyone knows has died solely of caffeine poisoning
> from drinking too much tea, or suffered brain and/or motor damage. I can
> show you plenty of ****ed-up potheads though, just as I can show you plenty
> of ****ed-up alcoholics, cigarette smokers, and dope fiends.
> >

Yes, prohibition has made people find ways to concentrate drugs to
make smuggling them more profitable. You can thank the Drug Warriors
for that.

"Tea" > wrote in message >...
> "Mike Petro" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
[snip]
> Coca is not chewed in the US, sending small trace amounts into the body.
> It's snorted or smoked or shot- all of which are lethal delivery systems.
> Popy juice is not but with wine and used in minute amounts in the US- it's
> processed to deliver the biggest hit it has. And as for pot, any grower
> will tell you that the plants are bred to give a much higher high than they
> did in the 50s or even 70s- the cannibis available now is not mild.
> Meanwhile, one can easily buy decaf coffee, tea and cola, and different
> types of these products have different levels fo the drug in them. Not a
> single person so far as anyone knows has died solely of caffeine poisoning
> from drinking too much tea, or suffered brain and/or motor damage. I can
> show you plenty of ****ed-up potheads though, just as I can show you plenty
> of ****ed-up alcoholics, cigarette smokers, and dope fiends.
> >

Yes, prohibition has made people find ways to concentrate drugs to
make smuggling them more profitable. You can thank the Drug Warriors
for that.

"Mike Petro" > wrote in message
...
>
>
> Dear Shyne,
>
> My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
> group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
> HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
> problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
> caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
> if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
> annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
> ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
> back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
> weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
> that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
> drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
> you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
> (drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
> with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
> from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
> peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
> Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
> possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
> been EXACTLY where you are right now.
>
> Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
> Clean and sober for 16 years.
>
> Mike P.

Thanks. Mike. I couldn't have said it better myself. I come from a family
of drug users- alcoholics. During a very bad period of my life I dated
several dry drunks in a row. Both groups thought drugs were the Devil; the
only thing on which they disagreed was whether alcohol was healthy. quite
frankly I found the dry drunks more annoying- because they couldn't drink or
be near alcohol, nobody could use it. One of them didn't even want me to use
rum in a cake, even though the alcohol would have evaporated during the
cooking process.

Cannabis is not healthy. It's a drug. Caffeine is a drug too. The healthy
opium poppy enslaved much of China, and the drug at that time wasn't nearly
as pure and dangerous as it is now. Cannabis is purer than ever- and I know
plenty of hop heads whose brains are fried. Of course, they think they're
fine- but they don't move as quickly or accurately as others who aren't
habitual users.

Caffeine can be a horrible drug if one is suffering from withdrawal- but
most people aren't using that much of it if they are tea drinkers. It's a
big deal nowadays if I have two cups in a row. There are plenty of people
like me who don't suffer from java jitters or anything else.
In every society, mild psychotropics can be found. Even in the wild,
animals such as apes and elephants gravitate towards fermented fruit and
plants that make them 'feel good'. While there are numerous unfortunate
cases of people who suffer from addiction most people and animals don't.

Coca is not chewed in the US, sending small trace amounts into the body.
It's snorted or smoked or shot- all of which are lethal delivery systems.
Popy juice is not but with wine and used in minute amounts in the US- it's
processed to deliver the biggest hit it has. And as for pot, any grower
will tell you that the plants are bred to give a much higher high than they
did in the 50s or even 70s- the cannibis available now is not mild.
Meanwhile, one can easily buy decaf coffee, tea and cola, and different
types of these products have different levels fo the drug in them. Not a
single person so far as anyone knows has died solely of caffeine poisoning
from drinking too much tea, or suffered brain and/or motor damage. I can
show you plenty of ****ed-up potheads though, just as I can show you plenty
of ****ed-up alcoholics, cigarette smokers, and dope fiends.
>

"RC" > wrote in message
news:2Qh3d.57318$wu.33199@okepread04...
> > I now try my best every day to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise
when I
> > can on my days off. What really ****es me off is how our society has
such a
> > relaxed attitude towards caffeine and its related alkaloids, when in
fact
> > they are probably one of the biggest causes of heart disease - which is
in
> > fact the #1 killer of human beings in the United States.
> >

Gimme a break... I say.

Yes, caffeine is psychoactive, yes it is stimulating... but it is not bad
for most people. There is even evidence that people who consume caffeine
are mentally more healthy than those who do not, specificly, the rate of
suicide in one study was lower for coffee drinkers, than those who
abstained. Like nicotine, it might also play a role in preventing
Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Also, tea, and to a lesser extent coffee,
contain substances called polyphenols, which have anti-oxidant properties
that are "good for you" (just like red wine, only the alcohol in red wine
isn't particularly "good for you", and not for the 40,000 people killed by
drunk drivers every year... either).

Almost everyone in the US consumes caffeine to some degree. If it were so
horrible, our society would be nonfunctional... but this is not the case.

And caffeine doesn't cause heart disease. In large doses it might cause
heart arrythmia in certain vulnerable people (we are talking ALOT of coffee
here), but overall it has not been proven to cause heart disease. A dark
chocolate bar has about 20-30 mg of caffeine- that's far less caffeine than
in a can of coke or a cup of green tea. Most people will not get a caffeine
buzz from chocolate.

So go ahead... shun every single psychoactive substance out there... for
no other reason than it is addictive. You'll be missing out, not the rest
of us.

BEFORE the discovery of caffeine, most of Europe wandered around in a
semi-drunken state - in 1790 the average European or American colonists
consumed the equivalent of 5 1/2 gallons of alcohol per year (that's pure
ethyl alcohol), whereas today the average person only cosumes about 2
gallons. Drunkeness was frequent, as well, often assosciated with
fighting, quarelling, spouse abuse, etc. It's a wonder that people got
anything done at all (and their livers didn't explode). I wonder how much
of the scientific and industrial revolution in the Western world is
attributable to these alkaloids that sobered up the white man?

It's important to note that, though many foods contain evil-sounding
chemicals, those chemicals are just names we have assigned to organic
compounds we've analyzed. Caffeine is one of many chemicals that happen to
exist in the non-poisonous plant kingdom.

Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having over
500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
humans who ingest it regularly.

Geoff

"magnulus" > wrote in message
news
> Gimme a break... I say.
(snip)

"Geoffrey Bard" > wrote in message
news:Wu45d.150029$3l3.113075@attbi_s03...
> Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
> recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
> really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having over
> 500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
> taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
> humans who ingest it regularly.
>

It depends on how it's made, and how much you consume... chocolate could
be healthy. Milk chocolate candy is mostly milk fats and waxes.

I really preffer making my own chocolate- boil some water, put in some
Hershey's chocolate baking powder, stir a while, add a little sweetener.
It's almost like coffee in how strong it tastes.

Yes, milk chocolate is a good source of zits, but I've been zit-free since I
converted to only eating dark chocolate. Typical dark chocolate has just a
few ingredients: cocoa powder and perhaps cocoa butter; sugar; vanilla; and
perhaps soy lecithin as an emulsifier. Some dark chocolates only have cocoa
powder and sugar. The taste varies widely because of the type of cacao bean
and the processing methods (fermentation, roasting, etc.).

Instead of regular grocery-store cocoa powder, which is usually Dutch
processing (treated with alkalki to reduce the acidity), I've been
interested in finding a cocoa powder that is not Dutch processed. Anyone
know of a source? I haven't looked for it seriously yet.

Geoff

"magnulus" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Geoffrey Bard" > wrote in message
> news:Wu45d.150029$3l3.113075@attbi_s03...
>> Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
>> recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
>> really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having
>> over
>> 500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
>> taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
>> humans who ingest it regularly.
>>
>
> It depends on how it's made, and how much you consume... chocolate could
> be healthy. Milk chocolate candy is mostly milk fats and waxes.
>
> I really preffer making my own chocolate- boil some water, put in some
> Hershey's chocolate baking powder, stir a while, add a little sweetener.
> It's almost like coffee in how strong it tastes.
>
>
>

Yes, milk chocolate is a good source of zits, but I've been zit-free since I
converted to only eating dark chocolate. Typical dark chocolate has just a
few ingredients: cocoa powder and perhaps cocoa butter; sugar; vanilla; and
perhaps soy lecithin as an emulsifier. Some dark chocolates only have cocoa
powder and sugar. The taste varies widely because of the type of cacao bean
and the processing methods (fermentation, roasting, etc.).

Instead of regular grocery-store cocoa powder, which is usually Dutch
processing (treated with alkalki to reduce the acidity), I've been
interested in finding a cocoa powder that is not Dutch processed. Anyone
know of a source? I haven't looked for it seriously yet.

Geoff

"magnulus" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Geoffrey Bard" > wrote in message
> news:Wu45d.150029$3l3.113075@attbi_s03...
>> Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
>> recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
>> really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having
>> over
>> 500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
>> taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
>> humans who ingest it regularly.
>>
>
> It depends on how it's made, and how much you consume... chocolate could
> be healthy. Milk chocolate candy is mostly milk fats and waxes.
>
> I really preffer making my own chocolate- boil some water, put in some
> Hershey's chocolate baking powder, stir a while, add a little sweetener.
> It's almost like coffee in how strong it tastes.
>
>
>

Yes, milk chocolate is a good source of zits, but I've been zit-free since I
converted to only eating dark chocolate. Typical dark chocolate has just a
few ingredients: cocoa powder and perhaps cocoa butter; sugar; vanilla; and
perhaps soy lecithin as an emulsifier. Some dark chocolates only have cocoa
powder and sugar. The taste varies widely because of the type of cacao bean
and the processing methods (fermentation, roasting, etc.).

Instead of regular grocery-store cocoa powder, which is usually Dutch
processing (treated with alkalki to reduce the acidity), I've been
interested in finding a cocoa powder that is not Dutch processed. Anyone
know of a source? I haven't looked for it seriously yet.

Geoff

"magnulus" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Geoffrey Bard" > wrote in message
> news:Wu45d.150029$3l3.113075@attbi_s03...
>> Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
>> recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
>> really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having
>> over
>> 500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
>> taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
>> humans who ingest it regularly.
>>
>
> It depends on how it's made, and how much you consume... chocolate could
> be healthy. Milk chocolate candy is mostly milk fats and waxes.
>
> I really preffer making my own chocolate- boil some water, put in some
> Hershey's chocolate baking powder, stir a while, add a little sweetener.
> It's almost like coffee in how strong it tastes.
>
>
>

So this 85% cocoa dark chocolate (Lindt & Sprungli) I'm munching on
right now is good for me? Cool.

Geoffrey Bard wrote:
> Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
> recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
> really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having over
> 500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
> taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
> humans who ingest it regularly.
>
> Geoff
>

It's important to note that, though many foods contain evil-sounding
chemicals, those chemicals are just names we have assigned to organic
compounds we've analyzed. Caffeine is one of many chemicals that happen to
exist in the non-poisonous plant kingdom.

Dark chocolate (truly "dark", that is around 60%+ cacao bean solids) has
recently come to the spotlight has being a beneficial health food and not
really a candy. Yet its chemical analysis appears horrifying, having over
500 different organic chemicals (try chomping on cocoa nibs...it doesn't
taste so good). But it's still a plant food and has proven benefits to
humans who ingest it regularly.

Geoff

"magnulus" > wrote in message
news
> Gimme a break... I say.
(snip)

>Shyne wrote:
>> ...In times when you don't want them (which is 99.9% of the time for me, as
>> I am basically a non-drug/alcohol/tobacco/caffeine user - i.e., I only eat
>> food and beverages with no mind-altering properties) that is.
>>
>> Basically I am really annoyed how often I have to _specifically check_ what
>> foods and beverages I consume to make sure they don't contain any IRRITATING
>> compounds. For example, today I had a couple candy bars (chocolate
>> containing) and I had trouble getting relaxed in the evening, thanks to the
>> irritants (caffeine, etc) in these candy bars. I'm someone who has dealt
>> with mental health issues in the past (in my teens and early 20's) and I
>> just recently (4 months ago) quit cannabis, caffeine, and psychiatric
>> medications (Risperdal and Effexor) all cold turkey, all at once.
>>
>> I now try my best every day to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise when I
>> can on my days off. What really ****es me off is how our society has such a
>> relaxed attitude towards caffeine and its related alkaloids, when in fact
>> they are probably one of the biggest causes of heart disease - which is in
>> fact the #1 killer of human beings in the United States.
>>
>> I have come to the conclusion that the U.S. Government only legalizes the
>> consumables which are the most deadly, so essentially they are mass
>> murderers. Alcohol is a poison, caffeine is toxic, and nicotine is a
>> poison. On the other hand, everything that is _illegal_ has some or many
>> medicinal uses to keep people healthy, whether that be spiritually or
>> physically - cannabis is the most healthy plant known to mankind, coca
>> leaves are one of the most nutricious of plants, and opium poppies have
>> thousands of medicinal uses. And they are all illegal for citizens to
>> possess or consume. Ironic, isn't it...

Dear Shyne,

My recommendation to you is to find your nearest Narcotics Anonymous
group and get involved! They can teach you how to live a drug free
HAPPY life IF you let them. The first thing you will learn is that the
problem is YOU, not everyone and everything around you. Sugar,
caffeine, and other mild mood altering substances are only a problem
if your use of them makes your life unmanageable. If you find it
annoying that you have to read the labels to ensure that you don't
ingest what amounts to poison to you, then either get over it or get
back on the drugs. The world is not going to conform to your
weaknesses, and just because you cant handle something doesn't mean
that other people cant. All of that hogwash about legalization of
drugs is just rearmaments of your drug addicted past. The problem that
you are dealing with right now is that you have lost your best friend
(drugs) and you haven't figured out how to live at peace with yourself
with out them. Excuse me for not being very sympathetic, but I know
from experience that you can either be miserable, or you can live at
peace with yourself, and the choice is yours not anybody else's.
Seriously, go find a NA meeting, it will absolutely be the best
possible move you can make! There will be many people there who have
been EXACTLY where you are right now.

Been there, done that, came out the other side.....
Clean and sober for 16 years.

Mike P.

"RC" > wrote in message
news:2Qh3d.57318$wu.33199@okepread04...
> > I now try my best every day to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise
when I
> > can on my days off. What really ****es me off is how our society has
such a
> > relaxed attitude towards caffeine and its related alkaloids, when in
fact
> > they are probably one of the biggest causes of heart disease - which is
in
> > fact the #1 killer of human beings in the United States.
> >

Gimme a break... I say.

Yes, caffeine is psychoactive, yes it is stimulating... but it is not bad
for most people. There is even evidence that people who consume caffeine
are mentally more healthy than those who do not, specificly, the rate of
suicide in one study was lower for coffee drinkers, than those who
abstained. Like nicotine, it might also play a role in preventing
Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Also, tea, and to a lesser extent coffee,
contain substances called polyphenols, which have anti-oxidant properties
that are "good for you" (just like red wine, only the alcohol in red wine
isn't particularly "good for you", and not for the 40,000 people killed by
drunk drivers every year... either).

Almost everyone in the US consumes caffeine to some degree. If it were so
horrible, our society would be nonfunctional... but this is not the case.

And caffeine doesn't cause heart disease. In large doses it might cause
heart arrythmia in certain vulnerable people (we are talking ALOT of coffee
here), but overall it has not been proven to cause heart disease. A dark
chocolate bar has about 20-30 mg of caffeine- that's far less caffeine than
in a can of coke or a cup of green tea. Most people will not get a caffeine
buzz from chocolate.

So go ahead... shun every single psychoactive substance out there... for
no other reason than it is addictive. You'll be missing out, not the rest
of us.

BEFORE the discovery of caffeine, most of Europe wandered around in a
semi-drunken state - in 1790 the average European or American colonists
consumed the equivalent of 5 1/2 gallons of alcohol per year (that's pure
ethyl alcohol), whereas today the average person only cosumes about 2
gallons. Drunkeness was frequent, as well, often assosciated with
fighting, quarelling, spouse abuse, etc. It's a wonder that people got
anything done at all (and their livers didn't explode). I wonder how much
of the scientific and industrial revolution in the Western world is
attributable to these alkaloids that sobered up the white man?