Health & Fitness

This article was previously published November 21, 2020, and has been updated with new information.

A growing interest in health and heath food has helped drive consumer demand for fish to an all-time high. A diet rich in fish has grown so popular that global fish consumption jumped 122% from 1990 to 2018, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).¹

Fish is often viewed as a healthier alternative to meat² due to the so-called "benefits" on human health and the environment. But is it really healthier for you and the planet? That all depends on what kind of fish you're eating and where it's sourced from.

An increasing amount of fish on the market — in restaurants and grocery stores — is sourced from large-scale industrial fish farms. These farms rely on a toxic cocktail of pharmaceutical drugs, pesticides and even genetically engineered crops such as soy.³

Industrial ocean fish farms or factory fish farms⁴ where fish are raised numbering in the hundreds of thousands or millions, often in net pens in the open ocean, pollute the environment with massive amounts of fish waste and threaten already vulnerable wild fish with disease.

Fish raised in crowded and unsanitary conditions are, unfortunately, on the rise. The number of fish produced on fish farms skyrocketed 527% from 1990 to 2018, according to FAO. There are a couple of reasons for this spike, one being the world's appetite for fish is growing. Another reason is that, by 2016, 90% of the world's wild fish stocks had already been depleted due to overfishing.⁵

The result is more people are eating farm-raised fish produced on land in massive tanks or in open ocean net pens. In fact, the world now produces more farmed fish than it does beef.⁶ And, 50% of the fish eaten worldwide is now farm-raised.⁷

Health Benefits of Farmed Salmon Versus Wild-Caught Salmon

Salmon is one of the most widely sold types of factory farm fish, and salmon farms are now the fastest-growing type of food production system in the world.⁸ A fan favorite among fish eaters, salmon is often a go-to for health-conscious consumers. Loaded with vitamins, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids, salmon has all the characteristics associated with healthy food.

But salmon is only healthy if it is wild-caught, meaning it was fished from its natural habitat, where it fed on natural organisms. Salmon is not healthy for you if it is farm-raised. Farmed salmon actually has more in common with junk food than health food.

Farmed fish are raised on a diet of processed, high-fat, high-protein feed that can include everything from genetically engineered soybeans and pesticides, to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxins, to antibiotics.⁹ The dry pellet feed given to farmed salmon is what makes it so toxic to you when you eat it.

The toxins in farmed salmon feed accumulate in salmon fat. One study,¹⁰ which tested 700 salmon samples collected from around the world, found PCB concentrations in farmed salmon are, on average, eight times higher than in wild salmon.¹¹

Farmed salmon in general contain higher levels of contaminants than wild salmon, in part because of their elevated fat content. So even when raised in similarly contaminated conditions, farmed salmon will absorb more toxins than wild fish.

Farmed salmon also does not have the nutritional profile of wild salmon, containing far higher amounts of omega-6, which can have deleterious health ramifications, seeing how most people are deficient in omega-3 while getting far more omega-6 than they need.

Majority of Salmon Eaten in the US Comes From Fish Farms

With all the farmed salmon floating around, you might be surprised to learn that the U.S. captures nearly one-third of the world's wild salmon. But more than half of it is sent overseas, where it's deboned and processed using cheap labor.

There was a time when our wild-caught salmon would be shipped back to us after processing but, today, the majority of it stays in Asia as a result of Japan's shrinking fish supply and China's improved economic status, which allows its citizens the luxury to purchase it.

The result is more farm-raised salmon for Americans. Two-thirds of the salmon we eat here in the U.S. is imported, mostly from industrial fish farms in Chile, Canada, Norway and processing factories in China.¹²

Similar to industrial animal agriculture, farming salmon (and fish in general) on a large scale results in a massive amount of animal waste or, in this case, fish waste. According to The Guardian:¹³

"A pen with 200,000 fish produces an enormous amount of waste. In nature, animal waste is not harmful; in fact it is often beneficial. But large concentrations of it can be destructive. The waste of wild fish swimming around is not harmful, but the waste of hundreds of thousands staying in the same spot is."

Ocean Water Fish Farms Are Invisible Factory Farms

From an outward perspective, the environmental impact of large fish farms can easily be obscured. Similar to factory farms on land, which house large numbers of cows, pigs and chickens yet are often kept out of public view, ocean fish farms are hidden from the public eye. The fish pens are placed up to 164 feet beneath the surface of the water.

These seemingly invisible underwater pens can hold up to 200,000 fish each. In Norway — which has a huge farmed salmon industry — some fish farms have eight to 10 pens. That means factory fish farms can house up to 2 million fish, which is more fish than the wild Atlantic salmon population of the entire world, The Guardian reports.¹⁴

Fish farms of this scale require a lot of capital, which is why most salmon farms are owned by large multinational companies.

Escaped Farmed Salmon Threaten Vulnerable Wild Salmon

Another major problem with open ocean fish farms is fish that escape. Whenever Atlantic salmon are farmed near wild Atlantic salmon, mixing occurs. When males escape, they usually die off because they aren't tough enough to compete with wild males during the spawning process.

But when females escape, they lay eggs that are fertilized by wild males. This is problematic because the genes of farmed fish are not equipped to survive in the wild. Farmed fish also lack the basic survival skills that wild fish have. According to The Guardian:¹⁵

"Farmed salmon are not greatly different from one pen to another. They have been selected for fast growth, and growing fast seems to be their major skill. They do not have all the special survival skills of the wild stock. Although fast-growing, they only grow for a short time and never achieve the size of the more slow-growing wild salmon.

This is one of the reasons that they do not reproduce at the same rate as the larger wild fish. A salmon living in the wild that has a farmed parent or even grandparent is much less likely to survive at sea, and, in fact, sea survival has declined in places with farming."

Farmed salmon that escape from ocean net pens are so common that more than one-third of "wild-caught" salmon from the Faroe Islands, tucked between Iceland and Norway in the North Atlantic Ocean (and politically part of Denmark), are actually escaped farmed fish.¹⁶

Fear of farmed fish escaping into the wild and threatening wild fish is why fish farming is now banned — and will be phased out by 2025 — in Washington state.¹⁷ In 2017, a fish-farm spill occurred off Cypress Island when a net pen holding 263,000 salmon gave way.

The farm's owner, Cooke Aquaculture Pacific, tried to downplay the seriousness of the spill and initially said only around 160,000 Atlantic salmon had escaped. But it was later confirmed that the number was as high as 263,000.

Fish Farms Spread Parasitic Sea Lice to Wild Salmon

Cooke blamed the damaged pens on a solar eclipse that brought "exceptionally high tides and currents."¹⁸ But an investigation by the state of Washington found that Cooke was negligent because the company failed to properly clean the nets on the pens. This led to an excessive buildup of mussels and other sea life on the nets, The Seattle Times reported.¹⁹

The spill threatened native wild salmon including the endangered Chinook. The concern was the farmed Atlantic salmon would crossbreed with the wild Pacific salmon and expose the wild fish to disease and pests such as sea lice.

Sea lice are a major problem for farmed salmon, and thanks to industrial ocean fish farms, it's now a problem for wild salmon, too. Sea lice that run rampant in fish farms can attack wild salmon swimming nearby. Fisherman on the west coast have reported seeing wild salmon swimming near fish farms infected with sea lice. The Guardian reports:²⁰

"Before there were fish farms they [sea lice] did not pose a significant problem. They roamed the ocean looking for salmon, which make up a tiny minority of the fish population. One or two might attach themselves to a salmon, and the fish would live with the parasites until it returned to the river. Sea lice cannot live long in fresh water, so they fall off and die in the river.

Until farming, sea lice survived but never found huge schools of salmon on which to feed. Now they find salmon farms with hundreds of thousands of salmon trapped in one spot.

The lice eat the salmon's skin. It is difficult to penetrate the scales so they attack the head and neck. They will completely skin a fish's head and then it will die of exposure. Farmers find the dead fish with raw skinned heads at the bottom of the pens. It is not unusual to lose a quarter of a pen. Sea lice are a huge financial loss for fish farmers."

'All Natural' Atlantic Salmon Come From Fish Farms

Another problem with fish farming is that the companies that raise farmed fish aren't exactly truthful about their practices. Mowi USA, the world's largest producer of Atlantic salmon products, was accused of misleading consumers with false marketing claims.

Organic Consumers Association (OCA) filed a lawsuit in August 2020 against Mowi and Mowi Ducktrap for deceptive marketing and advertising of smoked Atlantic salmon products sold under the Ducktrap River of Maine brand.²¹

Many popular smoked Atlantic salmon brands lure in consumers with misleading claims such as "all natural," "healthy and nutritious" or "sustainably sourced." But the truth is that all smoked Atlantic salmon products are made from salmon raised on massive industrial fish farms that, in some cases, are nowhere near the Atlantic Ocean. As Katherine Paul of OCA writes:²²

"Commercial fishing of Atlantic salmon — a species once abundant in the wild but now nearly extinct — is prohibited in the U.S. In the Gulf of Maine, they are even protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Similarly, in Canada, wild Atlantic salmon in the Bay of Fundy (located in the Gulf of Maine) are protected under the Accord for the Protection of Species at Risk.

That means all Atlantic salmon sold to consumers in food stores and restaurants — whether fresh, frozen, or smoked — comes from industrial salmon farms."

To take action on this issue, please sign the petition telling Ducktrap of Maine to stop falsely claiming its smoked Atlantic salmon is "all natural."

Enjoy Safe and Delicious Fish

From the toxic drugs and chemicals used in fish farming, to its environmental impact on wild fish and the false and misleading marketing claims used by multinational fish farm companies, there are plenty of reasons to avoid farmed fish.

Instead, I only recommend eating safer seafood choices such as wild-caught Alaskan salmon, sardines, anchovies, mackerel and herring. All of these are at low risk of contamination yet are high in healthy omega-3 fats, without the problems posed by fish farming. You'll want to opt for sustainably harvested wild-caught fish as well.

One of the best options toward this end is to look for the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) logo, which features the letters MSC and a blue check mark in the shape of a fish. The MSC logo ensures the seafood came from a responsible fishery that uses sustainable fishing practices to minimize environmental impacts.²³

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Heart disease has ranked No. 1 in the top 10 leading causes of death in the U.S. for years. In 2020,¹ 690,882 people died from heart disease. This is compared to 633,842 who died in 2015, which represents a 9% jump in six short years. One of the key risk factors for heart disease is high blood pressure.² New data show a diet rich in herbs and spices may help reduce high blood pressure.³

Blood pressure measurements are expressed as two numbers.⁴ The top number is called the systolic number and the bottom is called the diastolic number. These numbers represent the pressure measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) required to move blood through your arteries. The top number is how much pressure is on the artery as the heart beats and the diastolic number is how much pressure remains in the artery between heart beats.

In 2017, the American College of Cardiology,⁵ in collaboration with the American Heart Association,⁶ published new guidelines that defined high blood pressure. This moved the measurement to diagnose high blood pressure from 140/90 to 130/80 mmHg.⁷

Researchers had been noticing a rise in heart disease in individuals whose blood pressure was previously thought to be within normal limits. With the changed guidelines, the American Heart Association⁸ estimated more than 100 million Americans have high blood pressure.

High blood pressure increases the risk of heart attack, kidney disease, vision loss, stroke and damaged blood vessels.⁹ New data published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition demonstrate how closely associated your diet is to your blood pressure measurement.¹⁰

24 Herbs and Spices Over Four Weeks Lowered Blood Pressure

Researchers at Pennsylvania State University¹¹ sought to understand the effect that eating herbs and spices would have on cardiovascular disease. According to the researchers,¹² this was the first controlled feeding study to evaluate mixed herbs and spices in a traditional U.S. diet against the risk factors for heart disease.

The researchers recruited 71 people with known risk factors for heart disease. Of those, 63 participants completed the controlled feeding study. The researchers used blood samples and blood pressure to gauge the effect of a low (0.5 grams), moderate (3.2 grams) and high (6.5 grams) intake of herbs and spices.

The participants consumed each diet in random order for a period of four weeks with a two-week washout between each diet.¹³ The remainder of the diet was based on the average American intake. The herbs and spices included basil, thyme, cinnamon and turmeric.

The researchers discovered that those consuming the diet high in herbs and spices had lower systolic blood pressure then those who consumed the diet with medium or low-dose herbs and spices. The participants wore a blood pressure monitor for 24 hours at the start of the study and at the end of each treatment period.

The researchers were excited by the results because the study did not specifically change the diet to be heart healthy. The only difference was in the number of herbs and spices consumed by the participants. Penny M. Kris-Etherton, professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State Evan Pugh University,¹⁴ said in a press release:¹⁵

“I think it’s really significant that participants consumed an average American diet throughout the study and we still found these results. We didn’t decrease sodium, we didn’t increase fruits and vegetables, we just added herbs and spices. It begs the next question that if we did alter the diet in these ways, how much better would the results be?”

Vitamin D Deficiency May Be Linked to High Blood Pressure

Several important factors influence your blood pressure, and your vitamin D level is one of them.¹⁶ Researchers have found vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency are associated with high blood pressure in adults and now find that low levels in infants and children can increase the risk of high blood pressure later in childhood and during the teen years.¹⁷

Vitamin D plays a significant role in several health conditions, and it may be one of the simplest solutions to a wide range of problems. Optimally, you'll want to obtain vitamin D through sun exposure. However, since many dermatologists and other agencies^18,19,20 began telling people to avoid the sun and use liberal amounts of sunscreen, vitamin D deficiency has reached epidemic proportions.^21,22,23

In the U.K., the optimal level of vitamin D is 20 ng/mL (50 nmol/L) and higher.²⁴ However, in the U.S., sufficient levels are between 30 ng/mL (75 nmol/L) and 60 ng/mL (150 nmol/L)²⁵ or from 40 ng/mL (100 nmol/L) to 60 ng/mL (150 nmol/L).²⁶ One study²⁷ published in 2018 found 39.92% of the people had a vitamin D level of 20 ng/mL or less and 60.08% had levels of 20 ng/mL or greater.

Since the lowest sufficient level is 30 ng/mL, at least 40% of the population surveyed were deficient in vitamin D, and likely higher. Evidence suggests that low levels are associated with high blood pressure. One literature review²⁸ of 30 randomized clinical trials and 4,744 participants found that vitamin D3 could help reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The effect appeared dependent on the dose, duration and population.

A second review²⁹ of 17 trials with 1,687 participants found supplementation with vitamin D had a statistically significant difference in reducing systolic and diastolic pressure in people who were vitamin D deficient and had high blood pressure.

Low levels of vitamin D also appear to have a predictive value in children. Researchers³⁰ followed 775 children in ages ranging from birth to age 18 from 2005 to 2012 to investigate the effect vitamin D had on the development of high systolic blood pressure. Low vitamin D status was defined as less than 11 ng/mL at birth and less than 25 ng/mL during early childhood.

The researchers³¹ compared those with low levels of vitamin D to children who were born with adequate levels. They found that children with low levels had about a 60% higher risk of elevated systolic blood pressure from ages 6 to 18. Children who experienced persistently low levels throughout childhood were at double the risk of elevated systolic blood pressure between ages 3 and 18.³²

Take Care With Your Sodium/Potassium Ratio

In the U.S. and many other developed countries, salt has been vilified as a primary cause of high blood pressure.³³ The idea is with more salt, your body retains more fluid and therefore increases the work of the heart. According to research presented at the American Heart Association meeting in 2013,³⁴ excessive salt contributed to 2.3 million heart-related deaths worldwide in 2010.

However, it is important to understand that sodium and potassium work together to affect your blood pressure. The average reported intake of potassium from food is about half³⁵ of the 4,700 mg recommended.³⁶ Research has demonstrated these low levels of potassium may have a significant impact on blood pressure,^37,38,39 especially as it relates to the amount of salt normally found in the Western diet.

Potassium works to relax the walls of your arteries, which keeps your muscles from cramping and lowers your blood pressure.⁴⁰ Reduction in blood pressure with added potassium has also been associated with a reduced risk of stroke and all-cause mortality.⁴¹

It's recommended that you consume in the range of two to three times more potassium than sodium, depending on whether you currently have a heart condition or diabetes.^42,43 But most Americans consume more sodium than potassium.

If researchers are looking only at sodium levels and not the ratio, which is more important than the overall salt intake,⁴⁴ then it may appear as if salt is driving high blood pressure. Therefore, by lowering your salt intake you automatically improve the ratio.

More Strategies to Help Control Blood Pressure

There are many factors that can positively or negatively affect your blood pressure. As discussed, your diet plays an important role in the nutrients supplied to your arterial system. Several other strategies you may consider include:

Exercise more — The American Heart Association45 recommends activity and exercise to help manage blood pressure. Studies have also demonstrated the effectiveness of exercise, including as a preventive strategy.46 Regular activity47 can lower blood pressure, reduce heart rest and prevent remodeling from high blood pressure that is pathological and increases the risk of heart failure and mortality.

Reduce stress — The American Heart Association48 also recommends managing your stress to help control high blood pressure. Stress stimulates the nervous system to produce hormones that cause vasoconstriction.49 This may cause short-term increases in blood pressure.50 Chronic stress can also affect sleep patterns,51 dietary habits52 and motivation to exercise,53 all of which are key factors in raising blood pressure.54 Acute stress is also associated with broken heart syndrome, which is a potentially life-threatening condition that mimics a heart attack.55

Try inspiratory muscle strength training — One study56 showed using high resistance inspiratory muscle strength training (IMST) could reduce blood pressure measurements as well as aerobic exercise or meditation. IMST was originally developed for critically ill patients with respiratory diseases. The strategy uses a handheld device that provides resistance to the user as they inhale vigorously, thus strengthening muscles.

Incorporate meditation — Mind-body practices that trigger your body's relaxation response,57 such as meditation, play an important role in lowering blood pressure by favorably influencing a recently identified set of genes and biological pathways.58 As the relaxation response is elicited, biochemical changes occur, including decreased oxygen consumption, blood pressure, heart and respiratory rate.59

Use intermittent fasting — This is a form of time restricted eating during which you typically fast for 16 to 18 hours with a window of six to eight hours to eat. Evidence shows that there are several benefits to the cardiovascular system, including lowering blood pressure.60 A recent study61 from Baylor College of Medicine suggested that fasting may help normalize blood pressure by impacting the gut microbiota.

Sauna bathing — Sometimes some of the simplest strategies can have a tremendous impact. Sweating in a sauna can help expel toxins, improve blood circulation and improve mitochondrial function. In a video lecture by Rhonda Patrick, Ph.D.,62 she reviews how sauna bathing can be used as an exercise mimetic to increase your longevity. In this lecture she notes that just a single sauna session has been shown to lower blood pressure, improve heart rate variability, and improve arterial compliance. Some of the positive benefits of the sauna on heart health may have to do with similar physiological changes that also occur during physical exercise.

Check your magnesium — Magnesium deficiency can contribute to a significant number of health problems since it is involved in hundreds of biochemical reactions in the body.63 One scientific review64 suggested that low magnesium may be the greatest predictor of heart disease and another65 suggested subclinical deficiency can compromise cardiovascular health. Low magnesium levels have been linked to a high risk of high blood pressure,66 stroke67 and sudden cardiac death.68 The best way to determine your status is to do an RBC magnesium test. This measures the amount of magnesium in your red blood cells. There are several reasons why you may have insufficient or deficient levels of magnesium, including not getting enough from your diet, sweating, stress and lack of sleep. Seek to eat more magnesium-rich foods and consider high-quality magnesium supplements if necessary. Another way of effectively boosting your level is to use an Epsom salt bath as the magnesium is effectively absorbed through your skin.

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I want to share a very personal story and confession with you. When I was in medical school in the late ‘70s, I was on the front cover for the national medical student handbook. I’m sharing this photo with you that shows me administering a vaccine. At that time and for the next 15 years, I rigidly followed all vaccine guidelines.

Even when I started seeing patients at my own clinic, I never once questioned the safety of any vaccine and I rejected information from people voicing their concerns. In the late ‘80s, one particularly kind patient of mine, a mother, patiently shared a personal testimony about her vaccine-injured son, Jack.

She opened my eyes to a reality that I was previously unaware of and did not want to accept. She confronted me with clinical data that I could no longer ignore. In the years that followed, I saw more and more parents who had serious fears about certain vaccines; I slowly came to the realization that informed consent was practically nonexistent and there were serious medical risks being covered up by pharmaceutical companies and the federal government.

We are now in the midst of vaccine mandates that have affected nearly every person on the planet. If you don’t know someone personally who has suffered a reaction to these vaccines, you are likely in the minority.

Victims of Adverse Vaccine Reactions Need To Be Heard

Sheryl Ruettgers, who is the wife of former Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Ken Ruettgers, is among those who have suffered severe adverse effects from a COVID-19 injection.

Four days after receiving the first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 shot in January 2021, Sheryl experienced a severe neurological reaction. She is still experiencing muscle pain, numbness, weakness and paresthesia that inhibit her daily activities.¹ When she connected on social media with others who had been injured by the injections, the private pages were shut down.

After connecting with doctors, nurses and other individuals who had experienced firsthand accounts of adverse reactions, the group wrote a letter to Dr. Janet Woodcock, acting commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It stated:²

“We deserve and strongly request transparency and acknowledgment of these vaccine reactions so that there can be a beginning to the discoveries and developments in the care that we desperately need. Until acknowledgement of these adverse reactions exists, it will be impossible for people to receive care.

We are pleading that you make the medical community aware of these reactions so we can get the medical care that we need and hopefully recover and return to our previously healthy lives.”

The group received no response from federal officials, which led Ken to start the website C19 Vax Reactions,³ for people to share their stories. There you can read over 500 real testimonies of adverse reactions to the shots and view dozens of videos detailing individuals’ reactions.

In one example, 17-year-old Everest Romney received his first dose of the Pfizer shot, and experienced extreme swelling in his arm and neck that night.⁴ Two days later, the previously healthy athlete was unable to lift his head due to the pain and swelling. A pediatrician dismissed the concerns, blaming them on a sports injury.

His mother insisted on a CT scan, which revealed a blood clot inside his jugular vein on the same side he got the shot. Rare blood clots in his brain were also later revealed. He ended up in the ICU, where doctors still refused to acknowledge that the clots could be linked to the shot.

Adverse Reactions Are Being Ignored

Medical observations from doctors, nurses, first responders, general practitioners and other medical professionals regarding negative vaccine reactions are also included at C19 Vax Reactions. For example, Karen W. stated:⁵

“I work in andrology in a fertility clinic. The rumors about the increase in miscarriages is not a rumor. It’s real. We are seeing it, and it started when the shots rolled out to the general public, in March/April.”

Another medical professional, Dr. Katherine R., said:⁶

“I have seen pulmonary emboli, DVTs, psoriasis exacerbations/ diffuse rashes, peripheral neuropathy, and CVAs from the shots. I purposefully look to see when the patient has received their shots. None of my colleagues care to look or ask. It is a nonissue for them. A potential reaction after vaccine is likely to be a coincidence, I’m told.”

Y.D., another doctor, similarly stated:⁷

“I've seen 2 instances of previously localized cancers turn metastatic within a month of the second dose. I've seen 1 instance of polyarticular arthritis in an otherwise healthy mid 30's male. 1 instance of disseminated mucosal vasculitis in a 20 something female. 1 death from a rhinovirus infection after vaccination.”

This is the type of data that need to be collected, analyzed and studied in the midst of this unprecedented injection campaign, but instead those who speak out are silenced or discredited. Kyle Warner, a 29-year-old professional mountain bike racer, developed pericarditis, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and reactive arthritis following his second dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 shot.⁸

An ER doctor refused to believe it was an adverse reaction to the jab and instead blamed it on a “psychotic episode.” At the Real, Not Rare rally held in Washington, D.C., Warner spoke before politicians to make a difference in the support level for vaccine-injured people — which is nonexistent in the U.S. — and voice opposition to vaccine mandates.

Their mission is to gain acknowledgement from elected officials and federal health agencies of vaccine adverse reactions and raise awareness within the medical community about these reactions. The Real, Not Rare website has also collected dozens of stories from people who have been injured by COVID-19 shots.⁹ They also want to stop the denial of certain vaccine exemptions and stop vaccine mandates:¹⁰

“Real lives are being affected by ‘not so rare’ consequences. Many vaccine injured individuals are seeking acknowledgment by the media and government so they can receive better healthcare and treatment. Vaccine injured individuals did their part by getting this vaccine, and now they need your help.”

Without Acknowledgment, ‘We Don’t Exist’

In a second letter to the CDC and FDA, dated September 4, 2021, the “ever-growing group of Americans who have suffered severe and ongoing neurological adverse reactions” to the COVID-19 shots, asked for acknowledgement that these reactions exist. “Until you acknowledge us, we simply do not exist,” they wrote, adding:¹¹

“Doctors tell us repeatedly that if neurological reactions were occurring, the medical community would be promptly notified by the CDC and FDA … The experts at the NIH have stated that they believe these reactions are treatable and that early intervention is key to reducing the severity and duration of these disabling reactions.

Given that these adverse reactions are being denied recognition, it is impossible for those who are injured to receive any early intervention and, therefore people remain hopelessly injured.”

Four Categories of Adverse Events Described

While health officials remain silent about COVID-19 injection reactions, the growing number of reports cannot be silenced forever. Board-certified internist and cardiologist Dr. Peter McCullough¹² detailed the nonfatal syndromes that are occurring after COVID-19 shots, which cause symptoms similar to that of long COVID in many cases. The shot-induced syndromes fall into four areas, the first being cardiac.

In addition to myocarditis, a recognized adverse reaction to the shots, atrial fibrillation in young people and pericarditis can also occur post-COVID-19 shot. The second category of shot-induced syndromes is neurologic, which causes neurological symptoms similar to those among COVID-19 long haulers, as well as additional, more serious, effects. This includes Guillain-Barré syndrome, which can be fatal, bell’s palsy, seizures, persistent headaches and blood clots in the brain.

The third category is immunologic, which includes suppression of lymphocyte count and reactivation of other viral syndromes, including Epstein-Barr virus and shingles. The fourth category — hematologic — occurs about two weeks after the shot and describes vaccine-induced thrombocytopenic purpura.

Signs include bruising all over the body, bleeding from the gums and nose and dark urine. If you notice these signs in the weeks after receiving a COVID-19 injection, get to a hospital immediately.

For those suffering from these shot-induced syndromes, the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Working Group’s I-RECOVER¹³ protocol for long-haul COVID syndrome has been used to treat shot-induced symptoms with similar success. The protocol can be downloaded in full,¹⁴ giving you step-by-step instructions on how to treat reactions from COVID-19 injections.

Let Your Voice Be Heard

I am dedicated now more than ever to individuals and families who have been injured by these vaccines. They were not informed of the risks. They believed what they were told — that the vaccines were safe and effective. These people’s lives have been changed forever. They have been isolated, unsupported and shamed; wading through grief in the wake of vaccine mandates established “for the greater good.”

The more devoted I became in supporting the ethical principal of informed consent to medical risk taking — which includes the legal right to make voluntary decisions about getting an experimental injection — the more the attacks from the media, the government and pharmaceutical companies were compounded.

People recognize truth when they see and hear it. We are united in our philosophical opposition to government health officials intimidating, threatening and coercing citizens to violate their conscientiously-held beliefs. Censorship is pervasive; big tech has colluded with dictators and pharmaceutical companies to bury the harms occurring through these experimental vaccines, including death.

If you want your voice to be heard, I will help you share your testimony. Vaccine mandates have led to injuries, devastation and deaths — while the brainwashing “get your vaccine now” campaign is being used to divide and conquer.

One parent’s personal grief shared with me nearly 30 years ago changed my life and opened my eyes. One spark is all that is required to start a fire. There is a revolution building — a revolution for freedom to live your life without medical mandates or dictators calling the shots.

Please share your story with us, and encourage others you know who have a story to share theirs. It’s never been more important than now, for you and your family, to take control of your health.

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Your entire body takes direction from your hormones. Hormones are secreted by your endocrine system and are responsible for telling your organs what to do and when to do it.¹ They are essentially chemical messengers that travel throughout your bloodstream, working slowly over time to affect processes like growth and development, metabolism and reproduction.

Sometimes, these chemical messengers may get out of balance, and this leads to chronic disorders such as Type 2 diabetes, weak bones and infertility.² Hormones may be secreted by your adrenal glands, endocrine-related organs, hypothalamus, sex glands and other organs.³

Progesterone is important to fertility and supporting a pregnancy. It’s a steroid hormone secreted by the corpus luteum and then by the placenta if you become pregnant.⁴ In some cases, when couples suffer from infertility, they choose in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This is a complex series of procedures in which eggs are retrieved from the ovaries, fertilized by sperm in a lab and then transferred into the uterus.⁵ One full cycle can take up to three weeks⁶ and cost $12,000.⁷ In response to her struggles with infertility, Amy Galliher-Beckley, Ph.D.,⁸ co-founded MFB Fertility and the progesterone test Proov.⁹

The Estrogen and Progesterone Relationship

Each of your bodily systems maintains a balance to help you maintain optimal health. Your reproductive system is no different. For a woman, there are several hormones affecting a complex system to mature an egg follicle and release an egg where it travels to the uterus. If fertilized, the egg must implant into the uterus, called the endometrium, where it begins to develop into a baby.

These events are controlled by hormones secreted from several sources in the body. The ovaries produce the eggs and are the main source of estrogen. The adrenal glands sit on top of each kidney and also make a small amount. Estrogen plays a role in physical changes during puberty; it also controls the menstrual cycle, protects bone health and affects your mood.¹⁰

The second hormone essential to fertility is progesterone, a steroid hormone that is first secreted by the corpus luteum. After the egg is released, the corpus luteum is left attached to the ovary, which functions as a temporary gland.¹¹ These two hormones are controlled by the release of other hormones.

During the menstrual cycle gonadotropin-releasing hormone is secreted from the hypothalamus, triggering the secretion of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) from the pituitary gland.¹² This begins follicle development and triggers a rise in estrogen.

Luteinizing hormone (LH), also secreted by the pituitary gland, supports the maturation of the follicle and a trigger to cause the egg to be released. When estrogen levels get sufficiently high it signals a sudden release of LH, around mid-cycle, which triggers a set of events that ultimately release the mature egg from the follicle.¹³

Once released, the empty follicle becomes the corpus luteum, which produces progesterone. The release of progesterone triggers the uterus to develop a highly vascularized bed suitable for implantation of a fertilized egg.

Without fertilization, the corpus luteum begins to degenerate, the secretion of progesterone drops off and menstruation occurs. If pregnancy occurs then the corpus luteum produces progesterone for the first 10 weeks until production is taken over by the placenta.^14,15

Not About Getting Pregnant, but Staying Pregnant

As Beckley explains in her interview with Forbes magazine,¹⁶ her test is not about getting pregnant, but rather staying pregnant. Progesterone not only prepares the uterus for the egg to implant; it also protects the endometrium from degeneration and menstruation. While the body is producing high levels of progesterone during a pregnancy, a second egg will not mature.¹⁷

In order to maintain a pregnancy, the corpus luteum must continue to secrete progesterone. This maintains the blood vessels in the endometrium to feed the growing baby. It is in these early weeks that women with low levels of progesterone may have difficulty, both conceiving and developing the right environment for a fertilized egg to grow.

Some women who do get pregnant are at a high risk for miscarriage.¹⁸ The test Beckley developed comes with sticks used in much the same way ovulation and pregnancy tests are used. These sticks measure the amount of progesterone metabolites excreted in the urine. To date, this is the first at-home, over-the-counter test used to evaluate a woman's ability to produce progesterone.¹⁹ Beckley explains:²⁰

"Low progesterone is the number one cause of unexplained infertility. Women who go through IVF protocols all are offered progesterone. If you are not going through IVF, most doctors don't talk about progesterone, they don't offer progesterone, they don't test for progesterone. When your progesterone crashes too quickly, it is called a luteal phase defect."

Luteal Phase Defect Increases Chances of Miscarriage

The luteal phase in a woman's cycle begins after ovulation and represents the second half of the menstrual cycle. The luteal phase is named after the corpus luteum. Luteal Phase Defect (LPD) results in an abnormal endometrial growth that may not support a pregnancy.^21,22

While researchers struggle to identify the underlying dysfunction and efficacy of LPD in supporting fertility, experts report women undergoing IVF always have LPD present.²³ LPD is marked with a luteal phase less than 11 days. However, not all physicians believe the condition exists; reliable tests are lacking.²⁴

Beckley developed the Proov urine test to help women identify a reduction in progesterone during their cycle. According to Beckley,²⁵ her test gives women more knowledge about how their body works and provides a foundation for asking their infertility doctors better questions.

The test measures the presence of metabolites in the urine that should increase and remain elevated after ovulation. It may be used to confirm ovulation and confirm levels of progesterone afterward. A single negative test before ovulation followed by a single positive test will confirm ovulation for women trying to get pregnant.²⁶

For women trying to conceive, the test is recommended four days after peak fertility and then for continued testing 10 days past ovulation.²⁷ When questions arise about levels of progesterone to maintain a pregnancy, they recommend testing six days after peak fertility and as needed during the pregnancy since the test should remain positive.

Other Functions of Progesterone

Although LPD has a significant impact on a woman's ability to carry a pregnancy, it is the subject of debate.²⁸ In some cases, the ovaries release enough progesterone but the uterine lining does not respond.²⁹ LPD has been linked to other health conditions, including:³⁰

Anorexia	Endometriosis
High levels of exercise	Obesity
Thyroid disorders	Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
High levels of prolactinemia (the hormone responsible for breast milk)

In some circumstances, when these conditions are treated, the LPD resolves.³¹ Later in life, if levels of progesterone decline, a woman’s period may become irregular, heavier and longer,³² increasing her chance of experiencing anemia, depending on the amount and length of her period.³³

Variations in hormone levels after menopause may also influence cognition and mood.³⁴ In a study of 643 healthy postmenopausal women, researchers found that while estrogen had little effect on tests of executive function or global cognition, progesterone concentrations were associated with verbal memory. The researchers suggest this positive association merits additional study.

Bioidentical progesterone, also known as micronized progesterone in the oral form, has been successful in helping relieve hot flashes and night sweats during menopause. Dr. Jerilynn Prior from the University of British Columbia Vancouver presented her study at an endocrine society meeting during which she compared the use of progesterone to placebo.³⁵

The study assigned 114 postmenopausal women into one of two groups, a placebo group and another who took 300 mg of micronized oral progesterone daily. To be eligible for the study, the women had to be off hormone therapy for at least six months.³⁶

At the end of the 12-week study, researchers found that the group taking micronized progesterone demonstrated a 56% decrease in a score reflecting the number and intensity of symptoms, while the women taking the placebo reported a 28% decrease.³⁷

Age Does Affect Hormone Balance

As is borne out by the number of women struggling with hormonal imbalances as they age and those requiring fertility assistance to become pregnant after 40,³⁸ Beckley is vocal about the difficulty women may have supporting a pregnancy after she turns 40.³⁹

Beckley says,⁴⁰ “The closer a woman gets to menopause, the least likely her body is going to be able to support a pregnancy.” Much of this is related to the imbalance of hormones required to successfully support a pregnancy that occurs as women age.

Her research in designing the progesterone urine test led Beckley to believe 30% to 40% of women who undergo IVF treatment to become pregnant ultimately do not need IVF.⁴¹ Instead, they may require progesterone to develop a healthy endometrial lining and support early pregnancy.

Overall Fertility Is on the Decline

Couples experience infertility for a number of reasons. In a study⁴² released in 2017, researchers evaluated 38 years of information and found sperm counts declined significantly between 1973 and 2011. The sperm counts declined 52% to 59% in men located in North America, Europe and Australia.

The Australian Department of Health reports 1 in every 6 Australian couples suffers from fertility problems, which they attribute to the decision to have children later in life as well as declining sperm count. Quality and lifestyle factors such as smoking, not eating healthfully, consuming excessive amounts of alcohol and not having a healthy BMI also affect fertility.⁴³

In May 2019, the Pew Research Center reported that for the fourth year in a row, key fertility indicators for U.S. couples declined, reaching a record low.⁴⁴ Two of the three indicators used to determine fertility reflected a decline in numbers.

The total fertility rate, or the estimation of the number of children a woman would have in her lifetime, was 1.73 children in 2018. This was lower than the estimate of 1.74 from the mid-1970s.⁴⁵

Research suggests men’s fertility is affected by environmental toxins and chemicals you may find in your own home, which I discuss in a past article, “50 Percent Fertility Reduction Because of These Household Chemicals.”

Additionally, as described in the past article, “Birth Rate Reaches Record Low as Premature Deliveries Rise,” statistics from the CDC show the number of new births was down 2% in 2018 as compared to 2017, but the number of premature births was rising. Infertility and pregnancy are complex conditions that likely need a comprehensive approach to experience a successful outcome.

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