I have been seeing some heated discussion over the past few days in regards to one of our old friends, hCov-EMC. I originally wrote this out as a very long comment on one of my favorite blogs, The Organic Prepper, in response to an article about the role of science in dealing with the disease.

The Case Against Science

In the pursuit of a cure for hCov-EMC, H1N1 and the other dangerous flu variants which have come up over the years, Pandora’s Box has been opened. In researching the disease, information on how these diseases infect, how they spread, and how they kill are more known than ever. Assuming this is kept in the right hands, it should eventually lead to a cure. Or will it?

H1N1 became a matter of international safety back in 2009. After close to a year the death count was listed north of 16,000 worldwide in 213 territories. It was reduced from pandemic to post pandemic status in September of 2010 with a final measured death count of 18000. With the heat on and the clock ticking, the best science was able to come up with was the use of tamiflu to lesson symptoms and a vaccine that was as questionable as any other year. Thousands continued to die.

The price we have paid for these advances is opening pandora’s box. Engineering viruses is commonplace these days, genetically engineering bacteria is done in high schools across America. People with the wrong intentions have the means to produce superbugs, if they have access to the knowledge. In addition to the possibility of research being published, there is the threat of lab data and samples being stolen from the places where research is being conducted.

Throwing the baby out with the bathwater?

A moratorium was placed on research on H5N1 for 60 days that was extended to well over a year. The potential cost of unleashing weaponized forms using stolen information about superbugs seems to be too great for the paltry results we seem to be getting.

These viruses are mutating from generation to generation, not unlike HIV, which creates a moving target that is tough to cure. Despite not having an answer, we are more knowledgeable than ever on this subject and to stop short would be to sacrifice years of work. If we ever hope to fight these diseases the research must continue. We need to think long term.

Are we focusing on the right conversation?

What does bird flu from chickens, swine flu from pigs, and the transmission of these both to humans have in common? None of them would be possible without factory farming. Instead of pointing fingers at the institution of science and having conversations about whether the knowledge to find a cure can be found, we need to look at why these things in the first place.

There was a farm where swine flu started. There might have been another farm where it jumped to humans for the first time. Those people and animals were shipped around the world to support the sick system of mass agriculture, and tens of thousands are dead for it. If we didn’t support these systems as a society every day by voting with our wallets we wouldn’t have these situations. We might not prevent disease from coming around overnight but every day you make the decision to support systems like this or not.

Our final essential amino acid brings us full circle to recovery. As a branched chain amino acid, isoleucine plays a critical role in the maintenance and repair of muscle tissue. But it also plays a key role in the substance that keeps us alive: blood. If there’s one thing that is certain when it comes to survival situations, like Daniel Day Lewis there will be blood. Does isoleucine have a place in your emergency supplies? Read on to find out

Hemoglobin formation

Hemoglobin is one of the most essential proteins in all mammals. On average, it consists of 97% of the volume in erythrocytes, or red blood cells. As a matter of fact, they are the reason your blood cells are red. One of the key components of the hemoglobin molecule is iron, which is red when bound to oxygen (think rust).

Isoleucine is needed in order for the body to produce hemoglobin. Without isoleucine, the ability to produce hemoglobin would be greatly reduced. Without proper hemoglobin, the body cannot transport oxygen to the tissues of your body. Not surprisingly, the results of deficiency in isoleucine reflect that of blood loss. Fatigue, headaches, and dizziness are common.

Blood sugar

Isoleucine also plays a role in one of our favorite topics, blood sugar levels. Studies have shown that isoleucine is instrumental in shuttling blood sugar into depleted muscle cells. As muscles work, they burn through their own local fuel source, a carbohydrate known as glycogen. When muscle glycogen is depleted, it becomes difficult to perform explosive motions required to move fast or be strong.

So in addition to providing the means to shuttle sugar in times of duress (like self defense), maintaining proper levels of isoleucine is essential for the body’s ability to recover from these situations. To be able to fight another day at full capacity, you need isoleucine and the other branched chain amino acids.

Blood clot formation

The last part of the blood trifecta is blood clotting. Isoleucine was actually first isolated from a protein called fibrin. Fibrin makes up the structure of blood clots, scabs and forms a scaffolding for platelets to aggregate. Without adequate isoleucine, blood clotting would be slower and less effective.

This is obviously of great importance for anyone in an emergency self defense situation. The ability to stop bleeding will allow you to conserve precious resources in your blood and keep your aerobic capacity up. Moreover, the blood that is lost will be able to regenerate hemoglobin with the proper levels of isoleucine. If you’re going to bleed, you need to think about isoleucine!

Skin and Bone Health

Threonine is a precursor of two very important amino acids, serine and glycine. Both of these are necessary for the creation and maintenance of collagen and elastin. Collagen is the primary protein found in skin and bones and elastin, as the name implies, is responsible for the elastic properties of skin.

If it weren’t for elastin, skin would not be able to return to it’s original shape after being moved. On a more serious note, it is critical for the elasticity of the cardiovascular system. Without elastin, the elasticity of blood vessels and even the heart could be compromised.

Digestive health and beyond

Another tissue that is dependent on threonine is the small intestines. In addition to being dependent on elasticity, threonine has been shown to play a role in the production of mucus cells within the digestive tract. Studies on animals fed threonine deficient diets showed lower growth of the intestines, liver and muscle tissue.

Without enough mucus, conditions such as leaky gut can develop. This has been a topic of great interest in the scientific community recently. When the guy is anything else than airtight, partially digested food and septic materials can leach into the bloodstream.

These can be highly inflammatory and affect tissues throughout the body. A recent buzz word due to the potential connection with problems of the brain is the gut-brain axis. Protect your threonine supply and you protect your gut.

An interesting side note: the amino acid has been described as an essential supplement for mental health disorders. Coincidence?

Fat metabolism

Along with methionine, threonine plays an important role in the metabolism of fatty acids. This is of critical importance to anyone who plans to take advantage of the many benefits of a low carb diet. In order to eat low carb, a high volume of calories must come from fat. The two amino acids are required to break these fats down into fatty acids which can be used by tissues in the body.

Without threonine, there is the serious consequence of fatty liver to deal with. Lacking the ability to properly metabolize fat, it will build up in the liver which causes serious problems in function. The condition is also seen in alcoholics and diabetics and can progress to life threatening cirrohsis if not treated.

So, even those on high carb or standard American diets are in need of threonine. High carb diets encouraging diabetes will cause many of these problems. 75% of obese people have been observed to have fatty liver.

Symptoms are mild at first but run the gamut from fatigue to nausea to confusion and impaired thinking. These are all serious consequences in a survival situation and could be potentially life threatening.

In order to protect your skin, digestive health and liver, threonine should be considered among your emergency supplies. It is found in most animal sources of protein in an absorbable form, people on vegan diets are often deficient. No matter how many grams you can supposedly find in soy they are more difficult to absorb than animal sources.

The limiting nutrient

As a branched chain amino acid, leucine has many important functions related to muscle growth and recovery. According to some it is the most important of the branched chain amino acids – going so far as to call it the ‘limiting nutrient’. The benefits of leucine have been known in bodybuilding circles as the most important essential amino acid for growth. But the opposite has also been observed.

Removing leucine has been observed to create the effects of calorie restriction (ie starving) even in the presence of an otherwise complete diet. While some have looked to this as a way to lose weight (and an unhealthy one I might add) this is horrible news for anyone trying to survive in a disaster scenario. Wasting away while still eating calories is an absolute worst case scenario and one that can be avoided by eating complete sources of protein.

Blood sugar and glycogen

Leucine’s effect on muscles goes beyond structure: it also plays a role in the metabolism of fuel. Your muscles use a form of sugar called glycogen in order to move. During and after strenuous events, the glycogen in your muscles is depleted. This leads to less than optimal functioning of the muscles and fatigue.

Leucine has been shown in research to increase the synthesis of glycogen within the muscles. Faster synthesis means faster recovery, during and after activity. What’s more, this has a positive effect on blood sugar, which the glycogen is drawn from. Research has also verified that leucine both lowers blood sugar levels and modulates effective insulin response.

It should be no surprise that leucine has been linked to increased muscular performance. In a recent study by researchers at James Cook University, only 6 weeks of leucine supplementation resulted in significant increases for competitive rowers. In addition to endurance, overall power output was also increased. When it comes to self-defense or evasion situations, extra endurance and power output can make the difference between life and death. There are the quick, and the dead.

Growth Hormone

Leucine has been shown to increase secretion of human growth hormone in addition to these effects. Despite the obvious importance of this hormone to growing children, it has many important effects in adults. HGH has been used to aid in recovery after surgery for many years and has been linked to joint health as well.

In a survival situation, the ability to adapt and recover is critical. Giving your body what it needs in order to bounce back is critical, which is why you should consider leucine in your emergency supplies.

So far we have seen amino acid responsible for the muscles, the brain and even your happiness. Today we will go into the amino acid that literally forms the backbone of all development. Lysine is as critical for development and recovery as it is commonly deficient. Are you missing out one of the important emergency supplies that could help you survive and recover from critical threats in a post apocalpytic world?

Bones and Calcium Metabolism

Lysine is critical to the body’s ability to maintain bone mass in two different ways. First, it is necessary for the body to absorb calcium. The levels of calcium are constantly fluctuating and without a constant influx, osteoporosis will develop. In addition, it seems to be necessary in the cross linking of collagen, an important protein for bones (as well as other connective tissues).

Development and Age

Due to it’s importance in bone metabolism, lysine is a critical nutrient when it comes to development. The amino acid is absolutely essential for the development of children and lack of it has been associated with retarded growth. If you are  prepping with young ‘uns, you need to consider this to make sure they grow up big and strong.

Interestingly enough, lysine is also necessary at the other end of the lifecycle. The amino acid has been shown to be protective against many of the ailments suffered by the elderly.

Immune Function

The amino acid has also been shown to help immune function in a number of ways. It has been known as an antiviral for some time, is commonly recommended for people suffering from herpes and has been studied for these effects. In addition, lysine is one of the main components required to create antibodies within the bloodstream. Without antibodies, our white blood cells would not be able to attack foreign materials such as bacteria and debris within the bloodstream.

Vitamin C has been shown to protect lysine in the body, taking these two together will multiply the immune boosting effects of each within the body.

Could you be deficient?

Lysine is one of the amino acids that is difficult to get from a vegan diet. Despite what some gurus might say, plant sources of protein are not an appropriate source of lysine. Some of the smarter vegetarian sources have even gone so far as to call it the biggest limiting factor for vegan diets.

When considering a plant based diet for homesteading, in your bug out bag or in your pantry, be sure to consider lysine. In addition to missing out on the important benefits listed above, deficiency has been associated with anemia, weight loss,  loss of ability to concentrate, irritability and a host of other problems.

Nesco FD-75A 700-Watt Food Dehydrator

So I went ahead and made my first video on using the Nesco FD-75A to make beef jerky! I was looking at the other videos out there and they are all 15-20 minutes long. My experience with making beef jerky with the Nesco FD-75A was a lot quicker and as you can see in the video I wasn’t even rushing it.

Some notes:

1. I am using the Nesco/American Harvest beef jerky/cure packs that came included with the FD-75A. There are some more elaborate recipes out there and I might get into these later.

2. This was literally my first time doing this, ever. I was following instructions that came in the box.

3. I was able to get the beef pre-cut at my local grocery store.

Nesco FD-75A 700-Watt Food Dehydrator

Overall this first experience with the Nesco was way easier than I thought it would be. The total time investment is very minimal considering most of the work is being done by simply waiting, with the marinade or with the actual drying. At 3 minutes a batch I can totally see myself doing this every week.

As far as I can tell, no fat or protein was lost in the process. There was a bit less than 1lb of meat put into this batch which yields a total of 101 g of protein, 35g of fat for a grand total of 744 calories. So far it has been stored for one day in the fridge and the flavor has improved a bit since then.

According to the box, homemade jerky will last up to a month if properly stored using refrigeration. This is probably a low number to cover legal liabilities so some testing needs to be done on that. Regardless, I think it might be a good idea to invest in a vacuum sealer which could probably extend that significantly.

Anyways, this is a great addition to my emergency supplies and I’m looking forward to using it more. If you want to get a Nesco FD-75A for yourself check out this link on amazon. Full disclosure – this is an affiliate link (gotta keep the lights on, people)

Nesco FD-75A 700-Watt Food Dehydrator

There are those who think the Doomsday Preppers is an extreme model of self-preparedness; I just see them as an extreme model of selfishness.

There has been a debate raging across the internet over the past few days over prepping. Emergency Manager Valerie Lucus-McEwen recently posted that she believes that preppers are selfish for focusing on themselves in the pursuit of emergency supplies for disasters. Does it make any sense?

Myth #1: Prepping for oneself prevents prepping the community

The central point of this article was that preppers spent too many resources on themselves and not enough on the community. Many beg to differ. By depending on the government in the event of a disaster – you are creating a burden on the system. Prepping for yourself or your family is doing your part to remove strain from the system.

Myth #2: Self-defense is not altruistic

In a rebuttal to many of the responses the original article garnered, Valerie posted a second article earlier today in an attempt to clear the air. In it, she did a great job of scrambling to create an arbitrary distinction between emergency preppers and doomsday preppers. Part of this distinction involved the amount of arms and ammunition that the people on the show were shown to have.

When the shtf, people are going to get crazy. People who have guns are going to have guns, and your choice to arm yourself or not will determine whether they have absolute power over you or are kept in check. People with training in firearms and a level head on their shoulder are a major asset to any community hoping to defend itself. In addition, preppers are the least likely to use their weapons for stealing – why steal what you already have?

Myth #3: You can help others without helping yourself

Remember the last time you took a flight? There are instructions read by millions of people taking planes every day to prepare for an emergency when it comes to oxygen masks. The instructions are very clear: makes sure to adjust your own mask properly before you begin to help others. This is the central logic behind a disaster plan that everyone is forced to read and yet it is the same line of thinking that is condemned by Mrs. Lucus-McEwen.

There is no way you will be able to take care of your family if you cannot take care of yourself first. And it is a rare person who can take care of strangers when their family needs help first. Without supplies, you will be starving in three days once the grocery store shelves are cleared. Like a person without oxygen, you are useless when it comes to helping people out if you yourself are not taken care of.

So far we have gone over some of the amino acids responsible for things like fat metabolism and keeping mental function going. Today we will go into one of the most important amino acids for keeping another aspect of your body running: your muscles.

Muscle Metabolism and Nitrogen Balance

As a branched chain amino acid, Valine plays a very important role in muscle metabolism. It is estimated that roughly 33% of the amino acids present in muscle tissue are valine. Long story short, you will have a very hard time recovering from any physical activity without an ample supply of valine.

As we know, one of the key elements of a protein is nitrogen. The ability to metabolize nitrogen within the body becomes very important for the maintenance of the proteins which make up the muscles and connective tissues in the body. In addition, excess nitrogen is processed by the liver which can be very taxing. Valine helps shuttle amino acids (and thus nitrogen) effectively in the body which prevents nitrogen balance. Studies have concluded that it is metabolically essential in this role.

In addition to helping the body recover from physical stress, valine helps out with tissue repair in general. This has been shown in burn victims as well as a number of other applications.

Mental Effects

Valine is important for the mind as well as the body. Deficiency in valine has been shown to cause the breakdown of the elastic layer surrounding nerves, myelin. Without proper protection of nerves, there are a number of negative effects. Lack of coordination has been observed in a number of studies after depletion of valine for a number of weeks. A common side effect reported in humans is insomnia, hyperexcitability and irritability. Due to it’s role in the maintenance of myelin, it is critical to the mental development of young children and infants.

Survival implications

We all know that maintaining physical fitness is critical to being able to bug out properly and defend oneself. The ability to regroup as quickly as possible will ensure you are covering as much ground as possible. After all, getting out of dodge is a time sensitive issue and there can be serious consequences to not leaving in time.

Considering raiders, looters and undesirable aspects of human nature following a collapse, repair is essential. In the unfortunate event of taking a hit in self defense, amino acids like valine are essential to getting back into fighting shape as soon as possible. Regardless of the outcome, self-defense is physically taxing as well – and will require the repair of muscles if nothing else.

Finally, the mental benefits of valine cannot be overlooked. A post-collapse world is going to be stressful to begin with, adding in insomnia and hyperexcitability will not make it any better for you or your group. In stressful situations it pays to be easy to get along with when it comes to keeping a group together.

If you had fun during the recent SARS outbreak, I have some great news for you. It looks like there is a new coronavirus in town and the World Health Organization has been warning health professionals worldwide to stay on high alert. According to this press release by the global alert and response team at the WHO, 6 total cases resulting in two deaths have been reported so far, although the implication of the release is that there may be many more out there.

A Perfect Storm

In today’s globally connected world, people are travelling all over the world to and from hubs such as Saudi Arabia. This is not news, but the timing may be shocking to some. This outbreak comes on the heels of thanksgiving season, where many Americans abroad may have been returning home for the holidays. Airports all over the world passing through the middle east or adjacent to airports that do could be exposed and bringing people directly to the US.

In addition, the season is about to begin for the hajj, an annual pilgrimage to Mecca taken by 2-3 million Muslims every year. People will be flying from around the world directly to the site of the outbreak and then returning to their home countries. It is a scary thought.

Coronaviruses 101

Coronaviruses are a type of disease related to the common cold. They affect the respiratory systems and upper gastrointestinal tract with symptoms similar to pneumonia. The most devastating coronavirus in recent history was the SARS virus, which infected 8000 people and killed 800, a mortality rate of 10%. They have a particularly nasty habit of jumping from species to species which allows them to incubate unnoticed among livestock and in the wild before jumping to humans.

Are you prepared?

Depending on your current level of preparation there are a number of options in terms of emergency supplies.

When the masks start coming out, the best plan is to stay away from the general public as much as possible. Some activities such as work cannot be avoided, but taking regular trips to the grocery store or market are something you can do without. If you have been preparing your food stores, it might be a good opportunity to turn them over. Take this as an opportunity to eat some of your older food stores – it will prevent them being wasted if they go bad and will  allow you to experience what a real disaster will be like!

While Doomsday Preppers such as Donna Nash may be into the concept of creating barriers to adapt to life among potentially infected people, there is no perfect suit. Even the highly touted n95 mask is based on a 95% level of efficacy. So statistically, if you go within 1m of 20 infected people, germs will get through once.

Studies have been done on the efficacy of n95 masks and have come to the conclusion that they are at best an imperfect solution. The main recommendation on the one cited is that the recommended 1m radius needs to be expanded, and that eye protection needs to be included.

This is the first in a series of posts of consumer reviews on some common items you might want to come across in your pursuit of the perfect prep. Now I’ll be the first to admit that even though I am a blogger, I am nowhere close to perfect when it comes to my preparation plans. I have emergency supplies which I am purchasing all the time. In hopes of making it easier on anyone who is going through the same process, I’ll be writing reviews. Good, bad or ugly you’ll be hearing about what happens with these products.

So without further ado, the Nesco FD-75A

Ordered this beauty off of amazon a few weeks ago with some extra money I had on a gift card. It came in at a really good price (just under $60) and is apparently a great value compared to some of the more high end models available on the market. The important thing to note about this model is that is comes in at 700W, this power allows it to dry in a fraction of the time of some of the lower end models and keeps it competitive with the higher end and commercial models.

After opening the box I found some of the accessories I had never noticed. The unit came with two fruit drying trays (shown on top right) which can be used to dehydrate stuff that is really wet. We’re talking soups even. I ordered this to be able to make beef jerky but I’m now finding out that it can be used for much more.

The trays were advertised as ‘granite exterior’ but this is really a misnomer. I was expecting a heavier ceramic style tray when they are really more of a lightweight plastic. According to some reviews, care must be taken when washing these in a machine due to the plastic being able to melt. Something to keep in mind.

In addition to the physical product, the Nesco came with some helpful materials in regards to making recipes as well as a starter kit with seasoning for beef jerky. This is definitely a welcome help as I am completely new to food dehydrating as many of you might be as well. There is a full book of recipes that includes everything from meats to fruits to even treats for pets. As for the flavor packets, they will certainly help with the first batch of beef jerky (coming soon on video) but are something I will want to be moving away from ASAP in the interest of my wallet and self sufficiency.

My main concern for this product is that it is practical for the pre-collapse but may draw too much power afterwards. Plans are currently underway for creating a sustainable system through solar thermal and solar PV in my current bug out location so this would make it possible. I will continue to play with this though and hopefully will get a video going so you all can see it in action. Stay tuned for more!