Consumer advocate and journalist David Steinman serves as director of the nonprofit Healthy Living Foundation, a public-interest environmental and consumer advocacy organization. In the first half, he revealed how popular products -- from shampoos to snack foods to cleaning products -- are contaminated with chemical toxins and what we can do to protect ourselves and our families. Some toxins are known as 'forever' chemicals, and others are called 'everywhere' chemicals because they're so prevalent in the environment. These chemicals are omnipresent in such things as popcorn containers, nail polish, and carpeting, and some of the toxins reduce fertility in the populace. "What I want to teach folks...is you're not going to avoid all exposures, but what...you need to do to get the biggest reductions to improve your health," he shared. Studies show when you reduce your exposure to phthalates or other forever chemicals, your body responds immediately, and you become much healthier, he noted.
Steinman highlighted the benefits of organic food, particularly for children's health, citing the changes that come with reduced levels of toxic pesticides in their bodies. Organic foods have come down in price in many cases, he reported, and with certain fruits and produce, you can buy frozen organic versions to save money. Heavy metal exposure can also cause health problems, so it's important to limit consumption of high-mercury fish like tuna. He also recommended filtering tap water at home to reduce 85-90% of toxins, and carrying water in a stainless steel container rather than a plastic bottle to minimize chemical exposure.
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Paranormal investigator Scott Degenhardt specializes in looking at cold cases using a team of mediums. In the latter half, he discussed cases his team has worked on and the related EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) they have collected. In addition to the living members, Degenhardt works with "Team AL," departed mediums that assist in bringing through voices from the realm they inhabit. According to Degenhardt, one of the mediums from the Other Side is Jodi Huisentruit, an Iowa TV anchor who was murdered in 1995, and she brought the group the unsolved disappearance case of Susan Cox Powell, among others.
In some of the EVP clips that were played on the air, Degenhardt believes that the voices belonged to Jodi and Susan, as well as a Microsoft executive named Jared, who was murdered in front of his two-year-old daughter. In many of the EVP messages, the voice appears to be asking for help, he reported. Degenardt believes our existence continues to evolve after death, but a number of souls don't realize they've died and become stuck in the Earth plane, such as one spirit they had contact with who had lingered for some 300 years. Rather than solely solving crimes, the purpose of their teams, he explained, is to help earthbound and troubled spirits find what they need for peace to help them move into the light.
News segment guests: John M. Curtis, Joshua Truman Wolfe