Category: Health and Fitness

Do What You Are Good At, But Work At What You Aren’t, by R.D.

Fear and prudence I’ve never thought of myself as being particularly knowledgeable on specific things regarding preparedness. I wasn’t in the military, so I don’t feel qualified to give “tactical firearms advice”, but I like to shoot and train as much as possible. I’m not an EMT, but I’ve put together several first aid kits that our family feels comfortable using. I’m not a farmer, but we have learned basic gardening over the last seven years in our small urban garden. I’m not a professional mechanic, but I prefer to maintain our cars and equipment largely by myself. I’m not …


Paleo Food Storage With Ideas for Celiac/Gluten Intolerances and Dairy-Free Diets – Part 1, by Utah Suburban Prepping Gal

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When I first became serious about prepping, I looked to the guidelines found on the LDS (Mormon) website. This means grains, beans, sugars, and dairy, so I spent the next few years stocking up on these four. A few years later I discovered the Paleo diet, which resulted in great health benefits for me, such as increased mental focus, elevated mood, fat loss, and clearer skin. However, I faced a dilemma. Everything in the basic food storage I had accumulated was now off-limits. Basically, the Paleo diet consists of meat, vegetables, nuts, fruit, and “good” oils, like lard, tallow, butter, …


Letter Re: Historians Perspective At Natural Diets Link

Mr. Hugh, There are significant facts to be gleaned from the post: A Plea For Culinary Modernism. This post should be read by all. This should be read slowly to glean the correct viewpoints. For example: Those who are not “prepared” will be thrust back to the 1200’s and gathering roots and berries, which will kill them due to their lack of knowledge. We have been enjoying fresh chick weed salads from random patches of weeds from our fence rows this spring. It tastes 10 times as good as lettuce from the store. Some think that if not prepared, they …


Letter Re: How to Get Your Doctor to Help You in the Age of Obamacare

Hugh, I work for a large drug manufacturer and have spent 22 years as an analytical chemist testing and evaluating the stability of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Medicines, except liquids, should be stored in the freezer. Liquids should be stored in the refrigerator or as cool as possible. Store the non-liquid medicine in its bottle in a plastic bag with desiccant inside. The worst enemies of drug products and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are temperature and humidity. The higher the temperature and humidity the faster your medicine will deteriorate. The longest drug stability times are associated with freezer conditions and low …


How to Get Your Doctor to Help You in the Age of Obamacare, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

Since I first wrote an article for SB on “How to Get Your Doctor to Help You Stockpile Medication” the situation has definitely deteriorated. With Uncle Sam peeping over your doctor’s shoulder, the challenge of medical prepping has greatly intensified. Whereas the general principles in that article remain true, your physician’s freedom to assist you is increasingly restricted. In the past five years we’ve seen solo practitioners closing their offices to join group practices, community hospitals being gobbled up by larger conglomerates, independent pharmacies run out of business by the big box stores, and electronic health records being mandated by …


Accommodations for the Dietary Requirements of Infants, by L.C.

Infants have specific nutritive needs that at the present moment may be met in two ways: breast milk and formula. In a collapse or post-collapse scenario, the supply of formula may dry up and no longer be an option. There are several strategies to cope with this as well as breastfeeding supplies that can easily be acquired now. I’m the mother of five kids under the age of six with the youngest being six weeks old, so for the past six years I’ve been pregnant, nursing, or both. I breastfed my first four exclusively, until we started solids between 6-7 …


Wisely Preparing for a Healthy and Secure Future, by J.O.

Growing up, I never put too much thought into “the future”– that long distant and magical place always just beyond the horizon. Born and raised in Queens, New York, I was immersed in the leftist mindset of self-entitlement and self-superiority. Never once did I consider how unremarkable and fragile my existence truly was. I was smart, strong, good in a fight, and clever enough to not get caught when I was up to no good…at least until I wasn’t. Enter a good soul with a badge, who spoke on my behalf, and a kind man with a gavel. The long …


Caring for Babies in a Post-Collapse World, by F.C.

“How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.” (Matthew 24:19-21) The shrill scream of a sick infant pierces the night. It’s your sister’s newborn boy, only six weeks old. Your sister, husband, and other two young children showed up at your country bug out location three days ago; they were exhausted, starving, and desperate. In the years leading up …


Letter Re: Mushrooms

Hey Hugh. I would like to add some personal information to the interesting article on mushrooms. A few years ago my wife was diagnosed with asthma. We quickly learned that the standard medical treatment was not going to work for her. Our friend at a natural foods store suggested she try a commercially available product called “Breathe”. The capsules contain a combination of mushrooms that apparently help to better or more completely utilize the available oxygen. What sold me was that high altitude climbers use these mushrooms when training for their climb in the thin air. My wife began to …


Surviving with Type 2 Diabetes, by B.H.

There have been numerous discussions in the survivalist and SHTF communities about diabetes, and while Type 1 has been discussed at length, Type 2, which is much more prevalent and equally life-threatening, usually gets little more than a mention and possibly a conclusionary statement that it can be handled/managed with diet and exercise. But what exactly does that mean? There’s no discussion on what such a diet-based treatment would entail in a SHTF situation. It’s not a simple disease to handle. Type 2 diabetes, if untreated or improperly treated, can lead to loss of life and/or limb, just as in …


Becoming a Top-Tier Survivalist and Representing the Prepper Community, by M.M. – Part 2

We are continuing the first point– “Be Fit”– of six points that will be presented and detailed that, if implemented in your own life, will greatly increase your chances of success, both in surviving TEOTWAWKI and in breaking the stereotype of the “kooky prepper.” Flexibility As far as flexibility goes, you should do a full stretch routine, both after your warm-up and after your cool-down. Stretches should be held for 10-20 seconds without any bouncing, and while stretching you should feel some discomfort but not pain as your muscles loosen up. Failure to stretch properly could result in injuries or …


Becoming a Top-Tier Survivalist and Representing the Prepper Community, by M.M. – Part 1

The concept of prepping has been widely publicized throughout the past decade, but it is rarely cast in a positive light, outside of survival dedicated websites, such as SurvivalBlog. The mainstream media networks mock our community by seeking out and casting the most ridiculous so-called preppers they can find to achieve high viewer rankings. The federal government encourages the citizenry to make minor preparations for surviving major disasters by storing several days’ worth of food, water, batteries, and other basic necessities. However, at the same time, it labels citizens who truly prepare (and especially those who own guns and military …


Four Exercises To Stay In Shape While Holed Up, by Zac T.

As a brief introduction about me, aside from being an MPH student, I am an exercise physiologist and personal trainer. When I am not correcting peoples’ form and working in cardiac rehab, I spend my spare time backpacking, lifting weights, and reading economics books. Let’s say that you were a prepper. I say “were” because, for the point of this article, The Big Event has already happened, and now you’re not so much prepping as you are surviving. You stockpiled food, medicine, water, and ammunition. You read all the books. You built a secret retreat. Now there’s not much for …


Letter Re: Ebola Unafraid

Hugh, I appreciate and enjoyed ShepherdFarmerGeek’s article and follow-up on “Ebola Unafraid”. However, I think a word of caution is in order. In particular, Vitamins A, C, and E are frequently synthetic versions of the natural vitamins; they are produced in factories, and the vitamin supplements are typically laced with GMO’s that are involved with the manufacturing process. Vitamin C sold as “Ascorbic Acid” is actually a derivative of mold. I am not a doctor or even a nutritionist, but I have read enough to know that we should avoid the cheap forms of these vitamins. Vitamin D3 is safe …


Two Letters Re: Septic Tanks

Dear Editor, Recently there have been comments regarding septic tanks, how long they should last et cetera. As of today, if you want to spend money to pump them out every few years, more power to you. However, if there is a true TEOTWAWKI situation, you might want to take steps to add decades to the life of your septic tank. Actually, in such a case, you may want an outhouse that is way way away from your home and a septic tank right at your home. Here is why. In many countries, like Mexico for instance, it is common …