Back in 2013, the number one science story was the Microbiome Project. Science had just completed the Human Genome Project which had mapped our entire genetic history, allowing us to see just how truly interconnected all of us humans are. The Microbiome project's purpose undertook the colossal task to study and genetically map all the "bugs" (microbiota) in our body. The startling data that was uncovered was that, contrary to popular belief, neither our genes nor our brain controls our health. It is our gut and the microbes throughout our body that that do so. It was found that over 90% of all our genes are not human...they are microbial.
Not only do our gut flora play a crucial role in our gut health, but also in the overall health of our body. We normally associate such symptoms as diarrhea, constipation, colitis, diverticulitis, nausea, vomitting, gas and other intestinal symptoms with flora imbalances. Now, we know that our gut flora also influence the possibility of our developing, preventing and/or curing diabetes, obesity, autoimmune diseases (we've talked about these before), heart disease, and emotional problems such as depression, anxiety, insomnia and much more.
The project is ongoing; Chinese scientists have recently discovered a new intestinal flora...Oenococcus...which is a bacterium used in the fermentation of wine.
The latest research shows how our gut flora is significantly involved in the vital functions of metabolism and the detoxification of foreign substances. We used to think that that was solely the job of the liver...now we know that microbial compromise can contribute to our body's inability to detoxify poisons (environmental toxins) and other toxins. We also know that our gut bacteria are involved in the worldwide super-problem of antibiotic resistance and, in particular, penicillin (and its derivatives) resistance. That means our gut flora could spell the difference whether an antibiotic could save our life when it's really needed or be rendered useless as the result of antibiotic resistance.
There are simple and inexpensive protocol that can ensure the health of the gut. Anyone who has had even one course of antibiotics is subject to immune compromise as the result of good bacteria destruction. A healthy gut is now known to be the foundation of a healthy individual. The contrary is also, unfortunately, true.
If you have young children, they are extremely susceptible to developing immune system compromise, especially when subject to courses of antibiotics at a young age. Once the good bacteria are killed or depleted, they do not automatically reproduce once antibiotic therapy is discontinued. The same is true for adults, too. Autoimmune compromise can begin at a young age and, over the years, can easily develop into a full-blown autoimmune disease.
If you wish to get healthy, feel younger, look better and have more energy...the health of your gut is the key!
www.fixdhealthcare.com
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
For Your Hair, Skin & Nails...the most important missing element...
What food in the diet is most often overlooked when it comes to supplementing for your hair, skin and nails? Calcium? Vitamin D? Anti-oxidants? No...it's oil.
Almost to the patient, any time I ask how much oil they are getting in their diet, I'm greeted with a somewhat blank, perplexed look. What do sufficient amounts of essential fatty acids have to do with the health of the skin, hair and nails? Plenty.
Assuming you are sufficiently hydrated (1/2 your body weight in ounces of water/day), oils are equally necessary for good health. Oil allows for the absorption and utilization of calcium (nails) and the transport of fat soluble vitamins to the skin, including the scalp.
We typically notice excessive breakage of nails and drying of the skin in the winter months...usually attributed to heat drying our home and office environment. No matter how much cream/conditioner we slather on ourselves, the dryness simply doesn't go away for very long. Simply by adding both saturated and mono-unsaturated fatty acids to the diet, you should notice a considerable difference in the suppleness of your skin, the dryness of your scalp and the brittleness of your nails.
Eating a diet high in good fats (coconut, olive, grape seed and avocado oil), seeds and nuts (sunflower, pumpkin, hemp, almonds and cashews), dark green leafy vegetables (calcium, Vit. D) and high quality protein, along with supplementing with a fermented vegetable source of calcium, you should begin to see a significant improvement in your dry skin and brittle nails within a few weeks.
Almost to the patient, any time I ask how much oil they are getting in their diet, I'm greeted with a somewhat blank, perplexed look. What do sufficient amounts of essential fatty acids have to do with the health of the skin, hair and nails? Plenty.
Assuming you are sufficiently hydrated (1/2 your body weight in ounces of water/day), oils are equally necessary for good health. Oil allows for the absorption and utilization of calcium (nails) and the transport of fat soluble vitamins to the skin, including the scalp.
We typically notice excessive breakage of nails and drying of the skin in the winter months...usually attributed to heat drying our home and office environment. No matter how much cream/conditioner we slather on ourselves, the dryness simply doesn't go away for very long. Simply by adding both saturated and mono-unsaturated fatty acids to the diet, you should notice a considerable difference in the suppleness of your skin, the dryness of your scalp and the brittleness of your nails.
Eating a diet high in good fats (coconut, olive, grape seed and avocado oil), seeds and nuts (sunflower, pumpkin, hemp, almonds and cashews), dark green leafy vegetables (calcium, Vit. D) and high quality protein, along with supplementing with a fermented vegetable source of calcium, you should begin to see a significant improvement in your dry skin and brittle nails within a few weeks.
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Does Your Man Suffer from These Symptoms?
....depressed mood, pessimism, low sex drive, moodiness, withdrawal from normal relationships and activities and/or weight gain....
These symptoms are all signs of low testosterone levels. After 35 years of age, testosterone levels typically decrease by 1% per year. Prolonged periods of emotional/mental stress eventually lead to adrenal hypo-function which, in turn, leads to decreased DHEA levels, resulting in lowered testosterone production.
Low testosterone levels don't only affect sex drive, they are associated with heart attacks, stroke, diabetes and premature death (this rate doubles in men over 65). Statins, which, it seems, most mature men are taking, cause lowered testosterone levels. The Journal of Sexual Medicine reports a negative association between statin therapy and testosterone levels. Adding testosterone replacement therapy did not correct the problem! JAMA, in 2014, reported higher rates of heart attacks and deaths in those men on testosterone replacement therapy.
Additionally, many older men suffering from low T levels also show increased visceral (abdominal) fat, also known as the "Apple-shaped" man. This location of fat distribution is linked to cancer of the esophagus, kidney, pancreas and colon. Interestingly, it has been shown that men's cancers are 20% more invasive than women's in the colon, rectum, lung and bronchi.
Early signs of low T levels (before lab tests indication) is a diminished number of early morning erections. Low T levels in men are just as potentially serious as low estrogen levels in women. Low T levels are also irreversible if free T is converted into estrogen, unless adequate levels of a very important mineral are re-established. Then, and only then, can high estrogen in males be converted back into testosterone.
There is a very simple saliva test that can determine if low T levels exist, the cause and specific targeted protocols from both Standard Process and MediHerb to address these causes of low T levels, such as high levels of estrodiol, high androgen levels, high leutenizing hormone levels, high cortisol levels, low DHEA levels and other hormone imbalances. BPH is also associated with aging and low T levels. Specific protocol that include specialized formulations, dietary changes and lifestyle changes can be of tremendous help for those men dealing with lifestyle-interfering symptoms.
If someone you know or love shows any of the indications of low T levels, encourage them to seek help, as these symptoms will most certainly lead to more serious problems in the future.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
These symptoms are all signs of low testosterone levels. After 35 years of age, testosterone levels typically decrease by 1% per year. Prolonged periods of emotional/mental stress eventually lead to adrenal hypo-function which, in turn, leads to decreased DHEA levels, resulting in lowered testosterone production.
Low testosterone levels don't only affect sex drive, they are associated with heart attacks, stroke, diabetes and premature death (this rate doubles in men over 65). Statins, which, it seems, most mature men are taking, cause lowered testosterone levels. The Journal of Sexual Medicine reports a negative association between statin therapy and testosterone levels. Adding testosterone replacement therapy did not correct the problem! JAMA, in 2014, reported higher rates of heart attacks and deaths in those men on testosterone replacement therapy.
Additionally, many older men suffering from low T levels also show increased visceral (abdominal) fat, also known as the "Apple-shaped" man. This location of fat distribution is linked to cancer of the esophagus, kidney, pancreas and colon. Interestingly, it has been shown that men's cancers are 20% more invasive than women's in the colon, rectum, lung and bronchi.
Early signs of low T levels (before lab tests indication) is a diminished number of early morning erections. Low T levels in men are just as potentially serious as low estrogen levels in women. Low T levels are also irreversible if free T is converted into estrogen, unless adequate levels of a very important mineral are re-established. Then, and only then, can high estrogen in males be converted back into testosterone.
There is a very simple saliva test that can determine if low T levels exist, the cause and specific targeted protocols from both Standard Process and MediHerb to address these causes of low T levels, such as high levels of estrodiol, high androgen levels, high leutenizing hormone levels, high cortisol levels, low DHEA levels and other hormone imbalances. BPH is also associated with aging and low T levels. Specific protocol that include specialized formulations, dietary changes and lifestyle changes can be of tremendous help for those men dealing with lifestyle-interfering symptoms.
If someone you know or love shows any of the indications of low T levels, encourage them to seek help, as these symptoms will most certainly lead to more serious problems in the future.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
Thursday, February 5, 2015
If You Have Heart Problems, You Need This...
Some 31 years ago, an alternative medicine practitioner wrote:
"Iron is also necessary in the formation of myoglobin, which transports oxygen to muscle cells. Thus iron...helps to increase your resistance to stress and disease while contributing to smooth and efficient muscular contractions."
What he was saying was that without sufficient iron in the diet, the muscular contractions of the heart may become weakened, resulting in heart failure or heart attacks. Needless to say, the traditional medical community scoffed at such a statement.
Now, during the 2014 meeting of the European Society of Cardiology, the lead researcher commenting on their findings about the role that iron plays in cardiovascular health, said: "I believe (treating iron deficiency) can reduce the risk of hospitalization due to worsening heart failure." That would have been heretical 35 years ago.
The recommendation is for a person with heart disease to get blood work done to see if they are iron deficient. As most iron supplements are simply awful and usually cause more problems than they help, one needs to take a whole food supplement if iron deficiency is present. Another thing that needs addressing is the amount of hydrochloric acid that is in the stomach. Those with heart burn have a deficiency of acid and, without sufficient acid, iron cannot be absorbed. Also necessary for absorption is a sufficient amount of utilizable vitamin C, or ionized vitamin C. Again, not all supplements are created equally.
For those suffering from heart problems, there are many quality formulations that can be taken to significantly increase the average life expectancy of 48-60 months, regardless of whether or not medication is taken. Years can be added to a person's life if the body is given the chance to heal.
Your heart is the most responsive organ in your body to proper nutritional therapy. Food truly is medicine. Whole food concentrates contain microRNA's which are critical to healing. The best supplements contain nutrients in their natural form, proper combination and dose and are processed from organic raw ingredients without heat or chemicals to maintain their natural state. Virtually no supplement manufacturers grow their own organic crops on their own farms; next to zero supplement makers are interested in even trying to make these kinds of supplements because they can't get the raw ingredients, they don't know how and, even if they did, it takes too much time and it is too expensive.
I think we are truly lucky to have such a company that cares more about the products it makes than the bottom line. I can only wish that more people could appreciate that.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
"Iron is also necessary in the formation of myoglobin, which transports oxygen to muscle cells. Thus iron...helps to increase your resistance to stress and disease while contributing to smooth and efficient muscular contractions."
What he was saying was that without sufficient iron in the diet, the muscular contractions of the heart may become weakened, resulting in heart failure or heart attacks. Needless to say, the traditional medical community scoffed at such a statement.
Now, during the 2014 meeting of the European Society of Cardiology, the lead researcher commenting on their findings about the role that iron plays in cardiovascular health, said: "I believe (treating iron deficiency) can reduce the risk of hospitalization due to worsening heart failure." That would have been heretical 35 years ago.
The recommendation is for a person with heart disease to get blood work done to see if they are iron deficient. As most iron supplements are simply awful and usually cause more problems than they help, one needs to take a whole food supplement if iron deficiency is present. Another thing that needs addressing is the amount of hydrochloric acid that is in the stomach. Those with heart burn have a deficiency of acid and, without sufficient acid, iron cannot be absorbed. Also necessary for absorption is a sufficient amount of utilizable vitamin C, or ionized vitamin C. Again, not all supplements are created equally.
For those suffering from heart problems, there are many quality formulations that can be taken to significantly increase the average life expectancy of 48-60 months, regardless of whether or not medication is taken. Years can be added to a person's life if the body is given the chance to heal.
Your heart is the most responsive organ in your body to proper nutritional therapy. Food truly is medicine. Whole food concentrates contain microRNA's which are critical to healing. The best supplements contain nutrients in their natural form, proper combination and dose and are processed from organic raw ingredients without heat or chemicals to maintain their natural state. Virtually no supplement manufacturers grow their own organic crops on their own farms; next to zero supplement makers are interested in even trying to make these kinds of supplements because they can't get the raw ingredients, they don't know how and, even if they did, it takes too much time and it is too expensive.
I think we are truly lucky to have such a company that cares more about the products it makes than the bottom line. I can only wish that more people could appreciate that.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
GNC, CVS, WalMart, Mail Order Herbs...not the place to purchase Echinacea and....
For those of you who have been reading my blog for some time, you'll know that I have reported that the quality of herbs and supplements purchased from health food stores, pharmacies and mail order companies is abysmal. Now, the Attorney General from New York officially agrees with my position, at least in this instance.
Yesterday, he announced that he would be ordering all echinacea and other herbs sold by the above-mentioned stores to be taken off the shelves and no longer allowed to be sold in NY. His investigating offices found all of the brands that were sold to either not contain any echinacea or to have so many fillers as to contain only minute amounts of the herb.
This and other herbs may be sold without any federal quality controls and that is a major reason that herbs can either be void of any health benefits or may cause adverse reactions due to unknown additives and fillers.
MediHerb and Standard Process undergo rigorous federal quality controls to ensure that they contain the herbs and vitamins that they claim to contain. Also, MediHerb is a company that grows its own medicinal herbs. Take echinacea, for example. It's the alkylamide in the echinacea which gives it its medicinal quality. The following is the result of an echinacea product comparison between MediHerb and other companies that sell the herb:
,
MediHerb: contains 6.86 mg of alkylamide per capsule. Vital Nutrients: 0.44 alkylamide per cap ( need an equivalent of 16 to equal MediHerb). Nature's Way: 0.26 mg/cap, need 27 capsules. Douglas Labs: 0.21 mg/cap, need 33 capsules. Natural Factors: 0.10mg/cap, need 69 capsules. Ecological Formulas (this company handles Innate and Gaia echinacea): 0.05 mg/cap, you'd need to take a whopping 137 capsules to equal the alkylamides in ONE capsule of the Echinacea Premium from MediHerb!
Many of our patients have told us that MediHerb herbs are expensive. After showing them the comparison and after they actually take the herbs, they understand why. You won't find most of this company's products on the internet because they only sell to doctors...not even to health food stores. People need to reconsider their self-prescribing habits and their purchasing habits...unregulated herbs can be ineffective, at best, and dangerous, at worst.
Herbal remedies are a $60 billion business/ year in this country. Most of those dollars are going to waste. I encourage you all to "consider the source," when purchasing herbs or supplements.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
Yesterday, he announced that he would be ordering all echinacea and other herbs sold by the above-mentioned stores to be taken off the shelves and no longer allowed to be sold in NY. His investigating offices found all of the brands that were sold to either not contain any echinacea or to have so many fillers as to contain only minute amounts of the herb.
This and other herbs may be sold without any federal quality controls and that is a major reason that herbs can either be void of any health benefits or may cause adverse reactions due to unknown additives and fillers.
MediHerb and Standard Process undergo rigorous federal quality controls to ensure that they contain the herbs and vitamins that they claim to contain. Also, MediHerb is a company that grows its own medicinal herbs. Take echinacea, for example. It's the alkylamide in the echinacea which gives it its medicinal quality. The following is the result of an echinacea product comparison between MediHerb and other companies that sell the herb:
,
MediHerb: contains 6.86 mg of alkylamide per capsule. Vital Nutrients: 0.44 alkylamide per cap ( need an equivalent of 16 to equal MediHerb). Nature's Way: 0.26 mg/cap, need 27 capsules. Douglas Labs: 0.21 mg/cap, need 33 capsules. Natural Factors: 0.10mg/cap, need 69 capsules. Ecological Formulas (this company handles Innate and Gaia echinacea): 0.05 mg/cap, you'd need to take a whopping 137 capsules to equal the alkylamides in ONE capsule of the Echinacea Premium from MediHerb!
Many of our patients have told us that MediHerb herbs are expensive. After showing them the comparison and after they actually take the herbs, they understand why. You won't find most of this company's products on the internet because they only sell to doctors...not even to health food stores. People need to reconsider their self-prescribing habits and their purchasing habits...unregulated herbs can be ineffective, at best, and dangerous, at worst.
Herbal remedies are a $60 billion business/ year in this country. Most of those dollars are going to waste. I encourage you all to "consider the source," when purchasing herbs or supplements.
www.fixdhealthcare.com
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