Food is one of the greatest pleasures in life.

But how often do you actually think about the fact that the nutrients contained in the food you eat are what become your skin, your lungs, even your heart, and every other part of your body?! (You’ll think again the next time you reach for some chemical ridden processed food, won’t you?)

And how can you make sure you’re absorbing the valuable nutrients contained in your food? By having great digestion!

This means you have an easy and complete bowel movement first thing in the morning (and ideally after lunch and dinner as well…but if you at least have one every morning, you’re doing well), your belly feels comfortable after you eat without any bloating or pressure, and gas is a rare occurrence. So how do you rate?

Digestive complaints (also referred to as GI complaints, which stands for gastrointestinal) are among the most common reasons Americans go to the doctor. Symptoms include constipation (no bowel movement for greater than 24 hours), bloating, gas, indigestion, persistent diarrhea, and/or irritable bowel syndrome. Chronic poor digestion and malabsorption of vital nutrients can contribute to degenerative diseases, compromised immune status, and nutritional deficiencies….not good things to have!

So, how can you improve your digestion? Take a few of these simple steps:

• Chew! Chew! Chew!….until your food is the consistency of baby food. This makes the nutrients more absorbable. And savor each bite.
• Take a deep breath before you start your meal and throughout your meal. (If your body is in ‘action’ mode, it doesn’t make digestion a priority.)
• Eat calmly and without distractions. Same reasoning as above. Yes, that means turn the TV off! How about some nice music instead.
• Increase fresh fruits and vegetables. These gems from nature contain high amounts of fiber, a key component to assisting your body in removing toxins and ensuring you have easy and regular bowel movements. Eat a few prunes in the morning. Take an apple or fresh cut veggies to work for a snack. Eat more beans and lentils. Eat salads as often as you can. Always include a vegetable at dinnertime. Add fresh ground flax seeds to a smoothie, or sprinkle on yogurt, a salad, or any dish of your choice.
• Drink half of your body weight (in pounds) in ounces of water each day…so if you weigh 140 pounds, drink 70 oz of water/day. Insufficient water intake is a primary cause of constipation. Constipation then causes an imbalance in the needed bacteria in your gut, promotes inflammation of your intestines, and can even lead to the absorption of larger molecules that are meant to be excreted (a condition called ‘Leaky Gut syndrome’). Start your day with a large glass of warm water with lemon or lime juice (= a great cleansing for your gut), and drink the remainder ideally between meals.
• Exercise to stay in your optimal weight. The pressure on the digestive system of excess weight can cause that horrible pain of heartburn, which is a result of stomach acid being pushed up into your esophagus….yuk. (This can also be caused by rushing around at meal times and/or continuing to eat once you feel full….= time to put your fork down! Just say no to the ‘clean plate club.’ Listen to the actual needs of your body instead.)
• Identify if you eat foods that your body cannot digest well.  Dairy products and wheat are the biggest culprits. Other common food issues can be found with corn, soy, eggs, nuts, seafood, and/or citrus. See Dr. Nicole’s article on Elimination Diets for how to identify if you have a particular food causing havoc on your digestion.
• Increase the healthy bacteria in your gut. ‘Probiotics’ are the healthy bacteria found in your gut which help to maintain intestinal health, and thus optimal digestion. Antibiotics in pill form, or which also can be found in meat and dairy products, kill these important bacteria. Good quality probiotics can be found at a reputable health food store and ideally are kept in the refrigerator. The bacteria Lactobacillus acidophillus and Bifidobacterium bifidum are two of the most beneficial strains. Eating a high quality, organic yoghurt is also effective (but make sure its not just any ole’ yogurt on the shelf because these are usually heat pasteurized which kills both the bad and good bacteria.)

So what happens if you try all of the above and are still having poor digestion? This is when I strongly recommend making an appointment with a naturopathic physician to inquiry about having a Comprehensive Stool Analysis. The one I recommend is by a lab that caters to clinics anywhere in the country, and can be found at: www.doctorsdata.com. For direct inquiries, you can email them at: inquiries@doctorsdata.com

This test assesses the efficiency of your digestion and absorption of nutrients, the presence of inflammation in your intestines, measures the balance of good and bad bacteria in your gut, identifies parasites or other unwanted pathogens, and can even assess the health of your immune system. (Did you know that approximately 70% of your immune system cells are located in your gut?!)

Poor digestion should be taken seriously. Less than optimal digestion and malabsorption of vital nutrients can contribute to degenerative diseases, compromised immune status, nutritional deficiencies, the development of food allergies, systemic illnesses, autoimmune disease, and toxic overload from substances that are meant to be kept in the confines of the bowel and end up in the toilet. This all makes sense if you think about if for a minute…if the nutrients you eat become the cells of your body, if what is being digested and absorbed is healthy stuff, you will likely have healthy cells.

As one of the most reputable professors at my medical school always said: “The best insurance policy for good health is good digestion!”

Superfoods! I’m sure you’ve heard the buzz. But what exactly is the buzz all about anyway? What are superfoods? Do you really need to eat superfoods? What are the benefits? How do you choose which superfoods are best for you? Well, wonder no longer. Lets get right to the answers…

No surprise to anyone is the fact that humans today are busier and have more on their plate, so to speak, than ever before. We eat on the run, often literally standing up. We grab ready made meals as we rush to our next appointment. We finish meals in minutes, gulping down food that not only have we not been fully present for as we chew but have barely even chewed fully before swallowing.

Furthermore, even for those of us who attain our 10-15 servings of fruits and vegetables per day (yes! 10-15…that’s not a typo!), today’s mass food production techniques result in foods of inferior nutrient density, not to mention the unwanted added chemicals. Enter superfoods!

What are superfoods? The term ‘superfoods’ simply refers to those foods that are the most densely packed with beneficial nutrients and minerals compared to most other foods; foods with the most nutritional bang for your buck, so to speak. Ideally, it is best to eat superfoods in their nature-made form, and as often as you can, if not daily. Eating whole foods (as opposed to processed foods which have been stripped of nutrients and usually come with added chemicals…yuck!) is always what we here at KitchenTableMedicine.com advocate.

Here is a short list of gold medal winners: Blueberries! (my personal favorite…I keep them in the freezer and eat at least a handful of them daily all year long = easy!), broccoli, spinach, walnuts, avocado, salmon, green tea, beans, pumpkin, flax seeds, goji berries, bee pollen, pure dark chocolate, and last but certainly not least, that dazzling, deep green, leafy beauty kale! (And there are many more…. you can read about them listed in Dr. Nicole’s article on her favorite “Superfoods.”)

Do I really need superfoods? If you want optimal health and functioning of every cell in your body, the answer is, ‘yes.’

What are the benefits of eating superfoods? By giving your body a diet densely packed with nutrients and minerals, you are allowing every cell in your body to thrive. Furthermore, vibrant cells efficiently and effectively protect themselves from the inevitable waste and toxins that our bodies are subject to on a daily basis, in essence having the energy to constantly detoxify themselves.

Superfoods can improve your digestion and help you to optimally absorb the nutrients contained in your meals. They can enhance your circulation, which increases nutrient delivery to every cell throughout your body. For you, all of this translates to mean increased energy and endurance, enhanced well-being mentally and physically, and optimizing prevention against illness and disease. (Basically, all good news for your body and health!)

How do I choose which superfoods are best for me? This answer is simple! If you eat at least one or two or more of your favorite superfoods on a daily basis, you’re doing great! But reality is, getting 10-15 servings of them a day is a huge challenge for many and we here at KitchenTable are dedicated to giving you convenient tips on how to make living healthfully simple.

Thus, this is one of the few cases I support adding a supplement to your daily routine. The good news is that there are many great superfood supplement options made by respectable companies, resulting in high quality products, via environmentally friendly techniques.

In choosing a product, for not only the health of your body, but for the health of our exquisite planet, I recommend choosing a company that uses ecological, sustainable, and fair trade practices. Powdered is a common and good form. I don’t recommend pill form because many of those can pass through your body without ever being fully absorbed. Organic ingredients are of course ideal, especially because the whole point is to reduce your ingestion of chemicals. (And again, by using organic products, you benefit the earth by supporting companies that don’t add yucky toxins into our environment!) But if not organic, don’t stress yourself out; you are still likely doing your body good.

One caveat though, when it comes to saving money, I never recommend going for cheap when it comes to the precious nutrients you fuel your body with! (If you want to save money, choose another aspect of your life, like going on a walk with your friends instead of to the movies, or taking the bus instead of filling up your car with gas, or…,or…,or…!)

The benefits to your body of some of the most common superfoods found in superfood supplements are listed below:

• Spirulina: has more protein gram for gram than any other food and is the richest source of beta-carotene and vitamin B-12 on the earth. (B-12 = increased energy!)

• Blue/Green Algae: is a concentrated source of PEA, a key nutrient for enhancing mood; can also decrease hunger, and increase energy and endurance.

• Chlorella is one of the world’s strongest natural heavy metal chelators and detoxifiers.

• Wheatgrass has an endless list of benefits so I can only list a few here: detoxification, stimulates metabolism, reduces blood pressure, stimulates the thyroid gland, and restores alkalinity to the blood.

• Seaweeds: Dulse is an exceptional natural source of every mineral the body needs, thus serving to effectively alkalize the body. Kelp provides minerals such as iodine for thyroid function and iron for blood cell function, is a powerful detoxifier, and can increase metabolism and help balance blood lipid concentrations.

• Flax Seeds are a good source of omega 3 essential fatty acids which help reduce inflammation in the body, provide healthy membranes to cells, can reduce cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. They also contain antioxidants and the seeds (whole or ground) are a great source of fiber.

• Goji berries are exceptionally dense in antioxidants, reducing free radical damage in the body. They have been used for centuries to provide protection to the liver, benefit eyesight, as an aphrodisiac, to boost the immune system, and improve longevity. Reports have also shown they work as an anti-coagulant, and can reduce blood pressure and cholesterol.

As a wrap up, including superfoods in your life is an important and simple step for optimizing your health. Eat a few of your favorite superfoods in whole form on a regular or even daily basis and add a supplement to your daily routine…and with how great you feel, you’ll be energized all day long! Enjoy!

~Dr. Jody

Dr. Jody Stanislaw, ND has a passion for helping patients optimize their well-being via simplifying their life and focusing on the Basic Four Pillars of Good Health: optimal nutrition, regular movement, adequate sleep, and a healthy spiritual and emotional life.

Additionally, having lived with Type I diabetes since she was seven years old, she has grown a special interest in working with other diabetics.

Dr. Jody Stanislaw is a Naturopathic Physician, receiving her doctorate degree from Bastyr University. Located in Seattle, Bastyr is the most acclaimed of the four accredited natural health medical schools in America, where physicians are trained to heal disease via natural and complementary treatments.

As the diabetes columnist for KitchenTableMedicine.com, her expertise in diabetes not only comes from her professional training but from her own personal experience as well. Having been diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at the age of seven, her passion towards improving the health and well-being of others stems from successfully overcoming her own challenges of living with this chronic disease.

Focusing on the best food choices for optimal health throughout her lifetime has given her expertise in good nutrition and in knowing the ideal foods for achieving balanced blood sugar levels. Yet spending so much time thinking about food led her to have unhealthy eating patterns during her childhood. As a result, she also has a passion for helping others heal from disordered eating patterns, which is common amongst both type 1 and type 2 diabetics.

One of her core beliefs in life is everything that happens in life is a teacher, always full of rich opportunities for personal growth. This empowering perspective is a key element present in all of her work and teachings.

She also enjoys helping others strengthen what she calls the Four Pillars of Health: nutritious food, adequate rest, regular movement, and a healthy spiritual and emotional life. Just as important as the sturdiness of each leg of a four legged table is for creating balance, if even one of these areas of life is weak or lacking, optimal health cannot exist. Each of these key areas is equally important for allowing a strong foundation for good health in one’s life.

And lastly, a bit about her background…Having grown up in the Northwest, she is an avid outdoor enthusiast. Hiking in the Cascades, snow skiing in the Rockies, water skiing, biking, and practicing yoga are the activities she enjoys the most for keeping her body fit. She also delights in continually expanding her mind regarding the myriad of ways humans can and do chose to live their lives, via visiting foreign cultures. She traveled throughout Europe while living in Italy in 1993, backpacked through Australia in 1997, and left her hometown of Seattle to work with patients from all over the world at a health resort in Thailand during 2008.

This latter experience led her to realize that when people are out of touch with what they love about life and are lacking experiencing joy on a regular basis, no herbs or supplements or food plan will succeed in achieving the optimal health they are truly looking for. This revelation inspired her to write a book to address this issue. It is a story that will act as a catalyst for helping readers become clear on what is holding them back from truly loving their life.

After writing for six months in Bali, Indonesia in 2009, she is now back in Seattle, finishing her book. Stay tuned to KitchenTableMedicine.com for the announcement of the publication of this wonderfully adventurous and inspiring story!

I am Dr. Jody, the new Director of Advertising for Kitchen Table.

In order for Dr. Nicole and other exciting new, contributing authors like myself to continue to provide you with all of the latest and greatest in natural health news and lifestyle tips, we need to expand our list of sponsors.

But before doing so, we would love your input about what type of products you would like for us to review and who your favorite companies are!

Thus, we would be full of gratitude for you to take just a minute to answer our quick and easy, 10 question reader feedback survey.

Click Here to take survey

Thank you!

Eating healthy on the cheap can be tough, but if you stock your kitchen with the healthy cheap essentials it should save a great deal in the long run.

I buy certain staples like organic cheese and organic butter when they are on sale and keep them in the freezer.

Consider buying your organic meats, eggs, and fish in bulk and store in a larger freezer out in the garage.

Remember we have to pay for our health one way or another. Prevention is key. The food that graces your kitchen table is the best disease prevention money can buy. President Obama thinks that we will never fix the National Deficit until we fix the Health Care Crisis, I think we will never fix the Health Care Crisis until we fix the crisis at our kitchen tables.

Here are my favorite cheap health foods:

• Green Tea

• Flax seeds

• Oatmeal

• Brown Rice

• Apples

• Yams/Sweet potatoes

• Broccoli

• Spinach

• Canned tomatoes

• Carrots

• Bananas

• Yogurt

• Cottage Cheese

• String Cheese

Tips I have learned from the Whole Foods School of Hard Knocks:

1. Avoid buying a bunch of healthy stuff you don’t know how to prepare. Nothing is more wasteful than a bunch of rotting random veggies in your fridge. Instead, commit to making one new healthy recipe per week, experiment with new ingredients and recipes gradually to avoid wasting valuable grocery dollars. Don’t get overwhelmed by all the different grain options, make friends with them one recipe at a time.
2. Drink a smoothie in place of one meal each day. You can easily get two servings of fruits out of the way by doing so. Buy frozen fruit when it is on sale, or save money each summer by picking and freezing your own.
3. Shop at Farmer’s Markets for produce once weekly when possible. Plan meals around the foods that are in season, rely heavily on fresh herbs, pepper, garlic, and onions to season your food in lieu of organic sea salt.
4. Buy frozen chicken breasts and fish on sale.
5. Shop organic when possible, buy “The Dirty Dozen” organic, and save your organic dollars on the “Foods Least Likely to Contain Pesticides”.
6. Avoid canned foods and opt for frozen. Always keep a little frozen broccoli, spincach, cauliflower, and mixed veggies in the freezer. You can quickly dress up any recipe by adding some steamed frozen veggies. Add one cup of frozen veggies to every frozen meal you prepare, most veggies will mix in nicely with the sauce. The fiber in the vegetables will keep you feeling full longer.

Most of the recipes I post on this site are relatively inexpensive and simple to prepare, the reason for this is that I am extremely lazy (er efficient) and have spent ten years of my life as a poor college student. I therefore sincerely believe that if I can do it, so can you. Remember that eating healthy is an investment in your current and long term health.

Please do post your favorite inexpensive healthy recipe ideas or favorite cheap health food in the comments for all to enjoy or share this article with someone that can use it!

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen table,

~Dr. Nicole

If you are looking for a great massager - look no further!  The Medi-rub Massager® has been my favorite massage therapy device for over ten years.

My Dad is an Ironman Triathalete and purchased one ten years ago; it’s still going strong. I found myself always dropping by or driving  out specifically to use it, and one day it dawned on me to just purchase my own.

If you are in chronic pain, have fibromyalgia, diabetes, or are a “Weekend Warrior” like me, thinking you can ride some gnarly single track on your mountain bike, you will definitely fall in love with the Medirub Massager too.

The massager is SO powerful you can feel your skin itching within minutes….a great sign that you have increased circulation as red blood cells are forced towards the surface of the skin.

I do a lot of hands on body work with my patients and I find that by recommending the very powerful Medi-rub® massager between appointments addressing chronic back pain, fibromyalgia, and so forth, it drastically reduces the need for office visits. If you have a Medical Assistant you can always have them rub your patients down while they are waiting to see you.

Now of course I want to recommend my way out of a job with this massager and head straight to the Bahamas!

Another benefit that I was excited to find when I talked with Becky at Medirub was that a top Beverly Hills massage therapist uses this massager for treating cellulite! Do you hear that ladies? If you can’t do the Diet and Exercise like fitness trainer Bonnie Pfiester recommends, you can at least rub your full body down with this thing. Increasing circulation to areas with cellulite is one of the best ways to reduce cellulite.

That is really why most massage creams for cellulite work so well. It is likely the daily massaging of the area, and not the actual crème which, we will discuss in a future article. I will be writing a longer article on the cellulite protocol she uses along with the massager for her high end clients so that you can repeat it in your own home!

Uses for the Medi-rub® Massager:

• Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

• Upper Neck Pain

• Back Pain

• Low Back Pain

• Fibromyalgia

• Cellulite

So stop by Medi-Rub® to check out my new (well - not so new, but VERY loved for the past ten years…) favorite thing this week!

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen table!

~Dr. Nicole

Introducing favorite superfoods and their recipes is an occasional feature here at the Kitchen Table. By gradually “making friends” with the most healthy foods from nature and learning how to incorporate them in to your diet you should notice a remarkable improvement in your health.

Most superfoods are simply high in anti-oxidants and thus slow down the natural destructive process of the tissues in our bodies. Eating a diet rich in antioxidants will help to prevent aging as well as a myriad of other chronic complaints and inflammation.

Other superfoods are super because they are rich in certain vitamins, minerals or other nutrients that benefit the body in a significant way.

Everyone is always invited to add their favorite recipes using any superfood in the comments section for all to enjoy!

If you care to submit a recipe to be featured in future articles contact us!

Here are some of my favorite Super Foods:

• Almonds, almond butter

• Apples

• Beets

• Blueberries

• Broccoli

• Brown rice

• Butterfish

• Carrots

• Cherry

• Chickpeas

• Chocolate

• Cilantro

• Coconut

• Cranberries

• Flaxseed, ground and flaxseed oil (not cooked)

• Garlic

• Ginger

• Kale

• Kidney beans

• Nettles

• Oats

• Olives & Olive Oil

• Papaya

• Parsley

• Peaches (organic)

• Pears

• Pine nuts

• Pistachios

• Pomegranate

• Pumpkin seeds (raw not cooked)

• Quinoa

• Raisin

• Raspberry

• Rosemary

• Romaine lettuce

• Sage

• Salmon

• Sesame butter or seeds (raw)

• Spinach

• Spirulina

• Sprouts

• Squash

• Tapioca

• Turmeric

• Walnuts (raw)

• Watermelon

• Zuchini

What am I leaving out? What is your favorite “superfood?”

Dr. Nicole

Recently, researchers at Yale University found an alarming result to their preliminary study on how plastics affect the functioning of our Central Nervous System.

Wow! Imagine the possibilities? Wouldn’t it be nice to blame all your forgetfulness on that Tupperware lunch you just microwaved? Maybe you had brain fog this morning because you drank your organic coffee from a plastic traveler’s mug?

Maybe it is plastics, not aluminum, causing Alzheimer’s; maybe it’s all the plastics in our environment breaking down and causing the rates of ADHD, depression, autism, and other diseases of relatively unknown etiology to suddenly rise.

Doesn’t that sound crazy? But—it very well could be reality. All new chemicals are guilty until proven innocent. Why? Because that is the SAFEST option for consumers. However, the FDA does not promote safety, they promote big business in America. Anyone can see that in their inability to properly examine new substances for consumers to ingest.

Did you know that all new food additives can be FDA approved simply by laboratory testing on animals alone? Doesn’t that make you want to think twice before drinking that sucralose sports drink? If you don’t believe me then just think about why tobacco, a known killer has not been banned by the FDA?

You are drinking a man made substance that has NEVER been tested on human beings and approved for safety.

Plastics are no different. Researchers are JUST NOW growing concerned about the degradation of plastics in our environment and starting to really do some preliminary research on the health consequences of plastics.

What would we all do without plastics? We have grown so dependent on plastics.

You might be reading this right now and freaking out! OH MY GOSH! Everything in my house is plastic. My house is made of modified plastics…I drive in plastics…I eat out of plastics…I drink out of plastics! My child is teething on a big piece of plastic.

As a doctor and researcher with a passion for biochemistry, I really think that plastics - just like lead pipes, BPA, Azo yellow dye, asbestos, and all the medications the FDA is constantly approving and then yanking off the shelves - boils down to the same final dilemma that no one in the world is ever willing to accept:

You just can’t cheat the system.

I support people looking for a better way, an easier way. I am always after the same. However, the better way does not involve “cheating the system,” it involves supporting it. When we look for cheap quick fixes for today’s problems without thinking forward to the future generations, we will ALWAYS have a problem with our environment.

Think forward to fifty years from now—think about how much more plastic will be in our environment if we don’t stop now.

So, on one hand we have a very preliminary study done on plastics…and some evidence that plastics may be the problem in certain reproductive cancers…is there enough evidence yet…?

The problem is that the FDA approves something and then that thing is this “golden child” that then must be proven guilty (via expensive research).

Is “innocent until proven guilty” the best solution for potentially toxic products? There are plastics manufacturers everywhere burying the very research we need because they don’t want consumers to stop buying their products.

As a doctor with ten years of post secondary education, I vote for “why bother waiting around to find out”. The damage done by plastics is already more than enough evidence. We know they are bad. We know they break down in to “xenoestrogens,” or molecules that structurally mimic estrogen and are thus able to stimulate estrogen receptors.

We know that we should not even be drinking out of plastic water bottles. We know that smaller organisms in our environment are slowly transforming to a predominantly female gender as a result of the presence of these xenoestrogens in our environment.

This study by Yale University showing that plastics interfere with brain functions is simply the tip of the plastics iceberg. Unfortunately this may just be too big of an iceberg for us to navigate around.

What can you do as a consumer? Stop buying plastics, of course. There are typically superior products available made of stainless steel, glass, wood, and cast iron options that have circulated through generations and proven safe by the best test of all. The test of time is better than any double blind randomized control trial.

Every new thing in science gets a critical eye from me, and the plastics story is no exception. There is enough significant evidence at this point in time to warrant pulling most plastics from the shelves, and yet the FDA is not doing so because the bottom line is always the same thing—money.

Yes, at times these things may cost a little bit more, but just think of it as YOU having the voice to VOTE for what you want our environment to be composed of by choosing NOT to purchase items made of plastic.

I always love reading Dr. Mercola’s opinions on various new stories because he is fearless, and is quick to point out the pink elephant in the room. He must get a lot of hate mail…poor guy.  But for those of us sitting back going, “AMEN!!!” I would just like to take a moment to say thanks.  Especially when I read up on a topic that has had me concerned for nearly a decade….how drugs are marketed.

Here is Dr. Mercola’s take on this topic: “Harvard Med Students Rebel Against Big Pharma”And here is the original article if you would like more info.

So I don’t really find it big news at all that Harvard Med School recently scored an “F” (yes - the worse score possible) for taking too many kick backs from big pharma….

Not to mention one of the largest drug manufacturers put up shop just right across the street…
Hmmm….coinkydink?

I think NOT!!!

As much as I would love for some drug rep to whisk me away from my life of overworking hell and take me to the Bahamas where I just have to listen to some seminar to make an extra $20,000 grand this year in “grants” or whatever….it just is not going to happen.

The Chief of Staff at the hospital I worked wouldn’t even use a single pen made by a drug rep, and heaven forbid some newbie actually made it past me and into his office!

At the time, I would sit at my desk and organize my free pads of paper, water my free Viagra cactus, eat my free glucophage doughnuts, and drink my free coffee from the Angiotensin II Receptor Blocking Rep (blood pressure med) without being educated enough to understand how deep the bitter ugly irony of my drug rep riddled world was…especially when the phone would ring and I would talk to little old ladies about how they couldn’t afford food because medicare didn’t cover this drug that they desperately needed.

Back before I actually became a doctor, I would observe the doctors I worked for so that I could be as “doctor like” as possible. I watched every move they made. Memorized anything they said.  I watched how most drug reps would manage to schmooze their way in.

I watched how certain doctors refused to read their literature. I watched one doctor hold up a sign she had made with a black sharpie pen that said, “NO THICK GLOSSY LANDFILL” as she signed for that week’s free samples….she was a pharmacologist and an MD, and she knew better than to take advice on how to be a doctor from some “barbie doll with a briefcase.”  Her words, not mine.

Now that 100 people have just unsubscribed from my blog, be sure to drop me some fan mail if you like my occasional angry rants because it sure does help me fight this cause.

Nonetheless….good will prevail over evil….and this article on what should be the BEST of American medical schools demonstrates the fraudulent duplicity in our health care system that results in us being the most unhealthy country second to Finland, while we manage to spend the MOST on health care.

Can I give the entire American health care system an “F” while we are at it? I guess I can’t really fault the students when the teachers….the doctors (from the Latin “docere” meaning “to teach”) are replete with corruption.

You know where the best med school is though?

Bastyr University….my alma mater. The best school for naturopathic physicians in the world. Go there….trust me, there isn’t a drug rep to be found.

If Obama wants to make a difference in health care while in the oval office, he needs to cap how drug companies are allowed to market their product. And for all you capitalists out there…

I know this is America, but we have to draw the ethical line somewhere, and it looks like we need to start on the street dividing Harvard from Big Pharma.

Related Reading:

Drug Company Had Hit List for Doctors Who Criticized Them

I will be reading and reviewing non-fiction books as well as some great fiction that I believe follow the theme and genre of the Kitchen Table. In doing this, I would like to address the “whole” person, mentally, physically and spiritually.

So, we will be reading some books that address or pertain to issues from each of these categories.

There are a lot of awesome books out there and I am excited about exploring many of them with you.

Feel free to ask questions or suggest a book that you would like to share with the Book Club. At the beginning of each month, I will be posting the books that we will be covering the following month. This will give you a chance to get the book, if you would like, and read it ahead of time and plan to share your own thoughts and opinions.

I enjoy reading your comments on the reviews and would love to have some good discussions! So visit the “comment” section after each review and leave me some feedback.

Check back next week to discuss: “Habit Guide” by Mike Kinnaird

Recent Reviews

Organic Food Gardening Beginner’s Manual

Zen to Done

Panic Away

The Sensitive Chef Cookbook

My Uncle Ron is a great guy, and at our last get-together he said, “You always are sharing all this wisdom from your Dad and even your brother-in-law on your blog…..don’t you have something wonderful to say about your Uncle Ron?”

Of course I have a ton of wonderful things to say about my Uncle Ron! First and foremost, anytime you go over to visit Uncle Ron he is quick to make you feel welcome by offering you a drink. He always has a great variety on hand.

In honor of Father’s Day I would like to recognize all the great father figures in my life, along with my own fabulous dad. Thank you all for being such amazing role models, and for always just being there. My Uncle Ron wins the hospitality award!

The Ten Healthiest Hospitality Drinks:

#1 Water of course! Be sure to always filter water at your tap instead of buying plastic bottles that clog our systems with BPA as well as landfills. Be a cool “jar drinker” like me. Glass is best. If you also want clean ice cubes, filter the water at the main source.

As I explained in my “Obesity Tax on Soda” tirade, the only thing we should typically be drinking is WATER. Soda made with sugar is poison. Soda with artificial sweeteners is worse than poison. The only soda I recommend is sweetened with stevia, called Zevia, and even then we should still be drinking water or breast milk as nature intended.

#2 Pomegranate juice. My favorite juice is the mix of pomegranate and blueberry juice made by PomWonderful. Be sure to drink juice as a TREAT. I reward myself with a little pomegranate juice each day as it is part of my anti-aging program. I always Tweet to @Pomline Girls  on Twitter (who send me free juice) “Dr. Nicole is drinking her 8 oz of daily pom juice to prevent erectile dysfunction.”

Attention Men: Pomwonderful has done the research, and you can drink your way to Viagra prevention! Just be sure you are drinking the REAL DEAL and not water flavored with High Fructose Corn Syrup, artificial flavorings and full of food coloring!

#3 Wine. Red wine is better than white when it comes down to ORAC testing (an antioxidants ability to quench free radicals that destroy our cells.) But white wine is okay too. They say a glass or two of wine is good for you due to the antioxidant capacity of the resveratrol as I mentioned in my post, “The Healing Power of Thanksgiving,” but remember the key is MODERATION. You cannot save up all these “drink coupons” and have 14 drinks on Saturday. Sorry it just doesn’t work that way!

#4 Green Tea. In Japan green tea is the ultimate hospitality drink. If you really want to get your full antioxidants, I recommend the bright green powdered version that can be whisked in to a boglike foam. Purchase it at a Japanese or Asian market. Now the average guest will NOT see this powdered green tea as a hospitable treat, unless they are some freaky health nut like me! Dr. Nicole says BRING OUT THE BOG WATER!

#5 Heart Healthy Herbal Cocktails. I previously wrote an article sharing my favorite recipes  for mixing pure fruit juice with herbal teas, also a fantastic way to get herbal medicine in to small kids. Have fun experimenting and come up with your own special “house blend.” At my house you will get the latest herbal tea I am testing iced with a splash of pomegranate juice to sweeten….actually I just like to do that because I only drink things that are pink. *wink* Hibiscus flowers will make your tea pink too.

Also, here is my Organic Sports Drink Recipe  for your athletic friends who rode their bikes or jogged over. A home made organic sports drink or packet of Emergen-C should be taken after exercise to replete electrolytes lost in sweating.

Kids playing outside will need this, or you can just give them some watermelon, cucumber clices, cantaloupe or other “Nature’s Gator-aid.” Teach them that most of the sports drinks we buy are complete crap full of high fructose corn syrup, food colorings, and other junk we don’t need to be athletes. Keep it simple. Keep it pure.

#6 Top Shelf Vodka. You can make a “Pomtini” by shaking ice, vodka, and pomegranate juice in your martini shaker, or you can buy a flavored vodka and drink what I call my “Supermodel Cocktail” of Raspberry Stoli and Soda (that is calorie free carbonated water NOT tonic or sweetened soda) with a squeeze of lime.

Remember only 1-2 drinks per day, and always have a designated driver when consuming any amount of alcohol. I don’t just recommend top shelf liquor because I am a yuppie snob, but because top shelf is “cleaner” - meaning less other crap to clog up your liver aside from the ethanol it is forced to detox.

#7 Organic Beer. A beer or two is always good for family functions and there are many good organic beers out there. I’m not a beer drinker so I can’t recommend one, but you can do your part by visiting your local whole food market and picking up a six pack. Leave a comment on this article with your favorite!

Remember, we are already burdening the smooth endoplasmic reticulum of our hepatic lobules by asking our liver to detox ethanol….so the least work the liver has to do the better. I like less work don’t you? Well so does your liver. That is why we should GO ORGANIC in our cocktail choices. Dr. Nicole says you can drink one to two organic beers a day. Now put that on a T-shirt. He he.

#8 Dr. Nicole’s Smoothie. Here is the recipe to my favorite anti-aging smoothie. You can serve this up to guests or drink it in front of them. Modeling healthy behavior is the simplest way to teach. Kids naturally want to do what you are doing if they think you are cool. Always make being healthy look as cool as possible! Drinking smoothies is the stylish thing to do as well as an efficient way to hoark some fruit down.

#9 Organic Coffee. As I mentioned in my “Perfect Latte” recipe using my favorite Vanilla Almond Breeze. Coffee is actually quite healthy for us, and has been shown to prevent Parkinson’s. I am happy to do my part and drink two cups a day to prevent Parkinson’s.

#10 Chamomile Tea. An herbal sedative is always great for those visiting a house full of screaming kids. Passionflower tea is also delicious! Check out my article on “The Fifteen Most Fabulous Herbal Sedatives” to discover your own favorite calming house blend. There are also many wonderful caffeine free herbal blends out there for those that don’t do caffeine. Start experimenting until you find a few that you love and consider those your personal signature “herbal house blends.”

So there you have it – the healthiest hospitality drinks! This is why my Uncle Ron is such the ladies man and everyone just can’t get enough of him! Thanks Uncle Ron for always being there for me for all the big and little stuff in my life. Thank you for always making me laugh, for making me feel welcome in your home, and of course for making sure my cup is always FULL. You are the best. Now go tell Aunt Brenda how lucky she is. Much Love and Happy Father’s Day!

Happy Father’s Day to Everyone! Remember even if you aren’t someone’s immediate dad, it doesn’t mean you can’t have an inspirational impact on a child’s life. I am thankful for all my “Dads.”

Thanks for stopping by my Kitchen Table!
Dr. Nicole

I have had a frustrating time with Kitchen Table Medicine lately, and have decided to interview Dr. Joseph Mercola, someone who is a terrific mentor to me and the author of the #1 Natural Medicine News source on the internet.

I am always inspired by his writings, and impressed when he lashes out against mainstream medicine with opinions similar to mine. Opinions that always tend to generate a great deal of hate mail.

If you enjoy what you read here at the Kitchen Table, feel free to stop by and subscribe to Mercola.com as we both are fighting the same cause: disease prevention through a whole food diet and lifestyle. It is one of my greatest honors to bring to the Kitchen Table Osteopathic Physician, Dr. Joseph Mercola:

What is an Osteopathic Physician?

A D.O., or an osteopathic physician, is in many ways similar to an M.D.  A D.O. completes four years of medical school after college, and completes three to eight year residency programs in the specialty they choose. D.O.’s are fully trained and qualified physicians who are licensed to prescribe medication and perform surgery in every state in the U.S.

Philosophically, D.O.’s differ from M.D.’s in that they have more of an emphasis on holistic approaches, and recognize the importance of musculoskeletal alignment and balance to health. In addition to identical two years of basic medical science, they also learn skeletal adjustments, similar to chiropractors.

On a practical level, the drug companies have effectively penetrated the profession, just as they have the M.D.’s, so in reality there are not many differences between the two.

The only practical difference I have observed is that there is typically a difference in the selection process of students that are accepted into the school, as they tend to focus on qualities other than academic credentials that would result in caring and compassionate physicians.

So while the treatment recommendation from D.O.’s and M.D.’s will be very similar, it has been my experience that a higher percentage of people will enjoy their interaction with an osteopathic physician.

How do Osteopaths address and treat symptoms?

Since I really don’t perceive a practical difference on the therapies that are recommended by an M.D. or D.O., I typically advise patients seeking a natural medicine physician to go several health food stores in their area, and ask for the best medical doctor they know, as the people that work in the stores typically have a fairly good sense of who the best local physicians are.

There are too many variables to give a broad recommendation. In my experience most of the important ones are related to personality characteristics rather than actually knowledge.

In your opinion How do Osteopaths differ from Naturopaths?

Firstly, there are two types of naturopaths:

1. Those that receive training in an accredited four year medical college and, like D.O.’s, have full license to practice medicine in a few states (unfortunately there are not many states that provide them these practicing privileges.)
2. Those who attend a correspondence school.

Unfortunately they are both given the same degree, even though there is typically a vast difference in the level of expertise between the two.

ND’s from either training can be outstanding, but if you were looking at it from a probability perspective there is a far higher percentage that an ND trained at a four year college would be superior.

However, even with the four year trained NDs, they are very weak on post graduate training and most of them tend to begin practice immediately after their four years of training. There are very few that complete residency training programs.

Most D.O.’s have an additional 3 to 8 years of post graduate residency training. This does not necessarily make them better physicians, but D.O.’s do have more formal clinical training.

What are your favorite tips for disease prevention?

1. Optimize your vitamin D levels, ideally from appropriate sun exposure.

2. Address your emotional traumas.

3. Eat the right fats.

4. Eat plenty of raw food.

5. Control your insulin and leptin levels.

For more information about Dr. Mercola or to set up an appointment, visit www.Mercola.com

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen table, and many thanks to Dr. Mercola for taking the time to continue to inspire me.

Dr. Nicole Sundene

The other day I joked on Twitter, “Oh my gosh I got so busy Twittering I forgot a baby on the scale! BRB (be right back)” and my doctor and nurse friends all thought that was pretty funny, because some days in a family practice or pediatrics setting we get so busy we literally feel like this.

Don’t worry… I am on a break from seeing patients while I prepare to move  down to Arizona.

A decade ago, I spent my first week medical assisting in pediatrics for the hospital, I weighed and measured so many babies that I would have nightmares that one would roll off the counter and fall on the floor. I would wake up in a panicked cold sweat from the new responsibility of parents entrusting the care of their precious child in my hands.

If you have spent years of your life doing Well Child Checks, measuring and weighing babies, determining what is normal and not normal you grow seasoned, and you grow to be more worried for the baby’s of the over-concerned, over-involved parents than those parents that are more nonchalant.

So now when my friends, family, or patients ask me for my most  faboo pediatric advice I now start with the following statement:

“You are going to mess up your baby no matter what so quit fretting about it, have fun being a parent, and just start saving for therapy now!”

Although it is all in good humor, new parents have the most questions, and are the most concerned about making sure they are doing the right thing. This is exemplified perfectly by watching a mom with a new baby versus a seasoned mom with five children….after a while the more experienced mom has to just “let go and let God” to some degree.

So why are we talking about this today? Because in the deep naturopathic therapy I do with patients, the discussion of “core wounds” often comes up. I like to get down to the nitty gritty and delve up the TRUE reason for the overeating, overdrinking, or inability to self care….drink water, eat veggies, exercise and so forth.

What are these “core wounds?”

They are emotional conditioning developed in childhood that follow us around in the form of BAGGAGE as adults and help trigger our daily dramas which then creates more drama. This is evidenced by the fact that some scenarios just don’t upset certain people while others are extremely traumatized. For instance, someone that was sexually molested as a child may find a massage class traumatizing, while others see it as a treat.

So how do we unwittingly cause these “core wounds” to our children?

We give them too much attention or not enough, we let them make all the decisions or we don’t let them make any, we force them to try a new sport or we don’t get them involved with any, we make them sit at the piano with the timer going or we don’t involve them in any creative expressions at all. We force them to go to church six days a week or we don’t give them any form of spiritual enlightenment. We expect them to be “just like us” rather than allowing them to express their authentic self.

Are you all starting to follow the pattern?

It’s the middle path of parenting that is the right way, and trust me it will save you a lot of headaches. Children need to be given choices often…so that when they are told something is, “not a choice,” they are okay with it.

One of my best friends always takes her “me time” with a splash of guilt, referring to herself sarcastically as “Mother of the Year,” but I think that every parenting relationship needs a healthy balance of “me time” and kid time….basically it goes back to the same old adage that we need to fasten our oxygen masks first…which is why I WOULD absolutely nominate her for the title of “Mother of the Year.”

Many new mothers become so obsessed and worried about their babies that they are scared to even leave the house….scared to let the baby sleep anywhere but right next to them, this overly obsessive behavior is what I call a “Family Medicine Crisis.”

With the divorce rate at 50%, a healthy marriage should always be the priority if you want healthy children. New parents need to set a “date night” six weeks from the day baby is born and commit to leaving the baby with someone….heck leave them with me! I love babies…it’s the toddlers that are terrifying.

I am sure it is tough to leave your baby….but this is tough love and you just HAVE to do it! You can’t let the baby take over your marriage….you can’t let the kids rule your house. They will be happier if they know you are in charge, that their parents are happy and spend time together.  Children need you to model a healthy marriage and staying at home all the time with your children is the fast track to divorce. Children are also a bit like dogs in that they need to know who’s in charge, and that if mom sets a rule - dad enforces it and vice versa.

Most importantly you NEED a break from your children and you need to do it guilt-free. In order to be a good parent you need to get away from them OFTEN, and in an orderly and scheduled fashion. Find neighbors to swap sitting with, ask family members to watch your baby, schedule your grocery shopping to be done without the kids when possible so that you can be at peace while you shop for healthy choices. Everyone in the store will thank you.

Of course you definitely should baby proof your house, and make sure that you are creating a safe environment for your child, as accidents are the leading cause of death in children.

Children need basic boundaries, children need to be told they are loved and hugged, children need to be recognized, they need to be “SEEN” they need you to “SEE” them….even if it is just five minutes of time you spend being present with your child…..a child’s version of “time” is so much different. Think back to how long it used to seem for Christmas or your birthday to roll around…That five minutes of PRESENT attention could be the five minutes that makes the difference and makes your child feel important to you.

Back to the children as dogs model (oh boy I’m sure I’ll get a ton of hate mail for this but bear with me….) when you are present with your children they are confident that someone is in charge….that you are in charge, that you are taking care of them.  Your daily INTENTIONAL acts of presence will save you loads of cash for therapy in the long run. It will also save you the daily headache of having a child that does not feel secure in their environment and their place in the family.  Children will then find your attention (just like dogs…he he) as the greatest reward of all.

Giving them this attention is simple. Every single day make a point to look them square in the eye and tell them how important they are to you, mention all the positives they have done, hug them and tell them you love them. Every single day.

And as for everything else….just leave it up to their future therapist!  *wink*

Everyone starts therapy in their 30’s and 40’s anyway when they finally realize they have been living in a continuously recycled version of their childhood drama. That the behavioral patterns of their teens and twenties are still failing them, that it is time to desensitize oneself from the drama and delve in to the past for a solid “core wound” healing.

~Dr. Nicole

Related reading:

Autism: Eight Questions Dr. Nicole Has For Parents

Children Are Eating Their Weight in Sugar Each Year

55 Healthy and Cheap School Lunch Ideas

Hot Dogs and Childhood Cancer

How to get Your Kids to Eat More Vegetables

Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman suggested in 1984 that stress can be thought of as resulting from an imbalance between demands and resources, or as occurring when pressure exceeds ones perceived ability to cope.

Stress management was developed and premised on the idea that stress is not a direct response to a stressor, but rather one’s resources and ability to cope and makes changes in his or her life, thus allowing stress to be controllable.

Stress can be good (called eustress) when it helps us perform better, or it can be bad (distress) when it causes upset or makes us sick.

The stress reaction results from an outpouring of adrenaline, a stimulant hormone, into the blood stream when a person is feeling distress. This, with other stress hormones, produces a number of changes in the body which are intended to be protective.

Professionals in the field of psychology have called this outpouring of hormones, the fight-or-flight response because when faced with a stressful situation, a person will either fight or run away from danger.

When encountering stress, a person may experience: an increase in heart rate, an increase in blood pressure (to get more blood to the muscles, brain and heart), faster breathing (to take in more oxygen), tensing of muscles (preparation for action), increased mental alertness and sensitivity of sense organs (to assess the situation and act quickly), increased blood flow to the brain, heart and muscles (the organs that are most important in dealing with danger) and less blood to the skin, digestive tract, kidneys and liver (where it is least needed in times of crisis), an increase in blood sugar, fats and cholesterol (for extra energy), and a rise in platelets and blood clotting factors (to prevent hemorrhage in case of injury).

What are the Common Symptoms of Stress?

Physical: fatigue, headache, insomnia, muscle aches/stiffness (especially neck, shoulders and low back), heart palpitations, chest pains, abdominal cramps, nausea, trembling, cold extremities, flushing or sweating and frequent colds, decrease in concentration and memory, indecisiveness, mind racing or going blank, confusion, loss of sense of humor, anxiety, nervousness, depression, anger, frustration, worry, fear, irritability, impatience, short temper, pacing, fidgeting, nervous habits (nail-biting, foot-tapping), increased eating, smoking, drinking, crying, yelling, swearing, blaming and even throwing things or hitting.

What Are the Causes of Stress?

Dr. Selye called the causes of stress stressors or triggers. There are two kinds of stressors: external and internal.

External stressors include:
Physical environment: noise, bright lights, heat, confined spaces.

Social interaction: rudeness, bossiness or aggressiveness on the part of someone

Organizational: rules, regulations, “red tape,” deadlines.

Major life events: death of a relative, lost job, promotion, new baby.

Daily hassles: commuting, misplacing keys, mechanical breakdowns.

Internal stressors include:

Lifestyle choices: caffeine, not enough sleep, overloaded schedule.

Negative self-talk: pessimistic thinking, self-criticism, over-analyzing.

Mind traps: unrealistic expectations, taking things personally, all-or-nothing thinking, exaggerating, rigid thinking.

Stressful personality traits: Type A, perfectionist, workaholic, pleaser.

It is important to note that most of the stress that many of us have is actually self-generated. This is a paradox because so many people think of external stressors when they are upset (it is the weather, the boss, the children, the spouse, the stock market). Recognizing that we create most of our own upsets, however, is an important first step to dealing with them.

Read an article on Basic Breathing Exercises to reduce stress

Read all our articles on stress

**Much of this information was prepared by Dr. David B. Posen Lifestyle Counselor and Psychotherapist, and Author of “Always Change a Losing Game”

Oakville, Ontario. Permission has been given for this information to be copied and distributed to patients.

Other information was obtained from:

Lazarus, R.S., and Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, Appraisal and Coping.

For personalized advice for coping with stress you can visit Dr. KC at www.docinthebiz.com

Or alternatively, you must burn more calories from exercise than you consume. Addressing the underlying causes behind poor eating and lifestyle habits is the ONLY way to ensure a healthy and long-term approach to weight loss.

The best approach to weight loss emphasizes lifestyle changes that incorporate whole foods and activity. It is our belief that sustainable changes in dietary and activity patterns can lead to maintainable, long-term weight loss success.

Physical activity guidelines are recommended to complement the nutrition counseling and make this process easier and more productive.

While each person has different needs and will require a custom tailored dietary program, there are some basic concepts that are helpful for most people. A health promoting, weight control diet will be:

• HIGH in fiber-dense carbohydrates found in whole grains, beans, fresh fruits, and vegetables. Also, it is important to drink plenty of water (approximately 2 quarts per day).

• MODERATE in fish and chemical-free lean meats (chicken, and turkey).

• LOW in red meat, animal fats, hydrogenated oils, full-fat dairy products, pre-packaged, processed, and refined foods, sugar, alcohol, and caffeine.

General Tips
• Set a realistic weight loss goal, usually 1 to 2 pounds per week is recommended.
• Balance food intake with activity. The most successful weight loss programs combine increased activity with decreased caloric intake.

Tips to Increase the Amount of Physical Activity in a Day:
• Try some group activity classes at the local gym, fitness center, or swimming pool.
• Work out with family, friends, or neighbors. Motivation is increased with partners.
• Take a walk at lunchtime.
• Use a bike to run local errands and go for pleasure rides.
• Use the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Walk to the bus stop or work
• Park the car a few blocks away and walk.
• Dance to some favorite music at home or sign-up for a series of classes.

Tips to Reduce the Quantity of Food Eaten:
• Plan and prepare meals ahead of time.
• Identify foods that are often over consumed and set limits, or avoid.
• Identify and limit problem foods.
• Eat small, frequent meals and healthful snacks.
• Eat slowly and savor each mouthful. Allow 20-30 minutes for each meal, rest, set the fork down, and/or converse between bites. Chew the food well.
• Wait 10-15 minutes before taking a second helping.
• Serve food on a smaller plate.
• Drink two glasses of water or a cup of hot tea 30 minutes before meals to reduce appetite.
• Postpone a desired snack for at least 10 minutes. It may be helpful to take a walk, get some fresh air, drink a cup of water or tea, or take a short nap during this time.
• At restaurants eat half of the portion and take the rest home. Prepackage the food to go before starting the meal.
• Nurture with nonfood related activities, such as a hot bubble bath or a massage, developing a hobby, relaxing with a good book, or listening to some music.

Tips to Eliminate Eating Cues that Promote Overeating:
• Designate a specific place in the home to eat, preferably the kitchen or dining room. Eat snacks and meals only when sitting down at this place.
• Avoid watching TV, talking on the phone, reading, or driving while eating. This will help increase the awareness of fullness.
• Do the grocery shopping on a full stomach to decrease impulse buys.
• Create a schedule for eating. Plan meals and snacks at regular intervals, including the types of food to be eaten.
• Carry food to work or when going out, to eliminate long periods without eating.
• To prevent visual food distractions, keep all food stored in the kitchen cupboards or refrigerator, rather than out on the counter.
• Read or listen to motivational books, join a support group, or consider seeing a therapist to help with any emotional issues involving food, eating, and/or weight loss.

Diet, activity, and emotional work can provide feelings of health and wellness, which establish new patterns that support and nurture the body.

Think well! Eat well! Be well!

Related reading:

Why You Should Invest in Fitness

Are You on the Sumo Wrestler Diet?

Rock it – Pilgrim Style

How to Eat Healthy While Traveling

6 Steps to Calorie Counting in Your Kitchen

With 1/3 of Americans obese, every month is now “Weight Loss Month” at the kitchen table!

It may be acceptable for me to hide in a Snuggie like I did on Mother’s Day, but I am moving down south to Arizona and need to tone up FAST! Here are some of my favorite weight loss tips and tricks:

• Best Alternative Medicine Plan for Weight Loss
• Know your fat burning zone so your exercise counts.
• Ride the Wave or find a new fun toy to help you burn a few extra calories and stretch out those hips from sitting around the office all day.
• Sleep: Studies show if you don’t get enough sleep that is a cause for weight gain, and during these “Tough Economic Times” we need to use all the freebies we can snatch up!
• Calcium: Are you getting enough calcium? Research supports calcium supplementation for weight loss. Woo hoo!! This is a simple and cheap thing we should be taking anyway. I am not a fan of calcium carbonate as commonly used in many antacids, because we actually need acid to absorb our minerals, therefore I prefer calcium citrate. Non-menopausal adult women should get about 1200mg in daily divided doses to prevent osteoporosis and help control weight.
• Fiber: Best source for fiber is fruits and veggies. I also use these chewable fiber tablets by Enzymatic Therapy, add ground flaxseeds to smoothies, and typically don’t recommend psyllium fiber as it can make some people really gassy….especially if I have to be around them!
• Chomium Picolinate: To help balance cravings try 200mcg of chromium twice daily.
• Multivitamin: If you are restricting your diet be sure to make sure all your bases are covered by taking a high quality multivitamin.
• Make a Zero Zone: Your fridge feng shui is Uber important. Zero calories and guilt free snacks like fruits and veggies should be readily available and accessable. Hide the non-whole food treats for the “out of site out of mind” benefit.
• Make it a Gym Date: Whether catching up with a girlfriend over the stairmaster, or strutting your stuff on an actual date at the gym, suggest healthy alternatives to the typical dates that consist of sitting around and overeating, overdrinking, and over-overing in the Standard American Diet (SAD) fashion.
• Reading: Join our book club just by staying tuned, or subscribed. Bobbie Laing will be writing about many different genres between self help books, engaging novels, and so forth. When we have a quiet night reading, we are nurturing that within us that is stressed and needs to be calm while avoiding television ad brainwashing.

Read More: Weight Loss category

Is your home drinking water safe?

I was a little shocked to find out that mine had toxic LEAD in it, after using eVitamins Water Safe Drinking Water Test. I knew the chlorine would be in there because I can taste the difference, but the lead was a bit of an unpleasant surprise.

Although we have done away with lead pipes and lead paint since the 1980’s, many fixtures are still partially made of lead, and this toxic metal that causes anemia, decreased neurological functioning, and immune dysfunction should be filtered out!

I realized that my Aquasana filter was indeed doing me a great deal of good, and that I needed to also start giving my parade of pets safe filtered water too. It is worth the extra few minutes a day it takes to fill up their water bowls. Pets are especially susceptible to environmental toxins.

Sometimes I worry as a Naturopathic Physician that I am over-paranoid about toxins in our environment, so the  Biochemist in me grabbed this test kit over at eVitamins to see if maybe I didn’t need to be so paranoid after all.

Now I know why most patients I’ve tested for heavy metals in Seattle consistently show high lead and mercury levels.  We are drinking poison! I wish mercury was included in this test kit, but most high quality filters also filter mercury out of our water as well as other toxic substances such as pesticides, bacteria, chlorine and so forth.

I like the simple Aquasauna filters that can be added to your kitchen sink. Don’t forget the shower filter too, or you can filter the water straight at it’s source with a whole home water filter (somewhat expensive but highly recommended for those with chronic disease or small children constantly bathing in it.)

Since the ONLY thing we should be drinking is WATER (read my “Obesity Tax on Soda” tirade for more info) you CAN afford a water filter when you give up soda and  juice.  Filtering the toxins out at the kitchen sink is the most economic way to go. Save  your favorite glass  jars and fill them in lieu of plastic bottles. Be cool….be a “jar drinker” like me! You can also use stainless steel containers for small children that should not be trusted with glass, such as my fav brand I can guarantee is aluminum free: Klean Kanteen.

You should especially purchase this Water Safe Test Kit if you have developing children in your home, suffer from chronic disease, or if your water has a funky odor. Water should never have an odor!

Dr. Nicole

Related reading:

Detoxify Your Home

Mold: Getting Rid of it in Your Home

Decreasing Home Pollutants

Chlorine Shower Filter: Anti-Aging

Liver Support Protocol

The combination of a low-saturated-fat, total-fat, and low-cholesterol diet, physical activity, and weight control can have many positive effects on overall health.

In addition to lowering the “bad” LDL cholesterol, they can raise the “good” HDL cholesterol.

The body naturally makes cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol is found in foods that contain animal products (butter, milk, cheese, chicken, beef, eggs, etc.). Plant products do NOT contain cholesterol. There are many good things cholesterol does in the body, including:

• Acts as a building block for hormones
• Is an important constituent of bile, which helps digest fat
• Helps maintain the integrity of cell membranes

Why is LDL cholesterol considered “bad”?

When too much low-density lipoprotein (LDL) circulates in the blood, it can slowly build up in the walls of the arteries that feed the heart and brain. Together with other substances it can form plaque, a thick, hard deposit that can clog those arteries. This condition is known as atherosclerosis. If a clot forms and blocks a narrowed artery, it can cause a heart attack or stroke. That is why LDL is often called “bad” cholesterol.

Why is HDL cholesterol considered “good”?
About one-third to one-fourth of blood cholesterol is carried by high-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL is known as the “good” cholesterol because a high level of it seems to protect against heart attack. Medical experts think that HDL tends to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it is passed from the body. Some experts believe that HDL removes excess cholesterol from plaque in arteries, thus slowing the build-up.

Cholesterol Targets

• Total Cholesterol Should Be Less than 200 mg/dL
• 200-239 mg/dL is Borderline high
• 240 mg/dL and above is High

LDL Cholesterol

• Less than 100 mg/dL is optimal
• 100-129 mg/dL is near optimal
• 130-159 mg/dL borderline high
• 160-189 mg/dL is high
• 190 mg/dL and above is very high

HDL (good) cholesterol protects against heart disease, so for HDL, higher numbers are better. A level less that 40 mg/dL is low and it increases risk for heart disease.

*Cholesterol levels are measured in milligrams (mg) of cholesterol per deciliter (dL) of blood.

Fiber is VERY important to any cholesterol lowering plan.

What is fiber?

Fiber is a substance found only in plants, such as fruits, vegetables, and grains. The part of the plant fiber that you eat is called dietary fiber and is an important part of a healthy diet. Dietary fiber is made up of two main types–insoluble and soluble. Both types of fiber are important to our health and aid in weight loss.

What is the difference between insoluble and soluble fiber?

Soluble fiber forms a gel when mixed with liquid, while insoluble fiber does not. Insoluble fiber passes through your digestive tract largely intact. Both types of fiber are important in the diet and provide benefits to the digestive system by helping to maintain regularity. Soluble fiber has some additional benefits to heart health.

What are some good sources of soluble fiber?

Soluble fiber is found in oats, peas, beans, certain fruits, and psyllium (pronounced sil’e-um). Psyllium is a grain that is found in some cereal products, in certain dietary supplements, and in certain bulk fiber supplements.

What are the benefits of soluble fiber?

In additional to the digestive system benefits mentioned above, soluble fiber contributes to delayed emptying of the stomach which contributes to early fullness and decreased appetite. Soluble fiber has been scientifically proven to reduce blood cholesterol levels, which may help reduce your risk of heart disease.

Tips to increase fiber:

• Increase vegetable consumption to at least three, 1-cup servings per day.
• Increase fruit consumption to at least two servings per day (½ cup canned or 1 piece fresh equals a serving).
• Increase whole grain consumption to at least four, ½ cup servings per day. This includes oats, brown rice, bran, quinoa, barley and whole wheat (choose whole grains products).
• Eat legumes daily (try bean dips or spreads such as hummus or black bean dip).
• Snack on air-popped popcorn (sprinkle your popcorn with nutritional yeast and sea salt as a yummy alternative to butter).
• Add oatmeal, oat bran, wheat germ, or rice bran to hot cereal, yogurt, meat loaf, meatballs or hamburgers (remember animal products do not contain fiber).
• Substitute whole grain flour for white flour in baking recipes.
• If currently eating a low fiber diet, it is suggested to gradually increase fiber intake and drink plenty of water (at least 8 glasses per day) to avoid discomfort and gas that can occur with a sudden increase in fiber.

Read more articles on cholesterol

Sources: American Dietetic Association

http://www.eatright.org/Public/NutritionInformation
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/chd/Tipsheets/solfiber.htm

I won’t even pretend to be an expert on autism, but since this great group of autism blogging moms found me here at the kitchen table, I have a few questions of my own….

Below is a brief interview I did with one parent of a child diagnosed with autism, and if you would like to copy and paste the questions in to the comments section and share your own answers either anonymously or publicly it would greatly help me while I research the latest biochemistry on autism, vaccines, diets, vitamins, low homocysteine, and so forth.  Also other doctors and health care professional subscribed to my website will benefit.

Please share any other info you think would be helpful beyond my very basic questions, please by all means do so…I sincerely believe that the parents are the experts on this topic and even though April is “Autism Awareness Month,” author Tara McClintick and I decided that autism continues 365 days a year….so we are going to keep talking about this important and ever growing “epidemic” at the kitchen table.

#1 Did you have a difficult time getting pregnant?

Yes. We were childless for 9 years and I had two or three unsuccessful cervical bypass procedures. I also had one ectopic pregnancy prior to the birth of my daughter. I did manage to get pregnant on my own without drugs or other procedures. I was 29 when she was born.

#2 Was the pregnancy complicated or simple?

Very simple. Very little morning sickness, nothing major.

#3 Any problemss at birth?

Not at all. However, I was induced and was in labor for almost 17 hours.

#4 Normal APGARS?

Yes.

#5 Did your child exhibit any signs or symptoms before diagnosis physical or otherwise?

Yes. She was unable to nurse (could not latch on). She had poor eye contact, few words by age 2, echolalia when she did speak, repetitive behavior (such as stacking books), wandering, not pointing, not always responding to her name, sensory sensitivity, tantruming

#6 Was the onset around the time of the MMR vaccine?

I don’t recall when this vaccine was administered, but we definitely knew there was something wrong by about 18 months.

#7 Was your child vaccinated on a full schedule or partial schedule?

Full, at least I think so. She was vaccinnated as the schedule required in 1997-98.

#8 Any other factors going on with the family before or at the time of onset?

No.

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen table to share your story.

Related reading:

Autism Awareness Month

Autism: 10 Strategies for Implementing Diet Changes

The Autism Diet Connection

Autism: 10 Tips for Everyone

Having an alternative medicine plan in store before allergy season sets in full force will save you time, medication, and misery in the long run.

First I will be discussing how to get your body in optimal conditioning to cope with allergy season, and then I will discuss specific natural medicines that will help support your immune system to reduce the overall severity of seasonal allergies. If you always tend to be “sick” the months of March, April, May and September you more likely have seasonal allergies than a bad cold.

Now is a great time to do a SPRING CLEANING. Having a healthy liver aids the detoxification of histamine, that nasty molecule that gives us the irritating symptoms of allergies.

Seventy percent of our immune system smartly surrounds our gut and is formally known as GALT “Gut Associated Lymphatic Tissue”. If the immune system is already stressed from reacting improperly to foods it will affect the body’s ability to cope with the added burden of seasonal allergies.

The take home message is to just cut back on wheat and dairy during allergy season as they are the typical “worst offenders” for most. Citrus, peanuts, corn, soy, tomatoes, red meat, sugar and processed foods seem to also cause trouble for those with seasonal allergies. Before allergy season starts is a great time to do an ALLERGY ELIMINATION DIET, or simply reduce those foods that you already are aware make you more congested or symptomatic during this time.

Foods as medicine: Increase onions and garlic for quercetin and sulfur levels. Eat Alaskan Wild salmon as often as possible for the anti-inflammatory benefits of the Omega 3’s and increase green leafy vegetables as much as possible to aid the livers role in the detoxification of histamine. Switch to a Whole Foods Diet.

According to Chinese Medicine Theory people have allergies because they are “living too far away from the earth”. Now I doubt they mean that you are living on Jupiter, I am most certain they are referring to a diet high in preservatives and white flours, over-processed refined foods and artificial sweeteners and other chemicals.

Quercetin: Stabilizes the “Mast Cells” of our immune system and prevents their cell membranes from degranulating and releasing histamine in to the system. Histamine is what makes us cough, sneeze, itch and have watery eyes. Typically two 500mg capsules twice daily is a sufficient dose.

Severe allergy sufferers also run quercetin in their Neti Pot to reduce the inflammation of the nasal membranes. Quercetin is a relatively benign substance that can be used in higher doses if need be, just check with your Naturopathic Physician before doing so.

Vitamin C: Supports the immune system and the functioning of quercetin. Typical dose is 500mg three times daily. You can also take it to bowel tolerance when sick or excessively symptomatic.

Freeze Dried Nettles Leaf: Has been shown to be extremely helpful during allergy season. Typical dose is two 500 mg capsules twice daily. Nettles are a nutritive “food” that will build the body up. Using foods as medicines is always optimal to prescribing antihistamines. If need be you can take up to 4 grams of nettles which is equivalent to eight 500mg capsules! I am not recommending taking that many capsules; I am simply trying to demonstrate how safe nettles are as an herbal medicine.

Research has also shown nettles to be helpful for osteoarthritis, myalgia, detoxification and eczema. If you choose to make a tea from the fresh plant, be sure to wear gloves when harvesting so as not to get stung! The leaves are the medicine in this case; the root of this plant is used for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Nettle is not to be used by those on anti-coagulant “blood thinning” drugs.

Neti Pot: Doing a couple solid Neti Pot sessions a day is one of the best, cheapest remedies for seasonal allergy sufferers that tend to frequently develop sinus infections. The gentle saline flush of the nasal passages has a three fold benefit. First we are tonifying the mucous membranes that line the passages, second we are washing out residual phlegm (aka-snot- aka the breeding ground for bacteria and viruses that cause sinus infections).

As an added bonus during allergy season you are flushing out the pollens formally known as “antigens” that are causing our immune systems to over react and produce sneezing, itching and watery eyes. Plan to do two Neti pots a day so that you will at least remember to do one. Be sure to check with your doctor before treating yourself with home remedies especially if you are taking medications or suffer from a health condition.

Household: You may want to consider investing in a HEPA air filter to reduce the total level of allergens you are exposed to in your home. Also, when returning home for the day be sure to take off your shoes so you don’t track the pollen throughout your house. Shower and change your clothes after going outside, if that is not an option, at least try to rinse off your hands and face to remove as much pollen as possible.

So there you have the basics to get started. Stay tuned seasonal allergy sufferers spring has hit and I will be walking everyone through how to naturally cope with allergies and their concomitant annoying friends “acute and chronic sinusitis”. Feel free to leave your allergy season questions in the comments and I will briefly answer them or post a formal answer in an upcoming blog article!

~Dr. Nicole

Author: Dr. Nicole Sundene

Resources: Herbal Medicine from the Heart of the Earth by Tilgner; Medical Herbalism by Hoffman; The Web that has No Weaver; Textbook of Natural Medicine by Pizzorno and Murray; The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia by Wood; Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Balch; Food Allergies and Food Intolerances by Brostoff.