Obeasting It

The mathematics of weight loss | Ruben Meerman | TEDxQUT (edited version) - YouTube

2017-06-09T06:09:00.001-05:00

The mathematics of weight loss | Ruben Meerman | TEDxQUT (edited version) - YouTube

Video - Eat, Fast & Live Longer

2017-05-06T23:04:00.003-05:00

Breaking a water fast

2017-05-03T01:52:00.003-05:00

fruit and vegetable juices - Not the processed kind with added sugar or from concentrate. Juice it yourself for best results. Head to your local juice bar if you don't have the time or patience. Finally, as a last resort buy juice like Naked or Suja (just don't get the kind with ginger or lemon it burns the fasting mouth)
raw fruits - Be sure to fully chew the fruit before swallowing to help release digestive enzymes and aid in the digestion.
vegetable or bone broths - You can make your own with this recipe. Personally, I went to my local health food store A Movable Feast and purchased it frozen. There is the added benefit of supporting the local economy I find bone broths to be a little heavy for the empty stomach. They definitely smell of cooked animal which is normally very appetizing to me but it was almost overwhelming with my faster's heighten sense of smell. Vegetable broth is great and I really enjoy the smell it is bland but I am not looking for anything too heavy just after 10 days of not eating.
Kefir (or other living, cultured milk products), unsweetened - I am waiting to introduce kefir back into my diet after 2-3 days of eating. I know I recommend unsweetened but honestly, I will be drinking my pomegranate flavor. Unsweetened cultured milk products are disgusting to me and no amount of starvation will change my mind.

I try to eat every 2-3 hours when breaking the fast. I keep the meals small as my stomach will cramp if I push it too hard. Pay close attention to your body's reactions to these "new" foods. Watch for any adverse reactions, perhaps signalling a mild allergy or that you have gone too far, too quickly. Feel for the sensation of fullness and stop eating at that point. Begin to train yourself to watch for that signal, so you'll always know when your body is fully nourished.
I have added a high quality probiotic that I take once daily. Strive to add live enzymes and good bacteria to your system. Fresh, raw foods are full of living enzymes good for your body and digestion. Probiotics, or "good" bacteria, can be found not only in pill form, but also in naturally cultured and fermented food products, such as yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, and miso.

Do not ruin your hard work by scarfing down a large pizza. I have broken a fast this way and it was painful. My body violently rebelled against the influx of processed garbage.As a food addict, I didn't care I just kept stuffing myself. Shame. Shame.

Working Out: Getting Started

2017-05-03T00:21:00.003-05:00

Starting a workout regime can be a daunting task for anyone, no matter their fitness level. For me, it was important to find a workout that would push my body just the right amount in the beginning.
Let's face it there is no way that I was going to be able to jump into an Insanity workout or even go back to my old Tae Bo VHS tapes that have been gathering dust in the last decade. To be honest, I have tried to complete workouts that were no where near my current fitness level. About 15 minutes into a video, I would be lost, tired, and so much out of breathe I had to stop. This left me feeling like a failure. I felt that if I could not get through one workout tape then I would never have the strength to shift the weight. I have learned to accept the physical limitations of my body. Now I only do workouts that are challenging for me but also at my current fitness level.
My personal favorite for just starting out is the Chris Powell 15 minute beginner workout. It allows me to gauge my current fitness level. Some days the workout is super easy for me but then others I am huffing and puffing at the end. I like the fact that it is only 15 minutes which means I really don't have an excuse not to workout. Finally, I really like how encouraging Chris Powell is and his positive attitude brightens my day. Also, it doesn't hurt that he is easy on the eyes.

Four bitter herbs heal the liver, gall bladder, and other ailments

2017-05-03T00:06:00.000-05:00

Certain bitter herbs are considered liver herbs because they stimulate, cleanse, and protect the liver and gall bladder. While Western palates are not fond of bitter tasting foods, they do stimulate and support digestion. German research shows that bitter tonic herbs stimulate bile and hydrochloric acid production. They stimulate nervous system and immune system function, as well as combat fatigue and exhaustion.

Four commonly used bitter herbs which are used traditionally and in the medical community to support the liver, gall bladder, and other ailments are milk thistle, dandelion, Oregon grape root, and gentian root, from which gentian violet is manufactured.

Milk thistle protects liver cells

Milk thistle protects liver cells by coating them with phytochemicals. These chemicals heal damaged liver cells and protect healthy cells from becoming damaged.

The medical journal Phytochemical Research states that milk thistle, or Silybum marianum, is the most well-researched herb for the treatment of liver disease. The seeds and fruit in milk thistle contain the most silymarin, an antioxidant, anti-fibrotic, and toxin blocker.

In animal testing, milk thistle was able to reduce liver damage caused by acetaminophen, radiation, carbon tetrachloride, and other environmental toxins. Milk thistle has been demonstrated clinically to treat liver damage from alcohol, hepatitis, and other liver disease.

Dandelion stimulates digestion and bile action

Dandelion root and leaf is a classic bitter liver tonic herb. Along with Oregon grape root bark, gentian root, and wormwood leaves, dandelion stimulates digestion, stimulates the liver to produce more bile. This action cleanses the liver and gall bladder.

The International Journal of Molecular Science published an in-depth study in 2010 of the effects of dandelion root and leaf on cholesterol-fed rabbits. While one can never assume that an animal study will benefit humans, plenty of empirical evidence supports the idea that dandelion is beneficial for humans.

This study points out that dandelion has been shown to possess the ability to reduce cholesterol, rheumatism, oxidative stress which contributes to atherosclerosis, and acts as a diuretic.

This was a cross-matched study involving rabbits who were fed a normal diet, a high-cholesterol diet, a high cholesterol diet with dandelion leaves, and a high cholesterol diet with dandelion root.

The results showed that both dandelion root and leaves were able to positively change both the antioxidant activities and lipid profile in the rabbits. The conclusion was that dandelion could be used to help prevent liver and heart disease.

Oregon grape root is a favorite among dermatologists

Dermatologic Therapy noted the healing benefits of Oregon grape root in a 2003 paper describing herbs which are useful in the treatment of skin conditions. While the paper specifically mentioned Oregon grape root for acne, it stated that the herb has "anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and bile-stimulating properties."

Gentian root supports liver function as well as being a fungicide

Gentian root extract is a fungicide, an immune booster, and possesses anti-inflammatory properties. Its bitter principles stimulate the secretion of both gastric juices and bile.

In an uncontrolled clinical study, a gentian root tincture in an alcohol base increased and prolonged gall bladder emptying. It also helped to enhance protein and fat digestion.

These four bitter herbs are particularly beneficial for people who have been exposed to environmental toxins, are in the habit of consuming alcohol, eat a large amount of meat, have high cholesterol levels or a "fatty liver."

Sources:

PubMed.gov, Phytotherapy Research. 2010 Oct;24(10):1423-32. "Milk thistle in liver diseases: past, present, future." Abenavoli L and Capasso R, et al.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20564545

PubMed.gov, International Journal of Molecular Science. 2010 January; 11(1): 67-78. "Hypolipidemic and Antioxidant Effects of Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Root and Leaf on Cholesterol-Fed Rabbits." Ung-Kyu Choi and Ok-Hwan Lee, et al.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2820990/

Zooscape.com, "Gentian: A bitter pill to swallow," by Christopher Hobbs http://www.zooscape.com

Healing Tools. Tripod.com, "Liver /Gallbladder and Anti-Parasite Tonic"
http://healingtools.tripod.com/thn8.html#livtonic

Beat sleep apnea naturally

2017-05-02T23:59:00.003-05:00

Sleep apnea is a terribly uncomfortable syndrome where an individual is unable to breath effectively at night while sleeping. This condition not only impairs an individual's quality of life but greatly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease as well. Beat sleep apnea with natural lifestyle interventions.

Sleep apnea occurs when air is not adequately able to get through the respiratory tract, creating irregular breathing habits while sleeping. Central sleep apnea refers to a lack of breathing effort while obstructive sleep apnea happens when there is a physical blockage in normal breathing patterns despite regular efforts.

Sleep apnea is a dangerous condition

Sleep apnea is characterized by snoring, choking while sleeping and snorting when oxygen levels drop. The individuals are not able to get a deep sleep and they wake up groggy and tired. They often are sleepy throughout the day because they never get adequate rest.

The majority of individuals with sleep apnea are overweight, however, up to 25% are either normal weight or even under weight. For some, weight loss is a critical component to getting well, but all individuals with this disorder must work to improve their posture, breathing habits and diet. Untreated sleep apnea not only destroys one's quality of life but also leads to a greatly increased risk of stroke, hypertension, heart failure, irregular heart beat and heart attack.

Anti-inflammatory nutrition plan:

Food allergens and intolerances can cause an inflammatory process that leads to obstructive sleep apnea. Removing the most common food allergens, including gluten containing grains, pasteurized dairy, soy products, corn and peanuts, is essential. Many individuals notice an immediate change in their symptoms after removing these inflammatory foods.

The ideal diet should focus on good fats as the primary calorie source in the form of coconut, avocados, olive oil and sprouted nuts and seeds. Clean animal protein in the form of grass-fed beef and bison, wild fish and organic poultry should be consumed regularly. The nutrition plan should feature phytonutrient rich vegetables and herbs and low-glycemic fruit like lemons and berries.

Regular exercise is important for improving breathing mechanics

High intensity cardiovascular exercise and weight training is important for individuals with sleep apnea. Interval training where the individual works up to 90+ percent of their heart rate for periods of time challenges their respiratory tract to become stronger and more efficient. Weight training enhances muscle strength and improves the respiratory system to function well under increased intrathoracic pressure.

Chiropractic care is critical for full recovery

Most individuals with sleep apnea deal with subluxations in their upper cervical spine and often times, their lower cervical and upper thoracic regions. Subluxation is the term for misalignments of the spine that cause compression and irritation of nerve pathways affecting organ systems of the body.

One of the most common problems seen with individuals with sleep apnea is forward head posture. When the head is shifted further forward than it normally should, it adds additional stress and abnormal leverage on the lower cervical and upper thoracic spine, which house the nerves that control the respiratory pathways. This includes the pharynx, larynx, trachea and lungs.

Correct forward head posture and spinal subluxations

Corrective chiropractic care aims to address the forward head posture and subluxation problems. They do this through specific chiropractic adjustments to remove nerve pressure and corrective spinal exercises to balance and improve the postural deficits. This process minimizes physical nerve stress and allows for optimal nerve supply and proper breathing mechanics.

This is vitally important for individuals with sleep apnea to effectively address subluxation and most see remarkable results often in as little as a week with corrective chiropractic care. Others who have more damage in these spinal regions take longer to get over their faulty posture and sleep apnea.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.prlog.org

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://science.naturalnews.com

10 Day Water Fast Results

2017-05-02T23:46:00.003-05:00

Fasting Side Effects
This fast was much easier than my previous fasts. There were some really annoying "side effects" during the fast but none that made it impossible to finish the fast. The worst was the constant stream of mucus that plugged the back of my throat and even made hearing difficult. My allergies had been bothering me before I even started fasting. I suspect this might have had something to do with that. During my last fast I had painful and practically unbearable heartburn; which I was able to soothe by drinking warmed water. Thankfully during this fast I had none of those issues. Towards the end of my fast, I began to feel very weak with minimal physical exertion. The last fast my symptoms became so strong I cut my fast from 21 days to only 10. I think this had more to do with fear than anything. Early on I experienced mild headaches but nothing to cause severe discomfort. My weight loss started to plateau around day 8 but up until that point I had some significant daily losses. My sense of smell was incredibly heightened and I really had to go out of my way to avoid unpleasant odors. Hunger was not an issue for me. Well, let me say actual hunger did not rear its ugly head. Emotional hunger tried to overpower me on several occasions. During this time, I used alternative methods of calming myself, such as breathing, meditation, hypnosis, and rubbing my skin to stimulate oxytocin release.I also used this time to reflect on how dealing with stress without food is actually more effective. I felt better knowing that I had not gorged myself into a coma in order to avoid dealing with stress. I don't know why but for some reason the universe really saw fit to throw down some epic stress during this fast. I am honestly surprised I did not give up. It makes finishing all the more sweet.

Final thoughts on fasting
During this fast I took a daily serving of Mary Ruth Organic Liquid Vitamin , Trace Minerals 40,000 Volts , and Trace Minerals Electrolyte Stamina Power Pak . I think the addition of vitamins and minerals significantly reduced my negative side effects. This allowed me to complete the fast and reach my goal of losing 20 pounds.
This fast I felt stronger and more confident in my ability to get through it. There were moments of weakness that truly tested my resolve. I felt that I had more support this time. This really helped my morale. People respected the fast and avoided cooking and eating in front of me. Nobody told me about how dangerous it was to fast.
Returning to food is always the hardest part of fasting for me. I broke my fast with a fruit and vegetable juice. Note to everyone do not put lemon or ginger in your first post fast drink it burns like crazy. For the next few days I will try my best to stick with only juice, vegetable and bone broth. I have also added a high quality probiotic in order to repopulate my colon with healthy bacteria. Recently, I read that water fasting kills all the bacteria in your gut(even the good stuff). This has made me realize the importance of properly re-feeding.
Regaining the weight is a reality for any faster. Hopefully, I will be able to keep the weight loss momentum going. While 23 pounds is nothing to be disappointed about I wish there had be more outward signs of weight loss. At the end of the day, I still have a long way to go on my weight loss journey. Fasting was a great tool for detoxing my system and conditioning my body for future weight loss. This will not be last fast and I am hopeful that one day I can complete more than 10 days.

Day 1: 261

Day 10: 238

Total weight lost: 23lbs

Content on site is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice; the Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

What's More Effective for Weight Loss, Eating Right or Exercising?

2017-04-26T01:33:00.001-05:00

So, you need to lose a few pounds. The question is how to go about it. If you're like most people, you probably think you need to get serious about hitting the gym more often. However, this idea may actually be the fatal flaw that keeps you from succeeding.
The 2-minute video above, even though it focuses on the fatally flawed theory that weight loss is merely a simple equation of calories in and calories out, still manages to reach the correct conclusion, so it is worth a watch.
When it comes to losing weight — and keeping it off — it's crucial to understand that you cannot out-exercise your mouth. Your diet is far more important than exercise,¹ although physical movement is the leverage agent that allows you to truly optimize your health and fitness.
Exercise has been proven to be as effective (or more) than many drug treatments for common health problems, including diabetes, heart disease and depression, just to name a few. So, exercise definitely plays a role in optimal health — it's just not the central key for weight loss.
You cannot keep eating a junk food diet and simply exercise your way into smaller pants. Additionally, when and how much you eat can also have a distinct influence. Eating less and paying attention to the timing of your meals can be particularly useful for kick starting your metabolism in the right direction.

Research Shatters Link Between Exercise and Weight Loss

According to Shawn Talbott, Ph.D., a nutritional biochemist and former director of the University of Utah Nutrition Clinic, more than 700 weight loss studies confirm that eating healthier produces greater weight loss results than exercise.²

"On average, people who dieted without exercising for 15 weeks lost 23 pounds; the exercisers lost only six over about 21 weeks. It's much easier to cut calories than to burn them off."

Indeed, one of the simplest ways to improve your ability to burn fat as your primary fuel and lose weight is to replace all sodas and sweet beverages with pure water. Condiments and snacks are other categories that can be eliminated without risking nutritional deficits, thereby lowering your overall calorie consumption.
Most recently, an international study again confirmed the fact that exercise was largely unrelated to weight loss.^3,^4,⁵ Even more surprisingly, sedentary behavior wasn't even strongly associated with weight gain. As noted by Science Daily:⁶

"People who are physically active tend to be healthier and live longer. But while physical activity burns calories, it also increases appetite, and people may compensate by eating more or by being less active the rest of the day …

Surprisingly, total weight gain in every country was greater among participants who met the physical activity guidelines. For example, American men who met the guidelines gained a half pound per year, while American men who did not meet the guideline lost 0.6 pounds."

Similar findings were made in 2012, when a systematic review⁷ of studies found that, over time, people who exercised regularly wound up burning less energy than predicted based on their activity levels — a phenomenon known as metabolic compensation. They also increased their overall calorie intake.
Moreover, exercise only accounts for 10 to 30 percent of your overall energy expenditure each day. How many calories you burn in total each day primarily depends on your resting metabolic rate. On the flip side, you have full control over 100 percent of the energy (calories) you put into your body.
This discrepancy alone is a major clue as to which strategy is likely to have the greatest impact on your weight — exercising more, or reducing excess calorie intake. The video below summarizes the influence physical activity has on your daily calorie expenditure.

How Does Everyday Activity Affect Your Weight?

Other recent research^8,⁹ looking at the number of calories burned by different office activities — such as sitting versus standing up — found that if you're trying to lose weight, standing up will not have a significant impact.
Walking more, on the other hand, could have a modest effect, provided you don't sabotage it with poor dietary choices. Overall, they found that:

Sitting burns about 20 calories per 15 minutes
Standing up burns about 22 calories per 15 minutes
Walking burns nearly three times more calories than sitting or standing, with an hour of walking resulting in an additional 130 calories being burned each day

While standing still may have a negligible impact on the number of calories you burn, standing does increase the likelihood you'll move more in general. It also provides biological benefits besides calorie burning that make it well worth your consideration. As explained by Dr. James Levine, co-director of the Arizona State University Obesity Initiative and author of the book "Get Up! Why Your Chair Is Killing You and What You Can Do About It," standing up triggers a number of beneficial molecular cascades.
Within 90 seconds of standing up, the muscular and cellular systems that process blood sugar, triglycerides, and cholesterol — which are mediated by insulin — are activated in response to carrying your own bodyweight. These cellular mechanisms are also responsible for pushing fuel into your cells and, if done regularly, will radically decrease your risk of diabetes.

Diet and Exercise Complement Each Other

All of that said, research^10,¹¹ does confirm that when you add exercise to a healthier diet, you're typically rewarded with more sustained weight loss over the long term. As noted by Michele Olson, Ph.D., professor of physical education and exercise science at Auburn University at Montgomery in Alabama:¹²

"[Y]ou can lose weight with diet alone, but exercise is an important component. Without it, only a portion of your weight loss is from fat — you're also stripping away muscle and bone density. Since working out stimulates growth of those metabolic tissues, losing weight through exercise means you're burning mostly fat.

The number on the scale may not sound as impressive, but because muscle takes up less space than fat does, you look smaller and your clothes fit better … [Y]ou'll get leaner faster by using your body weight against gravity, as with movements like squats, lunges, push-ups and planks.

And, of course, beyond burning fat, people shouldn't forget that exercise can have other impressive health perks, like improving the quality of your sleep, lowering your cholesterol and reducing your stress level."

What Dietary Changes Are Necessary to Lose Weight?

While there's no one-size-fits-all solution, the following generalizations will typically work for most people. At its most basic, healthy eating can be summarized as eating REAL FOOD. However, the devil is in the details, and if you're serious about losing weight and optimizing your health, you'd be wise to take the time to understand some of these finer details.
To help you with this, I've created a detailed and comprehensive nutrition plan. If you're new to this plan, there's a section dedicated to helping you evaluate your current starting position. The plan itself is then divided into Level 1 and 2. If you're not yet fully familiar with my health recommendations, you'll probably want to start at Level 1. You'll know you're ready to move on to Level 2 once the health indicators listed are in their optimal ranges.
One of the keys to long-term weight management is healthy metabolism and mitochondrial function. Unfortunately, many diets actually worsen the dysfunction rather than correcting it. Nourishing and supporting your mitochondria (the little power stations in your cells) is also a core concept for optimal health and disease prevention. This is the focus of my latest book, "Fat for Fuel."
To improve your mitochondrial function through diet, the key is to eat in such a way that your body is able to burn fat as its primary fuel rather than sugars. Ketogenic diets are very effective for this, as is Peak fasting and longer water fasts.
In fact, while many shy away from water fasting, it can be a very rapid and beneficial process if you have a lot of excess weight to shed. Rather than waiting weeks or months for your body to upregulate and be able to effectively metabolize fat again, fasting really jumpstarts this process.
Dr. Jason Fung, a Canadian nephrologist, has written an excellent book on this topic called "The Complete Guide to Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day and Extended Fasting for which we had an incredible interview.
Avoiding late-night eating is also helpful, as feeding your body at a time when it needs the least amount of energy will simply result in cellular damage due to the excess production of free radicals. For this reason, I often suggest limiting your eating to breakfast and lunch — an intermittent fasting strategy that allows you to fast for 16 or more hours each day.

General Implementation Guidelines

To regain the ability to burn fat as your primary fuel you need a diet high in healthy fats, adequate protein and low in net carbs (total carbs minus fiber). The first step is to eliminate packaged, processed foods. The emphasis is on real whole foods, plenty of healthy fats and as few net carbs as possible. There are far more details in my new book, "Fat for Fuel," that comes out in mid-May and will soon be available for preorder along with many great bonuses.
As a general rule, it's recommended you reduce your net carbs to 50 grams a day or less, and restrict protein to 1 gram per kilogram of lean body mass. To make sure you're actually meeting your nutritional requirements and maintaining the ideal nutrient ratios, a nutrient tracker can be an invaluable tool.
Basically, the nutritional plan is what you follow; the nutrient tracker is how you follow the plan. I believe www.cronometer.com/mercola is the most accurate and best nutrient tracker available. Like my nutrition plan, this nutrient tracker is completely free.
I worked with the developer, Aaron, for months to modify and optimize the program for nutritional ketosis, so based on the base parameters you enter, such as height, weight, body fat percentage and waist circumference, it will automatically calculate the ideal ratios of net carbs, protein and healthy fats (including your omega-3 to omega-6 ratio) to put you into nutritional ketosis.
This is what will allow your body to start burning fat as its primary fuel rather than sugar, which in turn will help optimize your mitochondrial function and overall health and fitness.

Be Mindful of The Kinds of Fats You Eat

Another key to success on a high-fat, low-carb diet is to eat high-quality healthy fats, not the fats most commonly found in the American diet (the processed fats and vegetable oils used in processed foods and fried restaurant meals). Examples of high-quality healthy fats include:

Olives and olive oil (make sure it's third party-certified, as 80 percent of olive oils are adulterated with vegetable oils. Also avoid cooking with olive oil. Use it cold.)	Coconuts and coconut oil (excellent for cooking as it can withstand higher temperatures without oxidizing)	Animal-based omega-3 fat such as krill oil and fatty fish low in mercury like wild caught Alaskan salmon, sardines and anchovies
Butter made from raw grass-fed organic milk	Raw nuts, such as macadamia and pecans	Seeds like black sesame, cumin, pumpkin and hemp seeds
Avocados	Grass-fed meats	MCT oil
Ghee (clarified butter); lard and tallow (excellent for cooking)	Raw cacao butter	Organic-pastured egg yolks

Exercise Is the Great Leveraging Agent

While diet accounts for 75 to 80 percent of the health benefits you get from a healthy lifestyle, including weight loss, exercise is the ultimate leveraging agent that really optimizes all of those benefits — in part by improving your mitochondrial health by forcing them to work more efficiently. It's especially important for disease prevention, which is just as important as general weight loss.
After all, what good is it to be slim if you're still inching your way toward heart disease, diabetes or cancer with each passing day? Contrary to popular belief, being slim is not a blanket assurance of good health. You can be of normal weight and still be metabolically dysfunctional.
Overall, Peak Fitness really helps maximize the health benefits of exercise while simultaneously being the most efficient and therefore requiring the least amount of time, so I strongly encourage you to include some form of high intensity exercises in your program.
Also make it a point to walk more every day and stay more active throughout your working day. Researchers have clearly identified sitting as an independent risk factor for chronic disease, increasing your mortality risk from all causes. So, standing up more and engaging in non-exercise movement as much as possible is just as important for optimal health as having a regular fitness regimen.
All of this and much more is detailed in my Fitness Plan, which goes hand-in-hand with my Nutrition Plan. Depending on your current fitness level, you can choose to follow the beginner, intermediate or advanced level, each of which includes Peak interval training, strength training and functional exercises.

Sources and References

Water Fasting: Day One

2017-04-22T22:52:00.004-05:00

This site was created as part of my senior project to obtain my Masters degree. One of the goals for the site was for me to document my weight loss journey, in order to help inspire change in others. Now that I am nearing my graduation, I realize that I am nowhere near my weight loss goal. Which is why I am turning to an extended water fast to jump start my weight loss.
Throughout the year I have been practicing the 5:2 diet which will hopefully ease my transition into total food abstinence. This will be my third water fast. Every fast is different, but it does seem to get easier each time I do it.Water fasting can be dangerous, please do not attempt without proper medical supervision.
Many people are ignorant about the benefits that water fasting can provide, especially for an obese person like myself. Personally, my biggest obstacle for weight loss has been my food addiction. Water fasting is like rehab for food addicts. Water fasting helps me deal with food addiction by completely eliminating the problem from my life. I can only hope that by the time my fast is completed, I will have learned to not be completely dependent on food for happiness.
The goal for this fast is persistence. Water fasting is extremely daunting, scary, and lonely. The body begins to go through very weird changes when it is solely dependent on water. I broke my last fast out of fear and ignorance. My heart began to have palpitations at the slightest hint of exertion. It scared me because I felt like dying anytime I climbed the stairs or took too long in the shower. Water fasting is not something that the people in my life have any real knowledge about. There are the minor annoyances of someone cooking in the house or eating in front of you. Then there are the people who upset you with their hysterics about how dangerous water fasting is for a person. Which is ironic, since up until I explained what water fasting was that person had absolutely no idea what I was talking about. Hopefully, with the knowledge of past fasts and emotional fortitude I will be able to stick with this fast longer than my last one.
As day one of the fast is nearing its end I am grateful that I have this wonderful tool to help me on my weight loss journey.

Mood: the past few days I have been really anxious but today I was calmer and able to focus - spent the day distracting myself updating this site
Hunger: intermittent pangs of ferocious hunger
Energy: low/sedentary - spent most of the day sitting at the computer

New Treatment Guidelines for Back Pain Stress Non-Drug Interventions, Physical Movement and Watchful Waiting

2017-04-22T18:54:00.002-05:00

Back pain is one of the most common health complaints across the globe, and the No. 1 cause of job disability. It's also one of the most common reasons triggering opioid dependence, the side effects of which can be lethal.
In 2013, 16,000 Americans died from overdosing on prescription painkillers.¹ And, if you have back pain and suffer depression or anxiety you're at particularly high risk for opioid abuse and addiction, research shows.²
While it can be quite debilitating, 75 to 80 percent of low-back pain cases resolve within 2 to 4 weeks,³ even without treatment.
This is particularly true for mechanical low-back pain (LBP), which is the second most common symptom-related reason for doctor's visits in the U.S. LBP is typically preceded by some form of injury or strain, such as lifting, twisting while holding something heavy, a car collision or a fall.
Prolonged sitting is also on this list, which may explain why simply standing up more is part of the solution in many cases. Medscape⁴ lists a number of tests used to diagnose mechanical LBP, as well as a number of ways to manage this type of pain. This includes:

Controlling inflammation
Restoring range of motion
Improving muscle strength and endurance
Coordination training and cardiovascular reconditioning
Maintaining an exercise program

Activity Is the First Line of Treatment

As you can see from the list above, the emphasis is on functional movement and exercise. This holds true for most forms of back pain, not just LBP. This makes sense since your body needs regular activity to remain pain-free.
For example, when you sit for long periods of time, you typically end up shortening your iliacus, psoas and quadratus lumborum muscles that connect from your lumbar region to the top of your femur and pelvis.
When these muscles are shortened it can cause severe pain upon standing, as they will effectively pull your lower back (lumbar) forward. When there's insufficient movement in your hip- and thoracic spine, you also end up with excessive movement in your lower back.
Most people tend to "baby" the pain and avoid moving about as much as possible, but in most cases, this is actually contraindicated. As previously reported in The Guardian:⁵

"Despite a host of treatment options including acupuncture, manual therapies, drugs, injections and surgery, nothing is more likely to work than staying active. Just when you least feel like it, and it hurts the most, is when experts say you have to get moving ...

Lesley Colvin, a pain medicine specialist in Edinburgh, says the best evidence is for exercise. 'If I had back pain, I'd do exercise that strengthens the core, such as yoga, pilates and stretching.' [Dr. Christopher] Williams advises: 'Avoid bed rest' ..."

Indeed, yoga has demonstrated its usefulness in a number of studies. In one, taking one yoga class per week resulted in greater improvements in function compared to medication or physical therapy. ⁶ The Yoga Journal has an online page demonstrating helpful poses.⁷

Exercise Is Also Best Form of Prevention

Exercise is also the most effective way to prevent back pain in the first place, or a relapse, according to a recent scientific review of 21 studies.⁸ Contraptions such as back belts and shoe insoles had no discernible effect on people's risk of developing back pain.
Among people who had a history of back pain, those who exercised had a 25 percent to 40 percent lower risk of having another episode within a year than those who did no exercise.
Strength exercises, aerobics, flexibility training and stretching were all beneficial in lowering the risk of recurring pain. The video above, featuring Lisa Huck, demonstrates and explains the benefits of dynamic movement, and how it can help prevent and treat back pain.

New Treatment Guidelines Stress Non-Drug Interventions for Back Pain

As noted in a recent New York Times article,⁹ doctors are increasingly starting to prescribe activity in combination with a wait-and-watch approach for back pain patients.
On February 14, the American College of Physicians also issued updated treatment guidelines¹⁰ for acute, subacute and chronic low back pain, now sidestepping medication as a first-line treatment and recommending non-drug therapies instead. This is a significant change, and one that could potentially save thousands of lives by avoiding opioid addiction.
The new guidelines include three primary recommendations (below), all of which focus on alternative treatments and physical activity, leaving painkillers as a very last resort. Even in the rare case when an opioid is given, it should only be prescribed in the lowest dose and for the shortest duration possible.
Steroid injections and acetaminophen are also discouraged, as studies suggest neither is helpful or beneficial. Acetaminophen does not lower inflammation, and a review of the research¹¹ shows steroids are on par with placebo when it comes to treating back pain in the long term.

1. "Given that most patients with acute or subacute low back pain improve over time regardless of treatment, clinicians and patients should select nonpharmacologic treatment with superficial heat … massage, acupuncture, or spinal manipulation … If pharmacologic treatment is desired, clinicians and patients should select nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or skeletal muscle relaxants …
2. For patients with chronic low back pain, clinicians and patients should initially select nonpharmacologic treatment with exercise, multidisciplinary rehabilitation, acupuncture, mindfulness-based stress reduction … tai chi, yoga, motor control exercise, progressive relaxation, electromyography biofeedback, low-level laser therapy, operant therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, or spinal manipulation …
3. In patients with chronic low back pain who have had an inadequate response to nonpharmacologic therapy, clinicians and patients should consider pharmacologic treatment with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as first-line therapy, or tramadol or duloxetine as second-line therapy.
Clinicians should only consider opioids as an option in patients who have failed the aforementioned treatments and only if the potential benefits outweigh the risks for individual patients and after a discussion of known risks and realistic benefits with patients … "

Simple Stretching Exercises May Help Sciatic Pain

According to Dr. Rick Deyo, a spine researcher and professor at the Oregon Health and Science University and one of the authors of the new guidelines, there's really no need to see a doctor at all for acute back pain, defined as pain that lasts up to four weeks and does not radiate down the leg. He likens it to a case of the common cold — most of the time you simply have to wait it out.
If you have sciatic nerve pain, certain stretching exercises can be helpful. Sciatica results when your sciatic nerve gets pinched in your lower back. The pain is typically felt as originating in your buttock, radiating down your thigh. Your sciatic nerve runs through your piriformis, a muscle located deep in your glutes.
If the piriformis gets too tight, it can impinge the sciatic nerve, causing pain, tingling, and numbness in your leg. Oftentimes, simply stretching your piriformis may be enough to reduce this pain. For instructions and demonstrations, please see my previous article on exercises for sciatic nerve pain.

Scans and Surgery Are Useless for Most Cases of Back Pain

According to the American College of Physicians, scans like MRIs are also to be avoided, as they're "worse than useless" for diagnosing back pain. Exceptions include cases of known trauma to the spine and where there are warning signs of underlying disease causing the pain (such as cancer).
Contrary to popular belief, disc degeneration does not cause back pain, so getting a scan and receiving a structural diagnosis of a bulging disc for example, is not going to be very helpful, at least not in terms of dictating a course of treatment for your pain. In many cases, such a diagnosis may simply lead to unnecessary surgery, which in many cases sends patients in a downward spiral of increasing pain and reduced mobility.
According to the medical literature, spinal fusions for back pain have a success rate of about 20 to 25 percent. For 75 to 80 percent of these patients, the surgery simply results in lifelong pain and suffering.
Dr. David Hanscom, an orthopedic surgeon with a practice in Seattle, discussed these and other facts in a 2015 interview, along with a novel system for treating back pain that addresses a wide spectrum of contributing factors, including sleep hygiene, nutrition, relaxation, physical therapy and emotional processing through expressive writing exercises.

Live Life and Avoid Medicalizing Your Pain

Dr. James Weinstein, a back pain specialist and chief executive of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System, told The New York Times:¹²

"What we need to do is to stop medicalizing symptoms. Pills are not going to make people better … [Y]oga and tai chi, all those things are wonderful, but why not just go back to your normal activities? I know your back hurts, but go run, be active, instead of taking a pill."

While this may sound harsh to some of you, it's actually really good advice. As noted by Dr. Steven Atlas, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School who wrote an accompanying editorial about the guidelines, "We are moving away from simple fixes like a pill to a more complex view that involves a lot of lifestyle changes," and that is certainly a much-needed turnaround.

Non-Exercise Activity May Be Part of Long-Term Solution for Back Pain

Keep in mind that part of "staying active" includes avoiding sitting as much as possible. While you may be more drawn to lying down rather than standing and moving around, the latter is likely to be more beneficial. I can vouch for the effectiveness of this strategy myself. I suffered from low-back pain for many years and tried a host of treatments, including chiropractic, massage, stretching, grounding, back-strengthening and posture-improving exercises and using an inversion table.
Nothing got to the root of the problem — until I learned about the hazards of sitting and began standing more. This was a completely unexpected yet pleasant surprise. Be aware that your pain may indeed worsen initially. It did for me as well. But once I reduced my 12 to 14 hours of daily sitting to less than an hour, it quickly vanished. If you have a desk job, consider investing in a stand-up desk.

Non-Drug Solutions for Pain Relief

It's extremely important to be fully aware of the addictive potential of opioid drugs, and to seriously weigh your need for them. There are many other ways to address pain. Below is a long list of suggestions. Clearly, there are times when pain is so severe that a narcotic pain reliever may be warranted. But even in those instances, the options that follow may allow you to at least reduce the amount you take, or the frequency at which you need to take them.
If you are in pain that is bearable, please try these options first, before resorting to prescription painkillers of any kind. If you need a pain reliever, consider an over-the-counter (OTC) option. Research¹³ shows prescription-strength naproxen (Naprosyn, sold OTC in lower dosages as Aleve) provides the same pain relief as more dangerous narcotic painkillers.
However, while naproxen may be a better alternative to narcotic painkillers, it still comes with a very long list of potential side effects,¹⁴ and the risks increase with frequency of use.

Eliminate or radically reduce most grains and sugars from your diet

Avoiding grains and sugars will lower your insulin and leptin levels and decrease insulin and leptin resistance, which is one of the most important reasons why inflammatory prostaglandins are produced. That is why stopping sugar and sweets is so important to controlling your pain and other types of chronic illnesses.

Take a high-quality, animal-based omega-3 fat

Omega-3 fats are precursors to mediators of inflammation called prostaglandins. (In fact, that is how anti-inflammatory painkillers work, by manipulating prostaglandins.)
Good sources include wild caught Alaskan salmon, sardines and anchovies, which are all high in healthy omega-3s while being low in contaminants such as mercury. As for supplements, my favorite is krill oil, as it has a number of benefits superior to fish oil.

Optimize your sun exposure and production of vitamin D

Optimize your vitamin D by getting regular, appropriate sun exposure, which will work through a variety of different mechanisms to reduce your pain. Sun exposure also has anti-inflammatory and pain relieving effects that are unrelated to vitamin D production, and these benefits cannot be obtained from a vitamin D supplement.
Red, near-, mid- and far-infrared light therapy (photobiology) and/or infrared saunas may also be quite helpful as it promotes and speeds tissue healing, even deep inside the body.

Medical cannabis

Medical marijuana has a long history as a natural analgesic and is now legal in 28 states. You can learn more about the laws in your state on medicalmarijuana.procon.org.¹⁵

Kratom

Kratom (Mitragyna speciose) is another plant remedy that has become a popular opioid substitute.¹⁶ In August, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration issued a notice saying it was planning to ban kratom, listing it as Schedule 1 controlled substance.
However, following massive outrage from kratom users who say opioids are their only alternative, the agency reversed its decision.¹⁷
Kratom is likely safer than an opioid for someone in serious and chronic pain. However, it's important to recognize that it is a psychoactive substance and should not be used carelessly. There's very little research showing how to use it safely and effectively, and it may have a very different effect from one person to the next.
Also, while it may be useful for weaning people off opioids, kratom is in itself addictive. So, while it appears to be a far safer alternative to opioids, it's still a powerful and potentially addictive substance. So please, do your own research before trying it.

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT)

EFT is a drug-free approach for pain management of all kinds. EFT borrows from the principles of acupuncture in that it helps you balance out your subtle energy system. It helps resolve underlying, often subconscious, and negative emotions that may be exacerbating your physical pain.
By stimulating (tapping) well-established acupuncture points with your fingertips, you rebalance your energy system, which tends to dissipate pain.

Meditation and Mindfulness Training

Among volunteers who had never meditated before, those who attended four 20-minute classes to learn a meditation technique called focused attention (a form of mindfulness meditation) experienced significant pain relief — a 40 percent reduction in pain intensity and a 57 percent reduction in pain unpleasantness.¹⁸

K-Laser, Class 4 Laser Therapy

If you suffer pain from an injury, arthritis or other inflammation-based pain, I'd strongly encourage you to try K-Laser therapy. It can be an excellent choice for many painful conditions, including acute injuries. By addressing the underlying cause of the pain, you will no longer need to rely on painkillers.
K-Laser is a class 4 infrared laser therapy treatment that helps reduce pain, reduce inflammation and enhance tissue healing — both in hard and soft tissues, including muscles, ligaments or even bones. The infrared wavelengths used in the K-Laser allow for targeting specific areas of your body and can penetrate deeply into the body to reach areas such as your spine and hip.

Chiropractic

Many studies have confirmed that chiropractic management is much safer and less expensive than allopathic medical treatments, especially when used for pain such as low back pain.
Qualified chiropractic, osteopathic and naturopathic physicians are reliable, as they have received extensive training in the management of musculoskeletal disorders during their course of graduate healthcare training, which lasts between four to six years. These health experts have comprehensive training in musculoskeletal management.

Acupuncture

Research has discovered a "clear and robust" effect of acupuncture in the treatment of back, neck and shoulder pain, and osteoarthritis and headaches.

Physical therapy

Physical therapy has been shown to be as good as surgery for painful conditions such as torn cartilage and arthritis.

Foundation Training

Foundation training is an innovative method developed by Dr. Eric Goodman to treat his own chronic low back pain. It's an excellent alternative to painkillers and surgery, as it actually addresses the cause of the problem.

Massage

A systematic review and meta-analysis published in the journal Pain Medicine included 60 high-quality and seven low-quality studies that looked into the use of massage for various types of pain, including muscle and bone pain, headaches, deep internal pain, fibromyalgia pain and spinal cord pain.¹⁹
The review revealed massage therapy relieves pain better than getting no treatment at all. When compared to other pain treatments like acupuncture and physical therapy, massage therapy still proved beneficial and had few side effects. In addition to relieving pain, massage therapy also improved anxiety and health-related quality of life.

Astaxanthin

Astaxanthin is one of the most effective fat-soluble antioxidants known. It has very potent anti-inflammatory properties and in many cases works far more effectively than anti-inflammatory drugs. Higher doses are typically required and you may need 8 milligrams (mg) or more per day to achieve this benefit.

Ginger

This herb has potent anti-inflammatory activity and offers pain relief and stomach-settling properties. Fresh ginger works well steeped in boiling water as a tea or grated into vegetable juice.

Curcumin

In a study of osteoarthritis patients, those who added 200 mg of curcumin a day to their treatment plan had reduced pain and increased mobility. A past study also found that a turmeric extract composed of curcuminoids blocked inflammatory pathways, effectively preventing the overproduction of a protein that triggers swelling and pain.²⁰

Boswellia

Also known as boswellin or "Indian frankincense," this herb contains specific active anti-inflammatory ingredients.

Bromelain

This enzyme, found in pineapples, is a natural anti-inflammatory. It can be taken in supplement form but eating fresh pineapple, including some of the bromelain-rich stem, may also be helpful.

Cetyl Myristoleate (CMO)

This oil, found in fish and dairy butter, acts as a joint lubricant and anti-inflammatory. I have used this for myself to relieve ganglion cysts and carpal tunnel syndrome. I used a topical preparation for this.

Evening Primrose, Black Currant and Borage Oils

These contain the essential fatty acid gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), which is particularly useful for treating arthritic pain.

Cayenne Cream

Also called capsaicin cream, this spice comes from dried hot peppers. It alleviates pain by depleting the body's supply of substance P, a chemical component of nerve cells that transmits pain signals to your brain.

Methods such as hot and cold packs, aquatic therapy, yoga, various mind-body techniques and cognitive behavioral therapy²¹ can also result in astonishing pain relief without drugs.

Grounding

Walking barefoot on the earth may also provide a certain measure of pain relief by combating inflammation.

Sources and References

Kettlebells for weight loss, conditioning and improved back health

2017-04-22T18:35:00.001-05:00

Kettlebell training was first used during the 1700s, and is today experiencing increased attention as an effective and fun part of a training program. When used correctly, kettlebell exercises build strength and endurance and can be used as part of a weight loss program or when trying to improve back problems. The basic movements engage the entire body and are often used as part of interval training, crossfit, circuit training etc.

The world's most famous spine expert, Dr. Stuart McGill, discovered some unique loading patterns during the kettlebell swing. These loading patterns and the strengthening of the posterior chain contribute to the improved back health some people experience from doing kettlebell exercises. Other studies support these findings and also show that properly performed kettlebell movements reduce pain in the neck and shoulders.

Kettlebell training can be an effective tool when trying to improve strength, power and endurance. Exercises usually involve explosive movements and shouldn't be performed in the slow and controlled way seen in regular weight training. Kettlebell training isn't as effective as Olympic exercises when training for strength, but includes beneficial movements not found in weightlifting and is also easier to learn.

Kettlebells can be an excellent part of an aerobic workout, and research shows that during an intense 20 minute snatch workout, the caloric burn is at least 20 calories per minute. This is according to the researchers off the charts and compares to cross-country skiing up-hill at a fast pace.

Compared to explosive barbell movements; kettlebell exercises can be done with less weight and are easier to perform. This is the reason kettlebells can be an excellent part of a high intensity circuit training or interval training.

Getting started with kettlebells

Beginners with no previous experience should consult an experienced coach who can teach them how to perform the different exercises. The basic movements can usually be learned quickly and are excellent tools when learning hip extension, glute activation and proper movement patterns.

Performing kettlebell exercises the wrong way increases the risk of injury and limits the actual benefits of the exercise.

Females can usually start with a 12 to 26 pound kettlebell, while an appropriate starting weight for males is between 20 and 35 pounds. If the kettlebell is too light, the movement won't engage the glutes and hamstrings properly.

Beginners will usually experience some pain in the wrist area when doing certain exercises. This is natural and will reduce as they adapt to the exercises and improve their technique .

A 20 minute kettlebell workout performed twice a week can be very effective when trying to enhance back health, lose weight and improve strength and endurance. A couple of minutes of work followed by short breaks can be a good start when using kettlebells as part of an aerobic workout.

Sources for this article include:

Manocchia P, Spierer DK, Lufkin AK, et al. TRANSFERENCE OF KETTLEBELL TRAINING TO STRENGTH, POWER AND ENDURANCE.
J Strength Cond Res. 2012 May 3. [Epub ahead of print]

McGill SM, Marshall LW. Kettlebell swing, snatch, and bottoms-up carry: back and hip muscle activation, motion, and low back loads.
J Strength Cond Res. 2012 Jan;26(1):16-27.

Jay K, Frisch D, Hansen K, Kettlebell training for musculoskeletal and cardiovascular health: a randomized controlled trial.
Scand J Work Environ Health. 2011 May;37(3):196-203. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.3136. Epub 2010 Nov 25.

http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/kettlebells012010.pdf

Brumitt J, En Gilpin H, Brunette M, et al. Incorporating kettlebells into a lower extremity sports rehabilitation program.
N Am J Sports Phys Ther. 2010 Dec;5(4):257-65.

Otto WH 3rd, Coburn JW, Brown LE, et al. Effects of weightlifting vs. kettlebell training on vertical jump, strength, and body composition.
J Strength Cond Res. 2012 May;26(5):1199-202.

Kettlebells for weight loss, conditioning and improved back health

The abs you're forgetting in your workout - Transverse abdominis

2017-04-22T18:07:00.003-05:00

In a society looking for a flat belly, people will crunch and sit-up thousands of times to get a washboard stomach. Unfortunately, many people will never get the results they are looking for by only working on the abs and obliques. The transverse abdominis (TrA) is the body's innermost abdominal muscle and too often neglected. Not only does this muscle contribute to a flat stomach, but is vital in preventing low back pain by stabilizing your spine and pelvis.

What core are you working on?

When a person thinks core, they usually think abs, obliques and maybe some back muscles. Core muscles are those that stabilize the spine and pelvis during exercise/activity. Our ancestors weren't sitting at a desk all day or laying on a couch, so they had a very functional and strong core, and much less back pain. Sit-ups, crunches and many other abdominal exercises focus primarily on the rectus abdominis muscles ("six-pack" muscles) and the internal/external obliques ("love handles"). Have you ever done a "core only" workout and found yourself with back pain afterwards? Perhaps you are forgetting to exercise ALL of your core.

Flat belly or fat belly?

The transverse abdominis is the deepest muscle in your stomach before you reach the organs. Its fibers run horizontally around your abdomen like a belt, hence the name "transversus abdominis". The primary function of this muscle is to compress the ribs and viscera, stabilizing the pelvis and spine. If this muscle is neglected during a core workout, it will be very difficult to achieve flat abs. Also known as the "corset muscle", the TrA prevents a protruding abdomen. Focusing some time on strengthening this muscle can give you the flat abs you've been struggling for.

TrA's role in low back pain

Low back pain typically arises after a person lifts an object with poor biomechanics, causing excessive stress on the intervertebral discs. This pressure causes the disc to buldge, prolapse or completely herniate if not corrected. In order to prevent such an occurrence, lifters and workers wear weight belts around their waists. These weight belts serve the same function as the transverse abdominal muscles do. Someone with a strong core (including the TrA) will not need to wear a lifting belt and will never incur a low back injury. A working transverse abdominis as part of a strong core can decrease the pressure on a disc by up to 40 percent. In a 2005 study, the activation of deep trunk muscles like the transverse abdominis significantly reduced low back pain and lowered the rate of re-occurrence.

How to strengthen TrA

Planks are great for building TrA Muscles

Many core routines and ab exercises inherently activate and strengthen the transverse abdominals in a lesser fashion. Funny enough, isolating the transverse abdominis is remarkably easy and can be performed anywhere. Simply suck in your stomach like you are trying to touch your belly-button to your spine. If performed correctly, you should feel an unusual strain on a muscle around your midsection, the worse the strain, the more neglected the muscle. Start off at 5-10 seconds and relax. As the muscle gets stronger, suck in for 30 seconds to a minute at a time. These "vacuum exercises" are easy to do and good for your back and belly. Exercises like planks, side-planks, quadriped stabilization and dead bugs are excellent total core strengtheners that should be implemented in everyone's workout. Try it out, all you have to lose is a few inches around the mid-section!

Sources for this article include:

Hodges P.W., Richardson C.A., Contraction of the Abdominal Muscles Associated With Movement of the Lower Limb. Physical Therapy. Vol. 77 No. 2 February 1997.
http://transverseabdominis.com/
http://www.livestrong.com
http://oefentherapie.be/archief/TA.pdf

The abs you're forgetting in your workout - Transverse abdominis

How Your Microbiome Controls Your Health

2017-04-22T17:33:00.002-05:00

Researcher Jeroen Raes, featured in the TED Talk, discovered that you might even belong to one of a few “microflora types”—which are similar to blood types. Research into the human microbiome is in its infancy, and there is much we do not yet understand. That said, there are some facts of which we are already certain. It is becoming increasingly clear that destroying your gut flora with pharmaceutical drugs, harsh environmental chemicals, and toxic foods is a primary factor in rising disease rates.
Recent research suggests intestinal inflammation may play a critical role in the development of certain cancers. Until we begin to appreciate this complex relationship, we will not be able to prevent or intervene effectively in many of the diseases that are devastating people’s lives today.
In order for true healing and meaningful prevention to occur, you must continuously send your body messages that it is safe, not under attack, and that it is well nourished, supported, and calm. This article will focus on exactly how you can send your body these messages and why caring for your personal microbiome is so critical to every aspect of your health.

How Can You Feel Lonely with 100 Trillion Constant Companions?

The idea that microorganisms are to be “divided and conquered” is now an outdated view of our world. We not only live with them and are surrounded by them, but we depend on them for our very existence. Pamela Weintraub skillfully describes the symbiosis between humans and microorganisms in her June 2013 article in Experience Life magazine.¹
Your body is a complex ecosystem made up of more than 100 trillion microbes that must be properly balanced and cared for if you are to be healthy.

This system of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and protozoa living on your skin and in your mouth, nose, throat, lungs, gut, and urogenital tract, is referred to as the “human microbiome.” It varies from person to person based on factors such as diet, health history, geographic location, and even ancestry.
When your microbiome falls out of balance, you can become ill. Those organisms perform a multitude of functions in key biological systems, from supplying critical vitamins to fighting pathogens, modulating weight and metabolism.
This army of organisms also makes up 70 percent of your immune system, “talking” directly to your body’s natural killer T-cells so that they can tell apart your “friendlies” from dangerous invaders. Your microbiome also helps control how your genes express themselves. So by optimizing your native flora, you are actually controlling your genes.

Gut Instincts—Your Second Brain Talking

Your microbiome is closely intertwined with both of your brains—yes, you have TWO! In addition to the brain in your head, embedded in the wall of your gut is your enteric nervous system (ENS), which works both independently of and in conjunction with the brain in your head. According to New Scientist:^2,³
"The ENS is part of the autonomic nervous system, the network of peripheral nerves that control visceral functions. It is also the original nervous system, emerging in the first vertebrates over 500 million years ago and becoming more complex as vertebrates evolved—possibly even giving rise to the brain itself.”
Your ENS is thought to be largely responsible for your “gut instincts,” responding to environmental threats and sending information to your brain that affects your well-being.
I’m sure you’ve experienced various sensations in your gut that accompany strong emotions such as fear, excitement, and stress. Feeling “butterflies” in your stomach is actually the result of blood being diverted away from your gut to your muscles, as part of the fight or flight response.

These gut reactions happen outside of your conscious awareness because they are part of your autonomic nervous system, just like the beating of your heart. Your ENS contains 500 million neurons. Why so many? Because eating is fraught with danger:⁴
“Like the skin, the gut must stop potentially dangerous invaders, such as bacteria and viruses, from getting inside the body.

If a pathogen should cross the gut lining, immune cells in the gut wall secrete inflammatory substances including histamine, which are detected by neurons in the ENS. The gut brain then either triggers diarrhea or alerts the brain in the head, which may decide to initiate vomiting, or both.”
We now know that this communication between your “two brains” runs both ways and is the pathway for how foods affect your mood. For example, fatty foods make you feel good because fatty acids are detected by cell receptors in the lining of your gut, which then send warm and fuzzy nerve signals to your brain.
Knowing this, you can begin to understand how not only your physical health but also your mental health is deeply influenced by the health of your gut and the microbial zoo that lives there. Your gut microbes affect your overall brain function, from basic mood swings to the development of serious illnesses like autism, Alzheimer’s disease, and schizophrenia.

When It Comes to Inflammation, Your Microbiome Rules

Your gut is the starting point for inflammation—it’s actually the gatekeeper for your inflammatory response. According to Psychoneuroimmunologist Kelly Brogan, your gut’s microorganisms trigger the production of cytokines. Cytokines are involved in regulating your immune system’s response to inflammation and infection. Much like hormones, cytokines are signaling molecules that aid cell-to-cell communication, telling your cells where to go when your inflammatory response is initiated.
Most of the signals between your gut and your brain travel along your vagus nerve—about 90 percent of them.⁵ Vagus is Latin for “wandering,” aptly named as this long nerve travels from your skull down through your chest and abdomen, branching to multiple organs.⁶
Cytokine messengers produced in your gut cruise up to your brain along the “vagus nerve highway.” Once in your brain, the cytokines tell your microglia (the immune cells in your brain) to perform certain functions, such as producing neurochemicals. Some of these have negative effects on your mitochondria, which can impact energy production and apoptosis (cell death), as well as adversely impacting the very sensitive feedback system that controls your stress hormones, including cortisol.
So, this inflammatory response that started in your gut travels to your brain, which then builds on it and sends signals to the rest of your body in a complex feedback loop. It isn’t important that you understand all of the physiology here, but the take-away is that your gut flora’s influence is far from local! It significantly affects and controls the health of your entire body.

Your Gut Flora Is Perpetually Under Attack

Your gut bacteria—and therefore your physical and mental health—are continuously affected by your environment, and by your diet and lifestyle choices. If your microbiome is harmed and thrown out of balance (dysbiosis), all sorts of illnesses can result, both acute and chronic. Unfortunately, your fragile internal ecosystem is under nearly constant assault today. Some of the factors posing the gravest dangers to your microbiome are outlined in the following table.
Refined sugar, especially processed high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) Genetically engineered (GE) foods (extremely abundant in processed foods and beverages) Agricultural chemicals, such as herbicides and pesticides. Glyphosate appears to be among the worst
Conventionally-raised meats and other animal products; CAFO animals are routinely fed low-dose antibiotics and GE livestock feed Gluten Antibiotics (use only if absolutely necessary, and make sure to reseed your gut with fermented foods and/or a good probiotic supplement)
NSAIDs (Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) damage cell membranes and disrupt energy production by mitochondria) Proton pump inhibitors (drugs that block the production of acid in your stomach, typically prescribed for GERD, such as Prilosec, Prevacid, and Nexium)
Chlorinated and/or fluoridated water Stress Pollution

Obesity, Cancer, Depression, and Others Linked to Dysbiosis

With increasing regularity, modern science is linking more and more illnesses to dysbiosis. I suspect that in time, we will find evidence that dysbiosis contributes to just about EVERY human disease—the implications for your health are that vast. The following is just a handful of examples:⁷
Psychiatric Illness: The key to your mental health is in your gut. Probiotics (psychobiotics or “bacteria for your brain”) are being used to successfully treat depression, anxiety, and other psychiatric problems.^8,⁹
Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity: Scientists have found a specific pattern of intestinal microbes can increase your risk for type 2 diabetes. This pattern can serve as a biomarker for diabetes risk. Obese mice have a much higher proportion of Firmicutes bacteria, while thin mice have a much higher proportion of Bacteroidetes bacteria.¹⁰ Similarly, researchers have also found differences in bacterial strains between overweight and non-overweight people. A strain of beneficial bacteria called Lactobacillus rhamnosus appears helpful for weight loss in women.
Colorectal Cancer: Inflammation resulting from infection, injury, or other bodily insults changes your gut’s ecosystem, which can allow cancer-causing pathogens to invade and increase your risk for colorectal cancer.
Infant Immune Deficits: Breast-fed babies receive microbes from their mother’s milk, which allows early microbial colonization of their gut. This enhances the expression of genes involved in immunity. The end result is that breast-fed babies show enhanced resistance to pathogens.
Asthma and Sinusitis: Dysbiosis in the respiratory tract may be responsible for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and asthma; with CRS, overgrowth of a single organism, Corynebacterium tuberculostearicum, is frequently the cause.

Out with the Bad...

The best way to optimize your gut flora is through your diet. A gut-healthy diet is one rich in whole, unprocessed, unsweetened foods, along with traditionally fermented or cultured foods. But before these powerful foods can work their magic in your body, you have to eliminate the damaging foods that get in their way.
A good place to start is by drastically reducing grains and sugar, and avoiding genetically engineered ingredients, processed foods, and pasteurized foods. Pasteurized foods can harm your good bacteria, and sugar promotes the growth of pathogenic yeast and other fungi (not to mention fueling cancer cells). Grains containing gluten are particularly damaging to your microflora and overall health.^11,¹²This would be a good time for you to review the table above that lists foods, drugs and other agents that harm your beneficial microbes—so that you can avoid as many as possible.

And In with the Good!

Consuming naturally fermented foods is one of the best ways to optimize your microbiome. Not only are your gut bacteria important for preventing disease, but they also play a critical role in your body weight and composition. Fermented foods are also a key component of the GAPS protocol, a diet designed to heal and seal your gut. Scientific studies have revealed a positive-feedback loop between the foods you crave and the composition of your microbiome, which depends on those nutrients for survival. So, if you’re craving sugar and refined carbohydrates, you may actually be feeding a voracious army of Candida!
Once you’ve begun eliminating foods that damage your beneficial flora, start incorporating fermented foods such as sauerkraut, naturally fermented pickles, miso, tempeh, and fermented dairy made from raw, unpasteurized milk (yogurt, kefir, etc.). These probiotic-foods will help heal, repopulate, and “re-educate” your gut. An article in the Journal of Physiological Anthropology makes the case that properly controlled fermentation amplifies the specific nutrient and phytochemical content of foods, thereby improving brain health, both physical and mental. The authors write:¹³
“The consumption of fermented foods may be particularly relevant to the emerging research linking traditional dietary practices and positive mental health. The extent to which traditional dietary items may mitigate inflammation and oxidative stress may be controlled, at least to some degree, by microbiota.”
They go on to say that the microbes associated with fermented foods (for example, Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria species) may also influence your brain health via direct and indirect pathways, which paves the way for new scientific investigations in the area of “nutritional psychiatry.”
Developing a healthy gut flora begins at birth. Childbirth and breastfeeding set the stage for what organisms are going to inhabit your baby’s body. Therefore, if you’re a mother-to-be, it’s important that you optimize your own microflora, as you will be passing it along to your child. During your baby’s first few months, he relies on your breast milk to help inform his immune system of what’s dangerous. This is the beginning of natural immunity, which is much more complex than vaccinologists would have you believe.

Fermenting Your Own Veggies Feeds Your Immune System

The good news is, fermented vegetables are easy to make in your own kitchen. They are also the most cost-effective way to get high-quality probiotics in your diet. If you watch my video, you will see just how simple it is to make delicious fermented veggies at home!
Your goal should be to consume one-quarter to one-half cup of fermented veggies with each meal, but you may need to work up to it. Consider starting with just a teaspoon or two a few times a day, and increase as tolerated. If that is too much (perhaps your body is severely compromised), you can even begin by drinking a teaspoon of the brine from the fermented veggies, which is rich in the same beneficial microbes.
You may also want to consider a high-potency probiotic supplement, but realize that there is no substitute for the real food.
Since your gut microbes are the frontline army of your immune system and responsible for keeping all of your systems in check, it is vitally important to take care of them. Everything from your daily moods to your risk for debilitating disease rests largely on the health and strength of your microbiome. If you take good care of your 100 trillion little companions, they will return the favor!

The interconnectedness of your gut, brain, immune, and hormonal systems is impossible to unwind. The past few years has brought a scientific flurry of information about how crucial your microflora is to your genetic expression, immune system, body weight and composition, mental health, memory, and minimizing your risk for numerous diseases, from diabetes to cancer.

Sources:

Coca-Cola Caught Undermining Public Health Initiatives

2017-04-21T00:08:00.002-05:00

Soda and other sweetened beverages have been identified as a major contributor to the obesity ¹^,2 and diabetesepidemics around the world,³^,4and in light of the scientific evidence, many public health organizations have started recommending daily sugar limits.

At least 10 countries have implemented or are working toward implementing taxes on soda in an effort to reduce consumption and improve public health.

One 12-ounce can of regular soda contains on average between 8 and 10 teaspoons of sugar, far exceeding 100 percent of your recommended daily sugar allotment of 6 teaspoons (25 grams).

Considering sugar is as addictive as cocaine ⁵and has downright toxic effects on your body when consumed in excess,⁶it's no wonder obesity has become such a health crisis.

Previous research conservatively suggests sugary beverages alone are to blame for about 183,000 deaths worldwide each year, including 133,000 diabetes deaths and 44,000 heart disease deaths.⁷What's worse, the death rates associated with sweetened beverages were highest in those under the age of 45.

Reducing the number of sugary drinks you consume each day can go a long way toward reducing your risk for metabolic dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke and obesity.

Unfortunately, the continued profitability of the soda industry depends on public ignorance about the dangers associated with their products, and evidence reveals companies such as Coca-Cola are willing to go to great lengths to manipulate public health organizations and distort science to further their corporate agenda.

How Your Body Responds to Coca-Cola

Two years ago, former pharmacist Niraj Naik produced an infographic showing what happens in your body within the first hour of drinking a can of Coca-Cola. At the time, he told The Daily Mail:⁸

"When I worked as a community pharmacist I had some great success at helping people get off long term medication … Many of them [patients] would consume fizzy drinks on a daily basis. A few on several medications would consume two to three cans a day …

My first advice to them would be to do a simple swap, replacing fizzy drinks with water with fresh lemon or lime juice. In many cases just doing this would have a dramatic effect on their health.

So this indicated to me that fizzy drinks and sugar were big issues relating to blood pressure and metabolic diseases like diabetes and heart disease."

Source: The Renegade Pharmacist

According to Coca-Cola, soda is a perfectly acceptable rehydration choice, even before, during and after exercise,⁹but based on its physiological effects, this is a hollow claim indeed. You simply cannot compare clean, pure water to soda when you're thirsty.

Internal Documents Reveal Coca-Cola Works to Undermine Public Health Initiatives

The British Channel 4 documentary, "Secret of Coca-Cola," featured above, reveals how Coca-Cola Co. is fighting the implementation of health and environmental policies that might impact the company's bottom line.

Leaked internal documents and emails — which have become known as "The Coke Files" — shows the soda industry is in fact working against public health in a very coordinated and comprehensive fashion, using well-known tobacco-industry tactics such as:

• Message coordination and influencing media. As an example of how Coca-Cola deals with journalists who fail to follow corporate talking points, in a May 2016 email, Amanda Rosseter, the global group director of strategic communications at the Coca-Cola Co., wrote:¹⁰

"A reporter for Wired reached out to our media line late last night with a series of questions and an immediate deadline … The story, however, posted early this morning without waiting for our input.

The story … focuses on sugar, stevia and the Company's attempts to offer options to consumers with a pessimistic tone … We will be reaching out to this reporter to better understand her decision not to include our perspective, and to build her brain around our strategy."

• Developing close ties with influential scientists and experts who then speak on the company's behalf while presenting themselves as "independent" experts.

As just one example, two years ago, Coca-Cola Company was outed for secretly funding and supporting the Global Energy Balance Network, a nonprofit front group that promoted exercise as the solution to obesity while significantly downplaying the role of diet and sugary beverages in the weight loss equation.¹¹

• Debunking and manipulating science. Research has revealed simply funding a study will significantly influence the results.

As just one example, an investigation by Marion Nestle, Ph.D. and professor of nutrition, food studies and public health, found that out of 168 studies funded by the food industry, 156 of them favored the sponsor.¹²

• Astroturfing — The effort on the part of special interests to surreptitiously sway public opinion and make it appear as though it's a grassroots effort for or against a particular agenda, when in reality such a groundswell of public opinion might not exist.

• Lobbying at every level of government.

Coca-Cola Fights Soda Tax by Influencing Local Politicians

Not surprisingly, since a soda tax would reduce sales — and significantly so if countries around the world adopt the tax strategy — Coca-Cola is fighting tooth and nail to prevent such measures.¹³^,14

What's disturbing is the level of political support Coca-Cola and other soda companies are receiving. In a June 2015 email, Lauren Craig, Coca-Cola's senior manager of public affairs and communications for the greater Philadelphia area, revealed how she successfully sidelined a 2015 soda tax proposal by rubbing elbows with city officials:¹⁵

"Our coalition was actively engaged to prevent a beverage tax from being introduced. The coalition's grassroots campaign included small business meetings with council members. Sources in City Hall indicated that council members were wary of a beverage industry campaign against a tax.

Our next steps include furthering relationships with newly elected city council officials to prevent discussion of beverage taxes in the future. We also have an engagement plan for Philadelphia Mayoral Democratic nominee, Jim Kenney."

Last year, email evidence also showed Barbara Bowman, Ph.D., director of the Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, aided a Coca-Cola representative in efforts to influence World Health Organization officials to relax its sugar limits.

Soda Industry Has Troubling Ties to Public Health Community

Public health researchers have also warned that the beverage industry has created deep financial ties to the public health community over the past several years, and that this was strategically done to silence critics and gain allies in the fight against regulations.¹⁶^,17,18,19

A recent study looking into the sponsorship activities of soda companies suggests the reason for soda companies' philanthropic interest in health organizations has little to do with actually supporting measures that would improve public health, and everything to do with influencing such organizations to further the industry's own agenda:²⁰

"From 2011 to 2015, the Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo were found to sponsor a total of 96 national health organizations, including many medical and public health institutions whose specific missions include fighting the obesity epidemic. During the study period, these two soda companies lobbied against 29 public health bills intended to reduce soda consumption or improve nutrition …

These companies lobbied against public health intervention in 97 percent of cases, calling into question a sincere commitment to improving the public's health. By accepting funding from these companies, health organizations are inadvertently participating in their marketing plans."

According to study co-author Daniel Aaron, a student at Boston University's medical school, there can be little doubt that Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo are purposely trying to undermine public health measures in order to protect profits.

We wanted to look at what these companies really stand for. And it looks like they are not helping public health at all — in fact they're opposing it almost across the board …" Aaron told The New York Times.²¹

Many Health Organizations Compromise Public Health to Satisfy Sponsors

Indeed, the researchers discovered a number of instances where influential public health organizations either turned against a soda tax initiative or remained silent on the matter after receiving an industry donation. Here are just a few examples:

Save the Children, a nonprofit group that provides health education programs for children, had previously supported soda tax campaigns in several states but suddenly stopped in 2010 after receiving a $5 million grant from Pepsi.
In 2012, when New York proposed a ban on supersized sodas, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics cited "conflicting research" as the reason for not supporting the measure. That same year, the Academy had received $525,000 from Coca-Cola. The following year, Coke gave them another $350,000.
Dietitians listed as having received consulting fees from Coca-Cola also participated in a Twitter campaign aimed at defeating the proposed soda tax in Oakland, California.²²
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the mission of which is to fight for equality for minorities, opposed soda tax initiatives even though black and Hispanic communities have disproportionally high rates of obesity and related health problems.
The Hispanic Federation has also chosen not to support soda tax initiatives. The reason for their lenience becomes clearer in light of the fact that both of these organizations have received large donations from Coca-Cola. NAACP received more than $1 million between 2010 and 2015, and the Hispanic Federation received $600,000 between 2012 and 2015.

Nigerian Court Rules Coca-Cola Drinks 'Poisonous'

Meanwhile, in Nigeria, a Lagos High Court Judge has ruled two Coca-Cola products, Sprite and Fanta, potentially poisonous, as the benzoic acid and sunset yellow used in the products can pose a health risk when combined with ascorbic acid (vitamin C). (The former is known to turn into benzene, a carcinogen, when mixed with vitamin C.)²³According to CNN:²⁴

"Justice Adedayo Oyebanji ordered the Nigerian Bottling Co. … to place written warnings on Fanta and Sprite bottles against drinking them with vitamin C, and awarded costs of [2] million naira ($6,350) against the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for failing to ensure health standards.

'It is manifest that NAFDAC has been grossly irresponsible in its regulatory duties to the consumers of Fanta and Sprite manufactured by Nigeria Bottling Company,' the judge said. 'NAFDAC has failed the citizens of this great nation by its certification as satisfactory for human consumption products ... which become poisonous in the presence of ascorbic acid.'"

In response to the ruling, Nigeria's Consumer Protection Council has initiated its own investigation. Director general Dupe Atoki said:

"[The council] is extremely concerned about the questions that have arisen from, and on account of this judgment. Fanta, Sprite and Coca-Cola have arguably and consistently been the most widely consumed beverages in Nigeria. The spectrum of consumption is also perhaps the widest, with consumption starting as early as age [4] and far into adult years."

Closer to home, Coca-Cola is dealing with yet another scandal, as machines in a Coca-Cola plant in Northern Ireland somehow became clogged with human feces.²⁵Fortunately, it appears no contaminated cans were distributed or sold. The company has called in police to investigate how the bizarre contamination occurred.

Diet Soda Is Not the Answer

I firmly believe ditching soda and other sweetened beverages is one of the most important steps you can take to improve your weight and health, and this includes avoiding so-called "diet" drinks as well. Artificially sweetened beverages may in fact be worse for your health than regular soda.

Research has shown artificial sweeteners can stimulate your appetite, increase carb cravings, stimulate fat storage and promote weight gain. In fact, diet sodas may actually double your risk of obesity, while regular soda (at a rate of one can per day) is associated with a 60 percent increased risk of obesity.

In addition to that, aspartame is associated with a long list of other harmful effects, ranging from brain damage to pre-term delivery, while sucralose has been found to be particularly damaging to your intestines. A study ²⁶published in 2008 found that sucralose:

Reduces good bacteria in your intestines by 50 percent
Increases the pH level in your intestines
Affects a glycoprotein in your body that can have crucial health effects, particularly if you're on certain medications like chemotherapy, or treatments for AIDS and certain heart conditions

In response to this study, James Turner, chairman of the national consumer education group Citizens for Health, issued the following statement:²⁷

"The report makes it clear that the artificial sweetener Splenda and its key component sucralose pose a threat to the people who consume the product. Hundreds of consumers have complained to us about side effects from using Splenda and this study ... confirms that the chemicals in the little yellow package should carry a big red warning label."

For Optimal Health, Drink More Clean Water

Unfortunately, many are still in the dark about these health risks. Having healthy gut flora is absolutely vital for your optimal health so, clearly, any product that can destroy up to half of your healthy intestinal bacteria can pose a critical risk to your health.

Sugar also promotes unhealthy bacterial growth, and many are already deficient in healthy bacteria due to consuming too many highly processed foods. This is why I recommend eating fermented vegetables every day, or at the very least taking a high-quality probiotic.

Remember, pure water is a zero-calorie drink. You cannot find a beverage that contains fewer calories. If you think about it, why on earth would you choose artificially sweetened water over regular mineral water? If you want some flavor, just squeeze a little bit of fresh lemon or lime into mineral water as these citrus fruits have some of the lowest fructose levels of all fruits.

Sources and References:

Discrimination in the Workplace

2017-04-20T04:15:00.001-05:00

In the article, “Appearance and Weight Inclusion Issues in the Workplace” by M. June Allard examines weight and appearance issues in the workforce. According to the article, good looking people are viewed by society as happier, smarter, and more successful than their homelier coworkers. Society has placed such an emphasis on attractiveness that it is deeply ingrained in our culture; which can lead to discrimination issues in the workplace. Allard points out that there are numerous studies which prove the cultural obsession with beauty has influenced hiring and promotions in many different occupations. Studies have also shown that those exhibiting cultural ideals of beauty make more than their less attractive counterparts, and the least attractive workers face the most amount of appearance based discrimination. Appearance discrimination can go both ways as attractive women are being excluded from male dominated occupations such as engineering and construction. While research has shown that shorter men are making less than their taller counterparts.

These discriminatory practices have faced legal action as employees fight back against unlawful terminations and prejudicial promotion practices. Despite legal action most companies have clearly defined appearance standards which can include uniforms, personal hygiene, make-up, and hair styles. Appearance bias is legal under federal law and does not fall under regulation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; which does oversee religious, gender, age, pregnancy, disability, and racial discrimination in the workplace. There are numerous companies who have been able to avoid federal oversight in their hiring practices including Hooters and Southwest Airlines. Many client facing jobs are at high risk for appearance discrimination as most companies want to increase sales and their company image by hiring attractive people.

Despite the continually expanding waistline of the majority of Americans cultural values regarding weight have led to prejudicial practices in hiring, education, housing, and healthcare. Overweight people are subjected to socially acceptable stereotyping and face public ridicule often for just going about their daily activities. Stereotypes for overweight people assume that they are lethargic, depressed, uneducated, daft, and undesirable. Allard cites numerous studies that prove obese workers are less likely to be hired, promoted, or attain executive levels with a company. Obese employees are subjected to more disciplinary actions against them, receive less in compensation, and pay higher insurance premiums when compared to their thin coworkers. Promoting this weight juxtaposition is an American culture that promotes an ideal of thinness being equated with attractiveness constantly featuring emaciated starving models and actors as the norm while the majority of Americans fall into the overweight and obese category on the body mass index.

There are very places in the United States that address the problem with weight discrimination with legislation; however the federal government offers no protections to their overweight and obese citizens. Obesity is not considered a disability therefore it is not offered the protection of the EEOC, and obesity is not considered as criteria for disability by the Social Security Administration. The problem with weight discrimination is it is often tied to other illegal forms of discrimination. Larger women are subjected to more bias than overweight men. Affluence positively correlates to healthy eating habits and thinness; while poverty is associated with a higher incidence of obesity.

Organizations can counteract the high cost of obese employees many different ways. By building an onsite gym this will encourage employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle and save them the burden of paying for a gym. Offering workday fitness classes would encourage employees by allowing them to use part of their workday to get healthy. Mandating that all meals in the employee cafeteria be under a certain number of calories and giving a stipend for those employees who eat in the cafeteria. Mandating that five minutes of every hour employees should stand up in their workstation and stretch would prevent overweight employees from feeling bias, because everyone does it and it would be a bonding experience. Organizations could contact local farmers to sell their produce on the job site. Offering incentive programs for employees to slim down and posting success stories around the office would help overweight people to feel supported in the emotional journey toward health. Organizations can do many things to reduce the costs associated with their overweight and obese employees.

Full text of the article can be found here

A High-Fiber Diet Helps Boost Weight Loss

2017-04-20T04:15:00.000-05:00

In today's world it's harder than ever to keep your weight under control, as evidenced by the fact that two-thirds of American adults and one-third of children and teens are either overweight or obese.¹

Weight management is a concern for most people, and many struggle to determine what they're doing wrong. Even exercising regularly can fail to make a dent for some people.

It is important to understand that while exercise is certainly part of the formula for success, the foods you choose to eat are three times more important for controlling your weight than your exercise.

It's very easy to sabotage yourself with processed foods and sweetened beverages. Many also do not get enough fiber, which research suggests may be another key component for effective weight loss.

Simply upping your fiber intake may actually help you achieve results rivaling more complicated diets. Previous research has demonstrated that fiber has appetite-suppressant qualities that helps you feel more satiated ²^,3,4,5thereby preventing unhealthy snacking.

It's also been shown to improve metabolic markers such as blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and blood sugar. Fiber also helps protect your heart⁶and cardiovascular⁷health, and appears to reduce mortality from all causes.⁸^,9,10,11

High-Fiber Diet Rivals Calorie Restriction for Weight Loss

In the most recent study on fiber, the researchers ¹²^,13,14,enrolled 240 people with signs of prediabetes, randomly assigning them to one of two eating plans:

· The American Heart Association ¹⁵(AHA) diet, which involves reducing daily calorie intake and limiting saturated fat

· A plan that simply called for adding a minimum of 30 grams of fiber per day from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains

No exercise recommendations were provided. After one year, both groups lost about the same amount of weight. The mean weight loss for those on the AHA diet was 2.7 kilos, compared to 2.1 kilos for the high-fiber group.

Like those on the AHA diet, the high-fiber group also improved their cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, and inflammation markers, although far more people proceeded to develop diabetes in the high-fiber group compared to the AHA diet—a total of seven, compared to just one in the AHA group.

Still, the researchers are encouraged by the results, which suggest that adding more fiber to your diet is a simple measure that can significantly improve your diet and health status. As noted by Time Magazine:¹⁶

"[Study author Dr. Yunsheng] Ma notes that while dietary guidelines to lower the risk of various diseases have been around for decades, obesity, heart problems and diabetes remain the most common conditions affecting Americans.

"Very few people reach the goals that are recommended," he says. Asking them to focus on eating more of a certain food—rather than telling them what not to eat—may help people to think more positively about changes in their diet, and make the goals more achievable.

From there, it might be easier to make the other changes, such as those included in the AHA diet. '[Adding fiber] might be one new idea for how to get people to adhere to a diet,' he says. That's the first step, and perhaps most important, to eating healthier."

Are You Getting Enough High-Quality Fiber?

Dietary guidelines call for 20-30 grams of fiber per day. I believe an ideal amount for most adults is around 50 grams per 1,000 calories consumed. Most people, however, get only half that, or less—despite the fact that most eat a diet high in grains.

What many fail to realize is that grain-based fiber is far from ideal as the grains that accompany it can actually promote insulin and leptin resistance. Processed foods are also a poor source of beneficial fiber. So what is fiber and where do you find the good stuff? There are basically two types:

· Soluble fiber, found in cucumbers, blueberries, beans, and nuts. Soluble fiber dissolves into a gel-like texture, helping to slow down your digestion. This helps you to feel full longer, which can help with weight control

· Insoluble fiber, found in foods like dark green leafy vegetables, green beans, celery, and carrots, does not dissolve and helps add bulk to your stool. This helps food to move through your digestive tract more quickly for healthy elimination

Many whole foods, especially fruits and vegetables, naturally contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. This is ideal, as both help feed the microorganisms living in your gut. These beneficial bacteria in turn assist with digestion and absorption of your food, and play a significant role in your immune function.

The same cannot be said for grains (including whole grains) and processed foods, as the carbohydrates found in both can serve as fodder for microorganisms that tend to be detrimental to health. Gliadin and lectins in grains may also increase intestinal permeability or leaky gut syndrome.

Leaky gut can cause digestive symptoms such as bloating, gas, and abdominal cramps, as well as cause or contribute to many others symptoms such as fatigue, skin rashes, joint pain, allergies, psychological symptoms, and more.

So, to maximize your health benefits, focus on eating more vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Following is a small sampling of foods that contain high levels of soluble and insoluble fiber.

Psyllium seed husk, flax, and chia seeds	Berries	Vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts
Root vegetables and tubers, including onions, sweet potatoes, and jicama	Almonds	Peas
Green beans	Cauliflower	Beans

A simple tip to increase the amount of fiber and biodense nutrients in your diet would be to add sunflower sprouts to your meal. They work great in salads but can also be added to virtually any dish to radically improve its nutrition.

Organic whole husk psyllium is another effective option. Taking it three times a day could add as much as 18 grams of dietary fiber (soluble and insoluble) to your diet. Opting for an organic version of psyllium will prevent exposure to pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers, as conventional psyllium is a very heavily sprayed crop. I also recommend choosing one that does not contain additives or sweeteners, as these tend to have a detrimental effect on your microbiome.

Boost Your Health and Weight Loss Efforts by Eating More Fiber

There's little doubt that fiber is an important part of a healthy diet. According to a report ¹⁷by the Council for Responsible Nutrition Foundation (CRNF), if American adults over the age of 55 with heart disease took psyllium dietary fiber daily, it could reduce health care costs by nearly $4.4 billion a year. These savings would primarily be related to reductions in heart disease-related medical events. The report estimated that it costs a mere 30 cents per day to take psyllium fiber at "preventive intake levels," noting that it also helps support healthy cholesterol levels by inhibiting its absorption in your intestine.

Just keep in mind that all sources of fiber are not created equal. Fresh whole vegetables are among the best. And while many recommend whole grains, I caution against whole grains if you're already struggling with insulin and leptin resistance—and half of all Americans are—as whole grains will raise your insulin and leptin levels, thereby exacerbating your condition.

Moreover, processed grains and processed foods boasting added fiber are more or less worthless, and will not provide you with the health benefits you're looking for. If you still fall short of the recommended 50 grams per 1,000 calories consumed, consider adding organic psyllium husk and/or sprouted sunflower seeds to your diet, both of which can help bring you closer to this ideal amount, along with plenty of high-fiber vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower.

Turmeric

2017-04-20T04:14:00.001-05:00

The magic of curcumin

Credit: Flickr/ Steven Jackson

Turmeric root — typically ground up and used in dishes such as curries — also has high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. Research has particularly focused on the three chemicals (known as "curcuminoids," or simply "curcumin") that give the root its distinctive orange-yellow color. Research has shown that turmeric and curcumin can boost the immune system and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. In fact, a series of studies conducted by researchers from the University of Tsukuba in Japan and published in 2013 found that curcumin supplements protect the heart from aging as effectively as moderate aerobic exercise. When the two are combined, the effect is even stronger. Turmeric and curcumin have also been linked to cancer-fighting effects.

But the benefits don't stop there. Research also suggests that turmeric may help prevent or even reverse cognitive decline and dementia. For example, a study published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2014 found that just a single gram of turmeric a day improved short-term memory in people at risk of memory loss. Another study, conducted by researchers from Duke University and published in 2009, found that curcumin actually caused changes in the brain that reversed some of the effects of Alzheimer's disease. Curcumin has also been shown to help ease the severity of autoimmune diseases, many of which are mediated by inflammatory responses.

Although much research has been conducted on curcumin specifically, the body absorbs these chemicals best from actual turmeric root, rather than from supplements.

Turmeric and weight control

Turmeric actually melts away body fat, according to research from Tufts University in Boston. Scientists discovered that curcumin – which is the active ingredient in turmeric – reduced weight gain and total body fat in mice. Study authors explained: "By diminishing the sediment of fat, relaxing the lymphatic return, and refraining the apoptosis of beta cells, the curcumin might significantly decrease the level of insulin resistance and leptin resistance caused by the high fat diet."

Another study at Xi'an Jiaotong University School of Medicine in China also found turmeric intake to be beneficial for weight loss. As stated by Anthony Gucciardi of Natural Society:

"... curcumin (once again, a compound within turmeric found in extracts and the food itself) consumption directly decreased levels of insulin resistance and leptin resistance - two factors heavily linked to fat gain. In the conclusion of the research, study authors state:

"By diminishing the sediment of fat, relaxing the lymphatic return, and refraining the apoptosis of beta cells, the curcumin might significantly decrease the level of insulin resistance and leptin resistance caused by the high fat diet."

Similar findings were observed at the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center -- Columbia University. Dr. Drew Tortoriello, M.D., an endocrinologist and research scientist, found that "turmeric-fed obese mice showed significantly reduced inflammation in fat tissue and liver compared to controls." He suspects "the anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant ingredient in turmeric, lessens insulin resistance and prevents type 2 diabetes in these mouse models by dampening the inflammatory response provoked by obesity," according to Science Daily.

Happily, researchers believe these results can be applied to humans too. With such a profusion of healthy benefits, all you really have to lose by enjoying this vibrant spice is excess weight.

Turmeric and pain relief

According to Bel Marra Health, turmeric is actually a natural pain reliever – again thanks to its powerful active ingredient, curcumin. Its antioxidant properties help to get rid of free radicals before they can do any damage, and also combat inflammation brought on by osteoarthritis, making turmeric a natural remedy for pain.

Turmeric and inflammation

Turmeric is competitively effective when compared with a class of steroid medications known as corticosteroids which are used to manage chronic inflammation. Curcumin and resveratrol (also found in turmeric) can be helpful in the fight against tumor cells, by reducing their propensity to spread to other parts of the body, and reducing their ability to inflame local regions.

Various turmeric studies have been carried out using injectable forms of the spice – which is more bioaccessible than turmeric taken orally. According to Natural Health 365, researchers believe that curcumin has chemopreventive properties, helping it to combat cancers of the digestive tract, skin and mouth in animal studies. Curcumin not only triggers the activity of natural carcinogenic-detoxifying enzymes, but it also inhibits cancer calls from growing and spreading.

Sources:http://www.naturalnews.com/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080620195436.htm
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090522181238.htm

Diabetes Taking a Higher Toll on Life Than Suspected

2017-04-20T03:24:00.001-05:00

In a time when information travels at the speed of the internet, there continues to be a staggering amount of misinformation shared about type 2 diabetes. The distortion of the truth contributes to the growing epidemic across the world, with estimates that 422 million have been diagnosed with diabetes.¹

Just as overwhelming are the numbers of people who suffer from prediabetes, a condition where your blood sugar is higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed with diabetes.

An estimated 38 percent of Americans have prediabetes ²and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 90 percent of them don't know they have it.

Unfortunately, even your own physician may share outdated information with you that won't help to stabilize or reverse the condition. Despite the growing prevalence of high blood sugar (hyperglycemia), the fact is that type 2 diabetes is completely preventable with a few simple, inexpensive lifestyle adjustments.

Impaired insulin and leptin sensitivity are two of the underlying triggers for hyperglycemia and the diagnosis of diabetes.

The rapidly rising number of people affected demonstrates the cause is not due to genetics, but is rather prompted by changes to national nutrition guidelines initiated by the now-refuted Seven Countries Study.

Published in the 1950s by economist Ancel Keys, Ph.D., the study sparked a rather large increase in the quantity of carbohydrates recommended and a severe reduction in healthy fats.³This triggers cellular resistance to the hormones insulin, ghrelin and leptin, and is the real foundation of high blood sugar.

Diabetes Now the No. 1 Cause of Death in Mexico

Today, diabetesis the leading cause of death in Mexico, followed closely by ischemic heart disease, a common consequence triggered by hyperglycemia.⁴Diabetes accounted for 14.7 percent of all deaths in the country.

According to early 2000 estimates, the total number of diabetics in Latin American countries will exceed the combined number in the U.S., Canada and Europe by 2025.⁵The financial cost from disability and treatment in Latin America reached over $65 million in the early 2000s.⁶

Rising rates of obesity in the last 40 years in Mexico has fueled the growing diabetes epidemic.⁷The percentage of Mexico's population that is overweight and obese has grown from less than 40 percent in 1975 to over 64 percent in 2014, just under the U.S. rate of 67 percent, but far past the global rate of 38 percent.

Increasing weight gain is also related to soda consumption. In 2012, Mexico was the world's leading per capita consumer, drinking approximately 176 liters (46.5 gallons) per person, per year.⁸By 2016, after a 2014 sugar tax was imposed, per capita consumption fell slightly to 163 liters (36 gallons) per person, per year.⁹

Drinking Coke has become such a cultural decision that, according to Dr. Salvador Villalpando, childhood obesity specialist at the Federico Gomez Children's Hospital in Mexico City:

"About 10 percent of kids are being fed soda from zero to [6] months of age. By the time they reach [2] it's about 80 percent. It's cultural.

Mexican mums like having chubby kids in their homes as it shows they're feeding them properly. And they are so used to feeding them sodas, they don't stop even when there is clean water."

Costly Supplies Limit Care

People with diabetes in Mexico struggle not just with the disease and dietary choices, but also accessing medical care and supplies. Medication and supplies may cost as much as monthly housing in Mexico.¹⁰

Dr. Carlos Aguilar Salinas, vice head of the endocrine department at Mexico's National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition, said:¹¹

"In the middle of the 1970s and especially after the '80s, the prevalence of diabetes exploded. Diabetes is now one of the biggest problems in the health system in Mexico. It's the first cause of death. It's the first cause of disability. It's the first cause of early retirement. It's the main cost for the health system."

In 2015 there were over 11 million people diagnosed with diabetes,¹²in a country with a total population of 127 million. The sheer number of people requiring care and follow up is straining the public health care system and reducing access to medical care.

The system pays for severe complications of the disease, but the daily management of the condition is left largely to the patients. Unfortunately, this has left people open to influence by swindlers promising a cure in a bottle or shot, costing thousands of pesos on products that are useless and may be toxic.¹³

Diabetes Kills More Americans Than Previously Believed

The number of people with diabetes in the U.S. is also growing, and recent research demonstrates more people may be dying from the condition than was originally believed.

According to The Obesity Society, type 2 diabetes accounts for nearly 90 percent of all diagnosis of diabetes,¹⁴and obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes. The CDC ranks diabetes as the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S.¹⁵

However, analysis of death certificate information and follow up indicates a greater number of deaths should be attributed to diabetes. For the study, researchers analyzed data for participants who had previously participated in the National Health and Nutrition Survey and the National Health Interview Survey.

Participants who subsequently died during the study were evaluated based on self-reporting for diabetes. The researchers then searched the death certificates for cause of death.

Based on the survey data, over 11 percent had died from complications of diabetes, but less than 4 percent had diabetes complications mentioned on their death certificates.¹⁶The researchers found:¹⁷

"The proportion of deaths in which diabetes was assigned as the underlying cause of death (3.3 to 3.7 percent) severely understated the contribution of diabetes to mortality in the United States.

Diabetes may represent a more prominent factor in American mortality than is commonly appreciated, reinforcing the need for robust population-level interventions aimed at diabetes prevention and care."

Cost of Treating Diabetes Is Higher Than Other Diseases

The financial cost of treating diabetes extends to traditional medical care, indirect costs, disability and cost of treating complications. According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, in 2013 diabetes health care costs were over $101 billion and topped the list of the costliest health care expenses.¹⁸

Researchers traced costs related to 155 disease for 18 years.¹⁹They found only 20 of those diseases were responsible for over half of all medical costs in the U.S. In terms of total dollars spent, diabetes was the most expensive.

However, in their list of top 10 costly health care diagnoses, four others were health conditions commonly associated with a diagnosis of diabetes.

Ischemic heart disease ranked second on the list, costing over $88 billion. Other health problems associated with diabetes include vision and hearing problems, hypertension and depression.²⁰Indirect disability costs may also be related to nerve dysfunction, kidney disease, vision loss and Alzheimer's disease.²¹

Until now, the link between hyperglycemia and the increased incidence of Alzheimer's disease, a progressive form of dementia, has not been clear. In a recent study, researchers discovered hyperglycemia damages immune function, impairing response in early Alzheimer's disease.²²

The study, published in Scientific Reports, found hyperglycemia modified macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF or MMIF) in the brain of individuals with Alzheimer's disease. This may suggest sugar damage to MIF reduces some of the enzyme's functions and blocks others completely. This may be related to the process that allows Alzheimer's to develop.

Studies are gradually unearthing the complex changes in the brain that occur with the development of Alzheimer'sthat may start as much as 10 years prior to clinical symptoms. During this pre-symptomatic period, toxic changes are setting the stage for development of disease.

Hyperglycemia in Pregnancy Increases Risk of Diabetes in Children

Doctors have long known that high blood sugar during pregnancy has a harmful effect on the growing baby. A recent small Danish study now suggests that when an infant is exposed to high blood sugar levels in utero it may trigger the production of altered fat cells, making the children more likely to develop metabolic disease in adulthood.²³

Researchers tested the adult children of 206 women who had diabetes during their pregnancy. The children had larger fat cells and secreted more leptin, a hormone made by fat cells that influences your feelings of hunger. Some of the women had diabetes prior to the pregnancy, while others developed gestational diabetes during pregnancy. They compared the results against a control group of children whose mothers didn't have diabetes.²⁴

The results from this study offer some clues about how hyperglycemia during pregnancy may increase the risk of diabetes later in life. Lead author Ninna Hansen of the University of Copenhagen talked about the results, saying:²⁵

"Fetal hyperglycemia affects fat stem cells and these defects can be detected several years later. If (high blood sugar) or diabetes is present during pregnancy, our study supports the importance of aiming at normal blood glucose levels to reduce the negative impact on the cells of the unborn baby. Women who are lean and fit before pregnancy have a reduced risk of developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy."

Hyperglycemia during pregnancyalso increases the risk to children for other disabilities, including cognitive disability,²⁶birth defects ²⁷and autism.²⁸Infants born to mothers who experienced hyperglycemia during pregnancy may also have an increased risk of experiencing health difficulties immediately following birth including respiratory distress, hypoglycemia, polycythemia and iron abnormalities.²⁹

Daily Screen Time May Predict Risk of Diabetes

Past research has demonstrated an associated risk between spending more than three hours in front of a screen each day with type 2 diabetes in adults. However, a link between screen timeand the risk of type 2 diabetes in children has been unclear.³⁰To probe this link, researchers surveyed nearly 4,500 children between ages 9 and 10 years.

Several factors associated with the development of diabetes in children were measured, including total body fat, insulin resistance, blood pressure and physical activity.³¹

Of those surveyed, 41 percent spent one hour or less in front of a screen daily, while 28 percent spent between one and two hours, and 18 percent spent three or more hours each day.³²The researchers found a strong correlation between three or more hours of screen time and high levels of leptin, fasting glucose and insulin resistance. They commented on the results, saying:³³

"Our findings suggest that reducing screen time may be beneficial in reducing type 2 diabetes risk factors, in both boys and girls and in different ethnic groups from an early age. This is particularly relevant, given rising levels of type 2 diabetes, the early emergence of type 2 diabetes risk, and recent trends suggesting that screen time related activities are increasing in childhood and may pattern screen-related behaviors in later life."

Mitochondrial Dysfunction Is at the Heart of Diabetes and Most Other Disease

In this short TED talk, Dr. Sarah Hallberg discusses the success she has treating people with diabetes, reducing their blood sugar using dietary choices. At the core of the pathology behind diabetes is mitochondrial dysfunction and eating a high-carbohydrate diet that bathes your mitochondria in glucose, which in turn suppresses mitochondrial metabolism.
Your mitochondria are tiny energy producers inside most of your cells. They are the primary source of energy required to keep your body functioning optimally.
As mitochondrial function is at the heart of your health, optimizing it is extremely important to health and disease prevention. Mitochondrial dysfunction may lead to cardiovascular disease, depression, type 2 diabetes, stroke and neurological dysfunction. In essence, at the core of many diseases are dysfunctional mitochondria, and the diseases are simply different labels for a foundational pathology at the cellular level.
The good news is type 2 diabetes is easily preventable, and nearly 100 percent reversible. Four key lifestyle strategies to accomplish this are exercise (ideally including some high-intensity interval training once you're able), non-exercise movement throughout each day, Peak Fasting and a whole food-based ketogenic diet.

[-] Sources and References

Osteoarthritis Natural Relief

2017-04-17T00:13:00.000-05:00

A study shows that a formulation of curcumin can relieve pain and increase mobility in patients with osteoarthritis. It can also reduce a series of inflammatory markers.
100 patients with osteoarthritis were divided in two groups -- the first group was given the "best available treatment" and the second group was given the same treatment plus 200 mg of the curcumin formulation each day.
According to IFT:

"The results showed that the [curcumin]-treated group had a statistically significant reduction in all primary clinical end-points ... These results were complemented by the evaluation of a series of inflammatory markers, soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule (sVCAM)-1, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate [ESR]) ... while no significant variation was observed in the 'best available treatment' group."

This could eventually lead to a phase out of NSAID use, at least as a treatment for mild-to-moderate osteoarthritis.

If you've never heard of curcumin -- the pigment that gives the curry spice turmeric its yellow-orange color -- you're in for a treat, as this is one natural compound that should be on your health radar. Curcumin is also the active ingredient in turmeric, which is a very popular supplement.
Both the ancient Chinese and Indian systems of medicine have recognized curcumin's beneficial properties for thousands of years, and now modern research is showing it may be one of nature's most powerful potential healers.
Most notably, curcumin is known for its potent anti-inflammatory properties. The compound has been shown to influence more than 700 genes, and it can inhibit both the activity and the synthesis of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX2) and 5-lipooxygenase (5-LOX), as well as other enzymes that have been implicated in inflammation.

One of the BEST Supplements for Many Cancers

Dr. William LaValley from Austin Texas, is one of the top natural medicine cancer physicians I know and he recently shared this important information on curcumin which has the most evidence based literature for as a cancer support among all nutrients. There are over 100 different pathways that curcumin has an effect on once it gets into the cell. Interestingly this also includes the metabolite of curcumin and its derivatives which are also anti-cancer. Curcumin appears to be safe in the treatment of all cancers.

In India where turmeric is widely used, the prevalence of four common U.S. cancers -- colon, breast, prostate and lung -- is 10 times lower. In fact, prostate cancer, which is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in U.S. men, is rare in India and this is attributed, in part, to the curcumin in turmeric.

Numerous studies have looked into this potential cancer-fighting link, with promising results. For instance, curcumin has been found to:

Inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells
Inhibit the transformation of cells from normal to tumor
Help your body destroy mutated cancer cells so they cannot spread throughout your body
Decrease inflammation
Enhance liver function
Inhibit the synthesis of a protein thought to be instrumental in tumor formation
Prevent the development of additional blood supply necessary for cancer cell growth
And according to researchers from the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, curcumin blocks a key biological pathway needed for development of melanoma and other cancers.

The spice actually stops laboratory strains of melanoma from proliferating and pushes the cancer cells to commit suicide by shutting down nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kB), a powerful protein known to induce abnormal inflammatory response that leads to an assortment of disorders such as arthritis and cancer.

To get the full benefits that curcumin has to offer, you will want to look for a turmeric extract with at least 95% curcuminoids that contains only 100% certified organic ingredients.

The formula should be free of fillers, additives and excipients (a substance added to the supplement as a processing or stability aid), and the manufacturer should use safe production practices at all stages: planting, cultivation, selective harvesting, and then producing and packaging the final product.

Details on How to Use Curcumin

The unfortunate challenge as this time is that there are not really any very good formulations of curcumin available to use in cancer. This is because relatively high doses are required and curcumin is not absorbed that well. Typical anticancer doses are up to three grams of good bioavailable curcmin extract, three to four times daily.

One work around for this is to use the curcumin powder and make a microemulsion of it by combining a tablespoon of the powder and mixing it into 1-2 egg yolks and a teaspoon or two of melted coconut oil. Then using a high speed hand blender to emulsify the powder.

Another strategy you can use to increase absorption is to put one tablespoon of the curcumin powder into a quart of boiling water. It must be boiling when you add the powder as it will not work as well if you put it in room temperature water and heat the water and curcumin. After boiling it for ten minutes you will have created a 12% solution and you can drink this once it has cooled down. The curcumin will gradually fall out of solution over time and in about six hours it will be a 6% solution so it is best to drink the water within four hours. It does have a woody taste.

One caution to know is that you want to avoid the "yellow kitchen" syndrome. Curcumin is a very potent yellow pigment and can permanently discolor surfaces if you aren't careful. So you can perform the mixing under the hood of your stove with the blower on to make sure no powder gets into your kitchen.

Research Highlights Curcumin's Pain-Relieving Power

In the latest study of osteoarthritis patients, those who added 200 mg of curcumin a day to their treatment plan had reduced pain and increased mobility, whereas the control group, which received no curcumin, had no significant improvements.
A past study also found that a turmeric extract composed of curcuminoids (plant-based nutrients that contain powerful antioxidant properties) blocked inflammatory pathways, effectively preventing the launch of a protein that triggers swelling and pain.

A Natural Alternative to NSAIDs

Curcumin's anti-inflammatory effects help to reduce irritation to tissues characterized by pain, redness, swelling and heat, which is particularly helpful for osteoarthritis patients.
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease that causes joint stiffness, pain, inflammation and swelling that can become debilitating. Many patients turn to non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) and analgesics, like Tylenol, for pain relief, but the regular, chronic use of these types of medications is associated with significant, and very serious, side effects such as cardiovascular problems, gastrointestinal harm and kidney and/or liver damage.
If you are taking an NSAID, you are at approximately three times greater risk for developing serious gastrointestinal side effects than those who aren't.
Approximately 1.2 percent of patients taking NSAIDs are actually hospitalized for upper GI problems, per year of exposure. One study of patients taking NSAIDs showed that a life-threatening complication was the first sign of ulcer in more than half of the subjects.
Researchers found that the drugs suppress production of prostacyclin, which is needed to dilate blood vessels and inhibit clotting. Earlier studies had found that mice genetically engineered to be unable to use prostacyclin properly were prone to clotting disorders.
Anyone who is at increased risk of cardiovascular disease should steer clear of these medications as well. Ulcer complications are certainly potentially life-threatening, but, heart attacks are a much more common and likely risk, especially in older individuals. So having a natural alternative to NSAIDs for pain relief is invaluable, especially for a painful condition like osteoarthritis.
You can use turmeric in your cooking (choose a pure turmeric powder, rather than a curry powder, as at least one study has found that curry powders tend to contain very little curcumin), but you may also want to consider taking it in supplement form.
For many this is a more convenient method to obtain the potential health benefits, especially if it is from a high-quality organic source, and also if you don't particularly enjoy the taste of curry. As an aside, curcumin is not only beneficial for osteoarthritis … research is also emerging showing it may play a beneficial role in the following diseases:
Cystic fibrosis
Type 2 diabetes
Crohn's disease
Psoriasis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Cataracts
Gallstones
Muscle regeneration
Inflammatory bowel disease

More Natural Tips for Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis, the deterioration of cartilage that cushions your joints, is the most common form of arthritis among the elderly. It's normally associated with "wear and tear" on your joints, but can also be caused by repetitive stress or acute trauma.
In addition to an anti-inflammatory like curcumin, I've long promoted omega-3 fats for arthritis because omega-3s are also well known to help reduce inflammation. Look for a high-quality, animal-based source such as krill oil. In addition, adding glucosamine to your omega-3s appears to be an excellent choice for osteoarthritis sufferers in particular.
If you have osteoarthritis, the cartilage within your joint is progressively being damaged, and the synovial fluid that keeps your joints lubricated and cushioned is typically reduced as well. The pain is a result of your bones starting to come into contact with each other as cartilage and synovial fluid is reduced.
Your body is fully capable of rebuilding cartilage and synovial fluid, but in order to effectively do so it needs the proper building blocks. In this case, it needs glucosamine to rebuild both cartilage and synovial fluid, so correcting this deficiency by using a high-quality supplement may be helpful.
In one study, participants with moderate-to-severe hip or knee osteoarthritis who received 1,500 mg of glucosamine sulfate along with 200 mg of omega-3 had greater pain reduction and fewer symptoms (morning stiffness, pain in hips and knees) than those who took glucosamine by itself.
I also recommend for osteoarthritis:
Nutritional typing: Your unique biochemistry and genetics influence the ratio of fat, protein and carbohydrates your body needs to thrive, so eating for your nutritional type will ensure that you get the optimal macronutrient ratio out of your diet. Making proper dietary choices is actually one of the most profound ways to reduce inflammation.
Optimizing your vitamin D levels: Vitamin D deficiency is associated with inflammation, so you will want to be sure your levels are in the healthy range by getting proper sun exposure, using a safe tanning bed or taking a high-quality vitamin D3 supplement. Low vitamin D has also been linked to osteoarthritis directly.
Exercise: Even light exercise has been shown to help prevent the onset of osteoarthritis, and it is very important to exercise and increase muscle tone of your non-weight bearing joints. In time, disuse results in muscle atrophy and weakness, and immobility may result in joint contractures and loss of range of motion (ROM), so it's important to keep moving.

Your program should include a range of activities, just as I recommend for any exerciser. Weight training, cardio, stretching and core work can all be integrated into your routine, and, if your condition allows, it would be wise to move toward a Peak Fitness program that is designed for reaching optimal health.

There are several other natural strategies that can offer pain relief from osteoarthritis as well, including acupuncture, herbs like ginger and boswellia, bromelain and evening primrose oil.

Breathing for Weight Loss

2017-04-13T00:29:00.000-05:00

The average person takes about 20,000 breaths a day,¹ and you probably don’t give them much thought. Breathing obviously yields incredible power over your health, as it supplies your body with oxygen (and removes excess carbon dioxide [CO2]) to keep you alive.
However, when harnessed correctly, breathing can do far more than supply your cells with oxygen. The way you breathe — whether fast or slow, shallow or deep — sends messages to your body that affect your mood, your stress levels and even your immune system.
So-called controlled breathing, research is increasingly showing, can influence your health for the better, and all you have to do is learn how to use it. What’s interesting about breathing is that it’s both a voluntary and an involuntary process. Much like blood flow or digestion, your body breathes automatically.
However unlike the former two processes, you cannot decide to alter the flow of your blood or your digestive process. Not so with breathing. You can make a choice to take the reins and control your breathing — the speed, the depth and even whether you breathe through your mouth or your nose.
This is perhaps the first clue that you should take back control of your breathing at least some of the time. As you change the way you breathe, you’ll also change important aspects of your health.

Controlled Breathing May Trigger Your Relaxation Response

You may be aware that your body has a “fight-or-flight” response that kicks in when you’re under stress. Lesser known is that your body also has what’s essentially an opposite fight-or-flight response called the relaxation response.
Controlled breathing is one way to trigger your relaxation response, as it activates your parasympathetic nervous system, which in turn may slow down your heart rate and digestion while helping you feel calm.²
By evoking your body’s built-in relaxation response you can actually change the expression of your genes for the better, according to an associate professor and pioneer in Mind Body Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Herbert Benson.³ As stated by one study in PLOS One:⁴

“RR [relaxation response] elicitation is an effective therapeutic intervention that counteracts the adverse clinical effects of stress in disorders including hypertension, anxiety, insomnia and aging …

RR practice enhanced expression of genes associated with energy metabolism, mitochondrial function, insulin secretion and telomere maintenance and reduced expression of genes linked to inflammatory response and stress-related pathways.”

In short, slow, steady breathing activates your parasympathetic response while rapid, shallow breathing activates your sympathetic response, which is involved in releasing cortisol and other stress hormones.

Controlled Breathing: an Ancient Technique Backed by Modern Research

Controlled breathing, or pranayama as its known in the practice of yoga, is a central part of many ancient traditions.
For instance, yogic breathing exercises are described in an ancient Tamil script called Thirumanthiram⁵ and breath meditations have long been used in Buddhism as a way to help reach enlightenment.⁶
Modern research suggests the benefits of controlled breathing are real and may improve health conditions ranging from insomnia and anxiety to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.
“Breathing is massively practical,” psychologist Belisa Vranich, Ph.D., author of the upcoming book “Breathe,” told The New York Times. “It’s meditation for people who can’t meditate.”⁷
In a preliminary study presented in May 2016 at the International Congress on Integrative Medicine and Health in Las Vegas, Nevada, researchers found 12 weeks of daily yoga and controlled breathing improved symptoms of depression similar to using an antidepressant.
Not only did the participants’ symptoms of depression significantly decrease but their levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a calming neurotransmitter, simultaneously increased.⁸
Equally intriguing was research published in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, which found that breathing exercises lowered levels of salivary cytokines associated with inflammation and stress in a group of healthy volunteers.⁹
Controlled breathing exercises have also been found to modify stress coping behaviors and initiate appropriate balance in cardiac autonomic tone, which is a term that describes your heart’s ability to respond to and recover from stressors.¹⁰

How Breathing Helps Relieve Symptoms of Stress, Anxiety and Depression

In a BMC journal study, breathing exercises called Sudarshan Kriya (SK) were used. SK is a type of rhythmic breathing used during the practice of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY). Such breathing practices range from slow and calming to rapid and stimulating.
For instance, during SKY you may engage in ujjayi breathing, which is slow breathing of three cycles per minute, followed by bhastrika, or rapid exhalation at 20 to 30 cycles per minute, followed by SK, which is breathing in a slow, medium and fast cycles.¹¹ According to the International Journal of Yoga:¹²

“There is mounting evidence to suggest that SKY can be a beneficial, low-risk [and] low-cost adjunct to the treatment of stress, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, stress-related medical illnesses, substance abuse and rehabilitation of criminal offenders.”

The breathing exercises are said to help balance your autonomic nervous system and influence psychologic and stress-related disorders through a number of mechanisms, including:¹³

Increased parasympathetic drive
Calming of stress response systems
Neuroendocrine release of hormones
Thalamic generators

Lowered Blood Pressure, Brain Growth and Other Remarkable Benefits of Controlled Breathing

Beyond stress and anxiety relief, “Studies have demonstrated that SK can play an important role in promoting a healthy lifestyle by improving immunity, antioxidant status, hormonal status and brain functioning,” according to research published in the journal Advances in Mind-Body Medicine.¹⁴
Yet another study in the World Journal of Clinical Cases concluded SK and other breath-based medication sequences have “the potential to help develop an individual's self-awareness and support better integration of the brain (i.e., mind) with other organ systems (i.e., body) for enhanced human performance.”¹⁵ More specifically, research suggests that harnessing the timing and depth of your breath may lead to the following:

Lowered blood pressure and heart rate, including lowering blood pressure in people with hypertension¹⁶
An increase in brain size when used along with meditation¹⁷
Immune support, by altering the expression of genes involved in immune function¹⁸

Mouth Breathing Versus Nose Breathing: the Buteyko Breathing Method

Whether you breathe through your mouth or your nose also has important health implications, with the latter being far preferable. The field of breathing and breath-work has enormous potential for improvement, as most prevailing ideas about breathing promoted in yoga, Pilates and meditative methods tend to focus on taking big, deep breaths.
This may have benefits, as discussed, but according to the Buteyko Breathing Method, this is actually the opposite of what you should do. The Buteyko Breathing Method helps to reverse health problems associated with improper breathing, the most common of which are overbreathing and mouth breathing.
In the video above, Patrick McKeown, one of the top teachers of the Buteyko Method, examines dysfunctional breathing patterns associated with asthma, rhinitis and sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, and details the scientific rationale for improving your breathing habits.
When you stop mouth breathing and learn to bring your breathing volume toward normal, you have better oxygenation of your tissues and organs, including your brain. Factors of modern life, including stress and lack of exercise, all increase your everyday breathing.
Typical characteristics of overbreathing include mouth breathing, upper chest breathing, sighing, noticeable breathing during rest and taking large breaths prior to talking.

Why Mouth Breathing Can Make You Feel Like You’re Not Getting Enough Oxygen

Most people believe that taking bigger breaths through your mouth allows you to take more oxygen into your body, which should make you feel better and more clear-headed. However, the opposite actually happens. Deep mouth breathing tends to make you feel light-headed, and this is due to eliminating too much CO2 from your lungs, which causes your blood vessels to constrict. So, the heavier you breathe, the less oxygen is actually delivered throughout your body.
And, contrary to popular belief, CO2 is not merely a waste gas. Although you breathe to get rid of excess CO2, it's important to maintain a certain amount of it in your lungs — and for that you need to maintain a normal breathing volume. When too much CO2 is lost through heavy breathing, it causes the smooth muscles embedded in your airways to constrict. When this happens, there is a feeling of not getting enough air and the natural reaction is to breathe more intensely.
But this simply causes an even greater loss of CO2, which constricts your airway even further. To remedy the situation you need to break this negative feedback loop by breathing through your nose and breathing less.
Clinical trials involving asthmatics show they breathe between 10 to 15 liters of air per minute and people with chronic heart disease tend to breathe between 15 to 18 liters of air per minute.¹⁹ On the other hand, normal breathing volume is between 4 and 7 liters of air per minute, which translates into 12 to 14 breaths. This suggests breathing less is a sign of better health. Conversely, the more you breathe, the more likely you are to experience significant health problems.

A Simple Breathing Technique to Reduce Stress and Control Anxiety and Panic Attacks

Controlling anxiety and quelling panic attacks is one of the areas where the Buteyko Method can be quite useful. If you’re experiencing anxiety or panic attacks, or if you feel very stressed and your mind can’t stop racing, try the following breathing technique. This sequence helps retain and gently accumulate carbon dioxide, leading to calmer breathing, and reduces anxiety. In other words, the urge to breathe will decline as you go into a more relaxed state:

Take a small breath into your nose, followed by a small breath out
Then hold your nose for five seconds in order to hold your breath, and then release your nose to resume breathing
Breathe normally for 10 seconds
Repeat the sequence

3 Steps to Proper Breathing

In his talk, McKeown led a group demonstration of proper breathing, summarized as follows. These steps will help your breath to become lighter, such that the hairs in your nose barely move. This type of breathing helps you to enter and remain in a calm, meditative state while lowering your blood pressure and reducing nasal congestion for easier breathing.
You may feel a slight air shortage at first, but this should be tolerable. If it becomes uncomfortable, take a 15-second break and then continue.

Place one hand on your upper chest and the other on your belly; feel your belly move slightly in and out with each breath, while your chest remains unmoving.
Close your mouth and breathe in and out through your nose. Focus your attention on the cold air coming into your nose and the slightly warmer air leaving it on the out breath.
Slowly decrease the volume of each breath, to the point it feels like you're almost not breathing at all (you'll notice your breath getting very quiet at this point). The crucial thing here is to develop a slight air hunger. This simply means there's a slight accumulation of carbon dioxide in your blood, which signals your brain to breathe.

After three or four minutes of air hunger, you'll start experiencing the beneficial effects of CO2 accumulation, such as an increase in body temperature and an increase in saliva. The former is a sign of improved blood circulation, the latter a sign that your parasympathetic nervous system has been activated, which is important for stress reduction.

Multivitamin breakthrough delivers nutrients from food

2017-04-12T22:52:00.001-05:00

It's one of the biggest cover-ups in the history of nutrition: Those "conventional" multivitamins sold at grocery stores, pharmacies and big-box stores are filled with synthetic chemicals that are fraudulently called "vitamins." Ascorbic acid, pyridoxine (B6), niacin (B3), magnesium oxide and dozens more... these are all synthetic, isolated or inorganic forms of vitamins and minerals that in some cases may actually cause more harm than good to your body.

It's the greatest con in food history... the selling of synthetic, isolated chemicals and ground-up rocks as "food." When you take a typical multivitamin made with calcium carbonate, iron sulfate and magnesium oxide, you are eating rocks, not minerals. And when you take a multivitamin made with "standardized" isolated vitamins, you are eating chemicals, not real nutrition.

(The same is true with "fortified" breakfast cereals and "vitamin" drinks, nearly all of which are fortified with iron shavings and cheap, synthetic vitamins.)

There is a better way to get real nutrition from multivitamins. It's called "food-based" nutrition, and it means that all the vitamins and minerals in the supplement come from genuine food-based sources.

Most multivitamins are nothing but chemicals and rocks

For the past two years, I have extensively studied the biochemistry of nutritional supplements, including the so-called "speciation" of certain minerals and metals such as chromium, arsenic and mercury. I've also come to see as crucial the difference between inorganic vs. organic elements in vitamins. This does not refer to USDA certified organic status; this refers to the molecular composition of the element in question. "Inorganic" metals such as iron, magnesium, aluminum, zinc and so on, come from rocks, not living things. "Organic" metals, on the other hand, are elements that exist in complex molecules that always contain Carbon atoms and often contain Hydrogen as well. These are "bioavailable" nutrients that have been converted by living things into usable nutrition that your body inherently recognizes.

So remember this: Iron is not iron. What I mean is that some iron is added to supplements by grinding up iron mined right out of the ground. You don't want to eat that. The usable, bioavailable iron is iron that has been converted by living things into "organic" iron (i.e. transformed by living things into complex molecules containing Carbon).

In all this research, what I've found is that most vitamin pills are a complete hoax. They are filled with absolute junk chemicals and ground up rocks, all held together with questionable fillers, excipients and even chemical "glues" that prevent the tablets from physically falling apart. When an uninformed consumer goes out and buys a multivitamin, what they are really buying is chemicals and rocks.

Why food-based vitamins and minerals are so much better

Clearly, human beings were designed to eat foods, not rocks. Nutrients are supposed to come from living things, not dead, inanimate objects. This should be common sense, but the entire conventional vitamin industry -- which is largely owned by Big Pharma, by the way -- has convinced people they should be eating chemicals and rocks.

There is a better solution to all this. It's called "MegaFood."

MegaFood is a brand of nutritional supplements that are made almost entirely from actual food. Every nutrient in the bottle is derived entirely from living systems, either microbial flora or plants. They have a full line of supplements for specific health concerns, including thyroid, blood builders, bone builders, and multivitamins for men and women over 40. Natural News now proudly carried MegaFood products in our online store, and this is what I'm taking and recommending to everyone I know.

It's crucial to understand the difference between MegaFood and traditional multivitamins. MegaFood nutrients are full-spectrum nutrients. Vitamin C, for example, is actually much more than the isolated chemical known as ascorbic acid. In nature, vitamin C exists as a full symphony of related compounds. This is what the body needs for nutrition, and that's what MegaFood delivers.

Nearly all the plants used in MegaFood formulas are certified organic, and their entire product line is tested to be completely free of pesticides and herbicides. In fact, I grilled MegaFood on whether they had any harmful excipients and fillers, and it turns out their products are incredibly clean, conscientious, and truly revolutionary in terms of delivering bioavailable nutrients to the body.

MegaFood is real food. And that means it's digestible. While a lot of people have problems with traditional vitamin pills and multivitamin tablets, MegaFood is easy to digest and easy to assimilate because, again, it's real food not "chemicals and rocks."

Why the FDA and Big Pharma don't want you to know any of this

According to the FDA, calcium is calcium is calcium. In their minds, there's no difference between calcium from rocks and calcium from broccoli. But chemically, in terms of real molecular biology, there is a HUGE difference. Your body wants nutrition from food, not rocks.

How do you know this is true? Because even starving people don't eat rocks. People will die from starvation before they try to eat rocks. That's because rocks are not food. This point should be obvious to anyone. So why do vitamin companies put ground-up rocks in their formulas?

Big Pharma, of course, doesn't want you to know anything about real nutrition. They want you to keep taking their fake, synthetic chemical vitamins so that you get even more sick and require their high-priced prescription drugs to "manage" your disease symptoms. What better way to keep you sick than take over the vitamin industry (which they have largely done) and sell people a bunch of chemicals and rocks that keep everybody sick and malnourished? Pure (evil) genius.

Truth be told, there are all sorts of vested interests in the industry who don't want you to have access to real food-based nutrition. Medical insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, hospitals and even the entire cancer industry all want to make sure as many people as possible stay sick. They're all future customers, after all, and if the people discover they can prevent disease through intelligent nutrition, the "sick care" industry will lose out on billions of dollars in revenues. (Your health is their loss, in other words.)

Switch to MegaFood starting right now

The number of multivitamin companies using food-based nutrients is ridiculously small. In fact, I can only think of two: MegaFood and Pure Synergy. There may be others I'm not aware of, but in any case it's a frighteningly small number.

If you are currently taking multivitamins that are not from real food-based sources, you need to switch to food-based nutrients immediately. On that topic, I want to be 100% on the record here, saying that your No. 1 best source of nutrition is live, fresh foods and superfoods. No vitamin, no matter how amazing, can replace real, fresh foods and superfoods you grown in your own garden or aquaponic system.

But for a long list of reasons, most people can't get the nutrition they need from the foods they buy. One huge reason for all this is that soils are depleted of minerals like selenium, one of the most important trace minerals to support healthy brain function, immune response and normal cell functions. So even if you're buying fresh food, it's almost certainly depleted of magnesium, zinc, selenium and other trace elements you need in food form.

People today are also in a hurry. They want real nutrition in a convenient, portable, storable format. It's hard to beat MegaFood in this category. MegaFood is shelf stable, packed in glass bottles (not plastic), extremely easy to take, and it can be used to enhance any regular meal you might be eating. For example, if you're eating a salad for lunch and you realize, "Hey, this salad is depleted of nearly all nutrients, grown in nutrient-depleted soils," you can just take a MegaFood multivitamin with your salad, and now you've got a real nutrition for lunch.

MegaFood is 100% no GMO, no soy, no gluten, no dairy, no pesticides and tested free from common allergens

On top of everything mentioned above, MegaFood is completely free of GMO, soy, pesticides, gluten, dairy and common allergens.

In addition, the entire MegaFood line is ridiculously "clean" in terms of low levels of toxic metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury and arsenic. As you may know, I've spent tens of thousands of dollars on laboratory testing of superfoods and raw materials over the past few months, and I've seen a large number of test results come back with alarmingly high numbers. I've seen arsenic at over 400ppm. I've seen cadmium at over 8ppm (toxic!). I've seen lead at 16ppm in some foods.

I have personally rejected a huge number of products and raw materials from our store because they had high levels of metals. So as part of my research into MegaFood, we looked into their heavy metals levels and we found them to be incredibly clean. The MegaFood standards are:

Arsenic less than 1 ppm
Cadmium less than 0.2 ppm
Mercury less than 0.5 ppm
Lead less than 1.0 ppm

And the actual test results were much lower than these limits! In the world of foods and superfoods, this is ridiculously clean. So it meets my standards, because I won't endorse anything that contains high levels of metal contaminants.

In addition, MegaFood was tested for pesticide residues, and the results were phenomenal: On all the categories tested -- organochlorine, organophosphorous, organonitrogen and pyrethroids -- the results were lower than Prop 65 requirements, which are the strictest requirements in the world.

MegaFood also passes all the tests on allergenicity for gluten, dairy and soy. It passes all the tests on e.coli, yeast, mold, salmonella and coliform, making it one of the cleanest and most high-quality nutrient sources available anywhere today.

Now you see why I call MegaFood a "breakthrough" in food-based nutrition. This isn't some run-of-the-mill chemical multivitamin. MegaFood supplements are essentially food concentrates that just happen to resemble the physical shape and size of a multivitamin.

---Via NaturalNews.com

Shed belly fat

2017-04-12T00:35:00.000-05:00

When it comes to shedding stubborn belly fat, exercise alone is not the answer. The master key really lies with what you eat, and perhaps more importantly when you eat, followed closely by the type of exercise you engage in.
Scheduling your eating to a narrow window of time each day is the version of intermittent fasting I recommend for those struggling with insulin resistance and excess body weight.
Other healthy lifestyle habits such as sleep and stress reduction are also helpful, as they help keep your cortisol levels low. Cortisol is a stress hormone that, when elevated, depletes lean muscle and holds on to fat in the abdominal region.¹
It's important to realize that the benefits of reducing belly fat go far beyond aesthetics. Abdominal fat—the visceral fat that deposits around your internal organs—releases proteins and hormones that can cause inflammation, which in turn can damage arteries and enter your liver, affecting how your body breaks down sugars and fats.
The chronic inflammation associated with visceral fat accumulation can trigger a wide range of systemic diseases linked with metabolic syndrome.
This is why carrying extra weight around your middle is linked to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, strokes, and other chronic diseases, and why measuring your waist-to-hip ratio is actually a better indicator of your health status than body mass index (BMI).

Three Dietary Keys for Shedding Abdominal Fat

To shed abdominal fat, you need to reduce your overall body fat. It's simply impossible to target just one area for fat reduction. Diet is key here, as poor diet promotes fat accumulation and causes your body to hold on to excess fat.
In terms of your food choices, the following two are foundational for successful weight loss:

• Reduce or eliminate added sugar from your diet. This includes all forms of sugar and fructose, whether refined or "all-natural" such as agave or honey, as well as all grains (including organic ones), as they quickly break down to sugar in your body.
That said, processed fructose (such as high fructose corn syrup) is by far the worst of the bunch in terms of causing metabolic dysfunction. Because your body metabolizes it in the same way it metabolizes alcohol, it promotes insulin resistance and fat accumulation to a greater degree than other sugars.
Processed fructose is a staple ingredient in most processed foods and sweetened beverages, where it can hide under 60 different names,² so the easiest way to avoid it is to swap out processed foods for whole, ideally organic, produce.
As a general rule, if you're insulin resistant (and you likely are if you're struggling with abdominal fat) keep your total sugar/fructose intake below 15 grams per day. If your weight is normal and you have no other signs of insulin resistance, the recommended daily amount is 25 grams a day
• Increase healthy fats in your diet. Following a low-fat diet is a sure-fire way to sabotage your weight loss goals. To shed fat, you actually need to eat healthy saturated fats, and plenty of them.
Most who are insulin resistant will benefit from 50-85 percent of their daily calories in the form of healthy fat until their insulin resistance resolves.
This includes avocados, butter made from raw grass-fed organic milk, raw dairy, organic pastured egg yolks, coconuts and coconut oil, unheated organic nut oils, raw nuts, and grass-fed meats, as well as animal-based omega-3s.
As noted in the featured article,³ monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) found in nuts, olive oil, and avocados have been shown to boost abdominal fat loss:

"When researchers in one study asked women to switch to a 1,600-calorie, high-MUFA diet, they lost a third of their belly fat in a month."

For more healthy diet details, I suggest you review my Optimized Nutrition Plan, which is a comprehensive and step-by-step guide to help you make health-promoting food and lifestyle choices.
The third dietary key for shedding abdominal fat (and fat in general) is intermittent fasting. This is really one of the most effective ways I've found to address excess weight, as it "resets" your body to start using fat as its primary fuel rather than sugar.

My Intermittent Fasting Recommendations

The version of intermittent fasting I recommend for those with insulin resistance is simply restricting your eating to a specific window of time every day, such as an eight-hour window.
For example, you could restrict your eating to the hours of 11am and 7pm. Essentially, you're just skipping breakfast and making lunch your first meal of the day instead. This equates to a daily fasting of 16 hours—twice the minimum required to deplete your glycogen stores and start shifting into fat burning mode. I have experimented with a number of different schedules, and this is my personal preference as it's really easy to comply with once your body has made the shift from burning sugar to burning fat.
Fat, being a slow-burning fuel, allows you to keep going without suffering from the dramatic energy crashes associated with sugar. And if you're not hungry, or not eating for several hours is no big deal, I recommend following this eating schedule until your insulin/leptin resistance improves, your weight normalizes, and your health issues resolve, such as blood pressure, blood sugar, etc. After that, just do it as often as you need to keep yourself healthy without insulin resistance.

Foods That Can Help You Shed Belly Fat

A recent article⁴ by David Zinczenko, author of the book, Zero Belly Diet, addresses a number of specific foods that can help promote a leaner belly by decreasing inflammation, eliminating bloat, and turning off your fat storage genes. Zinczenko writes, in part:

"Zero Belly is based on the breakthrough science of 'nutritional genetics...' In early 2014, I put together a panel to test-drive the Zero Belly program, and I've been stunned by the results: The average person lost four inches off their waist -- in just six weeks. The key to this program is a scientifically proven eating program that targets your fat genes -- turning them to 'off' and making weight loss automatic. There's no calorie counting, no deprivation. Zero Belly works in three ways:

1. First, it reduces bloating by cutting down on excess salt, dairy, and artificial sweeteners... Some of the test panelists lost up to three inches of bloat off their waist in just seven days.
2. Second, it heals your gut by feeding the 'good' microbes in your belly. A balanced gut reduces inflammation and helps to turn off your fat genes.
3. Third, it turbocharges your metabolism with protein, healthy fats, and quality fiber."

The nine foods, or groups of foods that Zinczenko recommends eating include: plant-based smoothies high in protein, healthy fat, fiber, and resveratrol; eggs (I recommend eating only organic, pastured or free-range eggs); red fruits, olive oil and other healthy fats; high-fiber foods; nuts and seeds; meat (again my recommendation is to stick with organic, grass-fed varieties); leafy greens and brightly-colored veggies, along with plenty of fresh herbs and spices.
As Zinczenko points out, reestablishing a healthy gut flora is very important, as imbalances can have a significant impact on your weight. One hypothesis states that your gut bacteria may in fact be in control of your appetite. Recent research⁵ suggests there's a positive-feedback loop between the foods you crave and the composition of the microbiota in your gut that depend on those nutrients for their survival. Microbes that thrive on sugar, for example, can signal your brain to eat more sweets.
Other studies^6,⁷ have shown that certain bacteria found in your gut can produce insulin resistance and weight gain by triggering chronic low-grade inflammation in your body. Food processing, pasteurization, and sterilization also have a detrimental effect on your microbiome. For all of these reasons, and more, I always recommend a diet rich in whole, unprocessed foods along with cultured or fermented foods.

Common Mistakes That Can Make Shedding Belly Fat More Difficult

Eating a diet too high in processed foods (and hence processed fructose and other added sugars), along with eating too frequently, tend to be among the primary causes of a bulging waistline. However, as discussed in a recent article,⁸ a number of other lifestyle factors can contribute to the problem. So, in addition to correcting your diet and implementing a fasting regimen, addressing the following factors may boost your chances of successfully eliminating those extra inches around your midriff:

1. Lack of exercise: To maximize your weight loss results, be sure to incorporate some form of high intensity interval training (HIIT). This short intense training protocol improves muscle energy utilization and expenditure, due to its positive effects on increasing muscle mass and improving muscle fiber quality. Muscle tissue burns three to five times more energy than fat tissues, so as you gain muscle, your metabolic rate increases, which allows you to burn more calories, even when you're sleeping. Further, several studies have confirmed that exercising in shorter bursts with rest periods in between burns more fat than exercising continuously for an entire session.
The combination of intermittent fasting and HIIT is a particularly potent combination, as when done in tandem it virtually forces your body to burn off excess body fat. To find the HIIT workout that works best for you, see my previous article: "This Interval Training Infographic Helps You Pick the Right Workout." I also recommend getting more walking into your daily life. Ideally, aim for 7,000 to 10,000 steps a day, over and above your regular exercise regimen. Not only will this give your metabolism a boost in the right direction, it's also necessary to counter the ill effects of too much sitting—which in and of itself increases your risk of insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction, even if you exercise!
2. Magnesium deficiency: Magnesium is a mineral used by every organ in your body, especially your heart, muscles, and kidneys. If you suffer from unexplained fatigue or weakness, abnormal heart rhythms, or even muscle spasms and eye twitches, low levels of magnesium could be to blame. Researchers have also found that people who consume higher levels of magnesium tend to have lower blood sugar and insulin levels. Seaweed and green leafy vegetables like spinach and Swiss chard can be excellent sources of magnesium, as are some beans, nuts, and seeds, like pumpkin, sunflower, and sesame seeds. Avocados also contain magnesium. Juicing your vegetables is an excellent option to ensure you're getting enough of them in your diet.
3. Diet soda consumption: Contrary to popular belief, diet soda can actually double your risk of obesity compared to drinking none,⁹ and research has shown that drinking diet soda increases your risk of weight gain to a greater degree than regular soda. If you're serious about weight loss, ditch all sweetened beverages, including artificially sweetened ones, and opt for pure filtered water.
4. Beer and alcohol consumption: Alcohol of all kinds will tend to promote weight gain, so consider cutting down on the number of drinks you indulge in each week. Beer has the added adverse effect of raising your uric acid levels, which promotes chronic inflammation.
5. Stress: Chronic stress will keep your stress hormones elevated, which can hinder weight loss efforts, so be sure to incorporate some stress-busting activities. As you learn how to effectively decrease your stress level, your cortisol will stabilize, your blood pressure will drop, and your health will improve in just about every way.
It's important to realize that stress management isn't something you save up to do on the weekend—it needs to be done on a daily basis, because that's how often stress rears its ugly head. There are many different stress reduction techniques, including: exercise, meditation, mindfulness training, yoga, spending time in nature, music, and EFT (emotional freedom techniques), the latter of which is a very effective form of energy psychology that can help "reprogram" your ingrained stress responses.

The Final Step: Exercises That Target Your Abs

Abdominal workouts should not be overlooked just because they won't result in a slimmer waistline. Your abdominal muscles provides the foundation for movement throughout your entire body, and strengthening them can help protect and support your back, make your spine and body less prone to injury and help you gain greater balance and stability. Having a strong abdominal wall is very important for optimal body movement and gets increasingly more important with advancing age.
A strong abdominal wall is also what will produce that six-pack look once you've lost sufficient amounts of subcutaneous fat. To effectively train your core muscles, be sure to incorporate a variety of stabilization, functional, and traditional exercises, such as:

Traditional exercises, such as a standard crunch with rotation or a standing rotation with a light hand weight
Functional exercises, including work on a stability ball
Stabilizing exercises, such as lying on the floor and pulling your belly back toward your spine and holding that position while breathing deeply
Extension exercises, such as lying on your stomach with arms extended above your head. Then raising both arms and both legs, at the same time, off the floor. (Hold for a count of 5, or 5 breaths, and slowly return to the floor)

Popular exercise programs that work your core muscles are widely available, and include virtually all types of yoga and Pilates. But there's yet another exercise you might not have thought of: push-ups! That's right. Push-ups don't just give you a stronger upper body, they also train your abdominals—as long as you're doing them correctly. I recommend watching Darin Steen's demonstration of the proper form below, but I've also included a summary of key points to remember:

Keep your body stiff and straight as a plank
Elbows at a 45-degree angle from your sides
Breathe in on the way down
Lower your body all the way down, allowing your sternum to gently touch the floor
Breathe out on the way up

If you're looking to get rock-hard abs, remember that proper dietary choices is your first step, ideally in combination with intermittent fasting and high intensity exercises. From there, a comprehensive lifestyle and fitness program that addresses factors such as sleep, stress, specific nutritional deficiencies, and targeted ab exercises, will help you achieve your goal.

Sources:

Study Shows Intermittent Fasting Promotes Health and Longevity

2017-04-02T04:30:00.000-05:00

Over the years, many theories have been advanced about how much you should eat and when you should eat it to achieve optimal health.
Research reveals many Americans eat all day long, as frequently as 15 out of the 24 hours.¹ Most also consume a majority of their daily calories late in the evening. Such dysfunctional eating patterns are a recipe for metabolic upset and weight gain.
Unique diets and diet advice abound. In recent years, intermittent fasting has been promoted as a means of preventing your risk of chronic disease, as well as a potential avenue for adding years to your life.
While you may cringe at the thought of skipping meals or limiting your eating to certain hours of the day, there is a growing body of evidence to suggest the health benefits of doing so could have a dramatic, positive effect on your sense of well-being.
Particularly if you're overweight and accustomed to "grazing" throughout the day — eating meals and snacks every hour or two — you may want to give intermittent fasting a try.
Intermittent fasting gives your body more time to effectively digest what you are eating and eliminate waste. Many biological repair processes take place when your body is in the "rest," not the "digest," mode, which is why all-day grazing is a bad for you.
Biologically, your body is not designed to run optimally when it is continuously fed. Therefore, you should seriously consider intermittent fasting.

What We Can Learn From the Calorie-Restricted Diets of Monkeys

A recent study,² published in Nature Communications, demonstrates calorie-restricted diets play a role in aging and health for rhesus monkeys.
Because many anatomical and physiological aspects of rhesus monkeys parallel human beings, it is thought the study's outcomes may be helpful in understanding the role of calorie restriction on humans.
As would be the case when evaluating the effectiveness of human diet programs, the study noted that a monkey's age and gender, as well as the type of diet eaten, influenced the research outcomes. There was no one-size-fits-all approach.
The current research re-evaluated data gathered in two previous studies: one conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UMW) in 2009 and the other by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) in 2012. The combined research analyzed nearly 200 monkeys, but produced conflicting results.
In the new study, the groups examined the previous body of work with an eye to uncover reasons for the differing outcomes of the reported results. They ultimately agreed that variables such as the age of the monkeys and their food intake were important factors that drove the results.
Scientists offer the following explanations for the differences reported in the earlier studies:³

• Age: The animals in the two studies had their diets restricted at different ages, and comparative analysis suggests adult primates benefit more from calorie restriction than younger animals do
• Food intake: The monkeys in the controls groups for each study ate different amounts of food, which seems to have contributed to improved survival for the monkeys that ate less
• Type of diet: Monkeys in the NIA study were fed naturally sourced foods, while UWM monkeys ate processed foods with higher sugar content, which demonstrated that eating habits affect fat mass and body composition
• Sex: Key differences were identified between male and female monkeys related to the relationship between diet, obesity and insulin sensitivity, with females seeming less vulnerable to the adverse effects of obesity than males

The findings suggest that calorie restriction does benefit rhesus monkeys, and following a calorie-restricted diet resulted in fewer health problems.
For example, the monkeys in the UWM study⁴ lived significantly longer than the control monkeys: two years longer for calorie-restricted males and nearly six years longer for calorie-restricted females. Notably, these monkeys also evidenced lower rates of cancer and heart disease.
In terms of aging, four of the NIA monkeys that began dieting as adults broke longevity records by living beyond age 40. The typical lifespan for rhesus monkeys is around 30 years.⁵
While it is too early to tell if calorie restriction works the same way in humans, it does seem there are positive effects to be had from limiting your food intake, given the research validation that aging can be targeted by fasting.⁶
"The main take-home is what you eat, and how much you eat, absolutely influences how you age," said Rozalyn Anderson, UWM associate professor of geriatrics and one of the study authors.

Do Calorie-Restricted Diets Work for Humans?

While calorie-restricted diets promote both weight loss and longevity in studies involving animals, they generally have only mixed results with humans. The thought of undertaking a "starvation diet" causes most people to cringe. Very often, this type of diet is considered as a desperate attempt at weight loss when other approaches have failed.
Unfortunately, you may have experienced personally that people who pursue "starvation diets" eventually return to their old habits — sometimes weighing even more after the diet than before!
The latest thinking about fasting supports the belief that you can get most of, if not all, the same benefits, and more, with intermittent fasting. In its most basic form, intermittent fasting involves reducing your food intake in whole or in part, either a few days a week, every other day or daily.
Eating less often better aligns us with our ancestors, who did not have access to food around the clock; but rather, had periods of feast and famine. The detrimental effects on the human body related to a food supply that was once hunted and gathered, but is now readily available 24/7 from the local grocery store, are profound.

My Favorite Type of Intermittent Fasting

The type of intermittent fasting I recommend and personally use involves restricting your daily eating schedule to a specific window of time. Based on the experimenting I have done in recent years, I suggest a six- to eight-hour timeframe in which to consume your daily food intake.
For example, if you skip breakfast and make lunch the first meal of your day, you might restrict your food intake to the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. If breakfast serves you better, your window could be between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
The key is to eat only two meals, and to ensure you eat the last meal at least three hours before bedtime. When you eat three or more meals a day, you rarely, if ever, empty your glycogen stores, mainly because it takes about eight to 12 hours to burn the sugar stored in your body as glycogen. Intermittent fasting will dramatically change the way your body processes food for fuel.
By fasting about 14 to 16 hours a day, you will give your body more than enough time to drain your glycogen stores and shift into fat-burning mode. Once your body shifts from burning sugar to burning fat as its primary fuel, you will find this program is easy to maintain. Because fat is a slow-burning fuel, you will not only have a more balanced energy supply, but you will also avoid the typical sugar "highs" and "lows" that come with typical diets.
If you are overcoming a health problem such as obesity, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, you can maintain this schedule every day until your body begins to overcome those deficits. As an example, if you need to lose 50 pounds, you'll need about six months of intermittent fasting, after which you can return to regular eating, or a fasting variation, as desired.
What I like best about this approach is that you don't need a lot of willpower or enormous amounts of self-discipline to maintain your designated window for eating.
While you will undoubtedly feel hungry on occasion, that is perfectly normal. Once your body adjusts, you may be surprised to discover how much less food you will consume to feel completely satisfied. You'll be amazed, as I was, when you begin to see your food cravings literally disappear once you have regained your ability to burn fat for fuel.

Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting provides a number of health benefits that most people need, and you and your body are worthy of all of them:

Gets rid of stubborn weight and sugar cravings by activating your fat-burning mode
Builds muscle and promotes overall health and wellness
Enhances brain health and helps prevent neurological disorders like Alzheimer's
Reduces oxidative stress and fights aging, diseases like cancer and stress
Delivers an array of physiologic benefits, including lowering triglycerides, reducing inflammation and lessening free-radical damage

While the positive effects of intermittent fasting apply to everyone, athletes may benefit even more from limiting their eating to a defined window of time. A 2016 study that tracked the effects of time-restricted feeding (TRF) on 34 resistance-trained male athletes found restricting their eating to an eight-hour daily timeframe positively affected several health-related biomarkers, while decreasing fat mass and maintaining muscle mass.⁷
For eight weeks, the participants divided their daily calorie intake across three meals eaten at 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. They fasted the remaining 16 hours of the day, and completed three weekly sessions of resistance training on non-consecutive days. Among the biomarkers noted, there was a significant decrease in blood glucose and insulin levels for the TRF group as compared to the normal diet group.
While additional studies need to be completed to further investigate the effects of intermittent fasting on athletes, it seems a TRF regimen could be adopted by athletes during maintenance phases of training when the goal is to maintain muscle mass while reducing fat mass.

Making Good Food Choices Is Still Important

One of my strongest cautions about intermittent fasting relates to food choices. Some claim that you can eat whatever you want as long as it is only consumed within your designated eating timeframe. While you may achieve some of the benefits from intermittent fasting simply by respecting the time boundaries, regardless of the foods you consume, I strongly recommend you consume high-quality food.
Regardless of the program you choose, your food choices matter. Since you'll be eating less, it's vitally important that you get proper nutrition from your food. Healthy fats are essential because intermittent fasting pushes your body to switch over to fat-burning mode. Particularly if you begin to feel tired and sluggish, it may be a sign that you need to increase the amount of healthy fat in your diet.
Cutting net carbs (total carbs minus fiber) is equally important. Fructose is particularly troublesome as it activates a key enzyme, fructokinase, which in turn activates another enzyme that causes your cells to accumulate fat and hold onto it. If you're diabetic, insulin-resistant or overweight, reducing your sugar consumption will be a critical component to your success. Regardless of whether you are doing intermittent fasting or not, aim for a diet:

High in healthy fats, obtaining 50 to 85 percent of your daily calories in the form of avocados, coconut oil, organic grass-fed butter, pastured egg yolks and raw nuts, such as macadamia, pecans and pine nuts
Moderate amounts of high-quality protein from organically raised, grass-fed or pastured animals, which translates to no more than 40 to 80 grams of protein per day, based on the protein limits I have suggested previously
Unrestricted amounts of fresh, low-net-carb vegetables, ideally organic

Important Contraindications for Fasting

Although most people could safely benefit from intermittent fasting, it's important to take caution if you have certain health challenges. If any of the following situations apply to you, you should NOT participate in extended fasting of any kind unless approved by your physician.

Underweight: defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 18.5 or less
Malnourished: You need to put your focus on eating healthier, more nutritious food before you can safely fast
Children should not fast for more than 24 hours because they need nutrients for continued growth; if your child is obese, consider cutting him or her back on refined grains and sugar to promote weight loss
Pregnant and breastfeeding women put their baby's healthy growth and development at risk when fasting because a consistent flow of nutrients must be shared continually with the baby to ensure its well-being

If You Take Medication Use Caution When Fasting

If you take medication and it must be taken with food to achieve the proper effect, you will need to use caution when fasting. Medications such as aspirin and metformin, as well as any other drugs that may cause stomach ulcers or stomach upset, need to be considered.
Risks are especially high if you're on diabetic medication. If you take the same dose of medication but don't eat, you run the risk of hypoglycemia, which is when your blood sugar drops very low. This can be extremely dangerous. It's important to check with your doctor before adjusting your medication to accommodate fasting. You may need to find a doctor who has some experience with diabetes and fasting so he or she can guide you in how to implement this program safely.
Also, if you have high uric acid, fasting can precipitate gout. Fasting tends to increase your uric acid level because your kidneys increase their reabsorption of uric acid when you don't eat. Most people will not experience a problem with this, but if you have gout you may need to consult your physician before starting a fasting program.

Sources and References

Refined sugar, especially processed high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)	Genetically engineered (GE) foods (extremely abundant in processed foods and beverages)	Agricultural chemicals, such as herbicides and pesticides. Glyphosate appears to be among the worst
Conventionally-raised meats and other animal products; CAFO animals are routinely fed low-dose antibiotics and GE livestock feed	Gluten	Antibiotics (use only if absolutely necessary, and make sure to reseed your gut with fermented foods and/or a good probiotic supplement)
NSAIDs (Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) damage cell membranes and disrupt energy production by mitochondria)	Proton pump inhibitors (drugs that block the production of acid in your stomach, typically prescribed for GERD, such as Prilosec, Prevacid, and Nexium)
Chlorinated and/or fluoridated water	Stress	Pollution