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The FDA just issued a warning that the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) – including Nexium, Prilosec, Aciphex, Protonix, and Prevacid – may increase the risk of bacterial infection from Clostridium difficile, which can cause severe diarrhea and other gastrointestinal issues.

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We talk a lot about using amino acid therapy to help correct underlying neurotransmitter imbalances to help people overcome disorders such as depression, anxiety, OCD, ADD/ADHD, trichotillomania, migraines, obesity, fibromyalgia and insomnia. However, recent research has shown that you may be able to fine-tune your mental and emotional states by using the right combination of probiotics.

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You are only as healthy as your body’s ability to digest and absorb the food you eat.  Except for typical cold symptoms, digestive issues are the most common reason people seek medical advice.  Every year, Americans spend 87 billion dollars on direct medical cost due to digestive issues. (Lipski xv)  These numbers demonstrate what an extreme issue our lack of digestive wellness is costing not only our pocket books but also our health and well being.

With that said, the following are a few simple steps we all can take to improve one of the most important keys to having health this year…..our digestion:

• Eat in a relaxed environment – Turn off the TV and sit down! Allow your body to focus on eating. Eating in a relaxed environment activates the parasympathetic nervous system and facilitates digestion.
• Chew your food!! – Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth and chewing your food completely before swallowing puts less stress on your digestive system. Hint: Put your fork down between bites and pick it back up after you have completely chewed and swallowed the previous one.
• Drink less fluid with your meals – drinking water throughout the day is a must, but with meals consider limiting intake because it dilutes important digestive juices and stomach acid that facilitates digestion.
• Choose whole organic foods – Whole foods are in the state nature intended. Whole foods are not processed and are nutrient dense. Also, avoid toxins and eat organically. This includes not only produce but also meat and dairy too.
• Eat a wide variety of nutrient dense whole foods – It is estimated that the average American consumes 75% of their foods from the same 10 foods. (Hass 29) It is important to mix it up because when we over eat one food, we start to limit our body’s ability to digest it.
• Eliminate refined fake foods – Heavily processed foods and fake foods like artificial sweeteners and trans-fat are void of nutrients and contain chemicals that the body can not properly metabolize.
• Identify problem areas – if you are having current digestive issues, such as low stomach acid or constipation do some research, and take appropriate steps to solve the problem. Visit the GI Disorders: Improper Digestion section of our website for more information. Digestive Wellness by Elizabeth Lipski is another wonderful resource.

Incorporating these simple tips can help you achieve digestive wellness and optimal health!

Resources:

The False Fat Diet: The Revolutionary 21-Day Program for Losing the Weight You Think Is Fat Hass, Elson. The False Fat Diet. New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 2000.

Digestive Wellness Lipski, Elizabeth. Digestive Wellness. 3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2005.

We work with a lot of people that suffer from disorders relating to neurotransmitter imbalances, including depression, anxiety, ADD/ADHD, OCD, trichotillomania, migraines, insomnia, additions, cravings, obesity and fibromyalgia.  Most of the time, we find that the gut plays a role in their overall health in one way or another. However, I just came across an interesting article that may provide additional insight into the causes of neurotransmitter imbalance and the how probiotics may be useful in correcting the problem.

Probiotics and mental health

Probiotics are the “good” bacteria that normally reside in a health gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Different formulations are available in many health food stores containing one or more strains of different bacteria. Recently, Professor Mark Lyte and associates at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center have come up with a radical new concept: that you may be able to affect your neurotransmitter levels – and therefore your psychological health – by taking and establishing the right blend of probiotics.

What these researches found was that several neurotransmitters (normally produced in the brain) are also produced by various probiotic strains in the gut. For instance, they found that bacillus and serratia strains of bacteria produce dopamine; streptococcus, Escherichia and Enterococcus strains produce serotonin; Escherichia, Bacillus and Saccharomyces produce norepinephrine; and Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains produce GABA.

The Second Brain

This has potentially startling implications. First, it provides another pathway to help explain why a person’s neurotransmitter levels become imbalanced in the first place. If the microbial environment of the gut is abnormal from birth, let’s say, this research suggests that over time, neurotransmitter imbalances could result. In addition, many people experience an exacerbation of symptoms or entirely new symptoms after being treated with antibiotics; this research could help explain this as any shift in the microbial environment in the gut could lead to alternations in neurotransmitter levels.

In addition, it provides other possible avenues to correct those underlying imbalances. This research suggests that altering the bacteria in the gut could dramatically affect a person’s overall neurotransmitter balance.

More research needs to be done, but if this hypothesis is confirmed, probiotics could prove to be a valuable adjunctive therapy to help those who suffer from disorders relating to neurotransmitter imbalance.

Our post today comes from Dr. Mark Hyman.  You can view the original post here.

SOMETHING YOU’RE EATING may be killing you, and you probably don’t even know it! If you eat cheeseburgers or French fries all the time or drink six sodas a day, you likely know you are shortening your life. But eating a nice dark, crunchy slice of whole wheat bread–how could that be bad for you? Well, bread contains gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut, and oats. It is hidden in pizza, pasta, bread, wraps, rolls, and most processed foods. Clearly, gluten is a staple of the American diet. What most people don’t know is that gluten can cause serious health complications for many. You may be at risk even if you don’t have full blown celiac disease. I want to reveal the truth about gluten, explain the dangers, and provide you with a simple system that will help you determine whether or not gluten is a problem for you.

The Dangers of Gluten

A recent large study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed, and “latent” celiac disease or gluten sensitivity had a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer. (i)

This study looked at almost 30,000 patients from 1969 to 2008 and examined deaths in three groups: Those with full-blown celiac disease, those with inflammation of their intestine but not full-blown celiac disease, and those with latent celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (elevated gluten antibodies but negative intestinal biopsy).

The findings were dramatic. There was a 39 percent increased risk of death in those with celiac disease, 72 percent increased risk in those with gut inflammation related to gluten, and 35 percent increased risk in those with gluten sensitivity but no celiac disease.

This is ground-breaking research that proves you don’t have to have full-blown celiac disease with a positive intestinal biopsy (which is what conventional thinking tells us) to have serious health problems and complications–even death–from eating gluten.

Yet an estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don’t even know it. They ascribe their ill health or symptoms to something else–not gluten sensitivity, which is 100 percent curable.

And here’s some more shocking news …

Another study comparing the blood of 10,000 people from 50 years ago to 10,000 people today found that the incidences of full-blown celiac disease increased by 400 percent (elevated TTG antibodies) during that time period. (ii) If we saw a 400 percent increase in heart disease or cancer, this would be headline news. But we hear almost nothing about this. I will explain why I think that increase has occurred in a moment. First, let’s explore the economic cost of this hidden epidemic.

The most serious form of allergy to gluten, celiac disease, affects one in 100 people, or three million Americans, most of who don’t know they have it.

Undiagnosed gluten problems cost the American healthcare system oodles of money. Dr. Peter Green, Professor of Clinical Medicine for the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University studied all 10 million subscribers to CIGNA and found those who were correctly diagnosed with celiac disease used fewer medical services and reduced their healthcare costs by more than 30 perecnt. (iii) The problem is that only one percent of those with the problem were actually diagnosed. That means 99 percent are walking around suffering without knowing it, costing the healthcare system millions of dollars.

And it’s not just a few who suffer, but millions. Far more people have gluten sensitivity than you think–especially those who are chronically ill. The most serious form of allergy to gluten, celiac disease, affects one in 100 people, or three million Americans, most of who don’t know they have it. But milder forms of gluten sensitivity are even more common and may affect up to one-third of the American population.

Why haven’t you heard much about this?

Well, actually you have, but you just don’t realize it. Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity masquerade as dozens and dozens of other diseases with different names.

Gluten Sensitivity: One Cause, Many Diseases

A review paper in The New England Journal of Medicine listed 55 “diseases” that can be caused by eating gluten. (iv) These include osteoporosis, irritable bowel disease, inflammatory bowel disease, anemia, cancer, fatigue, canker sores, (v) and rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and almost all other autoimmune diseases. Gluten is also linked to many psychiatric (vi) and neurological diseases, including anxiety, depression, (vii) schizophrenia, (viii) dementia, (ix) migraines, epilepsy, and neuropathy (nerve damage). (x) It has also been linked to autism.(ix)

We used to think that gluten problems or celiac disease were confined to children who had diarrhea, weight loss, and failure to thrive. Now we know you can be old, fat, and constipated and still have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Gluten sensitivity is actually an autoimmune disease that creates inflammation throughout the body, with wide-ranging effects across all organ systems including your brain, heart, joints, digestive tract, and more. It can be the single cause behind many different “diseases.” To correct these diseases, you need to treat the cause–which is often gluten sensitivity–not just the symptoms.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that ALL cases of depression or autoimmune disease or any of these other problems are caused by gluten in everyone–but it is important to look for it if you have any chronic illness.

By failing to identify gluten sensitivity and celiac disease, we create needless suffering and death for millions of Americans. Health problems caused by gluten sensitivity cannot be treated with better medication. They can only be resolved by eliminating 100 percent of the gluten from your diet.

The question that remains is: Why are we so sensitive to this “staff of life,” the staple of our diet?

There are many reasons …

They include our lack of genetic adaptation to grasses, and particularly gluten, in our diet. Wheat was introduced into Europe during the Middle Ages, and 30 percent of people of European descent carry the gene for celiac disease (HLA DQ2 or HLA DQ8), (xii) which increases susceptibility to health problems from eating gluten.

American strains of wheat have a much higher gluten content (which is needed to make light, fluffy Wonder Bread and giant bagels) than those traditionally found in Europe. This super-gluten was recently introduced into our agricultural food supply and now has “infected” nearly all wheat strains in America.

To find out if you are one of the millions of people suffering from an unidentified gluten sensitivity, just follow this simple procedure.

The Elimination/Reintegration Diet

While testing can help identify gluten sensivity, the only way you will know if this is really a problem for you is to eliminate all gluten for a short period of time (2 to 4 weeks) and see how you feel. Get rid of the following foods:

• Gluten (barley, rye, oats, spelt, kamut, wheat, triticale–see www.celiac.com for a complete list of foods that contain gluten, as well as often surprising and hidden sources of gluten.)
• Hidden sources (soup mixes, salad dressings, sauces, as well as lipstick, certain vitamins, medications, stamps and envelopes you have to lick, and even Play-Doh.)

For this test to work you MUST eliminate 100 percent of the gluten from your diet–no exceptions, no hidden gluten, and not a single crumb of bread.

Then eat it again and see what happens. If you feel bad at all, you need to stay off gluten permanently. This will teach you better than any test about the impact gluten has on your body.

But if you are still interested in testing, here are some things to keep in mind.

Testing for Gluten Sensitivity or Celiac Disease

There are gluten allergy/celiac disease tests that are available through Labcorp or Quest Diagnostics. All these tests help identify various forms of allergy or sensitivity to gluten or wheat. They will look for:

• IgA anti-gliadin antibodies
• IgG anti-gliadin antibodies
• IgA anti-endomysial antibodies
• Tissue transglutaminase antibody (IgA and IgG in questionable cases)
• Total IgA antibodies
• HLA DQ2 and DQ8 genotyping for celiac disease (used occasionally to detect genetic suspectibility).
• Intestinal biopsy (rarely needed if gluten antibodies are positive–based on my interpretation of the recent study)

When you get these tests, there are a few things to keep in mind.

In light of the new research on the dangers of gluten sensitivity without full blown celiac disease, I consider any elevation of antibodies significant and worthy of a trial of gluten elimination. Many doctors consider elevated anti-gliadin antibodies in the absence of a positive intestinal biopsy showing damage to be “false positives.” That means the test looks positive but really isn’t significant.

We can no longer say that. Positive is positive and, as with all illness, there is a continuum of disease, from mild gluten sensitivity to full-blown celiac disease. If your antibodies are elevated, you should go off gluten and test to see if it is leading to your health problems.

So now you see–that piece of bread may not be so wholesome after all! Follow the advice I’ve shared with you today to find out if gluten may be the hidden cause of your health problems. Simply eliminating this insidious substance from your diet may help you achieve lifelong vibrant health.

References:(i) Ludvigsson JF, Montgomery SM, Ekbom A, Brandt L, Granath F. Small-intestinal histopathology and mortality risk in celiac disease. JAMA. 2009 Sep 16;302(11):1171-8.

(ii) Rubio-Tapia A, Kyle RA, Kaplan EL, Johnson DR, Page W, Erdtmann F, Brantner TL, Kim WR, Phelps TK, Lahr BD, Zinsmeister AR, Melton LJ 3rd, Murray JA. Increased prevalence and mortality in undiagnosed celiac disease. Gastroenterology. 2009 Jul;137(1):88-93

(iii) Green PH, Neugut AI, Naiyer AJ, Edwards ZC, Gabinelle S, Chinburapa V. Economic benefits of increased diagnosis of celiac disease in a national managed care population in the United States. J Insur Med. 2008;40(3-4):218-28.

(iv) Farrell RJ, Kelly CP. Celiac sprue. N Engl J Med. 2002 Jan 17;346(3):180-8. Review.

(v) Sedghizadeh PP, Shuler CF, Allen CM, Beck FM, Kalmar JR. Celiac disease and recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a report and review of the literature. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod. 2002;94(4):474-478.

(vi) Margutti P, Delunardo F, Ortona E. Autoantibodies associated with psychiatric disorders. Curr Neurovasc Res. 2006 May;3(2):149-57. Review.

(vii) Ludvigsson JF, Reutfors J, Osby U, Ekbom A, Montgomery SM. Coeliac disease and risk of mood disorders–a general population-based cohort study. J Affect Disord. 2007 Apr;99(1-3):117-26. Epub 2006 Oct 6.

(viii) Ludvigsson JF, Osby U, Ekbom A, Montgomery SM. Coeliac disease and risk of schizophrenia and other psychosis: a general population cohort study. Scand J Gastroenterol. 2007 Feb;42(2):179-85.

(ix) Hu WT, Murray JA, Greenaway MC, Parisi JE, Josephs KA. Cognitive impairment and celiac disease. Arch Neurol. 2006 Oct;63(10):1440-6.

(x) Bushara KO. Neurologic presentation of celiac disease. Gastroenterology. 2005 Apr;128(4 Suppl 1):S92-7. Review.

(xi) Millward C, Ferriter M, Calver S, Connell-Jones G. Gluten- and casein-free diets for autistic spectrum disorder. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2004;(2):CD003498. Review.

(xii) Green PH, Jabri B. Coeliac disease. Lancet. 2003 Aug 2;362(9381):383-91. Review.

Well, maybe not literally, but having a faulty digestive system can certainly cause more problems than a little gas. New research is showing that having a healthy digestive tract may support proper brain function. Scientific links have been made between several GI diseases and IQ deficits, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and even autism.

The Gut-Brain Connection
The digestive system and the nervous system don’t seem like they would be so interrelated, but it turns out that good digestive health is dependent on normal communication with the nervous system. The   nervous system communicates with the digestive system through neurotransmitters and hormones, especially serotonin. In fact, up to 95% of the body’s serotonin is found in the gut. Serotonin communication is responsible for moderating proper movement of food through the digestive tract and perception of pain among other things. When something goes wrong with the serotonin signaling it follows that there will be consequences for cognitive health as well as digestive health. Research shows that problems with signaling are part of the reason people develop irritable bowel syndrome and other gastrointestinal disorders.

Serotonin is not the only player in the link between the brain and the gut. Good probiotic bacteria in the gut is necessary for digestive health and it also affects the nervous system. Not enough probiotic bacteria in the gut allows for bad bacteria to take hold. The bad bacteria produce toxins which can cause chronic inflammation of the digestive tract, which causes the release of toxins into the rest of the body. This process is often referred to as ‘leaky gut syndrome’. This release of toxins may be responsible for the development of the different neuropsychological illnesses listed above (i.e., IQ deficits, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and autism).

Get Good Bugs
In order to keep both systems healthy, the best plan of attack would be to include a good probiotic in your daily routine. Probiotic bacteria levels in the gut decrease with age and can also be affected by illness, stress, antibiotics, drug use (such as NSAIDs and aspirin) and changes in the diet. Using a good probiotic will maintain proper function and health of the digestive system and protect you from toxins that could have consequences for your mental well being. We recommend Ortho Biotic – 1 capsule 1-2x/day on an empty stomach.

Aminos to the rescue
If you’ve had a long standing gut issue, even a minor one, it can severely impact your neurotransmitter balance (like serotonin and dopamine). This can affect your mood, food cravings, cognition, pain tolerance, appetite and even lead to migraine headaches. In order to get to optimal function, you must first restore proper neurotransmitter balance, and the only way to do that is to give your body the nutrients it needs to make the necessary neurotransmitters. If this is an area that you feel you could use some help with, give us a call and set up a quick initial consultation. We’ll figure out what you need to do and get you what you need to get things back in balance.

Part 1 in this series showed you how to easily incorporate more fruits and vegetables into breakfast, lunch and dinner to get you closer to the 5-9 servings recommended by the government. Here’s some more ways to super-charge the rest of your day and get even more bang out of your eating buck.

Appetizers – start a meal off right

• Try a cold fruit soup – this is wonderful in the summer months, incredibly easy to make and delicious!
• If cold soup isn’t your thing, start with a vegetable fortified hot soup or stew – ½ cup of chopped vegetables or 1 cup of leafy greens (which condense down to almost nothing in soup) equals one serving.
• Think salad – start with dark leafy greens (1 cup equals 1 serving) and add any assortment of other veggies, including broccoli, carrots, celery, cucumber, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, jicama or any of your favorites (1/2 cup chopped equals 1 serving).
• Have a slice of melon, a half a grapefruit or an orange as the prelude to a meal.
• Make a special appetizer like Asparagus, Shitakes, Shallots and Peas.

Dessert – Finish with fruit

• Prepare fruit desserts such as poached pears or baked apples; homemade apple and/or pear sauce is also delicious – hot or cold.
• Top whatever you are serving with berries, sliced apples, bananas, peaches or plums (1/2 cup berries or 1 medium piece of fruit equals one serving).
• Add half a cup of berries or a piece of chopped fruit to yogurt for a delicious parfait.
• Think cold fruit soup.
• Skip the preparation altogether and just have a piece of your favorite fruit.

Snacks – Munch away

• Snack on grapes, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, sliced kiwi or other bit-sized pieces of fruit.
• Chopped veggies can also be a hit, but don’t limit yourself to carrots and celery; try broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, peas, or bell peppers to mix things up. You can eat them plain or use them in place of chips for dipping – use hummus or vegetables salsa for the dip.

Eating out and on the go

If you have limited prep time, frequently skip meals or eat on the run a lot, you can still squeeze in extra fruits and veggies; it just takes a little extra planning:

• Stock up on dried fruits as well as frozen fruits and vegetables for quick meal preparation.
• Keep a supply of carrot and celery sticks as well as other chopped vegetables stored in water in the refrigerator.
• If you bring your lunch to work, bring raw vegetables as a side dish.
• Instead of coffee or soda, drink fresh fruit or vegetables juice or have a smoothie.
• Stock up on fruit that travel well – apples, oranges, bananas as well as dried fruit and raisins work. Through in some nuts and seeds and you’ve got it made.
• Supermarket salad bars are great in a pinch – you’re in, out and eating in minutes.

Getting in more fruits and vegetables can be easy and fun if you just get into the habit of eating them. There is no shortage of ideas – any internet search will produce thousands of options (see the Recipe Book on our website for hundreds of ideas).

Start getting in an extra serving of vegetables and fruit with each meal and pretty soon, you’ll be wondering how you got along without them.

What are some of your favorite ways to get vegetables and fruit into your (or your spouses, kids, co-workers) day?

Most people don’t eat enough vegetables and fruit. In fact, according to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• Less than 1/3 of American adults consume 2 or more servings of fruit a day (including fruit juices, which are usually not healthy choices)
• Barely ¼ consume 3 or more servings of vegetables (keep in mind that French fries count as vegetables)
• More than two-thirds of Americans eat only one serving of fruit and vegetables each day, or skip them entirely.

Obviously, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption would go a long way to improving our overall health – government recommendations say that adults should consume at least 2-4 servings of fruits/day and 3-5 servings of vegetables. Here are some of our favorite ways to up the quality of your diet (and your life):

Breakfast – Get the day off to a great start:

• Have a smoothie that includes a cup of frozen berries, maybe ½ a banana, some protein powder, liquid (juice, almond or soy milk, or water) and some yogurt – it’s delicious, nutritious and will tide you over until lunch. Try adding ½ -1 cup of frozen spinach – you won’t even taste it.
• Add some sliced banana, berries, prunes, raisins or other fruit to your cereal or oatmeal – hot or cold. It only takes ¼ cup dried fruit, ½ cup berries or one medium piece of fruit to make a full serving of fruit.
• Create a vegetable omelet – perhaps a Spanish omelet with onions, peppers and tomatoes, or any other vegetable combination that appeals to you. Half a cup of chopped vegetables equals one serving.
• Have 1-2 pieces of fruit and a handful or two of raw nuts and seeds for breakfast – it’s fast, easy and filling.

Lunch – Fuel for the rest of your day:

• Have a big salad – build a salad on chicory, romaine or spinach. One cup of raw leafy vegetables equals one serving. Be sure to include your protein of choice to make it last you throughout the afternoon.
• Start adding other vegetables – just ½ cup of any combination of vegetables equals one serving; try broccoli, carrots, celery, cucumber, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, jicama or any of your favorites.
• If you eat yogurt, add half a cup of berries or a piece of chopped fruit for an extra serving of fruit.
• Include lots and lots of vegetables in soups and stews – every cup of soup could easily hold ½ cup of vegetables.
• Use vegetables like broccoli, green and red peppers, carrots, and squash to add texture and color to pasta and rice salads.

Dinner – Enjoying a meal with family and friends

• Add LOTS of vegetables to a stir fry – bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, bean sprouts, zucchini, pea pods, mushrooms – whatever you like – through it in – ½ cup of any combination of vegetables equals one serving.
• Fortify stews, soups, casseroles and dishes like lasagna with extra vegetables.
• Thicken soups, stews and gravies with finely chopped or pureed carrots.
• Have a cup or two of steamed vegetables, a side salad and your favorite protein and you’ve got a meal with 3 or more servings of vegetables.

Getting in more fruits and vegetables can be easy and fun if you just get into the habit of eating them. Try some new ones, ask others what they eat and scour the internet – there is no shortage of ideas (see the Recipe Book on our website for hundreds of ideas).

Part 2 of this series will provide ideas on getting in more vegetables and fruits in appetizers, desserts, snacks and even when you are on the go!

People hear a lot about the dangers of ‘processed foods’ and are often told not to eat them. We’ve been examining many of our client’s diets and are finding that several are still eating these ‘processed foods’! Upon questioning, we found that most of the clients simply didn’t think of the foods they were eating as ‘processed foods’. Therefore, in this post we will explain what we mean by the term ‘processed foods’ and why they are detrimental to your long-term health.

What Are Processed Foods?

‘Processed foods’ include any food products that have more processing than shipping, handling, washing, drying, simple mixing or dehydrating. Through processing, these foods lose many vital nutrients, especially minerals. Some companies try and ‘fortify’ or ‘enrich’ their processed foods with added vitamins and minerals, often times trying to replace some of what has been lost. However, most times two to three times more nutrients are lost than are replaced, and often times, they are replaced with synthetic variants of the nutrients that are far inferior to the original product.

It would be like taking your home from you and replacing it with a large cardboard box – you may be able to live in it, but not nearly as well or as comfortably as before. So it is with processed, fortified/enriched foods – your body may be able to use some of the nutrients, but the original product would be far superior. Therefore, we encourage all our clients to eat whole foods in as close to the natural state as possible. This means eating foods that are grown, shipped to you and eaten in a relatively short period of time and with little else done to them.
So what foods are considered processed foods?

A quick look at the label will tell you if the food you are looking at is processed. If it is fortified or enriched, contains flour or sugar, or has any additives, preservatives, colorings or any ingredient with a number in it (!) it is processed. Here is a partial listing:

A special note on bread:
ALL breads are processed foods. Those containing whole grains are slightly less processed than plain white or wheat bread. Only breads claiming ’100% whole wheat/grain’ and are sprouted are the least processed.

It is not at all unusual to feel some resistance at this point, particularly if you regularly eat many of these processed foods. And we are not talking about totally eliminating these foods (at least not at first); think about processed foods like a condiment, something you have as a side dish in very small amounts to augment or complement your meal. In fact, by focusing more on eating whole, unprocessed foods, you will naturally and easily crowd out and eliminate these processed foods.
So what do you eat?

Raw and cooked fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and organically raised fish, fowl, wild game and lots of water and herbal tea. You can obviously eat whatever you desire, but the fewer processed foods in your diet, the healthier you will be and the more you will be able to enjoy a vibrant and disease-free life. In addition, making sure you properly digest your food will insure you get the most out of it; chew your food until it is a liquid. For additional support, take Ortho Digestyme – 1-2 capsules with each meal.

See our recipes for some great ideas on enjoying the natural path to optimal health.

This time of year brings sniffles, colds, coughs and more into the home.  Nothing is more important to a parent than keeping their children healthy. Luckily, there are two very simple things that have proven extremely effective at improving kids’ immunity and substantially reducing illness. Those two things are vitamin D and probiotics.

Vitamin D – Super Protection

Vitamin D is getting a lot of press these days, as low levels have been linked to numerous disorders including rickets, depression, pain, cancer and immune suppression. Even more telling is that research is showing that the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) is nowhere near high enough to protect against a majority of these illnesses. For example, an analysis of the medical literature found that at least 1000-2000 IU of vitamin D3 per day is necessary to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.¹

One of the challenges with taking the necessary amount of vitamin D is the outdated acceptable upper limit for vitamin D3 consumption, which was set at 2000 IU. However, researchers point out that more recent studies have shown that 10,000 IU is the safe upper limit.² Sunshine is a great source of vitamin D – research shows that you need at least 30 minutes of sunshine on your bear arms, legs and face without sun block at least 3 times per week to get adequate vitamin D3. For most of us, this simply isn’t possible from autumn to spring, so high quality vitamin D3 supplements can fill in the gaps.

Vitamin D levels can and should be monitored to insure optimal levels and to adjust supplementation. This is a simple blood test that can be done at any hospital or clinic. The test you should request is called 25 (OH) Vitamin D and ideal levels are between 40-60 ng/ml.

Probiotics to Supercharge the Immune System

Most people don’t think of probiotics or the health of their gastrointestinal system (i.e., GI tract or gut) as an integral part of their immune system. However, it is probably the MOST important component. Research has shown that as much as 70% of your immune function originates in your gut, and a major component of that system is the organisms that live in your GI tract. These organisms (mainly bacteria and yeasts) not only help you digest and absorb nutrients, they protect you from most of the bacteria and viruses you may be exposed to.

In fact, research has shown that daily probiotic supplementation is a safe, effective way for children to reduce fever, runny nose, cough duration and incidence and antibiotic prescription use, as well as the number of missed school days due to illness.³ The numbers are even more amazing.

Relative to placebo, kids taking a combination probiotic reduced their incidence of fever 73%, coughing by 62%, and runny nose by 59%. Antibiotic use was reduced 84% relative to placebo, and kids taking probiotics missed almost a third fewer days of school than those that did not.

What this all means is that you can help your kids be much healthier, especially during the cold and flu season, by giving them the right amount of vitamin D and a high quality, multi-strain probiotic. Here’s what we use:

Bio-D-Mulsion Forte – 1 drop (2000 IU) every other day for children 3-5 years of age; 1 drop daily for children 5-12 years of age; 1 drop twice daily for kids older than 12 years old as well as for adults.

FloraBoost – 1 scoop daily (mixed with juice or water on an empty stomach) for kids between 15-60 lbs.; 1 scoop twice daily for kids 60-100 lbs.; adults should use Ortho Biotic – 1 capsule 1-2 times daily on an empty stomach.

Please feel free to contact Dr. Chad if you have questions regarding this post.  Be healthy – be happy!

References

1. Gorham ED, Garland CF, Garland FC, Grant WB, Mohr SB, Lipkin M, Newmark HL, Giovannucci E, Wei M, Holick MF. Optimal vitamin D status for colorectal cancer prevention: a quantitative meta analysis. Am J Prev Med. 2007 Mar;32(3):210-6.
2. Hathcock JN, Shao A, Vieth R, Heaney R. Risk assessment for vitamin D. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Jan;85(1):6-18.
3. Pediatrics. August 2009;124(2):e172-9.