This phrase has really stuck with me. I heard it in a message by our pastor, in which he was telling us that as God's Word is revealed to us that we are responsible for the wisdom and knowledge that we have graciously been given. Wow, that is some responsibility. Thank goodness for the working of the Holy Spirit to help... "live up to what you know."
"Live up to what you know." (Around my house my 5-year-old knows it by a slightly different phrase: "Do what you know is right." Comes in handy quite often...) This phrase has wonderful implications in spiritual matters, but I believe it is an over-arching principle that can be applied to all areas of life, including how we take care of our bodies. Actually, for me, taking care of my body is a spiritual matter. God gave me this body to use to further His kingdom, and that takes a lot of energy! Well, how can I serve Him fully if I always feel run down? How can I care for the family He has given me if all I want to do is lay on the couch? God, in His infinte wisdom, has given us wonderful, healing foods to repair and fuel our bodies (you truly are what you eat). Unfortunately, there is a tremendous amount of food out there that threatens to rob us of our very health, and many times it is hard to discern what is truly good for you.
And I must admit, at times I have done a lousy job of caring for the body He has given me. Part of my motivation for starting this blog is to make me be accountable for my health, to "live up to what I know." I have read too much, done way too much research, pondered too many studies and seen too many changed lives to not be accountable for the knowledge that I have gained. I only have this one body and this one life, and I need to do my best to nurture and care for it. And so, my quest has begun.
And it is hard. I can't tell you how many times I have been made fun of and downright ridiculed. I have been the topic of many jokes. I say this not for sympathy but to demonstrate that it is tough when you make choices that are against the norm. It is really tough when you make them for your children. I really understand that it is odd today not eating at fast food restaurants and never drinking a Coke. It is kind of strange that I read every label on every food product before I buy them. Eating socially is so ingrained in our culture, and I fear we eat what we do for many of the wrong reasons. I know I have. But, I feel I must, I have an obligation to "live up to what I know."
Please hear my heart: I am not trying to make anyone feel guilty for what they eat or don't eat. That is your choice. And I am certainly by no means perfect (just ask my family... I have a real weakness for chocolate shakes...). I just want to see you well, see us all well and living in wonderful vitality. That is my passion. And we must give ourselves grace. We all slip up from time to time, but let's keep pressing on, to "live up to what we know!"
Bottom line: I want to see you living in extravagant health, fulfilling God's purpose in your life. Please let me know if I can be of any help to you, if this blog is of any help to you. Do any of you want to start a nutrition and fitness 90-day plan? I would love to hear from you!!! I know, it won't be easy, but it is and will definitely be worth it.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Gotta be Omega-3!
The FDA, USDA and all the folks (and lobbyists) who put together the famous - or infamous - food pyramid have done the American people a real disservice. You see, for decades they have vilified fat. Now, there are definitely some fats we should avoid - like eating lots of saturated fats and especially trans fats. But, there is a group of fats out there that are absolutely essential to your health, and without them, poor health is soon to follow...
What are these fats? They are known as essential fatty acids. They are called essential because our bodies cannot produce them, and therefore we must get them from our diet. The 3 basic types are omega-3, omega-6 and omega-9. The one that is sorely lacking in our diets is omega-3. In fact, we get too many omega-6 fats - typically from plant-based oils, which are in everything. I have read that the optimal balance should be between 1:1 to 4:1 omega-6 to omega-3 (depending on the expert). The balance is critical for proper health. Unfortunately the typical American has a balance of between 20:1 to even 50:1! That is terrible!
So, why is omega-3 so very important? There are tons of reasons, but let me list a few here. Every cell has a membrane made out of lipids (another name for fats) call the phospholipid bilayer. This membrane is critical for letting the good stuff in and keeping the bad stuff out. Omega-3s help maintain the ingetrity of our cell membranes. Did you know that our brains are made up of about 60% fat? Omega-3s help to maintain good cognitive function. Another organ greatly helped by omega-3s is the heart, and fish oil (a source for omega-3s) is widely known as a must-take for heart patients. The following recaps the results of 3 recents studies:
Three new studies add strongly to the growing evidence that consumption of fish and fish oil supplements can reduce death from heart disease.
In the April 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, investigators from the Harvard School of Public Health reported that women who consumed more fish and fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids) significantly reduced their risk of heart disease. In this study, among 85,000 women enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study, those who ate fish 2 to 4 times per week reduced their risk of heart disease by 30%, compared to women who rarely ate fish.
Similarly, in a study published in the April 11 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital reported that men in the Physicians' Health Study (men who had no evidence of prior heart disease) who consumed omega-3 fatty acids had a significantly reduced risk of sudden death.
And finally, investigators from Italy reported this week in Circulation that consuming 1 gram per day of omega-3 fatty acid supplements resulted in a significantly reduced risk of sudden death among survivors of heart attacks.
While a major benefit of fish oil in these studies appears to be a reduction in sudden death from cardiac arrhythmias, omega-3 fatty acids also appear to reduce triglyceride levels, reduce blood pressure, and stabilize the blood clotting mechanisms. Thus, there are several pathways in which fish oil can potentially benefit the cardiovascular system. The evidence that omega-3 fatty acids benefits the heart, thanks to these three studies, is now nearly irrefutable, and will no doubt become widely accepted by the medical community.
Pretty impressive. Omega-3s also cool inflammation in the body and help people who suffer from all types of inflammation, even acne.
So, where do we get omega-3s? Well, there are 3 types of omega-3s: EPA and DHA, which are from animal sources, and ALA, which is from plants. What the body really lacks - or at least most bodies - is EPA and DHA, which is mainly found in larger, fatty fish, such as marckel, sardines and salmon. I wouldn't recommend consuming lots of fish, due to the overwhelming amount of mercury in the majority of our seafood (one of the high costs of industrialization). ALA can be converted into EPA and DHA in the body, but the conversion rate is very, very low (sorry, vegans and vegetarians). (FYI: A good source for ALA is walnuts.)
The best option is to find a very high quality fish oil, one that is mercury-free. For those of you who rarely get out in the sun, I would suggest cod liver oil, since it is very high in natural vitamin D. I personally take krill oil, which is actually from a shellfish that is very high in omega-3s and an antioxidant called astaxanthin, which is capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier. As with all supplements, it is important to find high quality. Mercola.com is a good place to research which would be the best.
Bottom line: Every body needs to take omega-3s. There are so vital to your health and provide so many great benefits. Honestly, you cannot live without them - that's why the are essential. :)
What are these fats? They are known as essential fatty acids. They are called essential because our bodies cannot produce them, and therefore we must get them from our diet. The 3 basic types are omega-3, omega-6 and omega-9. The one that is sorely lacking in our diets is omega-3. In fact, we get too many omega-6 fats - typically from plant-based oils, which are in everything. I have read that the optimal balance should be between 1:1 to 4:1 omega-6 to omega-3 (depending on the expert). The balance is critical for proper health. Unfortunately the typical American has a balance of between 20:1 to even 50:1! That is terrible!
So, why is omega-3 so very important? There are tons of reasons, but let me list a few here. Every cell has a membrane made out of lipids (another name for fats) call the phospholipid bilayer. This membrane is critical for letting the good stuff in and keeping the bad stuff out. Omega-3s help maintain the ingetrity of our cell membranes. Did you know that our brains are made up of about 60% fat? Omega-3s help to maintain good cognitive function. Another organ greatly helped by omega-3s is the heart, and fish oil (a source for omega-3s) is widely known as a must-take for heart patients. The following recaps the results of 3 recents studies:
Three new studies add strongly to the growing evidence that consumption of fish and fish oil supplements can reduce death from heart disease.
In the April 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, investigators from the Harvard School of Public Health reported that women who consumed more fish and fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids) significantly reduced their risk of heart disease. In this study, among 85,000 women enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study, those who ate fish 2 to 4 times per week reduced their risk of heart disease by 30%, compared to women who rarely ate fish.
Similarly, in a study published in the April 11 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital reported that men in the Physicians' Health Study (men who had no evidence of prior heart disease) who consumed omega-3 fatty acids had a significantly reduced risk of sudden death.
And finally, investigators from Italy reported this week in Circulation that consuming 1 gram per day of omega-3 fatty acid supplements resulted in a significantly reduced risk of sudden death among survivors of heart attacks.
While a major benefit of fish oil in these studies appears to be a reduction in sudden death from cardiac arrhythmias, omega-3 fatty acids also appear to reduce triglyceride levels, reduce blood pressure, and stabilize the blood clotting mechanisms. Thus, there are several pathways in which fish oil can potentially benefit the cardiovascular system. The evidence that omega-3 fatty acids benefits the heart, thanks to these three studies, is now nearly irrefutable, and will no doubt become widely accepted by the medical community.
Pretty impressive. Omega-3s also cool inflammation in the body and help people who suffer from all types of inflammation, even acne.
So, where do we get omega-3s? Well, there are 3 types of omega-3s: EPA and DHA, which are from animal sources, and ALA, which is from plants. What the body really lacks - or at least most bodies - is EPA and DHA, which is mainly found in larger, fatty fish, such as marckel, sardines and salmon. I wouldn't recommend consuming lots of fish, due to the overwhelming amount of mercury in the majority of our seafood (one of the high costs of industrialization). ALA can be converted into EPA and DHA in the body, but the conversion rate is very, very low (sorry, vegans and vegetarians). (FYI: A good source for ALA is walnuts.)
The best option is to find a very high quality fish oil, one that is mercury-free. For those of you who rarely get out in the sun, I would suggest cod liver oil, since it is very high in natural vitamin D. I personally take krill oil, which is actually from a shellfish that is very high in omega-3s and an antioxidant called astaxanthin, which is capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier. As with all supplements, it is important to find high quality. Mercola.com is a good place to research which would be the best.
Bottom line: Every body needs to take omega-3s. There are so vital to your health and provide so many great benefits. Honestly, you cannot live without them - that's why the are essential. :)
Monday, February 11, 2008
What You Need to Know About Sugar and Insulin
In the last week or so I have had several conversations about sugar metabolism and diabetes, both which hinge on the action of insulin. So, what exactly is insulin? Lets take a look at this molecule and why you want to keep your insulin levels low and cells highly responsive.
Here is a good explanation on insulin by Dr. Ron Rosedale:
We come from a time of feast and famine when if we couldn't store the excess energy during times of feasting, we would not be here because all of our ancestors encountered famine. We are here because our ancestors were able to store nutrients, which they were able to do because they were able to elevate their insulin (which is a hormone) in response to any elevation in energy that the organism encountered.
When your body notices that sugar is elevated, it is a sign that you've got more than you need; you're not burning it so it is accumulating in your blood. So insulin will be released to take that sugar and store it. How does it store it? Glycogen.
Your body stores very little glycogen at any one time. All the glycogen stored in your liver and muscle wouldn't last you through one active day. Once you fill up your glycogen stores that sugar is stored as saturated fat, 98 percent of which is palmitic acid.
So the idea of the medical profession recommending a high complex-carbohydrate, low-saturated-fat diet is an absolute oxymoron. A high-complex-carbohydrate diet is nothing but a high-glucose diet, or a high-sugar diet. Your body is just going to store it as saturated fat, and the body makes it into saturated fat quite readily. (click here for full article)
Yikes... High insulin levels also negatively effect magnesium absorption by the cells, which in turn causes blood vessels to constrict, which raises blood pressure... It also causes sodium retention and is a powerful stimulator of the sympathetic nervous system. Not at all good for the heart. In fact, studies have shown that those already prone to have a heart attack are mostly to suffer one after having a high-carbohydrate meal. Elevated insulin levels are closely correlated with high triglycerides (excess sugar is also metabolized into cholesterol and triglycerides in the liver). Not good. Have you noticed that people with diabetes suffer from more illness? One possible reason is that vitamin C and glucose (sugar) are shaped very similar and use the same receptors to enter the cell. When there is too much glucose in the bloodstream, vitamin C gets crowded out. And if you are taking calcium for strong bones and have high insulin levels? You literally flush it down the toilet. And some may even end up in your arteries. You can obviously see where this is going: poor health and rapid aging. Ugh.
A lot of attention has been given lately to insulin resistance (or syndrome X, metabolic syndrome...). So what is it? The way it helps me to understand it is with the following analogy:
Say you go to a concert where they play REALLY loud music. At first it is so loud that you cover your ears, but over time you become accustomed to it. After you leave the concert, you talk quite loud because your hearing has been affected. But, over time, you hear normally. But, let's say you go to this very loud concert every night. Over time, your hearing becomes permanently affected and now you must wear a hearing aid... The loud music is like sugar and insulin, blasting into your bloodstream. Under a normal response, your cells respond to the insulin. But, over time, just like being at a loud concert every night would eventually damage your hearing, your cells lose some of their ability to "hear" insulin because of the continuous assault of all that excess sugar. Result: insulin resistance - and all this can lead up to diabetes, where the pancreas can not live up to the insulin demand and begins to malfunction... and all kinds of bad things can happen.
And, countless studies have proven the fact that sugar feeds cancer. (link for excellent article on sugar and cancer) And remember the discussion on beneficial bacteria (see previous post)? Well sugar feeds bacteria - the BAD bacteria. And that bad bacteria can cause leaky gut syndome, allowing undigested food particles and toxins into your blood, causing a major immune response and all sorts of inflammation. (New research shows that inflammation is a major cause of obesity.)
You see, it is super important that your cells remain responsive to insulin, so that your poor pancreas does not have to continue shelling out truck loads of the stuff.
Bottom line: The best way to keep your cells responsive to insulin is to keep your sugar intake low. Even whole grains metabolize into sugar, so try to limit these and get your nutrients from veggies. (Plus, lots of people are allergic to wheat - or to the protein in wheat called gluten - and may not even know it, but we will save that one for another time.) If you are going to eat a carbohydrate, try to combine it with a protein and/or a fat to lessen the glycemic load (measurement of how quickly sugar hits the bloodstream) of the meal (more on that later as well). This is tough stuff, I know. (Trust me, I am definitely talking to myself as well. ) Research shows that sugar can be even more addictive than heroin and goes through the same "addiction pathways." But cutting sugar has so many benefits, such as slowing down the aging process and disease, that it outweighs having large amounts of it in your diet. After cutting sugar for a while, you will notice that your cravings will subside, and your overall health will improve.
We want to be around to fulfill our ultimate purpose in life, right? God gave us these magnificent bodies. Let's take care of them - and a great way is to cut sugar. :) Anybody out there up for taking a challange to eliminate it for 3 weeks? Starting next week that is what I am going to do (I figured this week is a bust with Valentine's). I would love to hear from you!!!! Leave me a comment if you are up to it, and we will conquer sugar together! :)
Tomorrow we will cover the good fat that we all desperately need. And this type of fat can help keep the mind sharp, the heart in great shape and body thin. Stay tuned!
Here is a good explanation on insulin by Dr. Ron Rosedale:
We come from a time of feast and famine when if we couldn't store the excess energy during times of feasting, we would not be here because all of our ancestors encountered famine. We are here because our ancestors were able to store nutrients, which they were able to do because they were able to elevate their insulin (which is a hormone) in response to any elevation in energy that the organism encountered.
When your body notices that sugar is elevated, it is a sign that you've got more than you need; you're not burning it so it is accumulating in your blood. So insulin will be released to take that sugar and store it. How does it store it? Glycogen.
Your body stores very little glycogen at any one time. All the glycogen stored in your liver and muscle wouldn't last you through one active day. Once you fill up your glycogen stores that sugar is stored as saturated fat, 98 percent of which is palmitic acid.
So the idea of the medical profession recommending a high complex-carbohydrate, low-saturated-fat diet is an absolute oxymoron. A high-complex-carbohydrate diet is nothing but a high-glucose diet, or a high-sugar diet. Your body is just going to store it as saturated fat, and the body makes it into saturated fat quite readily. (click here for full article)
Yikes... High insulin levels also negatively effect magnesium absorption by the cells, which in turn causes blood vessels to constrict, which raises blood pressure... It also causes sodium retention and is a powerful stimulator of the sympathetic nervous system. Not at all good for the heart. In fact, studies have shown that those already prone to have a heart attack are mostly to suffer one after having a high-carbohydrate meal. Elevated insulin levels are closely correlated with high triglycerides (excess sugar is also metabolized into cholesterol and triglycerides in the liver). Not good. Have you noticed that people with diabetes suffer from more illness? One possible reason is that vitamin C and glucose (sugar) are shaped very similar and use the same receptors to enter the cell. When there is too much glucose in the bloodstream, vitamin C gets crowded out. And if you are taking calcium for strong bones and have high insulin levels? You literally flush it down the toilet. And some may even end up in your arteries. You can obviously see where this is going: poor health and rapid aging. Ugh.
A lot of attention has been given lately to insulin resistance (or syndrome X, metabolic syndrome...). So what is it? The way it helps me to understand it is with the following analogy:
Say you go to a concert where they play REALLY loud music. At first it is so loud that you cover your ears, but over time you become accustomed to it. After you leave the concert, you talk quite loud because your hearing has been affected. But, over time, you hear normally. But, let's say you go to this very loud concert every night. Over time, your hearing becomes permanently affected and now you must wear a hearing aid... The loud music is like sugar and insulin, blasting into your bloodstream. Under a normal response, your cells respond to the insulin. But, over time, just like being at a loud concert every night would eventually damage your hearing, your cells lose some of their ability to "hear" insulin because of the continuous assault of all that excess sugar. Result: insulin resistance - and all this can lead up to diabetes, where the pancreas can not live up to the insulin demand and begins to malfunction... and all kinds of bad things can happen.
And, countless studies have proven the fact that sugar feeds cancer. (link for excellent article on sugar and cancer) And remember the discussion on beneficial bacteria (see previous post)? Well sugar feeds bacteria - the BAD bacteria. And that bad bacteria can cause leaky gut syndome, allowing undigested food particles and toxins into your blood, causing a major immune response and all sorts of inflammation. (New research shows that inflammation is a major cause of obesity.)
You see, it is super important that your cells remain responsive to insulin, so that your poor pancreas does not have to continue shelling out truck loads of the stuff.
Bottom line: The best way to keep your cells responsive to insulin is to keep your sugar intake low. Even whole grains metabolize into sugar, so try to limit these and get your nutrients from veggies. (Plus, lots of people are allergic to wheat - or to the protein in wheat called gluten - and may not even know it, but we will save that one for another time.) If you are going to eat a carbohydrate, try to combine it with a protein and/or a fat to lessen the glycemic load (measurement of how quickly sugar hits the bloodstream) of the meal (more on that later as well). This is tough stuff, I know. (Trust me, I am definitely talking to myself as well. ) Research shows that sugar can be even more addictive than heroin and goes through the same "addiction pathways." But cutting sugar has so many benefits, such as slowing down the aging process and disease, that it outweighs having large amounts of it in your diet. After cutting sugar for a while, you will notice that your cravings will subside, and your overall health will improve.
We want to be around to fulfill our ultimate purpose in life, right? God gave us these magnificent bodies. Let's take care of them - and a great way is to cut sugar. :) Anybody out there up for taking a challange to eliminate it for 3 weeks? Starting next week that is what I am going to do (I figured this week is a bust with Valentine's). I would love to hear from you!!!! Leave me a comment if you are up to it, and we will conquer sugar together! :)
Tomorrow we will cover the good fat that we all desperately need. And this type of fat can help keep the mind sharp, the heart in great shape and body thin. Stay tuned!
Detergent on a Tree
For those of you with skin allergies or who are environmentally conscious, I have found something for you! They are called Soap Nuts. Yup, Soap Nuts.
They are the fruit off of the soapberry tree, and they produce saponins that gently wash your clothes without any chemicals or additives. Apparently there are lots of folks who swear by them (Natives in India have used them for centuries...) Click here for more information.
After some researching I have discovered these trees can grow in Texas. You can even buy the seeds on Amazon... I may have to grow myself some detergent! :)
They are the fruit off of the soapberry tree, and they produce saponins that gently wash your clothes without any chemicals or additives. Apparently there are lots of folks who swear by them (Natives in India have used them for centuries...) Click here for more information.
After some researching I have discovered these trees can grow in Texas. You can even buy the seeds on Amazon... I may have to grow myself some detergent! :)
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Fuzzy Math at the FDA
Okay, my five-year-old can tell me that 0.5 does not equal zero. Apparently, this knowledge has not yet filtered to the FDA.
We have all heard about transfats these days. These nasty fats cause all kinds of health issues, among them elevated levels of trigylcerides (Can anyone say heart disease?). Well, the FDA in recent years finally started making the food manufacturers put transfats on the label - but with a big escape route: If the transfat in a serving is 0.5 grams or less, they can claim it as transfat-free.
Since when did 0.5 equal zero? Apparently I don't understand this reasoning, except to say that it is a shameless way to trick the public. Notice that the loophole is 0.5 grams PER SERVING. This is key, folks. Has anyone noticed that serving sizes are getting increasingly smaller? Hmmm... I noticed a box of cookies that proclaimed itself to be transfat-free per serving (again,this is key), so I checked out the label. The label said it was transfat-free, but the serving size was ONE measly cookie. Now, who would eat just one, tiny cookie? That is ridiculous! But, it said it was transfat-free, so I looked at the ingredients... Transfat-free? Not even close.
How to spot a transfat: If you see anything on the label that starts with "partially hydrogenated", congrats, you just spotted a transfat. What burns me up is the lengths the manufacturers go to cover these things up and try to trick the public. Ugh.
Bottom line: read the labels. If it says transfat-free, check the ingredients. Anything partially hydrogenated, put it back on the shelf. Your health - and your children's - will thank you for it.
We have all heard about transfats these days. These nasty fats cause all kinds of health issues, among them elevated levels of trigylcerides (Can anyone say heart disease?). Well, the FDA in recent years finally started making the food manufacturers put transfats on the label - but with a big escape route: If the transfat in a serving is 0.5 grams or less, they can claim it as transfat-free.
Since when did 0.5 equal zero? Apparently I don't understand this reasoning, except to say that it is a shameless way to trick the public. Notice that the loophole is 0.5 grams PER SERVING. This is key, folks. Has anyone noticed that serving sizes are getting increasingly smaller? Hmmm... I noticed a box of cookies that proclaimed itself to be transfat-free per serving (again,this is key), so I checked out the label. The label said it was transfat-free, but the serving size was ONE measly cookie. Now, who would eat just one, tiny cookie? That is ridiculous! But, it said it was transfat-free, so I looked at the ingredients... Transfat-free? Not even close.
How to spot a transfat: If you see anything on the label that starts with "partially hydrogenated", congrats, you just spotted a transfat. What burns me up is the lengths the manufacturers go to cover these things up and try to trick the public. Ugh.
Bottom line: read the labels. If it says transfat-free, check the ingredients. Anything partially hydrogenated, put it back on the shelf. Your health - and your children's - will thank you for it.
The Evil Lurking in Our Food
Today's Topic: MSG (a.k.a. monosodium glutamate)
A very quick history: MSG first came to the US in the late 1940s and is used as a flavor-enhancer - a cheap one at that. It is basically used to make bad food taste decent. The process by which it was made was fundamentally changed in 1956 into one of bacterial fermentation. This is when the adverse reactions really started making a scene... So, what's the big deal about MSG? Plenty. Let me explain.
MSG is what is termed an excitotoxin. (excite-o-toxin) What does an excitotoxin do? Here's an analogy to explain. I am sure you all have seen rust before - especially on old cars. That is caused by oxidation and is slowly destroying the car. What MSG does at the cellular level is it causes the cell to rust, through allowing calcium in the cell that acts as a highly oxidative force once inside. The calcium bounces around like a ball in a pinball machine, wreaking havoc. The cell goes from brand-new BMW status to old, rusty beater. Not good. But it doesn't stop there. Eventually the cell can't handle the "rust", and it goes through apoptosis. In other words: IT DIES. The cell is "excited" to death. You may think, like a car, that you at least will get several years of good use out of the cell. This is where the analogy stops. Excitotoxins can kill a brain cell within just ONE HOUR of exposure. One hour.
Even worse is the fact that MSG can cross the blood brain barrier. That means your brain cells are fair game. On top of that, older folks and young children are more susceptible to its effects. Yikes. So, what are its effects?
The effects of MSG are many, but here are a few:
- neurological damage, even in unborn babies
- cell death
- headaches, migraines
- skin rash
- heart irregularities
- seizures
- depression
- reproductive disorders
- stunted growth
There are many more, but you get the point. And MSG's effects are cumulative, meaning the stuff sticks with you.
So, what is it in? There is a common perception that if you avoid Chinese food you're safe. WRONG. It is in salad dressings, soups, favorings, most packaged foods, virtually all fast food (McD's, Chick-Fil-A...) - even vaccines and BABY FORMULA. Click here. This makes me furious.The manufacturers are pretty sneaky these days about wanting to hide this nasty stuff, so they put it under all kinds of names, like gelatin, autolyzed yeast extract, etc. Here's a link to a link of the hidden names for MSG. Click here.
Also, here is a link to a lecture given by Dr.Russell Blaylock, a well-known neurosurgeon and expert on excitotoxins. Click here.
I know it sounds dull, but this is an EXCELLENT presentation on the horrible effects of MSG on the body. I highly recommend it.
Bottom line: avoid MSG like the plague. Read the labels. I cannot stress how awful this stuff really is for you. I know this is hard to avoid, but again, your health - and the health of your children - will thank you.
A very quick history: MSG first came to the US in the late 1940s and is used as a flavor-enhancer - a cheap one at that. It is basically used to make bad food taste decent. The process by which it was made was fundamentally changed in 1956 into one of bacterial fermentation. This is when the adverse reactions really started making a scene... So, what's the big deal about MSG? Plenty. Let me explain.
MSG is what is termed an excitotoxin. (excite-o-toxin) What does an excitotoxin do? Here's an analogy to explain. I am sure you all have seen rust before - especially on old cars. That is caused by oxidation and is slowly destroying the car. What MSG does at the cellular level is it causes the cell to rust, through allowing calcium in the cell that acts as a highly oxidative force once inside. The calcium bounces around like a ball in a pinball machine, wreaking havoc. The cell goes from brand-new BMW status to old, rusty beater. Not good. But it doesn't stop there. Eventually the cell can't handle the "rust", and it goes through apoptosis. In other words: IT DIES. The cell is "excited" to death. You may think, like a car, that you at least will get several years of good use out of the cell. This is where the analogy stops. Excitotoxins can kill a brain cell within just ONE HOUR of exposure. One hour.
Even worse is the fact that MSG can cross the blood brain barrier. That means your brain cells are fair game. On top of that, older folks and young children are more susceptible to its effects. Yikes. So, what are its effects?
The effects of MSG are many, but here are a few:
- neurological damage, even in unborn babies
- cell death
- headaches, migraines
- skin rash
- heart irregularities
- seizures
- depression
- reproductive disorders
- stunted growth
There are many more, but you get the point. And MSG's effects are cumulative, meaning the stuff sticks with you.
So, what is it in? There is a common perception that if you avoid Chinese food you're safe. WRONG. It is in salad dressings, soups, favorings, most packaged foods, virtually all fast food (McD's, Chick-Fil-A...) - even vaccines and BABY FORMULA. Click here. This makes me furious.The manufacturers are pretty sneaky these days about wanting to hide this nasty stuff, so they put it under all kinds of names, like gelatin, autolyzed yeast extract, etc. Here's a link to a link of the hidden names for MSG. Click here.
Also, here is a link to a lecture given by Dr.Russell Blaylock, a well-known neurosurgeon and expert on excitotoxins. Click here.
I know it sounds dull, but this is an EXCELLENT presentation on the horrible effects of MSG on the body. I highly recommend it.
Bottom line: avoid MSG like the plague. Read the labels. I cannot stress how awful this stuff really is for you. I know this is hard to avoid, but again, your health - and the health of your children - will thank you.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Bacteria Are Your Friends
Well, some bacteria...
With all the buzz about antibiotics these days - and their ill effects, it is really important to mention probiotics. PROBIOTICS? These are the friendly bacteria that live in our gut that are absolutely critical to our health. (Lactobacillus, acidophilus... There are many strains.) Why? Several reasons, but among those are proper nutrient digestion / absorption and immune function. Did you know that they account for about 60% of our immune function? Wow... And recent studies have shown that pregnant moms that take priobiotics give their little ones a better chance of NOT suffering from allergies. Pretty cool. These little guys are awesome for your health, but they have 3 main enemies: antibiotics, the SAD (Standard American Diet) and chlorine.
So, what happens when you take antibiotics? Well, as you know, antibiotics were designed to kill bacteria, and they are very good at their job. The problem is that they are not very discriminating at all. Gone are the good bacteria as well. This presents a problem.
If you have a diet consisting of all natural, raw foods, naturally fermented foods (kefir, sauerkraut, etc.) and very low sugar intake, over time you could rebuild the probiotic population. But, not many people have that type of diet. So, what happens on the SAD - or Standard American Diet? This is where it gets messy... We Americans take in way too much sugar (in all its various forms), and sugar is exactly what feeds the BAD bacteria, among them candida albicans, which can cause all kinds of nasty health issues - including organ failure in severe cases. Ugh.
And then there's chlorine. Most municipal water supplies add chlorine to kill... you guessed it: bacteria. So, what happens when this chlorine hits our gut? Yup, it kills bacteria - good and bad.
So what are we to do???
Bottom line: we all need a good probiotic. Do some research and find one that will work for you. Or, check out my link at the right and read about the kind I take (Total Flora Support). Even if you haven't taken an antibiotic in years, the effects can last and last. If you have to take an antibiotic, make sure that you are taking a probiotic at the same time. Try to drink filtered water and cut out as much sugar as you can. I know it's hard to do, but your - and your children's - immune system and health in general will certainly thank you.
With all the buzz about antibiotics these days - and their ill effects, it is really important to mention probiotics. PROBIOTICS? These are the friendly bacteria that live in our gut that are absolutely critical to our health. (Lactobacillus, acidophilus... There are many strains.) Why? Several reasons, but among those are proper nutrient digestion / absorption and immune function. Did you know that they account for about 60% of our immune function? Wow... And recent studies have shown that pregnant moms that take priobiotics give their little ones a better chance of NOT suffering from allergies. Pretty cool. These little guys are awesome for your health, but they have 3 main enemies: antibiotics, the SAD (Standard American Diet) and chlorine.
So, what happens when you take antibiotics? Well, as you know, antibiotics were designed to kill bacteria, and they are very good at their job. The problem is that they are not very discriminating at all. Gone are the good bacteria as well. This presents a problem.
If you have a diet consisting of all natural, raw foods, naturally fermented foods (kefir, sauerkraut, etc.) and very low sugar intake, over time you could rebuild the probiotic population. But, not many people have that type of diet. So, what happens on the SAD - or Standard American Diet? This is where it gets messy... We Americans take in way too much sugar (in all its various forms), and sugar is exactly what feeds the BAD bacteria, among them candida albicans, which can cause all kinds of nasty health issues - including organ failure in severe cases. Ugh.
And then there's chlorine. Most municipal water supplies add chlorine to kill... you guessed it: bacteria. So, what happens when this chlorine hits our gut? Yup, it kills bacteria - good and bad.
So what are we to do???
Bottom line: we all need a good probiotic. Do some research and find one that will work for you. Or, check out my link at the right and read about the kind I take (Total Flora Support). Even if you haven't taken an antibiotic in years, the effects can last and last. If you have to take an antibiotic, make sure that you are taking a probiotic at the same time. Try to drink filtered water and cut out as much sugar as you can. I know it's hard to do, but your - and your children's - immune system and health in general will certainly thank you.
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