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Issue 184 - 5/9/05
DIGESTION Feeling full? Did you eat too much or too fast? Are you one of the 40% of Americans who have GERD, acid reflux disease, or heartburn? Before you reach for the Tums, Zantac or Nexium, there are some things you should know. Your body is not made to digest food when you are anxious, hurried, angry, or upset. Your digestion only functions properly when you are relaxed. Hydrochloric acid (HCL for short) is your friend. It helps your body break down proteins, which are needed to repair tissues. With HCL, you can digest B vitamins, which protect your heart and brain. Minerals, like calcium, that protect your bones, require HCL to break down. It also protects you from viruses, bacteria, parasites, and other microbes that might enter your body with the food. These critters don’t survive a bath in hydrochloric acid. Here are some suggestions that may improve your digestion:
Every cell in your body receives nutrients from the foods you eat—as long as you can digest them properly. So enjoy! You’ll be healthier for it! The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 185 - 5/16/05
A HEALTHY GALLBLADDER IS ESSENTIAL The gallbladder is a little “pouch” that hangs out near the liver and stores bile. This bile is released into the small intestines when fat is eaten. Bile works as an emulsifi er. That means it suspends the fat in water. We all know that oil and water do not mix. The oil will always fl oat to the top. Bile is able to grab the fat particles and hold them “under water”. This is a good thing, because enzymes that need to break down the fat, are in the water. If your gallbladder is not working properly, you may have symptoms such as bloating, gas, belching, pain in the right shoulder blade or back. When you eat a fatty meal, these symptoms may be more pronounced. To help relieve these symptoms, try eating beets. Just steam them and enjoy! (I think it’s easier to wash them, steam them, and then peel.) Beets have the ability to thin the bile and allow it to fl ow more freely. Bile also contains pigments that make your stools dark in color. So if your stools are light in color, that’s a good indicator to make friends with beets. If you can’t find beets, try kale. It also helps to thin the bile. Even if your gallbladder has been removed, beets and kale can help. Bile is a good thing to have. Not only does it break down fats that you eat, it also acts like a lubricant in the bowel, helping all your “pipes” run very smoothly. Your liver makes about 1 pint of bile a day and sends it to the gallbladder for storage. Your liver also filters toxins from your blood, transforms them into a water-soluble state, and deposits them in the bile. Then they can safely exit the body. It’s a three-for-one good deal! The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 186 - 5/23/05
FIBER AND DIET Fiber is found in plant foods. It contains no calories or nutrients, but is very important to your health. Here is what fiber does for your body.
One of the best sources of fiber is found in vegetables. (One of the reasons your mother told you to eat them.) Include lots of broccoli, spinach, zucchini, cabbage, and cauliflower in your diet, and you’ll be moving along just fi ne. For those of you meat and potatoes fans, it doesn’t look good. Potatoes, even with the skin on, are at the bottom of the list. Meat has no fiber. So, add some broccoli or cabbage to that meal and your body will thank you. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 187 - 5/30/05
YOUR AMAZING LIVER PART 1 When talking about health, rarely is the liver mentioned. It is the most active processing center for the body. When nutrients enter the body, they go first to the liver. It packages, stores, or ships them out for use by the cells. This is called metabolism. And it takes a lot of nutrients to get the job done well. When alcohol, drugs, or poisons enter the body, they are sent directly to the liver. Here they are detoxified and their by-products are shipped out of the body. The liver stands as a gatekeeper, protecting the heart and brain from unwanted intruders. As a result, the liver often suffers damage. We live in a toxic world. We inhale toxins, absorb them through our skin, and consume them in our food and water. When the liver is busy neutralizing these toxins, it may have to pick and choose among its more than 300 functions. Here are a few of the things your liver does for you: 1. Detoxifies alcohol, other drugs, poisons 2. Makes about a pint of bile each day 3. Filters 2 quarts of blood per minute 4. Makes enzymes 5. Builds and breaks down cholesterol and triglycerides as needed 6. Converts thyroid hormone T-4 to T-3 7. Helps regulate your blood sugar 8. Makes amino acids when needed 9. Dismantles old red blood cells and captures the iron for recycling 10. Stores most vitamins and minerals If the liver is sluggish, due to a toxic overload, these toxins build up and cause inflammation and stress in the body. Cells become damaged. If your liver is congested, you may notice these symptoms: coated tongue, dark circles under your eyes, bloating, headaches, difficulty gaining or losing weight, allergies, skin problems. Next week, I’ll discuss what you can do to help your liver function better. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 188 - 6/6/05
YOUR AMAZING LIVER PART 2 Your liver is a very busy organ, fi ltering two quarts of blood every minute. One of its main jobs is to transform toxins into a water-soluble state, so they can be released through the kidneys and bile. Like a washing machine has several cycles (wash, rinse, spin), so your liver has cycles for detoxification. They are simply referred to as Phase I and Phase II. During Phase I, 50 to 100 enzymes chemically break down toxins that have been absorbed from the small intestines. Ideally, they are neutralized so they no longer harm the body, and then are eliminated. But the ideal does not always happen. Sometimes the toxins are converted into a form that is more harmful than before they entered Phase I. These “metabolites” that are caught between Phase I and Phase II, can cause tissue damage, or an immune response. What we hope happens, is that these “metabolites” enter Phase II. Here they are chemically broken down again, by another set of enzymes, made water-soluble, and eliminated safely. If Phase I or Phase II are ineffi cient, toxins can build up in the body. Because of our toxic world, a large amount of nutrients are needed to run this system. The liver requires lots of vitamin C, as well as many B vitamins. These can be found in fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, meat, and whole grains. With a steady supply of nutrients, the liver can easily do the job it was designed to do. Alcohol, caffeine, artificial sweeteners, prescription drugs, chemotherapy, lack of fiber, and refined sugar all stress the liver. Exercise, green vegetables, lemon in your water, brown rice, fish and fl ax oils, herbs, such as dandelion root and milk thistle, garlic, onions, and rest, all support the liver. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 189 - 6/13/05
THE STORY ON FATS PART 1 The subject of fats is often confusing. We hear words like saturated, unsaturated, and polyunsaturated. What does it really mean? (This may bring back memories of chemistry class.) Butter is an example of a saturated fat. These molecules are full (or saturated with) hydrogen atoms. Olive oil is an example of a monounsaturated fat. Instead of being full of hydrogen, one pair is missing. The missing hydrogen causes one double bond to be formed between carbon atoms. Soybean oil is high in polyunsaturated fats. These have more pairs of hydrogen missing, and therefore, more double bonds. At every double bond, the molecule bends a little. The more double bonds and the more it bends. This gives it a liquid form. And the shape signals the body how it is to be used. Saturated fat molecules have no double bonds, so they are straight. The straight form allows them to stack easily together, being more solid at room temperature. It also makes them more stable. Most saturated fats come from animal sources such as butter, lard, and tallow. Coconut oil and palm kernel oil are the exceptions. Coconut oil is 92% saturated. Now that’s stable! This means it will not go “bad” or rancid when heated for cooking. Saturated fats play an important role in body chemistry:
Saturated fats are an important part of a healthy diet. We’ll continue with Part II of the fats story next week. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 190 - 6/20/05
THE STORY ON FATS PART 2 Last week I talked about saturated and unsaturated fats. Polyunsaturated fats are fragile. They must be handled carefully, or they break down, oxidize, or become rancid. This break down happens when these oils are exposed to light, air, and heat. To make polyunsaturated fats more stable, the food industry uses a hydrogenation process. Hydrogen atoms are forced into an unsaturated (liquid) fat to make it appear more saturated (solid). Margarine is a good example. This is how it is made. They start with liquid oil. Tiny metal particles, like nickel oxide, are mixed in. Then in a high pressure, high temperature reactor, it is subjected to hydrogen gas. Emulsifiers and starch are added to give it a better consistency. Then it is once again subjected to high temperatures when it is steam cleaned. Now dyes and flavors are added to make it resemble butter. Finally the mixture is compressed and packaged into blocks and tubs and shows up on your table. Any food made with hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils, has gone through this process. Look for it on the ingredients label. Forcing hydrogen into a fat molecule is not an exact science. Some end up in the correct place. Others transfer to the opposite side of the molecule. This is how we got the word, trans fat. Trans fats “should” have a bend in the molecule. But the placement of hydrogen causes the molecule to straighten up. So you have a polyunsaturated fat masquerading as saturated. Unfortunately, your body doesn’t see these “fake fats” as toxic. It uses them, like incorporating them into cell membranes. But the chemical signals are not the same, and the cell is unable to communicate, becoming dysfunctional. Everything that has been hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated has trans fats. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 191 - 6/27/05
THE STORY ON FATS PART 3 Essential fatty acids must be obtained from food. Our bodies do not make them. That’s why they are called essential, not because they are more important. They are linoleic acid or omega-6 and linolenic acid or omega-3. Essential fatty acids have many functions in the body.
Omega-6 is found in oils like soy, saffl ower, and corn. You body converts it to prostaglandins. Again, how healthy you are, depends on how well the conversion takes place. Or, you can go directly to the food source: liver, organ meats, egg yolks, seaweed, and butter. Never cook with flax oil. Always keep it refrigerated and use small amounts. Eat wild salmon. Farmed salmon do not receive the proper diet to make enough EPA and DHA. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 192 - 7/4/05
THE STORY ON FATS PART 4 Eating fat is an important part of a balanced diet. Fat gives our food fl avor and slows digestion, allowing us to feel satisfied for a longer period of time. Our bodies need a certain amount of saturated and unsaturated fat. Cows that run around in pastures, eat green grass, and are not fed antibiotics and growth hormones, are going to give quality butter, high in vitamins A and D. When it comes to vegetable oils, we have been conditioned to believe that all oils look and taste the same. Not true! When oils are fresh, they taste and smell like the seeds they come from. In commercial oil making, seeds and the oils go through many processes. Seeds are mechanically cleaned, and then cooked for up to two hours. Cooking makes extraction of the oil easier. With expeller pressed oils, heat and pressure squeeze out the oil. If the oil is not protected from air, a lot of rancidity can take place during this pressing. Oil is then filtered, bottled and sold in health food stores as “cold pressed”. Chemical solvents, like hexane or heptane, are commonly used to increase oil yield. Oils from both these processes may be sold mixed together. After chemical solvents, the oils are degummed, refined, bleached and deodorized. These processes require heat as high as 500 degrees F. Trans-fatty acids begin to form at 320 degrees F. Oils resulting from this process have lost all their nutrients. Deodorization removes any rancid taste. Most grocery store oils are fully refined and solvent extracted. You can tell because they are colorless and tasteless. The exception can be olive oil. Olives can be pressed without heat and remain unrefined. But not all of them are. It is important to be picky about the fats you buy. Go for quality. Your body will thank you! The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 193 - 7/11/05
COCONUTS, A HEALTHY SURPRISE Most Americans avoid coconut oil because they believe it contributes to heart disease. Early studies on fats did not distinguish between saturated fat and hydrogenated fat. Researchers mistakenly blamed saturated fat. Now it is more clear that the problems were from trans-fats in hydrogenated oils. Native cultures that use a lot of coconut products in their diet, rarely have heart disease. Once they switch to a more Western diet, that changes. Here are some of the benefits of coconut oil:
To find a quality coconut oil, look for oil that is snow while when solid and clear as water when liquid. Above 76 degrees F., coconut oil begins to melt. Virgin coconut oil should have the mild smell and taste of coconuts. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 194 - 7/18/05
SUGAR SUBSTITUTES Saccharin is a sugar substitute made from coal tar. It creates cancer cells in laboratory rats. (This is on the packaging.) Need I say more? Aspartame is marketed as “NutraSweet”, “Equal”, and “Spoonful”. It is made up of two amino acids, aspartic acid (40%) and phenylalanine (50%). Both of these interfere with normal brain function. The third ingredient, methanol (10%), is also known as wood alcohol. Aspartic acid and phenylalanine occur naturally in foods we eat. Because they are found with other amino acids, they do no harm. But when separated out, they enter the central nervous system in higher then normal concentrations, where they act as neurotoxins. That means they excite your brain cells to death. Damage may not be noticeable at the time. This would not be good for the developing brains of children. Methanol is extremely toxic to the optic nerve. It is metabolized in the body to form formaldehyde and formic acid (the poison in ant stings). Formaldehyde causes cancer. Aspartame is licensed as a food additive, not a drug. So adverse reactions do not have to be reported. Yet aspartame accounts for more than 75% of non-drug related adverse reactions reported to the FDA. Some of these include: aggravation of diabetes, headache, depression, hyperthyroid, MS, lupus, hypoglycemia, hypertension, Alzheimer’s, seizures, brain tumors, attention difficulties, memory loss, slurred speech, vision problems, and mood disorders. The altered brain chemistry may contribute to the addictive nature of aspartame. Some weight conscious people may be fearful of giving up sodas that are “sugar-free”. They use these drinks in the mistaken belief that they will help with weight control. Research is showing that people gain weight because aspartame increases appetite, especially for carbohydrates. Sucralose, marketed as“Splenda”, is produced by chlorinating sugar. The sugar molecule is chemically altered by substituting three chlorine atoms. There have not been any long-term human studies on the effects of sucralose. If you are using it, you are in the “study”. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 195 - 7/25/05
SWEET ALTERNATIVES Last week I discussed some of the pitfalls of using artificial sweeteners. There truly are natural alternatives to white sugar. The first is stevia. This is a South American herb that is 150 to 400 times sweeter than white sugar. Stevia is perfect for diabetics. It has no calories, and is 0 on the glycemic index. (The glycemic index is a measure of the relative ability of a carbohydrate to raise blood sugar levels.) On top of that, stevia can actually help regulate blood sugar. Stevia can also be applied to wounds to speed healing. Stevia has been used in South America for centuries. Today, Japan is the biggest consumer. Artificial sweeteners have been banned in Japan. Stevia has been approved by the FDA only as a dietary supplement, not as a sweetener. Look for it in health food stores in powder or liquid form. Be sure and read the ingredients label. Some brands have additives. Agave is the natural juice from the agave plant. This is the same plant used in making tequila. Agave nectar is 42% sweeter than white sugar. The glycemic index for agave is 11. This means that though it has the same calories as white sugar, it is metabolized more slowly, and thus does not cause a dramatic rise in blood sugar levels. Date sugar is made from ground dates. It is 65% sucrose. White sugar is 99.9% sucrose. Date sugar has the advantage of retaining many of the vitamins and minerals found in the date, plus the fiber. The disadvantage is that it has a fairly rapid affect on blood sugar levels. If you have not heard of these natural alternatives to white sugar, give them a chance. And remember, fresh fruit is healthy and naturally sweet, too. The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision Issue 196 - 8/1/05
ARE ORGANIC FOODS WORTH IT? How would you feel if you walked into a grocery store and saw a huge banner over the produce section announcing, “Producing This Food Damaged The Environment.” Would you want to buy it? What if each piece of produce had a sticker that read, “Sprayed With Pesticides.” Would you want to eat it? All food used to be organically grown. Now organic produce carries a sticker. Maybe commercially grown produce should have a label listing all the chemicals used to grow, store, and ship it. Organic food is more than just a fad. Yes, it costs more, but you also get more. Organic foods have more vitamins and minerals than commercially grown foods. Animals fed organic foods have better growth, are more resistant to disease, and have better reproductive health. And animals that we eat, need organic feed, so they will be more nutritious for us. With organic foods you get less toxic chemicals and residues of pesticides. Chemical fertilizers offer very few nutrients. Plants can grow, but their quality suffers. Our soils are deficient in nutrients, have no microbes, (microbes make compounds that help plants absorb vitamins and minerals) and no earthworms. Instead, our soil is saturated with chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Reasons to go organic:
The ideas and suggestions in this article are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision |
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