Articles by Donna DiMarco

By Donna DiMarco. CN,LNC

Yes, I know that the title was a sneaky way to get your attention, but the information I have to share is important. MASTICATION is not to be confused with the other similar sounding word that we are all so familiar with. It is something that we do every day, several times a day, in fact. Some do it more than others; some are better at it. Some of us do it even without the proper equipment. Those who don’t do it well or regularly may compromise their health as a result. I once witnessed the autopsy of someone who did not do it this one time and it caused his demise. Most people only do it for themselves, but I have heard of certain cultures that ritualistically do it for each other. Get mind out of the gutter, it’s chewing.

“Everyone knows how to chew”, you say. Not so. Most people (myself included) don’t take the time to let the mouth do its job in aiding in the digestion of food. We are all in a hurry to get through our day and we don’t take the time to enjoy our meal, chew our food properly, and allow proper mixing of the food with saliva to occur in our mouth.

In this day and age, meals are commonly taken on the run, leaving little thought as to why we eat in the first place. Our busy schedules leave us little time to partake in three daily meals in the relaxed, but purposeful way it was intended; this leaves food partially digested and important nourishment locked in. As a result, we feel the need to take in additional amounts of food, but still remain undernourished. The body, with its natural wisdom, identifies the need for nourishment and signals us to eat more. But if again we don’t chew properly, the cycle will continue and obesity can result.

Thorough chewing also allows time for the “I ate enough” signal to be received in the brain. If we pay attention to this important feedback loop, we might reduce obesity significantly. This is such an effective technique that many weight loss centers suggest their clients to eat slowly, and to pay careful attention to chewing, as well as to wait 15 minutes or so before you reach for a second helping or the next course. In that time, the brain will realize it’s full and the appetite will subside. I’m sure we all experienced waiting so long in a restaurant that we weren’t interested in eating any more. Just allow yourself 15 or twenty minutes before you reach for a snack or a second helping. You’ll find you don’t really feel hungry. Try it; it works.

Chewing is the act of taking large bites of food, grinding it up into small particles that can be mixed with saliva and digestive enzymes. It is so important in providing our bodies with all the fuel it needs. Here’s a good analogy of how it works: take a whole, fresh lemon; squeeze it really hard. Unless you’re really strong, no juice will come out of it. Next, cut it in half; take one half and squeeze it hard. You’ll get a good amount of juice but more will remain inside the lemon. Finally, take the remaining half and cut it into four pieces. Take each piece and again, squeeze it hard. You’ll find that much more juice can be extracted from the smaller pieces. This is what happens with food. Large pieces of unchewed food leave lots of nutrients trapped inside, much like the lemon juice. The smaller the pieces become, the more nutrients (lemon juice) can be extracted. All those nutrients are vital for good health.

After food is chewed and the digestive process begins, food is called chyme. Chyme is a smooth, homogenous substance we all get grossed out to look at, but it is essential for good digestion Chewing begins with carbohydrates being broken down into simple sugars. Here’s a fun experiment to try. Take a bite of a bagel or a piece of bread. Chew it the way you normally do. Remember the taste and the texture before you swallow it. Then take another bite, but this time chew it 30 times, rolling it around with your tongue to mix it well. Notice the additional sweetness? That’s because ptyalin in the saliva helped release the sugar. This could work to our disadvantage if we are not careful. Remember that if you don’t brush your teeth, especially at bedtime, tiny particles of food may remain stuck between your teeth. These food particles may be broken down into sugars, which promote dental caries. If left untreated, caries, or cavities as we commonly call them, can result in pain and eventual loss of teeth. Then we are back to poor chewing again.

In addition to the digestion of carbohydrates in the mouth, chewing initiates the digestion of fats as well. Lingual lipase starts the process of fat digestion. It acts similarly to soap by breaking the bonds of the fat molecules causing glycerol and fatty acids to separate, making the fat more readily available for further digestion to occur. Although the digestive process begins in the mouth, it continues on to completion in the intestinal tract, resulting in nutrients entering the bloodstream to fuel our bodies.

We rely on these nutrients to keep us alive. Many of the disorders we experience are caused by lack of nutrients. We can spend lots of money on supplements to provide them (which is sometimes necessary), but the simplest way to maintain good health and to insure that our bodies function properly is to make wise food choices (foods that are nutrient rich, whole and fresh) then to chew that food well in order to release all the nutrients that nature has provided for us.

Take the time to care for yourself; care enough to sit down to your meal in a relaxed manner. Chew slowly and purposefully. Savor the flavors. Notice the textures. Inhale the aromas of the foods. Studies indicate that the sight and smell of food stimulates the digestive juices. Haven’t you ever had your mouth water (that’s saliva) at the sight of your favorite dish or the smell of fresh bread hot from the oven? That’s part of the process. Don’t deny yourself that; you’re worth it!

Follow these tips and you will notice gradual improvements in your health including your energy, your immune system, your endurance, your mental attitude and mental acuity, but it all begins with you. Until next time, I challenge you to chew.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

Everyone is familiar with the inflammatory response. At some time in our lives we’ve had a sprained ankle, an insect bite, a cut or sprain. Typically, we would notice a red area, maybe some swelling, and it might be warm to the touch, as well as painful. This is the body’s way of protecting itself. White blood cells are activated and sent to the area, muscles may stiffen to prevent movement that might injure further. These are all inflammatory reactions. Nerve endings in the affected area respond (pain) to make us aware of the assault so that we might take better care. Our response might be to wrap or bandage it, put ice on the area, elevate it, possibly use a topical antibiotic or anti inflammatory like hydrocortisone, and these remedies would be appropriate. As healing takes place, the symptoms subside and we gradually restore full function to the affected area. Inflammation is a normal part of the healing process. It is a good thing.

But what do you do if the inflammatory healing process goes awry? What if the body’s method of attack turns on itself? Unfortunately, this scenario is all too common nowadays. Research has documented what many of us had known all along, that the inflammatory process is a key factor in cardiovascular disease, arthritis, cancer, psoriasis, kidney problems, in fact, many diseases. This is the basic cause of many autoimmune diseases. If the body attacks the nerves, we call it multiple sclerosis, if it attacks the digestive system, we call it Crohn’s or Irritable Bowel Disease, if it attacks the connective tissue, we call it Lupus, if it attacks the mucous membrane, we call it Sjorgren’s Disease, if the joints are attacked, we call it Rheumatoid Arthritis. The list goes on and on. In these and other autoimmune diseases there is a common factor, the body attacks itself or stimulates an inflammatory response inappropriately.

Some of these diseases manifest symptoms that signal a problem, but this is usually after a long time of enduring an inflammatory response. When the pain or symptom occurs, we go to a doctor and ask for a medicine to make the pain subside. And it works! We get allergy relief if we take the right allergy pill. We get pain from arthritis if we take the appropriate NSAID (Non steroidal anti-inflammatory) like aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, etc. If we stop the medicine the symptoms return. That’s because we are not getting at the cause as to what causes the inflammation initially.

What if the inflammation occurs inside your body in a place with few pain nerve sensors? You wouldn’t feel pain or see the swelling or redness. How would you tell if there is inflammation if you don’t feel or see it? This is the case behind most cardiovascular disease. Inflammation of the veins and arteries stimulate a protective mechanism (plaque, fat or calcium deposits) to protect the injured vessel from further damage. As a result, it lines the vessel in an effort to insulate the injury. This inappropriate protective response can lead to narrowing of the blood vessels causing high blood pressure, stroke and cardiovascular disease.

Well, fortunately, there are now simple blood tests available that should routinely be performed by your practitioner that can help you make wise decisions to act preventively before an autoimmune or other disease takes hold. Here’s a few:

CRP (C-Reactive Protein) is a special type of protein produced by the liver that is only present during episodes of acute inflammation. CRP rises as a nonspecific response to tissue injury and inflammation.

Those with an elevated CRP have a 2-3 times greater risk of stroke, an increased risk of cancer and are three times more likely to get Alzheimer’s Disease or suffer from dementia. They are also more likely to develop macular degeneration.

Homocysteine, although not really an inflammatory indicator it is an important test. It is a by-product of protein metabolism and is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. It is produced when protein is eaten and the necessary nutrients of B-12, folic acid, and B-6 are missing. These nutrients are necessary for the homocysteine to be transformed into a harmless form. If these vitamins are missing, homocysteine would not be rendered harmless and could promote aging and calcification of the blood vessels. Dr. Kilmer McCully found that supplementation with B-6, B-12 and Folic Acid can prevent the elevation of homocysteine, and can lower these levels in a relatively short time. This is a great reason to make sure you are taking a high quality, high potency B vitamin daily.

Interleukin -6 Elevated IL-6 serum or plasma levels may occur in different conditions including sepsis, autoimmune diseases, lymphomas, AIDS, alcoholic liver disease, and in patients with infections or transplant rejection. But a person with an elevated IL-6, regardless of the cause, is more likely to develop diabetes, especially if there is also an elevated CRP. Thus, we can now conclude that there is a definite relationship between inflammation and diabetes. If these indicators are corrected early, maybe a life of insulin shots would be prevented. Lack of sleep can cause a 40-60% rise in IL-6

TNF (Tumor Necrosis Factor-a) Tumor necrosis factor is a cytokine which is involved in the inflammatory process. Cytokines are chemical substances which deliver messages between cells in the body.

TNF- serum or plasma levels may be elevated in sepsis, autoimmune diseases, various infectious diseases and transplant rejection. TNF elevation may be indicative of Rheumatoid Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythmatosis, and Systemic Sclerosis.

Sed Rate (Sediment Rate) has a lot of names. It is also called Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate; ESR; Westergren Sedimentation Rate but it is all the same thing. It is a measure of the how quickly red blood cells set in a tube over a given period of time. It use to be the most popular test for inflammation but now CRP has taken over that slot.

ANA- stands for Antinuclear Antigen and is measured in dilutions. A positive result is more common in older women. It is an indicator of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sjogren’s Syndrome and several other disorders. The bottom line is it measures inflammation and inflammation is behind all these disorders.

I suggest you have your doctor check these levels at your next visit. It is NOT routinely done, even though it is helpful in preventing disease, so don’t be afraid to ask for them. If they are abnormal, make sure your doctor will do something to correct the underlying problem. On my insistence, a friend of mine asked her doctor for these tests and when the results came back abnormal he didn’t know what to do for her so he told her they just won’t test for them anymore. She was just released from the hospital where they diagnosed her with arteries in her brain, legs and arms so severely occluded that a pulse or blood pressure couldn’t be found on her limbs. Her doctor just offered an apology since the vessels are too far gone to be stented or by-passed.

In the mean time, stay away from over-cook and processed food, foods high in polyunsaturated oils, high in sugar and an over consumption of meat and dairy. Stay away from fried foods. Be sure to get sufficient sleep. Take some melatonin or 5 HTP if needed, but please be supervised. Take a good quality omega-3 fish oil with each meal. It is well documented to reduce inflammation, as is antioxidants like vitamin C and E. Green Tea, Nettle and Turmeric are anti-inflammatory. The herb Stephania works to reduce IL-6. The amino acid, N-acetylcysteine not only helps fight infection, but gets rid of toxins, which are generally the cause of the inflammation in the first place. Other nutrients that fight cytokines are: DHEA, a precursor to many hormones, Vitamin K, the clotting factor, GLA (Gamma Linolenic Acid). Be sure to drink pure water, never tap water. Eat organic as much as possible. Have your teeth filled with composite fillings instead of mercury, which is a known cause of inflammation. Stay away from pesticides and chemicals in cleansers and plastics. Pay attention to your body and it will serve you well.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

Water Is Important

Most people don’t drink enough water. A simple way to check is the skin turgor test. Simply pinch the skin at the anatomical snuffbox (the area where the thumb and index finger meet). If it snaps back into place easily, your water level may not be that bad, but if your skin remains pinched for a second before it falls back into place on the hand, you probably need more water.

Water dilutes toxins and allows them to flush out of the body. It is believed that most people eat when they really need to drink more. The main function of the large intestines is to absorb water out of digestive wastes. If wastes remain in the colon too long, the water is drawn out and the stool becomes dry and hard and more difficult to pass, so a vicious cycle begins

Drink at least 80 oz of pure water daily to keep the wastes moist.

2. Fiber for Health

Very few people eat the RDA allowance of fresh fruits and vegetables, which provide not only nutrients and antioxidants, but provide fiber as well. Whole grains are another good source, but again, we fall short. The Standard American Diet (SAD) is mostly made up of refined white flour. Think back to your elementary school days; you mixed white flour and water to make glue and paper mache. Fiber is needed to absorb toxins and wastes, but it also increases the bulk of stool, which in turn stimulate peristalsis, the wave-like contractions of the colon to force wastes out of the body.

Psyllium husk powder is inexpensive and works well. Add a teaspoon or two into a glass of water once or twice a day. You’ll be amazed at the results.

3. Walk, Run or Dance; Just Do Something!

Exercise daily, if even just a daily walk. Nothing helps constipation like exercise. It also stimulates the skin to remove wastes through sweat and the lungs to oxygenate more effectively. Exercise gets the GI tract moving, it stimulates the thyroid, helps stabilize blood pressure, helps sleep, reduces stress, and if done first thing in the morning, it gets the metabolism burning fat better. If you can only walk, start with that. Walk three minutes in one direction then walk three minutes back. Each day add another minute until you are walking 20 – 30 minutes each day. Of course, if you are physically able to do more vigorous workouts, do it.

Please be sure to get your physicians approval before you start any exercise program.

4. Magnesium, Please!

Consider a magnesium supplement. Because our vegetable consumption is so low, most people are lacking magnesium. Magnesium is needed for energy production, detoxification processes, sugar metabolism, maintenance of normal blood pressure and muscle relaxation. People who crave chocolate are often magnesium deficient, as are people who suffer from muscle cramps and those who fall asleep but awaken in the middle of the night. Another sign of magnesium deficiency is constipation. Remember the old laxative called M.O.? That stands doe magnesium oxide. If you’ve ever had a colonoscopy, chances are you drank citrate of magnesia or perhaps your mom gave you milk of magnesia. Things haven’t changed; magnesium helps the bowels move, but it is also needed for energy production, detoxification, muscle relaxation, blood sugar balance, and much more.

A supplement of magnesium glycinate works well. Be careful not to take too much and check with your physician first.

5. The Critters Within

We all should have about 4 pounds of good bacteria (probiotics) in our intestines. These friendly fellows help with digestion, help with vitamin intake, give us immunity, keep our colons at the proper pH, fight bad bacteria and parasites and help reduce cholesterol.

Probiotics are killed off by antibiotics, steroid hormones, birth control pills, poor diet, and other medications. Eating the most popular yogurts is ineffective at increasing their numbers. Some fermented foods like sauerkraut and miso can help, but I recommend an acidophilus supplement purchased from a good health food store that keeps it refrigerated. I recommend the powder but capsules work well too.

Acidophilus should be taken twice a day on an empty stomach so that stomach acid doesn’t destroy the live cultures.

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

It use to be a common occurrence for obese people to blame their weight on their thyroid, so much that it became quite a joke. But we may want to think of the “joke” as a possible cause of many maladies, including: inability to lose weight or rapid weight gain, brittle nails, cold hands and feet, constipation, depression, difficulty swallowing, tongue feels thick, dry skin, elevated cholesterol, fatigue, infertility, menstrual irregularities, nervousness, poor memory, low blood pressure and hair loss.

The thyroid is a small endocrine (ductless gland) located in the area of your Adam’s apple and has a large blood supply. It produces several hormones, most familiar is THYROXIN, which utilizes iodine to help regulate the release of energy from carbohydrates, metabolism. Thyroxin is also necessary for the circulation of fats in the body, the formation of protein, and the regulation of the calcium/phosphorus levels in the body. The thyroid also aids in the absorption of glucose, the secretion of insulin, respiratory rates, secretion of digestive enzymes, bowel movements, blood pressure and heart rate, the production of sex hormones, and our emotional state. Therefore, if this tiny little gland is the least bit off, our body can be affected in many ways.

The thyroid uses iodine more than any other organ in the body. (Next is breast tissue and there is a correlation to breast cancer, polycystic breasts and iodine.) Iodine molecules are attached to an amino acid to form thyroid hormones. Without a sufficient amount of iodine the thyroid functions improperly. We call this a goiter. The use of iodized salt provided just enough iodine to prevent goiters, but like a Margarita with all the ingredients but just a splash of tequila, it doesn’t quite work the same. It needs more! We often need more iodine than provided in salt, especially since so many people are now salt-free or on low salt diets. Iodine is also found in seafood and seaweeds, more popular in the Far East. In the U.S., seaweed is not high on the “must eat” list. In addition, some of us stay away from shellfish, another good iodine source, thinking it raises cholesterol. There is a direct relationship between low thyroid function and high cholesterol, so eating the shellfish may actually be beneficial. The message here is that we need to maintain a good source of iodine from foods or supplements, but there is another problem…

Iodine has a molecular structure similar to chlorine, fluorine and bromine. All four are called HALOGENS. These elements resemble iodine so closely that they can enter the iodine receptor sites and fool the body. We mostly get these dangerous iodine substitutes from our water supply. Fluoride is added to our water supply to prevent tooth decay but in reality it is a toxic waste.

Chlorine is in our water supply as well. Consider our pools and our cleansers and our tap water all contain chlorine. Mamma’s got the magic of bleach all right, but it is poisoning our bodies. Each time we take a shower, swim in a chlorinated pool, use bleach wipes, toilet cleansers and mildew removers we are taking in toxic fumes and exposing ourselves to potential health issues, including hindering our thyroid.

In addition, years ago iodine was found in baked goods. It was replaced with bromates (a form of bromine) cutting off that additional source of iodine.

There is a simple test you could all do to check if you are iodine deficient. Buy an inexpensive bottle of iodine at the drugstore. At night before bed, paint a circle about the size of a quarter on your stomach. If the circle is still there in the morning you may have sufficient iodine in your body. If it disappeared, as mine had, chances are you are iodine deficient. Now that doesn’t mean you take that iodine internally. IT IS A POISON!!! There are food sources but they require supervision.

I suggest you try adding sea vegetables to your diet. You can buy kelp in a shaker, which can be used on many foods. Sea vegetables like kombu, wakame, and arame are not only good sources of iodine, but are rich in other important nutrients and trace minerals, and should be a part of your regular diet. Give it a try!

Most doctors use thyroid testing to determine if the thyroid is functioning properly. Presently, a test called TSH (for Thyroid Stimulating Hormone), which is one part of the thyroid panel, is the only test of concern for the conventional medical community. Some may look at T4 and T3 levels, but the TSH determine the treatment. You see, theoretically, the pituitary produces TSH to tell the thyroid to produce thyroxin. If the TSH level is “normal” it is assumed that the thyroid is producing enough hormone. If the TSH is low, the thyroid is producing too much so a feedback mechanism slows the TSH production in the pituitary gland. The opposite is also true; if the TSH goes up, it is believed that the pituitary is signaling more forcefully for the thyroid to produce more thyroxin. Sounds great, but it doesn’t always work that way.

Dr. Barnes believed that the conventional blood tests to check the thyroid were not always accurate so that many cases of sub clinical thyroid dysfunction went unnoticed. More than 50 years ago he found one common denominator in hypothyroidism patients, a low basal body temperature. After thousands of experiments, this was confirmed to be far more accurate than conventional testing of the thyroid. Presently, holistic physicians listen carefully to the patient’s symptoms, have the patient do a basal body temperature chart AND do a thyroid panel including free T3, free T4 and thyroid antibodies. It is only when equal weight is given to each piece of information that a careful and correct diagnosis can be made.

There is a simple self-test for thyroid function; although indicative, it is not conclusive. It is worth the effort. Have a conventional thermometer (not digital) shaken down and ready by the side of their bed at night. The first thing upon awakening, and before any movement, take your temperature under the arm for at least 10 minutes. Do not use an electronic thermometer, the old fashion works best. A temperature below 97.4 may indicate a sluggish thyroid even if your blood tests appear to be normal. Keep in mind that that there is a normal change in a woman’s temperature during ovulation; so try to take your temp at the beginning of your cycle.

If your basal body temperature is consistently low and your iodine spot disappeared from your stomach during the night and you are suffering from many of the symptoms mentioned, read Overcoming Thyroid Disorders, by Dr. David Brownstein, M.D., then armed with this information, ask your doctor to investigate a possible thyroid problem. Your doctor may brush you off but this book will prepare you to act from a position of intelligence and power. It is your body and you are really in control of your health so stand your ground. Maybe there really is a problem with “glands” and that’s why the weight won’t come off or your cholesterol is high. It’s worth checking out. Until next time…stay healthy.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

During the summer months, sun protection becomes foremost on our minds, well maybe after weight loss. Years ago, when life was simpler, food was nutrient dense and water was pure, even though people spent much more time in the sun, there was less skin cancer. Many types of work were done outdoors without protection, and people looked forward to outdoor activities, even after working in the sun all day. We have been recently taught that if we are to survive exposure to the harmful rays of the sun we should lather ourselves with the highest SPF factor we could find, wear protective clothing, hats and glasses and still run from the sun like the
plague was approaching, but is the sun the real cause?

During the summer months, sun protection becomes foremost on our minds, well maybe after weight loss. Years ago, when life was simpler, food was nutrient dense and water was pure, even though people spent much more time in the sun, there was less skin cancer. Many types of work were done outdoors without protection, and people looked forward to outdoor activities, even after working in the sun all day. We have been recently taught that if we are to survive exposure to the harmful rays of the sun, we should lather ourselves with the highest SPF factor we could find, wear protective clothing, hats and glasses and still run from the sun like the plague was approaching, but is the sun the real cause? 

Now here’s our dilemma: we are deficient in vitamin D because we avoid sunlight and block out its powerful rays, and we are deficient in antioxidants that would allow us to get our vitamin D from the sun as nature intended and with suffering its damage.

Again, there is no doubt that the sun can cause severe damage to the skin but only IF certain nutrients (antioxidants) are lacking. By blocking out the sunlight we block the body’s ability to make much-needed vitamin D. Sunrays offer much more than just the catalyst for vitamin D production. They help regulate our circadian rhythm, promote the feeling of well being, and facilitate better learning and higher productivity.

As a result of avoiding sunlight and blocking out its rays, the incidence of osteoporosis, prostate and breast cancer, and even high blood pressure have risen.

Vitamin D is needed for bones to develop properly and to allow calcium to maintain bone integrity. We originally believed gross vitamin D deficiency only resulted in rickets. As a result, vitamin D was added to milk in small amounts, which prevented rickets but fell far short of our bodies need for vitamin D ( much like iodized salt prevented goiter but left the body iodine deficient). Recently, we have come to realize that vitamin D is important for many other functions. As far back as in the 1940s researchers noticed that individuals living in the temperate zones were more vulnerable to hypertension, colon, prostate, and breast cancer. Only later was the connection made to reduced sun exposure and vitamin D.

Vitamin D is found in fish and fish oils and fortified foods, but according to the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988-94, the median intake for children is above the Adequate Intake (AI), but the below the AI for women over 12 years of age and for men over 50 years. This may be due to the increased fortified milk consumption by children. Yet, recent studies indicate that fortification practices in both the U.S. and Canada are not effective in preventing vitamin deficiency. Our food choices are still poor and we still avoid the sun.

Other conditions that may be prevented by optimal intake (or body production) of vitamin D are lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and even Type 1 diabetes. In one study, it was reported that children who were given 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily had a reduced risk of developing Type 1 diabetes by 80 percent.

Another study determined that large doses of vitamin D taken only every four months produced reduction in the incidence of breaking bones among seniors (65-85 year old). Swiss researchers also found that older people who took supplemental vitamin D for 9 months cut their risk of falling by about 50%. In 1989, when a vitamin D precursor (25-hydroxy D) was measured in the blood, it was determined that subjects with higher levels had 50% less risk of colon cancer than those with lower levels. How many of these older people would benefit by sitting out in the sunlight just 20-30 minutes a day?

Although many health care practitioners use to limit their vitamin D supplement recommendations to 400 IU per day, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a couple of articles re-evaluating the safety range of vitamin D and concluded that the current 2,000 IU daily safe limit should be increased by at least 5 fold (1999). They revisited the subject in 2001 with the addition that… “we consider 4,000 IU vitamin D to be a safe (daily) intake for adults.”

The best choice for obtaining vitamin D should be from moderate exposure to sunlight. Supplementation should be the second choice when sufficient exposure to sunlight is not an option, as in areas north of the equator who experience seasonal sunlight deficiency.

Recent research indicates that topical and internal supplementation with selenium and vitamin E, both are powerful antioxidants that protect us from the damage of the sun’s rays. So the simple solution appears to be loading up on antioxidants in diet and topically and enjoy the sun. I always apply an antioxidant rich cream after sunbathing and I do not use sunscreen, but I have an olive complexion and take antioxidants daily.

Try to spend some time exposing your eyes to the daylight (without glasses or contact lenses) to allow the pineal body to receive the full spectrum light it needs. Sunrise is a great time to get that light. This won’t give you vitamin D but may help your circadian rhythm. If your living environment or working area restricts exposure to sunlight or if you are really fair-skinned, try full spectrum light bulbs. Unlike regular light bulbs they offer a light source that is similar to the spectrum of rays of sunlight. They are rated by their Color Rendering Index (CRI), where a rating of 100 would represent natural sunlight at noon in the middle of the summer. Bulbs with a rating of 90-95 are available. Check on line for suppliers.

Be sure to follow the guidelines for healthy eating. Moisturize your skin daily and use a cream that provides adequate antioxidant nutrients like vitamins A, C, E and selenium. If you are fair skinned, you may not want to go without any protection if you are to be exposed to the sun’s rays for any length of time. Small, gradual steps may help you tolerate it better. Please do not get sunburned. That is a sure way to damage your skin. Moderation is the key. Use common sense when outdoors. Allow some time to get the sun you need, then cover up of lather up. Consider taking a vitamin D supplement, but check with your healthcare practitioner first.

Until next time…Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

Ever wonder why Boston had a Tea Party that triggered the American Revolution? Maybe it wasn’t the tax they rebelled against, but the loss of an important part of their health.

Tea was introduced to the Western world in 1650 when Peter Stuyvesant brought the first tea to New Amsterdam (later re-named New York). In 1670 it became known in Boston, but not popular until 1690. In fact, shortly after, the English found that the small settlement consumed more tea at that time then all of England put together so they decided to tax it.

What is it about tea that made people go to great lengths and expense to get it? Maybe it is all the healing, calming and relaxing properties in teas. Herbs have been used for thousands of years but finding fresh plants was not always convenient.

The first herbalists used dried leaves, roots, bark, and flowers to be made into teas for therapeutic purposes. Once dried, the teas can be easily stored and transported. They found that soaking the loose, dried herb in boiling water for a specific time would release the plant’s active substances and be easily consumed. The longer the herb remained in the water, the stronger the tea would be.

Tea leaves were first placed loose in the pot of boiled water and steeped into tea. Later, tea balls and filters were used to keep the tea leaves from settling in the cup. Tea bags, with or without a string attached, made tea consumption easy and it guaranteed a consistent amount of tea each time.

Today, we typically place a teabag in boiling water and let it steep for 3-5 minutes. Be careful though, as some teas can get bitter or develop an aftertaste if it has been steeped too long, while some therapeutic teas require longer steeping to be effective, check the instructions.

Camellia sinensis is the name of the plant that provides us with most of the tea consumed in the world. When the leaves are crushed, then dried to allow some fermentation, it becomes the black tea we are all familiar with. When the tea is picked and dried without fermentation it is known as green tea. Worldwide, only water exceeds green tea consumption to total approximately two and a half million tons each year. Green tea contains larger amounts of catechins than black tea. These polyphenic compounds work as potent antioxidants preventing cancer, arteriosclerosis, and providing relief for rheumatism. Green tea is also higher in vitamin C content and contains approximately half the caffeine found in a cup of regular coffee.

Green tea has been shown to be effective against high blood pressure, bacteria and viruses, high cholesterol, ulcers, and strokes. It has demonstrated its protective ability in both the liver and the brain, against toxins and free radical damage. Japanese dentistry schools are successfully testing the effectiveness of green tea on gum disease. Green tea is effective antibacterial against salmonella, cholera and typhoid, while sparing the good bacteria residing in the intestinal tract. Viruses, such as HIV, herpes, and hepatitis seem to be inhibited by green tea. But the most encouraging research seems to be in the area of cancer prevention and treatment. Black tea had been more popular in the US, but Green tea is growing in popularity as a result of all the recent research. Black tea contains some beneficial properties, but not as many as green tea. Make the switch! I often mix them for a great flavor with health benefits.

There are also a variety of medicinal teas available to help you promote or restore good health. For instance, for the intestinal tract, Chamomile tea is known to be a relaxer and stomach soother. Peppermint is another great tea for calming irritable bowel and digestive problems and is high in potassium. Ginger tea is good for nausea and indigestion and fennel stimulates the digestive process and is good for gas. Marshmallow is mucilogenous and soothing. Try drinking one of these after a meal and to see if the bloating and discomfort is relieved.

After a hard day, relax in a hot tub with some of the calming teas. Matté is a calming herb from South America with a light pleasant taste. Another powerful herb for relaxation is Valerian Root tea. When I have trouble falling asleep, a cup of Valerian tea does the trick. The taste is pleasant but the smell takes some getting used to. Hops can also be quite soothing in tea form as can Passiflora. Some tea companies make these herbal teas in combination, which provides the best of each herb.

Many women suffer from recurrent vaginal yeast infections. Pau D’Arco tea, also known as teheebo, can help rid the body of yeast (candida) systemically. Dandelion root tea is my favorite for liver cleansing. The rich taste of the roasted root has a satisfying flavor.

Of course there are the antibiotic type teas like Echinacea and Goldenseal (goldenseal has a really strong flavor and may need some honey to make it palatable). Both of these herbs are known for their ability to help fight infection. Uva Ursi and Cornsilk teas are good diuretics. These teas may help women who hold fluids during their menstrual cycle. Speaking of menstrual cycles, Red Raspberry and Damiana may help cramps. Crampbark can also be used. Damiana is also used as an aphrodisiac, but consistent use is required.

For energizing teas consider Ginseng. This adaptogen will help balance your body’s energy. Gotu Kola not only gives some energy, but helps strengthen connective tissue (this is great for preventing varicose veins and cellulite). Fenugreek is good for lung congestion, as are Lobelia and Mullein. Remember this when you catch a cold.

Teas can be made out of fresh garlic or onion for infections, parasites, colds and flu. Simply cut up the garlic or onion into small pieces and steep in boiling water. The aromatic steam from these teas are helpful for sinus infections when breathed in.

Laxative teas are very popular. Many are sold as dieting aids. Although they may be good for occasional constipation, long-term use can cause damage to the intestinal lining. I’ve seen many people think that since it is an herbal tea it is safe. Not true, they are still addictive and can be very damaging. Please use these teas only when really necessary.

There are some herbs that are dangerous to take over a long period of time. Ephedra or Ma Huang has recently been pulled of the market. Although it has wonderful properties for providing energy and clearing up cold symptoms, abuse caused it to be pulled off the market. Comfrey is a wonderful herb when used properly, but abused results in liver damage so many companies don’t offer it any more. These are just some of many. Do your homework!

The healing powers of natural substances are gifts from nature.

Any herb or remedy needs to be respected. These substances are powerful and helpful but constant long-term use can be harmful. Also remember that herbs may have an effect on a medication you may be taking. Please use teas wisely. Consult an herbalist, check out a book and be sure to read the directions, especially the contraindications and interactions with drugs.

Please don’t load the teas up with sugar or artificial sweeteners. Raw, unfiltered honey is a great sweetener, as is stevia and agave. Medicinal teas should not have milk added to them since milk can cause mucous and allergic reactions. Consider using soy or rice milk if you need to lighten your tea. Sip slowly, savor the flavor and watch your health improve.

Until next time, Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

Coenzyme Q10 was first called Ubiquinone because it is found in virtually every cell in the body, It is so important to body function that some people, including CoQ10 pioneer Dr. Karl Folkers, believe it should be called Vitamin Q. Folkers stated “CoQ10 is necessary for human life. Morbidity is associated with a deficiency of CoQ10 of about 75%, and death may occur somewhere between 75 and 100%. Low tissue deficiencies of CoQ10 may be subclinical, but somewhere between 25 and 75% deficiencies, overt disease may appear.”

In 1978 Peter Mitchell developed the hypothesis that CoQ10 is an electron donor needed for energy transfer. Ubiquinone is important for the production of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) in the mitochondria of all cells. Co Q10 transfers electrons in the oxidated phosphorylation chain for ATP to be produced. This ATP provides the energy to the cell so it can function as intended. This becomes paramount, especially in the cardiac muscles, since the demand for energy is constant

It is believed that the ability to produce sufficient amounts of CoQ10 diminish with age. In order for the body to make CoQ10, assuming it is functioning properly, it needs a complex 17 step process which requires at least seven vitamins (vitamin B2 - riboflavin, vitamin B3 - niacinamide, vitamin B6, folic acid, vitamin B12, vitamin C, and pantothenic acid) and several trace elements, and all this must be put together precisely in the correct amount. The problem is that most people have a hard time meeting the minimum daily requirements, so how could they possibly have the necessary nutrients to make sufficient CoQ10.

“But if it is found in every cell why do we need to take it?” Simple, many people are taking statin and super statin drugs to reduce cholesterol and now as a preventive of cardiac disease (so we are told), and these drugs deplete CoQ10 levels. In fact, diminished levels of CoQ10 have been linked to the use of statin drugs and heart failure.

Here in the United States, the FDA does not require statin manufacturers to alert doctors or patients about this important health risk. According to recent studies, CoQ10 deficiencies in statin users can cause muscular, cognitive and cardiovascular problems as well as other implications. On the other hand, studies also demonstrate that these problems can be corrected by supplementing CoQ10. Canada requires that statin drugs state the potential danger of CoQ10 deficiency. Why doesn’t EVERY country?

Statins belong to the group of medicines called 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitors. They work by blocking the enzyme needed for the body to make cholesterol in the liver. If less cholesterol is made, the serum levels drop. The problem is that that same enzyme is also necessary to make coenzyme Q10. When you prevent the manufacturing of cholesterol you also prevent the manufacturing of much needed CoQ10.

Dr. Peter Langsjoen of East Texas University has been studying the reports on humans and animals involving statin drugs and CoQ10 depletion. He published his findings last year (Biofactors. 2003;18(1-4):113-24.) He wrote “The depletion of the essential nutrient CoQ10 by the increasingly popular cholesterol-lowering drugs HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) has grown from a level of concern to one of alarm.” “With ever higher statin potencies and doses, and with steadily shrinking target LDL cholesterol, the prevalence and severity of CoQ10 deficiency are increasing noticeably.” Dr.Langsjoen further states that we are in the middle of a congestive heart failure epidemic in the United States and physicians may be partially responsible for not recommending supplemental CoQ10 along with statin drugs.

Co Q 10 has been found in larger quantities in the heart and liver. This seems to make sense since these organs require a high energy supply. But that doesn’t mean that other organs are not affected by deficiencies. Dr. Janos Feher in Rome Italy was able to stabilize the progression of macular degeneration by supplementing CoQ10 and other nutrients. Researchers at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York found a correlation between CoQ10 levels and cerebellar ataxia and/or atrophy. Another research study found CoQ10 present in semen. Dr. Antonio Mancini, in Rome, Italy believes that CoQ is related to sperm motility and infertility. One study in Ecuador found that women with pre-eclampsia had severely depressed CoQ10 levels, according to Dr. Enrique Teran. We have known for years that infections, some pathologies, and even aging can deplete levels of CoQ10. So it appears to be unfolding that the entire body requires sufficient amounts of CoQ10 to function properly.

Older research has concluded that periodontal disease, immune response, hypertension, cancer, weight loss, healing, oxidative stress, and energy supplies all benefit from supplemental CoQ10.

But the next issue is which one do you use?

CoQlO is fat soluble so it follows the same absorption pathways as other fats. As you recall, fat is emulsified in the intestine (with the help of bile salts) to form micelles (tiny particles) so as to enhance absorption. When taken supplementally, CoQ10 requires other factors to be absorbed properly, including: particle size, degree of solubility and the type of food ingested at the time the supplement was taken. These criteria makes supplemental CoQ a bit more difficult to get into the blood and cells to do its important work.

Most CoQlO capsules available contain either oil-based suspensions (softgels) or dry powder blends (hard gels). Some tout that they are superior because they are imported from Japan, but require you to consume oil when you take the product. I have had a hard time getting compliance with that type of product, especially for those who are counting calories (protein and carbs each have 4 calories per gram but fat has 9). In addition, some of these products, when tested in the laboratory, showed a total lack of dissolution according to current USP methodology. This lack of dissolution often indicates poor absorption and bioavailability.

Fortunately, now there is a hydro soluble CoQ10 available. Several human studies have been carried out to compare the relative bioavailability of this type of CoQ with other available dosage forms (softgels, tablets and capsules). These studies clearly demonstrated superior (several times higher relative bioavailability than all other dosage forms tested). These data were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Nutritional Sciences/Experimental Biology in New Orleans on April 9, 1997. The increased bioavailability and absorption makes it the most economical CoQ10 available. I’m not saying that the other forms of CoQ10 are not effective, just remember that you need to take approximately three times the dose of the hydro soluble form, so adjust accordingly.

The important thing is that you restore functional CoQ10 levels, regardless of which product you use.

Unfortunately, a blood test, although available, is not a great way to determine CoQ10 status since it only measures the level in the blood at a specific time. Remember that different organs require different amounts of CoQ based on their energy demand. This information is not provided by a simple blood test; therefore, you must assess lifestyle, medications (especially statin drugs), age, and health status to make a determination. Unfortunately, I find a large number of my clients can benefit from CoQ10 supplementation and that number is growing, especially since statin drugs are being recommended so frequently. To quote Dr. Langsjoen in his Introduction to Coenzyme Q10, “Karl Folkers argues that suboptimal nutrient intake in man is almost universal and that there is subsequent secondary impairment in CoQ10 biosynthesis. This would mean that average or “normal” levels of CoQ10 are really suboptimal and the very low levels observed in advanced disease states represent only the tip of a deficiency “ice berg”.”

A clinical study of the effect of COENZYME Q on congestive heart failure.

Jpn Heart J (JAPAN) Jan 1976, 17 (1) p32-42

Bliznakov, E.G. and Hunt, G.The Miracle Nutrient Coenzyme Q10. Bantam Books, 1978

Langsjoen, Peter H. INTRODUCTION TO COENZYME Q10, http://tishcon.com/coenzymeq10.html

Langsjoen, PH, Langsjoen, AM. The clinical use of HMG CoA-reductase inhibitors and the associated depletion of coqnzyme Q10. Biofactors. 2003;18 (1-4): 101-11.

Langsjoen H; Langsjoen P; Langsjoen P; Willis R; Folkers K
University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston 77551, USA.
Mol Aspects Med (England) 1994, 15 Suppl ps165-75

Langsjoen PH; Langsjoen PH; Folkers K. Isolated diastolic dysfunction of the myocardium and its response to CoQ10 treatment.
Clin Investig (Germany) 1993, 71 (8 Suppl) pS140-4

Okamoto H; Kawaguchi H; Togashi H; Minami M; Saito H; Yasuda H. Effect of coenzyme Q10 on structural alterations in the renal membrane of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. Biochem Med Metab Biol (United States) Apr 1991, 45 (2) p216-26

Protective effects of various drugs on adriamycin (doxorubicin)-induced toxicity and microsomal lipid peroxidation in mice and rats.

Biol Pharm Bull. 1993 Nov. 16(11). P 1114-7

Samson, KJ. Innovative Research and Applications for CoQ10. Life Extension; Vol 10, No 8. Aug, 2004, 46-55.

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

Most people think that cholesterol, LDL’s, and triglycerides are the main culprits in cardiovascular disease. We came to believe this because back in 1913 a Russian scientist, Nikolai Anitschkow, fed a group of rabbits a diet high in cholesterol and when the animals were examined, their blood vessels were clogged with plaque. This was the beginning of the cholesterol fear. It didn’t matter that the amount of cholesterol given to each rabbit was equivalent to a human eating 50 eggs a day. It was also not considered that rabbits are inherently vegetarian and incapable of breaking down and utilizing the high concentration of cholesterol. Since that time we realized that less than one third of the cholesterol in our bodies comes from food. We also found out that the body produces LDL’s (the bad cholesterol) to plug the leaks in the blood vessels due to vitamin C deficiency. Most recently, we have realized that there is another important factor not previously considered in calculating cardiovascular risk. That factor is homocysteine levels.

Homocysteine is a by-product of protein metabolism an amino acid called methionine, which is found in protein. It is first converted into homocysteine then into harmless by-products but there must be enough B vitamins present, especially Folic Acid, B6, and B12, for this to happen. If there is not enough of these vitamins, the process stops after the production of homocysteine. The problem is that homocysteine causes irritation to the linings of the blood vessels, which then promotes the formation of plaque. The statistics indicate that 30-40 percent of strokes and heart attacks are completely preventable with simple supplementation of a B complex, and especially folic acid and B12.

There is a direct relationship between arteriosclerosis and homocysteine levels: the higher the amount of homocysteine, the higher the incidence of heart attack, stroke, and clogged blood vessels in the extremities. But an INVERSE relationship occurs between homocysteine levels and B vitamins: the lower the vitamin level, the higher the homocysteine level. In a recent study based on information from the Framingham study, “67% of the cases of high homocysteine” had low levels of one or more of the B vitamins. Researchers now believe that homocysteine levels are 40 times more effective than cholesterol levels when calculating the risk of cardiovascular disease.

There are indications that genes play a part in this picture. It has been found that the enzymes necessary to metabolize homocysteine are linked to a specific gene. Often there is a defect in that gene or, in the case of 12 % of the people, an extra gene that results in an increase of homocysteine; here’s how it happened.

More than 30 years ago a pathologist, Dr Kilmer McCully, M.D. working as a pathologist at Harvard, was performing an autopsy on an infant and was surprised to find the child had the arteries of a seventy year old person. Shortly afterwards he came across a 12 year old with the same “old-looking’ blood vessels. In his examinations, he found both of these bodies had a genetic defect that prevented homocysteine from being neutralized. In other research he found adults with “aged arteries” were deficient in folic acid and B vitamins. Further research and experiments resulted in him writing a paper for his peers, in which he hypothesized that folic acid, B12, B6, and B3 were necessary to prevent arteries from “aging” and that if there is a genetic defect in homocysteine metabolism, B vitamins could compensate. The medical community was outraged. They still believed in the bunny experiment. Harvard fired him and he was blacklisted. Out of work for 3 years, he finally was offered a job at the VA hospital where he remains today. A few years ago, Lancet published an article, written by doctors at Harvard, citing Dr. McCully and stating that folic acid, B12, B6, and B3 are necessary to prevent arteries from “aging”. How ironic!

 What can we do to insure “young arteries?” If we increase our consumption of dark green, leafy vegetables, we will increase our intake of some of the necessary B vitamins, especially folate. If we limit our amount of meat intake, reduce our saturated fat levels, while maintaining good levels of essential fatty acids, if we reduce our sugar intake (along with our refined and processed foods), and eat a wholesome and natural diet, our chances of cardiovascular disease are greatly reduced. The most important step to preventing arteriosclerosis is taking a good potency of a natural multivitamin, preferably bought in a health food store (there is a difference). This will usually contain at least 400 mcg. of folic acid, 10-50 mgs. of B6, and at least 500-1000 mcgs. of B12. If you are severely deficient in B vitamins, you may need higher doses to bring the levels up. B deficiency often shows up as grooves or pits on the surface of the tongue. If your tongue isn’t smooth and even, look for the co-enzymated forms that go under the tongue to assure good absorption, but talk to your licensed nutrition counselor to determine your body’s needs. Remember, good health is within your reach. Until next time… Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

There are many factors that affect a woman’s chance of getting breast cancer; age, genetics, alcohol, diet, etc. We all know about the increased cancer risk to smokers. We also know that there is a direct relationship between adipose tissue (stored fat) and breast cancer believed to be due to the increased production of estrogen from these fat cells (If you have a hip to waist ratio of .81 you are 7 times more likely to get cancer than if it were less than .73.) Simple solution- lose weight and quit smoking. There are some things you can control.

It is believed that estrogen, the hormone that keeps menopausal women sane, prevents hot flashes and night sweats, and mellows out our temperaments, causes breast cancer when there is constant exposure into the receptor sites of certain cells. The longer we expose these cells to estrogen, the greater the cancer risk. When a woman becomes pregnant, estrogen levels diminish and progesterone (pro-gestation) increases. Therefore, if a woman never has a child, she’s never had a break from estrogen exposure. The more children she has the less her chance of getting breast cancer. We can also conclude that the longer a woman either produces estrogen (naturally delayed menopause) or supplements with estrogen (intentionally delayed menopause by taking estrogen pills usually from horse’s urine, which is many times stronger than human estrogen) the greater the chance of breast cancer, as well as other diseases.

Menopause is nature’s way of keeping our hormones in balance, and to borrow from an old commercial, “It’s not good to fool Mother Nature!” The body naturally counters estrogen with progesterone. Often progesterone levels diminish and you need to add a bio-identical progesterone, NOT progestin, to keep estrogen in balance.

Estrogen receptor sites are conformed to receive estrogen for normal body function, but they can also filled with substances that look similar to but are not exactly estrogen. They have a similar enough configuration that the receptor sites welcome them in. But since they are not bio-identical estrogen they may have many undesirable side effects, one of these side effects is cancer. These false estrogens, or xeno-estrogens are found in many places. One major source is pesticides; yes, our monthly house spray, those cans of flying insect spray, or just the old roach spray is full of xeno-estrogens. And don’t think the toxic gas that is used in tenting houses dissipates quickly; it’s been known to remain for years. Some people with environmental illnesses can’t live in a house that has ever been tented. Now with the scare of West Nile and Malaria from mosquitoes, sprays are dropped from planes and we have no control. I understand the risks of these diseases, but we do pay for it with our health. Some exposure is inevitable and beyond our control.

Another source is plastics: plastic bottles, plastic wrap, plastic bags, plastic storage containers all contain the same dangerous substances. Even if recipes recommend covering food with plastic wrap before warming in the microwave, don’t do it. The toxins and vapors drip down into the food. How many of us have heated something a little too long in a plastic container and the plastic melted just a little. We’ve all done it. What’s even scarier is that most IV tubes used in hospitals are made of plastic. Try making a list of all the plastic you are exposed to. Store food in glass jars, reheat in non-plastic containers and never cover food to be reheated with plastic wrap.

Hormones or hormone-like substances are taken into our bodies through food as well. Animals are given Bovine Growth Hormone to increase mass; cows are forced into a permanent lactation state to produce milk. These hormones can be ingested and received in the receptor sites. Animals are fed grains that have been sprayed with pesticides. In fact, studies have shown that farm raised fish, like salmon and tilapia, have tested positive for pesticide content. It comes from the spraying of the food they are fed. Try to buy Alaskan salmon, non-farm raised fish, organic meats and poultry and organic eggs, and avoid milk.

Other sources of xenoextrogens are dry cleaning chemicals. When you bring home your dry cleaning, remove the plastic bag and let the clothes hang in a garage or the patio for about a week to allow the chemicals to escape. Never wear clothes right from the cleaners. Or better yet, buy clothes that you can launder yourself.

Gasoline fumes are also a dangerous source. When pumping gas, stand away from the fumes. But there are other petro-chemical sources all around us that you may not have thought of. I use to apply baby oil to my body after a shower until I read that it contains mineral oil- a petroleum product. Consider the many moisturizing creams that have a petroleum base. Even some expensive names have mineral oil in it. Try using natural moisturizers from the health food store. Remember petroleum jelly? What were we thinking, it was right in the name?

Stain protective sprays for furniture and carpets provide a constant source of fumes. As is polyurethane coating we put on wood. These things can out-gas for years to come. Tests have shown that the chemicals used to pressure treat wood gives off toxins for 20-30 years after being treated. Think of the children who play on jungle gyms or sit on picnic tables made from arsenic-treated wood. They are under constant exposure to toxins. Always use a tablecloth on wooden picnic tables and if you are wearing shorts or a swimsuit, avoid direct contact with wooden furniture.

If you have a cabinet full of cleansers and cleaning fluids, consider natural cleaners like baking soda and white vinegar. Your house may smell like a Greek salad but you’re reducing your toxin exposure.

What about nail polish and nail polish remover? There’s a company in Boca Raton called No-Miss, Inc. that makes healthier nail polish and remover. It is free of formaldehyde, toluene and dibutyl-pthalate. I’ve tried it and it works great and they have a wide selection of colors and their nail polish remover doesn’t take my breath away. Their website is nomiss.com but you can pick it up at most large health food stores. While you’re there, check out the natural lip colors as well.

Consider your room deodorizing sprays and dispensers. Try using natural essential oils for fragrance. It can also be very therapeutic.

The list goes on and on. In my practice I spend a lot of time trying to remove these toxins from my client’s bodies since they are related to many other illness as well as breast cancer, including high cholesterol, high triglycerides and excess weight (the body tries to hold fat to give the toxins a place to be stored without harming the body).

I know you can’t stay away from all of these substances. We will always have environmental pollution, molded plastic in our cars, paint, sealers, varnishes, and cleansers, etc., but you can take some steps to minimize your exposure. Yes, it takes a little effort and time, but the benefit is certainly worth it. You’re worth it. Take a step today toward a healthier life.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

If you’ve been following my articles in sequential order, you would have learned many of the basic principles of healthy eating. I wrote about drinking with meals, sugar and milk consumption, and even chewing. If you’ve incorporated these tips into your lifestyle, you should have noticed your energy increased, your skin cleared, your mental clarity improved, and your digestion is better. My goal is to help you be your own nutritionist. Today I’ll discuss the importance of fiber.

What comes to your mind when I mention fiber? Grapenuts®? Metamucil®? Most people haven’t a clue as to what fiber really is, what it does, or why we need it, but we really do need it for optimum health.

Fiber, by definition, is the particular composition or structure of something made up of filaments. In our diet, fiber is comprised of the connective strands and vasculature found in plant foods. It is a bulk-forming agent that helps sweep out intestinal debris by soaking up liquids and fats from the diet, then expanding. The expansion of the intestines due to the fiber swelling and the increase in intra-intestinal pressure stimulates the contractions (peristalsis) of the muscles around the intestinal tract, which then promotes evacuation. Plainly speaking, fiber is a form of carbohydrate that doesn’t get absorbed into the blood stream.

Picture a long balloon (like the kind a clown twists into animal shapes); as you squeeze one end, the other expands as the air is forced further down. Like the balloon, peristaltic contractions start squeezing near the top of the intestinal canal, then gently move down, causing wastes to get into position to exit, hence the term “to move your bowels”. Without adequate fiber, wastes remain in the gut to putrefy and to produce toxins. Those who eat little fruits and vegetables are usually consuming a low fiber diet and typically suffer from constipation.

Most people on a low fiber diet have a bowel transit time of 48 to 96 hours, but Abram Hoffer, MD, Ph.D. states in his book, ORTHOMOLECULAR MEDICINE FOR PHYSICIANS, that the normal bowel transit time should be 24-48 hours. He believes that even regular bowel movements aren’t necessarily a sign of good bowel health. “The normal range is probably one to three movements a day and that the fecal mass should be the consistency of toothpaste so it is expressed easily without the need for excessive strain by the abdominal wall.”

Many years of improper diet ultimately can cause toxic matter to collect in the intestinal wall forming a hard, putrefied shell that can possibly cause colitis, diverticulitis, prolapsus, or more frightening, cancer. It has been stated that up to 80% of colon cancers could be prevented by dietary changes. Some researchers believe that fiber helps prevent colon and rectum cancer because the food stays in the bowel a shorter time; the bacteria in the large intestines has less opportunity to convert fecal material into carcinogens. Many studies indicate that fiber has other benefits as well. It can give some relief to allergy sufferers by binding toxins in the intestinal tract. It also helps prevents hemorrhoids and may lower blood pressure by as much as 10 percent, it can help lower cholesterol and triglycerides, it can help prevent hormone related cancers. Fiber can help blood sugar problems, including diabetes, by slowing, stabilizing, and preventing sugar absorption.

There is soluble and insoluble fiber found in our diet, each serves a specific purpose. Insoluble fiber, which is not dissolved in water, absorbs liquids causing the fiber to swell and increasing the bulk of stool. This helps increase transit time through the bowel, which reduces the chances of putrefaction and fermentation that release poisonous gases. Dr. Linda Berry, a chiropractor in Berkeley, California, who promotes internal cleansing and colon health, believes that organs surrounding the colon can be irritated by these poisonous gases, causing low back pain or even the common headache.

Soluble fiber breaks down in the digestive tract but is not absorbed into the blood stream. Good sources would be oat bran, psyllium and beans, along with fruits and vegetables (one third of their fiber content of fruits and veggies is soluble). Soluble fiber is believed to prevent bile acid re-absorption and prevent cholesterol production by almost completely fermenting into short chain fatty acids. James Anderson MD., professor of clinical nutrition and medicine at the University of Kentucky states that soluble fiber lowers cholesterol without the harmful side effects of drugs that can cause constipation, heartburn, abdominal pain and nausea.

Soluble fiber will not cleanse the intestines as well as insoluble fiber, but it produces benefits of equal importance in the heart by its aid in reducing cholesterol 11 to 32 percent, according to Dr. Anderson.

Soluble fiber sources include: dried white beans, dried split peas, cooked rolled oats, and of course, oat bran and psyllium.

Good sources of insoluble fiber include: shredded wheat, barley, wheat bran, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, green beans, carrots and broccoli.

The National Cancer Institute advises us to increase our fiber intake to 30 grams a day, including 5 grams of soluble fiber from a concentrated source of fruit, beans or oat bran.

Fiber should initially be taken in a small amount and gradually increased to prevent sudden onset of bloating, gas and diarrhea. The maximum intake should not exceed 60 grams a day to prevent interference with vitamin and mineral absorption. The easiest way to insure adequate fiber intake is to increase those fruits and veggies. Be sure to get at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables each day, and by the way, french fries and corn chips DO NOT count. Try to eat whole fresh fruit between meals. It will help carry you until your next meal, provide you with the much-needed fiber, and nourish your body with a plethora of nutrients needed for health. Be sure to add a serving of veggies and even a small salad with lunch and dinner. It will help provide all the important nutrients and add good amounts of fiber as well. Be sure to drink large amounts of water throughout the day. It will help the intestines evacuate more readily, but it will also dilute toxins, cleanse the liver, bathe each cell, and help transport nutrients through the cell membranes.

Fiber is one more tool to restore and maintain good health.

Donna

by Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

In the last articles, I offered methods to improve your health status yourself by incorporating simple changes. If you applied these steps into your lifestyle, you probably noticed a significant change in your energy, appearance, mental clarity, and resistance to disease. But no health program can really be successful without addressing the subject of pH, which means power of hydrogen. In layman’s terms it is the measurement of how acid or alkaline the body is. The higher the number, the more alkaline (or base) one is; the lower the number the more acid one is. Neutral pH is 7.0, which means that it is neither acid nor alkaline.

We test the pH in the body by placing litmus paper in saliva and/or urine. Litmus paper can be purchased at a health food store or a pharmacy for about $8-$10. The paper should measure a range between 4.5-7.5. One would simply collect urine in a small cup, then place a small piece of litmus paper in the urine. It will change color to correspond to the pH (much like the way you test pH in a swimming pool). Match up the color with the chart on the paper to determine what your pH is. Saliva is tested the same way. In a healthy body, pH of both urine and saliva should be neutral (7.0). Neutral pH in saliva and urine usually reflects an arterial blood pH of 7.4; at this level the body can function optimally.

Unfortunately, few people maintain a neutral pH. Acid pH is usually the result of diet (cola, coffee, milk, white flour, red meat and sugar), lack of exercise, protein deficiency, environmental toxins, and stress. This condition of low pH is called ACIDEMIA, or acid blood. Acidemia has been linked to chronic inflammation, anemia, anaerobic metabolism, active infection or tendency to get infections, plaque on teeth, tendency to get caries, decreased bone density, breakdown in connective tissue and build up of free calcium within the body. Clinically, one would identify acidemia not only by low pH in saliva and urine, but by white blood cells and bacteria in the urine, a low oxygen saturation and an elevated free calcium risk index. But you can use pH as a good indicator as to the tendency in your own body.

Let me explain a little about the pH in the digestive tract. When we eat food, the stomach produces acid to help with digestion; the stomach is supposed to be a very acid environment. This acid (HCl) kills bacteria and yeast, helps to denature protein for further digestion, and sets the stage for the food to pass out of the stomach. In the small intestines (duodenum), the low pH of the mixture of food and acid (chyme) triggers the pancreas to release bicarbonates (alkaline), which neutralizes the acids making the pH of the chyme more alkaline. An alkaline pH in the small intestines is necessary for the digestive process to continue properly so that all nutrients can be extracted and absorbed. If the stomach isn’t acid enough, the trigger in the small intestines doesn’t respond and the bicarbonate fails to be released. The chyme will remain acid and digestion may be hindered. The result is evident when the pH of the body, as reflected in the urine, is more acid.

The body is really smart; it tries to neutralize the acid in the blood by pulling a buffer (calcium) from where ever it is available- the bones and teeth are the usual sources. If the body maintains acidemia for a length of time, the free calcium will be left to circulate in the blood stream (hardening of the arteries). If a proper pH is maintained, bacteria, yeast and cancer cells have a hard time proliferating and calcium can remain in the bones and teeth to serve its function in structural integrity.

We can do things to change our pH to a more health-promoting level: Moderate regular exercise improves the lung function and pH. Some people have clamed that salivary pH has changed after simple deep breathing exercises. Exercise helps us breathe deeply. We can avoid things that turn the body acid, things like milk, sugar, white flour, sodas, red meat, and other junk foods (Just one more reason to eat a more healthy diet!) We can eat protein for breakfast to maintain good serum protein and albumin levels.

Throughout the day, but especially first thing in the morning, we can drink fresh squeezed lemon juice in water. The citric acid in the lemon helps make the stomach pH acid enough to trigger the release of bicarbonate in the small intestines. I know it sounds strange to consume acid to become more alkaline, but if you remember how the body functions it makes total sense. Lemon and/or lime juice work the best, grapefruit is also effective, but orange juice has a high sugar content so it doesn’t work to change pH as well. Whenever you go out, ask for lemon or lime in your water or drink. Many cultures use lemon, lime, and sour orange on foods because it helps digestion as well as enhance flavor.

Malic acid found in raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar is also effective; Try to use this on your salads. Malic acid is also found in apple cider, so I start my day with lemon-lime juice in 2 ounces of apple cider and pure water. To this, I add vitamin C (ascorbic ACID) powder (be sure it does NOT contain calcium). This refreshing drink helps set the stage for proper pH and provides me with sufficient vitamin C to produce collagen, connective tissue and energy. After a time in the gym, I follow it with high protein breakfast like eggs, or fish, which help with energy and muscle building and provides the mood-lifting amino acids for neurotransmitters.

If you drink coffee, do so after breakfast and never on an empty stomach. It may change your pH drastically.

Measure your pH (saliva and urine) first thing in the morning, two hours after breakfast, and before bedtime. Keep a chart of your progress. When you are maintaining a steady pH of 7.0, you can begin testing only 2 hours after breakfast. You should notice an increase in energy and mental clarity, but most of the benefit will occur without you noticing it. The rewards will pay off in the long run with fewer colds, fewer degenerative diseases, and better quality of life. Remember, you’re worth the effort!

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, BS,CN,LNC.

One important requirement to achieve good health is often overlooked, that’s water. We all know that water is necessary for every creature to survive, but do you realize just how important water is to maintain good health? The body is composed of mostly water and is necessary to bathe each of the millions of cells of your body. Water dilutes and removes toxins and metabolic wastes from the body. It helps the kidneys work to capacity to avoid these toxins from being dumped back into the liver.

Water is the simplest way to prevent constipation. One of the most important functions of the large intestines is to absorb water into the body. If we don’t consume a significant amount, the intestines absorb whatever is available in the gastrointestinal tract, leaving the fecal matter hard and dry, and more difficult to pass. The longer it remains in the intestinal tract, the more toxins get absorbed, which then makes passing them become increasingly more difficult.

A simple reduction of 4-5 % of water in the body will reduce the work performance by 20-30%. That means a decrease in energy. All you ladies who complain of being tired, try drinking lots of good water. When you consider that we lose 2 cups of water in respiration, 2 cups through perspiration during normal daily activities (not exercising), and approximately 6 cups through intestinal and kidney excretion, we come up with a total loss of 10 cups of water per day. This must be replaced. Athletic activity can cause an additional water loss of as much as 4-5 quarts per day. This is why we can go weeks without food, but only a few days without water.

We typically take in 31/2 cups of water from our foods. The body actually produces an additional 1/2 cup of water as a by-product of metabolism. Simple mathematics concludes that we, therefore, need at least 8 cups of water per day.

Room temperature water, consumed in large amounts prior to a meal, can stimulate the production of digestive enzymes. Water can act as an appetite suppressor and actually can help the body metabolize stored fats into usable energy.

Many people suffer from water retention and think that drinking water will make matters worse. Actually, the opposite is true. The more water we consume, the more we excrete. The body retains water when we are not consuming a sufficient amount. To insure survival, it holds on to what it has by suppressing anti-diuretic hormone (ADH). We can rectify the problem by simply drinking more water. The body identifies an abundant supply then allows some to be released.

My massage therapist hands each and every one of his clients a large glass of water after every massage to insure excretion of the lactic acid and metabolites released in the course of a massage. He instructs them to continue to drink copious amounts throughout the next day to facilitate a thorough flushing of these toxins.

I usually recommend my clients to drink at least 1/2 gallon of pure water daily. I suggest that they fill up a half-gallon container, refrigerate it so it can be carried to work throughout the following day. They are not to retire for the night until all the water in the container is consumed. This helps them become more conscious of how much they need to drink and whether they are truly drinking the right amount.

Remember to always drink good quality water, never from the tap. I recommend spring waters from out of your own state so more stringent testing procedures apply. At home I use a reverse osmosis filtration system but I add liquid minerals back in so as not to promote acidity in the body.

This is a little comparative list between water and coke that was sent to me. I CANNOT attest to its accuracy but I thought it was interesting.

Read this, then make your choice.

“Water”1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. (Likely applies to half world population)

2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger. 3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism as much as 3%.

4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a U-Washington study. 5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers. 7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer. Are you drinking the amount of water you should every day?

COLA 1. In many states (in the USA) the highway patrol carries two gallons of Cola in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of cola and it will be gone in two days. 3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Cola into the toilet bowl and let the Coke sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Cola removes stains from vitreous china.

4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Cola. 5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Cola over the terminals! to bubble away the corrosion.

6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked in Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes. 7. To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake.  Thirty minutes before the ham is finished, remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the cola for a sumptuous brown gravy.

8. To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Cola will help loosen grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your windshield. This is very interesting. Check it out. For Your Info

1. The active ingredient in cola is phosphoric acid. Its pH is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4 days.  Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase in osteoporosis. 2. To carry Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the hazardous material place cards reserved for highly corrosive materials.

3. The distributors of cola have been using it to clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years! Now the question is, would you like a glass of water or cola?”

Think about it. Until next time…Donna

By Donna DiMarco,C.N.,L.N.C.

Allergy symptoms used to be associated with spring and flowers, but it seems more and more people find themselves with symptoms year round. Runny nose, watery eyes, fits of sneezing are often attributed to allergies or, as it’s sometimes called, hay fever. There is no doubt that the pollen and blossoms provoke a response. Many transplants from other states find that the first few years that they are in Florida, their “allergies” are better. A year or two later, they often reappear. Consider this:

• More than 50 million Americans suffer from allergic diseases yearly.

• Allergies cost the health care system $18 billion annually and are the 6th leading cause of chronic disease in the United States.

• About 16.7 million visits to health care providers are due to allergic rhinitis. The number of sufferers has increased significantly over the last 15 years.

Could it be that it may not be an allergy at all? An allergy is a reaction to a substance that does not normally affect other people. The word was first used in 1906 from the Greek words ALLOS, meaning other, and ERGON, meaning action. According to the Journal of Allergy and Applied Immunology, it is estimated that more than half the population exhibits some form of allergy-like symptoms which may include headaches, digestive disorders, joint pain, hives, and the more common, sneezing, runny nose and itching eyes. This is usually the body’s response to exposure to an invasive substance (allergens), which could be pollen, pet dander, dust, dust mites, and even their droppings.

In a mistaken effort to protect you from these allergens, your immune system releases histamines and other chemicals designed to rid your body of the offending substance. The histamine, which is released from mast cells, inflames the lining of your nasal passages, sinuses and eyelids and stimulates the production of mucus. These symptoms can resemble those of a cold. A sure way to distinguish is that with a cold, mucus secretions will eventually turn yellow-green; with rhinitis it will stay clear.

Most people use the term ALLERGY when in fact they mean sensitivity. The difference is distinct. Most true allergies are permanent where as a sensitivity can disappear after abstaining from the source. An allergy to seafood or bee stings can be life threatening but a sensitivity to milk or wheat may cause discomfort ranging from mild to severe, and are rarely life threatening.

Since early childhood, I suffered from allergies. I had every medication, air filters, inhalers, and weekly doctor’s visits, then eventually daily, injections to desensitize me, all to no avail. I moved to Florida and got some relief for a while but they eventually returned. When I was pregnant with my second daughter, I developed hives for no known reason. The allopathic medical community suggested I abort my baby so I could treat the allergies then simply get pregnant again. Since I consider life a lot more than a complication, that was not an option. In shear desperation, I found a nutritionist who tested me for food sensitivities. By following an elimination diet and using supplements to build myself up again, my hives and allergy symptoms all cleared up. I was so impressed with this life-changing experience, I studied nutrition myself and left the medical field I was working in, and 5 years later became a licensed nutritionist, and by the way, my daughter is now 23 years old and she and her sister, are the joys of my life.

But how can the foods we eat affect how we react to things like pollen and dander? It has to do with the amount of stress put on our bodies on a daily basis from the foods we eat. One theory explaining food sensitivities suggests that the body is improperly digesting the fat, carbohydrate or protein and the undigested food particles enter the bloodstream through the intestinal wall provoking a reaction to the “foreign” particles. The body reacts like it would to an allergen by producing the same inflammatory response. In my own situation, I was eating wheat, dairy and sugar on a regular basis. My body was reacting so strongly to those foods that when I was exposed to pollens or airborne allergens, I reacted severely. By eliminating the offending foods and supporting my taxed immune system by body had a chance to rest so that when I was around allergens I could produce enough anti-inflammatory substances within to fight off their effects.

Typically, the foods that we consume on a regular basis, like milk, wheat, corn, soy, yeast and sugar, are often the culprits.

Here’s how you can act as your own nutritionist.

Step One: Keep a food diary of everything you eat in a week. Be sure to write it down; don’t rely on your memory. Then take colored markers and check off every time you ate wheat. Get a different color for dairy, and another for sugar. You’d be amazed at how often you eat these foods. Next, check to see which additional foods you ate every day. These are usually the offending foods. Eliminate the dairy, wheat, sugar and whatever food you eat EVERY DAY. Yes, that means coffee, orange juice, oatmeal, etc. No matter how good it is suppose to be for you, you must stay off these foods for at least three weeks. You should notice a significant improvement in your symptoms. Abstaining for 6 months will usually allow intermittent ingestion without reaction.

Step Two: Digestive enzymes help to insure that the food is properly broken down into nutrients that the body can identify, and then utilize. They also help balance the pH of the intestinal tract, kill off harmful bacteria and prevent the overgrowth of yeast in the intestines. Enzyme production begins in the mouth. Our saliva begins the breakdown of fat and carbohydrates. In the stomach, we produce hydrochloric acid (HCl). The pancreas and the small intestines contribute to the production of enzymes as well. Each must be produced in the correct balance to insure proper digestion. As we get older our inherent enzyme production diminishes. This could possibly explain why we suddenly develop reactions to things we never reacted to before. Sometimes we hinder the effects of enzymes my diluting them with large, cold drinks with our meals. Sometimes we exhaust our supply by eating junk foods, improper food combining and taking antacids. Often, we treat heartburn with antacids, which neutralizes the very acid we actually need more of. Not enough stomach acid can feel much like too much acid. If you’ve ever felt full and bloated after a meal, need to loosen your pants, or suffer from gas, flatulence and bad breathe, chances are you need digestive enzymes. Find a good digestive enzyme that works through all stages of digestion. Be careful not to take them on an empty stomach if they contain HCl (which they should). Begin with one tab or capsule with each meal (usually in the middle of the meal). After a few days, increase to two pills with each meal. Pay attention to your symptoms; they should be diminishing. Some people may need to increase further, but it would be best to do so under the supervision of your nutritionist.

Step Three: Supplement the body with adrenal supporters such as pantothenic acid and vitamin C, tyrosine (an amino acid that is also an anti-depressant), and adrenal glandular. The adrenals glands produce cortisone, which acts as an anti- inflammatory substance and helps us deal with the production of histamines, so supporting the adrenals helps them function more efficiently and effectively.

Step Four: Reduce Excess histamines. Bioflavonoids are currently being used with great success. In particular, Quercetin, a form of bioflavonoids, is believed to prevent histamine release, nature’s antihistamines from citrus fruits and berries can now be easily taken in pill form. Magnesium, vitamin B-6, and the herb Nettles can also help. Other antioxidants such as cysteine and selenium can help mediate the body’s response to the allergen by reducing the effects of free radical damage. A substance taken from pine needles called pycnogenol, helps prevent allergic reaction. It is also an effective antioxidant much like the proanthocyanidins found in grape extract, so it too prevents oxidative damage.

Step Five: Reduce the inflammatory response. Studies have shown that Omega-3 fatty acids may be effective in reducing inflammatory reactions by affecting prostaglandin E2 production (Bad Guy). Omega-3 fatty acids promote the production of Prostaglandin E3 (Good Guy). The inflammatory action of prostaglandin E2 is also responsible for arthritic pain, so it would mediate the pain response for other chronic conditions as well.

A diligent effort to eliminate offending foods, enhance digestion, support the adrenals and immune system, prevent oxidative damage and inflammatory response should keep you from the “allergy blues” But before you embark on a nutritional approach, check with your physician to make sure it is indeed an allergy. In addition to eliminating symptoms naturally, you will be restoring your health. This will leave you with plenty of energy to enjoy life rather than fight “allergens”. Give it try, and let me know how you do.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

 Everyone has an “off day” when sexual desire just isn’t there. The problem has affected people throughout history. The Aztec emperor, Montezuma II, was thought to have consumed approximately 50 glasses of liquid chocolate a day to maintain his libido. In addition, he drank two more glasses right before having sex. In Shakespeare’s Othello, the main character wooed his bride with shellfish and oysters, representing the remedies most popular at that time. Ancient Greeks and Egyptians used ginger to prepare for a lovemaking session. Young Cajun men would sprinkle cayenne pepper on the dance floor in hopes of exciting their partners and diminishing their inhibitions. The Chinese consumed licorice as an aphrodisiac and also used ginseng as a libido booster. The list of aphrodisiacs is lengthy and varied; everything from deer antler to bee pollen. The people of old were willing to try anything to keep their motor running and many were effective! This problem remains today; sooner or later we will all experience a lack of interest in sex.

On February 10, 1999, JAMA published the results of a research project studying the sexual dysfunction of 1,749 women and 1,410 men from age 18 to 59. They found that the problem (sexual dysfunction) was more prevalent in women than men (43% of the women reported having sexual dysfunction as compared to 31 % of the men). Another on-line report concluded that 66% of all women have some sexual concerns, including lack of desire, lack of pleasure from sex, vaginal pain, inability to be aroused, inability to attain a completed climax, or the total lack of an orgasm. These problems can be caused by a myriad of factors including: medications (especially antidepressants), stress, emotional issues, hormonal imbalance, nutrients deficiencies (especially zinc, magnesium, and vitamin E), poor circulation to the genitals, lack of exercise, and physical (structural) problems. Some of these causes must be dealt with professionally but if you deal with the ones you have some control over, you may be pleasantly surprised in the bedroom. So where do we begin?

Total body health insures the proper function, including the production of hormones, which is one of the key factors in dealing with libido. Eating a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables, and good sources of protein will help the body’s endocrine system work at optimum levels to produce these hormones. Avoid processed and fast food to keep blood circulation flowing properly and to reduce toxins and free radical damage. Drink copious amounts of water to bathe each cell and to help stimulate the elimination of toxins. This is the key to good health and the remedy to many maladies, so I’ll keep repeating it.

Exercise is important to help dissipate stress, excrete toxins, enhance hormone production, relax the mind, and insure muscle tone and endurance for those all-nighters. The mind must be free to focus on the activity at hand. Stress is a mood killer. People in the South Pacific use herbs like kava kava before sex to help relax muscles, relieve anxiety and promote a feeling of euphoria. (Be careful with this herb if you have a history of liver problems.) Set the mood with relaxing music. Studies have shown that music can actually promote the body to heal and set the mood for your sexual encounter.

Aromatherapy can be very conducive to lovemaking. The Queen of Sheba seduced Solomon with fragrances and Cleopatra scented the sails of her barge so the fragrance would announce to Marc Antony that she was arriving. Scientists are looking into how pheromones (aromatic chemical compounds produced by one individual that affects the sexual physiology of another) communicate the urge to mate in humans, as well as in the animal kingdom. Women have a keener sense of smell than men do. This sense peaks at ovulation and drops during menstruation. It is believed that pheromones cause one woman’s cycle to line up with another’s after about 4 months of close proximity. Twenty-five percent of the people with smelling disorders lose interest in sex. The sense of smell also diminishes somewhat as a woman goes through menopause. You can compensate by using stronger scents when you are in the mood. Some companies are actually selling bottled pheromones to spice up your sex life and to make one more desirable.

As I mentioned before, hormones play a major part in sexual desire and there are lots of natural ways to give those hormones a boost. Dong Quai is believed to do for women what ginseng does for men. The Chinese believe that it helps nourish the female sex glands, rebuilds the blood, and is particularly good for women over 40.

Ginkgo biloba is known as the herb for memory and circulation, but it is especially helpful for those whose libido was affected by antidepressants. One study determined that by taking ginkgo, 91% of the women and 76% of the men experienced an improvement in sex drive after being on antidepressants. It took at least 4-6 weeks of supplementation, but the effects were in four areas of sexual response: desire, excitement, orgasm and resolution.

The Ayurvedic herb Shativari (Asparagus racemosa) is believed to balance estrogen levels. It is recommended for vaginal dryness, and to nourish the female organs. In fact, in Sanskrit, the word shativari means “one who can have a hundred husbands” (or wives).

Damiana is an herb believed to create a relaxed state of mind and to support the genitourinary and sex organs. It is believed that the alkaloids have a testosterone effect. Yes, I said testosterone. Men and women have both testosterone and estrogen, just in different amounts. If a woman has a low testosterone level her sex drive is affected much like a man’s is. For this reason, many of the herbal remedies recommended for men are also effective for women, ginseng is another one of those herbs. The Brazilian herb, Muira puama, can also work for either sex by increasing the blood supply to the sex organs. Avena sativa (wild oats) is believed to increase vaginal sensitivity and Nettle root (Urtica dioca) is recommended for vaginal dryness.

Amino acids like arginine and ornithine may increase nitric oxide levels in the body. This is especially important for men, but it is equally important for women since studies have shown that there is a direct relationship between nitric oxide levels and sexual dysfunction. Arginine and ornithine are helpful in stimulating the anterior pituitary to produce Human Growth Hormone (HGH), the anti-aging hormone, and who wants to age? So, stay young and enjoy a healthy sex life.

Although there are some over-the-counter hormones like DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), Pregnenolone and Progesterone, before you supplement with any, I suggest you speak with a qualified practitioner since you may actually exacerbate the problem by causing more of an imbalance.

Please don’t take all of these at once; it doesn’t work like that. Start with the basics of good health and give it time to work. Check your hormone levels with a saliva test (www.salivatest.com) to determine just what you are lacking. Choose your herbs carefully, paying close attention to their direct effect on the female body, get one that helps your specific problem. Check into any interactions with medication, for example, ginkgo should not be used if you are on blood thinners like Coumadin. Be consistent at taking the herbs and allow enough time for it to work, at least 2 months. Keep in mind that sex begins in the head. Take steps to insure a relaxed atmosphere; remember to use the senses, especially smell.

Sexual response is a normal, function of a healthy body. Give your body what it needs to be healthy and it will serve you well for many years.

Enjoy!!!

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

Any fat makes you fat, so it should be eliminated, right? Wrong!  While it is true that fat contains more calories than protein or carbohydrates, fats are really important to good health. If all the fat were eliminated, health would be compromised. Fat is important for the production of hormones, the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, the integrity of the nervous system and more. Jean Barilla, co-author and editor of The Nutrition Superbook, Volume II, The Good Fats and Oils, stated some of the reasons we need fats in our diets. “ We need fats to produce energy, to pad and protect our internal organs, to conserve body heat, to transport the oil soluble vitamins, A, D, E, & K, into our blood, to act as an intestinal lubricant to keep things moving smoothly, to join with phosphorus to produce the phospholipid walls of each cell, to insulate the nerves by helping to produce the myelin sheath around each nerve, and to help us feel satiated when we eat, as well as adding flavor to our foods.”

Fats are not only found in most meats, but hidden in things like salad dressings, mayonnaise, cake icings, baked goods, fried foods, chips, gravies, some cheeses, some dairy, margarine, butter, cooking oils, nuts, seeds, produce like avocados, coconut, etc. Some of these are really bad for us, but others are not.

I frequently hear people say that they stay away from nuts, avocados, seeds, etc. because they are high in fat. While it is true that fat contains 9 calories per gram while protein and carbohydrates contain only 4 each, some fat sources are so nutrient-rich that they are worth the added calories. The task then becomes distinguishing between the good and the bad fats. If you learn which fats to stay away from and which fats to consume, your body may be able to restore balance and provide you with a better quality of life. This is not an easy task since we have saturated, unsaturated, trans, cis, essential fatty acids, etc. Let’s try to make some sense of it.

There are saturated, unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  Whether a fat is saturated or not depends on the number of hydrogen atoms in the molecular structure of the substance. Saturated fats are found in meat, coconut oil and palm kernel oil.  It has generally been believed that saturated fats are the culprit of heart disease. These fats are used in manufacturing candy, icing or chocolate because they are inexpensive and they don’t melt at room temperature.  Saturated fats stimulate the liver to make more LDL’s (low density lipoproteins) or bad cholesterol. 

Unsaturated fats usually stay liquid at room temperature and are broken down into polyunsaturated fats, found in many vegetable oils, and monounsaturated fats (MUFA’S), found in olive, peanut, canola and avocado oil.

Polyunsaturated oils have more than one carbon-to-carbon double bond in their molecular structure. They are oils like safflower, sunflower and soybean oils. For many years it was thought that polyunsaturated fats were the way to go because they reduced LDL’s.  It was later discovered that they also reduced HDL’s as well and also increased the susceptibility to gall stones. For this reason polyunsaturated oils should be limited in the diet.

Monounsaturated fats (MUFA’s) have only one carbon-to-carbon double bond in their molecular structure. Unlike Polyunsaturated oils, MUFA’s reduce only the LDL’s and protect them from oxidative damage.  It was also found that MUFA’ s can help non-insulin dependent diabetics, more so than low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets.  Research indicates that MUFA’s have an effect on hypertension also.  Studies are presently in progress to confirm the positive effects of MUFA’s on rheumatoid arthritis.

I recommend that my clients consume cold-pressed, extra virgin olive oil daily. “Cold-pressed” means that when the olives are pressed to extract the oil, a good amount of heat is generated. This heat has a tendency to turn the oil rancid, so a cooling system is used to dissipate the heat, keeping the oil from oxidative damage. Virgin and extra-virgin refers to the purity. Since oil is so susceptible to peroxidation (rancidity) I suggest you always keep your oil in the refrigerator after it has been opened. This will reduce the oxidative damage for a while. Some people choose to put a little vitamin E in their oil for the same reason. It’s wise not to buy the large gallons of oil unless you use it quickly, because even when refrigerated, oil will eventually turn rancid. Get it fresh.

Another important factor in choosing fat wisely is whether a fat contains trans-fatty acids or not. Trans-fatty acids are unsaturated fats that have additional hydrogen molecules attached to it. The un-natural process is called hydrogenation and is always man-made. This is what is often used in restaurants but since it has been linked to cardiovascular disease it is being banned by New York City and other cities around the country.

By hydrogenating any oil, say corn oil, which is a liquid, and make it solid at room temperature. Voila, margarine! We use to think we were really smart by eliminating butter and replacing it with margarine, but studies indicated that trans fatty acids raise LDL’s (the bad cholesterol) and lower HDL’s (the good guys). Therefore, all those who switched from butter to margarine to lower their cholesterol may actually be raising it and changing the ratio of bad cholesterol to good cholesterol, and not for the better. Listen carefully, BUTTER IS BETTER THAN MARGARINE! Stay away from all hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. You can find them in most junk food, but sometimes, even in some health foods. Learn to read labels.

Let’s now talk a little about essential fatty acids, which are the basic building blocks of fats and oils. They are called “essential” because they are essential to life but cannot be produced in the body, but must come from either diet or supplementation. The three groups of essential fatty acids are Omega-3, Omega-6, and Omega-9.

Omega-3 fats are found in cold-water fish like tuna, mackerel, salmon, sardines, cod and herring. The few vegetarian sources of omega-3’s are flax seed and perilla oil. This essential fatty acid has been known to slow tumor growth, boost the immune system, reduce pain and inflammation, reduce the symptoms of allergies, promote healthy skin, prevent strokes, reduce cholesterol and increase mental acuity. Fish oils have demonstrated to be particularly important for those with heart and circulatory disease. It has been said that eating 2-3 fish meals (of these particular fish) a week may reduce your chances of heart disease by as much as 50%. Why aren’t we doing this? That’s better odds than what’s offered by some drugs, and without the side effects!

Omega-6 fats can be saturated (like meats and dairy), unsaturated (like in nuts and seeds), or trans-fatty acids (like in fried foods, junk food and margarine). Omega-6 fats can convert to a substance (prostaglandin E-2) that impairs the immune system, increases pain and inflammation, stimulates metastasis, promotes allergic responses and skin disorders. We can’t eliminate all omega-6’s, nor should we. Some is beneficial, but we get far too much in our diet. We must make an effort to reduce these types of fats and increase the more beneficial omega-3’s.

Omega-9 fatty acids are not precursors to prostaglandins and are considered neutral. They may even have some beneficial cancer prevention effects. Omega-9 is found predominantly in olive oil.

So let’s re-cap: Some fats are good for us. Do not eliminate all the fat in your diet, eliminate the sugar instead; that will be more effective in lowering cholesterol and triglycerides. Stay away from hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils and all the foods that contain them. Replace your cooking oils with cold-pressed virgin or extra virgin olive oil and keep it refrigerated after opening it (place the bottle under hot running water to soften it for easy pouring). Eat at least two fish-containing meals a week using cod, salmon, tuna, mackerel or sardines to increase omega-3’s. Limit the amount of omega-6 fatty acids and the foods that contain them. Don’t be afraid to eat natural foods like avocados and nuts because of their fat content; focus on eliminating processed foods that contain the more dangerous fats. If you do this, you may soon notice your skin glowing, your hormones balanced, your energy boosted, your immune system stimulated, your arthritis and allergies diminishing, and your cardiovascular system strengthened. Give it a try, you’re worth it!

Donna

By Donna DiMarco

Hormones are a hot topic these days since the Women’s Health Initiative cut off their study before it was complete (after 5 years-instead of the planned due to overwhelming evidence that PremPro, a Premarin/progestin hormone replacement therapy, caused increased incidence of breast cancer, heart disease and strokes.

As a result of all the media attention, many women have stopped their hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in search of a safer, more natural method of avoiding hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, and all the other lovely symptoms of menopause. Hopefully, the days of blindly trusting the doctor to prescribe something to make us quickly feel better is behind us and women will be better informed so that they can play a part in deciding what risks, if any, to take regarding hormone replacement. The body does need a perfect balance of hormones to function properly, but at what cost? And should hormone-like substances be substituted for the real thing?

Estrogen is produced mainly in the ovaries, but some is also made in the adrenal glands; minor amounts are produced in other places as well. The ovaries also produce progesterone in the corpus luteum (the ruptured sac on the ovary from which an egg has erupted). Since we are born with a finite number of eggs and have been releasing one each month throughout our lives, the supply diminishes near menopause. Without the ruptured sac to produce a sufficient amount of progesterone, we become estrogen dominant. Unopposed estrogen (without progesterone) increases our chances of breast cancer. Also, the proper ratio (estradiol to progesterone) is important in preventing hot flashes and other menopause symptoms, not just the lack of estrogen. And most importantly, synthetic progestin won’t do.

More women have estrogen dominance than you would imagine, but many of them are given estrogen anyway. And, unfortunately, those who need progesterone are given progestin instead. Progestin is synthetic progesterone created in a laboratory to mimic the real McCoy. The molecular structure of progestin is just a tiny bit different than natural progesterone, just different enough to allow it to be patented and to make lots of money for the pharmaceutical companies. You see, most hormones start with a molecular structure similar to that found in the component of soy or wild yam; it’s called diosgenin. (It’s for this reason that soy helps with hot flashes) This molecule can be manipulated to conform to the structure of the hormone being prepared, not just progesterone, but others as well. If this molecule is identical to that found in the body (bio-identical) it cannot be patented since it is a natural substance, but if it is similar, yet with a unique structure, drug companies can name it, patent it, and rake in the bucks—providing it doesn’t cause obvious damage. These synthetic hormone structures look so much like the real hormones that they are able to enter the receptor sites and imitate some of the hormone’s functions within the body. But the body is not easily fooled and will eventually respond, often with disease. That’s what has happened with the hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in this study. Here are some differences in natural progesterone vs. synthetic progestin.

Progestins: increases sodium and water retention in body cells and cause loss of mineral electrolytes from cells, cause depression, Increase risk of birth defect, cause facial hair, cause thrombophlebitis, embolism risk, decrease glucose tolerance and cause allergic reactions

Progesterone: Protects against endometrial and ovarian cancer, normalizes libido, reduces facial hair while stimulating re-growth of scalp hair, improves lipid profile and new bone formation (progesterone is better than the drugs recommended for osteoporosis), decreases risk of coronary vasospasm, helps thyroid hormone action, eases symptoms of PMS, is essential for myelinization of nerves, restores normal sleep patterns, is a precursor of other steroid hormones, and is essential also male health.

Which would you rather have, the decision is truly yours? The Women’s Health Initiative Study used progestin along with Premarin, which is (pregnant mare’s urine) horse estrogen, not human. Ah, ah, ah! You can’t fool Mother Nature! She fights back. They tried to fool the body into thinking it had what it needed, instead it provoked serious responses– heart disease, cancer and stroke. The sad part of this story is that the same diosgenin can easily be converted into bio-identical progesterone- the kind the body can use. It is readily available in many of the creams sold in health food stores and is used by alternative practitioners with great success.

Medical doctors are solicited by the drug company reps; they are given gifts and incentives, provided with pre-printed prescription pads and lots of free samples, in order to promote the sale of the pharmaceuticals. It’s big business. Women often feel that if the doctor recommended a drug, it must be what’s best. As someone who acts as a consultant to medical doctors, that isn’t always the case. I have met many doctors who didn’t even know the difference between progesterone and progestins. In doctor’s defense, many of them are so overwhelmed with keeping up with the latest advances in their specialty that they have little time for in-depth study, so they accept the erroneous information they are fed (often by the drug companies. How many years have they been recommending Prem-Pro? Remember Fen-Phen? What about Thalidomide?).

What can you do? Take control of your own health. Become empowered with knowledge to make intelligent decisions as to how your healthcare progresses. Take the time to learn about alternative methods. The body has the uncanny ability to heal itself if given the materials to do so. Learn how to give it what it needs.

One of the best ways to empower yourself is to read any of the books by Dr. John R. Lee, M.D. John is most noted for his dedication to teaching medical doctors about the difference between natural and synthetic hormones. His books include : “What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause”, or “…Peri Menopause”, and his latest “…Breast Cancer”. Susan Love, Betty Kamen and Christine Northrup are also good providers of reliable information about women’s health issues.

Your next step should be to test your hormone levels. This could be done by a simple saliva test without a prescription (except for New York and California). Saliva is used instead of blood because it measures the free form hormone, that which is not bound to protein but available to do its work. Blood tests measure bound hormone only.

Check with your health practitioner or go to www.salivatest.com and check out what ZRT Labs has to offer. They will send you a simple collection kit so you can spit in a tube first thing in the morning and mail it to them with a check. Your results will be returned with an explanation of what it means.

Now comes the hard part, take your results to a practitioner who can help you balance your hormones naturally. Your practitioner can have a compounding pharmacy make up any combination of NATURAL estrogens or progesterone. Your prescription should be based on you and your hormone levels as well as your clinical information; it should not be a cookie-cutter formula handed out to all equally. This should be done only AFTER exploring all pathways to find out why you are not producing the hormones yourself. Often it is a simple remedy and HRT is not needed.

Diet is important. Try to give your body what it needs to make hormones naturally. Essential fatty acids are important to hormone production so forget the fat free diets, instead, consume nuts, seeds, avocado, olive oil, salmon, mackerel, etc. Small amounts of soy can help with symptoms. Please don’t over do it since studies link soy to other complications. Avoid dairy, since cows are often given hormones to maintain milk production. Eat plenty of cruciferous vegetables for their ability to encourage “good” hormone ratios.

Avoid plastics and pesticides whenever possible. They too have a similar structure to estrogen (xenoestrogens) and are linked to breast cancer (some studies have also linked them to homosexual behavior in animals, hmmm!). Avoid tight-fitting bras, especially with under wires. Some believe that the restriction of lymphatic flow can cause breast cancer; no bra is best.

Always check your breasts monthly and have an annual exam at your gynecologist. Be sure to have a baseline mammogram, but remember that x-rays CAUSE cancer, so don’t be too quick to have your breasts irradiated too often. Early detection is NOT prevention or protection. If they detect it, it’s too late–you got it already.

Take cancer-fighting supplements- antioxidants and a multi vitamin-mineral to make up for what may be lacking in the diet. Let your body do its job. We all have abnormal cells in our bodies. But if we help our bodies’ function at optimum level, it will destroy those cells. If it has to spend all its energy detoxifying junk food and toxins, it has hindered ability to keep us healthy. Give it a try, health is easier to attain than you think. Just care enough about yourself to do it.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco. CN,LNC

Yes, I know that the title was a sneaky way to get your attention, but the information I have to share is important. MASTICATION is not to be confused with the other similar sounding word that we are all so familiar with. It is something that we do every day, several times a day, in fact. Some do it more than others; some are better at it. Some of us do it even without the proper equipment. Those who don’t do it well or regularly may compromise their health as a result. I once witnessed the autopsy of someone who did not do it this one time and it caused his demise. Most people only do it for themselves, but I have heard of certain cultures that ritualistically do it for each other. Get mind out of the gutter, it’s chewing.

“Everyone knows how to chew”, you say. Not so. Most people (myself included) don’t take the time to let the mouth do its job in aiding in the digestion of food. We are all in a hurry to get through our day and we don’t take the time to enjoy our meal, chew our food properly, and allow proper mixing of the food with saliva to occur in our mouth.

In this day and age, meals are commonly taken on the run, leaving little thought as to why we eat in the first place. Our busy schedules leave us little time to partake in three daily meals in the relaxed, but purposeful way it was intended; this leaves food partially digested and important nourishment locked in. As a result, we feel the need to take in additional amounts of food, but still remain undernourished. The body, with its natural wisdom, identifies the need for nourishment and signals us to eat more. But if again we don’t chew properly, the cycle will continue and obesity can result.

Thorough chewing also allows time for the “I ate enough” signal to be received in the brain. If we pay attention to this important feedback loop, we might reduce obesity significantly. This is such an effective technique that many weight loss centers suggest their clients to eat slowly, and to pay careful attention to chewing, as well as to wait 15 minutes or so before you reach for a second helping or the next course. In that time, the brain will realize it’s full and the appetite will subside. I’m sure we all experienced waiting so long in a restaurant that we weren’t interested in eating any more. Just allow yourself 15 or twenty minutes before you reach for a snack or a second helping. You’ll find you don’t really feel hungry. Try it; it works.

Chewing is the act of taking large bites of food, grinding it up into small particles that can be mixed with saliva and digestive enzymes. It is so important in providing our bodies with all the fuel it needs. Here’s a good analogy of how it works: take a whole, fresh lemon; squeeze it really hard. Unless you’re really strong, no juice will come out of it. Next, cut it in half; take one half and squeeze it hard. You’ll get a good amount of juice but more will remain inside the lemon. Finally, take the remaining half and cut it into four pieces. Take each piece and again, squeeze it hard. You’ll find that much more juice can be extracted from the smaller pieces. This is what happens with food. Large pieces of unchewed food leave lots of nutrients trapped inside, much like the lemon juice. The smaller the pieces become, the more nutrients (lemon juice) can be extracted. All those nutrients are vital for good health.

After food is chewed and the digestive process begins, food is called chyme. Chyme is a smooth, homogenous substance we all get grossed out to look at, but it is essential for good digestion Chewing begins with carbohydrates being broken down into simple sugars. Here’s a fun experiment to try. Take a bite of a bagel or a piece of bread. Chew it the way you normally do. Remember the taste and the texture before you swallow it. Then take another bite, but this time chew it 30 times, rolling it around with your tongue to mix it well. Notice the additional sweetness? That’s because ptyalin in the saliva helped release the sugar. This could work to our disadvantage if we are not careful. Remember that if you don’t brush your teeth, especially at bedtime, tiny particles of food may remain stuck between your teeth. These food particles may be broken down into sugars, which promote dental caries. If left untreated, caries, or cavities as we commonly call them, can result in pain and eventual loss of teeth. Then we are back to poor chewing again.

In addition to the digestion of carbohydrates in the mouth, chewing initiates the digestion of fats as well. Lingual lipase starts the process of fat digestion. It acts similarly to soap by breaking the bonds of the fat molecules causing glycerol and fatty acids to separate, making the fat more readily available for further digestion to occur. Although the digestive process begins in the mouth, it continues on to completion in the intestinal tract, resulting in nutrients entering the bloodstream to fuel our bodies.

We rely on these nutrients to keep us alive. Many of the disorders we experience are caused by lack of nutrients. We can spend lots of money on supplements to provide them (which is sometimes necessary), but the simplest way to maintain good health and to insure that our bodies function properly is to make wise food choices (foods that are nutrient rich, whole and fresh) then to chew that food well in order to release all the nutrients that nature has provided for us.

Take the time to care for yourself; care enough to sit down to your meal in a relaxed manner. Chew slowly and purposefully. Savor the flavors. Notice the textures. Inhale the aromas of the foods. Studies indicate that the sight and smell of food stimulates the digestive juices. Haven’t you ever had your mouth water (that’s saliva) at the sight of your favorite dish or the smell of fresh bread hot from the oven? That’s part of the process. Don’t deny yourself that; you’re worth it!

Follow these tips and you will notice gradual improvements in your health including your energy, your immune system, your endurance, your mental attitude and mental acuity, but it all begins with you. Until next time, I challenge you to chew.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC.

Most of us have been brought up thinking that milk is the perfect food and that without it our diets would suffer. Every mother insists that her child drink his milk to have strong bones. And many of us remember when we were encouraged to drink a little milk or cream to sooth an ulcer. How much of that is really true?

If we’d really listen to our bodies we’d realize that milk causes a variety of problems. Lactose intolerance is the deficiency of lactase, the enzyme needed to digest milk sugar, which causes diarrhea and flatulence. Mucus production increases and then the mucus lines the digestive and respiratory tracts setting up a perfect environment for bacterial and yeast growth. This excess mucus may hinder important nutrient absorption in the digestive tract.

Studies have indicated a strong tie between milk consumption and juvenile diabetes. Experiments have clearly demonstrated more hostile and aggressive behaviors in those who consume milk. Due to the size of the milk protein molecule, it often triggers allergic reactions.

The high protein content in dairy actually leads to the body losing calcium in the urine, rather than placing it in the bones. One of the two sugars that compose lactose has been linked to ovarian cancer and even infertility. Autistic patients show remarkable improvement when taken off dairy and gluten. Many children who are plagued by constant ear infections, asthma, and eczema, clear up when milk and dairy products are removed from their diet. Children who are raised dairy-free rarely need tubes in their ears. Postnasal drip and stuffy nose is often gone forever when dairy is totally eliminated. Many psoriasis and arthritis sufferers show remarkable improvement after eliminating dairy.

With all this information, why would anyone want to consume milk and milk products? Advertising. We have all seen the moustache commercials and I’m sure you remember “Milk: it does the body good!” The dairy farmers have their own agenda since more and more people are eliminating milk.

Humans were made to consume human milk with just the right combination of calcium, magnesium, and other nutrients to nourish a human body. Cow’s milk, however, has a large protein molecule necessary to produce the massive muscles of a cow or a bull. Cows walk quickly after birth, so their milk has a calcium content necessary to quickly strengthen the spindly legs of a calf to hold the rapidly enlarging body. Humans don’t even crawl for a few months, so we really don’t need that much calcium concentration early in life. Baby calves, on the other hand, don’t even drink cow’s milk after a few months but they continue to grow and develop strong, large bones, and I have yet to see a cow with osteoporosis (check out the soup bones at your butcher’s). But how do they keep their bones strong? They eat green grass. Now, I’m not telling you all to hit the St Augustine and do away with your lawn mower, but we can eat greens in a more palatable form: vegetables. Vegetables, especially organic ones, have the perfect calcium to magnesium ratio for humans, and the calcium is in a useable form.

Many of us drink calcium rich foods but neglect the magnesium that is necessary to use the calcium properly. The Standard American Diet (S.A.D., how appropriate!) falls short of the recommended five daily servings of fruits and vegetables. Without magnesium, the calcium may do us harm. Have you ever craved chocolate? Do you get muscle cramps or charley horses? Do you fall asleep but wake up in the middle of the night wide-awake? Are you constipated? Do you suffer from menstrual cramps? Do you have high blood pressure? These can all indicate a lack of magnesium and/or too much calcium. I frequently see people with too much calcium in their bodies yet suffer from osteoporosis, mostly due to a magnesium deficiency.

Let me encourage you to eat more fresh fruits vegetable and make them organic whenever possible (one study showed that organic tomatoes had 40% more magnesium than conventional tomatoes). Do not use canned vegetables since the processing, the salt, and the aluminum from the cans make them poor choices. Fresh is best, but frozen is a good compromise. Eat a variety of colors for the nutrient value. French fries and creamed corn are not considered vegetables so don’t even try to count them.

Get off the dairy. There are now many products in the health food stores to your dairy products with, like soy, for example. There is much research indicating that some soy in our diet might protect us from heart disease, help prevent breast cancer, and reduce menopausal symptoms, but don’t go overboard. Do everything in moderation. In addition to soy, milk substitutes are presently made from rice, a combination of rice and soy, almond, hazelnut, hemp, oat, potato and pea, and tofu, which is made from soy. They come in a variety of flavors including plain, vanilla, chocolate, and carob, and some are fortified with calcium (for those who feel they need an extra amount in their diet just in case). Other products available include cheese-like mozzarella, cheddar, Swiss, jalapeno, Parmesan, cream cheese, and a variety of yogurts and ice cream. With so much to choose from, we can continue to eat the foods we enjoy without the threat to our health.

Make some smart choices. Listen to what your body is telling you. Try eliminating all dairy for three full weeks. Notice how you feel. After the three weeks, go back to eating dairy and notice the difference in your symptoms. Your body won’t lie to you, just give it what it naturally needs, eliminate the things that make it work harder, and it will serve you well for many years to come.

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN,LNC

Pour 1/2 cup of sugar into a measuring cup. Imagine adding that to your food intake every day. Sounds pretty ridiculous, doesn’t it? This is approximately how much sugar each person consumes every day here in the United States. Studies have demonstrated that in 1994 the annual sugar consumption per each individual was approximately 149 pounds. It has increased considerably since then. If I am not eating my share of that 149 pounds of sugar, some of you are consuming it for me in addition to your own.

Sugar consumption can add up quickly when you consider that 12 ounces of your favorite soft drink contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar, an ice cream sundae contains 19 teaspoons, 10 jelly beans contain more than 6 teaspoons of sugar, and even your so called “healthy” fruit-flavored yogurt contains more than 7 teaspoons of sugar per container. It is said that 21 teaspoons of sugar knock out 92% of your immune cells. This leaves us vulnerable to succumb to sicknesses like the casual cold, or AIDS, or everything in between.

We all have pre-cancerous changes in some of the cells in our body. It’s our immune system that isolates and destroys those cell aberrations so as to keep them from developing further into a full-blown destructive disease. Limiting sugar intake allows our immune system to work more effectively. Dr. Nancy Appleton’s book entitled Lick The Sugar Habit, lists 75 illnesses or disorders related to sugar consumption. Keep these sugar-content numbers in mind every time you reach for a can of soda or that Danish instead of a nutritious breakfast.

Learn to read the labels before you buy. You may be surprised at what you find. There is sugar hidden in lots of foods, some you may have never even thought of, like ketchup, tomato sauce, and salt. Yes, check your saltbox to see if the second or third ingredient isn’t dextrose. (Any word ending in “ose” is a carbohydrate, like maltose, sucrose, fructose, galactose, lactose, and so on.)

Sometimes we focus on looking for the wrong ingredients. Remember when so many of us were caught up in finding fat free and low-fat foods that we neglected to consider the sugar content in what we were eating? We thought we were reducing our cholesterol. In fact, we were making it worse. We thought that since it says “fat free” it must be good for us. It wasn’t. The sugar content was not in big, bold letters on the front of the box like the words “FAT-FREE” were. It was marketing and many of us fell for it. Studies indicate that a high-carbohydrate diet (sugar) increases our chances of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other diseases. More diseases are linked to high sugar consumption than high fat and protein consumption.

Table sugar is derived from corn, beet, or cane, and it isn’t naturally white. It is made white by removing the nutrients from it. The brown part that is removed is sold as molasses, which is high in iron, potassium, and other nutrients, but how many of us use molasses on a regular basis? Processing leaves us with sweet, white granules composed of two simple sugars, fructose and glucose. Nature had it right to begin with, in its natural form raw sugar contains copper, zinc, manganese, cobalt, chromium, and magnesium. All are necessary for proper digestion and utilization of carbohydrates. Problems with sugar begin when we refine it to make it white. This strips it of all essential minerals, which then forces the body to provide them by drawing from its own resource pool (mineral stores within the body). If excessive refined sugar consumption continues, these resource pools become depleted and are not available for other normal body functions.

A good example of this mineral depletion was demonstrated in a study performed by Dr. William Philpott. He found that during the autopsies of people who died of coronary artery disease, no detectable amount of chromium was found in their aortas; but chromium was clearly evident in those who died of accidental death. This implies that chromium, which is needed for carbohydrate metabolism, plays an important part in the prevention of arteriosclerosis and heart disease. It is important to note that cardiovascular disease can readily progress if chromium supplies are depleted due to excessive sugar intake.

Dr. John Yudkin concluded from his research that someone taking in 120 grams of sugar a day (24 teaspoons) is approximately five times more likely to develop a myocardial infarction (heart attack) than someone taking in less than 60 grams of sugar per day (12 teaspoons).

Should we eliminate all carbohydrates? No. Carbohydrates are needed to fuel our brains. It provides an energy source for the body demands as they occur. But if we consume more carbohydrates than we expend, the residual will be stored as fat for future use. The amount of sugar needed by the body at any given time is merely 2 teaspoons. This can be easily obtained by proper ingestion of unrefined grains, fruits and vegetables.

Our bodies were wonderfully designed to convert sugar from fat or protein if needed. We can limit our carbohydrate consumption and increase our energy output by regular exercise and physical activity. In addition to helping our cardiovascular system, it will help us lose weight, since the body takes the stored fat and converts it into carbohydrates to meet its need. If sugar consumption is consistently high, the body loses its ability to convert it from other nutrients.

Because fructose is absorbed 40% as quickly as glucose, it has been a favorite especially among diabetics. This quick rise in the blood sugar level would appear to be more desirable. But Dr. J. Hallfrisch concluded, that fructose causes an increase in serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoproteins (the bad guys), even more than sugar does. So watch the fruit juice consumption. It’s always better to water it down a bit. Increasing fiber in the diet will aid elimination, reduce cholesterol, and prevent rapid rises in blood sugar (another reason why eating whole, fresh fruit is more beneficial than drinking fruit juice since blood-sugar levels raise more gradually).

Some good suggestions for breaking free from sugar addiction are included in Dr. Appleton’s book, Lick The Sugar Habit. She suggests eating

more unrefined complex carbohydrates to help maintain blood sugar levels; eat raw, crunchy veggies for snacks; brush your teeth when a sugar craving comes upon you (this will usually satisfy it due to the sweetness of the toothpaste); when an urge to eat sweets occurs, wait at least 30 minutes to see if it will pass.

Mineral supplementation can replenish some of the deficiencies, but this should be done under the supervision of a nutrition counselor, but only after proper evaluation has taken place. Start today to make some smart choices in your eating habits. Begin replacing the refined sweetened snacks with some healthy, raw veggies. Pass on the donuts and danish and eat a good breakfast. Get regular exercise, which will strengthen your cardiovascular system. Begin with walking every day, get plenty of fresh air and sunshine, and be sure to read labels so you can limit your sugar intake.

You can do it!

Donna

By Donna DiMarco, CN, LNC

I previously suggested you keep a food diary and eliminated the foods you found yourself consuming on a daily basis.  If you kept track of your symptom improvement and are ready for the next step.

This month we will talk about drinking with our meals. No, I’m not talking about alcohol in particular, but that can fall into this category; I’m talking about that large glass of soda, the iced tea or that cold brew with your slice of pizza.

Let’s start with the fact that we all have digestive juices that are produced to help break down the food into a useable form. One of those juices, hydrochloric acid (HCl), is just as strong as the muriatic acid that your pool service uses and is powerful enough to eat through concrete. Its job is to help ready protein (denaturing) for other enzymes to break it down. HCl doesn’t hurt us because we have a thick mucous lining to protect the stomach. We get into trouble when that lining gets thin or the acid levels get too high and the acid eats a small sore into the stomach. We call that an ulcer. Women who are bulimic actually damage not only their esophagus, which lacks the thick protective coating, but their teeth as well, due to the stomach acid frequently coming up into the mouth. Think about it, if it can eat concrete, it can eat through your teeth!

And although Madison Avenue tells us that many of us suffer from too much acid, most people have too little. We’ll talk about that at a later time. If this acid and other digestive juices are needed to make food useable, and many people have too little digestive juices in the first place, why do we dilute them with liquids? Every time you drink with your meals you are diluting the natural juices needed to break down your food. Consider this, did you ever see an animal eat some food, take a little water between mouthfuls, then eat some more food? Why don’t they need to “wash it down”? Drinking with our meals is a learned habit.

Here’s an example of what drinking with meals does. Imagine that you have this awful grease stain on the floor and you are asked to get it up as quickly and completely as possible. You’d run to the cabinet and pull out your most powerful cleaning liquid. For a heavy grease stain you use it FULL STRENGTH to get the job done best. It is the same with our digestive juices, we need them to work efficiently, so why water it down with all that liquid? In fact, one of our digestive enzymes produced further past the stomach (lipase) acts just like soap, which breaks the bonds in grease (fat).

Here’s something else to think about. Did you ever see chicken soup that has been stored in the refrigerator? It gets a thick layer of solidified fat on the surface. Many of us skim it off before we reheat the soup. That layer is a liquid fat that has been turned into a solid by lowering the temperature. If we consume an iced drink with a meal, we lower the temperature in our stomach and turn liquid saturated fats into solids. Our body temperature is normally 98.6 degrees. It takes a considerable amount of time to raise the temperature of the chyme (chewed up food) to restore it back into a liquid form so that the fat-digesting enzymes will to work.

Well, if that’s not reason enough to not drink with your meals, how about this. Consider the fact that carbonated sodas are loaded with phosphorus, and phosphorus needs calcium to stabilize it, so the body pulls calcium from the bones to meet the need. If soda consumption is high and frequent, it can dangerously weaken the bones. In fact, there are known cases of people who have become bedridden with severe osteoporosis (softening of the bones) due to high soda consumption. Also, sodas change the pH (power of Hydrogen) of the body so drastically that it takes 5 glasses of water to restore the pH after 1 glass of soda. The body needs a proper pH balance to function as it should. If the pH is out of balance, digestion will be hindered and nutrients not absorbed.

If you must drink anything, consider room temperature distilled or spring water, broth or consomme and herbal teas. Avoid things that are cold. Drink a couple of glasses of water about a half hour before your meals. This will help hydrate your body, cleanse your liver, fill you up so that you don’t eat as much (WEIGHT LOSS!), dilute the toxins for removal, aid your kidneys, prevent joint diseases (some practitioners believe that disk degeneration and arthritic problems are the result of the cartilage not being supple due to dehydration.), and help your skin. My clients must drink one half gallon of pure water a day, but not with their meals. It can be done.

I’m sure there are some of you thinking that you retain water and are bloated so you should not drink any more water. The opposite is true. When the body is water deficient it produces more anti-diuretic hormone (ADH) to hold on to whatever water it has. Drinking more water tells the body that it can release what it has because it is confident that more is coming in a steady supply.

Try it for a while. Restoring health is more than taking a pill. My goal is to teach you lifestyle changes that will help your body function at its optimum level. Once we get the basics down, I will discuss particular problems and specific supplements. Try to implement what you’ve learned; any effort will help. It takes time to break old habits so be patient.

Until next time, stay with it. You are worth it!

Donna