Life Balance Northwest

How Can People Who Gorge on Fat and Rarely See a Vegetable Be Healthier Than We Are?

2012-01-08T13:42:00.000-08:00

http://discovermagazine.com/2004/oct/inuit-paradox

The Inuit Paradox

by Patricia Gadsby

This article presents a conundrum for many of us.

The Inuit demonstrate that humans can survive in good health, without diabetes, heart disease, tooth decay or constipation, on a 70% (saturated) fat carnivorous diet. Without oranges, where do they get vitamin C? Without grains, where do they get vitamin E? What about fiber? Don't they need probiotics? With so much saturated fat, why didn’t traditional Inuit endure chronic illnesses Americans believe come from eating saturated fats?

While Atkins was mostly correct in his assertion that the human body can maintain normal weight and reasonable health on a very low carbohydrate, carnivorous diet, the Inuit show that he left out a few details. He relied on muscle meat rather than organ meats, overlooked probiotics, did not include bone broth or bone-based foods for minerals, and more. This could explain why dietary supplements are required for an Atkins diet, and may also explain why some people do not do well on this diet. In his defense, however, for cultural reasons Americans are unlikely to embrace an Inuit-style diet.

To live successfully on a carnivorous diet we must eat the organs (liver, e.g.--most of us don't eat liver anymore—offal is a source of vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, and vitamin C), eat raw meat (a source of Vitamin C) and fat, make use of the bones and skin ("snout to tail" dining) and promote fermentation (rotted "stink fish", one Inuit source of probiotics). This is what the Inuit did. Since most of us eat an omnivorous diet sans organ meats (a.k.a. offal, considered "awful" by most Americans) but full of muscle meats, American omnivores are best served by eating nutrient-dense vegetables along with animal foods (meats, fish, eggs, poultry, our ancient B12 source). A clean source of raw animal foods would help us optimize our health. We need properly prepared bone broth (soup stock) to prevent mineral deficiencies, replenish and repair bones and joints, promote regularity and restful sleep, keep skin youthful, etc. (watch any film from the 1940s and notice the popularity of traditional home-made bone-based soups that take a day or two to properly prepare). We need natural fats for energy and organ support. Sadly, and to our peril, most American omnivores no longer value these dietary ways but depend on supplements and government regulated food fortification to make up for what we lack.

One might argue that the traditional Inuit were short lived as a reason not to look in their dietary direction. But most Inuit groups had a significant number of elderly individuals, sometimes living to 80 years and beyond. By and large mortality came from accidents, warfare and infectious disease rather than chronic disease. The introduction of disease by the Russians is cited as one factor in Inuit mortality, much as war and European diseases such as syphilis, small pox, measles and influenza decimated Native American populations. To say these people were short lived due to diet is unsubstantiated. Theirs are the diets that carried humans to modern times and modern longevity, with our ambulances, surgeries, heart stents and bypasses, injectable insulin, chemotherapies, antibiotics, and dentistry.

On the subject of dentistry, it turns out that the fermentable carbohydrates (sugars and starches) the Inuit lacked stress our insulin producing cells, promote obesity, strokes, heart disease and diabetes, feed cancers and rot teeth. An abscessed tooth is a potentially deadly five-alarm fire you cannot ignore. Without modern dentistry, fearing the dreaded abscess you and I might be smarter about what we eat, and if so, you might not be reading this article. Traditional native populations were acutely aware that obeying Mother Nature is the key to health. Wild animals obey her laws and have excellent teeth and overall health. Mother Nature's dietary law states that no matter what diet you embrace, if it rots your teeth don't eat it, 'just one more reason to be selective about your carbohydrate intake.

So, to those of us who insist humans require grain, fiber, fruits and vegetables, yogurt, and cannot be carnivores in good health, the Inuit demonstrate how early Native Americans survived their winters, how early humans survived the Ice Ages, and the complete nutrition available to us in wild fish and game. Although I will not embrace their diet verbatim anytime soon, I believe we can learn a lot from the traditional Inuit.

Genetically Modified Foods and Your Health

2011-03-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

Genetically modified (a.k.a. GMO, or Genetically Modified Organism) alfalfa is in the news. This novel engineered plant is now approved for use in the United States. Why should we be concerned?

Corporations act in the interests of their stockholders. Unless it also generates large profits, corporations do not genetically modify food plants in the interest of human health. Rather, the process of genetic modification allows multi-billion dollar corporations to increase their profits by patenting the novel life forms they produce. These new life forms are strange and unnatural; for example, goats have been endowed with spider genes to produce spider silk in their milk, and corn has been endowed with bacteria genes to produce pesticides. Once patented, many new life forms are broadly and intensively marketed for widespread commercial use. In the case of crop seeds, they become so widely used they monopolize the farming landscape as monocultures. These uniform crops edge out crops that lend variety to our food supply and nourish topsoils for future crops. When planted beside natural crops, GMO crops cross pollinate them, spreading their unnatural genetics ever further. This is already happening with crops such as canola, corn and soy. GMO alfalfa is one more step in this direction.

Imagine a future where you visit a garden store and find a limited selection of GMO seeds, rather than the vast variety of heirloom seeds featured in decades past. The vibrant heirloom produce enjoyed for generations has vanished. Small heirloom seed suppliers are out of business, having been sued by large corporations for patent infringement. How can this happen? When bees, birds and wind carry pollen and seeds from GMO fields to organic heirloom fields, they cross pollinate those plants with patented genetic material, and scatter genetically modified seeds onto the soil. A corporation can test the farmer's plants for their modified and patented genes. If the patented modified genes are present, not only does the farmer lose the right to call his plants "organic," but he is subject to a corporate lawsuit for patent infringement. Sadly, this is the direction in which the US is headed.

Here is a link to one example of cross contamination of organic plants that resulted in a corporate lawsuit against an organic farmer in Canada:

Monsanto vs. Percy Schmeiser

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPKoSrc99p4

After 10 years' experience with genetically modified crops in the US, no real advantage is shown in terms of yield or benefit to the food supply, and very real dangers with this technology have emerged. Health hazards seen in animals fed these crops have a high likelihood of affecting us as well.

I am one of thousands of callers to the White House who registered dissent prior to the approval of genetically modified alfalfa. During my call the volunteer who answered the phone was politely aloof until I mentioned the GMO position paper published by The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM). At that point she eagerly inquired as to how she could access this statement.

Please read this statement for yourself (see Genetically Modified Foods, below). Those of you interested in visiting the AAEM site can visit the link at the end of this post. If you, too, are convinced GMO crops may pose a threat to human health, bring this information to your government representative now. There is no time to waste.

Thank you in advance for reading, and considering the importance of the potential threat of GMO crops to you, your family, and to future generations.

__________________________________

Genetically Modified Foods

According to the World Health Organization, Genetically Modified Organisms(GMOs) are "organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in such a way that does not occur naturally."¹ This technology is also referred to as "genetic engineering", "biotechnology" or "recombinant DNA technology" and consists of randomly inserting genetic fragments of DNA from one organism to another, usually from a different species. For example, an artificial combination of genes that includes a gene to produce the pesticide Cry1Ab protein (commonly known as Bt toxin), originally found in Bacillus thuringiensis, is inserted in to the DNA of corn randomly. Both the location of the transferred gene sequence in the corn DNA and the consequences of the insertion differ with each insertion. The plant cells that have taken up the inserted gene are then grown in a lab using tissue culture and/or nutrient medium that allows them to develop into plants that are used to grow GM food crops.²

Natural breeding processes have been safely utilized for the past several thousand years. In contrast, "GE crop technology abrogates natural reproductive processes, selection occurs at the single cell level, the procedure is highly mutagenic and routinely breeches genera barriers, and the technique has only been used commercially for 10 years."³

Despite these differences, safety assessment of GM foods has been based on the idea of "substantial equivalence" such that "if a new food is found to be substantially equivalent in composition and nutritional characteristics to an existing food, it can be regarded as safe as the conventional food."⁴However, several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with GM food consumption including infertility, immune dysregulation, accelerated aging, dysregulation of genes associated with cholesterol synthesis, insulin regulation, cell signaling, and protein formation, and changes in the liver, kidney, spleen and gastrointestinal system.

There is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects. There is causation as defined by Hill's Criteria in the areas of strength of association, consistency, specificity, biological gradient, and biological plausibility.⁵The strength of association and consistency between GM foods and disease is confirmed in several animal studies.^{2,6,7,8,9,10,11}

Specificity of the association of GM foods and specific disease processes is also supported. Multiple animal studies show significant immune dysregulation, including upregulation of cytokines associated with asthma, allergy, and inflammation. ^6,11Animal studies also show altered structure and function of the liver, including altered lipid and carbohydrate metabolism as well as cellular changes that could lead to accelerated aging and possibly lead to the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ^7,8,10Changes in the kidney, pancreas and spleen have also been documented. ^6,8,10A recent 2008 study links GM corn with infertility, showing a significant decrease in offspring over time and significantly lower litter weight in mice fed GM corn.⁸ This study also found that over 400 genes were found to be expressed differently in the mice fed GM corn. These are genes known to control protein synthesis and modification, cell signaling, cholesterol synthesis, and insulin regulation. Studies also show intestinal damage in animals fed GM foods, including proliferative cell growth9 and disruption of the intestinal immune system.⁶

Regarding biological gradient, one study, done by Kroghsbo, et al., has shown that rats fed transgenic Bt rice trended to a dose related response for Bt specific IgA. ¹¹

Also, because of the mounting data, it is biologically plausible for Genetically Modified Foods to cause adverse health effects in humans.

In spite of this risk, the biotechnology industry claims that GM foods can feed the world through production of higher crop yields. However, a recent report by the Union of Concerned Scientists reviewed 12 academic studies and indicates otherwise: "The several thousand field trials over the last 20 years for genes aimed at increasing operational or intrinsic yield (of crops) indicate a significant undertaking. Yet none of these field trials have resulted in increased yield in commercialized major food/feed crops, with the exception of Bt corn."¹²However, it was further stated that this increase is largely due to traditional breeding improvements.

Therefore, because GM foods pose a serious health risk in the areas of toxicology, allergy and immune function, reproductive health, and metabolic, physiologic and genetic health and are without benefit, the AAEM believes that it is imperative to adopt the precautionary principle, which is one of the main regulatory tools of the European Union environmental and health policy and serves as a foundation for several international agreements.¹³The most commonly used definition is from the 1992 Rio Declaration that states: "In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall be widely applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation."¹³

Another often used definition originated from an environmental meeting in the United States in 1998 stating: "When an activity raises threats to the environment or human health, precautionary measures should be taken, even if some cause and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically. In this context, the proponent of an activity, rather than the public, should bear the burden of proof (of the safety of the activity)."¹³

With the precautionary principle in mind, because GM foods have not been properly tested for human consumption, and because there is ample evidence of probable harm, the AAEM asks:

Physicians to educate their patients, the medical community, and the public to avoid GM foods when possible and provide educational materials concerning GM foods and health risks.

Physicians to consider the possible role of GM foods in the disease processes of the patients they treat and to document any changes in patient health when changing from GM food to non-GM food.

Our members, the medical community, and the independent scientific community to gather case studies potentially related to GM food consumption and health effects, begin epidemiological research to investigate the role of GM foods on human health, and conduct safe methods of determining the effect of GM foods on human health.

For a moratorium on GM food, implementation of immediate long term independent safety testing, and labeling of GM foods, which is necessary for the health and safety of consumers.

(This statement was reviewed and approved by the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine on May 8, 2009.)

Submitted by Amy Dean, D.O. and Jennifer Armstrong, M.D.

Bibliography: Genetically Modified Foods Position Paper AAEM

World Health Organization. (Internet).(2002). Foods derived from modern technology: 20 questions on genetically modified foods. Available from: http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/biotech/20questions/en/index.html

Smith, JM. Genetic Roulette. Fairfield: Yes Books.2007. p.10

Freese W, Schubert D. Safety testing and regulation of genetically engineered foods. Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Reviews. Nov 2004. 21.

Society of Toxicology. The safety of genetically modified foods produced through biotechnology. Toxicol. Sci. 2003; 71:2-8.

Hill, AB. The environment and disease: association or causation? Proceeding of the Royal Society of Medicine 1965; 58:295-300.

Finamore A, Roselli M, Britti S, et al. Intestinal and peripheral immune response to MON 810 maize ingestion in weaning and old mice. J Agric. Food Chem. 2008; 56(23):11533-11539.

Malatesta M, Boraldi F, Annovi G, et al. A long-term study on female mice fed on a genetically modified soybean:effects on liver ageing. Histochem Cell Biol. 2008; 130:967-977.

Velimirov A, Binter C, Zentek J. Biological effects of transgenic maize NK603xMON810 fed in long term reproduction studies in mice. Report-Federal Ministry of Health, Family and Youth. 2008.

Ewen S, Pustzai A. Effects of diets containing genetically modified potatoes expressing Galanthus nivalis lectin on rat small intestine.Lancet. 354:1353-1354.

Kilic A, Aday M. A three generational study with genetically modified Bt corn in rats: biochemical and histopathological investigation. Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008; 46(3):1164-1170.

Kroghsbo S, Madsen C, Poulsen M, et al. Immunotoxicological studies of genetically modified rice expression PHA-E lectin or Bt toxin in Wistar rats. Toxicology. 2008; 245:24-34.

Gurain-Sherman,D. 2009. Failure to yield: evaluating the performance of genetically engineered crops. Cambridge (MA): Union of Concerned Scientists.

Lofstedt R. The precautionary principle: risk, regulation and politics. Merton College, Oxford. 2002.

For more information about the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, go to:

The AAEM

http://www.aaemonline.org/gmopost.html

Is Food Coloring Toxic?

2011-02-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

Children encounter more artificial food dyes (food colorings) daily in items such as foods, beverages, medicines and toothpaste, than ever before. In recent decades, this increase in exposure correlated with a marked increase in neuro-developmental disorders that affect behavior, such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Dr. Bernard Weiss began studying the links between food dyes and these neuro-developmental disorders in the late 1970s. In this podcast Dr. Weiss, professor in the Department of Environmental Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center, discusses why he remains convinced the two are connected.

Listen to this podcast and decide for yourself (download the MP3 file from the link below):

Environmental Health Perspectives: Neuro-behavioral Effects of Artificial Food Dyes, with Bernard Weiss http://ow.ly/3ZWd8

Estrella Family Creamery Seized by the FDA--Why does this matter?

2011-02-12T10:21:00.000-08:00

Have you heard about Estrella Family Creamery on the Washington coast? This award-winning, internationally recognized artisan creamery was seized by the FDA for it's raw milk cheese, despite the fact no one was harmed in 25 years of cheese making.

If you live in Oregon or Washington you may have enjoyed Estrella Family Creamery cheeses in a restaurant or purchased them from a high-end supermarket. These delectable cheeses are shipped all over the country. I visited the farm, which is efficiently run by the Estrella family. The cheeses are fantastic in flavor and texture, worthy of the international attention they have garnered.

Below is a link to the podcast interview with Kelly Estrella, who tells you what happened at her farm:
http://ow.ly/3VfGx

Film footage of similar actions in US farms:

http://farmageddonmovie.com/

In reading and listening to the reports it was as if the FDA and the Creamery spoke two different languages. The FDA spoke in the language of its understanding of the microbiology of individual pathogens acting alone in pasteurized milk. The Creamery spoke the language of hundreds of years of artisan cheese making, from Europe to the United States, using probiotic cultures in raw (unpasteurized) milk.

I understand the FDA's caution about single pathogenic (illness-making) bacteria. The problem, from my standpoint, is that a culture of a single pathogenic bacteria acting alone behaves very differently from a pathogen that contaminates a mixed culture of probiotic organisms (please see the studies mentioned below). When a pathogen invades pasteurized, uncultured cheese, it acts alone. The heat of pasteurization kills probiotics found naturally in fresh (raw) milk. With no probiotics (human-friendly bacteria) to counter its effects, the pathogen has free reign in the human body, causing serious illness and sometimes death. Pathogens that encounter active probiotic cultures, on the other hand, are assailed by human-friendly bacteria that produce antibiotics against it.

While I am not in favor of receiving any pathogens in my food, I'd far rather be exposed to one overwhelmed by probiotics that can suppress its growth and protect me from its effects. As you can see from the reports of raw cheese studies that follow, probiotic cheese cultures inhibit pathogens. Raw milk cheeses can even prevent food poisoning.

Please listen to the podcast linked above. If you write a blog or tweet on Twitter, please tell others about this situation. And if you have a few extra dollars and are so inclined, do not hesitate to donate to the Estrella Family, who can no longer sell their cheese, face steep attorney's fees and now depend on the good will of others. To do so will not only help this farm family, but may lead to actions that protect our access to high quality artisan cheeses while ensuring their safety.

http://estrellacheese.wordpress.com/

Thank you.

________________________________________________

More stories about Estrella Family Creamery:

FDA attacks Estrella Family Creamery near Seattle with another Morningside Dairy style raid -- The Bovine http://ow.ly/3VhYs

Please Help Estrella Family Creamery « Seattle Local Food http://ow.ly/3Vi0N

FDA ramps up scrutiny on a new area: Cheese --Washington Post http://ow.ly/3VvwG

Other articles of interest:

Study: Microbes Aid Raw Milk Cheese Safety http://ow.ly/3VjJ7

Study: Feta Cheese Made From Raw Milk Has Natural Anti-food-poisoning Properties --Reported by Science Daily News http://ow.ly/3Vjvk

Study: Cheese -- acting as 'carrier' for probiotic bacteria -- found to improve immune response of elderly http://ow.ly/3VjPZ

Study: Effect of Milk Pasteurization on Flavor Properties of Seven Commercially Available French Cheese Types - Chambers - 2010 - Journal of Sensory Studies http://ow.ly/3VjGp

Just Say 'No' to Skim Milk

2011-02-10T09:26:00.000-08:00

It was cold, calm and sunny yesterday when I made my weekly trek through wooded Oregon roads to visit my farmer, Stacie Gordon, to purchase my rations of milk and eggs. Stacie, her two small children and a number of animals pour out of her house to greet me. I’m familiar with Red Hog farm (yes, her hogs are red), to which I’ve traveled to for years. I've toured the farm many times while introducing friends and family, and when Stacie announced her sow delivered little red piglets I simply had to have another tour.

As we walked toward her breeder sow we talked about pastured pork (a delightfully different meat from what you find in most stores and restaurants) and what Stacie feeds her meat pigs. She tells me she never feeds her breeders, who are lean and fit, skim milk. She uses skim milk, which she gleans by removing the cream from milk she gets from her two Jersey milk cows, to fatten her meat pigs.

Curious, I ask, “Why do you give them skim milk? Why not full fat milk to fatten pigs?” to which she replies, “Fat satisfies their appetites. If I give them milk fat my meat pigs won’t eat!”

Farmers have long known that the most economic returns in terms of fat weight in hogs come from diets that include skim milk. From the Farmer’s Cyclopedia of Livestock, published in 1912:

Skim milk is one of the most valuable adjuncts of the farm for fattening swine. Used with corn, kafir corn or any of the common grain by-products, an almost ideal ration is formed. Hogs like it, and relish rations mixed with it. As a result of five year’s work in feeding skim milk at the New York station at Cornell, it is concluded that the most economical returns are secured when the milk is fed with corn meal.

You might think, skim milk and grains fatten hogs, but what about humans? In fact, there are studies to suggest it is the same with humans as with hogs. In the paper Milk, Dairy Fat, Dietary Calcium and Weight Gain, A Longitudinal Study of (12,829) Adolescents, Catherine Berkey et. al. conclude:

…Contrary to our hypotheses, dietary calcium and skim and 1% milk were associated with weight gain, but dairy fat was not…

OK, so full fat milk doesn't make kids fat, but what about adults?

Researchers from Stockholm’s Karolinska Institute conducted a study that monitored the dietary habits of more than 20,000 Swedish women for a decade. It turned out that women who consumed full fat milk or cheese had a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) than the rest of the group. The results were convincing enough for the researchers to recommend that a glass of full fat milk every day will cut weight gain by 15%, and a portion of full fat cheese each day will cut weight gain by 30%. Alicja Wolk, professor at the Karolinska Institute stated, “The surprising conclusion was that increased consumption of (full fat) cheese meant that overweight women lost weight.”

Yet skim and 1% milk is pervasive in school lunch programs, and throughout the American diet. If you summarize the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) food pyramid you see an emphasis on grains plus skim milk, the very combination that fattens hogs so efficiently! In fact, the USDA recommends we start the low-fat habit early: children as young as pre-school are recommended to consume non-fat or low fat milk, yogurt and cheese. With a food pyramid like this it's little wonder we face an obesity epidemic from childhood onward.

How can we reverse this trend? By voting with your dollars you tell milk producers and food manufacturers what you want. Eat little in the way of grains, and make sure the grains you eat are properly prepared (sprouted [sprouted grain breads, cereals, etc.], and fermented [sourdough breads, e.g.]). If you buy milk, buy full-fat organic milk that is not ultra-pasteurized. If you buy cheese, buy full-fat natural cheese. Your dollars will positively impact the market, you'll enhance your enjoyment of food, and you'll improve your health all at the same time! Your waistline with thank you.

Butter Up, Buttercup!

2011-01-22T09:54:00.000-08:00

Butter has long been a staple of diets of people who enjoy optimal health. Only within the past 60 years has it become the villain of heart disease lore. In the wake of its modern reputation, few realize that butter held a place in the heart of American meals long before heart disease became a problem.

In fact, real butter (butter oil, clarified butter or ghee for the lactose and casein intolerant), preferably from pasture-fed cows, should be served with every meal. The fats in butter make meals more satisfying, and people who eat butter routinely are less likely to overeat.

Butter is a key source of the most easily utilized form of Vitamin A, required for support of skin and organs, including endocrine glands, the immune system and the brain. We don’t think of antioxidants in butter, but in fact butter is loaded with them. Butter is a good source of vitamin E. It contains good cholesterol, the type that is not oxidized and is important for brain and organ function. It is a natural source of conjugated linoleic acids (CLA), which show promise in research for holding weight to a normal range and preventing diabetes.

Short and medium chain fatty acids in butter have anti-tumor effects that can help prevent cancer. Vitamins A and D in butter from healthy cows assist in the absorption of calcium for healthy bones and teeth. The iodine in butter is important for the health of the thyroid gland and a healthy metabolism by extension. Lipids in butter help protect the intestine from infection. The omega 3 fatty acids found in pasture butter are essential to brain and mental health. When paired with bread and other carbohydrate sources, butter slows the entry of sugar into the bloodstream, and when melted over hot vegetables, butter helps them surrender their nutrients in forms easy to digest.

Butter appears to be heart protective. Butter is one of the best foods for increasing the HDLs, or "good cholesterol" in your bloodstream. Research shows its effect on LDLs is to make them large and fluffy, a condition known as "Pattern A", so LDLs are less likely to contribute to clogged arteries.

Cows properly fed on nutrient rich green pastures are the healthiest. Butter from these cows (pasture butter) is the most nutritious of all. This vibrant gold butter derives its rich yellow color from carotenes in the greens cows eat. Osteoporosis and coronary artery disease (heart disease) are strongly associated with deficiencies of Vitamin K2, and pasture butter is chock full of this nutrient. All this from a food that tastes delicious!

These are just a few of the virtues of real butter. When it comes to butter, purchase the highest quality you can find. Pastured, cultured butter is best. Butter of this quality is harvested from Spring through Autumn, but thanks to refrigeration companies that produce it can make it available year round. Links to three sources of pasture butter can be found below:

http://www.organicvalley.coop/products/butter/pasture/

Organic Valley Pasture Butter

http://www.kerrygold.com/usa/product_butter.php

Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter

http://www.pastureland.coop/products/butter

PastureLand Butter

Get PastureLand Butter while it lasts! My sources tell me PastureLand is running low, but should start refilling their stock on or after May 1st, 2011 when pastures are lush. Do sample their pasture cheese :)

And in the words of butter-loving Julia Child, who lived until 2 days before her 92^nd birthday, “Bon appetit!”

My Podcast with Jimmy Moore, LivinLaVidaLowCarb

2011-01-20T10:01:00.000-08:00

My podcast interview with Jimmy Moore of LivinLaVidaLowCarb is posted at http://ow.ly/3U8f5 In this interview we discuss the role of diet, and carbohydrates in particular, in mental health.

You can also find our podcast interview on iTunes. Please join us!

Carbohydrates, Autism and ADHD

2011-01-12T22:26:00.000-08:00

Dr. S asks, "What do you see as the role or roles of carbohydrate foods in the development of child mental disorders such as ADHD and autism?"

While refined carbohydrates and sugars are not shown to cause autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), they can worsen symptoms in a number of ways. In the US, highly refined carbohydrates, sugars included, are heavily marketed to children. When eaten, refined carbohydrates (including unsweetened carbohydrates, unsweetened cornflakes is one example) convert to sugar in the digestive system, quickly enter the bloodstream, and are quickly cleared by the flood of insulin they promote. Brain cells, which cannot store carbohydrates for energy, feel the sudden loss of fuel, and the sugar high becomes a sugar crisis as children become inattentive and agitated due to the sudden drop in blood sugar.

A frequently overlooked way that refined carbohydrates contribute to symptoms of ADHD and Autism is by robbing the body’s supply of magnesium over time. Both Autism and ADHD share hyperactivity in common, and studies suggest magnesium deficiency exacerbates hyperactivity. Children deficient in magnesium have higher hyperactivity scores, and a combination of B6 and magnesium has been shown to reduce hyperactivity in ADHD children whose red blood cells test low in magnesium.

There is evidence to suggest the behavior and perceptions of autistic children benefit from robust cultures of probiotic bacteria in the intestine. These probiotic bacterial cultures are sensitive to diet. Refined carbohydrates and sugars upset the balance of the intestine, fueling the growth of pathogenic bacteria and yeast that crowd out desirable inhabitants.

Children with ADHD and Autism frequently have special metabolic needs that can only be addressed by a nutrient dense diet. Diluting the diet with empty calories, such as those provided by refined carbohydrates and sugars, denies a child access to nutrients needed to optimize brain function, and behavior by extension.

These are just a few considerations among the many studied, and they are not limited to children with ADHD and Autism. All children deserve a nutrient dense diet free of refined carbohydrates for optimal growth and development.

For more information, please join me with Dr. Robert Su as we explore pediatric nutrition and mental health in our podcast at the following link:

http://www.carbohydratescankill.com/1231/dr-ann-childers-returns-discuss-pediatric-nutrition-ep-31

You can also find this podcast on iTunes.

A New Podcast

2010-12-29T22:54:00.000-08:00

Please join Dr. Robert Su and me for our podcast:

Diet and Adulthood Psychiatric Disorders with Ann Childers, M.D. (Episode 29)

http://www.carbohydratescankill.com/1140/dr-ann-childers-ep-29

You can also find this podcast on iTunes.

Thank you for listening. We welcome your comments!

A No Carbohydrate Doctor?

2010-12-28T12:08:00.000-08:00

Dr. Childers, I understand you are a low carbohydrate doctor. Does this mean you recommend your patients eat no carbohydrates at all?

Stanley W.

Dear Stanley,

Thank you for your question. I am asked this a lot.

In fact, I do not recommend a near-zero carbohydrate diet. The vast majority of people in the US do not eat the parts of animals that provide the nutrition needed to sustain a near-zero carbohydrate diet (raw meat, fat, bone marrow, bone broth and the guts and brain, also known as offal; the "snout to tail" dietary approach of carnivorous cultures like the traditional Inuit). Fortunately we can derive vitamins, minerals and other dietary elements our bodies need from select animal foods (choline, so essential to health and so richly available in offal, can also be obtained from eggs and liver, e.g.) and carefully selected plant-based carbohydrate sources, which are more acceptable to our culture.

I do recommend limiting carbohydrates. My proposed carbohydrate limit is less than 40% maximum of the daily diet, or less than 800 Calories in a 2000 Calorie-per-day diet. America’s history suggests we began gaining weight and became mentally and physically sicker when we stopped eating traditional fats from meat, fish, poultry, eggs and milk, while increasing our carbohydrate intakes to greater than 40% of our diets, or more than 800 Calories of carbohydrates in a 2000 Calorie-per-day diet. Holding carbohydrate consumption to 40% or less of Calories should make a healthy difference.

Over the past three decades we've been so preoccupied with eliminating natural dietary fats from our diets we allowed a dietary villain, refined carbohydrate (starch and sugar, e.g.), to invade our food supply. According to the American Heart Association the average American adult now consumes 22 teaspoons of added sugar each day. If this sugar is consumed over and above an adult’s daily caloric requirements, 22 teaspoons of added sugars translate to a weight gain of nearly 36 lbs. per year. The average adolescent boy consumes 35 teaspoons of added sugar, or 560 Calories per day. If this sugar is consumed over and above an adolescent’s daily caloric requirements, 35 teaspoons of added sugars translate to a weight gain of nearly 57 lbs. per year! Most Americans do not realize they eat so much sugar. We are so distracted by worries over how much fat is in our food we lose sight of the added sugars pervasive in our low-fat processed foods, juices and soft drinks. Yet research now suggests it is the sugars, along with rapidly digested carbohydrates (starches, cereals, baked goods, crackers, etc.), and not naturally occurring saturated fats from animals and tropical plants, that cause heart disease and strokes.

We don't think of malnourishment when it comes to Americans, but in fact our wealthy nation is malnourished on a mammoth scale. Two-thirds of Americans are now overweight or obese; once a disease of older people, Type II diabetes now affects adolescents; and fatty liver disease, once a disease of alcoholics, now affects as much as 20% of adults and nearly 5% of children:

http://www.acg.gi.org/patients/gihealth/fld.asp

Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, American College of Gastroenterology

As a doctor it is my responsibility to exercise as much damage control for my malnourished patients as possible. To this end I am specific about the carbohydrate foods I recommend. All carbohydrates are not created equal. Some dietary carbohydrates cause a rapid rise in blood sugars, and others do not. Food science tried to address this problem with recommendations to follow the glycemic index or glycemic load, but these are imperfect measures of carbohydrate toxicity. For example, fructose, a type of sugar that is implicated in fatty liver disease and metabolic syndrome, has a low glycemic index.

For my patients’ carbohydrates I promote vegetables first, and whole fruits a sparing second, with berries most recommended in the fruit category (See Laura Dolson’s Food Pyramid in the column to the right of this article). I recommend sprouted grains; for example, in my locale Dave's Killer Bread, and Ezekiel Bread have sprouted varieties, and sprouted grain cereals are available at food co-ops and whole foods stores. I also recommend sourdough (fermented) breads. Sprouting and fermenting are ancient methods of handling grains in civilizations surviving without benefit of modern medicine. Prepared in this fashion, grain products are naturally lower in carbohydrates than most modern commercial breads, and lower in toxins such as phytates which prevent absorption of key minerals.

Such grain preparations may provide some health benefits, or at least do less harm than commercial cereals, baked goods, candy, etc. Topping such breads with real butter slows the release of sugars even further, providing added assurance that carbohydrates will digest slowly enough for the body to manage them without undue stress.

Research is scant on the subject of sprouted and soured (fermented) grains, but here are a couple of links of interest:

Effect of pre-germinated brown rice intake on diabetic neuropathy in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats (from the journal Nutrition & Metabolism):

http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/4/1/25
Pre-germinated ("sprouted") brown rice lowered blood sugars and helped damaged nerves recover in diabetic rats.

and

The Impact of Ingestion of Breads of Varying Composition on Biomarkers of Glucose Metabolism in Overweight and Obese Adults

http://www.uoguelph.ca/hhns/grad/pdf_theses/MofidiPhDThesis.pdf

Ironically, in this study whole wheat bread caused the greatest blood sugar rise, significantly greater than that of white bread. Sourdough yielded the safest blood sugar profile.

In addition, there is strong evidence to advise my patients that, "If it rots your teeth, don't eat it.":

Dietary Carbohydrates and Dental-Systemic Diseases

http://jdr.sagepub.com/content/88/6/490.abstract
Fermentable carbohydrates that rot teeth in the short term promote pre-diabetes and diabetes in the long run. Examples include sweets, crackers, soft and sticky fruits, pretzels and potato chips.

Cultivate Your Inner Spa

2010-11-16T14:09:00.000-08:00

Attractiveness is more than skin deep. It begins deep inside our bodies, starting with bones and organs, and finishing with nails, hair and skin. It's the sparkling eye, the energetic step. Vitamins, minerals and other elements your body needs to build and maintain its structure contribute to outward beauty. But before you reach into your wallet to purchase an expensive jar of supplements, read on, as some of the most potent nutrients of the highest quality can be prepared right in your kitchen!

Bones provide the "chassis," or framework, for the face, jaw and body over which other tissues are positioned. Good nutrition strengthens bones. In persons who have been malnourished, often for years (osteoporosis, e.g.), good bone nutrition can help fortify bone to restore jaw structure, spare the teeth by increasing the bone density around roots, and improve the appearance of cheekbones. Good bone nutrition includes fat soluble vitamins (among the most publicized of these is vitamin D), minerals, chondroitin sulfate, glucosamine, collagen, silica, hyaluronic acid and other bone elements. Since it's hard to know how our bones are doing (unless your doctor runs tests) we can look to outward appearance for clues. Related signs of good bone nutrition include smooth, hard nails with white tips that do not crack or split, a natural “French manicure.” Dense (in contrast with translucent) pearly white teeth are another clue. Nutrients that build bones benefit other organs, including the skin. With good bone nutrition lips appear smoother and resist cracking, and collagen in skin can be spared, or rebuilt to fill the skin and soften wrinkles.

Healthy fats provide support for all of the organs of the body. These fats ensure the fat soluble vitamins D, A, K and E enter the system and can do their work to support the health and function of bones, brain and other organs. Fats can influence how our genetics are expressed (our phenotype); healthy fats make us look healthy. Complaints of dry eyes, flaky skin and scalp and cracks on lips and at the corners of the mouth suggest fatty acid deficiencies. Glossy hair; skin that is moist, somewhat waxy and water resistant (water beads up on the skin); clear, moist eyes and lips suggest a healthy fat intake. Fats also fade fine wrinkles.

A diet low in processed foods is age-defying. Processed foods most often consist of heat processed and baked goods (dry cereals, bread crusts, French fries, potato chips, e.g.). Foods like these acquire Advanced Glycation Endproducts (AGEs) from a chemical reaction that occurs during heat processing. AGEs are chemicals that age you rapidly, making you look and feel old before your time. Moreover, they are capable of inflicting damage to every organ in the body. Processed foods are not the only source of AGEs. A diet high in carbohydrates, particularly sweets and starches, keeps blood sugars high in pre-diabetics and diabetics. About one in four American adults has pre-diabetes, and because it is silent many of us do not know we have it. When sugars linger in the blood stream they stick to proteins in cell membranes forming AGEs inside the body. The ravages of AGEs show up in the skin as wrinkles and sagging. More seriously, it is these AGEs that promote the most damaging diabetes side effects, such as blindness, deafness, heart attacks, stroke and kidney disease. All too often by the time a person is diagnosed with diabetes, diabetes-related organ damage from AGEs has already occurred.

Iron and Vitamin D push color and definition into the complexion. People who are anemic and/or iron deficient tend to appear pale and listless. Some have an unattractive grey pallor. The eyes seem distant and the spark of vitality is diminished. Although physically present, these folks can seem mentally absent from conversations and activities. Those fortunate enough to have sufficient vitamin D and iron (a state of health less and less common in modern times) exhibit slightly darker skin (a light “tan”) and a healthy glow, with rich skin tones. They are more attentive and energetic. Fortunately, both deficiencies are easily corrected. With the correction of vitamin D and/or iron deficiency the change in complexion, skin tones, lip color and energy levels can be remarkable, rejuvenating one’s appearance by as much as 10 years!

To look and feel your best, cultivate your inner spa. A balanced diet of whole foods is age-defying. Avoiding processed foods, refined foods, sweets and starches is first line in staying young.

For enhanced overall nourishment for bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, skin, hair, nails, the nervous system and other organs, daily bone broth (a type of soup stock) is an excellent choice. Among the myriad attributes of this vital tonic are its ability to increase energy. Broth can be prepared from fish, chicken, lamb, beef and other animals. More information with wonderful recipes can be found here:

http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/515-broth-is-beautiful.html

For energy, well-being and a glowing complexion, ask your doctor to check your levels of vitamin D and iron. I use the following tests in my clinic:

Vitamin D: 25OHVitaminD and Serum Calcium

Iron: Ferritin and C-Reactive Protein (CRP)

Fresh (not oxidized), natural fats are an important part of a rejuvenating diet. Know your fats. More information on healthy fats can be found here:

http://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats.html

Bon appetit!

Gluten-Free Foods Dangerous?

2010-11-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

As a physician who works with diabetics and pre-diabetics I was dismayed by the November 4^th Nightline broadcast regarding the “dangers” of gluten-free food, of the type recommended for those with celiac disease. The type of gluten persons with celiac disease should not eat is found such grains as wheat, barley, rye and spelt.

In the context of millions of years of human nutrition, grains are a recent addition to the human diet as of only the past 10,000 years, when agriculture emerged. The advantage of agriculture was the ability to form settlements rather than migrate with animals for food. But our hunter-gatherer bodies, which persist to this day, never adjusted to grains; for example, with the introduction of grains came dental decay. As grain-based foods became more refined we began to suffer from diabetes as well. We continue to have no nutritional requirement for grains.

A diet rich in wheat is promoted by the USDA as a way to fulfill it's mandate to promote agriculture; there is no scientific basis on which to promote a high wheat intake from the standpoint of public health. A gluten-free diet is of benefit not only for persons with celiac disease, but millions upon millions of Americans who would never qualify for that diagnosis. Whole wheat is poor in calcium bioavailability (contrary to the Nightline report), and it’s contribution of fiber to the diet does not necessarily confer a health advantage. In fact, the "advantages" of high fiber diets are greatly exaggerated--ask any traditional Eskimo who never saw grain and rarely encountered vegetation yet lived entirely on animals without constipation, tooth decay, diabetes, heart disease or cancer. Moreover, in our modern society grains are not properly prepared to neutralize phytates. Phytates in grain fiber rob the meal, and the body by extension, of nutrition. Grains should be soured (fermented) or soaked ("sprouted") to neutralize their anti-nutrients.

Grains can be replaced with non-starchy vegetables. Add high quality protein sources like eggs, meat, poultry and fish; add whole fruits (no juices) in moderation (berries are a good choice); eat fermented foods for probiotics (kefir, yogurt, e.g.); infuse dishes with soup stock (mineral-rich bone broth) daily; make every bite nutrient dense (difficult to accomplish when eating primarily wheat products), and you blaze a path to wellness, sans gluten.

For instruction on neutralizing phytates in grains, legumes and nuts, along with great bone broth recipes, read Nourishing Traditions (see reference under Recommended Reading, to the right of this column).

For a low grain food pyramid, see Laura Dolson's Low Carbohydrate Food Pyramid (under Nutrition Links, to the right of this column).

For Health and Longevity, Cut the Carbohydrates In Your Diet

2010-11-01T20:29:00.000-07:00

No one knows the exact reason people with mental health issues are more likely than people without mental illness to become insulin-resistant or diabetic, but they are. Regardless of whether mental illness is present, these insulin-related disorders cause premature aging; damage to the brain, nervous system, heart and blood vessels; shorter lives, and a decreased quality of life. They are conditions that affect not only persons with mental illness, but are rapidly ranking among the most common health problems throughout the United States.

Sadly, we Americans eat diets far higher in carbohydrates than what is healthy for us. The US Department of Agriculture encourages us to eat 6-11 servings of grains each day. The American Heart Association reports the average American adult eats or drinks 22 teaspoons (close to 400 Calories) of added sugar per day, while the American teenager averages 34 teaspoons of added sugars per day. Add to these starchy vegetables such as French fried potatoes, with fruit juices and sodas, and our average carbohydrate intake hovers at or above 55-60% of daily calories.

So, you may ask, what is the problem? Isn’t a high carbohydrate, low fat diet heart-healthy? The answer is, no.

You see, while our diets have changed, our bodies have not changed from the time we were hunters and gatherers. Back then, humans ate plant foods in season, animals, insects, fish and precious little sugar. High levels of free sugar in the blood stream is toxic. What little sugar humans ate was readily managed by a small amount of insulin, produced by tiny cells in the pancreas on an “as needed” basis. Sugar is hot fuel for the body, and toxic when left in the blood stream. Insulin is made available for emergencies, to quickly clear sugar from the blood before any mischief occurs. The hunter-gatherer’s diet was in balance with his body, and relatively little insulin was required to sustain a healthy bloodstream.

Beginning about 10,000 years ago, agriculture emerged. The strategy of raising grains and rearing cattle for milk and meat allowed humans to become civilized, settling in one place for centuries, a feat impossible when man was forced to follow animals for food. But with dependence on agriculture came side effects, starting with dental decay from the increase in fermentable carbohydrates (sugars and starches, e.g). Whereas tooth decay in healthy hunter-gatherer societies was rare, in agricultural societies it was quite common. In fact, scientists who study ancient human remains look for tooth decay as a sign they come from agricultural groups.

Highly processed carbohydrate foods made their debut in recent centuries, and became more widely available with each passing decade. So denatured are these foods that they bear only a faint resemblance to the plants they came from, and they are rich in sugars. Most people do not realize that even unsweetened processed foods are rich in sugars. When grains are refined (powdered to flour and processed), they become quick digesting carbohydrates. Foods from refined grains can digest so quickly they start to turn to sugar in your mouth before they reach your stomach. Products we don’t think of as sweet, like pasta, saltine crackers and unsweetened cornflakes, turn to sugar so fast your body behaves as if you’ve eaten pure sugar. Another agricultural product, milk, is a source of sugar as well. Whole milk products contain fat, which slows the entrance of sugar into your bloodstream. But when fats are removed, sugar from milk enters the bloodstream more rapidly. You may think eating unsweetened cornflakes with skim milk is a healthy choice, but your body reacts as if you’ve just eaten a decadent dessert!

In addition to being the sugar mop-up crew, insulin is a storage hormone. When confronted with large quantities of sugar, a sugar “emergency,” the body burns as much as it can as fuel. Left over sugar is managed by insulin, which quickly sweeps it from the blood stream. Insulin first fills the small sugar storage spaces provided by muscles and the liver, but these organs can take up relatively little sugar. The largest sugar storage compartment in the human body is fat. Once the smaller sugar compartments are full, insulin next assists with storing the remaining sugar in the form of fat. For most Americans this is a daily occurrence that happens without their awareness.

Early in our lives insulin handles such sugar emergencies with ease. However, over the years, our bodies become less able to manage sugar floods. Cells in the body become deaf to insulin. Organs that used to allow insulin and its sugar cargo inside for storage no longer recognize insulin as well as they used to. They resist insulin, locking insulin and sugar out. When the liver resists insulin as well, sugar cannot enter to be turned into fat for storage. Locked out with nowhere to go, insulin and sugar stay in the bloodstream longer than they should. The condition where too much insulin and sugar linger in the bloodstream is called “insulin resistance.” Left unchecked, this progresses to Metabolic Syndrome (“pre-diabetes”), and may progress to Type II Diabetes later on. These conditions threaten the heart, brain and overall health. New research suggests this process contributes to dementia (Alzheimer’s) as well.

What can be done? If you are ill, be sure to consult your physician for dietary guidance. If you are a healthy adult and want to prevent insulin resistance and enhance your quality of life, a helpful first step and one that’s easy to remember is to rid yourself of “white” foods. White foods are processed and refined foods that include ingredients usually considered white in color, like flour, rice, pasta, bread (even whole wheat bread), crackers, cereal and simple sugars like table sugar and high fructose corn syrup (in sweetened sodas, agave 'nectar', e.g.). Natural, unprocessed white foods like onions, radishes and turnips do not fall into the same category as these starchy, processed foods. If you must have bread, look for sourdough or sprouted grain breads, and eat even these breads sparingly. Milk should be full fat (whole), and preferably cultured (yoghurt, kefir, cheese, etc.) to reduce the amount of milk sugars available. Fruit juices should be avoided, in favor of eating whole fruit. Potatoes and other starchy root vegetables like carrots should be eaten in moderation. For those desiring a more advanced approach, I recommend Laura Dolson’s Low Carbohydrate Food Pyramid. You can find a link to her site under Nutrition Links to the right of this column.

Small changes to your diet, consistently applied, become habits for a lifetime of good health. Treat your hunter-gatherer body to the food it needs. Curb your refined carbohydrates to keep your natural insulin requirements low. Eat more like your ancient ancestors did and you can expect to increase your vitality and quality of life.

Can Humans Eat Like Gorillas?

2010-09-30T10:42:00.000-07:00

Dear Dr. Childers,

The other day I had a disagreement with a vegan friend of mine. He says gorillas live on vegetation, and so can we. I argued that we need meat to be healthy. Who is right?

An omnivore.

Dear Omnivore,

To eat like a gorilla we should graze all day (forget holding a job) to obtain 40 lbs. of vegetation (requires a big gut) and develop the ability to digest cellulose. If your friend can digest cardboard snacks he just might begin to qualify.

Many who become vegan do not do so for health reasons, but out of compassion for animals and a disdain for modern, large-scale commercial farming practices. I understand their concerns, and agree change is necessary (sustainable farming, e.g.), but will reserve my comments for a later post.

In terms of diet, humans are more aligned with the omnivorous chimpanzee, which, in addition to vegetation, eats termites, eggs, ants, small animals and occasionally hunts for meat. I recall hearing a report on the radio (probably NPR) that the chimp who delivers the most meat to females fathers the

most offspring. Hunter chimps are the fit whose genetics survive.

Gorillas do not worry about natural sources of B12. Humans do, and the human gut uses meat to create B12. Fortunately for vegans and some vegetarians, they cheat a little (take B12 and perhaps calcium and other supplements created in the lab). But our success as a species is measured by our ability to survive in any climate, sans laboratory-created supplements. Unlike his omnivore brothers, the vegan or strict vegetarian could not survive in a wilderness for long.

Strict vegetarian and vegan diets suffer from a number of other significant nutritional drawbacks. Omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA are nearly absent from a vegan/strict vegetarian diet. Vegetarians who do not eat fish tend to be deficient in these essential fatty acids. And without red meat, iron stores are very difficult to support on these diets; most vegans/vegetarians who do not take supplements have poor iron stores.

Then there are concerns about growth and development. Children require energy dense foods. Pound for pound they consume and expend more energy than most adults. Children on vegan diets must eat too much bulk to get the energy they need to support normal growth and development. Children need a nutrient-dense diet. A diet that is high in bulk and indigestible fiber compromises nutrition and places them at risk, for example, to become short adults.

From evolutionary and developmental standpoints, it takes a lot of nutritional resources to develop and support a big brain. The brain is about 70% fat, and contains lots of cholesterol. An important contributor to brain development in humans is animal fat. If vegans/vegetarians do not breast feed their infants, or otherwise fill their fat requirements, their infants may be compromised. Soy formula is not an ideal substitute, and is currently under scrutiny for its high phytoestrogen content and other potential nutritional and hormonal problems.

Some argue there are cultures that are entirely vegetarian that do well. This is not shown to be the case. Vegetarians in India, for example, suffer from a number of nutrition-related problems. Additionally, from a historical standpoint the ingestion of insects and grubs in the diet has been too often overlooked when native diets are documented out in the field--a Western culture blind spot. Grubs, for example, are a nutrient-dense source of "animal" fats and iron for many cultures, but are not considered "meat."

http://www.rumbalara-e.schools.nsw.edu.au/bushtucker/Xyleutes_sp1.htm

'Gives new meaning to "serving up some grub."

To make a short story long (a skill of mine), I side with you in this argument. This said, there are many paths to a healthy human diet, from carnivorous to omnivorous. I sincerely hope your friend finds his own path to lasting health and happiness.

Your Two Brains: Your Brain, Your Gut and Mental Health

2010-09-08T09:46:00.000-07:00

"All diseases begin in the gut." -- Hippocrates

Have you ever had a gut feeling? Does public speaking tie your stomach in knots? When attracted to someone do you feel butterflies in your stomach? Does a sour stomach sour your mood?

Your body has a second brain, your gut. Your gut is rich in chemical messengers called neurotransmitters, which are identical to those in your brain. Serotonin, dopamine, glutamine, GABA and norepinephrine are among neurotransmitters found in both the gut and the brain, that allow the two to maintain constant communication. In fact, 95% of the neurotransmitter serotonin in your body can be found in your gut. Researchers often refer to this chemical communication system as the brain-gut axis.

Medications that target the brain can affect the gut as well. For example, one side effect of antidepressants that target serotonin is gut discomfort. Psychiatric medications can increase or decrease appetite. Such effects of psychiatric medications on the gut are well recognized by psychiatrists and primary care providers.

Nutrient deficiencies are common to people with depression, which may be a by-product of diet and/or poor digestion. Food intolerances, such as celiac disease (an intolerance of gluten, a component of wheat and other grains, that results in damage to the gut), are found in many people with schizophrenia. Iron and fatty acid deficiencies are common to persons with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The list goes on and on. Improving digestion and nutrient intake can help people with psychiatric disorders achieve a better quality of life.

It might seem obvious that good digestion supports brain health, and poor digestion sabotages it, yet folks with mental illness seldom receive attention to their diet and digestion. If you suffer from a mental illness and experience digestive problems it is important to include your second brain, your gut, in your treatment plan. Consult your mental health and primary care providers. Improving gut health can improve your mental health. Your brain, and your gut, will thank you for it.

Energy and Endurance for Work and School

2010-07-22T10:36:00.000-07:00

If you work or go to school full time you know how tiring long days can be. When your time is not your own, self care can slip before you reailze it. Staying energetic throughout the day is doable, but will take some planning. Here are some tips to enhance your endurance:

Get enough sleep. Too many of us think we can rob ourselves of sleep and function well the next day. Not true. Everyone needs his or her full complement of sleep and most of us need seven to eight hours. Sleep as many hours as it takes to awaken well rested. Tell your doctor if you snore, have a hard time getting up in the AM and feel tired during the day--you may need a sleep study.

Eat breakfast and bring a nourishing lunch and snacks. Most vending machines contain foods high in sugars and starch that can rob you of energy not long after you eat them. Instead, eat a good breakfast and plan your lunch and snacks the night before. If you eat most of your calories during the day and your smallest meal at day’s end, you’ll save evening cooking time and sleep better at night.

Take a brisk walk. Just a 10 minute walk in fresh air can revive you when you feel fatigued. It’s a great alternative to “one more cup of coffee,” particularly in the afternoon when caffeine is most likely to rob you of sleep at night.

Power nap. A 10-20 minute nap can provide energy and alertness for another four hours. Carve out a 15-20 minute slot sometime during the day when you can get away from your work or study environment. Your car, for example, can provide a handy getaway. Set a timer (your watch or cell phone may have an alarm feature), relax and close your eyes. Your mind may benefit from this exercise, even if you only fall half asleep.

Eat a leisurely lunch. Wolfing down food is for wolves; humans do not fare so well with this strategy. And working at your desk while you eat is a shortcut to stress, so step away from your work, relax and enjoy your lunch.

Go easy on carbs. Ever wonder why you feel sleepy after a meal of pasta? According to a study by researchers at the Chicago Medical School and published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, eating carbohydrates allows your body make more serotonin out of the amino acid tryptophan. Serotonin helps you feel relaxed, and your brain can convert it to melatonin to promote sleep. So when planning your meals, especially lunch and afternoon snacks, one strategy is to eat proteins and fats but limit processed carbohydrates. For instance, try a snack of apple and cheese or smoked fish and a bit of bread or crackers made from sprouted grains.

Go for protein. Shift your meal planning to include more protein. The proteins and amino acids in fish, poultry, meat and eggs can help boost your alertness. These foods also contain tyrosine, an amino acid that the body uses to make the adrenalin-like neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine that provide an energy boost.

If you eat a high carb diet, graze. Big meals can likewise leave you feeling tired, particularly when the overall diet is high in carbohydrates. If you tend to eat a lot of refined carbohydrates, you will need to eat smaller meals more frequently — every couple of hours — to keep your blood sugar stable and get the calorie flow needed to fuel your energy engine. A better strategy, ridding your diet of refined starches and sugars while adding healthy, natural dietary fats and proteins to meals and snacks, can keep blood sugars level throughout the day with fewer meals.

Drink plenty of water. According to a recent article in Psychology Today, mild dehydration is an often overlooked caused of fatigue.

Re-set your bio clock. Our natural biological clock that tells us when to get up and when to sleep has an amazing impact on our mental and physical well-being. Changing the clock, as in daylight saving or a four-day schedule change, can dramatically impact how we feel. Biologist David Glass of Kent State University, who has been studying the bio clock for about 15 years, says exercising stimulates the release of serotonin in the brain which controls the clock, and can help you adjust more easily to a new schedule. He also suggests exposing yourself in the mornings to a full-spectrum light for the first few weeks.

Fiber: Health or Hype?

2010-07-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

Americans are obsessed with their digestive systems (little wonder, since the Standard American Diet—or SAD–gives them so much grief!). Now, entire industries arise fueled by our quests for gastrointestinal health. Many of us believe ourselves vulnerable to colonic autointoxication, from bacterial waste accumulating in a lazy colon. Some are convinced they can offload as much as 20 pounds of accumulated stool with one or more high colonics, while others believe parasites live to ravage the unclean digestive tract. As a result we engage in everything from laxatives to suppositories to high colonics in our efforts to correct real and imagined gastrointestinal shortfalls, without lasting results. Of all the approaches we take to colon health, the best known and most generally accepted is dietary fiber.

Most Americans are unaware that vegetable fiber is not necessary for human health. The traditional carnivorous Arctic-living Inuit never see a plant in winter, yet do not perish from constipation. In contrast to cooked and pasteurized animal foods, raw meats and dairy feed probiotic bacteria that regulate elimination. These raw animal products possess colloidal properties that draw water into digesting foods, aiding their transit through the digestive system. The Masai diet consists primarily of raw blood, some raw meat, and cultured milk. Raw blood, meat and dairy possess the colloidal properties previously mentioned, and raw cultured milk is teeming with probiotic bacteria.

Soluble Fiber

Like anything in life, fiber has its yin and yang. Many types of fiber contribute to short bowel transit times (the time it takes for food to digest and for both food, and eventually, waste products to make the journey through the intestines to the rectum), resulting in the regularity of at least one healthy bowel movement per day. For example, soluble fibers such as pectins and fructooligosaccharides feed beneficial bacteria, which ensure healthy intestines and bolster our immune systems. Colloidal fruit and vegetable pectins and fiber withstand high heats; when cooked they draw water from the body into food to aid digestion, make stools moist, and shorten transit time from stomach to rectum.

Insoluble Fiber

Insoluble fiber, on the other hand, can contribute to constipation and malnutrition over time. Studies show that, while such fiber is likely to help a small subgroup of constipated people, it is more likely to aggravate constipation in those most afflicted. Fiber does bind water, but this property is lost when it is split, or absorbed. All too often commercial fiber sold to correct constipation is neither split nor absorbed; in fact, a common side effect of fiber promoted to prevent constipation is worsening constipation. Bran, for example, is an insoluble fiber widely promoted for colon health. Poorly digested by bacteria, bran retains its ability to absorb water and may (or may not!) shorten transit times through the digestive system. This insoluble fiber (and others) can actually worsen constipation. And, along with other fibers common to seeds, nuts, beans and legumes, bran fiber bears a significant shortcoming: phytates. Phytates bind minerals such as iron, magnesium and zinc, preventing them from being absorbed by the body, resulting in deficiencies.

My advice: eat a healthy diet low in processed foods. Eat a rich source of probiotics, such as yogurt, or even better, kefir containing live cultures every day. If you suffer from constipation or other bowel distress do not assume fiber deficiency is the villain. Common medical and physiological conditions, such as dehydration, thyroid disease, magnesium deficiency and gut dysbiosis (a collection of unfriendly bacteria and yeast in the digestive system), may underlie your difficulties. Undergo a medical examination to find the root of the problem, then join with your doctor to take steps to correct it. Learn all you can about maintaining the health of your digestive system. Your body will thank you.

______

Resources (if you do not see a working hyperlink, copy the address and paste it into your address bar to access the information):

Healthy eating does not have to be expensive. Below are healthy but inexpensive ways to enrich your diet with probiotics:

How to make your own kefir, and more: Dom's Kefir-making in-site

http://users.sa.chariot.net.au/~dna/Makekefir.html

How To Make Fresh Healthy Homemade Yogurt - YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTM_tafz3Bg

Oy, Soy--Should You Eat It?

2010-07-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

Soy’s meteoric rise began in 1999, when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the use of health claims by food manufacturers about the role of soy protein in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease. Within months the Nutritional Committee of the American Heart Association (AHA) followed suit, officially recommending dietary soy protein containing isoflavones for high-riskpopulations with elevated LDL and total cholesterol.

But just six years later the AHA’s Nutritional Committee reversed its position, stating the average effect of soy isoflavones on LDL cholesterol and other lipid and heart risk factors is “nil,” After examining reports of soy’s effects on heart disease, cancer and menopause, the AHA concluded, “…earlier research indicating that soy protein has clinically important favorable effects as compared with other proteins has not been confirmed.”

If you are confused, you are not alone. Although the AHA reversed its position, the FDA continues to approve soy’s ‘heart-healthy’ claims, resulting in mixed messages to the public.

Certain properties render soy protein isolates and isoflavones unsuitable for human consumption. These properties are so well recognized that attempts by food manufacturers to persuade the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to accept soy protein isolates or soy isoflavones in its “Generally Recognized As Safe” (GRAS) foods list have failed.

Soy binds minerals. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports the very high phytate content of soy binds iron and zinc, making them unavailable to infants. (Phytate is a plant substance that binds certain minerals making them unavailable.) Modern soy formulas are mineral-fortified to prevent this. The AAP also reports modern soyformulas contain 9 to 325 times as much aluminum, a common byproduct of soy processing, as in human milk. The AAP cautions against soy protein-based formula for preterm infants, as aluminum’s competition with calcium causes brittle bones. Of note, aluminum is also linked to adult neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.

Two recent studies link tofu to accelerated brain aging in adults. In year 2000 a Hawaii study found, “Poor cognitive test performance, enlargement of ventricles and low brain weight were each significantly and independently associated with higher midlife tofu consumption.” In June this year, a Loughborough University-led study of 719 aging Indonesians reported similar results. Animal studies support findings that soy foods can rapidly age the brain.

Soy is promoted as enhancing bone health. Yet the AAP’s 2006 policy statement, “Optimizing Bone Health and Calcium Intakes in Children and Adolescents,” points out: “calcium in soy products has low bioavailability.” So, as with infants, it is difficult, if not impossible, for children to obtain adequate dietary calcium in the presence of unfortified soy.

Soy is also promoted as a cancer preventative. Whatever protection may exist is slight, and an emerging area of concern are the effects soy phytoestrogens (plant based sources of the hormone estrogen) may have on existing hormone-sensitive cancers. After reviewing the data, in January of 2007, the Cancer Council of New South Wales issued a warning about soy to patients with hormone-dependent cancers, stating: "Women with current or past breast cancer should be aware of the risks of potential tumour growth when taking soy products….”

The hormonal effects of soy phytoestrogens may also impact men. Studies of rats and monkeys show soy promotes aggression in males, and a recent study found soy decreases sperm counts in humans.

Soy affects the thyroid. An increase in autoimmune thyroid disease is reported in soy formula fed infants, and in iodine deficient animals and humans, soy is shown to impair thyroid function. This may or may not affect you; however, you should know the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) shows that iodine deficiency is on the rise, with about 11 percent of Americans now low in iodine.

As much as 94 percent of all U.S. soy is genetically modified. Questions as to the human health effects of this genetically modified legume (an ingredient commonly found in processed U.S. foods) is the explanation a number of countries give for rejecting U.S. soybean imports.

Should you eat soy? That’s a personal decision. In my opinion, small amounts of organic, properly prepared and fermented soy sauce, miso, tempeh and natto are a safe bet. Otherwise, I advise you to proceed with caution.

_____

References of interest (if you do not see a working hyperlink, copy and paste the red address below into your address bar to access the information):

American Heart Association (AHA) comments to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), recommending the FDA revoke it's Heart Healthy Claims for Soy :

http://ow.ly/5Ce3c

From the AHA's letter to the FDA: "...AHA (American Heart Association) strongly recommends that FDA revoke they soy protein and CHD health claim." (CHD = Coronary Heart Disease)

Organic Produce: Health or Hype?

2010-07-21T13:21:00.000-07:00

Grocery stores increasingly feature fruits and vegetables labeled “organic” at premium prices. Eating organic can put a strain on your food budget. Does the benefit outweigh the risk?

Should you eat organic?

Perhaps. Consider the following:

America’s agriculture serves a burgeoning population. As rich topsoils become exhausted nutrients are largely replaced by inorganic fertilizers. These generally provide one or two macronutrients, but do not replace essential micronutrients. Moreover, rapid growth promoted by fertilizers gives plants little time to accumulate soil nutrients, minerals in particular, required for healthy plant immunity. Whereas organic produce depends on mineral rich, living soils and naturally occurring substances and organisms for pest and disease resistance, commercial crops need pesticides and other chemical applications to survive, rendering high-yield commercial crops lower in nutrients and higher in pesticides. But it doesn’t stop there: poultry and livestock raised on these crops adopt similar characteristics.

This problem is not new. As far back as 1936 Dr. Charles Northern warned the Senate of the impact of depleted soils on our food supply as follows:

“Laboratory test prove that the fruits, the vegetables, the grains, the eggs, and even the milk and the meats of today are not what they were a few generations ago (which doubtless explains why our forefathers thrived on a selection of foods that would starve us!) No man today can eat enough fruits and vegetables to supply his stomach with the mineral salts he requires for perfect health, because his stomach isn't big enough to hold them!”

More recently an examination of minerals in produce from1940 to 1991 shows vegetables lost nearly 40% of mineral density.

Does “organic” translate to better health? Reduced exposure to pesticides is an important benefit. A recent study showed children with ADHD had the highest concentration of pesticides in their urine. Some types of pesticide are suspect in the occurrence of Parkinson's disease in adults.

When buying produce, transit time counts. Time spent in transit from farm to table means loss of precious nutrients. You will never get better produce than organic produce lovingly cared for in your own garden. If you don't have a garden, local organic produce is optimal. Farmers' markets provide wonderful opportunities for healthy eating in season.

Even if you do not eat entirely organic, you can still help protect yourself from pesticides. In its “Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce,” the Environmental Working Group (EWG) makes it easy for you to avoid the most heavily sprayed produce, the “Dirty Dozen,” and the cleanest, listed as the “Clean Fifteen." Be sure to buy produce on the Dirty Dozen list organic. The Clean Fifteen can generally be purchased without concern. Purchase locally where available.

________

References of interest (if you do not see a working hyperlink below, simply copy the address you want to go to, paste it in your address bar and press "enter"):

The “Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce”: www.foodnews.org

Study Links ADHD in Kids to Pesticide Exposure - TIME

http://ht.ly/2eHy5

Neuropsychiatric Evaluation in Subjects Chronically Exposed to Organophosphate Pesticides -- Toxicological Sciences http://ht.ly/2eHKg

Is Low Fat Making You Fat?

2010-07-21T12:31:00.000-07:00

For decades in America, dietary fats have been demonized. Conventional wisdom from everyone from the American Heart Association to the American Medical Association has given us the message that dietary saturated fat is bad for you, and fat makes you fat.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s high carbohydrate, low fat diets became a matter of public policy. The United States government, via the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, recommended that we eat less fat (and, consequently, more carbohydrates) to lower our blood cholesterol levels.

At about the same time, the U.S. food industry took a radical turn. Foods naturally high in saturated fats and cholesterol underwent processing to “clean” them of these offending substances. Highly processed nutrition bars, cookies and cereals, even bottled water boasted “Low Fat” and “No Cholesterol”. The new dietary recommendations were a bonanza for the processed foods industry. Highly processed low fat products, even non-fat cakes and sweets, overflowed store shelves, while natural, nutrient laden full fat products like real butter, full fat milk, fatty meats and cheeses were all but abandoned. These were replaced by products such as non-fat and low fat meats, “butter flavored” margarines and non-fat and low-fat cheese products. Lists of ingredients grew long with hard to pronounce chemicals. Grains became a staple of the American diet. With a sense of duty and the confidence that we were doing great things for our health, we ate these new products, despite the fact that they are often flat, flavorless and completely foreign to anything Mother Nature intended.

But as decades passed and we ate more of the new, “healthy", low fat "foods", Americans grew fatter and fatter. Our population, which started at less than 10 percent obesity in 1985, burgeoned upward to greater than 30 percent obesity today, with another 30 percent overweight. For the first time in the history of the world, being overweight or obese in the United States is the norm. Fatty liver disease is now common to persons who were never alcoholics. Obesity-related illnesses like diabetes, fatty liver disease and heart disease are increasingly commonplace, even among children and adolescents.

What happened to the so-called healthy low fat, low cholesterol diet revolution? Wasn’t it supposed to make us all more healthy rather than less?

Experts suspect dietary policies meant to contribute to health inadvertently made us ill. Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine wrote, “The hypothesis that dietary fat admonitions actually caused the current US obesity epidemic is consistent with the data, logically sound, and plausible on the basis of both behavioral and biological mechanisms.”

In other words, our low fat, low cholesterol diets made us fat and sick.

But doesn’t eating fat make you fat?

The emerging science is intriguing. A study of nearly 20,000 Swedish women found those who reported eating full fat dairy products gained 15-30 percent less weight than those who didn’t. And, contrary to predictions made by researchers studying 12,000 children and adolescents, skim and 1 percent milk was associated with weight gain, but full fat milk was not.

A study of animals gives us clues to how this works. In a study of mice, dietary fats were shown to signal the liver to initiate burning of abdominal (belly) fat. Natural fats also have the ability to signal satisfaction (satiety with a meal), which helps diners curb calories. If you eat a meal containing natural fats only until you are satisfied with your meal, you are unlikely to gain weight; if you are overweight, you are most likely to shed extra pounds.

What about cholesterol? Won't I get a heart attack?

Data from the World Health Organization's MONICA study, which looked at heart attack risk factors across 41 population groups in 22 countries found no relationship between death from heart disease and blood cholesterol levels, none at all! In fact, eggs and other foods rich in natural cholesterols are good for you.

I hear saturated fat is deadly--is that true?

Studies do not confirm a link between natural (not man-made) saturated fat and heart disease, or any common chronic disease for that matter. There is an association between processed meats, with coloring, additives and preservatives, and chronic illness such as diabetes and heart disease. So eat butter and bacon if you like, but look for organic sources sans chemical additives.

So, should you cut out highly-processed, lower fat foods? From a health and weight standpoint, it’s a good idea. All of the new and intriguing evidence about natural dietary fats suggests that Mother Nature knows best.

________________

If you do not see a working hyperlink below, just copy the web address and paste it in the address bar of your browser to access the information:

To see how obese America grew over recent decades, take a look at the United States Centers for Disease Control maps at: http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html

To learn more about how lowering carbohydrates in your diet can safeguard your health and weight, visit the Metabolism Society at: http://www.nmsociety.org/Obesity.aspx

Study fails to link saturated fat and coronary heart disease
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61341020100204

Cholesterol and Heart Disease: Data from the MONICA Study demonstrates no link between total blood cholesterol and heart disease
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8SSCNaaDcE

Processed meat, not red meat per se, linked to coronary heart disease (CHD) and diabetes.
http://www.theheart.org/article/1079649.do

Kids, Food and Behavior: 5 Eating Tips for Better Relationships

2010-07-21T12:01:00.000-07:00

Like all parents, you probably struggle at times with your child’s behavior. Parents often ask me, "What are some easy dietary changes I can make to help improve my child’s moods and behaviors?"

Parents intuitively understand that nutrition holds the key to a child’s health and sense of well-being, but only recently have studies shown us glimpses of how foods work. As a child and adolescent psychiatrist, I have seen almost miraculous changes in children’s behaviors with just a few simple diet interventions. These are five of my all-time favorites:

Feed your child a brain-boosting breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. After a night of fasting, blood sugars are at their ebb. A child’s brain depends on good fuel to keep it going. Skipping breakfast interferes with concentration for morning classes, and the moodiness and irritability that accompanies low blood sugar makes it hard for kids to be agreeable with classmates and teachers. A poor substitute for nourishment, boxed cereals often contribute to the type of mid morning letdown that provokes behavior problems and task reluctance at school and at home, particularly when combined with fat-free or low fat milk. On the other hand, a well-balanced breakfast that includes brain-boosting foods with natural proteins and fats, like eggs and fish, can jumpstart a child’s social skills and academic performance. It’s a great way to start the day!

Kick out refined carbohydrates.

All carbohydrates are not created equal. For kids (and adults!), the “bad actors” are refined carbohydrates like white sugar, commercially processed grains (even whole wheat), fruit juice (yes, you read that correctly) and high fructose corn syrup. These carbohydrates, so common in the Standard American Diet (SAD), are quickly and easily digested.

You may be surprised to learn about the negative effects of commercially processed grains. According to Harvard researcher Dr. David Ludwig, "In the last 50 years, the extent of processing has increased so much that prepared breakfast cereals--even without added sugar--act exactly like sugar itself …

As far as our hormones and metabolism are concerned, there's no difference between a bowl of unsweetened corn flakes and a bowl of table sugar. Starch is 100-percent glucose [table sugar is half glucose, half fructose] and our bodies can digest it into sugar instantly."

A meal of refined carbohydrates floods the bloodstream with sugar that rapidly disappears as it is used for fuel and fat storage. Children eating lots of refined carbohydrates experience blood sugar peaks and valleys, with rollercoaster moods. For smoother sailing, shop the perimeter of the store to find vegetables, meats, dairy and whole fruits. Kick out sugars, corn syrups, boxed cereals, ice cream, candy, soft drinks and fruit juices (yes, you read that right, 100% fruit juice is not a health drink!).

Hold the colorings and preservatives. For decades, parents complained to pediatricians that food colorings in foods and confections (brightly colored candies, e.g.) changed the way their children behaved, but only recently has there been scientific data to support their complaints. In 2007 (please see my 7/19/10 post for details--Dr. Ann), a study showed that normal children ages 3 through 9 became hyperactive when fed a mixture of food colorings and a common preservative (sodium benzoate). This startling finding in normal children raised special concerns for all kids, and particularly those with behavior problems. For general health and behavior, eliminating food colorings and preservatives can truly brighten your child’s day.

Make meals a balancing act.

Kids thrive on balance and variety. Make sure they eat wholesome proteins, non-starchy vegetables and some natural fats (virgin coconut oil, meat fats and/or organic butter, for example), at every meal. Children’s bodies and especially their brains require dietary fats. The demands of energy, growth and development mean children use fats faster than adults do. Children should not be subjected to low-fat diets.

Meals should be naturally bright, appealing and even festive. It’s not difficult to get children to eat vegetables when they look fun and interesting. Your blender can hide leafy green veggies in soups, dips and omelets. As in the popular Dr. Seuss book, serving green eggs, with or without ham, is a novel way to get your child's attention.

Balanced meals should be the rule, and not the exception. One way to balance a meal is to divide the dinner plate into thirds. Place colorful salads and/or fresh or frozen cooked non-starchy vegetables on one part of the plate, proteins with natural fats such as meat, fish, poultry and eggs on the second part of the plate. The third part of the plate can bring surprises to the dinner table. It can contain something new, a vegetable, meat or fruit your child helped you pick out at the supermarket. This keeps meals exciting, and your child's involvement will make him or her inclined to try new foods.

The family that eats together…

Eat with your children. Research shows that kids who eat with their parents are less likely to develop disordered eating habits, more likely to enjoy academic success, less likely to have emotional problems, and less likely to have behavior problems outside of the home. The family meal is an opportunity for all members to be heard and acknowledged, to relax, share stories and connect with one another. And it’s a unique opportunity for you to practice and model good eating habits for your children’s lifetime.

Will it work? Practice these five tips for a week or two, and see what happens!

Exercise Your Right to Feel Good

2010-07-21T11:16:00.000-07:00

No doubt about it, exercise does a mind good. For years, scientists have known that exercise can dispel stress, anxiety and depression, and many folks who have been treated for mood and anxiety disorders find a good exercise program can even prevent relapses.

According to the US Surgeon General’s Report on Physical Activity and Health, physically active people enjoy better mental health. They report higher competence in accomplishing everyday activities. They possess a more positive self concept, higher self-esteem, more positive moods, and display more positive facial expressions.

No one knows exactly how exercise works its magic, but scientists report evidence to suggest exercise boosts endorphins and neurotransmitters that make us feel good. Exercise can reduce levels of stress hormones, like cortisol. Sleep is essential to good mental health, and a good workout during the day (a couple of hours, at least, before bedtime) can help you sleep at night. And meeting others for exercise activities carries social rewards

There are other benefits as well. Feeling fit and toned is a real bonus. A strong, toned body puts more spring in your step. It changes your perspective in the world: objects seem lighter, and distances shorter. You will experience less fatigue, making everyday tasks seem easy. And fit people challenge themselves more.

Exercise is one habit we should keep through old age. Mild cognitive changes occur as early as 50 years of age, but there’s hope. Researchers who performed a recent review of studies in the Netherlands report, “Aerobic physical exercises that improve cardiovascular fitness also help boost cognitive processing speed, motor function and visual and auditory attention in healthy older people.”

So, how does shaking what mama and papa gave you free your mind?

Angevaren, one of the Dutch researchers, explains, “Improvements in cognition as a result of improvements in cardiovascular fitness are being explained by improvements in cerebral blood flow, leading to increased brain metabolism which, in turn, stimulates the production of neurotransmitters and formation of new synapses.”

In other words, more blood to the brain, increased brain activity, more chemical messages flowing from one brain cell to another, and new connections between brain cells—what’s not to love? And if this is not enough, here’s something more to cheer you: studies show your level of fitness, and not how much body fat you have, determines how long you live!

Choosing an activity to please your body and mind is the best way to stick with your program. If you don’t enjoy your routine in the short run you are unlikely to stick with it in the long run. Sample a number of sports and activities to learn what you like, and what you don’t. Know the strengths and limitations of your body; not all of us are built to be runners, for example. If you’re in good condition and aren’t sure what activities are right for you, check with a qualified personal trainer. Folks with physical limitations should consult a physical therapist.

So get out there—walk, run, skate, climb, leap, play, lift, dance and swim to raise your spirits. You and those you love will be glad you did.

Link to the Netherlands study news report: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417173453.htm

Paper:

Angevaren M, et al. Physical activity and enhanced fitness to improve cognitive function in older people without known cognitive impairment (Review). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2008, Issue 2.

Tweak Your Neurotransmitters for an Energy Boost

2010-07-21T11:01:00.000-07:00

So many folks I talk to complain they feel tired and rundown during the day. Before we talk about diet, I want to mention a couple of common culprits. Poor sleep quality can leave you feeling listless between 1 and 3 PM (which just happens to be the time of day the British drink tea, while other countries nap at midday). Low thyroid function can make your day long and arduous. If you lack energy, check with your doctor for underlying conditions.

This said there are a number of dietary don’ts we make that can leave us feeling like the last roses of summer, and a few dietary dos that can perk us up.

If you’ve been reading this blog you are probably aware that foods affect how we feel; what you may not know is that you can “tweak” your moods and energy levels with food.

Take carbohydrates, for example. Carbohydrates, like those found in breads, sweets, cakes and cookies, promote the production of the storage hormone insulin. Along with fats and sugars, insulin proceeds to clear out all the amino acids in the blood stream with the notable exception of tryptophan. Your brain uses tryptophan to make the neurotransmitter serotonin. By clearing away all the amino acids that might compete with tryptophan, insulin grants this amino acid free passage across the blood brain barrier to the brain where it is used to make serotonin. Serotonin is relaxing, and in larger quantities can make you feel sleepy. Think of this next time you fall asleep after a meal of turkey (a source of tryptophan) with bread stuffing (a source of insulin-promoting carbohydrates)!

So, what kind of meal can perk you up during a busy day? Breakfasts and lunches combining non-breaded protein sources, fatty or not, with non-starchy veggies is a great way to stay alert throughout the workday. To boost your alertness, get your proteins and amino acids from fish, poultry, meat and eggs. Found in abundance in these foods, the amino acid tyrosine is the raw material your body uses to make the adrenalin-like neurotransmitters dopamine, nor-epinephrine and epinephrine. Go easy on carbohydrate-containing foods, even fruits, beans, legumes, milk products, or eat them at your latest meal of the day to avoid the sleep-promoting combination of insulin and tryptophan-rich proteins.

Are you physically healthy but feel energetically sluggish no matter what you do? Some suggestions for you: 1. Cut out refined carbohydrates, like un-sprouted/unfermented wheat breads, corn products and sugars. While carbohydrates provide energy, as previously mentioned too many, particularly those from wheat and corn and refined carbohydrates in particular, can leave us feeling drained. If you’re jonesing for toast or a sandwich, look for low carbohydrate breads such as those made from sprouted grains and genuine whole grain sourdoughs. 2. Avoid soy. Most American soy products, such as soy milk and tofu, play havoc with the thyroid causing it to slow down. At least one study suggests tofu may shrink the brain and cause thinking problems. For better energy and overall health I recommend folks avoid soy. 3. Eliminate synthetic food colorings, sweeteners, additives, flavor enhancers and preservatives. These chemicals can drain our energy resources; some can even damage your brain over time. 4. Avoid trans fat. To find this fat you must read food labels, as products boasting "zero grams of trans fat" may contain less than 1/2 gram of trans fat per serving by law. If the label says "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil," the food inside contains trans fat. Trans fat damages your health. There is no safe level of dietary trans fat.

What about coffee and tea? Used in moderation both provide pick-me-ups and may have health benefits. But be careful—caffeine after lunch can interfere with sleep and leave you feeling tired the next day.

Now that you know what to do, next time you feel tired take control and tweak your neurotransmitters for an energy boost!

Brightly Colored Behavior Problems?

2010-07-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

A few months into 2010 I evaluated Cody (not his real name), a 6 year old boy with anger problems and impulsivity. He took Adderall (dextroamphetamine) for his impulsivity and distractibility (ADHD symptoms), but despite an adequate dose the drug did not help as much as his mother and teacher hoped. His teachers reported he was difficult to manage, and angry. He did not attend to school work and had problems making and keeping friends. His mother said he was easily distracted, poorly behaved and would not follow directions.

When looking at Cody's diet I saw that he ate a steady diet of processed food, starting with brightly-colored sugary breakfast cereals, and ending with dinners of packaged microwave meals. His mother, who worked during the day, said she gravitated toward the convenience of these foods.

I recommended to his mother that Cody stop eating processed foods. To eliminate colorings, additives and preservatives I recommended he eat whole foods. Whole foods such as meat, vegetables and fruits require preparation. His mother obtained a crock pot to make meals more convenient to cook. I recommended Cody eat eggs each morning for breakfast, cooked any way (hard boiled eggs are convenient) and eat them as often as he likes during the day. Eggs provide a number of vital nutrients, some of which are difficult to obtain in the Standard American Diet (or SAD). Among these is an important brain nutrient known as choline, which is found in the yolk.

The results of this diet change were remarkable. Only 2 weeks later, his mother said he had not needed Adderall, the medicine he took to help with hyperactivity, impulsivity and concentration, for more than a week. His teachers reported he was a "new kid." His sleep improved, and he was able to sleep through the night. His mother said that if he goes off his new diet and eats, say, a fast food burger topped with American cheese (synthetically dyed), he becomes "impossible to deal with." The same happens when he eats colored candies. Cody appeared to be sensitive to food additives, probably colorings and preservatives.

While recommending a dietary course I favor diets that restrict refined carbohydrates in order to prevent blood sugar swings that can affect a child's mood. Refined carbohydrates, and sugars in particular, are also a significant sources of colorings, additives and preservatives. A diet of whole (not processed, but natural) foods eliminates additives, preservatives, food colorings and dyes from the diet.

Since the advent of food processing, parents long complained their children reacted to colored sweets with behavior problems. They finally found an ally in Dr. Ben Feingold. But in the medical community, Dr. Feingold's 1976 paper proposing dietary food additives are linked to hyperactivity and learning disabilities in children generated decades of controversy and debate. Then on September 6, 2007, the Lancet reported a study of 153 three-year-old and 144 eight-to-nine-year-old normal children. The researchers first removed all artificial colors, flavors and preservatives from their diets. Next, children in the experimental group were given a drink containing a mixture of artificial food colorings and sodium benzoate (also known as benzoate of soda), a preservative common to soft drinks and processed foods in the U.S. Included among the artificial colorings were four coal tar-derived food colorings still common to U.S. foods:

Sunset yellow (F D & C Yellow # 6),

Tartrazine (F D & C Yellow # 5)

Quinoline yellow (F D & C Yellow # 10)

Allura red AC (F D & C Red # 40)

The research team found that the addition of these and other food colorings to sodium benzoate promoted hyperactivity in this normal population of children as compared to the control group (the group that did not drink the mixture).

In light of this study, in 2008 the editors of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ journal, AAP Grand Rounds, declared “Thus, the overall findings of the study are clear and require that even we skeptics, who have long doubted parental claims of the effects of various foods on the behavior of their children, admit we might have been wrong.” They go on to recommend “a trial of a preservative-free, food coloring-free diet is a reasonable intervention” for hyperactive children.

The elimination of food colorings, additives and preservatives is a first line recommendation for both children and adults in my practice. I have eliminated these from my own diet as well, as this is a prudent step for anyone who wants to optimize their health. While not all of my patients report miraculous results, reports are overwhelmingly positive.