Banned in Germany, But You're Probably Still Eating It
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 31 2012
Story at-a-glance
Monsanto, the world leader in genetically modified (GM) crops and seeds, has been named the worst company of 2011 by Natural Society for “threatening both human health and the environment.”
Monsanto can count among its ranks some of the most dangerous products known to man, including Agent Orange, dioxin, and GM seeds
Virtually all of the claims made for GM crops – increased yields, more food production, controlled pests and weeds, reductions in chemical use in agriculture, drought-tolerant seeds – have not materialized, while serious risks and consequences, including herbicide-resistant super weeds, super pests, uncontrollable cross-contamination and health problems from GM foods, have emerged
You can stop supporting Monsanto by boycotting GM foods and supporting California’s 2012 Ballot Initiative to require labels on GMOs
By Dr. Mercola
Monsanto, the world leader in genetically modified (GM) crops and seeds, has been named the worst company of 2011 by Natural Society -- for "threatening both human health and the environment."
I couldn't agree more. I have long designated Monsanto the most dangerous corporation on the planet, and clearly this is a growing sentiment …
According to Forbes:
"Monsanto is so despised by environmentalists that Google's first suggested search term for the St. Louis company is 'Monsanto evil.'
Readers... voted Monsanto the world's most evil corporation in a January poll, giving the corporation a whopping 51 percent of the vote."
What's Wrong With Monsanto?
You may be wondering what Monsanto -- the world's largest seed company whose net income for the first quarter of fiscal year 2012 totaled $126 million (up from $9 million in 2011) --- has done to have earned such ire.
The list is long, easily enough for a novel, but to sum it up, biotech giant Monsanto has created some of the most dangerous products on the planet, including Agent Orange, dioxin, recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH)… and genetically modified seeds.
The latter is one of the most pressing concerns because GM crops are now a mainstay of American agriculture.
Ninety percent or more of all US-grown corn, soybeans, canola, and sugar beets are genetically modified versions, which means that virtually all processed food items contain at least one or more genetically modified ingredients.
GM foods are, from what I perceive, one of the most significant threats that we have against the very sustainability of the human race. Why? In a nutshell, these toxins are being linked to a growing repertoire of assaults against human health and the environment -- and they are already migrating into fetal blood, which means future generations are now at risk.
Monsanto is Destroying the Food System Via Their GMO Crops
Virtually all of the claims of benefit of GM crops – increased yields, more food production, controlled pests and weeds, reductions in chemical use in agriculture, drought-tolerant seeds – have not materialized.
The Global Citizens' Report on the State of GMOs states:
Contrary to the claim of feeding the world, genetic engineering has not increased the yield of a single crop.
Herbicide tolerant (Roundup Ready) crops were supposed to control weeds and Bt crops were intended to control pests. Instead of controlling weeds and pests, GE crops have led to the emergence of super weeds and super pests … Herbicide resistant crops such as Roundup Ready cotton can create the risk of herbicide resistant "superweeds" by transferring the herbicide resistance to weeds.
Despite claims that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) will lower the levels of chemicals (pesticides and herbicides) used, quite the opposite has occurred, with 1.6 billion pounds of glyphosate (the active in ingredient in Roundup) being applied to American soil in 2007 alone. This is of great concern both because of the negative impacts of these chemicals on ecosystems and humans, and because there is the danger that increased chemical use will cause pests and weeds to develop resistance, requiring even more chemicals in order to manage them.
Monsanto has been claiming that through genetic engineering it can breed crops for drought tolerance and other climate-resilient traits. This is a false promise.
Among the false claims made by Monsanto and the Biotechnology industry is that GE foods are safe. However, there are enough independent studies to show that GE foods can cause severe health damage.
Thanks to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto's non-selective, broad-spectrum herbicide Roundup, that is sprayed on massive acreages of GM Roundup Ready soybeans, cotton, and corn grown in the United States each and every year, super weeds are growing at an alarming rate. It's estimated that more than 130 types of weeds spanning 40 U.S. states are now herbicide-resistant, and the superweeds are showing no signs of stopping. In fact, the situation is getting progressively worse.
Extremely hardy Roundup-resistant weeds are already boosting costs and cutting crop yields for U.S. farmers. And with world food stores already strained, diminished crop production is a serious problem. In addition, the creation of these superweeds is leading farmers to douse their fields with ever increasing amounts of herbicides in a desperate attempt to stop their spread.
Along with the environmental devastation, research published in 2010 showed that glyphosate causes birth defects in frogs and chicken embryos at far lower levels than used in agricultural and garden applications. And numerous animal studies suggest reproductive problems are a common side effect of glyphosate exposure and the consumption of genetically engineered Roundup Ready crops.
Quite shockingly, the amount of glyphosate residue you can be exposed to through food is remarkably high, and is very close to the maximum residue limit (MRL) legally allowed According to GMO expert Jeffrey Smith, there is so much glyphosate in GM soybeans, when they were introduced, Europe had to increase their allowable residue levels by 200-fold! For more information, please listen to this informative interview with Dr. Don Huber, an expert in an area of science that relates to the toxicity of genetically engineered (GE) foods.
Download Interview Transcript
Why GM Foods Should be Labeled with a Skull and Crossbones
Monsanto wants you to simply trust them because they're "experts" and because their industry-funded studies "prove" their GM foods are safe. But these same experts also told you PCB's, Agent Orange, and DDT was safe, and we now know those claims were far from accurate.
Of course, in terms of reliability, there's a big difference between corporate science, which tends to primarily favor and support corporate interests, and independent science, performed without preconceived bias. Scientists have, in fact, discovered a number of health problems related to genetically modified foods, including:
An analysis of 19 animal studies revealed that nearly 10 percent of blood, urine, organ and other parameters tested were significantly influenced by GMOs, with the livers and kidneys faring the worst.
A 2009 Brazilian study discovered that female rats fed GM soy for 15 months showed significant changes in their uterus and reproductive cycle, compared to rats fed organic soy or those raised without soy.
A study performed by Irina Ermakova with the Russian National Academy of Sciences reported that more than half the babies from mother rats fed GM soy died within three weeks, while the death rate in the non-GM soy group was only 10 percent. Additionally, the babies in the GM group were smaller, and, worst of all, could not reproduce. In a telling coincidence, after Ermakova's feeding trials were completed, her laboratory started feeding all the rats in the facility a commercial rat chow using GM soy. Within two months, the infant mortality facility-wide reached 55 percent.
Milk treated with the Monsanto-developed genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rBGH) contains higher levels of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), a hormone linked to breast, prostate and colon cancers in humans.
Evil Monsanto Continues to Spreads its Poisonous Tentacles
Genetically engineered seeds are banned in Hungary, as they are in several other European countries, such as Germany and Ireland. Peru is also following the precautionary principle, and has even passed a law that bans genetically modified ingredients within the nation for 10 years.
In the United States, certain states are passing legislation that protects the use of GM seeds and allows for unabated expansion. To date, 14 states have passed such legislation and Michigan's Sen. Bill 777, if passed, would make that 15. The Michigan bill would prevent anti-GMO laws and would remove "any authority local governments may have to adopt and enforce ordinances that prohibit or regulate the labeling, sale, storage, transportation, distribution, use, or planting of agricultural, vegetable, flower or forest tree seeds."
Bills like these are obviously music to Monsanto's ears, which spends millions of dollars lobbying the U.S. government at the federal level for favorable legislation that supports the spread of their toxic products.
In the first quarter of 2011 alone, Monsanto spent $1.4 million on lobbying the federal government -- a drop from a year earlier, when they spent $2.5 million during the same quarter. If we all had several million to drop solely on lobbying efforts, suffice to say the world would be a very different place. If you aren't familiar with the power of lobbying please view the recent 60 minutes expansion on it, which is one of the best 60 Minute episodes I have seen in 40 years.
Furthermore, once you realize just how many of Monsanto's employees have shifted into positions of power within the federal government, it suddenly becomes a lot easier to see how this biotech giant has managed to so successfully undermine common sense.
Unfortunately, it's primarily multinational corporations like Monsanto that have this type of clout, and they use it to further their power, wealth and control -- not only in the United States, but throughout the entire world.
For instance, as reported by Netline, Monsanto and other biotech companies have collaborated with the Gates Foundation via the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to inject genetically modified crops into Africa. And Monsanto's golden rice is being pushed in Asia as a way to alleviate vitamin A deficiency, which is common in developing countries where people don't have regular access to beta-carotene-rich foods, like vegetables and fruits.
But it doesn't take much digging beneath the surface to uncover the true motives of seeking to plant golden rice in the developing world, and they have much more to do with dollars and cents than they do with alleviating nutritional deficiencies. In fact, there's reason to believe that GM golden rice will do little to improve vitamin A levels in the poor -- and may actually make vitamin A deficiency worse.
It would be naive at this point to think that these collaborations are designed to solve any other problem than how to help Monsanto monopolize the world's food supply with expensive GM seeds that have to be purchased each year and require expensive and toxic chemical treatment. After all, if you own the rights to all the food grown everywhere, you literally rule the world ...
You Can Stop Supporting Monsanto by Boycotting GM Foods
It's quite clear that genetically engineered foods threaten not only biodiversity and the environment; they can also pose potentially serious threats to animal and human health when consumed. Unfortunately, the revolving door between Monsanto and the biotech industry as a whole and the agencies in charge of industry legislation makes it very difficult to stop the ongoing madness.
That does not mean it's impossible, however. But it does require your active participation.
First and foremost, avoid buying GM foods! Since the industry has so far successfully squelched every attempt at getting genetically engineered foods labeled, avoiding them requires you to be an educated consumer.
Print out the Non-GMO Shopping Guide and refer to it often. It can help you identify and avoid foods with GMOs. You can also download the free iPhone application that is available in the iTunes store. You can find it by searching for ShopNoGMO in the applications.
Better yet, always buy USDA 100% Organic products when possible, as these do not permit GM ingredients, or buy whole fresh produce and meat from local farmers. The majority of the GMO's you're exposed to are via processed foods, so by cooking from scratch with whole foods, you can be sure you're not inadvertently consuming something laced with GM ingredients.
When you do purchase processed food, avoid products containing anything related to corn or soy that are not 100 percent organic, as any foods containing these two non-organic ingredients are virtually guaranteed to contain genetically engineered ingredients, as well as toxic herbicide residues.
For ongoing updates, follow our Non-GMO's page on Facebook.
We CAN shift the balance by simply voting with our pocketbooks and forks. Europe successfully did this over a decade ago, without any government assistance, and Americans can drive GMO's out of our food supply as well, but it requires educating the public about what GM foods are.
Important Action Item: Support California's Ballot Initiative to Label GMO's!
In 2007, then-Presidential candidate Obama promised to "immediately" require GM labeling if elected. So far, nothing of the sort has transpired.
Fortunately, 24 US states have (as part of their state governance) something called the Initiative Process, where residents can bring to ballot any law they want enacted, as long as it has sufficient support. California has been busy organizing just such a ballot initiative to get mandatory labeling for genetically engineered foods sold in their state. The proposed law will be on the ballot for 2012.
Michigan and Washington are also starting similar campaigns.
Since California is the 8th largest economy in the world, a win for the California Initiative would be a huge step forward, and would affect ingredients and labeling nation-wide. Last month, a coalition of consumer, public health and environmental organizations, food companies, and individuals submitted the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act to the State Attorney General. Now, they need 800,000 signatures to get the Act on next year's ballot.
I urge you to get involved and help in any way you can.
If you live in California, volunteer to gather petition signatures. If you live outside of California, please donate to help support this Initiative and spread the word to everyone you know in California. Be assured that what happens in California will affect the remainder of the U.S., so please support this important state initiative, even if you do not live there!
Source: EcoWatch December 27, 2011
Source: Michigan Citizen December 29, 2011
Source: Natural Society December 6, 2011
Related Links:
The Label Even Monsanto Considers a 'Skull and Crossbones'...
Hungary Destroys All Monsanto GMO Corn Fields
Finally... Solo Farmer Fights Monsanto and Wins
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Lifestyle vs Deadly Drug
Don't Swallow This for Diabetes - Even If a Celebrity Chef, Paula Deen, Hawks It
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 30 2012 |
Story at-a-glance
Popular chef, Paula Deen, famous for her high-sugar, deep-fried Southern dishes admits she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes three years ago
In a show of remarkable ignorance, Deen has chosen to become the spokesperson for a new diabetes medication—a drug that almost didn’t get approved due to its strong link to thyroid cancer and pancreatitis. The drug carries a black box warning—the FDA’s strongest warning of serious side effects
A recent meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials showed that drug treatment for diabetes is not only ineffective, it's dangerous—increasing your risk of death from cardiovascular ailments by 43 percent, and all cause mortality by 19 percent
Type 2 diabetes is a fully preventable condition that arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance. To reverse the disease, you need to recover your body’s insulin and leptin sensitivities, which can ONLY be done through proper diet and exercise
By Dr. Mercola
Paula Deen's rise to fame is built on scrumptious high-sugar, highly processed foods with a distinct Southern flare.
Her latest show, "Paula's Best Dishes," is a hit on the Food Network, and she also has several popular cook books to her name.
While no doubt tasty, the meals Ms. Deen promotes can easily lead to weight gain and diabetes, so her recent admission on the Today Show that she's been living with type 2 diabetes for the past three years did not come as a great shock.
Her decision to become the spokesperson for a dangerous diabetes drug however, did, and has raised the ire of many.
In fact, if her plan was to become a role model of healthy living, it has backfired in a dramatic way, as most people are suddenly (and wisely!) shunning the notion that you can just pop a pill to address a diet-related health problem.
As stated in Time Magazine:
"There is something slightly unsavory about the fact that Deen has continued to advocate the type of unhealthy, fattening foods that contribute to obesity and, therefore, to Type 2 diabetes, only to step forward now as the pitchperson for a drug that is designed to treat that disease, which she herself has had in secret for years."
Is a Drug Really the Answer to Type 2 Diabetes?
Many are questioning Ms. Deen's decision to keep quiet about her diagnosis for so long, while continuing to promote her signature high-sugar meals. According to Time Magazine:
"Deen said that she decided not to make her diagnosis public until she could "bring something to the table when I came forward. I've always been one to think that I bring hope." For her, that hope apparently comes in the form of Victoza, a diabetes medication made by Novo Nordisk.
Deen is now the spokeswoman for the drug. Deen and her sons, Jamie and Bobby, have also partnered with the drugmaker to promote the new Diabetes in a New Light program, which provides food tips and stress-management techniques as well as medical interventions for controlling diabetes. "I was determined to share my positive approach and not let diabetes stand in the way of enjoying my life," Deen said in a statement about the launch of Diabetes in a New Light."
Clearly, Ms. Deen did not spend the last few years investigating the underlying causes of diabetes. If she had done so, she would have discovered that you cannot successfully cure type 2 diabetes with drugs and/or insulin.
Why?
Because type 2 diabetes arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance. It is therefore a fully preventable condition that can be controlled or reversed by recovering your insulin and leptin sensitivities. However, the only known way to reestablish proper leptin and insulin signaling is through a proper diet and exercise. There is NO drug that can accomplish this – a fact that makes the current disease paradigm even more tragic, as diabetes continues to skyrocket, and the conventional treatments are needlessly killing diabetics prematurely.
In Ms. Deen's case, her drug of choice, Victoza, is a non-insulin diabetes medication that has some very disturbing potential side effects, including cancer! It's certainly not something I would perceive as a "positive approach"...
It is important to know that there is NO pill to cure or even control diabetes that addresses the fundamental issue, insulin resistance. Most of them tend to lower blood sugar, which is why they are called oral hypoglycemics. The problem with most physicians is that they believe high blood sugar is the problem. However, the real problem is insulin resistance, which these drugs do not address in any way.
Victoza—A Potentially Dangerous Option for Diabetics...
According to the prescribing information for Victoza (Liraglutide), there are a number of important warnings you need to be aware of, including a black box warning—the strongest warning issued by FDA—which states that:
"Liraglutide causes thyroid C-cell tumors at clinically relevant exposures in rodents. It is unknown whether Victoza® causes thyroid C-cell tumors, including medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), in humans, as human relevance could not be determined by clinical or nonclinical studies."
Furthermore, the web site for Victoza includes the following important warnings:
"It is not known whether Victoza® causes thyroid tumors or a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) in people which may be fatal if not detected and treated early. Do not use Victoza® if you or any of your family members have a history of MTC or if you have Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2). While taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, hoarseness, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. These may be symptoms of thyroid cancer.
Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) may be severe and lead to death. Before taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you have had pancreatitis, gallstones, a history of alcoholism, or high blood triglyceride levels since these medical conditions make you more likely to get pancreatitis. Stop taking Victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have pain in your stomach area that is severe and will not go away, occurs with or without vomiting, or is felt going from your stomach area through to your back. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis."
Ads for the drug feature a smiling Deen with the caption, "Live a life that's delicious." But just how "delicious" will life be if you end up getting cancer? Other common side effects associated with the drug include:
Headache
Nausea
Diarrhea
The Diabetes Drug that Probably Should Not Be On the Market...
As discussed by Tom Philpott, writing for Mother Jones, Victoza has only been on the market for two years, gaining FDA approval in January 2010, but the drug barely made it through due to the strong link to thyroid cancer.
"In April 2009, the FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 12-1 that rodent data linking the drug to thyroid cancer could apply to humans. The committee got hung at 6-6 (with one abstention) on whether the cancer risk was ground for FDA rejection. The drug eventually won approval anyway," Philpott writes.
Furthermore, Philpott reveals that, in 2010, Novo Nordisk was publicly reprimanded for breaching no less than seven clauses of the British ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry with regards to its promotions of Victoza:
Clause 2 - Bringing discredit upon and reducing confidence in the pharmaceutical industry.
Clause 3.1 - Promoting a medicine prior to the grant of its marketing authorization.
Clause 7.2 - Making misleading claims.
Clause 7.3 - Using misleading comparisons.
Clause 7.9 - Failing to provide information about side-effects and reflect available evidence.
Clause 9.1 - Failing to maintain high standards.
Clause 12.1 - Disguising promotional material.
Would You Risk Cancer for No Benefit at All?
Yes... there's actually compelling evidence that drugs designed to reduce your blood sugar do not provide you with ANY kind of health benefit, and may in fact be far more dangerous than the disease itself. For example, a recent meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials involving more than 33,000 people showed that this kind of treatment is not only ineffective, it's also dangerous. In fact, the review showed that treatment with glucose-lowering drugs actually increase your risk of death from heart-related ailments, and all other causes. The researchers noted that:
"The overall results of this meta-analysis do not show a benefit of intensive glucose lowering treatment on all cause mortality or cardiovascular death. A 19% increase in all cause mortality and a 43% increase in cardiovascular mortality cannot be excluded."
Nortin Hadler, a University of North Carolina professor of medicine is another vocal critic of diabetes drugs. In a 2008 paper published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, he declared such drugs "useless," because lowering your blood-sugar levels does not provide any tangible benefits. Dr. Ron Rosedale has also discussed this for many years now.
To top it all off, the drug hawked by Deen costs a whopping $500 per month! Yes you read that right; FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS a month, or about $17 a day.
Lessons Learned from Avandia: Diabetes Drugs Can be Deadly
Avandia (rosiglitazone) is the poster child for what is wrong with the drug treatment of type 2 diabetes. After hitting the market in 1999, a 2007 study in the New England Journal of Medicine linked it to a 43 percent increased risk of heart attack, and a 64 percent higher risk of cardiovascular death, compared to patients treated with other methods!
It took nearly 10 years of the drug being on the market for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take action and restrict access to this dangerous drug. The European Medicines Agency banned it altogether. Meanwhile, millions of people have taken Avandia and have been exposed to these unacceptably high-risk side effects, for a drug that in no way treats the underlying causes of diabetes. More than 80,000 diabetics have suffered from strokes, heart failure or other complications including lethal heart attacks from this dangerous drug.
Again, the only thing drugs like Avandia do is to help lower blood glucose, which has virtually no influence on the long-term damage due to type 2 diabetes. Most of the damage is caused by elevated insulin levels, which can be remedied with an optimal diet and exercise program alone, if you're compliant.
Other studies have also confirmed that most drugs given to type 2 diabetics are at best worthless and at worst harmful or even deadly. Last year the New England Journal of Medicine featured not one, not two, but FOUR studies backing up the conclusion that the path of conventional medicine is leading diabetics astray, and doing far more harm than good.
You Don't have to Be a Statistic...
Amazingly, one in four Americans have some form of diabetes or pre-diabetes. If this is not a clear sign that conventional health recommendations are flawed, I don't know what is.
I too have personal experience with this disease. I developed it myself at one time, and most of my paternal relatives (my dad included), have, or have died from, diabetes. My personal experience with diabetes and subsequent review of the literature made it VERY clear to me that virtually every case of type 2 diabetes is reversible... And the cure for type 2 diabetes has NOTHING to do with giving insulin or taking drugs to control your blood sugar. In fact, giving insulin to someone with type 2 diabetes is one of the worst things that can be done. Any physician still doing this suffers from profound ignorance of insulin physiology.
It's important to understand that many of the conventional recommendations for treating diabetes are not only flawed but dead wrong, and I discussed the reasons why in this previous article. If you need a refresher, please review it again. Once you understand that type 2 diabetes is a fully preventable condition that arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance, the remedy will become clear. To reverse the disease, you need to recover your body's insulin and leptin sensitivities!
How do you do that?
As mentioned earlier, the ONLY way to accomplish this is through proper diet and exercise. There is NO drug that can correct leptin signaling and insulin resistance... Adhering to the following guidelines can help you do at least three things that are essential for successfully treating diabetes: recover your insulin/leptin sensitivity; help normalize your weight; and normalize your blood pressure:
Severely limit or eliminate sugar and grains in your diet, especially fructose which is far more detrimental than any other type of sugar. Following my Nutrition Plan will help you do this without too much fuss.
Exercise regularly. Exercise is an absolutely essential factor, and without it, you're unlikely to get this devastating disease under control. It is one of the fastest and most powerful ways to lower your insulin and leptin resistance. If you're unsure of how to get started, I recommend reviewing my exercise program for tips and guidelines. It is also critical to work your way up to include some Peak 8 exercises.
Avoid trans fats.
Get plenty of omega-3 fats from a high quality, animal-based source.
Optimize your vitamin D levels. Recent studies have revealed that getting enough vitamin D can have a powerful effect on normalizing your blood pressure and that low vitamin D levels may increase your risk of heart disease.
Optimize your gut flora. Your gut is a living ecosystem, full of both good bacteria and bad. Multiple studies have shown that obese people have different intestinal bacteria than lean people. The more good bacteria you have, the stronger your immune system will be and the better your body will function overall. Fortunately, optimizing your gut flora is relatively easy. You can reseed your body with good bacteria by eating fermented foods (like natto, raw organic cheese, miso, and fermented vegetables) or by taking a high quality probiotic supplement.
Address any underlying emotional issues and/or stress. Non-invasive tools like the Emotional Freedom Technique/Meridian Tapping Technique can be extremely helpful and effective.
Get enough high-quality sleep every night.
Monitor your fasting insulin level. This is every bit as important as your fasting blood sugar. You'll want your fasting insulin level to be between 2 and 4. The higher your level, the worse your insulin sensitivity is.
Source: Time Magazine January 17, 2012
Source: MSNBC January 17, 2012
Source: Livin’ La Vida Lo-Carb January 17, 2012
Source: Dan’s Plan January 18, 2012
Source: Mother Jones January 18, 2012
Source: The New York Times January 17, 2012
Related Links:
Feeling Fatigued or Irritable? There's a 1 in 4 Chance You Suffer From This Disease...
Diet and Exercise Beat Drugs for Diabetes Heart Risks
Diabetes Is Not A Disease Of Blood Sugar!
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 30 2012 |
Story at-a-glance
Popular chef, Paula Deen, famous for her high-sugar, deep-fried Southern dishes admits she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes three years ago
In a show of remarkable ignorance, Deen has chosen to become the spokesperson for a new diabetes medication—a drug that almost didn’t get approved due to its strong link to thyroid cancer and pancreatitis. The drug carries a black box warning—the FDA’s strongest warning of serious side effects
A recent meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials showed that drug treatment for diabetes is not only ineffective, it's dangerous—increasing your risk of death from cardiovascular ailments by 43 percent, and all cause mortality by 19 percent
Type 2 diabetes is a fully preventable condition that arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance. To reverse the disease, you need to recover your body’s insulin and leptin sensitivities, which can ONLY be done through proper diet and exercise
By Dr. Mercola
Paula Deen's rise to fame is built on scrumptious high-sugar, highly processed foods with a distinct Southern flare.
Her latest show, "Paula's Best Dishes," is a hit on the Food Network, and she also has several popular cook books to her name.
While no doubt tasty, the meals Ms. Deen promotes can easily lead to weight gain and diabetes, so her recent admission on the Today Show that she's been living with type 2 diabetes for the past three years did not come as a great shock.
Her decision to become the spokesperson for a dangerous diabetes drug however, did, and has raised the ire of many.
In fact, if her plan was to become a role model of healthy living, it has backfired in a dramatic way, as most people are suddenly (and wisely!) shunning the notion that you can just pop a pill to address a diet-related health problem.
As stated in Time Magazine:
"There is something slightly unsavory about the fact that Deen has continued to advocate the type of unhealthy, fattening foods that contribute to obesity and, therefore, to Type 2 diabetes, only to step forward now as the pitchperson for a drug that is designed to treat that disease, which she herself has had in secret for years."
Is a Drug Really the Answer to Type 2 Diabetes?
Many are questioning Ms. Deen's decision to keep quiet about her diagnosis for so long, while continuing to promote her signature high-sugar meals. According to Time Magazine:
"Deen said that she decided not to make her diagnosis public until she could "bring something to the table when I came forward. I've always been one to think that I bring hope." For her, that hope apparently comes in the form of Victoza, a diabetes medication made by Novo Nordisk.
Deen is now the spokeswoman for the drug. Deen and her sons, Jamie and Bobby, have also partnered with the drugmaker to promote the new Diabetes in a New Light program, which provides food tips and stress-management techniques as well as medical interventions for controlling diabetes. "I was determined to share my positive approach and not let diabetes stand in the way of enjoying my life," Deen said in a statement about the launch of Diabetes in a New Light."
Clearly, Ms. Deen did not spend the last few years investigating the underlying causes of diabetes. If she had done so, she would have discovered that you cannot successfully cure type 2 diabetes with drugs and/or insulin.
Why?
Because type 2 diabetes arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance. It is therefore a fully preventable condition that can be controlled or reversed by recovering your insulin and leptin sensitivities. However, the only known way to reestablish proper leptin and insulin signaling is through a proper diet and exercise. There is NO drug that can accomplish this – a fact that makes the current disease paradigm even more tragic, as diabetes continues to skyrocket, and the conventional treatments are needlessly killing diabetics prematurely.
In Ms. Deen's case, her drug of choice, Victoza, is a non-insulin diabetes medication that has some very disturbing potential side effects, including cancer! It's certainly not something I would perceive as a "positive approach"...
It is important to know that there is NO pill to cure or even control diabetes that addresses the fundamental issue, insulin resistance. Most of them tend to lower blood sugar, which is why they are called oral hypoglycemics. The problem with most physicians is that they believe high blood sugar is the problem. However, the real problem is insulin resistance, which these drugs do not address in any way.
Victoza—A Potentially Dangerous Option for Diabetics...
According to the prescribing information for Victoza (Liraglutide), there are a number of important warnings you need to be aware of, including a black box warning—the strongest warning issued by FDA—which states that:
"Liraglutide causes thyroid C-cell tumors at clinically relevant exposures in rodents. It is unknown whether Victoza® causes thyroid C-cell tumors, including medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), in humans, as human relevance could not be determined by clinical or nonclinical studies."
Furthermore, the web site for Victoza includes the following important warnings:
"It is not known whether Victoza® causes thyroid tumors or a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) in people which may be fatal if not detected and treated early. Do not use Victoza® if you or any of your family members have a history of MTC or if you have Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2). While taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, hoarseness, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. These may be symptoms of thyroid cancer.
Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) may be severe and lead to death. Before taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you have had pancreatitis, gallstones, a history of alcoholism, or high blood triglyceride levels since these medical conditions make you more likely to get pancreatitis. Stop taking Victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have pain in your stomach area that is severe and will not go away, occurs with or without vomiting, or is felt going from your stomach area through to your back. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis."
Ads for the drug feature a smiling Deen with the caption, "Live a life that's delicious." But just how "delicious" will life be if you end up getting cancer? Other common side effects associated with the drug include:
Headache
Nausea
Diarrhea
The Diabetes Drug that Probably Should Not Be On the Market...
As discussed by Tom Philpott, writing for Mother Jones, Victoza has only been on the market for two years, gaining FDA approval in January 2010, but the drug barely made it through due to the strong link to thyroid cancer.
"In April 2009, the FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 12-1 that rodent data linking the drug to thyroid cancer could apply to humans. The committee got hung at 6-6 (with one abstention) on whether the cancer risk was ground for FDA rejection. The drug eventually won approval anyway," Philpott writes.
Furthermore, Philpott reveals that, in 2010, Novo Nordisk was publicly reprimanded for breaching no less than seven clauses of the British ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry with regards to its promotions of Victoza:
Clause 2 - Bringing discredit upon and reducing confidence in the pharmaceutical industry.
Clause 3.1 - Promoting a medicine prior to the grant of its marketing authorization.
Clause 7.2 - Making misleading claims.
Clause 7.3 - Using misleading comparisons.
Clause 7.9 - Failing to provide information about side-effects and reflect available evidence.
Clause 9.1 - Failing to maintain high standards.
Clause 12.1 - Disguising promotional material.
Would You Risk Cancer for No Benefit at All?
Yes... there's actually compelling evidence that drugs designed to reduce your blood sugar do not provide you with ANY kind of health benefit, and may in fact be far more dangerous than the disease itself. For example, a recent meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials involving more than 33,000 people showed that this kind of treatment is not only ineffective, it's also dangerous. In fact, the review showed that treatment with glucose-lowering drugs actually increase your risk of death from heart-related ailments, and all other causes. The researchers noted that:
"The overall results of this meta-analysis do not show a benefit of intensive glucose lowering treatment on all cause mortality or cardiovascular death. A 19% increase in all cause mortality and a 43% increase in cardiovascular mortality cannot be excluded."
Nortin Hadler, a University of North Carolina professor of medicine is another vocal critic of diabetes drugs. In a 2008 paper published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, he declared such drugs "useless," because lowering your blood-sugar levels does not provide any tangible benefits. Dr. Ron Rosedale has also discussed this for many years now.
To top it all off, the drug hawked by Deen costs a whopping $500 per month! Yes you read that right; FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS a month, or about $17 a day.
Lessons Learned from Avandia: Diabetes Drugs Can be Deadly
Avandia (rosiglitazone) is the poster child for what is wrong with the drug treatment of type 2 diabetes. After hitting the market in 1999, a 2007 study in the New England Journal of Medicine linked it to a 43 percent increased risk of heart attack, and a 64 percent higher risk of cardiovascular death, compared to patients treated with other methods!
It took nearly 10 years of the drug being on the market for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take action and restrict access to this dangerous drug. The European Medicines Agency banned it altogether. Meanwhile, millions of people have taken Avandia and have been exposed to these unacceptably high-risk side effects, for a drug that in no way treats the underlying causes of diabetes. More than 80,000 diabetics have suffered from strokes, heart failure or other complications including lethal heart attacks from this dangerous drug.
Again, the only thing drugs like Avandia do is to help lower blood glucose, which has virtually no influence on the long-term damage due to type 2 diabetes. Most of the damage is caused by elevated insulin levels, which can be remedied with an optimal diet and exercise program alone, if you're compliant.
Other studies have also confirmed that most drugs given to type 2 diabetics are at best worthless and at worst harmful or even deadly. Last year the New England Journal of Medicine featured not one, not two, but FOUR studies backing up the conclusion that the path of conventional medicine is leading diabetics astray, and doing far more harm than good.
You Don't have to Be a Statistic...
Amazingly, one in four Americans have some form of diabetes or pre-diabetes. If this is not a clear sign that conventional health recommendations are flawed, I don't know what is.
I too have personal experience with this disease. I developed it myself at one time, and most of my paternal relatives (my dad included), have, or have died from, diabetes. My personal experience with diabetes and subsequent review of the literature made it VERY clear to me that virtually every case of type 2 diabetes is reversible... And the cure for type 2 diabetes has NOTHING to do with giving insulin or taking drugs to control your blood sugar. In fact, giving insulin to someone with type 2 diabetes is one of the worst things that can be done. Any physician still doing this suffers from profound ignorance of insulin physiology.
It's important to understand that many of the conventional recommendations for treating diabetes are not only flawed but dead wrong, and I discussed the reasons why in this previous article. If you need a refresher, please review it again. Once you understand that type 2 diabetes is a fully preventable condition that arises from faulty leptin signaling and insulin resistance, the remedy will become clear. To reverse the disease, you need to recover your body's insulin and leptin sensitivities!
How do you do that?
As mentioned earlier, the ONLY way to accomplish this is through proper diet and exercise. There is NO drug that can correct leptin signaling and insulin resistance... Adhering to the following guidelines can help you do at least three things that are essential for successfully treating diabetes: recover your insulin/leptin sensitivity; help normalize your weight; and normalize your blood pressure:
Severely limit or eliminate sugar and grains in your diet, especially fructose which is far more detrimental than any other type of sugar. Following my Nutrition Plan will help you do this without too much fuss.
Exercise regularly. Exercise is an absolutely essential factor, and without it, you're unlikely to get this devastating disease under control. It is one of the fastest and most powerful ways to lower your insulin and leptin resistance. If you're unsure of how to get started, I recommend reviewing my exercise program for tips and guidelines. It is also critical to work your way up to include some Peak 8 exercises.
Avoid trans fats.
Get plenty of omega-3 fats from a high quality, animal-based source.
Optimize your vitamin D levels. Recent studies have revealed that getting enough vitamin D can have a powerful effect on normalizing your blood pressure and that low vitamin D levels may increase your risk of heart disease.
Optimize your gut flora. Your gut is a living ecosystem, full of both good bacteria and bad. Multiple studies have shown that obese people have different intestinal bacteria than lean people. The more good bacteria you have, the stronger your immune system will be and the better your body will function overall. Fortunately, optimizing your gut flora is relatively easy. You can reseed your body with good bacteria by eating fermented foods (like natto, raw organic cheese, miso, and fermented vegetables) or by taking a high quality probiotic supplement.
Address any underlying emotional issues and/or stress. Non-invasive tools like the Emotional Freedom Technique/Meridian Tapping Technique can be extremely helpful and effective.
Get enough high-quality sleep every night.
Monitor your fasting insulin level. This is every bit as important as your fasting blood sugar. You'll want your fasting insulin level to be between 2 and 4. The higher your level, the worse your insulin sensitivity is.
Source: Time Magazine January 17, 2012
Source: MSNBC January 17, 2012
Source: Livin’ La Vida Lo-Carb January 17, 2012
Source: Dan’s Plan January 18, 2012
Source: Mother Jones January 18, 2012
Source: The New York Times January 17, 2012
Related Links:
Feeling Fatigued or Irritable? There's a 1 in 4 Chance You Suffer From This Disease...
Diet and Exercise Beat Drugs for Diabetes Heart Risks
Diabetes Is Not A Disease Of Blood Sugar!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Ritalin Gone Wrong
Ritalin Gone Wrong
By L. ALAN SROUFE
Millions of children take drugs to help them pay attention - but do they really help?
By L. ALAN SROUFE
Millions of children take drugs to help them pay attention - but do they really help?
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Are Cortisone Injections Safe?
Are Cortisone Injections Safe?
Posted January 24, 2012.
If you suffer from ongoing joint pain, your doctor may recommend that you get a corticosteroid, or hydrocortisone injection. Common places are in the knee, along the lower spine, and in the shoulder joint.
Because cortisol can drastically reduce inflammatory conditions, the synthetic form of cortisone is often used to treat several kinds of inflammatory conditions, ranging from an acute allergic response to chronic pain that can go on for years.
Your doctor will tell you that the effects of an injection into a joint are local and not systemic.Hydrocortisone shots are often used to treat joint pain by reducing inflammation, but they don't come without risks. A steroid shot could potentially cause an infection to seriously damage joint tissue.
If the effects of anything in the body are systemic, this means that it affects the entire body, as opposed to just one area. This is an important distinction to make because oral forms of hydrocortisone more drastically affect immune function, weight, and adrenal health.
Is there any part of the body that is completely isolated from the rest?
The entire body is a network of cells, all communicating with one another.
Within the joints, some tissues have no blood or lymphatic vessels. This means that there is very little space for red blood cells and white blood cells to enter into this tissue. It also means that this makes joint tissue more isolated. However, even in these cases, this tissue still receives nutrients from surrounding blood supply. This happens either through diffusion or through movement and exercise.
In fact, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) tells us that, “Systemic effects are possible… and patients should always be acutely monitored for reactions. Alterations in taste have been reported for one to two days after steroid injection. Hyperglycemia is possible in patients who have diabetes.”
Weighing the Risks and Benefits of Hydrocortisone Injections
Hydrocortisone shots can improve quality of life, and they can drastically reduce pain. When used properly, the anti-inflammatory effect of a steroid injection will help to preserve tissue. This is because inflammation leads to tissue destruction.
However, as we mentioned before, while cortisol reduces inflammation, it also suppresses immune system function. One possible outcome of a steroid shot is infection, which can be especially devastating in joint tissue.
Cortisol also is known to promote the loss of collagen. What are joints but a hub of connective tissue and collagen-rich tendons? Possible side effects of corticosteroid injection are the breakdown of tissue, tendon rupture, and skin discoloration.
Most importantly, reducing inflammation does not address the root of the problem.
Overusing Synthetic Substances Can Confuse the Body
Whenever we put a synthetic chemical into the body that mimics a natural substance, certain receptors bind to certain chemicals. The whole body feels the influence of this synthetic substance. This is why it works. However, synthetic mimicry can have negative consequences.
Steroids, hydrocortisone, or corticosteroids are a synthetic form of cortisone.
Natural cortisone is hormone that is released in the body in response to stress.
The adrenal glands, which sit atop the kidneys, are partially responsible for the release of cortisone.
Other endocrine glands that play a role in its release and circulation are the hypothalamus and the pituitary, which sit inside the brain.
In order to become active in the body, cortisone becomes cortisol. Cortisol has a stronger effect in the body on blood sugar regulation, blood pressure regulation, immune system suppression, and in the reduction of inflammation.
Consider:
The entire body orchestrates the production and release of natural cortisol.
Natural cortisol has a very short life in the body, whereas synthetic cortisol lasts for several weeks in the body.
Other hormones in the body play a role in the inflammatory process, such as estrogen. (1) We are still learning about many of these inflammatory processes that involve other hormones.
By focusing on our fight-or-flight chemicals, and influencing these chemicals, we are potentially affecting the larger network of messaging that goes on between cells and other hormones.
If absolutely necessary, get a corticosteroid shot. In the meantime, look for the root of the problem.
It turns out that diet can have a massive impact on joint health. While there are many reasons why your joints are affected by diet, dietary rules are pretty much the same, case to case:
1. Eat as little sugar as possible. If there is an infection in the joint, which can cause severe pain, sugar will feed that infection. Sugar can also create stiff joints when it is consumed in excess.
2. Figure out which foods you have an immune response to and eliminate them. If only this were as easy as a blood test! Unfortunately, while blood tests can certainly help narrow down which foods you may react to, they are still imperfect. Always listen to your body when it comes to food sensitivities.
3. Heal digestive function. A part of many food sensitivities, which can contribute to chronic joint inflammation, is the question: how healthy is my gut? If you are running low on enzymes to properly break food down, you may always react to one food or another. And this reaction can show up in places other than the gut, such as in your joints. Assist Full Spectrum Enzymes and Assist Diary & Protein help your gut get the job done so you don’t have to deal with the negative consequences of a permeable gut!
4. Get gut infections under control. Controlling the microbial zoo in your gastrointestinal tract is important and part of proper gut function. Human beings have been doing this for thousands of years, naturally, with fermented foods.
The good bacteria in fermented foods control the overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria, which can cause a lot of health problems if left to their own devices. Try making your own fermented foods with Veggie Culture Starter. Or, if you would rather have your fermented food on-the-go, try InnergyBiotic, a blend of beneficial microbes that can be especially healing and soothing to the gastrointestinal tract.
What to Remember Most About This Article:
Many doctors recommend a hydrocortisone shot to treat ongoing joint pain. While hydrocortisone shots can improve chronic pain in certain cases, cortisol can also suppress healthy immune system function. In some cases, a steroid shot could cause an infection to wreak havoc on joint tissue. Cortisol may also cause a loss of collagen in joint tissues and tendons.
For the best results to treat chronic joint pain, get to the root of the issue.
Minimize sugar in your diet whenever possible.
Eliminate any food triggers that cause an immune response.
Start healing your digestive function.
Control any chronic gut infections with fermented foods that promote healthy bacteria in the digestive tract.
Posted January 24, 2012.
If you suffer from ongoing joint pain, your doctor may recommend that you get a corticosteroid, or hydrocortisone injection. Common places are in the knee, along the lower spine, and in the shoulder joint.
Because cortisol can drastically reduce inflammatory conditions, the synthetic form of cortisone is often used to treat several kinds of inflammatory conditions, ranging from an acute allergic response to chronic pain that can go on for years.
Your doctor will tell you that the effects of an injection into a joint are local and not systemic.Hydrocortisone shots are often used to treat joint pain by reducing inflammation, but they don't come without risks. A steroid shot could potentially cause an infection to seriously damage joint tissue.
If the effects of anything in the body are systemic, this means that it affects the entire body, as opposed to just one area. This is an important distinction to make because oral forms of hydrocortisone more drastically affect immune function, weight, and adrenal health.
Is there any part of the body that is completely isolated from the rest?
The entire body is a network of cells, all communicating with one another.
Within the joints, some tissues have no blood or lymphatic vessels. This means that there is very little space for red blood cells and white blood cells to enter into this tissue. It also means that this makes joint tissue more isolated. However, even in these cases, this tissue still receives nutrients from surrounding blood supply. This happens either through diffusion or through movement and exercise.
In fact, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) tells us that, “Systemic effects are possible… and patients should always be acutely monitored for reactions. Alterations in taste have been reported for one to two days after steroid injection. Hyperglycemia is possible in patients who have diabetes.”
Weighing the Risks and Benefits of Hydrocortisone Injections
Hydrocortisone shots can improve quality of life, and they can drastically reduce pain. When used properly, the anti-inflammatory effect of a steroid injection will help to preserve tissue. This is because inflammation leads to tissue destruction.
However, as we mentioned before, while cortisol reduces inflammation, it also suppresses immune system function. One possible outcome of a steroid shot is infection, which can be especially devastating in joint tissue.
Cortisol also is known to promote the loss of collagen. What are joints but a hub of connective tissue and collagen-rich tendons? Possible side effects of corticosteroid injection are the breakdown of tissue, tendon rupture, and skin discoloration.
Most importantly, reducing inflammation does not address the root of the problem.
Overusing Synthetic Substances Can Confuse the Body
Whenever we put a synthetic chemical into the body that mimics a natural substance, certain receptors bind to certain chemicals. The whole body feels the influence of this synthetic substance. This is why it works. However, synthetic mimicry can have negative consequences.
Steroids, hydrocortisone, or corticosteroids are a synthetic form of cortisone.
Natural cortisone is hormone that is released in the body in response to stress.
The adrenal glands, which sit atop the kidneys, are partially responsible for the release of cortisone.
Other endocrine glands that play a role in its release and circulation are the hypothalamus and the pituitary, which sit inside the brain.
In order to become active in the body, cortisone becomes cortisol. Cortisol has a stronger effect in the body on blood sugar regulation, blood pressure regulation, immune system suppression, and in the reduction of inflammation.
Consider:
The entire body orchestrates the production and release of natural cortisol.
Natural cortisol has a very short life in the body, whereas synthetic cortisol lasts for several weeks in the body.
Other hormones in the body play a role in the inflammatory process, such as estrogen. (1) We are still learning about many of these inflammatory processes that involve other hormones.
By focusing on our fight-or-flight chemicals, and influencing these chemicals, we are potentially affecting the larger network of messaging that goes on between cells and other hormones.
If absolutely necessary, get a corticosteroid shot. In the meantime, look for the root of the problem.
It turns out that diet can have a massive impact on joint health. While there are many reasons why your joints are affected by diet, dietary rules are pretty much the same, case to case:
1. Eat as little sugar as possible. If there is an infection in the joint, which can cause severe pain, sugar will feed that infection. Sugar can also create stiff joints when it is consumed in excess.
2. Figure out which foods you have an immune response to and eliminate them. If only this were as easy as a blood test! Unfortunately, while blood tests can certainly help narrow down which foods you may react to, they are still imperfect. Always listen to your body when it comes to food sensitivities.
3. Heal digestive function. A part of many food sensitivities, which can contribute to chronic joint inflammation, is the question: how healthy is my gut? If you are running low on enzymes to properly break food down, you may always react to one food or another. And this reaction can show up in places other than the gut, such as in your joints. Assist Full Spectrum Enzymes and Assist Diary & Protein help your gut get the job done so you don’t have to deal with the negative consequences of a permeable gut!
4. Get gut infections under control. Controlling the microbial zoo in your gastrointestinal tract is important and part of proper gut function. Human beings have been doing this for thousands of years, naturally, with fermented foods.
The good bacteria in fermented foods control the overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria, which can cause a lot of health problems if left to their own devices. Try making your own fermented foods with Veggie Culture Starter. Or, if you would rather have your fermented food on-the-go, try InnergyBiotic, a blend of beneficial microbes that can be especially healing and soothing to the gastrointestinal tract.
What to Remember Most About This Article:
Many doctors recommend a hydrocortisone shot to treat ongoing joint pain. While hydrocortisone shots can improve chronic pain in certain cases, cortisol can also suppress healthy immune system function. In some cases, a steroid shot could cause an infection to wreak havoc on joint tissue. Cortisol may also cause a loss of collagen in joint tissues and tendons.
For the best results to treat chronic joint pain, get to the root of the issue.
Minimize sugar in your diet whenever possible.
Eliminate any food triggers that cause an immune response.
Start healing your digestive function.
Control any chronic gut infections with fermented foods that promote healthy bacteria in the digestive tract.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Walking is a mode of transportation not a fitness exercise
"Recent Study Shows if You Exercise this Way
You May Risk Serious Damage to Your Heart"
Researchers recently discovered how this common exercise mistake could diminish your right ventricular heart function, cause heart muscle scarring, and elevate heart injury blood markers. Here's how to avoid this mistake with a new heart-strengthening, muscle-building approach... takes only 1 hour a week...
As you most likely know, I consider fitness to be one of the major hallmarks of optimal health. I passionately believe that for optimal mental and physical health, you need to exercise regularly.
Fitness, at any age, plays an important role in:
Promoting your optimal mental and emotional health
Helping you reach and maintain your ideal body weight
Helping to slow your rate of aging
Helping you enjoy more quality sleep at night
Increasing your overall energy levels
Help increase or maintain your flexibility
Research in the area of fitness is exploding as baby boomers and other health conscious individuals seek new, previously unexplored ways to maintain their youth and vigor. The relation of exercise to optimal health supported by research is indeed staggering.
What You Must Know About Exercise…
Many types of exercise demand
lots of time and motivation
There's one caveat when it comes to exercise… Not every type will give you benefits.
Certain forms of exercise will demand more of your precious time – time that you may not have in your busy schedule and unfortunately, some provide very little benefit in return.
Some types will require extreme motivation on your part because you'll have to wait longer to see and feel recognizable benefits.
And I know from my own experience and that of others, when exercise is considered a "burden" and requires a lot of time and motivation, it's more likely to not get done.
Your good intentions invested in your 'new' exercise regimen can disappear in a flash.
Imagine if you could discover an exercise routine that…
You found enjoyable
Took only about sixty minutes a week of your time (and you really only worked 'hard' for 12 of those minutes), and
Provided you with benefits that you could feel almost immediately?
I know most people would respond with a resounding "Yes!"
That's exactly what I intend to show you. Because I am so passionate about the importance of exercise, I'm making it my personal mission to show you that exercise…
...Can be enjoyable
...Doesn't need to take hours of your time
...Can provide you with benefits that can make a profound difference in your health.
What the Latest Science Tells Us…
Around the age of 40, most people begin to lose about 8 percent of their muscle mass every ten years. And most chalk it up to "getting old".
However, researchers have discovered that losing muscle mass as you age doesn't need to happen. In fact, a recent study of 70- and 80-year-old competitive athletes found that they had almost as much thigh muscle mass as athletes in their 40s.
Losing muscle mass is not a 'normal' part of aging. Rather, it's a by-product of inactivity.
When you avoid exercising your muscles for any significant period, your muscle fibers begin to break down or "atrophy".
But here's the good news – researchers have discovered that it is possible to repair and rebuild inactive muscle. And you can start doing it at any age, even if you haven't worked out for a long time. Naturally, the sooner you start exercising, the less damage you'll have to repair.
Research is showing us that a balanced approach to fitness is most beneficial for building muscle and optimal health. Ideally you want to meet all of these goals in your routine:
Build strength and flexibility
Create balance and stability
Promote cardiovascular fitness
Burn fat
Aerobic activities such as cycling or using an elliptical machine, along with core exercises and stretching can provide your body with the balanced routine it needs for optimal fitness.
If you've been working out for a while now and haven't seen the results you desire, something may be missing.
And that "something" may be what traditional exercise can't deliver. However, there's a revolutionary "new" trend in fitness that can…
The Hottest New Trend in Fitness Today…
Many personal trainers claim it's simply "the fastest way to get clients fit".
This hot trend in fitness is indeed making news – and being endorsed by famous celebrities and popular magazines. Some are even touting it as a "way to lose weight in a hurry".
And I've been doing it and promoting it for years…
It's not cardio. Nor is it jogging or long distance running. And it's not hour-long gym workouts or aerobic exercise classes.
Peak Fitness can be done just about
anywhere, including at home
You see, scientists are discovering that it's intensity, not duration of exercise that may be the missing piece of the puzzle in becoming fit and slimming down.
And this type of high-intensity exercise is especially beneficial for aging bodies.
Here's what those who have discovered it love most: it takes a fraction of the time of aerobic or cardio exercise – a huge relief if you're already feeling short on time.
What is this revolutionary fitness trend?
Peak Fitness.
Designed and developed by fitness guru and author Phil Campbell, Peak Fitness, or "Sprint 8" is a 20 minute workout session that includes eight 30 second intervals of intense anaerobic bursts, each followed by 90-seconds of decreased intensity and recovery.
During 'peak exercises', you raise your heart rate beyond your aerobic threshold and push it into your maximum intensity limit.
Appropriate and safe for even seniors, intervals improve fitness by building new capillaries and a
stronger heart and lungs.
Your muscles benefit too, because this type of exercise helps create more mitochondria, the tiny motors that power cells.
What Your Body Really Needs For Maximum Benefits from Exercise
Traditional forms of exercise don't
optimally benefit your body
- or your heart.
According to Phil Campbell, author of "Ready Set Go", receiving maximum cardiovascular benefits requires working all of your muscle fibers and both metabolic processes.
You have three different types of muscle fibers – slow-twitch, fast-twitch, and super-fast-twitch.
And your heart has two different metabolic processes:
The aerobic, which requires oxygen
The anaerobic, which doesn’t require any oxygen
Traditional strength training, aerobic and cardio exercises work primarily the aerobic metabolic process. And they use mostly only slow-twitch muscle fibers.
Typically, traditional forms of exercise don't engage the anaerobic process of your heart nor do they involve the very beneficial fast-twitch muscle fibers.
On the other hand, high-intensity interval training such as Peak Fitness works BOTH your aerobic and anaerobic processes AND employs the crucial faster-twitch fibers, giving you a very thorough heart muscle workout.
To quote Phil Campbell:
"Most exercise programs today are built based upon a very incomplete picture of the physiology of your body.
For example, long slow cardio, "calories in, calories out," would be a perfect way to look at the body if it were all slow-twitch fiber…
But the fast- and super-fast-twitch fibers are essentially 50 percent of your muscle fibers and they don't get recruited until you add a velocity of movement."
Groundbreaking Research Changes AHA Cardio Guidelines
The research is so compelling about the superior benefits of high-intensity anaerobic exercise that the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have redefined their exercise cardio guidelines.
Their new guidelines state that you have a choice – do moderate intensity cardio five days a week for 30 minutes, or do vigorous intensity cardio for 20 minutes, three days a week, which is exactly what Peak Fitness is.
With Peak Fitness, that's a total of 90 minutes a week. And you only need to do this type of exercise 3 times a week instead of 5!
What's more, a recent study actually discovered that marathon runners were more likely to damage their hearts. Researchers found diminished right ventricular heart function, the presence of heart muscle scar tissue, and elevated heart injury blood markers among athletes in the study.
As for Peak Fitness exercises, you don't need or want to do them more than three times a week. Like running marathons, you actually do more harm than good when you overtax your body by exercising too much. Your body must have time to recover between workouts or your health can suffer.
My True Fitness Breakthrough Came
When I Discovered Peak Fitness
After more than 40 years of long-distance running, I found myself mentally exhausted by this type of exercise – I had clearly hit a plateau.
I began to realize that the extensive cardiovascular aerobic-type training I was engaging in might be counterproductive. I learned that high-intensity, burst-type sprints might be a far better alternative to long-distance running.
Then, I met Phil Campbell… and I finally understood the connection to growth hormone and how to actually integrate the program. Phil taught his Sprint 8 program in an easily understandable way and provided an explanation of how to lose weight and gain muscle mass.
I was hooked. I've been doing a very similar type workout that I've named "Peak Fitness" ever since April of 2010. In that switch, I ditched my conventional cardio workout completely. The benefits I am now experiencing have convinced me I couldn't have made a better decision.
I've been doing – and recommending, along with Phil Campbell – Peak Fitness exercises three times a week.
And after interviewing yet another high-intensity interval training expert and emergency room physician, Dr. Doug McGuff, I've learned to appreciate how important it is to listen to your body and allow sufficient recovery time between workouts.
As you age, you do need to adjust and discover through trial and error what works best for you. Your body can guide you onto a path that will provide you with the most efficient and effective benefits when you listen to it.
How Peak Fitness Can Become Your Personal Fountain of Youth
for Longevity, Fitness, and Weight Loss, Too
Peak Fitness workouts can help serve as your personal fountain of youth – at any age.
As you reach your 30s, you enter what's called "somatopause," when your levels of human growth hormone (HGH) begin to drop off rather dramatically.
You can start to pile on body fat – particularly unwanted "middle age spread". You start to lose muscle mass and you may also feel more fatigued.
Not only do declining levels of HGH change how your body burns fat, they also play a critical role in your aging process where you can actually look and feel older.
It has been my experience that nearly everyone over 30 has dramatically low levels of this important hormone because they begin leading increasingly sedentary life styles.
"For a full two hours after your workout your metabolism stays higher and you continue to burn calories faster, as long as you avoid eating or drinking sugar."
The important point to remember is… your super-fast muscle fibers help get you the benefits you desire. And the only way to engage your super-fast muscle fibers is by doing anaerobic or high-intensity exercise like Peak Fitness. Traditional cardio and aerobic exercises do not engage your super-fast fibers!
With Peak Fitness, Get Ready for a Younger- and Leaner-Looking You
Peak Fitness makes a great
anti-aging strategy. What's yours?
Boosting your metabolism and increasing fat loss is just the beginning.
Peak Fitness is also a potent "anti-aging" strategy. You can potentially look and feel younger!
Some of the latest studies have shown how exercise affects telomeres – those shoelace tip-like ends of your chromosomes.
When your telomeres get too short, cells stop dividing and you can experience muscle loss, cognitive decline, and less skin elasticity, among other changes.
In these studies, endurance athletes were shown to have longer telomeres than those who did not exercise. Even moderate activity was shown to benefit telomeres.
No matter your age, starting or adding Peak Fitness exercises into your current workout routine can potentially have an impact on your overall health.
Once you regularly participate in these 20-minute exercises three times a week, you may notice the following benefits as many others have as well:
Decrease in body fat
Improved muscle tone
Increase in energy
Improved athletic speed and performance
Ability to achieve your fitness goals much faster
That's not all… Research repeatedly shows that maintaining your optimal weight and exercising regularly helps maintain healthy glucose and insulin levels. It does this through supporting your insulin receptor sensitivity.
When you normalize your insulin levels, you give your body its best chance for optimum health. And that applies to you even if you start your exercise program overweight or out-of-shape.
It's Never Too Late to Start
Chances are, if you're over 50 and you haven't started a regular exercise program, you may be thinking it's too late to start or to enjoy all the benefits that Peak Fitness can offer.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Research shows that age isn't a factor. Regular exercise, even when started late in life, offers health benefits.
If you're elderly or severely out of shape, I advise you to find a workout buddy, a personal trainer or someone who is experienced to help guide you through your routine, and keep you accountable. You'll have more fun and you'll be more likely to stick with your program.
Start off slowly and gradually increase intensity as you grow stronger, avoiding activities that cause pain. Although it is important to use caution when you are starting out, you do need to exercise at a level that challenges your body.
And here's an important point to mention… I find that many older individuals shy away from exercise out of fear of injury or discomfort. Please remember that exercise actually reduces your risk of injury and helps to ease everyday aches and pains.
As for adults adopting an exercise routine later in life, I like to use the example of my own mother. She didn't start working out until she was 74 and today, at the age of 77, she has gained significant improvements in strength, flexibility, balance and mental clarity.
My mother is a perfect example of how one can benefit from exercise even when they start their program later in life. You can see videos of her progress and the exercise routine she uses today on our website – a true inspiration for even the most sedentary, older individual!
As with any new fitness program, if you have a history of heart disease or other health concerns, please get clearance from your health care professional before starting your Peak Fitness program.
You May Risk Serious Damage to Your Heart"
Researchers recently discovered how this common exercise mistake could diminish your right ventricular heart function, cause heart muscle scarring, and elevate heart injury blood markers. Here's how to avoid this mistake with a new heart-strengthening, muscle-building approach... takes only 1 hour a week...
As you most likely know, I consider fitness to be one of the major hallmarks of optimal health. I passionately believe that for optimal mental and physical health, you need to exercise regularly.
Fitness, at any age, plays an important role in:
Promoting your optimal mental and emotional health
Helping you reach and maintain your ideal body weight
Helping to slow your rate of aging
Helping you enjoy more quality sleep at night
Increasing your overall energy levels
Help increase or maintain your flexibility
Research in the area of fitness is exploding as baby boomers and other health conscious individuals seek new, previously unexplored ways to maintain their youth and vigor. The relation of exercise to optimal health supported by research is indeed staggering.
What You Must Know About Exercise…
Many types of exercise demand
lots of time and motivation
There's one caveat when it comes to exercise… Not every type will give you benefits.
Certain forms of exercise will demand more of your precious time – time that you may not have in your busy schedule and unfortunately, some provide very little benefit in return.
Some types will require extreme motivation on your part because you'll have to wait longer to see and feel recognizable benefits.
And I know from my own experience and that of others, when exercise is considered a "burden" and requires a lot of time and motivation, it's more likely to not get done.
Your good intentions invested in your 'new' exercise regimen can disappear in a flash.
Imagine if you could discover an exercise routine that…
You found enjoyable
Took only about sixty minutes a week of your time (and you really only worked 'hard' for 12 of those minutes), and
Provided you with benefits that you could feel almost immediately?
I know most people would respond with a resounding "Yes!"
That's exactly what I intend to show you. Because I am so passionate about the importance of exercise, I'm making it my personal mission to show you that exercise…
...Can be enjoyable
...Doesn't need to take hours of your time
...Can provide you with benefits that can make a profound difference in your health.
What the Latest Science Tells Us…
Around the age of 40, most people begin to lose about 8 percent of their muscle mass every ten years. And most chalk it up to "getting old".
However, researchers have discovered that losing muscle mass as you age doesn't need to happen. In fact, a recent study of 70- and 80-year-old competitive athletes found that they had almost as much thigh muscle mass as athletes in their 40s.
Losing muscle mass is not a 'normal' part of aging. Rather, it's a by-product of inactivity.
When you avoid exercising your muscles for any significant period, your muscle fibers begin to break down or "atrophy".
But here's the good news – researchers have discovered that it is possible to repair and rebuild inactive muscle. And you can start doing it at any age, even if you haven't worked out for a long time. Naturally, the sooner you start exercising, the less damage you'll have to repair.
Research is showing us that a balanced approach to fitness is most beneficial for building muscle and optimal health. Ideally you want to meet all of these goals in your routine:
Build strength and flexibility
Create balance and stability
Promote cardiovascular fitness
Burn fat
Aerobic activities such as cycling or using an elliptical machine, along with core exercises and stretching can provide your body with the balanced routine it needs for optimal fitness.
If you've been working out for a while now and haven't seen the results you desire, something may be missing.
And that "something" may be what traditional exercise can't deliver. However, there's a revolutionary "new" trend in fitness that can…
The Hottest New Trend in Fitness Today…
Many personal trainers claim it's simply "the fastest way to get clients fit".
This hot trend in fitness is indeed making news – and being endorsed by famous celebrities and popular magazines. Some are even touting it as a "way to lose weight in a hurry".
And I've been doing it and promoting it for years…
It's not cardio. Nor is it jogging or long distance running. And it's not hour-long gym workouts or aerobic exercise classes.
Peak Fitness can be done just about
anywhere, including at home
You see, scientists are discovering that it's intensity, not duration of exercise that may be the missing piece of the puzzle in becoming fit and slimming down.
And this type of high-intensity exercise is especially beneficial for aging bodies.
Here's what those who have discovered it love most: it takes a fraction of the time of aerobic or cardio exercise – a huge relief if you're already feeling short on time.
What is this revolutionary fitness trend?
Peak Fitness.
Designed and developed by fitness guru and author Phil Campbell, Peak Fitness, or "Sprint 8" is a 20 minute workout session that includes eight 30 second intervals of intense anaerobic bursts, each followed by 90-seconds of decreased intensity and recovery.
During 'peak exercises', you raise your heart rate beyond your aerobic threshold and push it into your maximum intensity limit.
Appropriate and safe for even seniors, intervals improve fitness by building new capillaries and a
stronger heart and lungs.
Your muscles benefit too, because this type of exercise helps create more mitochondria, the tiny motors that power cells.
What Your Body Really Needs For Maximum Benefits from Exercise
Traditional forms of exercise don't
optimally benefit your body
- or your heart.
According to Phil Campbell, author of "Ready Set Go", receiving maximum cardiovascular benefits requires working all of your muscle fibers and both metabolic processes.
You have three different types of muscle fibers – slow-twitch, fast-twitch, and super-fast-twitch.
And your heart has two different metabolic processes:
The aerobic, which requires oxygen
The anaerobic, which doesn’t require any oxygen
Traditional strength training, aerobic and cardio exercises work primarily the aerobic metabolic process. And they use mostly only slow-twitch muscle fibers.
Typically, traditional forms of exercise don't engage the anaerobic process of your heart nor do they involve the very beneficial fast-twitch muscle fibers.
On the other hand, high-intensity interval training such as Peak Fitness works BOTH your aerobic and anaerobic processes AND employs the crucial faster-twitch fibers, giving you a very thorough heart muscle workout.
To quote Phil Campbell:
"Most exercise programs today are built based upon a very incomplete picture of the physiology of your body.
For example, long slow cardio, "calories in, calories out," would be a perfect way to look at the body if it were all slow-twitch fiber…
But the fast- and super-fast-twitch fibers are essentially 50 percent of your muscle fibers and they don't get recruited until you add a velocity of movement."
Groundbreaking Research Changes AHA Cardio Guidelines
The research is so compelling about the superior benefits of high-intensity anaerobic exercise that the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have redefined their exercise cardio guidelines.
Their new guidelines state that you have a choice – do moderate intensity cardio five days a week for 30 minutes, or do vigorous intensity cardio for 20 minutes, three days a week, which is exactly what Peak Fitness is.
With Peak Fitness, that's a total of 90 minutes a week. And you only need to do this type of exercise 3 times a week instead of 5!
What's more, a recent study actually discovered that marathon runners were more likely to damage their hearts. Researchers found diminished right ventricular heart function, the presence of heart muscle scar tissue, and elevated heart injury blood markers among athletes in the study.
As for Peak Fitness exercises, you don't need or want to do them more than three times a week. Like running marathons, you actually do more harm than good when you overtax your body by exercising too much. Your body must have time to recover between workouts or your health can suffer.
My True Fitness Breakthrough Came
When I Discovered Peak Fitness
After more than 40 years of long-distance running, I found myself mentally exhausted by this type of exercise – I had clearly hit a plateau.
I began to realize that the extensive cardiovascular aerobic-type training I was engaging in might be counterproductive. I learned that high-intensity, burst-type sprints might be a far better alternative to long-distance running.
Then, I met Phil Campbell… and I finally understood the connection to growth hormone and how to actually integrate the program. Phil taught his Sprint 8 program in an easily understandable way and provided an explanation of how to lose weight and gain muscle mass.
I was hooked. I've been doing a very similar type workout that I've named "Peak Fitness" ever since April of 2010. In that switch, I ditched my conventional cardio workout completely. The benefits I am now experiencing have convinced me I couldn't have made a better decision.
I've been doing – and recommending, along with Phil Campbell – Peak Fitness exercises three times a week.
And after interviewing yet another high-intensity interval training expert and emergency room physician, Dr. Doug McGuff, I've learned to appreciate how important it is to listen to your body and allow sufficient recovery time between workouts.
As you age, you do need to adjust and discover through trial and error what works best for you. Your body can guide you onto a path that will provide you with the most efficient and effective benefits when you listen to it.
How Peak Fitness Can Become Your Personal Fountain of Youth
for Longevity, Fitness, and Weight Loss, Too
Peak Fitness workouts can help serve as your personal fountain of youth – at any age.
As you reach your 30s, you enter what's called "somatopause," when your levels of human growth hormone (HGH) begin to drop off rather dramatically.
You can start to pile on body fat – particularly unwanted "middle age spread". You start to lose muscle mass and you may also feel more fatigued.
Not only do declining levels of HGH change how your body burns fat, they also play a critical role in your aging process where you can actually look and feel older.
It has been my experience that nearly everyone over 30 has dramatically low levels of this important hormone because they begin leading increasingly sedentary life styles.
"For a full two hours after your workout your metabolism stays higher and you continue to burn calories faster, as long as you avoid eating or drinking sugar."
The important point to remember is… your super-fast muscle fibers help get you the benefits you desire. And the only way to engage your super-fast muscle fibers is by doing anaerobic or high-intensity exercise like Peak Fitness. Traditional cardio and aerobic exercises do not engage your super-fast fibers!
With Peak Fitness, Get Ready for a Younger- and Leaner-Looking You
Peak Fitness makes a great
anti-aging strategy. What's yours?
Boosting your metabolism and increasing fat loss is just the beginning.
Peak Fitness is also a potent "anti-aging" strategy. You can potentially look and feel younger!
Some of the latest studies have shown how exercise affects telomeres – those shoelace tip-like ends of your chromosomes.
When your telomeres get too short, cells stop dividing and you can experience muscle loss, cognitive decline, and less skin elasticity, among other changes.
In these studies, endurance athletes were shown to have longer telomeres than those who did not exercise. Even moderate activity was shown to benefit telomeres.
No matter your age, starting or adding Peak Fitness exercises into your current workout routine can potentially have an impact on your overall health.
Once you regularly participate in these 20-minute exercises three times a week, you may notice the following benefits as many others have as well:
Decrease in body fat
Improved muscle tone
Increase in energy
Improved athletic speed and performance
Ability to achieve your fitness goals much faster
That's not all… Research repeatedly shows that maintaining your optimal weight and exercising regularly helps maintain healthy glucose and insulin levels. It does this through supporting your insulin receptor sensitivity.
When you normalize your insulin levels, you give your body its best chance for optimum health. And that applies to you even if you start your exercise program overweight or out-of-shape.
It's Never Too Late to Start
Chances are, if you're over 50 and you haven't started a regular exercise program, you may be thinking it's too late to start or to enjoy all the benefits that Peak Fitness can offer.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Research shows that age isn't a factor. Regular exercise, even when started late in life, offers health benefits.
If you're elderly or severely out of shape, I advise you to find a workout buddy, a personal trainer or someone who is experienced to help guide you through your routine, and keep you accountable. You'll have more fun and you'll be more likely to stick with your program.
Start off slowly and gradually increase intensity as you grow stronger, avoiding activities that cause pain. Although it is important to use caution when you are starting out, you do need to exercise at a level that challenges your body.
And here's an important point to mention… I find that many older individuals shy away from exercise out of fear of injury or discomfort. Please remember that exercise actually reduces your risk of injury and helps to ease everyday aches and pains.
As for adults adopting an exercise routine later in life, I like to use the example of my own mother. She didn't start working out until she was 74 and today, at the age of 77, she has gained significant improvements in strength, flexibility, balance and mental clarity.
My mother is a perfect example of how one can benefit from exercise even when they start their program later in life. You can see videos of her progress and the exercise routine she uses today on our website – a true inspiration for even the most sedentary, older individual!
As with any new fitness program, if you have a history of heart disease or other health concerns, please get clearance from your health care professional before starting your Peak Fitness program.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Studies confirm chiropractic treatment prevents heart attacks and lowers blood pressure
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
(NaturalNews) The popularity of chiropractic care has grown dramatically since the middle of the 20th century. Although most people seek chiropractic treatment to relieve musculoskeletal pain, certain types of pain may be indicative of the patient experiencing a heart attack just before or during treatment.
Chiropractors should expect to have at least one presentation of a myocardial infarction, or heart attack, during their careers, according to chiropractor Dr. Dwain M. Daniel. Research indicates that regular chiropractic adjustments may prevent heart attacks, lower blood pressure, reduce heart rate, relieve chest pain and support the cardiovascular system, according to the Palmer Chiropractic College.
Studies at the College investigated the effects of chiropractic treatment on the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems in reference to an analysis of heart rate variability. Findings indicated that chiropractic adjustments do reduce pain and lower participant's mean heart rate.
Additionally, adjustments of the atlas, or first cervical vertebra, may stop some heart attacks while they are occurring, according to chiropractor Dr. Christopher Clarke of the Vibrance Family Chiropractic Center in Nashville. If a patient experiences a heart attack during an adjustment, gentle manipulation of the atlas may be appropriate and may alter the outcome; however, other emergency measures must be performed in an attempt to save a patient's life, including transport to the nearest medical facility.
Reducing blood pressure
Chiropractic treatment also has a significant effect on blood pressure and anxiety levels, according to a study reported in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. The study examined systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels and patients' anxiety levels before and after an adjustment. In all cases, those subjects who received active treatment experienced a distinct drop in blood pressure and a decrease of their anxiety levels. Results of this study provide evidence that chiropractic treatment offers support to the cardiovascular system.
Recognizing signs and symptoms
Women are just as likely to have heart attacks as are men; however, women are less likely to seek medical treatment or attend rehabilitation during or after a heart attack, according to the Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association. Because women are more than twice as likely to seek chiropractic care, according to Clarke, it's important to recognize the specific symptoms they may exhibit. Men tend to experience extreme pain and heaviness in the chest and left arm during a heart attack. Although women may also experience these effects, they may exhibit very different symptoms, making a heart attack more difficult to diagnose. Women often complain of neck and upper back pain, which is mild and annoying and often mistaken as a structural problem. They are more likely to be misdiagnosed because of the vagaries of their symptoms.
Other symptoms reported by women during a heart attack can range from chest pain brought on during exercise or other strenuous activity that then feels better during rest. There may be crushing chest pain accompanied by other wandering pains to the rest of the body, vague wandering pains extending down one or both arms, and difficulty breathing with shortness of breath, fatigue or weakness. They may also be fearful, anxious and in denial.
Chiropractic treatment can increase vitality, boost immunity, relieve a variety of musculoskeletal ailments and strengthen the heart and cardiovascular system for both men and women. Patients should always check credentials for any chiropractic doctor before undergoing treatment, especially if they have a history of heart disease or other related disorders. Look for an experienced doctor who performs a thorough exam before attempting any adjustments.
Sources for this article include:
Journal of Chiropractic Medicine,: Sympathetic and parasympathetic responses to specific diversified adjustments to chiropractic vertebral subluxations of the cervical and thoracic spine; Arlene Welch, et. al.; September 2008
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2686395/
Vibrance Family Chiropractic
http://www.vibrancefamilychiropractic.com/
ChiroAccess: Recognition of Myocardial Infarction in Chiropractic Practice?
http://www.chiroaccess.com/Articles/Recognition-of-Myocardial-Infarction-in-Chiropractic-Practice.aspx?id=0000305
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association:
Patient with Signs and Symptoms of Myocardial Infarction Presenting to a Chiropractic Office -- A Case Report
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2505011/pdf/jcca00009-0037.pdf
Palmer Chiropractic College: Effect of Chiropractic Care on Heart Rate Variability and Pain in a Multi-site Clinical Study
http://w3.palmer.edu/ctl/Docs/Research/Zhang%20article.pdf
Chiropractic and Osteopathy: Management of chest pain: exploring the views and experiences of chiropractors and medical practitioners in a focus group interview ; Monica Smith, et.al.k, September, 2005
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1236944/
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics: Effects of chiropractic treatment on blood pressure and anxiety: a randomized, controlled trial; RG Yates, et. al, December 1998
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3075649
Chiropractic Helps Reduce High Blood Pressure Levels
https://images.vortala.com/chiropractor/USA/Connecticut/Cheshire/usCentralConnecticutChiropractic/SiteGraphics/high_blood_pressure.pdf
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association: The effect of low force chiropractic adjustments on body surface electromagnetic field; John Zhang, MD, PhD, et. al., March 2004
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15855902
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association: Chiropractic clinical practice guideline: evidence-based treatment of adult neck pain not due to whiplash
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1839918/
About the author:
JB Bardot is trained in herbal medicine and homeopathy, and has a post graduate degree in holistic nutrition. Bardot cares for both people and animals, using alternative approaches to health care and lifestyle.
Stay informed! FREE subscription to the Health Ranger's email newsletter
Get breaking health news + a LIFETIME 7% discount on everything at the NaturalNews Store
Join two million monthly readers. Email privacy 100% protected. Unsubscribe at any time.
Articles Related to This Article:
• The AMA Conspiracy to Contain and Eliminate the Practice of Chiropractic
• Myth of chiropractic-caused strokes debunked by medical researchers (press release)
• Chiropractic Lowers Blood Pressure
• Chiropractic Helps Digestive Disorders
• Chiropractic improves creative thinking
• Reverse Aging with Chiropractic Care
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/034760_chiropractic_heart_attacks_blood_pressure.html#ixzz1kU72tY9G
(NaturalNews) The popularity of chiropractic care has grown dramatically since the middle of the 20th century. Although most people seek chiropractic treatment to relieve musculoskeletal pain, certain types of pain may be indicative of the patient experiencing a heart attack just before or during treatment.
Chiropractors should expect to have at least one presentation of a myocardial infarction, or heart attack, during their careers, according to chiropractor Dr. Dwain M. Daniel. Research indicates that regular chiropractic adjustments may prevent heart attacks, lower blood pressure, reduce heart rate, relieve chest pain and support the cardiovascular system, according to the Palmer Chiropractic College.
Studies at the College investigated the effects of chiropractic treatment on the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems in reference to an analysis of heart rate variability. Findings indicated that chiropractic adjustments do reduce pain and lower participant's mean heart rate.
Additionally, adjustments of the atlas, or first cervical vertebra, may stop some heart attacks while they are occurring, according to chiropractor Dr. Christopher Clarke of the Vibrance Family Chiropractic Center in Nashville. If a patient experiences a heart attack during an adjustment, gentle manipulation of the atlas may be appropriate and may alter the outcome; however, other emergency measures must be performed in an attempt to save a patient's life, including transport to the nearest medical facility.
Reducing blood pressure
Chiropractic treatment also has a significant effect on blood pressure and anxiety levels, according to a study reported in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. The study examined systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels and patients' anxiety levels before and after an adjustment. In all cases, those subjects who received active treatment experienced a distinct drop in blood pressure and a decrease of their anxiety levels. Results of this study provide evidence that chiropractic treatment offers support to the cardiovascular system.
Recognizing signs and symptoms
Women are just as likely to have heart attacks as are men; however, women are less likely to seek medical treatment or attend rehabilitation during or after a heart attack, according to the Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association. Because women are more than twice as likely to seek chiropractic care, according to Clarke, it's important to recognize the specific symptoms they may exhibit. Men tend to experience extreme pain and heaviness in the chest and left arm during a heart attack. Although women may also experience these effects, they may exhibit very different symptoms, making a heart attack more difficult to diagnose. Women often complain of neck and upper back pain, which is mild and annoying and often mistaken as a structural problem. They are more likely to be misdiagnosed because of the vagaries of their symptoms.
Other symptoms reported by women during a heart attack can range from chest pain brought on during exercise or other strenuous activity that then feels better during rest. There may be crushing chest pain accompanied by other wandering pains to the rest of the body, vague wandering pains extending down one or both arms, and difficulty breathing with shortness of breath, fatigue or weakness. They may also be fearful, anxious and in denial.
Chiropractic treatment can increase vitality, boost immunity, relieve a variety of musculoskeletal ailments and strengthen the heart and cardiovascular system for both men and women. Patients should always check credentials for any chiropractic doctor before undergoing treatment, especially if they have a history of heart disease or other related disorders. Look for an experienced doctor who performs a thorough exam before attempting any adjustments.
Sources for this article include:
Journal of Chiropractic Medicine,: Sympathetic and parasympathetic responses to specific diversified adjustments to chiropractic vertebral subluxations of the cervical and thoracic spine; Arlene Welch, et. al.; September 2008
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2686395/
Vibrance Family Chiropractic
http://www.vibrancefamilychiropractic.com/
ChiroAccess: Recognition of Myocardial Infarction in Chiropractic Practice?
http://www.chiroaccess.com/Articles/Recognition-of-Myocardial-Infarction-in-Chiropractic-Practice.aspx?id=0000305
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association:
Patient with Signs and Symptoms of Myocardial Infarction Presenting to a Chiropractic Office -- A Case Report
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2505011/pdf/jcca00009-0037.pdf
Palmer Chiropractic College: Effect of Chiropractic Care on Heart Rate Variability and Pain in a Multi-site Clinical Study
http://w3.palmer.edu/ctl/Docs/Research/Zhang%20article.pdf
Chiropractic and Osteopathy: Management of chest pain: exploring the views and experiences of chiropractors and medical practitioners in a focus group interview ; Monica Smith, et.al.k, September, 2005
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1236944/
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics: Effects of chiropractic treatment on blood pressure and anxiety: a randomized, controlled trial; RG Yates, et. al, December 1998
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3075649
Chiropractic Helps Reduce High Blood Pressure Levels
https://images.vortala.com/chiropractor/USA/Connecticut/Cheshire/usCentralConnecticutChiropractic/SiteGraphics/high_blood_pressure.pdf
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association: The effect of low force chiropractic adjustments on body surface electromagnetic field; John Zhang, MD, PhD, et. al., March 2004
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15855902
Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association: Chiropractic clinical practice guideline: evidence-based treatment of adult neck pain not due to whiplash
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1839918/
About the author:
JB Bardot is trained in herbal medicine and homeopathy, and has a post graduate degree in holistic nutrition. Bardot cares for both people and animals, using alternative approaches to health care and lifestyle.
Stay informed! FREE subscription to the Health Ranger's email newsletter
Get breaking health news + a LIFETIME 7% discount on everything at the NaturalNews Store
Join two million monthly readers. Email privacy 100% protected. Unsubscribe at any time.
Articles Related to This Article:
• The AMA Conspiracy to Contain and Eliminate the Practice of Chiropractic
• Myth of chiropractic-caused strokes debunked by medical researchers (press release)
• Chiropractic Lowers Blood Pressure
• Chiropractic Helps Digestive Disorders
• Chiropractic improves creative thinking
• Reverse Aging with Chiropractic Care
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/034760_chiropractic_heart_attacks_blood_pressure.html#ixzz1kU72tY9G
Monday, January 23, 2012
Just drink WATER, it all you need
Dr. Oz Proves This Fruit Juice Can be Toxic
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 22 2012
Story at-a-glance
Arsenic occurs naturally in the environment, and is a common groundwater contaminant. The US EPA limits trace amounts of arsenic in drinking water to 10 parts per billion. However, arsenic is also showing up in food and drinks, for which no safety limits have been set, raising concerns about overexposure through diet, especially for children and pregnant women.
Tests performed by both Consumer Reports and Dr. Oz recently exposed high levels of arsenic in fruit juices, especially apple juice. As a result, Consumer Reports is calling for government standards to limit consumer exposure.
Ten percent of 88 juice samples tested by Consumer Reports had arsenic levels exceeding the U.S. federal drinking-water standard.
Many foods, including chicken, rice, and processed baby foods have also been found to contain high levels of arsenic.
Many foods, including chicken, rice, and processed baby foods have also been found to contain high levels of arsenic.
While acutely toxic at high levels, low-level chronic exposure to arsenic can lead to a wide variety of health problems, including gastrointestinal problems, skin discoloration and hyperkeratosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, high blood pressure, diabetes, reproductive problems, reduced IQ and other neurological problems, and various cancers.
By Dr. Mercola
Inorganic arsenic, the form most likely to cause cancer, occurs naturally in the earth and is released into ground water that travels through rocks and soil. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits the amount of trace arsenic allowable in drinking water to 10 parts per billion (ppb).
However, arsenic has also been found in other drinks and foods, for which no safety limit has been set, raising concerns about overexposure through the diet.
Juices and Foods Tainted with Arsenic
This past summer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a "voluntary suspension" of the arsenic-laced drug Roxarsone, which has been widely used on chickens raised in CAFOs (Confined Animal Feeding Operations) to control an intestinal parasite.
More recently, an investigation into arsenic and lead levels in apple- and grape juice prompted Consumer Reports to call for government standards to limit consumer exposure.
Ten percent of the 88 juice samples tested by Consumer Reports had arsenic levels exceeding the U.S. federal drinking-water standard. A quarter of them also had lead levels higher than the 5 ppb limit set for bottled water.
According to Consumer Reports:
"The investigation included an analysis of the National Center for Health Statistics' National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 2003 to 2008.
The results of that analysis suggest that these juices may be an important contributor to dietary arsenic exposure.
Through interviews with physicians and authors of peer-reviewed studies, Consumer Reports also found mounting scientific evidence suggesting that chronic exposure to arsenic and lead even at levels below federal standards for water can result in serious health problems, especially for those who are exposed in the womb or during early childhood. FDA data and other research reveal that arsenic has been detected at disturbing levels in other foods as well.
… In addition to juice, foods including chicken, rice, and even baby food have been found to contain arsenic -- sometimes at higher levels than the amounts found in juice ..."
In September, Dr. Oz also discussed this issue on The Dr. Oz Show. He claimed to have tested 50 different brands of apple juice, and found they ALL contained high levels of arsenic. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) contested Dr. Oz's findings, stating that his testing was inaccurate because he tested for both inorganic and organic arsenic, the latter of which is considered fairly harmless.
(As a side note, I was recently invited as a guest on The Dr. Oz Show for the third time. During that episode, we covered such issues as vitamin D, CoQ10, blood pressure medications, statins and antidepressants. For more information about that episode, please see this article that delves into those topics in greater detail than I was able to on the show.)
Are Arsenic Levels in Juice a Safety Hazard?
There are currently no official limits set for arsenic in juices, but according to a 2008 FDA hazard assessment, 23 ppb of inorganic arsenic would represent "a potential health risk." However, the Consumers Union (the advocacy arm of Consumer Reports) has warned that this level should NOT be used as a reference point for establishing a safety limit, because it does not take into account the now well-established carcinogenicity of inorganic arsenic.
The group has proposed the FDA set the limit for arsenic at three ppb—a far cry from the FDA's stated "level of concern."
The FDA has responded to the Consumers Union, indicating that the agency is considering creating a guidance for the permissible level of arsenic in apple juice. In a November 21 letter to the Empire State Consumer Project, the agency states it will collect and analyze up to 90 retail juice samples from across the US by the end of this year. However, the FDA already has data on arsenic in fruit juices. They've been sampling juices for several years, as part of the Total Diet Study (TDS). The results can be found on the FDA's website.
In their letter, the FDA states "FDA monitoring has found that total arsenic levels in apple juice are typically low." But is it low enough to protect public health?
Their sampling has already revealed that in some instances, the arsenic levels can be quite high. Consumer Reports points out that while the FDA had posted the results of 70 samples over a six-year period, an additional eight samples were not released until late November. All eight samples, which were collected in 2008 and 2009, contained arsenic levels of 23 ppb or higher.
The FDA's Total Diet Study program also reveals that between 1991 to 2009, a quarter of the juice samples tested contained 10 ppb of arsenic or higher. Five percent contained 23 ppb or more of arsenic… So while the FDA may be technically correct in its statement that arsenic levels are typically low, their own data still shows that 25 percent of samples test above the EPA's safe water limit, and that's not necessarily negligible. Especially when you consider the increased risks of skin-, lung- and bladder cancer associated with repeated exposure to arsenic.
Juice Drinkers have Higher Arsenic Levels than Non-Juice Drinkers
According to Consumer Reports:
"We wanted to know whether people who drink juice end up being exposed to more arsenic than those who don't. So we commissioned an analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted annually by the National Center for Health Statistics… Our analysis was led by Richard Stahlhut, M.D., M.P.H., an environmental health researcher at the University of Rochester with expertise in NHANES data…
Stahlhut reviewed NHANES data from 2003 through 2008 from participants tested for total urinary arsenic who reported their food and drink consumption for 24 hours the day before their NHANES visit.
Because most ingested arsenic is excreted in urine, the best measure of recent exposure is a urine test... The resulting analysis of almost 3,000 study participants found that those reporting apple-juice consumption had on average 19 percent greater levels of total urinary arsenic than those subjects who did not, and those who reported drinking grape juice had 20 percent higher levels.
The results might understate the correlation between juice consumption and urinary arsenic levels because NHANES urinary data exclude children younger than 6, who tend to be big juice drinkers. "The current analysis suggests that these juices may be an important contributor to dietary arsenic exposure," says Keeve Nachman, Ph.D., a risk scientist at the Center for a Livable Future and the Bloomberg School of Public Health, both at Johns Hopkins University. "It would be prudent to pursue measures to understand and limit young children's exposures to arsenic in juice."
The Health Dangers of Arsenic
Unfortunately, the signs and symptoms of chronic arsenic exposure can easily be overlooked or misdiagnosed as something else. For example, early symptoms include:
Gastrointestinal problems
Skin discoloration or lesions, including hyperkeratosis
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic long-term exposure also increases your risk of:
Various cancers
High blood pressure
Diabetes (A 2008 study linked low-level arsenic exposure to higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the US)
Reproductive problems
As recommended by Consumer Reports, if you're concerned, or suspect your health problems may be related to arsenic poisoning, ask your doctor to test you to determine your arsenic levels. Just make sure you do not consume any kind of seafood for up to 72 hours prior to the urine test, as fish is high in naturally-occurring arsenic that can throw off your results.
Arsenic exposure in utero and during early childhood is particularly problematic, as it can cause lasting harm to children's developing brains, and endocrine- and immune systems. For example:
A 2006 study found that Chileans exposed to high levels (peaking at 1,000 ppb) of naturally-occurring arsenic in drinking water in utero and during early childhood had a six times higher lung cancer death rate compared to Chileans living in areas with lower levels of arsenic in their water. And their mortality rate in their 30s and 40s from another form of lung disease was almost 50 times higher than for people without that arsenic exposure.
A 2004 study showed children exposed to arsenic in drinking water at levels above 5 ppb had lower IQ scores. Earlier studies have linked chronic arsenic exposure to a range of cognitive dysfunctions, including learning disabilities, memory problems, poor concentration, and peripheral and central neuropathies.
A study published in 2011 examined the long-term effects of low-level exposure on more than 300 rural Texans whose groundwater was estimated to have arsenic at median levels below the federal drinking-water standard. It also found that exposure was related to poor scores in language, memory, and other brain functions.
Sources of Arsenic
Naturally-occurring arsenic in groundwater is one of the most common sources of exposure, and those with private wells may face greater risks than those on public systems. If you have a well, you would be well advised to have your water tested and treated accordingly. For example, in Maine, where almost 50 percent of the population relies on private wells, the US Geological Survey has occasionally found arsenic levels in well water as high as 3,100 ppb! Disturbingly, tests have also found very high levels of inorganic arsenic in a variety of baby foods.
For example, according to Consumer Reports:
Last year, Brian Jackson, Ph.D., an analytical chemist and research associate professor at Dartmouth College reported finding up to 23 ppb of arsenic in lab tests of name-brand jars of baby food. Inorganic arsenic represented 70 to 90 percent of those total amounts.
A 2004 study conducted by FDA scientists in Cincinnati found arsenic levels as high as 24 ppb in baby food, with sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, and peaches containing only the inorganic form.
A 2008 UK study found levels of inorganic arsenic in 20-ounce packets of infant rice cereals ranged from 60 to 160 ppb.
The reason why rice frequently contains high levels of inorganic arsenic is twofold. First, rice is very efficient at absorbing arsenic from the soil, and second, in the US, rice is frequently grown on land previously used to grow cotton, on which arsenic-based pesticides were heavily used. According to research by Andrew Meharg, professor of biogeochemistry at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, American-grown rice has among the highest average inorganic arsenic levels in the world. US rice contains nearly three times more arsenic than Basmati rice imported from Nepal, India, and Pakistan. Egyptian rice has the lowest inorganic arsenic levels of all.
Water Filtration—A Must for Clean Pure Water…
If you have well water, it would be prudent to have your water tested for arsenic and other contaminants. If you have public water, you can get local drinking water information from the EPA.
One of the most comprehensive test kits I've found is from National Testing Laboratories. We have these test kits available at cost, a significant discount from the standard online price. If you're interested, you can purchase a test kit for Well Water or for City Water. Alternatively, you can also locate a certified lab by contacting your local health department or call the federal Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.
In general, most water supplies contain a number of potentially hazardous contaminants, from fluoride, to drugs and disinfection byproducts (DBP's), just to name a few. You can get a good idea of what types of contaminants could be in your drinking water right now by viewing this awesome graphic from GOOD Environment (reprinted with permission.) It gives you a look at the five most and least polluted water systems in America (in cities with more than 100,000 population), including pointing out the pollutants of largest concern.
I strongly recommend using a high quality water filtration system unless you can verify the purity of your water. To be absolutely certain you are getting the purest water you can, you'll want to filter the water both at the point of entry and at the point of use. This means filtering all the water that comes into the house, and then filtering again at the kitchen sink. I currently use a whole house carbon-based water filtration system, and prior to this I used reverse osmosis (RO) to purify my water.
You can read more about water filtration here to help you make a decision about what type of water filtration system will be best for you and your family. Since most water sources are now severely polluted, the issue of water filtration and purification couldn't be more important.
How to Protect Yourself and Your Family from Arsenic
Aside from your water supply, foods and beverages are also common sources of arsenic. Here are some common-sense guidelines to limit your and your family's exposure:
Limit your child's juice consumption. This is a general guideline for optimal health anyway, as juices contain high amounts of fructose that if taken in large quantities can cause very serious health problems.
Buy organic, pastured chicken. Organic standards do not allow organically-raised chickens to be given conventional feed grown with synthetic pesticides.
Avoid processed baby food. Not only are many baby foods contaminated with potentially toxic chemicals, they also tend to be loaded with sugar and trans fats, and some may even contain genetically engineered ingredients.
Instead, make your own baby food using all-organic ingredients. Simply cooking a squash or sweet potato, mashing it up and freezing it in an ice cube tray is an easy way to have ready-made multiple servings available for the rest of the week.
Egg yolk is another healthy food that requires little preparation. According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, egg yolk should be your baby's first solid food, starting at approximately 4 months, whether your baby is breastfed or formula-fed. Egg yolks from free-range hens will contain the special long-chain fatty acids so critical for the optimal development of your child's brain and nervous system. (However, the egg whites may cause an allergic reaction so they're best avoided until your child is at least one year old.)
Source: Consumer Reports January 2012
Source: Fox News November 30, 2011
Source: US Food and Drug Administration, Total Arsenic in Apple Juice Analytical Results, 2005 – 2011
Source: Consumer Reports November 30, 2011
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 22 2012
Story at-a-glance
Arsenic occurs naturally in the environment, and is a common groundwater contaminant. The US EPA limits trace amounts of arsenic in drinking water to 10 parts per billion. However, arsenic is also showing up in food and drinks, for which no safety limits have been set, raising concerns about overexposure through diet, especially for children and pregnant women.
Tests performed by both Consumer Reports and Dr. Oz recently exposed high levels of arsenic in fruit juices, especially apple juice. As a result, Consumer Reports is calling for government standards to limit consumer exposure.
Ten percent of 88 juice samples tested by Consumer Reports had arsenic levels exceeding the U.S. federal drinking-water standard.
Many foods, including chicken, rice, and processed baby foods have also been found to contain high levels of arsenic.
Many foods, including chicken, rice, and processed baby foods have also been found to contain high levels of arsenic.
While acutely toxic at high levels, low-level chronic exposure to arsenic can lead to a wide variety of health problems, including gastrointestinal problems, skin discoloration and hyperkeratosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, high blood pressure, diabetes, reproductive problems, reduced IQ and other neurological problems, and various cancers.
By Dr. Mercola
Inorganic arsenic, the form most likely to cause cancer, occurs naturally in the earth and is released into ground water that travels through rocks and soil. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits the amount of trace arsenic allowable in drinking water to 10 parts per billion (ppb).
However, arsenic has also been found in other drinks and foods, for which no safety limit has been set, raising concerns about overexposure through the diet.
Juices and Foods Tainted with Arsenic
This past summer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a "voluntary suspension" of the arsenic-laced drug Roxarsone, which has been widely used on chickens raised in CAFOs (Confined Animal Feeding Operations) to control an intestinal parasite.
More recently, an investigation into arsenic and lead levels in apple- and grape juice prompted Consumer Reports to call for government standards to limit consumer exposure.
Ten percent of the 88 juice samples tested by Consumer Reports had arsenic levels exceeding the U.S. federal drinking-water standard. A quarter of them also had lead levels higher than the 5 ppb limit set for bottled water.
According to Consumer Reports:
"The investigation included an analysis of the National Center for Health Statistics' National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 2003 to 2008.
The results of that analysis suggest that these juices may be an important contributor to dietary arsenic exposure.
Through interviews with physicians and authors of peer-reviewed studies, Consumer Reports also found mounting scientific evidence suggesting that chronic exposure to arsenic and lead even at levels below federal standards for water can result in serious health problems, especially for those who are exposed in the womb or during early childhood. FDA data and other research reveal that arsenic has been detected at disturbing levels in other foods as well.
… In addition to juice, foods including chicken, rice, and even baby food have been found to contain arsenic -- sometimes at higher levels than the amounts found in juice ..."
In September, Dr. Oz also discussed this issue on The Dr. Oz Show. He claimed to have tested 50 different brands of apple juice, and found they ALL contained high levels of arsenic. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) contested Dr. Oz's findings, stating that his testing was inaccurate because he tested for both inorganic and organic arsenic, the latter of which is considered fairly harmless.
(As a side note, I was recently invited as a guest on The Dr. Oz Show for the third time. During that episode, we covered such issues as vitamin D, CoQ10, blood pressure medications, statins and antidepressants. For more information about that episode, please see this article that delves into those topics in greater detail than I was able to on the show.)
Are Arsenic Levels in Juice a Safety Hazard?
There are currently no official limits set for arsenic in juices, but according to a 2008 FDA hazard assessment, 23 ppb of inorganic arsenic would represent "a potential health risk." However, the Consumers Union (the advocacy arm of Consumer Reports) has warned that this level should NOT be used as a reference point for establishing a safety limit, because it does not take into account the now well-established carcinogenicity of inorganic arsenic.
The group has proposed the FDA set the limit for arsenic at three ppb—a far cry from the FDA's stated "level of concern."
The FDA has responded to the Consumers Union, indicating that the agency is considering creating a guidance for the permissible level of arsenic in apple juice. In a November 21 letter to the Empire State Consumer Project, the agency states it will collect and analyze up to 90 retail juice samples from across the US by the end of this year. However, the FDA already has data on arsenic in fruit juices. They've been sampling juices for several years, as part of the Total Diet Study (TDS). The results can be found on the FDA's website.
In their letter, the FDA states "FDA monitoring has found that total arsenic levels in apple juice are typically low." But is it low enough to protect public health?
Their sampling has already revealed that in some instances, the arsenic levels can be quite high. Consumer Reports points out that while the FDA had posted the results of 70 samples over a six-year period, an additional eight samples were not released until late November. All eight samples, which were collected in 2008 and 2009, contained arsenic levels of 23 ppb or higher.
The FDA's Total Diet Study program also reveals that between 1991 to 2009, a quarter of the juice samples tested contained 10 ppb of arsenic or higher. Five percent contained 23 ppb or more of arsenic… So while the FDA may be technically correct in its statement that arsenic levels are typically low, their own data still shows that 25 percent of samples test above the EPA's safe water limit, and that's not necessarily negligible. Especially when you consider the increased risks of skin-, lung- and bladder cancer associated with repeated exposure to arsenic.
Juice Drinkers have Higher Arsenic Levels than Non-Juice Drinkers
According to Consumer Reports:
"We wanted to know whether people who drink juice end up being exposed to more arsenic than those who don't. So we commissioned an analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted annually by the National Center for Health Statistics… Our analysis was led by Richard Stahlhut, M.D., M.P.H., an environmental health researcher at the University of Rochester with expertise in NHANES data…
Stahlhut reviewed NHANES data from 2003 through 2008 from participants tested for total urinary arsenic who reported their food and drink consumption for 24 hours the day before their NHANES visit.
Because most ingested arsenic is excreted in urine, the best measure of recent exposure is a urine test... The resulting analysis of almost 3,000 study participants found that those reporting apple-juice consumption had on average 19 percent greater levels of total urinary arsenic than those subjects who did not, and those who reported drinking grape juice had 20 percent higher levels.
The results might understate the correlation between juice consumption and urinary arsenic levels because NHANES urinary data exclude children younger than 6, who tend to be big juice drinkers. "The current analysis suggests that these juices may be an important contributor to dietary arsenic exposure," says Keeve Nachman, Ph.D., a risk scientist at the Center for a Livable Future and the Bloomberg School of Public Health, both at Johns Hopkins University. "It would be prudent to pursue measures to understand and limit young children's exposures to arsenic in juice."
The Health Dangers of Arsenic
Unfortunately, the signs and symptoms of chronic arsenic exposure can easily be overlooked or misdiagnosed as something else. For example, early symptoms include:
Gastrointestinal problems
Skin discoloration or lesions, including hyperkeratosis
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic long-term exposure also increases your risk of:
Various cancers
High blood pressure
Diabetes (A 2008 study linked low-level arsenic exposure to higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the US)
Reproductive problems
As recommended by Consumer Reports, if you're concerned, or suspect your health problems may be related to arsenic poisoning, ask your doctor to test you to determine your arsenic levels. Just make sure you do not consume any kind of seafood for up to 72 hours prior to the urine test, as fish is high in naturally-occurring arsenic that can throw off your results.
Arsenic exposure in utero and during early childhood is particularly problematic, as it can cause lasting harm to children's developing brains, and endocrine- and immune systems. For example:
A 2006 study found that Chileans exposed to high levels (peaking at 1,000 ppb) of naturally-occurring arsenic in drinking water in utero and during early childhood had a six times higher lung cancer death rate compared to Chileans living in areas with lower levels of arsenic in their water. And their mortality rate in their 30s and 40s from another form of lung disease was almost 50 times higher than for people without that arsenic exposure.
A 2004 study showed children exposed to arsenic in drinking water at levels above 5 ppb had lower IQ scores. Earlier studies have linked chronic arsenic exposure to a range of cognitive dysfunctions, including learning disabilities, memory problems, poor concentration, and peripheral and central neuropathies.
A study published in 2011 examined the long-term effects of low-level exposure on more than 300 rural Texans whose groundwater was estimated to have arsenic at median levels below the federal drinking-water standard. It also found that exposure was related to poor scores in language, memory, and other brain functions.
Sources of Arsenic
Naturally-occurring arsenic in groundwater is one of the most common sources of exposure, and those with private wells may face greater risks than those on public systems. If you have a well, you would be well advised to have your water tested and treated accordingly. For example, in Maine, where almost 50 percent of the population relies on private wells, the US Geological Survey has occasionally found arsenic levels in well water as high as 3,100 ppb! Disturbingly, tests have also found very high levels of inorganic arsenic in a variety of baby foods.
For example, according to Consumer Reports:
Last year, Brian Jackson, Ph.D., an analytical chemist and research associate professor at Dartmouth College reported finding up to 23 ppb of arsenic in lab tests of name-brand jars of baby food. Inorganic arsenic represented 70 to 90 percent of those total amounts.
A 2004 study conducted by FDA scientists in Cincinnati found arsenic levels as high as 24 ppb in baby food, with sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, and peaches containing only the inorganic form.
A 2008 UK study found levels of inorganic arsenic in 20-ounce packets of infant rice cereals ranged from 60 to 160 ppb.
The reason why rice frequently contains high levels of inorganic arsenic is twofold. First, rice is very efficient at absorbing arsenic from the soil, and second, in the US, rice is frequently grown on land previously used to grow cotton, on which arsenic-based pesticides were heavily used. According to research by Andrew Meharg, professor of biogeochemistry at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, American-grown rice has among the highest average inorganic arsenic levels in the world. US rice contains nearly three times more arsenic than Basmati rice imported from Nepal, India, and Pakistan. Egyptian rice has the lowest inorganic arsenic levels of all.
Water Filtration—A Must for Clean Pure Water…
If you have well water, it would be prudent to have your water tested for arsenic and other contaminants. If you have public water, you can get local drinking water information from the EPA.
One of the most comprehensive test kits I've found is from National Testing Laboratories. We have these test kits available at cost, a significant discount from the standard online price. If you're interested, you can purchase a test kit for Well Water or for City Water. Alternatively, you can also locate a certified lab by contacting your local health department or call the federal Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.
In general, most water supplies contain a number of potentially hazardous contaminants, from fluoride, to drugs and disinfection byproducts (DBP's), just to name a few. You can get a good idea of what types of contaminants could be in your drinking water right now by viewing this awesome graphic from GOOD Environment (reprinted with permission.) It gives you a look at the five most and least polluted water systems in America (in cities with more than 100,000 population), including pointing out the pollutants of largest concern.
I strongly recommend using a high quality water filtration system unless you can verify the purity of your water. To be absolutely certain you are getting the purest water you can, you'll want to filter the water both at the point of entry and at the point of use. This means filtering all the water that comes into the house, and then filtering again at the kitchen sink. I currently use a whole house carbon-based water filtration system, and prior to this I used reverse osmosis (RO) to purify my water.
You can read more about water filtration here to help you make a decision about what type of water filtration system will be best for you and your family. Since most water sources are now severely polluted, the issue of water filtration and purification couldn't be more important.
How to Protect Yourself and Your Family from Arsenic
Aside from your water supply, foods and beverages are also common sources of arsenic. Here are some common-sense guidelines to limit your and your family's exposure:
Limit your child's juice consumption. This is a general guideline for optimal health anyway, as juices contain high amounts of fructose that if taken in large quantities can cause very serious health problems.
Buy organic, pastured chicken. Organic standards do not allow organically-raised chickens to be given conventional feed grown with synthetic pesticides.
Avoid processed baby food. Not only are many baby foods contaminated with potentially toxic chemicals, they also tend to be loaded with sugar and trans fats, and some may even contain genetically engineered ingredients.
Instead, make your own baby food using all-organic ingredients. Simply cooking a squash or sweet potato, mashing it up and freezing it in an ice cube tray is an easy way to have ready-made multiple servings available for the rest of the week.
Egg yolk is another healthy food that requires little preparation. According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, egg yolk should be your baby's first solid food, starting at approximately 4 months, whether your baby is breastfed or formula-fed. Egg yolks from free-range hens will contain the special long-chain fatty acids so critical for the optimal development of your child's brain and nervous system. (However, the egg whites may cause an allergic reaction so they're best avoided until your child is at least one year old.)
Source: Consumer Reports January 2012
Source: Fox News November 30, 2011
Source: US Food and Drug Administration, Total Arsenic in Apple Juice Analytical Results, 2005 – 2011
Source: Consumer Reports November 30, 2011
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Stop the Grains
Eating This Can "Tear Holes" in Your Gut
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 21 2012
Story at-a-glance
Grains contain anti-nutrients and lectins that can damage your gut, and humans did not consume them until relatively recently in biological time
We’re often told that whole grains are healthy, but the high-fiber bran portion of grain -- the part that makes it a whole grain -- actually contains many of the anti-nutrients
There is a sizeable body of scientific evidence showing that grains, as well as legumes, contain anti-nutrients that may increase intestinal permeability and cause leaky gut and associated symptoms
Eliminating grains (and sugars) from your diet, while introducing traditionally fermented foods, can help prevent leaky gut as well as other chronic health conditions
By Dr. Mercola
Leaky gut is a condition that occurs due to the development of gaps between the cells (enterocytes) that make up the membrane lining your intestinal wall.
These tiny gaps allow substances such as undigested food, bacteria and metabolic wastes,that should be confined to your digestive tract, to escape into your bloodstream -- hence the term leaky gut syndrome.
Once the integrity of your intestinal lining is compromised, and there is a flow of toxic substances "leaking out" into your bloodstream, your body experiences significant increases in inflammation.
Also, your immune system may become confused and begin to attack your own body as if it were an enemy (autoimmunity).
Most often, leaky gut syndrome is associated with inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn's and ulcerative colitis, or celiac disease, but even healthy people can have varying degrees of intestinal permeability leading to a wide variety of health symptoms -- and this can be influenced heavily by the foods you choose to eat.
Grains Contain Anti-Nutrients
In the United States, we're told that grains (especially whole grains) are an important part of a balanced diet, necessary for obtaining our daily requirement of healthy nutrients and fiber.
However, according to a growing number of experts, including Dr. Loren Cordain, a professor at Colorado State University and an expert on Paleolithic lifestyles, humans are NOT designed to eat grains, and doing so may actually be damaging to your gut.
Dr. Cordain explains:
"There's no human requirement for grains. That's the problem with the USDA recommendations. They think we're hardwired as a species to eat grains. You can get by just fine and meet every single nutrient requirement that humans have without eating grains. And grains are absolutely poor sources of vitamins and minerals compared to fruits and vegetables and meat and fish."
Ironically, since we're often told that whole grains are the best for our health, the high-fiber bran portion of grain – a key part that makes it a whole grain -- actually contains many of the anti-nutrients.But the problem isn't only that there are superior sources of nutrients; grains actually contain anti-nutrients that may damage your health. Dr. Cordain states:
"Grains are the seeds of a plant. They're its reproductive material, and plants don't make their reproductive material to give away for free to other animals. If they did they'd become extinct, and so the evolutionary strategy that many plants, particularly cereal grains have taken to prevent predation is to evolve toxic compounds so that the predator of the seeds can't eat them, so that they can put their seeds in the soil where they're meant to be to grow a new plant and not in the gut of an animal to feed it."
Grains -- Especially Whole Grains -- Increase Intestinal Permeability
There is a growing body of scientific evidence showing that grains, as well as legumes, contain anti-nutrients and other problem substances that may increase intestinal permeability. This includes:
Gliadin
Gliadin is the primary immunotoxic protein found in wheat gluten and is among the most damaging to your health. Gliadin gives wheat bread its doughy texture and is capable of increasing the production of the intestinal protein zonulin, which in turn opens up gaps in the normally tight junctures between intestinal cells (enterocytes).
In celiac disease the body will make antibodies to gliadin after it is digested by the intestinal enzyme tissue transglutaminase, resulting in severe autoimmune damage to the delicate, absorptive surfaces of the intestines. It does not, however, require full blown celiac disease to suffer from the adverse effects of this protein. In fact, it is likely that our intolerance to gliadin and related wheat proteins is a species-specific intolerance, applicable to all humans, with the difference being a matter of the degree to which it causes harm.
This helps to explain why new research clearly shows gliadin increases intestinal permeability in both those with, and those without, celiac disease.
Lectins
Lectins are a key mechanism through which plants protect themselves against being eaten, and are found in highest concentrations in their seed form -- which makes sense, considering that seeds are the plants' "babies" and whose survival ensures the continuation of their species.
When animals consume foods containing lectins, they may experience digestive irritation, along with a wide range of other health complaints. The degree to which the adverse effects are expressed depends largely on how long that species has had to co-evolve with that particular form of plant food it is eating. Since humans have only been consuming unsprouted grains and beans in large amounts for approximately 500 generations, we still suffer far more than certain rodents and birds, who have had thousands of generations longer to adapt to this way of eating.
We are mostly exposed to lectins from grains, beans, dairy products and nightshade plants, such as potato, tomato, and chili peppers. However, bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) has a prominent role to play in lectin-induced adverse effects, due to the fact that it is a relatively new form of wheat, and contains wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) – a particularly resilient and problematic lectin, considering it is not eliminated through sprouting and is actually found in higher concentrations in whole wheat.
Studies indicate that it has the potential to contribute to a wide range of adverse health effects, including gut inflammation and damage to your gastrointestinal tract:
Pro-inflammatory--WGA stimulates the synthesis of pro-inflammatory chemical messengers (cytokines) in intestinal and immune cells, and has been shown to play a causative role in chronic thin gut inflammation. Immunotoxicity--WGA induces thymus atrophy in rats , and anti-WGA antibodies in human blood have been shown to cross-react with other proteins, indicating that they may contribute to autoimmunity . In fact, WGA appears to play a role in celiac disease (CD) that is entirely distinct from that of gluten, due to significantly higher levels of IgG and IgA antibodies against WGA found in patients with CD, when compared with patients with other intestinal disorders.
Neurotoxicity-- WGA can cross your blood-brain barrier through a process called "adsorptive endocytosis," pulling other substances with it. WGA may attach to your myelin sheath and is capable of inhibiting nerve growth factor, which is important for the growth, maintenance, and survival of certain target neurons. Excitotoxicity-- Wheat, dairy, and soy contain exceptionally high levels of glutamic and aspartic acid, which makes them all potentially excitotoxic. Excitotoxicity is a pathological process where glutamic and aspartic acid cause an over-activation of your nerve cell receptors, which can lead to calcium-induced nerve and brain injury. These two amino acids may contribute to neurodegenerative conditions such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's, Huntington's disease, and other nervous system disorders such as epilepsy, ADD/ADHD and migraines.
Cytotoxicity—WGA has been demonstrated to be cytotoxic to both normal and cancerous cell lines, capable of inducing either cell cycle arrest or programmed cell death (apoptosis). Disrupts Endocrine Function—WGA may contribute to weight gain, insulin resistance, and leptin resistance by blocking the leptin receptor in your hypothalamus. It also binds to both benign and malignant thyroid nodules , and interferes with the production of secretin from your pancreas, which can lead to digestive problems and pancreatic hypertrophy.
Cardiotoxicity—WGA has a potent, disruptive effect on platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1, which plays a key role in tissue regeneration and safely removing neutrophils from your blood vessels. Adversely Affects Gastrointestinal Function by causing increased shedding of the intestinal brush border membrane, reducing the surface area, and accelerating cell loss and shortening of villi. It also causes cytoskeleton degradation in intestinal cells, contributing to cell death and increased turnover, and decreases levels of heat shock proteins in gut epithelial cells, leaving them more vulnerable to damage.
As we noted earlier, the highest amounts of WGA is found in whole wheat, including its sprouted form, which is touted as being the most healthful form of all ... The traditional ways of addressing many of these anti-nutrients is, in fact, by sprouting, fermenting and cooking. However, lectins are designed to withstand degradation through a wide range of pH and temperatures. WGA lectin is particularly tough because it's actually formed by the same disulfide bonds that give strength and resilience to vulcanized rubber and human hair.
New Report Warns of the Sugar in Cereals Marketed to Kids
One of the most common ways we consume grains is in the form of cereal, many of which are marketed to kids and adults alike as "health foods." But cereal is anything but healthy, not only because of the grain it contains but also because many (particularly those for kids) contain excessive amounts of sugar.
A new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) revealed that many popular children's cereal brands contain more sugar than snack cakes and cookies. For instance, one cup of Kellogg's Honey Smacks, which is nearly 56 percent sugar by weight, has more sugar than a Twinkie, while a one-cup serving of 44 other children's cereals analyzed contain more sugar than three Chips Ahoy! cookies.
If you need a recap of why sugar is a health disaster, you can find one here. However, as it pertains to leaky gut, you should know that sugar, like grains, can upset the balance of bacteria in your digestive tract, encouraging damage to your intestinal lining that can lead to leaky gut. So, sugary children's cereals are a double-edged sword, assaulting your fragile gastrointestinal tract with both damaging sugar and grains. Please do your kids a great favor and offer them a healthier breakfast instead.
Are Grains Causing Your Leaky Gut Symptoms? This Food is the "Antidote"
As you might suspect, leaky gut can cause digestive symptoms such as bloating, gas and abdominal cramps, but it can also cause or contribute to many others you may not, such as fatigue, skin rashes, joint pain, allergies, psychological symptoms, autism and more.
It's a vicious cycle because once your digestive tract has been damaged, it allows various gut contents to flood into your bloodstream where they wreak havoc on your health. The key to preventing this lies in altering your diet to eliminate the offending foods -- including sugars and grains -- as well as introduce healthier ones that will support a proper balance of bacteria in your gut. To restore gut health, and prevent leaky gut from occurring, eating traditionally fermented foods is essential.
Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride explains:
"Fermented foods are essential to introduce, as they provide probiotic microbes in the best possible form … fermented foods will carry probiotic microbes all away down to the end of the digestive system. Fermentation predigests the food, making it easy for our digestive systems to handle, that is why fermented foods are easily digested by people with damaged gut. Fermentation releases nutrients from the food, making them more bio-available for the body: for example sauerkraut contains 20 times more bio-available vitamin C than fresh cabbage."
On Dr. Campbell-McBride's web site you can find recipes for many traditionally fermented foods, including sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, kvass and more.
If you regularly eat fermented foods such as these that have not been pasteurized (pasteurization kills the naturally occurring probiotics), your healthy gut bacteria will thrive. If these foods do not make a regular appearance in your diet, or you've recently taken antibiotics, a high-quality probiotic supplement will help give your gut bacteria the healthy boost it needs. Once your gut flora is optimized, your leaky gut should improve naturally. As Dr. Cordain explains:
" … when we have a healthy flora of bacteria in our gut, it tends to prevent leaky gut."
Is a Return to the Paleo Diet Right for You?
During the Paleolithic period, many thousands of years ago, people ate primarily vegetables, fruit, nuts, roots and meat—and a wide variety of it. Today, these staples have been largely replaced with refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup, cereal, bread, potatoes and pasteurized milk products… and a much narrower selection of fruits, vegetables, roots and nuts.
This is precisely the recipe for a leaky gut, and all of its associated health problems, which is why simply returning to a Paelo diet by eating foods that are concordant with your genetic ancestry may help you become healthier. This includes focusing on whole, unprocessed foods including vegetables (except corn and potatoes) and free-range organic meats, while avoiding sugars and grains.
As Dr. Cordain states:
"The nutritional qualities of modern processed foods and foods introduced during the Neolithic period are discordant with our ancient and conservative genome. This genetic discordance ultimately manifests itself as various chronic illnesses, which have been dubbed "diseases of civilization." By severely reducing or eliminating these foods and replacing them with a more healthful cuisine, possessing nutrient qualities more in line with the foods our ancestors consumed, it is possible to improve health and reduce the risk of chronic disease."
Source: Me and My Diabetes December 3, 2011
Source: USA Today December 6, 2011
Source: Environmental Working Group December 2011
Related Links:
Is a Leaky Gut Causing You to Pack on the Pounds?
Feast Like a Caveman and Watch the Pounds Melt Away
3 Ounces of This a Day May Be Harming Your Brain
Posted By Dr. Mercola | January 21 2012
Story at-a-glance
Grains contain anti-nutrients and lectins that can damage your gut, and humans did not consume them until relatively recently in biological time
We’re often told that whole grains are healthy, but the high-fiber bran portion of grain -- the part that makes it a whole grain -- actually contains many of the anti-nutrients
There is a sizeable body of scientific evidence showing that grains, as well as legumes, contain anti-nutrients that may increase intestinal permeability and cause leaky gut and associated symptoms
Eliminating grains (and sugars) from your diet, while introducing traditionally fermented foods, can help prevent leaky gut as well as other chronic health conditions
By Dr. Mercola
Leaky gut is a condition that occurs due to the development of gaps between the cells (enterocytes) that make up the membrane lining your intestinal wall.
These tiny gaps allow substances such as undigested food, bacteria and metabolic wastes,that should be confined to your digestive tract, to escape into your bloodstream -- hence the term leaky gut syndrome.
Once the integrity of your intestinal lining is compromised, and there is a flow of toxic substances "leaking out" into your bloodstream, your body experiences significant increases in inflammation.
Also, your immune system may become confused and begin to attack your own body as if it were an enemy (autoimmunity).
Most often, leaky gut syndrome is associated with inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn's and ulcerative colitis, or celiac disease, but even healthy people can have varying degrees of intestinal permeability leading to a wide variety of health symptoms -- and this can be influenced heavily by the foods you choose to eat.
Grains Contain Anti-Nutrients
In the United States, we're told that grains (especially whole grains) are an important part of a balanced diet, necessary for obtaining our daily requirement of healthy nutrients and fiber.
However, according to a growing number of experts, including Dr. Loren Cordain, a professor at Colorado State University and an expert on Paleolithic lifestyles, humans are NOT designed to eat grains, and doing so may actually be damaging to your gut.
Dr. Cordain explains:
"There's no human requirement for grains. That's the problem with the USDA recommendations. They think we're hardwired as a species to eat grains. You can get by just fine and meet every single nutrient requirement that humans have without eating grains. And grains are absolutely poor sources of vitamins and minerals compared to fruits and vegetables and meat and fish."
Ironically, since we're often told that whole grains are the best for our health, the high-fiber bran portion of grain – a key part that makes it a whole grain -- actually contains many of the anti-nutrients.But the problem isn't only that there are superior sources of nutrients; grains actually contain anti-nutrients that may damage your health. Dr. Cordain states:
"Grains are the seeds of a plant. They're its reproductive material, and plants don't make their reproductive material to give away for free to other animals. If they did they'd become extinct, and so the evolutionary strategy that many plants, particularly cereal grains have taken to prevent predation is to evolve toxic compounds so that the predator of the seeds can't eat them, so that they can put their seeds in the soil where they're meant to be to grow a new plant and not in the gut of an animal to feed it."
Grains -- Especially Whole Grains -- Increase Intestinal Permeability
There is a growing body of scientific evidence showing that grains, as well as legumes, contain anti-nutrients and other problem substances that may increase intestinal permeability. This includes:
Gliadin
Gliadin is the primary immunotoxic protein found in wheat gluten and is among the most damaging to your health. Gliadin gives wheat bread its doughy texture and is capable of increasing the production of the intestinal protein zonulin, which in turn opens up gaps in the normally tight junctures between intestinal cells (enterocytes).
In celiac disease the body will make antibodies to gliadin after it is digested by the intestinal enzyme tissue transglutaminase, resulting in severe autoimmune damage to the delicate, absorptive surfaces of the intestines. It does not, however, require full blown celiac disease to suffer from the adverse effects of this protein. In fact, it is likely that our intolerance to gliadin and related wheat proteins is a species-specific intolerance, applicable to all humans, with the difference being a matter of the degree to which it causes harm.
This helps to explain why new research clearly shows gliadin increases intestinal permeability in both those with, and those without, celiac disease.
Lectins
Lectins are a key mechanism through which plants protect themselves against being eaten, and are found in highest concentrations in their seed form -- which makes sense, considering that seeds are the plants' "babies" and whose survival ensures the continuation of their species.
When animals consume foods containing lectins, they may experience digestive irritation, along with a wide range of other health complaints. The degree to which the adverse effects are expressed depends largely on how long that species has had to co-evolve with that particular form of plant food it is eating. Since humans have only been consuming unsprouted grains and beans in large amounts for approximately 500 generations, we still suffer far more than certain rodents and birds, who have had thousands of generations longer to adapt to this way of eating.
We are mostly exposed to lectins from grains, beans, dairy products and nightshade plants, such as potato, tomato, and chili peppers. However, bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) has a prominent role to play in lectin-induced adverse effects, due to the fact that it is a relatively new form of wheat, and contains wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) – a particularly resilient and problematic lectin, considering it is not eliminated through sprouting and is actually found in higher concentrations in whole wheat.
Studies indicate that it has the potential to contribute to a wide range of adverse health effects, including gut inflammation and damage to your gastrointestinal tract:
Pro-inflammatory--WGA stimulates the synthesis of pro-inflammatory chemical messengers (cytokines) in intestinal and immune cells, and has been shown to play a causative role in chronic thin gut inflammation. Immunotoxicity--WGA induces thymus atrophy in rats , and anti-WGA antibodies in human blood have been shown to cross-react with other proteins, indicating that they may contribute to autoimmunity . In fact, WGA appears to play a role in celiac disease (CD) that is entirely distinct from that of gluten, due to significantly higher levels of IgG and IgA antibodies against WGA found in patients with CD, when compared with patients with other intestinal disorders.
Neurotoxicity-- WGA can cross your blood-brain barrier through a process called "adsorptive endocytosis," pulling other substances with it. WGA may attach to your myelin sheath and is capable of inhibiting nerve growth factor, which is important for the growth, maintenance, and survival of certain target neurons. Excitotoxicity-- Wheat, dairy, and soy contain exceptionally high levels of glutamic and aspartic acid, which makes them all potentially excitotoxic. Excitotoxicity is a pathological process where glutamic and aspartic acid cause an over-activation of your nerve cell receptors, which can lead to calcium-induced nerve and brain injury. These two amino acids may contribute to neurodegenerative conditions such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's, Huntington's disease, and other nervous system disorders such as epilepsy, ADD/ADHD and migraines.
Cytotoxicity—WGA has been demonstrated to be cytotoxic to both normal and cancerous cell lines, capable of inducing either cell cycle arrest or programmed cell death (apoptosis). Disrupts Endocrine Function—WGA may contribute to weight gain, insulin resistance, and leptin resistance by blocking the leptin receptor in your hypothalamus. It also binds to both benign and malignant thyroid nodules , and interferes with the production of secretin from your pancreas, which can lead to digestive problems and pancreatic hypertrophy.
Cardiotoxicity—WGA has a potent, disruptive effect on platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1, which plays a key role in tissue regeneration and safely removing neutrophils from your blood vessels. Adversely Affects Gastrointestinal Function by causing increased shedding of the intestinal brush border membrane, reducing the surface area, and accelerating cell loss and shortening of villi. It also causes cytoskeleton degradation in intestinal cells, contributing to cell death and increased turnover, and decreases levels of heat shock proteins in gut epithelial cells, leaving them more vulnerable to damage.
As we noted earlier, the highest amounts of WGA is found in whole wheat, including its sprouted form, which is touted as being the most healthful form of all ... The traditional ways of addressing many of these anti-nutrients is, in fact, by sprouting, fermenting and cooking. However, lectins are designed to withstand degradation through a wide range of pH and temperatures. WGA lectin is particularly tough because it's actually formed by the same disulfide bonds that give strength and resilience to vulcanized rubber and human hair.
New Report Warns of the Sugar in Cereals Marketed to Kids
One of the most common ways we consume grains is in the form of cereal, many of which are marketed to kids and adults alike as "health foods." But cereal is anything but healthy, not only because of the grain it contains but also because many (particularly those for kids) contain excessive amounts of sugar.
A new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) revealed that many popular children's cereal brands contain more sugar than snack cakes and cookies. For instance, one cup of Kellogg's Honey Smacks, which is nearly 56 percent sugar by weight, has more sugar than a Twinkie, while a one-cup serving of 44 other children's cereals analyzed contain more sugar than three Chips Ahoy! cookies.
If you need a recap of why sugar is a health disaster, you can find one here. However, as it pertains to leaky gut, you should know that sugar, like grains, can upset the balance of bacteria in your digestive tract, encouraging damage to your intestinal lining that can lead to leaky gut. So, sugary children's cereals are a double-edged sword, assaulting your fragile gastrointestinal tract with both damaging sugar and grains. Please do your kids a great favor and offer them a healthier breakfast instead.
Are Grains Causing Your Leaky Gut Symptoms? This Food is the "Antidote"
As you might suspect, leaky gut can cause digestive symptoms such as bloating, gas and abdominal cramps, but it can also cause or contribute to many others you may not, such as fatigue, skin rashes, joint pain, allergies, psychological symptoms, autism and more.
It's a vicious cycle because once your digestive tract has been damaged, it allows various gut contents to flood into your bloodstream where they wreak havoc on your health. The key to preventing this lies in altering your diet to eliminate the offending foods -- including sugars and grains -- as well as introduce healthier ones that will support a proper balance of bacteria in your gut. To restore gut health, and prevent leaky gut from occurring, eating traditionally fermented foods is essential.
Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride explains:
"Fermented foods are essential to introduce, as they provide probiotic microbes in the best possible form … fermented foods will carry probiotic microbes all away down to the end of the digestive system. Fermentation predigests the food, making it easy for our digestive systems to handle, that is why fermented foods are easily digested by people with damaged gut. Fermentation releases nutrients from the food, making them more bio-available for the body: for example sauerkraut contains 20 times more bio-available vitamin C than fresh cabbage."
On Dr. Campbell-McBride's web site you can find recipes for many traditionally fermented foods, including sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, kvass and more.
If you regularly eat fermented foods such as these that have not been pasteurized (pasteurization kills the naturally occurring probiotics), your healthy gut bacteria will thrive. If these foods do not make a regular appearance in your diet, or you've recently taken antibiotics, a high-quality probiotic supplement will help give your gut bacteria the healthy boost it needs. Once your gut flora is optimized, your leaky gut should improve naturally. As Dr. Cordain explains:
" … when we have a healthy flora of bacteria in our gut, it tends to prevent leaky gut."
Is a Return to the Paleo Diet Right for You?
During the Paleolithic period, many thousands of years ago, people ate primarily vegetables, fruit, nuts, roots and meat—and a wide variety of it. Today, these staples have been largely replaced with refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup, cereal, bread, potatoes and pasteurized milk products… and a much narrower selection of fruits, vegetables, roots and nuts.
This is precisely the recipe for a leaky gut, and all of its associated health problems, which is why simply returning to a Paelo diet by eating foods that are concordant with your genetic ancestry may help you become healthier. This includes focusing on whole, unprocessed foods including vegetables (except corn and potatoes) and free-range organic meats, while avoiding sugars and grains.
As Dr. Cordain states:
"The nutritional qualities of modern processed foods and foods introduced during the Neolithic period are discordant with our ancient and conservative genome. This genetic discordance ultimately manifests itself as various chronic illnesses, which have been dubbed "diseases of civilization." By severely reducing or eliminating these foods and replacing them with a more healthful cuisine, possessing nutrient qualities more in line with the foods our ancestors consumed, it is possible to improve health and reduce the risk of chronic disease."
Source: Me and My Diabetes December 3, 2011
Source: USA Today December 6, 2011
Source: Environmental Working Group December 2011
Related Links:
Is a Leaky Gut Causing You to Pack on the Pounds?
Feast Like a Caveman and Watch the Pounds Melt Away
3 Ounces of This a Day May Be Harming Your Brain
Friday, January 20, 2012
Imagine tha,t Kids Get Smarter Just from Doing This One Simple Thing
Get rid of their smart phones, iPads, and xbox and get them a baseball and mitt, jump ropes, bicycles, soccer balls, a mason jar to catch bugs, swim gogggles.......
Proven: Kids Get Smarter Just from Doing This One Simple Thing
Posted by: Dr. Mercola | January 20 2012
Story at-a-glance
A review of 14 studies has demonstrated that the more physically active schoolchildren are, the better they do academically.
One US test program at Naperville Central High School powerfully illustrated this point two years ago. Students who participated in a dynamic morning exercise program nearly doubled their reading scores while math scores increased 20-fold.
Exercise encourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by causing nerve cells to multiply, strengthening their interconnections and protecting them from damage. This is true for all age groups.
To get your kids moving, limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV or playing computer and video games, and to replace these sedentary activities with active ones. Overweight and obese children need at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, and may benefit from closer to 60 minutes.
High-intensity interval training is the ideal form of exercise for children. Intermittent bouts of activity with pauses in between is entirely natural for the human body, and kids will spontaneously resort to this type of activity when left to their own devices.
By Dr. Mercola
An extensive review of relevant research has demonstrated that the more physically active schoolchildren are, the better they do academically.
Researchers analyzed 14 studies, ranging in size from as few as 50 participants to as many as 12,000.
All of the studies involved children between the ages of 6 and 18.
According to the authors:
"Physical activity and sports are generally promoted for their positive effect on children's physical health; regular participation in physical activity in childhood is associated with a decreased cardiovascular risk in youth and adulthood.
There is also a growing body of literature suggesting that physical activity has beneficial effects on several mental health outcomes, including health-related quality of life and better mood states.
In addition... there is a strong belief that regular participation in physical activity is linked to enhancement of brain function and cognition, thereby positively influencing academic performance.
There are several hypothesized mechanisms for why exercise is beneficial for cognition, including:
(1) Increased blood and oxygen flow to the brain
(2) Increased levels of norepinephrine and endorphins resulting in a reduction of stress and an improvement of mood
(3) Increased growth factors that help to create new nerve cells and support synaptic plasticity
... The increasing pressures to improve academic scores often lead to additional instructional time for subjects such as mathematics and language at the cost of time for being physically active. Given the suggested relationship and the ongoing discussions on the replacement of physical education lessons by academic subjects, we aimed to review the evidence on the longitudinal relationship between these two variables...
To summarize, the literature provides inconclusive evidence on the positive longitudinal relationship between physical activity and academic performance. However, there is a strong general belief that this relationship is present, and research in this area is ongoing."
Exercise and Academic Performance
Keeping kids active at school is a superb way to increase learning, focus and even test results. As many of you reading this have likely experienced, if your mind is feeling cluttered or you're having a mid-afternoon slump, a brisk walk or a quick workout can give you a renewed sense of clarity and focus. This is certainly true for kids too.
Two years ago, ABC News reported on a special program being implemented at Naperville Central High School, where students could take part in a dynamic gym class at the beginning of the day, and had access to exercise bikes and balls throughout the day in their classrooms. The results were astounding. Those who participated nearly doubled their reading scores, and math scores increased 20-fold!
Research has shown that after 30 minutes on the treadmill, students solve problems up to 10 percent more effectively.
Although it's becoming more widely known that physical activity has a direct result on brain function, many schools in the US are removing rather than improving their phys ed programs... This means it's up to you to encourage your child to stay active after school and on weekends in order to reap the wonderful brain-boosting benefits that exercise has to offer.
How Exercise Boosts Brain Function
Exercise encourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by causing nerve cells to multiply, strengthening their interconnections and protecting them from damage. Animal tests have also illustrated that during exercise their nerve cells release proteins known as neurotrophic factors. One in particular, called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), triggers numerous other chemicals that promote neural health, and has a direct benefit on brain functions, including learning. Further, exercise provides protective effects to your brain through:
The production of nerve-protecting compounds
Greater blood flow to your brain
Improved development and survival of neurons
Decreased risk of cardiovascular diseases
A 2010 study on primates published in Neuroscience also revealed that regular exercise not only improved blood flow to the brain, but also helped the monkeys learn new tasks twice as quickly as non-exercising monkeys; a benefit the researchers believe would hold true for people as well.
Other Health Benefits of Regular Exercise
There's absolutely no doubt that kids need exercise, and that most kids aren't getting enough. Less than one-third of kids aged 6 to 17 get at least 20 minutes of daily exercise in one form or another. This is tragic, considering the multitude of short- and long-term health benefits your child can gain from a regular exercise regimen, including:
Reduced risk of diabetes and pre-diabetes Improved sleep Stronger bones Reduced restlessness or hyperactivity; helps decrease symptoms of ADHD
Improved immune system function Improved mood Weight loss Increased energy levels
How to Get Your Kids Moving
First, it's imperative to limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV, or playing computer and video games, and to replace some of these sedentary activities with exercise. Overweight and obese children need at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, and may benefit from closer to 60 minutes. But even if your child is not overweight, you should encourage him or her to take part in physically engaging activities after school and on the weekends. There are plenty to choose from, from sports and dance classes to gymnastics, bike riding and playing tag with friends.
Allow your child to choose activities that appeal to them, and which are age appropriate. Remember that the trick to getting kids interested in exercise at a young age is to keep it fun. Also keep in mind that spontaneous bouts of exercise throughout the day is actually the ideal way of doing it.
Your child does not need to log 30-60 minutes in the gym or in a specific exercise class, unless that's really what they want to do. A game of tag here, a bike ride there... Short bursts of activity with periods of rest in between—this is actually the way your body was designed to move! And kids will typically fall into this behavior quite spontaneously, as long as they're outdoors, and not cooped up in front of a TV or computer screen... Like adults, kids also need variety in their exercise routines to reap the greatest rewards, so be sure your child is getting:
Interval training
Strength training
Stretching
Core-building activities
This may sound daunting, but if your child participates in a gymnastics class, sprints around the backyard after the dog often and rides his bike after school, he's covered. Also remember that acting as a role model by staying active yourself is one of the best ways to motivate and inspire your kids. If your child sees you embracing exercise as a positive and important part of your lifestyle, they will naturally follow suit. Plus, it's easy to plan active activities that involve the whole family and double up as fun ways to spend time together. Hiking, bike riding, canoeing, swimming and sports are all great options.
Think of it this way … by taking the time to get your kids interested in exercise now, you're giving them a gift that will keep them healthy and happy for the rest of their lives.
What about Peak 8 for Kids?
As I mentioned earlier, intermittent bouts of exercise, mimicking the hunter-gatherers from our ancestral past, is actually the ideal form of exercise and is a key component of my comprehensive Peak Fitness program. I call this component Peak 8, and this high-intensity, short burst-type exercise is perhaps the most natural of all exercises for children. In fact, when left to their own devices, children will do this naturally – going all out for short bursts of time, followed by longer "recovery" periods. You also see animals doing the same thing.
Humans were simply not designed to run at a steady pace for extended periods of time, and you almost never see that type of behavior in the wild either. The research is so clear about the superior benefits of this type of exercise – which mimics natural behavior -- that the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have now changed their exercise cardio guidelines from slow but steady aerobic cardio to high-intensity interval training.
Peak 8 Instructions
During Peak 8 exercises you raise your heart rate up to your anaerobic threshold (220 minus your age) for 20 to 30 seconds, followed by a 90-second recovery period. Depending on your child's current level of fitness, he may need to work his way up to 8 cycles. I recommend starting with 2-4 cycles, and gradually increasing to 8.
There are no rules for the specific manner in which this is achieved—your child could do this running in the backyard, or using a treadmill, elliptical machine, or recumbent bike (provided your child is old enough to use such machines safely, of course), or they could do it bicycling outdoors. Here are the core principles:
Warm up for three minutes
Then, go all out, as hard as you can for 30 seconds
Recover for 90 seconds
Repeat 7 more times, for a total of 8 repetitions
Cool down for a few minutes afterwards by cutting down your intensity by 50-80 percent.
For more in-depth information about Peak 8, please review this previous article.
Know that Peak 8 exercises have a number of health benefits that you simply cannot achieve with any other type of exercise. For adults over 30, the most important of these is the natural production of human growth hormone (HGH), which is essential for strength, overall fitness, and longevity. Naturally, children and teens don't need to worry too much about producing HGH, but high-intensity interval training can still provide magnificent benefits for this age group, as it can dramatically improve fat loss and helps build muscle. It also dramatically improves athletic speed and performance, which can greatly benefit aspiring youth athletes.
Overall, Peak 8 exercises will allow your child (and you!) to achieve her fitness goals much faster.
Source: USA Today January 3, 2012
Source: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine January 2012;166(1):49-55
Related Links:
Exercise to Improve Your Body and Your Brain
The Single Most Important Thing to Preserve Your Brain Function
Controversial New Breakthrough Can Boost Your Child's Health
Proven: Kids Get Smarter Just from Doing This One Simple Thing
Posted by: Dr. Mercola | January 20 2012
Story at-a-glance
A review of 14 studies has demonstrated that the more physically active schoolchildren are, the better they do academically.
One US test program at Naperville Central High School powerfully illustrated this point two years ago. Students who participated in a dynamic morning exercise program nearly doubled their reading scores while math scores increased 20-fold.
Exercise encourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by causing nerve cells to multiply, strengthening their interconnections and protecting them from damage. This is true for all age groups.
To get your kids moving, limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV or playing computer and video games, and to replace these sedentary activities with active ones. Overweight and obese children need at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, and may benefit from closer to 60 minutes.
High-intensity interval training is the ideal form of exercise for children. Intermittent bouts of activity with pauses in between is entirely natural for the human body, and kids will spontaneously resort to this type of activity when left to their own devices.
By Dr. Mercola
An extensive review of relevant research has demonstrated that the more physically active schoolchildren are, the better they do academically.
Researchers analyzed 14 studies, ranging in size from as few as 50 participants to as many as 12,000.
All of the studies involved children between the ages of 6 and 18.
According to the authors:
"Physical activity and sports are generally promoted for their positive effect on children's physical health; regular participation in physical activity in childhood is associated with a decreased cardiovascular risk in youth and adulthood.
There is also a growing body of literature suggesting that physical activity has beneficial effects on several mental health outcomes, including health-related quality of life and better mood states.
In addition... there is a strong belief that regular participation in physical activity is linked to enhancement of brain function and cognition, thereby positively influencing academic performance.
There are several hypothesized mechanisms for why exercise is beneficial for cognition, including:
(1) Increased blood and oxygen flow to the brain
(2) Increased levels of norepinephrine and endorphins resulting in a reduction of stress and an improvement of mood
(3) Increased growth factors that help to create new nerve cells and support synaptic plasticity
... The increasing pressures to improve academic scores often lead to additional instructional time for subjects such as mathematics and language at the cost of time for being physically active. Given the suggested relationship and the ongoing discussions on the replacement of physical education lessons by academic subjects, we aimed to review the evidence on the longitudinal relationship between these two variables...
To summarize, the literature provides inconclusive evidence on the positive longitudinal relationship between physical activity and academic performance. However, there is a strong general belief that this relationship is present, and research in this area is ongoing."
Exercise and Academic Performance
Keeping kids active at school is a superb way to increase learning, focus and even test results. As many of you reading this have likely experienced, if your mind is feeling cluttered or you're having a mid-afternoon slump, a brisk walk or a quick workout can give you a renewed sense of clarity and focus. This is certainly true for kids too.
Two years ago, ABC News reported on a special program being implemented at Naperville Central High School, where students could take part in a dynamic gym class at the beginning of the day, and had access to exercise bikes and balls throughout the day in their classrooms. The results were astounding. Those who participated nearly doubled their reading scores, and math scores increased 20-fold!
Research has shown that after 30 minutes on the treadmill, students solve problems up to 10 percent more effectively.
Although it's becoming more widely known that physical activity has a direct result on brain function, many schools in the US are removing rather than improving their phys ed programs... This means it's up to you to encourage your child to stay active after school and on weekends in order to reap the wonderful brain-boosting benefits that exercise has to offer.
How Exercise Boosts Brain Function
Exercise encourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by causing nerve cells to multiply, strengthening their interconnections and protecting them from damage. Animal tests have also illustrated that during exercise their nerve cells release proteins known as neurotrophic factors. One in particular, called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), triggers numerous other chemicals that promote neural health, and has a direct benefit on brain functions, including learning. Further, exercise provides protective effects to your brain through:
The production of nerve-protecting compounds
Greater blood flow to your brain
Improved development and survival of neurons
Decreased risk of cardiovascular diseases
A 2010 study on primates published in Neuroscience also revealed that regular exercise not only improved blood flow to the brain, but also helped the monkeys learn new tasks twice as quickly as non-exercising monkeys; a benefit the researchers believe would hold true for people as well.
Other Health Benefits of Regular Exercise
There's absolutely no doubt that kids need exercise, and that most kids aren't getting enough. Less than one-third of kids aged 6 to 17 get at least 20 minutes of daily exercise in one form or another. This is tragic, considering the multitude of short- and long-term health benefits your child can gain from a regular exercise regimen, including:
Reduced risk of diabetes and pre-diabetes Improved sleep Stronger bones Reduced restlessness or hyperactivity; helps decrease symptoms of ADHD
Improved immune system function Improved mood Weight loss Increased energy levels
How to Get Your Kids Moving
First, it's imperative to limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV, or playing computer and video games, and to replace some of these sedentary activities with exercise. Overweight and obese children need at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, and may benefit from closer to 60 minutes. But even if your child is not overweight, you should encourage him or her to take part in physically engaging activities after school and on the weekends. There are plenty to choose from, from sports and dance classes to gymnastics, bike riding and playing tag with friends.
Allow your child to choose activities that appeal to them, and which are age appropriate. Remember that the trick to getting kids interested in exercise at a young age is to keep it fun. Also keep in mind that spontaneous bouts of exercise throughout the day is actually the ideal way of doing it.
Your child does not need to log 30-60 minutes in the gym or in a specific exercise class, unless that's really what they want to do. A game of tag here, a bike ride there... Short bursts of activity with periods of rest in between—this is actually the way your body was designed to move! And kids will typically fall into this behavior quite spontaneously, as long as they're outdoors, and not cooped up in front of a TV or computer screen... Like adults, kids also need variety in their exercise routines to reap the greatest rewards, so be sure your child is getting:
Interval training
Strength training
Stretching
Core-building activities
This may sound daunting, but if your child participates in a gymnastics class, sprints around the backyard after the dog often and rides his bike after school, he's covered. Also remember that acting as a role model by staying active yourself is one of the best ways to motivate and inspire your kids. If your child sees you embracing exercise as a positive and important part of your lifestyle, they will naturally follow suit. Plus, it's easy to plan active activities that involve the whole family and double up as fun ways to spend time together. Hiking, bike riding, canoeing, swimming and sports are all great options.
Think of it this way … by taking the time to get your kids interested in exercise now, you're giving them a gift that will keep them healthy and happy for the rest of their lives.
What about Peak 8 for Kids?
As I mentioned earlier, intermittent bouts of exercise, mimicking the hunter-gatherers from our ancestral past, is actually the ideal form of exercise and is a key component of my comprehensive Peak Fitness program. I call this component Peak 8, and this high-intensity, short burst-type exercise is perhaps the most natural of all exercises for children. In fact, when left to their own devices, children will do this naturally – going all out for short bursts of time, followed by longer "recovery" periods. You also see animals doing the same thing.
Humans were simply not designed to run at a steady pace for extended periods of time, and you almost never see that type of behavior in the wild either. The research is so clear about the superior benefits of this type of exercise – which mimics natural behavior -- that the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have now changed their exercise cardio guidelines from slow but steady aerobic cardio to high-intensity interval training.
Peak 8 Instructions
During Peak 8 exercises you raise your heart rate up to your anaerobic threshold (220 minus your age) for 20 to 30 seconds, followed by a 90-second recovery period. Depending on your child's current level of fitness, he may need to work his way up to 8 cycles. I recommend starting with 2-4 cycles, and gradually increasing to 8.
There are no rules for the specific manner in which this is achieved—your child could do this running in the backyard, or using a treadmill, elliptical machine, or recumbent bike (provided your child is old enough to use such machines safely, of course), or they could do it bicycling outdoors. Here are the core principles:
Warm up for three minutes
Then, go all out, as hard as you can for 30 seconds
Recover for 90 seconds
Repeat 7 more times, for a total of 8 repetitions
Cool down for a few minutes afterwards by cutting down your intensity by 50-80 percent.
For more in-depth information about Peak 8, please review this previous article.
Know that Peak 8 exercises have a number of health benefits that you simply cannot achieve with any other type of exercise. For adults over 30, the most important of these is the natural production of human growth hormone (HGH), which is essential for strength, overall fitness, and longevity. Naturally, children and teens don't need to worry too much about producing HGH, but high-intensity interval training can still provide magnificent benefits for this age group, as it can dramatically improve fat loss and helps build muscle. It also dramatically improves athletic speed and performance, which can greatly benefit aspiring youth athletes.
Overall, Peak 8 exercises will allow your child (and you!) to achieve her fitness goals much faster.
Source: USA Today January 3, 2012
Source: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine January 2012;166(1):49-55
Related Links:
Exercise to Improve Your Body and Your Brain
The Single Most Important Thing to Preserve Your Brain Function
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