Feeding Disease or Fighting It

A great quote by Heather Morgan, MS, NLC about the how important it is to make healthy food choices.

"Every time you eat or drink, you are either feeding disease or fighting it." ~ Heather Morgan, MS, NLC

Healthier Sunscreen Options

It is scary to think that the sunscreen you may be using to protect yourself from cancer, might actually contain chemicals that are putting you at risk for cancer.

Check out EWG's sunscreen guide to find the top rated sunscreens.  They also have a great phone app. 

If your goal is to protect yourself from skin cancer, it doesn't make sense to be rubbing sunscreens filled with toxic, hazardous, carcinogenic chemicals all over your body.  

Remember, your children's little bodies are much more sensitive to these chemicals, so invest in the least toxic options for your little cuties.

Don't forget to make it a priority to get some Vitamin D from the sunshine before you slather up with one of EWG's top-rated sunscreens.

Wishing you a happy, healthy day!
♥  michelle

http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2012sunscreen/infographic/

Change

"Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by CHANGE."

                                                                                     ~Jim Rohn

Could this be the Most Underappreciated and Misunderstood Anti-aging "Secret"?

Research is showing that Vitamin D, a hormone made in our skin after sun exposure, is both important and essential for our health.

Dr. Michael Holick, a professor at Boston University Medical School has been doing Vitamin D research for over 30 years. In his book The Vitamin D Solution, he says that Vitamin D may be the most underappreciated and misunderstood anti-aging “secret” and it is absolutely free.  

The trouble is, most of the U.S. population has insufficient levels.  Recent data from the Endocrine Society shows that in the pigmented population, 90% have inadequate levels of vitamin D and 75% of Caucasians have a vitamin D deficiency (>30ng/ml of 25-hydroxyvitamin D). 

According to Dr. Holick, 30 ng/ml is the minimum amount needed to get vitamin D’s benefits.  Various experts recommend that optimal levels be between 50 to 100 ng/ml for disease prevention.  Dr. Holick has found that blood levels up 100 ng/ml can “be both therapeutic and preventative of chronic diseases including common cancers”. Toxicity is not usually seen until levels exceed 150 ng/ml. 

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/10/10/vitamin-d-experts-reveal-the-truth.aspx

During the winter months, the average American has levels between 15 to 18 ng/ml.  It's not surprising why so many people suffer from colds and flues in the winter.  Vitamin D plays a powerful role in regulating our immune systems. 

Are you at risk for Vitamin D deficiency?

If you live in northern latitudes, above the 37^th parallel (which in the United States, extends from San Francisco, CA over to Newport News, Virginia), the angle of the sun is so low that hardly any Vitamin D can be produced in the skin between November and February, with other experts saying that October to April, is probably more accurate.

Sunscreen is another risk factor.  A sunscreen with an SPF of 8 can reduce your skin’s ability to make Vitamin D by 90% and an SPF of 30 by about 99%.  Holick's recommendation for sun exposure varies by location and skin type.  The typical recommendation for the New England states is between 5 to 15 minutes of sunlight exposure to your arms and legs 2 to 3 times per week.  If you continue sun exposure after this amount of time, you can use sunscreen or put on more clothing to prevent the damaging effects from excessive exposure to sunlight.

Another risk factor is relying on a multiple vitamin for your daily dose of D.  Most only have 400 IU and even supplementing with 1000 IU of vitamin D a day will not raise blood levels above 30 ng/ml.   

For adults who need to take a Vitamin D3 supplement, Holick recommends 2,000 IU per day with a safe upper limit of 10,000 IU/day depending on individual need.  To consume the recommended 2,000 IU of Vitamin D in your diet, you would need to drink 20 glasses of fortified milk, eat 6 cans of sardines, 100 egg yokes, 7 oz of wild salmon or 20 bowls of fortified cereal each day.  This is clearly a nutrient we were meant to get from the sunshine.

Holick feels that vitamin D is the missing “ingredient that could apply to prevention—and treatment, in many cases—of heart disease, common cancers, stroke, infectious diseases from influenza to tuberculosis, type 1 and 2 diabetes, dementia, depression, insomnia, muscle weakness, joint pain, fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis and hypertension.”

Vitamin D has been found to reduce the risk of: 

• Heart attacks by 50%
• Common cancer (colon, prostate and breast) by as much as 50%
• Infectious disease, including influenza by as much as 90% 
• Type 1 diabetes by 78% if a child gets 2,000 IU of vitamin D/day in the first year of life. 

Vitamin D can influence if a cell will become cancerous or not.  If it does become cancerous, not only can it prevent the malignant cells from reproducing, but it can also help kill the cell or cut off the blood supply to the tumor.  Holick believes that “anytime you become vitamin D-deficient, you put yourself at increased risk of potentially developing a malignancy because you’ve lost the policing ability of vitamin D to help keep cell growth in check.”

Holick reminds us that Vitamin D is not a cure-all, but obviously we can no longer ignore the benefits of having healthy levels—and the dangers of having too little.  To find out your vitamin D status, ask your doctor to order a 25-hydroxy vitamin D test.

I highly recommend monitoring your vitamin D levels.  If you have a deficiency, I encourage you to work with a healthcare practitioner who is knowledgeable in proper dosing for restoring healthy levels.  Remember, sensible sun exposure is important for optimal health.

Wishing you a sunny day!
♥  michelle


An excellent lecture by Dr. Michael Holick and a short clip that gives a brief overview of the book

1. Holick, Michael F., Ph.D, M.D.  The Vitamin D Solution.  New York: Hudson Street Press, 2010.
2. Adams, John S., Hewison, Martin.  Update in Vitamin D.  Journal of Clinical Endocrinol Metabolism.  February 2010, 95(2);471-478.
3. Autier, Philippe MD, Gandini, Sara PhD.  Vitamin D Supplementation and Total Mortality: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled
4. Trials.  Archives of internal Medicine. 2007;167(16):1730-1737

Could your cheese and bread be morphing into morphine?

Gluten and casein have both been labeled exorphins, because of their morphine-like behavior in the human body.  Gluten peptides, called gluteomorphines and casein peptides, called casomorphins are formed during the digestion of gluten and casein.  In the central nervous system, they can cross the blood-brain barrier and bind as opiates to the central opiate receptors.  Opiate receptors sites can also be found in the intestinal tract, blood serum, immune system and peripheral nervous system.  These foods can mimic the effects of opiate drugs like heroin and morphine.  Researcher shows that exorphins can interfere with the neurotransmitter messaging system and contribute to central nervous system stimulation and neurological disorders.

Research has also shown casein to act as a histamine releaser.  Histamine is a chemical in the body associated with allergic reactions and can contribute to an inflammatory response.

These ingredients can be both addictive and sedating.  It is estimated that three quarters of the calories in the standard American diet (S.A.D.) come from wheat and dairy.  Casein is concentrated in the production of cheese making it very addictive and one of the most difficult foods to eliminate from the diet.  If an individual feels that they cannot give up cheese or bread, then it is likely they may be having a problem with one or both of these foods.

People who test positive for either or both of these peptides can often attest to the difficulty of withdrawing from these foods.  They often compare it to classic drug-withdrawal symptoms.  A sensitivity to either of theses foods can cause an initial high followed by moodiness, depression, fatigue, aches and pains as well as many other inflammatory conditions.

If you have health conditions such as acne, GERD, psoriasis or eczema, any GI issue, autoimmunity (see complete list here), strictly eliminate all gluten and pasteurized cow dairy for at least 2 weeks (a month is even better) and see how you feel.  

If you would like to be tested to see if you are sensitive to either dairy or gluten, Cyrex Labs offers the most comprehensive testing available for celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.

Ask your health care practitioner to order the Cyrex Array 3 to test for gluten sensitivity and/or celiac disease.  In the case of gluten, I highly recommend testing.  A gluten-free diet can be demanding for many people and it is nice to have documentation to motivate you.  When you eliminate gluten from your diet, the antibodies decrease over time making testing less accurate.  If you are sensitive to gluten and you continue to eat it, it not only increases your risk of premature death and developing other autoimmune conditions, but it is associated with 55 other diseases and conditions.  Gluten sensitivity and/or celiac disease usually require a GI repair protocol along with a strict gluten elimination diet.

 

To test for dairy sensitivity, ask your healthcare practitioner to order Cyrex Array 4 for cross-reactive foods, which includes six antigens associated with dairy.

It may seem daunting at first, but if you are experiencing health issues that are negatively affecting your quality of life and you find that eliminating one or both of these dietary ingredients could relieve or greatly improve all symptoms, wouldn't you agree that it could definitely be worth it!?!

Wishing you a happy, healthy, nourished day!
♥  michelle

¹  Zioudrou C, Streaty RA, Klee WA. Opioid peptides derived from food proteins. The exorphins. J Biol Chem. 1979 Apr 10;254(7):2446-9.

²  Teschemacher H. Opioid Receptor Ligands Derived from Food Proteins. Curr Pharm Des. 2003;9(16):1331-44.

³ Artemova NV, Bumagina ZM, Kasakov AS, Shubin VV, Gurvits BY. Opioid peptides derived from food proteins suppress aggregation and promote reactivation of partly unfolded stressed proteins. Peptides. 2010 Feb;31(2):332-8. Epub 2009 Nov 30.

⁴ Knivsberg AM, Reichelt KL, Høien T, Nødland M. A randomised, controlled study of dietary intervention in autistic syndromes. Nutr Neurosci. 2002 Sep;5(4):251-61.

⁵ Kurek M, Przybilla B, Hermann K, Ring J (1992). "A naturally occurring opioid peptide from cow's milk, beta-casomorphine-7, is a direct histamine releaser in man". Int Arch Allergy Immunol 97 (2): 115–120.

⁶ Farrell RJ, Kelly CP. Celiac Sprue.  N Engl J Med. 2002 Jan 17;346(3):180-8.