Finally! FDA initiates ban of hydrogenated oils

Now even the U.S. Government is on board with what health specialists have known all along: partially hydrogenated oils and the industrial trans fats they contain are not safe for human consumption.

The FDA already requires food manufacturers to list the amount of trans fats in their products. It also removed trans fats from the category of Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS).

However, now the FDA is working to remove partially hydrogenated oils from the food supply.

Food manufacturers have three years to phase them out of use, which should make boxed, packaged, and restaurant foods safer by June of 2018.

FDA banning trans fats to protect heart health

The FDA cites heart disease risks for banning trans fats. Trans fats contribute to a build up of plaque in arteries and increase the risk of heart disease. The FDA says removing trans fats from the food supply will prevent thousands of fatal heart attacks each year.

Trans fats also shrink the brain

Partially hydrogenated oils also shrink the brain and increase the risk of dementia. One study found that even very small amounts of trans fats damage the brain.

This is important to know because manufacturers are not required to list trans fats on the nutrition label if they contain less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving. If you see partially hydrogenated oil listed in the ingredients, then avoid that food (even if the nutrition label says 0 grams trans fat).

Hydrogenated oils are closer in structure to plastic than food and damage the brain in more than one way. They deprive the brain of oxygen by clogging arteries that bring blood to the brain.

They also become part of brain cell membranes. Cell membranes, which are comprised of fats, communicate with other cells and determine what enters and exits the cell. When hydrogenated oils in the diet become part of cell membranes, this makes them more rigid and less functional. The sheaths that insulate and protect neurons also incorporate trans fats.

This process also replaces the vital brain fats DHA and essential omega-3 fatty acid. As a result, cellular communication suffers, brain tissue degenerates, and disorders such as poor mental performance, mood disorders, memory loss, or health problems can arise.

Avoiding trans fats

Always read ingredient labels and ask food servers what type of oil is used for frying. Here are foods that commonly contain hydrogenated oils:

• Crackers, cookies, cakes, frozen pies and other baked goods
• Snack foods (such as some microwave popcorn)
• Stick margarines
• Coffee creamers
• Refrigerated dough products (such as biscuits and cinnamon rolls)
• Ready-to-use frostings
• Brain-friendly diet

Ditch trans fats and go for a brain-friendly diet that includes leafy green vegetables, seafood, eggs, olive oil, nuts, avocados, colorful fruits, nuts, and meats. To learn more about ways to eat for healthier brain function, check out the leaky gut/autoimmune diet and ask my office for information.

Goodbye McDonald’s; hello to healthier eating

McDonald’s is closing 700 stores this year due to poor performance. Although it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the more than 32,000 stores worldwide, flagging sales and closing stores are a sign of changing times — customers are opting for healthier food, such as that served by Chipotle and gourmet burger chains.

In response to falling sales, McDonald’s is investigating dumping antibiotic-laced chicken and rBST (hormone) milks, adding sirloin burgers, and even introducing kale smoothies and salads.

Although we still have a long way to go as a nation, consumer habits point to an increasing consciousness of healthier eating. No doubt many of the 36 percent of Americans who are obese would rather not be, and are cutting back on fast food consumption as a result.

New technology helping Americans live healthier

Health experts also point to the increased use of smart phone apps and the rising popularity of health tracking technology  such as the FitBit  for cajoling Americans to become more interested in their diets.

For instance, some apps let you use your smart phone to scan product bar codes for nutrition information. Other apps make logging your diet and exercise easy — awareness is fundamental to healthier habits.

Apps also can plug you into a community of others on the same path to make you more accountable, to seek and offer support, and to share victories. One app (Pact) even requires a financial commitment: If you don’t meet your goals you have to pay up, and if you do, you earn money from those who haven’t.

Eating and living healthier requires simple changes

Avoiding McDonald’s and eating more healthfully doesn’t have to be a burden. It just requires simple steps. Also, unless a chronic illness requires immediate remediation, lasting dietary and lifestyle changes are best taken on bit by bit.

With that said, here are some steps you can implement to join the growing ranks of healthy eaters.

Educate yourself

Why are you eating healthier? Do you understand how it will improve your health? Even a little bit of self-education is hugely empowering and motivating.

Plan your meals

Eating at McDonald’s is often a stressed-out, last-minute decision. Healthier eating requires advance planning, such as packing food or knowing where to eat out. For instance, it’s not as cheap, but health food stores such as Whole Foods can offer much healthier and still very quick meal options.

Make a grocery list

Take some time to think about your grocery list. Do some research, explore, try new things. It can make healthier eating fun.

Clear out the old temptations

Empty your house of all the junk foods so you don’t fall into bad habits. Find some new, healthier treats for those times you need a comfort food.

Cook in batches

Healthier eating requires more preparation and cooking. You can save time by chopping and storing veggies ahead of time, or cooking large meals and freezing serving sized portions for later.

Poor sleep habits linked with dementia

Do you have trouble falling asleep? Do you fall asleep around 2 or 3 a.m. and sleep until noon? Or do you wake up at 4 a.m. and can’t fall back asleep?

Studies show insomnia does more than make the days drag — it raises your risk of dementia later in life. Heart disease, diabetes, obesity, mood disturbances, constipation, prostate cancer, and breast cancer have all been linked with poor sleep.

Poor sleep is a growing problem, as is dementia. Twenty percent of the population is estimated to sleep too little (less than 6 hours a night). Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder today, affecting 64 million people, and one in three people over 65 will die of dementia.

Researchers found a particularly strong link between poor rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and dementia. These people do not go into the deep enough REM sleep that induces paralysis. Instead, they have vivid, violent dreams that they act out through punching, kicking, screaming, and even jumping out of bed.

Sixty-three percent of people with this REM disorder develop dementia or Parkinson’s later in life.

The sleep wake cycle and dementia risk

Our circadian rhythm regulates our sleep/wake cycles — when we feel tired at night and alert in the morning. A healthy circadian rhythm is tied to daylight and darkness and governs sleeping and waking.

However, when this sleep/wake cycle becomes overly imbalanced, your risk of developing dementia, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases increases.

This is because the area of the brain that governs the circadian rhythm, the hippocampus, also plays a role in short-term memory and learning. The hippocampus is the first area of the brain to degenerate in dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Constant problems with your cycles of sleeping and waking could point to problems in the hippocampus and an increased risk of dementia later in life.

The sleep-wake cycle and dementia

Researchers have found the risk of dementia was higher in older women with weak circadian rhythms, and tracking circadian rhythms over time has been shown to predict cognitive decline in older adults.

Are you at risk for dementia later in life?

How do you know if your circadian rhythm is off balance? Look at whether you suffer from any of the following symptoms:

• Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
• Difficulty waking in the morning
• Not feeling rested after sleep
• Poor recovery from exercise
• Drop of energy between 4 –7 p.m.

Preventing dementia by supporting sleep

Fortunately, there are steps you can take to better regulate your circadian rhythm and lower the risk for dementia. A primary tactic is to regulate cortisol, an adrenal stress hormone. Studies show high cortisol from constant physical or mental stress degenerates the hippocampus.

Stress isn’t just a lifestyle issue. Stress is also be caused by blood sugar swings, inflammation  food intolerances, hormone imbalances, and other metabolic issues. Inflammation in particular is associated with degeneration of the hippocampus. High homocysteine on a blood panel, a telltale sign of inflammation, is one way to determine whether inflammation is undermining your brain health.

Inflammation and dementia

A primary way to normalize the circadian rhythm and reduce your risk of dementia is to reduce inflammation. Your diet is the first places to start. This includes removing foods to which you are sensitive (gluten and dairy are among the more common), stabilizing your blood sugar, and eliminating processed foods.

Ask us about an anti-inflammatory diet, improving sleep, and other tools to lower the risk of dementia.

Worried about losing your memory? Eat your greens

Memory loss and dementia are valid concerns for everyone these days: one in three seniors dies of Alzheimer’s or dementia and Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Fortunately, dementia is largely preventable with many lifestyle and dietary adjustments, one of which is including plenty of greens in your diet.

New research shows eating plenty of spinach, kale, collards, and mustard greens can help slow cognitive decline. Researchers believe the high vitamin K content in these vegetables plays a role in preserving brain health.

The study tracked almost 1,000 older adults during five years and saw significantly less cognitive decline in participants who ate leafy green vegetables.

In fact, the elders who ate one to two servings a day of leafy greens had the cognitive ability of someone 11 years younger.

Researchers credited not only the vitamin K in leafy greens for slowing cognitive decline, but also lutein and beta-carotene. Other brightly colored fruits and vegetables are also high in these vitamins.

Vitamins aren’t the only brain benefits of leafy greens — greens promote healthy gut bacteria

The vitamins in leafy greens aren’t their only benefits.

For one, leafy greens are also rich in fiber, which are good for the gut. Plenty of dietary fiber not only prevents constipation, but it also supports the healthy bacteria in your gut. People who eat diets high in plant fiber show a more beneficial composition of gut bacteria compared to those who eat a typical western diet.

Scientists have increasingly been discovering how vital beneficial gut bacteria are to brain health. For instance, healthy gut bacteria promote the integrity of the blood-brain barrier, the lining that protects the brain.

Gut bacteria have also been shown to influence depression, anxiety, learning, and memory. This is because the gut and the brain communicate closely with one another through the vagus nerve, a large nerve that runs between the brain and the organs.

Eating greens is usually part of a healthy brain lifestyle

Another factor to consider with this study is that people who eat greens every day are typically more conscious of their health. Someone who is taking the time to shop for and prepare greens every day is probably eating a healthier, whole foods diet and avoiding dementia-promoting junk foods, sodas, and sugars.

Exercise is the golden bullet to lasting brain health

People who eat healthier also tend to exercise more regularly, whether it’s just taking a daily walk or hitting the gym every day. Both strength training and aerobic exercise have been shown protect neuron health, ensure better blood flow to the brain, and protect the brain from the damaging proteins that cause Alzheimer’s.

One study that followed more than 600 people ages 70 and older found those who engaged in the most physical activity showed the least amount of brain shrinkage.

Another study found that older adults who walked as little as 30 to 45 minutes three days a week increased the volume of the part of the brain responsible for learning and memory.

So although eating your greens is a great way to boost brain health (and gut health), if you eat your greens AND exercise every day, you drastically reduce your chances of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s. Considering there is no cure for dementia and Alzheimer’s — the neurons that die in these conditions cannot be recovered — the best approach is a preventive one.

Ask my office for more details on lowering your risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s.

Hashimoto’s and autoimmunity linked to autism

Managing your hypothyroidism isn’t just about losing weight and having warm hands and feet. If you’re a woman who could get pregnant, it could play a role in whether you have a child with autism. A 2015 Finnish study that looked at risk factors associated with autism found that women who tested positive for autoimmune hypothyroidism, or Hashimoto’s, were more 80 percent more likely to give birth to a child who developed autism than women who did not.

Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system destroys the thyroid. But Hashimoto’s is only one of many autoimmune diseases. Autoimmunity means the body’s immune system attacks and destroys the very thing it was designed to protect — you. Which organ, gland, tissue, or chemical the immune system attacks depends on different factors, such as genetic predisposition and what triggered the autoimmunity. For instance, certain foods or chemicals are linked with certain autoimmune conditions. Rates of autoimmune disease are skyrocketing and many people go undiagnosed for years or a lifetime despite symptoms.

Similar studies have also made correlations between autoimmune diseases in the mother and increased risk of autism in their offspring. For instance, celiac disease, type 1 diabetes, and inflammatory bowel conditions have also been suggested as links to autism.

Why maternal autoimmunity can cause autism

Why can maternal autoimmunity cause autism in a child? Immune cells, called antibodies, that coordinate attack of the mother’s body in autoimmunity can be passed to the child. This can cause the child to be born with an autoimmune reaction already taking place in his or her body. In some case of autism, they are finding that these children are born with autoimmune attacks happening in the brain.

Evidence of this was demonstrated in a startling way when scientists injected one group of pregnant monkeys with antibodies taken from human mothers with autistic children. Another group of pregnant monkeys was injected with antibodies taken from mothers of neurotypical children. Compared to the control group, the monkeys who received the antibodies from mothers of autistic children gave birth to monkeys who grew to demonstrate atypical social behavior.

Manage autoimmunity before pregnancy

If you’re a woman who would like to get pregnant, it’s important to screen for and appropriately manage any autoimmune condition you may have. For instance, if you have Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, it’s not enough to just take thyroid hormone. If you leave the autoimmune component of your thyroid condition unchecked, it could lead to more autoimmune diseases and you are at risk of passing the autoimmune antibodies to your child.

Managing autoimmunity is a comprehensive dietary and lifestyle approach designed to regulate an overzealous immune system so it does not attack the body. People with unchecked autoimmunity tend to be in very inflammatory states. Autoimmune management involves a comprehensive diet to reduce this inflammation.

Sometimes chemicals or metals can trigger or exacerbate autoimmunity, so it’s good to screen for that as well with the Cyrex Array 11 Chemical Immune Reactivity Screen  This doesn’t tell you the quantity of chemicals or metals in your body like other tests, but rather whether your immune system is reacting to them. This is vital information when you have autoimmunity.

Lifestyle factors such as chronic stress, too little sleep, an unhealthy relationship, a job you hate, and other negative influences can also raise inflammation and provoke autoimmunity. These are important factors to consider as well when managing an autoimmune disease.

It’s vital to shore up your health, balance your immune system, and manage any known or undiagnosed autoimmune reactions before getting pregnant. This will increase the likelihood of having a neurologically healthy child. Ask my office for more pre-conception advice.

Fight underlying causes of allergies for lasting relief when you have Hashimoto's

The end of winter seems like a good thing until your allergies go haywire. If you’re tired of allergy meds and always feeling stuffed up and zonked out, consider lasting relief by healing your gut to balance your immune system. The good news is that if you have Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, the same approaches will help you better manage your thyroid condition.

It’s hard to believe your digestive tract can affect your sinuses, but both systems are similar as they serve as the body’s defense from the outside world. Plus, the digestive tract serves as a hub for the immune system. When you’ve got allergies, it’s worth investigating gut health. The same goes with Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism.

One of the most common links to allergies is leaky gut  also known as intestinal permeability. Leaky gut is like it sounds — the lining of the small intestine becomes inflamed, damaged, and leaky, allowing undigested foods, bacteria, yeasts, and other toxins into the bloodstream.

Whenever this happens, which can be with every meal, the immune system attacks these invaders. This causes inflammation and an over zealous immune state that plays a role in triggering or exacerbating seasonal allergies or autoimmune disorders such as Hashimoto's hypothyroidism.

Some people get seasonal allergies, but others get other inflammatory disorders, such as joint pain, skin problems, digestive complaints  autoimmune diseases such as Hashimoto's hypothyroidism, issues with brain function, fatigue, chronic pain, and more.

How do you know if you have leaky gut? Sometimes you don’t, as you may not have any digestive complaints.

For some, leaky gut can cause bloating, heartburn, gas, constipation, diarrhea, or pain. Others see a link between leaky gut and skin problems, joint pain, brain fog, or sinus symptoms and allergies. For instance, some people notice when they eat certain foods they get brain fog, a runny nose, aching joints, or other immune issues such as Hashimoto's hypothyroidism.

Causes of leaky gut

Chronic stress, certain medications, and excessive alcohol consumption can cause leaky gut.

One of the most common causes of leaky gut is gluten  For some people, a gluten-free diet allows the gut to heal, thus profoundly relieving allergy symptoms. Gluten has also been linked in studies with Hashimoto’s.

Because leaky gut leads to food intolerances and food allergies  many people need to eliminate other foods, such as dairy, eggs, soy, or other grains. Many allergy sufferers have found significant relief following an anti-inflammatory diet  You can also ask my office about a lab test to screen for food sensitivities.

Imbalanced gut bacteria and seasonal allergies

We all have three to four pounds of bacteria in our digestive tract. These bacteria profoundly influence immune health, digestive health, and even respiratory and sinus health. After all, the sinuses and respiratory tract are lined with bacteria, too. Poor diet and lifestyle stressors can cause too many bad bacteria to grow, crowding out the good bacteria and setting the stage for infection, leaky gut, and autoimmune diseases such as Hashimoto's. Probiotics and fermented foods can help populate your system with healthy bacteria.

Fix your allergies by fixing your gut

Leaky gut repair is based primarily on diet and lifestyle changes. Avoid processed foods, junk foods, sugars, and other industrialized foods. In other words, stick to a simple whole foods diet with plenty of vegetables (they nourish your good gut bacteria).

Certain supplements and nutritional compounds can help soothe and repair the lining of the digestive tract and calm inflammation in the sinuses and respiratory system.

Seasonal allergies are a red flag that your body needs care and attention. By addressing the underlying causes of your seasonal allergies you may also prevent the development of more serious conditions, such as autoimmune disease, depression, anxiety, or neurological disease.

Ask my office for more information on addressing the underlying causes of your seasonal allergies and Hashimoto's hypothyroidism.

Fitness, not fatness, predicts how long you live

We’ve long been told if we want to be healthier and live longer we need to drop the pounds, but turns out being fit is the best predictor for longevity, even if you’re overweight.

A team of researchers examined a collection of studies that together looked at thousands of people for as long as 16 years.

They divided study subjects into three groups: normal weight, overweight, and obese. They then divided them into fit and unfit groups based on endurance tests, typically running on a treadmill.

Their analysis showed that the subjects’ performance in the endurance tests determined their mortality risk in the coming years, not their weight. In fact, the unfit people had twice the risk of dying as the fit people, regardless of their weight. Overweight and obese people who were fit had the same mortality risks as fit participants who were normal weight.

In a nutshell  A thin unfit person is twice as likely to die as an obese fit person. This is great news to those who have struggled much of their lives, unsuccessfully, to lose weight. As long as they keep exercising, they can expect to live a longer, healthier life.

A big downside to the study was that the majority of subjects were men, so we can’t say for sure how the results apply to women. Also, it would be interesting to look at a study like this in relation to diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, and other chronic health risks. The researchers only looked at length of life and not occurrence of disease.

So what does being fit look like?

Fortunately, enjoying these benefits of being fit does not require you to be a warrior at the gym or at Crossfit. In fact, in functional medicine we know that over exercising (which varies from person to person) is a great way to tax your health.

Most of the “fit” study participants were evaluated for an average of eight to 12 minutes on a treadmill. This falls in line with federal guidelines that suggest as little as two and a half hours of exercise a week, which can be done in increments as short as 10 minutes at a time, qualify you as fit.

Ways to meet those weekly goals can include parking far enough away from your destination that you have to walk 10 minutes to reach it, using a standing or stationary bike desk at work, and taking regular brisk walks.

Exercise is about much more than living longer

The promise of a longer life does not actually provide much motivation for many people, especially those who are younger. Instead, it’s important to look at other benefits of regular exercise.

Regular walking and other exercise have been shown to improve brain function, ward off depression  and boost self-esteem  and even curb cravings and addiction.

FDA sued over gluten in medications; protect yourself

A man with celiac disease is suing the FDA, demanding they take action on the undisclosed use of wheat in an estimated 150 different prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications.

Although about 1 percent of the population suffers from celiac disease, vastly more have gluten sensitivity and must also abstain from eating wheat to avoid a variety of health conditions that typically involve inflammation, such as joint pain, brain-based disorders, skin problems, gut problems, and more.

The man sued the FDA after they failed to respond to a petition he filed after developing gluten reactions to a generic drug he had been taking.

Manufacturers do not disclose the use of wheat in their prescription and OTC drugs, making it a crapshoot for those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity who must take them. The man filing the lawsuit had to call the manufacturer to inquire about the use of gluten in that specific batch of drugs. (Filler ingredients are changed regularly.)

Although it’s unclear how many drugs contain gluten — a serious problem when it’s that difficult to ascertain — a university pharmacist has so far catalogued 150 drugs that don't contain gluten  Unfortunately, however, even these drugs are questionable as there is no oversight regarding cross-contamination with gluten. In other words, if the drugs are made on equipment or in an area contaminated with gluten, then they are no longer gluten-free. Many drugs also contain corn  potato, or soy, ingredients that may cross-react with gluten, causing symptoms.

It’s good to know which drugs contain gluten, especially since some autoimmune diseases are linked in the science with gluten. If you take a medication regularly to help manage your autoimmune condition (such as insulin), it’s worth calling the manufacturer to ensure it is gluten-free. Gluten is linked to 55 diseases so far, the majority of them autoimmune and many of them neurological.

Gluten also in many household products

Medications aren’t the only thing not required to list gluten as an ingredient. Some body products and household items also contain hidden gluten.

Manufacturers often use wheat in fillers, lubricants or absorbents in various body products. While gluten is not absorbed through the skin, it is possible to transfer traces from your hands or face to your mouth, where it can be swallowed and cause symptoms.

Examples of products that may contain hidden gluten include cosmetics and lip balm; lotions and sunscreens; stickers, stamps, and envelope glue; toothpaste; soaps; play dough; pet food; and laundry detergent.

How to protect yourself from hidden gluten

Unfortunately, your doctor or pharmacist may not know whether a drug or product contains gluten. It may be up to you to hunt down which are safe. The list of gluten-free drugs compiled by the university pharmacist is helpful.

Fortunately, when it comes to body and household products, many people have already done the research and reported their results online  Finding out whether a product is safe may be just a click away so you don’t have to go through the hassle of tracking down the right person in the company.

In response to consumer demand, an increasing number of companies are making and marketing gluten-free body products so just a quick glance at the label can tell you if it’s safe.

Also, for parents of children with a gluten-sensitivity, finding safe play dough can be a hassle; the name-brand stuff is wheat-based and we know it’s difficult for kids to keep their hands out of their mouths. Fortunately, some gluten-free brands of play dough are now available online, as well as plenty of very easy recipes to make your own.

Although it takes a little bit of extra effort to use medications and other products that are gluten-free, it’s worth the peace of mind to avoid provoking inflammatory reactions and symptoms.

Why diets don't work and what you can do about it

After studying dieting for 20 years, a researcher concluded diets simply don’t work, a fact countless Americans have spent 20-plus years of their own lives validating.

Why? Dieting is constructed around faulty principles that defy human biology and psychology. The “calories in versus calories out” model fails to account for hormonal shifts during weight loss, the psychological consequences of deprivation, and the futility of willpower when it comes to eating.

In a nutshell, the human body has mechanisms in place designed to compensate for starvation.

Three things that cause diets to fail

The researcher found three key reasons why diets fail:

• The deprivation of dieting wires your brain to notice food more and to make food appear more appetizing, tempting, and harder to resist.
• Weight loss through calorie restriction causes hormonal shifts that decrease satiety hormones and increase hunger hormones. As a result, you feel less full on the same amount of food than you used to.
• Calorie restriction slows down your metabolism so that you become more efficient at storing fat and less efficient at burning it. This is why people actually become heavier after each diet.

In essence, dieting is starving, and your body responds to a diet just as it would to a famine — with these responses that have kept humans alive throughout the ages.

What’s worse, the dieting industry has spun this built-in failure into a $61 billion dollar industry that preys on insecurities and hopes while ignoring some basic tenets of human function.

What about willpower?

When it comes to dieting, willpower is a poor tool. For example, if you use willpower to avoid Facebook during a two-hour work project and succeed except for during the last 10 minutes, that last-minute lapse does not undo your previous success. However, if you sit in front of a platter of donuts during a two-hour meeting and resist them except during the last 10 minutes, that last-minute lapse has undone your previous success.

The study found that the slightest distractions can trigger overeating in those who are dieting. It also concluded that the paltry 5 percent who do succeed at maintaining their weight loss devote their lives to their weight, living like a starving person.

So does this mean I can never lose weight?

Thankfully, no. The key is to eat consciously with a focus on health and nutrition, not to starve your body and trigger binges and rebounds. Many people who follow a functional medicine approach to health find weight loss is just one of the many benefits they experience.

For instance, your excess weight could be the result of low thyroid function, food intolerances, blood sugar imbalances, sleep deprivation, and even over exercising. Excess weight is typically a symptom of a deeper problem and addressing the underlying cause can result in gradual, healthy, and hunger-free weight loss. And not everyone is meant to be rail thin — you may need to adjust your expectations to honor your body’s set point and not society’s.

Also, many people have dug themselves into a deep hole of self-loathing because of their many dieting failures. This causes chronic and sometimes severe stress that can impact your biology and serve as another barrier to weight loss. It’s important to honor your physiology and rewire your belief systems around eating and your body to facilitate more positivity and relaxation.

Ask my office for more advice on the proper care and feeding of your body.

What HbA1c and a glucometer can tell you about disease risk

High blood sugar is ground zero for chronic disease: diabetes (obviously), heart disease, dementia, autoimmune disease, chronic pain, and hormone imbalances. Testing your HbA1c on a blood panel can tell you whether high blood sugar is setting you up for major health problems.

High blood sugar can:

• Trigger chronic inflammation, thus setting the stage for autoimmune disease
• Radically imbalance hormones, causing high testosterone in women, high estrogen in men, PCOS, PMS, hormone deficiency, and imbalances in hormones that regulate satiety so that you’re always hungry
• Damage the walls of blood vessels
• Damage brain tissue and accelerate brain aging, increasing the risk for dementia (some researchers call Alzheimer’s type 3 diabetes)

High blood sugar is also associated with eye disease, kidney disease, nerve damage, and stroke.

Getting a handle on your blood sugar can help you better manage or prevent these radical health imbalances. The HbA1c shows you your average blood sugar levels over the last three months and is a simple way to look at the influence of blood sugar on your health.

HbA1c stands for glycated hemoglobin, which refers to a protein in red blood cells that has bonded with glucose. The higher your HbA1c the higher your blood sugar and the greater your risk for disease.

Using standard lab ranges, an HbA1c less than 5.7 is normal; 5.7%–6.4% indicates pre-diabetes; and if it is 6.5 or higher this indicates diabetes.

However, in functional medicine, we shoot for optimal health and like to see an HbA1c in the range of 4.6%–5.3%. One study shows heart disease risk rises considerably when HbA1c is over 5%  and another shows risk is higher when it’s over 4.6%.

Although HbA1c is said to look at your average blood sugar levels over the last three months, not everyone’s blood adheres to a strict schedule  In fact, people with pre-diabetes or diabetes have a higher turnover of blood cells, while those with normal blood sugar have longer lasting red blood cells, so that an HbA1c can reflect the last 5 months.

It’s important to look at HbA1c along with a couple of other blood sugar markers. If you’re working to manage your blood sugar, a glucometer is very useful to measure blood sugar throughout the day.

Checking fasting blood sugar first thing in the morning before you eat or drink (except water) is a popular indicator of blood sugar health, with optimal ranges being in the low 80s. A fasting blood sugar of 100 mg/dL or higher indicates pre-diabetes in functional medicine (126 mg/dL is considered diabetes).

However, people on very low-carb diets or on ketogenic diets can also have fasting blood sugar around 100. If you’re fasting blood sugar is around 100 but your HbA1c and post-prandial (below) blood sugars are healthy, then you know this mechanism is at work.

It’s highly useful to look at your blood sugar two hours after meals. This is called post-prandial blood sugar. Optimal blood sugar two hours after a meal should be under 100 to 120 mg/dL.

Lowering blood sugar levels requires eliminating sugar and sweets, minimizing carbohydrate intake (especially processed carbs such as pasta and bread), eating plenty of fiber, avoiding inflammatory foods, and exercising daily. Certain herbs and nutrients can also help lower your blood sugar. Ask my office for advice.

Why are girls starting puberty so early these days?

In the 1800s the average girl didn’t hit puberty until she was 15. Today the average age of puberty is 12, while the numbers of children showing signs of puberty before age 10 is at all time high and rising. We have seen the age at which children, primarily girls, hit puberty drop in just the last generation.

The numbers are startling. Breast development and other signs or puberty are starting by age 7 in 10 percent of white girls, 15 percent of Hispanic girls, and 23 percent of black girls.

Early puberty not only may cause emotional pressures, but also may raise the risk of breast and ovarian cancer due to longer exposure to estrogen. Studies link early puberty with increased behavioral and mood disorders, low self-esteem, early sexuality, and increased risk of health disorders.

Why are girls going through puberty so early?

The research points to the abundance of estrogen-like chemicals in our environment and obesity as factors driving early puberty.

We live in an environment saturated with synthetic chemicals. They are in our air, water, food, household products and body products. Only a handful of tens of thousands of chemicals have been studied; we only learn about their effects after the fact. Researchers have drawn many links between environmental chemicals and reproductive hormones.

For instance, in 1973 cattle in Michigan were accidentally fed grain contaminated with flame retardant, which mimics estrogen. The daughters born to pregnant women who consumed meat and dairy from these cattle started puberty significantly earlier than their peers.

Chemicals that mimic estrogen include pesticides, flame retardants, BPA (in tin cans, baby bottles, toys, and other food packaging), phthalates (in cosmetic products, PVC, plastics, food packaging, and numerous products), and parabens (in shampoos and cosmetic products). Phthalates have also been linked with abnormal hormone development in boys, and prenatal exposure to these chemicals has also been identified as a risk factor.

One study showed 90 percent of infants tested showed BPA in their cord blood, meaning this is a problem that can start before a child is even born.

These chemicals are tied not only to early puberty, but also to multiple health disorders, including reproductive cancers.

Although we can’t totally escape these chemicals, it’s important to restrict their use as much as possible in your home and in your diet (i.e., don’t use cleaning or body products with synthetic chemicals and avoid drinking or eating from plastic containers).

Obesity and early puberty

Studies also link early puberty with obesity. Overeating and a diet packed with sugar and processed carbohydrates tell the brain conditions are safe to reproduce. Excess body fat also produces estrogen. Being overweight also typically causes higher insulin levels, which stimulates the production of sex hormones.

A diet high in sugars and processed carbohydrates can raise the risk of early puberty through chronic insulin surges, especially in ethnic populations more prone to diabetes and obesity.

Estrogens in foods and early puberty

It’s not just about obesity but also estrogenic chemicals in foods. For instance, one study showed infants fed soy formula had estrogen levels 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than normal (soy is a known estrogen mimicker). Also, sex hormones are given to beef and dairy cattle, and the antibiotics given to animals may be a factor.

Other factors linked with early puberty

Studies also show puberty begins earlier in populations who live further from the equator and more prone to vitamin D deficiency.

A whole foods diet that restricts sugar and limiting exposure to chemicals can help prevent early puberty.

Hashimoto's not improving? Here are 10 reasons why

For some, managing autoimmune Hashimoto’s is as easy as going gluten-free. For others, it requires trial and error to find the triggers. And for those with severe or multiple autoimmune disorders, symptom management requires a conscious, lifelong approach to diet and lifestyle.

Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system attacks and destroys the thyroid gland. Managing Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses immune function.

If you are not getting the results you want, see if any of the factors is getting in the way:

1. Not caring about your thyroid care. If you leave your thyroid care to the standard health care model, you may never see optimal results. The conventional model is based on lowering TSH into lab ranges with T4 medication. The Hashimoto’s patient needs to invest in self-education for the best results. The guidance of an experienced practitioner may still be necessary, but in functional medicine, patient participation is integral to success.

2. Skipping meals. When blood sugar drops too low it triggers autoimmune flare-ups. Symptoms of low blood sugar include shakiness, blurred vision, irritability, being spaced out, fatigue, and loss of function. If you feel more energetic after eating it means your blood sugar was too low. Skipping meals promotes Hashimoto’s flare-ups.

3. Ignoring blood sugar stability. The blood sugar and insulin surges from eating sweets and starchy foods trigger autoimmune flare-ups. Symptoms include fatigue, energy crashes, sugar cravings after eating, insomnia, and waking up at 3 or 4 a.m. If you are not keeping your blood sugar stable it will be difficult to manage Hashimoto’s.

4. Ignoring brain health. Hashimoto’s is hard on the brain, causing symptoms that overlap with Hashimoto’s, such as brain fog, depression, and memory loss, and accelerating brain degeneration. It’s vital to support your brain health as part of your Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism plan.

5. Not truly gluten-free. Being gluten-free is like being pregnant. You either are or you aren’t. Gluten is a significant trigger for most people with Hashimoto’s. If you are cheating on your gluten-free diet, not being careful, or eating foods that cross-react with gluten  you may be sabotaging your recovery process.

6. Eating foods that cross react with gluten. If you eat foods that cross react with gluten, then you may not have success managing your Hashimoto’s. Gluten cross-reactive foods are structurally similar to gluten and can trigger reactions. The most common cross-reactive foods are milk (casein), followed by rice, corn, sesame, and gluten-free oats.

7. Too much stress. Stress is a potent inflammatory trigger, as many have learned through experience. Bad relationships, an unhealthy work environment, not enough down time, and even a persistent negative attitude are chronic stressors. It’s important to mitigate stressors as much as possible and schedule regular time off.

8. Not looking past thyroid meds. Many patients are looking for the perfect thyroid medication  Although finding the right med can make a huge difference, meds alone don’t always go the distance. Hashimoto’s is a complex autoimmune disorder that requires nutritional therapy and lifestyle approaches. If you’re still eating foods that flare your immune system, meds can’t do their job.

9. You are taking supplements that stimulate your immune system. Some supplements can make your Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism worse or better, depending on your immune system. Echinacea, green tea, acai, Astragalus, licorice, and others can either help or aggravate autoimmunity, depending on whether you have TH-1 or TH-2 dominance. It’s very important to be aware of this. Please refer to Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms? for more information.

10. You react to fillers in your thyroid meds. Many thyroid meds and supplements contain fillers you may react to. Some capsules can contain gluten, and some whole-food supplements may contain gluten or be contaminated with gluten. You need to make sure your thyroid hormones are gluten-free and free of corn starch if you react to corn. Investigate the filler ingredients in your medication or supplements in case they are causing a reaction.

Moody and need meds or just a healthy, normal female?

Do you feel you need anti-depressants or anti-anxiety medications, or has your doctor said you do? Although true depression or anxiety disorders need management, many women are misled into believing they need treatment for what is actually normal behavior. Women are designed to be sensitive to their environments, emotionally in tune with their children and loved ones, and intuitive — traits that ensure survival. Women are also wired to express emotions and to pick up on the emotions of others.

Unfortunately, emotionality is not socially acceptable despite being a sign of good health in women. What is not so healthy is the constant pressure to apologize for and restrain emotionality for fear of being regarded as weak or hysterical.

Pharmaceutical companies, astute in the psychology of selling, spin this into sales targeted at women. In ads for antidepressants  93 percent feature a woman, usually a lonely single woman or stressed-out single mom. One in four American women take an antidepressant compared to one in seven men.

Women are more likely than men to express negative feelings through sadness and worry, which can be interpreted as a psychiatric disorder requiring medication. Men are more prone to express negative feelings as anger or through substance abuse, which are not as easy to address pharmaceutically.

Furthermore, when we paint depression and anxiety as women’s problems, men truly suffering from these problems are more likely to go overlooked. Women are almost twice as likely than men to receive a diagnosis of depression or anxiety.

Is it a lifestyle issue or a true disorder?

Many women turn to prescription drugs to help them manage feeling that are actually natural responses to unnatural stressors: chronic sleep deprivation, too little time outdoors, unhealthy diets, social isolation, over exposure to toxins and electric light, and over packed schedules. The human animal simply wasn’t designed to live optimally in today’s highly artificial, stressed-out environment.

Again, this is not meant to dismiss or minimize genuine depressive or anxiety disorders. But is your state of mind a reasonable response to your situation or a mental disorder? For instance, crying  which is seen as a sign of weakness, is actually a healthy way for many women to express sadness, frustration, fear, or other strong emotions. Women who take SSRI antidepressants (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) find it’s difficult to cry. They also experience more apathy and indifference.

Natural approaches to sadness and worry

Unfortunately, we can’t wave a magic wand and remove the stressors from life. However, it’s helpful and important to prioritize basic biological needs: plenty of sleep, good nutrition, healthy socialization, physical activity, and time outdoors.

Also, many natural compounds can address brain chemical imbalances to help boost your mental well being and function. Adrenal adaptogens are herbs that help buffer the effects of stress on your body and brain. Dietary strategies that balance blood sugar and tame inflammation can also result in profound improvements in mood.

It’s also important, though, to know that what you’re experiencing may just be a part of being that finely tuned emotional instrument known as a woman.

SIBO common cause of wasting away in elderly

Do you have an older loved one in your life who seems to be wasting away no matter what you do to keep them nourished and healthy? This may be due to a condition called SIBO, or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. SIBO happens when bacteria that normally belong in the large intestine travel backwards to colonize the small intestine. The small intestine is where we absorb the majority of our nutrients. Because SIBO inflames and damages the small intestine, this prevents these vital nutrients from being absorbed. As a result, the body and brain cannot function efficiently and it is difficult to maintain weight.

Symptoms of SIBO

For most people, symptoms of SIBO are straightforward. One of the most common symptoms is bloating after eating, particularly after eating grains, desserts, or other starchy foods. Other SIBO symptoms include gas, belching, indigestion, heartburn, nausea, abdominal pain and cramping, and either constipation, diarrhea, or both.

Doctors often misdiagnose SIBO as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), as the symptoms are so similar. In fact, SIBO has been found in more than 80 percent of patients diagnosed with IBS.

Wasting away in elderly is usually SIBO symptom

Most doctors and patients haven’t heard of SIBO and blame such a rapid decline in the elderly on aging. However, researchers have identified SIBO, which is treatable, as the leading cause of malabsorption, and thus wasting away, in older adults.

SIBO doesn’t always result in malabsorption and wasting away. People can fall anywhere along a range of symptoms, from asymptomatic to the severe. But those who fall in the middle of the spectrum can become progressively worse. That’s why complaints of bloating and gas after meals should be taken seriously and not thought of as normal.

As SIBO and malabsorption worsen, nutrition status can plummet. Levels of B vitamins drop, which impacts many functions in the body, including brain function. Inflammation may also increase as the body’s ability to regulate immune function deteriorates. Also, it seems no matter how much older adults suffering from SIBO supplement, they cannot improve their low vitamin D status or persistent anemia.

The most devastating consequence of untreated SIBO and malabsorption is that it profoundly affects brain health and function, increasing the risk of dementia. It also saps energy and vitality. When an older person complains of bloating and distention after meals, it should not be dismissed as a minor complaint but rather regarded as a red flag indicating for more serious problems down the road.

The cause and treatment of SIBO

A variety of things can cause SIBO, including antibiotic use, poor diet, and digestive damage, such as from a long-standing undiagnosed celiac condition.

In older adults (and in those who have sustained a concussion or brain injury), another cause to watch out for is declining brain function. The digestive tract depends on healthy brain function to work properly. When signals from the brain to the gut are inadequate, the ileocecal valve  which separates the large intestine from the small intestine, may weaken and allow contents from the large intestine to travel backward into the small intestine, where they colonize. It is not the bacteria themselves that cause SIBO symptoms, but the byproducts they produce. These bacteria also compete with the host for protein from food.

Treatment for SIBO includes a strict diet to starve the bacteria, as well as targeted botanicals to kill them. Doing specific exercises to improve communication between the brain and the gut can also help prevent SIBO from perpetuating.

Ask my office for more information.

Do you sometimes “crash” with debilitating fatigue?

Do you “crash” after a busy or stressful event, suffering from extreme exhaustion that keeps you confined to your bed or couch? Do these crashes last anywhere from a day to a week or even longer? If so, you’re not alone and you may suffer from autoimmunity, a condition in which the immune system attacks and destroys tissue in the body. (Which tissue depends on genetics and the type of autoimmunity you have.)

In fact, a recent survey of almost 8,000 autoimmune patients found the overwhelming majority listed bouts of debilitating fatigue as one of their most troubling symptoms.

Any number of things can cause a person with autoimmunity to “crash.” They can include a very stressful event, such as a car accident or a move. Pleasant events can cause crashes because they are long or exhausting, such as a wedding, a trip out of town, or a work conference. Many people hold up fine during the event but crash when it’s over. Exposure to certain foods or chemicals causes it in others.

Because such crashes are not commonplace or medically recognized, they cause anxiety and embarrassment. It’s like having the flu or a bad cold, except without the symptoms. Sufferers worry others will think they are lazy, another stressor on top of stressing about all the things not getting done because you’re in bed, barely able to function. Unfortunately, brain power bottoms out along with physical energy, which makes working at home from your laptop difficult if not impossible.

New survey brings light to autoimmune crashes

Fortunately, you may not have to make excuses for your inability to function forever as awareness about these bouts of debilitating fatigue grows. The survey polled those suffering from a variety of autoimmune diseases, such as Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, or autoimmunity affecting the brain or nervous system.

Overwhelming number of autoimmune patients report debilitating fatigue

The survey of patients with autoimmune disease, which was conducted by a patient advocacy group, revealed:

• 98 percent suffer from fatigue
• 89 percent said fatigue was a major issue
• 59 percent said fatigue was their most debilitating symptom
• Two-thirds said their fatigue was profound and prevented them from doing everyday tasks
• 75 percent said fatigue impacts their ability to work, 40 percent said it causes financial stress, and another one in five said it has cost them their jobs and they’re on disability
• The overwhelming majority reported fatigue not only impacts their professional life, but also their romantic and family life and self-esteem.
• The overwhelming majority also say it has resulted in emotional distress, isolation, anxiety, and depression.

According to one patient, “It’s difficult for other people to understand fatigue when it can’t be seen. It’s hard trying to get others, even doctors, to understand how very tired you are. One wonders if they think we are just mental cases or whiners.”

Fortunately, using functional medicine approaches can significantly improve your health and reduce the frequency and severity of these bouts of fatigue. Ask my office for more information.

Hard time recovering from Daylight Saving Time?

Do you curse every spring when we have to move the clocks forward for Daylight Saving Time (DST)? Does it take you weeks to recover? You’re not alone. Studies show DST is hard on our health and dangerous to boot, making it an outdated relic that adds stress to an already over-stressed society.

DST doesn’t just make people tired in the morning. Studies show the number of car accidents increases after DST, likely due to tired drivers. A Swedish study also found that the risk of heart attacks goes up the first few days after DST, and that risk drops after setting the time back to Standard Time. An Australian study showed an increase in suicides the first few weeks after DST goes into effect.

Some people aren’t ruffled by the change in time, others recover in a few days, and then there are those for whom DST means a few weeks of feeling out of whack while their body adjusts. In fact, one study showed our bodies never fully adjust to DST until we switch back to Standard Time. Night owls are affected the worst, taking as long as three weeks to recover. Research has shown on their days off, people revert to sleeping and waking according to what’s seasonally appropriate, not what DST dictates.

We are designed to gradually adjust to the changes in light as the seasons change. Forcing this change overnight once a year flies in the face of our internal clocks, which are tuned into nature.

This is because light dictates how much of the sleep hormone melatonin we make. The more light we are exposed to the less melatonin we make so that we are awake longer.

The sudden disruption to our internal clocks with the time change and loss of sleep causes a loss in production, concentration, and memory, as well as fatigue and sleepiness during the day.

DST bad for business as well as health

Enacted during World War I to decrease energy costs, DST has now been shown to actually increase energy demands, due largely to more air conditioner use and more driving time to daylight activities. Also, contrary to popular belief, it does not benefit farmers; they actually oppose it. Dairy farmers in particular say cows do not easily adapt to the change in schedule. Orthodox religions don’t like their sunrise and sunset prayer tinkered with. However, the golf, barbecue, and retail industries love it.

Broader research has shown DST costs the economy anywhere from $400 million to $2 billion due to loss of productivity, workplace injury, and “cyber loafing.”

How to cope with Daylight Saving Time

If DST is wrecking you those first few weeks, you can do a few things to help ease the transition (in addition to signing an online petition to end DST):

Lay low until you adjust. Honor the disruption to your natural rhythms and take it easy by avoiding taking on extra activities or added stressors until you feel back to normal. Also, avoid dangerous activities.

Add in extra time to rest and nap. The biggest cost of DST is sleep loss, especially if you are a night owl. It is difficult to go to bed and wake up an hour earlier. Make time for a nap or at least some time to lie down and rest during the day those first few weeks.

Block blue light at night to help you adjust. Wearing orange glasses in the evening a couple of hours before bed will also help increase the production of sleep hormones so you can fall asleep. Exposure to sunlight during the day will also help regulate sleep hormones. You can use a light box in the mornings to help you wake up.

Ask my office for advice on helping you sleep better.

Botox can mess with your brain in more ways than one

Botox, fillers, and plastic surgery seem de rigueur these days, with anti-aging spas in practically every strip mall. No longer the domain of celebrities, Botox treatments are more affordable than ever and hence accessible to the masses. But at what price? Some research suggests those regular wrinkle-relaxing Botox shots may be messing with your brain — in more ways than one.

For starters, some studies suggest Botox may actually make its way into your brain. Rat studies showed that when botulinum toxin, type A (the active ingredient in Botox) was injected into one side of the brain, it was found in the opposite side of the brain. When the substance was injected into their whiskers it also made its way into the brain. Of course, these studies used small amounts of the purified and more potent form of the toxin, and not the diluted form found in Botox. But it does raise concerns.

Botox affects brain signals from hands

A Swiss study on humans found Botox has neurological effects. Researchers measured electrical signals from the brain in human subjects before and after a Botox treatment. Because facial expressions activate different parts of the brain, paralyzing minute facial movements reduces the amount of impulses sent to the brain. As a result, a nearby area that responds to input from the hands also becomes underactive. Researchers concluded that the small loss of movement in the face due to Botox injections may affect touch sensation in the hands. Further studies are needed to determine whether other parts of the body are affected as well.

Botox affects ability to read facial expressions

Humans are able to detect what others are feeling by instinctively mimicking facial expressions  Because Botox paralyzes facial muscles and hinders facial expressions, it may diminish a person’s ability to read the emotions of others. A 2011 study found that subjects who had Botox injections were less able to read the emotions of others compared to those who had non-paralyzing fillers used to smooth their wrinkles instead. Another study even suggested that Botox makes it more difficult for a person to feel their own emotions.

Fillers also can be problematic

Fillers also have their risks. There have been reported cases of filler injections blocking blood flow to the eyes, thus causing blindness. In a worst-case scenario, fillers that make their way into an artery that supplies the brain with blood can cause a stroke. There have been four reported incidences of stroke caused by fillers and almost 50 reported incidences of blindness. Of course, compared to the millions of people who use fillers to smooth out facial lines, these numbers are small, but under-reporting is a serious concern due to lack of regulations. In fact, many practitioners are not even aware of these risks.

Complaints more common than people realize

Although the industry could stand some more studies and more regulation, anecdotal reports on beauty forums, complaints, and lawsuits paint a more disturbing picture of Botox and fillers.

For instance, some Botox users allege devastating brain injury, chronic pain, double vision, and breathing difficulty after receiving the injections.

Other complaints on message boards include drooping eyes and eyebrows, intense pain and headaches, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, dizziness, and more.

Public Citizen, a watchdog group, found that during a 10-year period reports linked Botox to 180 life-threatening conditions, 87 hospitalizations, and 16 deaths. Again, it is believed lack of regulation has led to under reporting.

It isn’t easy to age in a culture obsessed with youth, media, and selfies, but it’s important to be aware of the risks before you decide on seemingly innocuous procedures.

By eating healthy, exercising regularly, and using functional medicine approaches to care for your health, you will not only look healthy and vibrant at any age, you will also have more natural self-confidence so you wear your “story-lines” with pride.

The problem with perfumes: Watch out for toxins

Nicely scented products can trigger pleasant memories or a good mood. In fact, some of the chemicals used in perfumes have been found to have a mild narcotic effect. Sadly, however, they can also trigger serious physical illnesses and reactions in people who have developed a chemical sensitivity, and the numbers of such people are growing. But don’t blame the canaries in the coal mine — artificially scents are toxic to all people — just some folks have lost their resilience to them.

Perfumes contain chemicals derived from petroleum that have been associated with hormone disruption, allergic reactions, cancer  birth defects, nervous-system disorders, and a tendency to accumulate in human tissues, although most haven’t been tested for safety at all. For instance, some are linked to sperm damage and are found concentrated in human fat tissue and in breast milk. About 3,000 chemicals fall under this category, however manufacturers are simply required to label them as “fragrance.”

In fact, 75 percent of products that list “fragrance” as an ingredient contain phthalates, a chemical linked to cancers, hormone disruption, and neurological disorders. Although many countries have banned phthalates and the United States has banned them in toys, they continue to be used in perfumes, including those marketed to children.

Unfortunately, you can buy organic foods, drink filtered water, use non-toxic products, and run an air purifier in your home, but you can’t escape perfume scents. They’re in your neighbor’s dryer sheets venting next door, other people wear fragrances or use them in their homes, they’re in air fresheners and insecticides in public buildings, in soaps in public restrooms, and so on. If you participate in public life, you are exposed to synthetic scents. As for your own product use, if you see “fragrance” on the label, then you know it contains an indeterminate amount of these chemicals.

How to reduce the risk of developing a chemical sensitivity to perfumes

Some people have lost their tolerance to chemicals and exposure to perfumes, dryer sheets, scented detergents and so on can trigger any number of symptoms, including migraines, incontinence, fatigue, inflammation, or a worsening of an autoimmune condition. For instance, someone with multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease, who is sensitive to chemicals may lose muscle control of her legs when exposed to perfume.

You can reduce your risk of developing a sensitivity to perfumes and other synthetic chemicals by doing the following things:

• Reduce the toxic burden on your body. This means not using products in your home or on your body that contain synthetic chemicals. Also, avoid foods that have artificial colorings and additives, which also have been linked to numerous health disorders.
• Make sure your glutathione status is good. Glutathione is the body’s master antioxidant that defends your cells against toxic chemicals. By reducing your toxic burden you protect your glutathione stores. You can also take supplements to boost glutathione production. Ask my office for details.
• Remove foods to which you are sensitive. If you regularly eat a food to which you have an immune sensitivity, such as gluten, it causes your immune system to be hyperactive and more prone to developing sensitivities to other things, such as chemicals. Do a food immune reaction panel from Cyrex Labs or an elimination/provocation diet to find out which foods trigger inflammation in you.

You don’t have to give up wonderful scents, simply switch to essential oils and natural scents. Some essential oils not only smell good but they are therapeutic as well. However, those with a sensitivity to perfumes may not be able to tolerate natural scents.

Ask my office for more advice on preventing or managing chemical sensitivities.

Artificial food colorings: What you don't know can make you sick

If you’re like most people, you probably have a vague notion artificial food coloring is “bad.” You’ve also probably heard it makes some kids hyperactive. But did you know the science on artificial food dyes is so thorough and damning that they are banned in two European countries, require warning labels throughout the European Union (and are hence little used), and that Wal-Mart, Coca Cola, and Kraft in Britain don’t use them?

What do Europeans know that we don’t? Actually, they have access to the same science we do, only apparently they take it more seriously. The good news is that, thanks to pressure from consumers in the know, food giant Nestle is leading the way by voluntarily removing food dyes from its chocolate candies by the end of 2015.

So what’s the big deal with food coloring? Are the risks for real or is it just a bunch of hype?

Immunologist Aristo Vojdani, PhD, outlines the various health risks and disorders associated with food colorings in one of his many published papers, and in his upcoming book, When Food Turns Against You.

The ways in which artificial food colorings have been found to be harmful:

• Food coloring is linked to hyperactivity and ADHD  This is one of the most commonly known health consequences associated with food dyes.
• The caramel coloring used in soft drinks has been found to pose a cancer risk.
• Many people, children especially, consume far more food coloring than has been measured for safety. A bowl of colored cereal exceeds the amount of food coloring that has been found to cause behavioral issues in some children.
• Artificial food coloring binds to proteins in foods it is added to. Human digestive enzymes cannot break down many of these proteins once they are bound to food coloring. This creates intestinal inflammation and damage, leading to leaky gut.
• Food coloring also binds to human tissue and proteins in the blood. This is what turns kids’ lips and tongues bright colors after they eat a lollipop or snow cone. Human autopsies have revealed entire colons dyed blue or green due to food coloring. The problem is the immune system does not recognize human tissue once it is bound to food coloring and it may begin to attack the tissue. This can lead to permanent autoimmunity to that organ or tissue. Also, once these colors are bound to cells in the body, those cells can no longer function properly.
• Food coloring causes allergic reactions in some people, causing a runny nose, hives, welts, and neurological reactions.
• Food coloring can lead to a breakdown in oral tolerance, or the ability of the immune system to tell friend from foe. This can result in increased food and chemical sensitivities.

These are just some of the ways artificial food colorings, which are made from petroleum, adversely affect human health. Although food manufacturers prefer artificial colors over natural ones because they mix easily, are cheaper, and more stable, they are just not worth the cost to our health or that of our children.

Food dyes are not just in obvious things such as candies and sodas. They lurk in salad dressings, pickles, crackers, meats (particularly tandoori chicken), desserts, medications, soaps, cosmetics, lotions, toothpastes, and other products.

A vitally important step as you transition to a whole foods diet is to eliminate all artificial colorings and other additives from your diet and from the products you use on your body.

North to south through the gut – what can go wrong

We live in a time of unprecedented abundance of food and medical advances yet we are sicker than ever. It is considered normal to suffer from insomnia, PMS, depression, chronic pain, heartburn, constipation, diarrhea, and so on. But in reality these are our bodies’ warning signs that something is wrong.

“All disease begins in the gut,” said Hippocrates. Understanding digestion helps you understand why you stay well or get sick.

From north to south

Digestion starts in the brain. When your brain gets the message you’re about to eat, it turns on the parasympathetic “rest and digest” part of the nervous system to prepare the organs for their jobs. When we eat while distracted, busy, or anxious our saliva won’t be as rich in digestive enzymes, our stomach won’t be sufficiently acidic, and our pancreas will not secrete enough digestive juices.

Age-old rituals around meal times serve a benefit by giving our bodies the chance to ease into the rest-and-digest state.

The mouth and the stomach

The majority of our digestion takes place in the mouth, where, ideally, we chew each bite thoroughly, allowing the enzyme-rich saliva to begin breaking down our food, signaling the nervous system to rest and digest, and alerting the rest of the digestive tract that it’s time to work.

Next stop is the stomach, which uses its powerful muscles to further mash the food while liquefying it with hydrochloric acid (HCl). The proper acidity digests the food for optimal nutrient absorption; sterilizes it by killing bacteria and other pathogens; and alerts the small intestine to open the pyloric valve and allow it in. Once there, the pancreas secretes enzymes and the gallbladder secretes bile to further digest the food.

Unfortunately, it’s estimated that 90 percent of Americans are deficient in stomach HCl due to stress, poor nutrition, bacterial overgrowth, poor thyroid function, and advancing age.

When the stomach environment is not acidic enough, the small intestine is not triggered to allow the food in, so it sits in the stomach, where it begins to ferment and putrefy. Eventually it may shoot back up into the esophagus, burning the tender tissue there and causing heartburn, or acid reflux.

The small intestine

Eventually the small intestine must accept the fermenting food. Because it is not the right acidity, the pancreas and gallbladder are not sufficiently triggered to release enzymes and bile to further digest it.

This is problematic for several reasons: Improperly digested fat irritates the rest of the digestive tract; nutrient absorption is poor, and the gallbladder is more prone to forming gallstones due to insufficient activity. Because it is the avenue through which the liver excretes toxins, a congested gallbladder results in a congested, overburdened liver unable to detoxify the blood properly.

As this poorly digested mess makes its way through the small and large intestines, it causes inflammation and damage that leads to intestinal permeability, or “leaky gut.” Leaky gut allows undigested food proteins to escape into the bloodstream, where the immune system attacks them, causing inflammation. Because undigested foods are the target of attack, food intolerances develop.

The colon

Our colons host 3 to 4 pounds of friendly bacteria, or gut flora. These bacteria break down foods and produce nutrients. However, breakdowns further north foster an overgrowth of bad bacteria, causing an inflamed, poorly functioning colon.

A properly functioning gastrointestinal tract produces between one to three bowel movements a day that are large, continuous and well formed, neither too soft nor too hard. If you are experiencing constipation, diarrhea, incomplete evacuation, or other issues with your bowel movements, you know something in the process described above has broken down.

All disease begins in the gut

While various drugs offer quick fixes for digestive complaints, they allow us to ignore the red flags the gastrointestinal tract is waving to gain our attention. Poor digestion underlies just about every disease known to man. This is a topic to which functional medicine practitioners devote their careers. Ask my office how we can better support your digestion to support your health.