Resources:
www.HealthJourney.com
www.BrainSync.com
www.PathofLight.com
Belleruth, Naparstek, “Meditation for Relaxation & Wellness”
Burne, Rhonda, “The Secret”
Hay, Louise L, “You Can Heal Your Life”
Karlsson, Fridrik, “Peace of Mind”
Pert, Candace, “Molecules of Emotion”
Lipton, Bruce PhD, “The Biology of Belief”
Tolle, Eckhart, “A New Earth”

Is your conventionally trained physician just telling you to take drugs?

Yikes! High triglycerides can usually be spotted even without lab tests because they look like belly fat, or the classic apple shape body. Ladies, if your waist is more than 34 inches, and gentlemen more than 40 inches, you almost certainly have high triglycerides.

The problem with high trigs is it means not only do you have subcutaneous fat around your torso, but you also have unhealthy fat packed around your heart, liver and lungs.  That reduces circulation to these organs and make them work harder.

If you have lab results handy, look at the ratio between the triglycerides and the so-called “good” cholesterol – HDL (high density lipoprotein).  A good ratio would be 4 or less.  For exampe if your triglycerides are 80 and your HDL is 40, then that’s good!  The ratio is 2. On the other hand, if your triglycerides are 300 and your HDL is 30 — that is not good at all: ratio 10.

There are 2 fairly reliable, non-drug, methods for raising the good cholesterol, HDL, which “travels” around the body gathering up cholesterol, bringing it back to the liver for re-use.  These methods are:

1) Avoid all white sugar, which is especially noxious in liquid form.   Don’t consume ANY high fructose corn syrup, Karo syrup, brown sugar (just white sugar stained with molasses) or maltodextrin.

2) Lift weights.   Go to the gymn, or buy some hand weights at a garage sale.   Start with 20 minutes once weekly for the lower body (squats, lunges, leg presses) plus 20 minutes once weekly for the upper body (push-ups, triceps dips, biceps curls, overhead flies lying on back).  When stronger move up to twice weekly for upper and lower musculature.

The other part of the equation is to lower triglycerides.   This type of “fat” is actually a storage form of sugar. Whenever you eat sugar, or highly glycemic food which turns into glucose quickly in the bloodstream, it becomes available for quick energy.  However, if you are sitting around watching TV, or about to go to sleep, this energy is not needed, and will be converted to the storage form, triglycerides, which literally means three (3) glycerine molecules.  With very few exceptions, when a patient has high triglycerides (or a ratio of Trigs:HDL more than 4) I know they are not active enough and eating too many sweets.  This is also called “metabolic syndrome,” which is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease.

So, your diet needs adjusting.  Here are some dietary ideas to reduce triglycerides:

Eat less of/ Replace with
Red meat / fish or turkey
Hamburgersand hot dogs/ fish or turkey
Eggs/ egg substitute
High fat dairy products/ low fat dairy
butter/ olive oil
Ice cream, cake, cookies/ fruits
Refined cereals/ whole grains
Fried foods/ fresh veggies; steamed or raw
Coffee and soft drinks/ herbal teas, dilute fruit juice

Plus, do add 2-3 tablespoons of fish oil (or 2000-3000 mg mixed EPA and DHA Omega 3 oils, from fish) to your daily diet.  New research shows that fish oil definitively helps to lower triglycerides.

To help reduce sugar cravings take 200 mcg of chromium picolinate (insulin’s little helper) 3 times daily. You can take all 600 mcg at once if that’s more convenient.  Insulin is the molecule produced in the pancreas that accompanies glucose (sugar) INTO the cell, where it is useful for energy.  Sugar is NOT helpful floating around the bloodstream, where it literally rots out blood vessels, causing all sorts of damage including kidney failure and blindness.

Use SPICES to replace sugar — anise seed, fennel seed and cinnamon are all delicious and naturally sweet.  Use STEVIA as a substitute sweetener.  Avoid Nutrasweet, Splenda, Equal and all those fake sugars — they disrupt brain chemistry and have been linked with seizures and attention deficit.

A: Sounds like you may have “Irritable Bowel Syndrome” or IBS. This is not so dire a problem as ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, but the classic IBS symptoms of abdominal cramping, alternating bouts of diarrhea and constipation, bloating, gas, and mucus in the stool can certainly be uncomfortable and annoying.

Since IBS has received more airplay in the past decade, of course drug companies have rushed in to produce quick-fix pills.  These will not work.  IBS is not a disease, but a very common constellation of symptoms due to poor digestive function, which leads to reduced nutrient absorption and resultant low energy, over-eating and the blood sugar roller-coaster.  Some of the drugs “approved” for IBS (such as Alosetron for diarrhea and Tegaserod for constipation) have serious side effects, including decreased blood flow to the colon.

Optimal functioning of the digestive system starts in the mouth, and what you put into your mouth.  Remember that up top you have teeth, and these should be used, with every single bite of food, to render the food “soupy” before swallowing.   Blenderize your food with your saliva in your mouth before it goes down the pike.  This tip alone will take care of many cases of IBS.   Chew your food 30-50 times per mouthful!  Slow down!  Don’t multi-task while eating!   Turn off the TV, even if you are eating alone.   Sit down.  Say a little “grace” before eating.  Another tip: do not drink more than a few ounces of water or other liquid during your meal.  You want to have your digestive juices work full-strength on the food.  Gulping water or tea or wine during a meal dilutes the digestive enzymes.  Do your drinking up to 1/2 hour before meals and then wait until 2 hours after a meal to resume beverages.  Water is always the best choice of beverage!

Once you have thoroughly and calmly masticated your bite of food and swallowed, the soupy food goes into the stomach and provokes secretion of stomach acid.  You absolutely need your stomach acid for optimal food, especially protein, digestion.  Please avoid acid-blockers, such as Tums, Nexium, Prevacid etc.  If you are taking acid-blockers because of heartburn (GERD) see a naturopath to help cure that problem.  Stomach acid is NOT the problem — you may have an H. pylori infection, or a diaphragm (hiatal) hernia, or stress ulcers and these can all be cured.

If you are not sufficiently helped by the simple suggestions above, you may need digestive enzymes with meals.   I prefer an enzyme “multi” that contains some amylase for the starch, lipase for the fat and protease for the protein component of food.  A good enzyme multi may also contain lactase for dairy products and cellulase for the fiber in food.  These enzymes add to the potency of your own natural enzymes in your saliva, stomach, pancreas and liver which all get secreted into the gastrointestinal tract (GI) during the process of digestion.

There are also a number of helpful carminative herbs.  Carminative means helping with digestion, or literally “carrying gas from the alimentary canal.”   A strong small cup of peppermint tea after meals, especially if you have a warm or hot metabolism, can be very effective — unless you have heartburn, in which case an enteric coated peppermint capsule is better, so the peppermint volatile oils get past the lower esophagus without irritation.   If you are treating a hiatal hernia, strong peppermint, coffee and chocolate should be assiduously avoided until the condition is resolved.  If you are a chilly person, then a strong small cup of ginger tea can be a delightful digestive aide.  You could also chew on a few fennel or caraway seeds after a main meal to stimulate optimal digestion.

Once the food gets past the stomach, into the small intestine with its thousands of slender, finger-like “villae” then the nutrients can be absorbed.   This requires good health of the villae and there are numerous potential impediments to absorption.  First, the food needs to be alkalinized before it is taken up into the blood, which has a mandatory neutral pH.  The pancreas is in charge of secreting juice very much like a baking soda slurry into the upper small intestine to begin the alkalinization process.  If part of your GI trouble is left side or central discomfort, up under the ribs, after eating, please see your naturopathic physician to evaluate your pancreatic function.  If you get stitching, sharp pains in the middle part of your belly that may extend to the sides, that is probably gas.  Gas is formed by carbohydrates fermenting or proteins putrefying.  The foods are just sitting there because they are having difficulty breaking down, and are actually starting to rot.  As a reminder — one of the very best ways to prevent gas is to thoroughly chew your food before swallowing.

To determine which foods your body accepts as nutritious, and which will present difficulty digesting, the very best way is to undertake an elimination and challenge diet.  I have details about this process elsewhere on this website.  The basic idea is that you eat very carefully for 2-4 weeks, avoiding alcohol, caffeine, corn in all forms, dairy products, eggs, peanuts, red meat, shellfish, all soy products, tomatoes and wheat.   This will cover most people’s food sensitivities.   However, I have not infrequently seen problems with aspirin and other NSAIDS, chocolate, citrus fruits, garlic, and any gluten-containing grain.  You may look at this list and think “what can I eat then??”

You can enjoy delicious vegetable recipes — time to get a new vegetarian cookbook.  Steamed cauliflower, baked yams, grilled red peppers, steamed asparagus, chopped red cabbage and shredded carrots, sauteed onions and mushrooms.  Yum yum yum!  Oats and rice are almost always “safe” foods for everyone.  Fruits and seafood (except the crustaceans) are generally extremely health-promoting for everyone, with the exception of large tuna and swordfish which unfortunately contain more mercury than is safe to eat.  After enjoying a delicious clean diet for a few weeks, carefully “introduce” the ingredients listed above, in 3-day increments.

This means, get organized with your calendar about which food is going to be introduced, and eat plenty of it over a 3-day period, without adding any of the other possible allergens yet.   Carefully observe any changes in your skin, mood or bowel function.  If, for example, you are re-introducing wheat into your diet after 4 weeks of abstaining, you may have toast in the morning, a bagel at noon and a bowl of wheat pasta in the evening.  If you notice hives or rashes or an outcropping of pimples, or a mood shift to sad, irritable or angry, or if your stomach hurts or your bowel function changes, take note. You could try the experiment again, or you could decide that wheat just doesn’t sit well in your body.  If that is the case — join the ranks of up to 30% of the US population for whom wheat is a small intestine irritant.  The extreme form of wheat sensitivity, which is a reaction to all gluten-containing grains, is called celiac disease, and is considered still to be one of the most under-diagnosed GI problems.

Take your time introducing the potentially offending foods into your diet in 3-day increments.  If you decide that, for example, wheat is bad for you, please don’t force yourself to eat it 3 times daily for 3 days. Just wait out the 3-day period and try the experiment again with the next item.   Be methodical!  This is the only way to get definitive answers about which foods “work” for your body and which do not.

If you have had irritable bowel symtoms for a while (more than a year) you will most likely benefit additionally from a high quality pro-biotic 2 to 3 times a year for 1-4 weeks depending on the potency of the probiotics.  I like brands that contain not only the well-known lactobacillus species, which work higher up where the GI environment is more acidic, but also the bifido species, that prefer a more alkaline environment, such as in the colon (large intestine).  Look for a probiotic that also has a “pre”-biotic such as lactoferrin (ideally) or FOS (fructo-oligosaccharides).   The pre-biotic is food for the probiotics.

Besides chewing and using carminative herbs, you may want to experiment with “priming” your stomach with an acid stimulant.  For example, you could take a half ounce of “Swedish Bitters”, available in most health food stores, usually featuring Gentian and other bitter tasting herbs, to stimulate secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach just before meals.  You could also try a small amount of vinegar-honey water (equal parts vinegar and warm water with 1/3 tsp of honey).  The juice of 1/2 a lemon in a 1/4 cup of water works just as well.

Everyone has heard the phrase “real food takes time.”  Avoid eating haphazardly.  Plan ahead.   Make time to buy fresh produce, ideally grown nearby in organic soil.  Respect your body and feed it the finest “fuel” available.  Be willing to engage with healthy eating as a commitment and a pleasure, as opposed to an exercise in deprivation.   There are many healthy choices out there, although sometimes the junk food advertising screams louder!

Walk down any street in America and you’ll see the effects of the “obesity epidemic”. Two-thirds of adults, more than 130 million people, are now considered overweight, and nearly half of these are classified as obese. Those who are overweight by 45 kilograms or more are the fastest-growing group of the overweight in the US.   Accompanying these skyrocketing figures are increases in diabetes, heart problems and deaths.

In print and on the airwaves there are numerous stories about how fast food, large portions, sedentary lifestyles and poverty are playing big parts in weight gain, while government bodies desperately throw together public health programmes to educate people about the dangers their lifestyles bring.

Yet one culprit is rarely mentioned: the broad range of psychiatric drugs that can cause substantial weight gain.  They include drugs marketed as antidepressants (such as amitriptyline, doxepin and imipramine), mood stabilisers (including lithium and valproate) and antipsychotics (including clozapine, olanzapine and chlorpromazine).

After 10 years on lithium, for example, two-thirds of patients put on around 10 kilograms.  And in December 2006, The New York Times published an article based on internal documents from the drug company Eli Lilly which indicated that it had intentionally downplayed the side effects of olanzapine, which it sells as Zyprexa.

The company’s data showed that one-third of patients who have taken the drug for a year gain at least 10 kilograms, and half of these gain at least 30 kilograms.  The mechanisms behind this weight gain appear complex and are certainly poorly understood.  Some psychiatric drugs may impair the central nervous system’s control of energy intake, leading to food cravings, whereas others, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), may alter a patient’s metabolic rate.

Worryingly, doctors are increasingly prescribing multiple psychiatric drugs for the same patient at the same time, even though many effects of doing so, including the effect on weight, have not been investigated.  Doctors often fail to warn patients that the drugs they prescribe may increase their appetites.

We don’t know how much these drugs are adding to Americans’ waistlines, but the number of people affected is likely to be high.  Prescriptions in the US for Zyprexa alone run into millions.  In 2004, 32.6 million Americans purchased outpatient prescriptions for antidepressants, stimulants, antipsychotics and tranquillisers, up from 21 million in 1997.  Overall, around 50 million Americans – that’s 1 in 6 of the population – currently take at least one psychotropic drug.

From a crude look at the numbers, it seems that they could potentially be causing a significant – and growing – portion of America’s obesity problem.

It seems surprising then that commentators rarely make the link between psychiatric drugs and the obesity epidemic.  For example, a report broadcast last year by the PBS TV network called Fat: What no one is telling you included a vast array of lifestyle and physiological factors that could be contributing to weight gain.  Psychiatric drugs were not mentioned.

Another factor that the media and governments have failed to publicise is that rising obesity in teenagers and even young children over the past 10 to 15 years coincides with a fivefold increase in prescriptions of antipsychotic drugs in those age groups, and that children taking these drugs are even more likely to gain weight than adults are.  We don’t know how much of this increase in obesity is due to the drugs, but shouldn’t somebody be finding out?

Though drug-induced weight gain is potentially a worldwide problem, it is a particular concern in the US because American culture is so eager to label negative feelings and problems as evidence that a person is mentally ill – and to push drugs as a supposedly quick fix.  Furthermore, doctors often fail to warn patients that the drugs they prescribe may increase their appetites, and people labelled as mentally ill often learn to attribute all their problems – including eating more – to their psychological disorder.

In a curious article last May in the American Journal of Psychiatry (vol 164, p 708), two doctors even proposed that obesity be classified as a mental illness.  One likely consequence of that would be another massive increase in the prescribing of psychotropic drugs, resulting, no doubt, in another upsurge in obesity statistics.

Recent revelations that some antidepressants may work little better than placebo in most cases (see “Mindfields: Talking down antidepressants”) make the potential scale of the side effects more worrying than ever.  Anyone taking psychiatric drugs who is concerned about weight gain and its associated ill effects should be reminded that to stop taking them suddenly – and what is gradual enough for one person may be far too sudden for another – can precipitate serious withdrawal symptoms.  But at the very least, every person considering taking these drugs needs to be able to make a fully informed decision about whether to get their prescription filled.

The government and the media must take the lead in ensuring that drug companies disclose the extent of the weight gain that their drugs cause and in educating the public about the risks.

Paula J. Caplan is a clinical and research psychologist at Harvard University and author of  “They Say You’re Crazy,”

Vitamin deficiencies are common with celiac disease: especially the B vitamins (lack of which cause an easy stress response, and tingling, then numbing of the extremities), and also the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K can be in short supply.  Bone density can be reduced because celiac disease causes calcium malabsorption.  What is going on in true celiac disease is that part of the gluten molecule (gliadin) destroys the absorptive surface of the small intestine, normally covered in a lush “brush border.”  These myriad tiny finger-like projections, like millions of tiny sea-anemones, become abraded and flattened, thus greatly reducing the surface area for nutrient absorption. 

This is reversible — the body is, in general, naturally self-healing — once the offending substances are removed.  However, untreated, celiac can lead to osteoporosis, profound anemia and seizures.  Celiac disease is particularly prominent among those with Irish heritage.  It is estimated that 3-6% of the Irish population is afflicted with celiac.  Celiac is also more common in families with thyroid disorders and mental illness, particularly schizophrenia.  Although 40% of the US population are thought to carry the celiac HLA DQ2 or DQ8 genes, only 1% ever has a triggering event that leads to activation of these genes and the development of celiac. 

There is a new finger-prick test to screen for celiac which is available in most medical offices.  However, the gold standard to confirm the diagnosis remains small intestine biopsy if the blood test is positive for the tTg and antigliaden IgA markers.  Since the treatment is complete avoidance of gluten, it seems reasonable to me that trying a gluten-free diet for 3-6 months is just as good a confirmatory as a biopsy. 

It can be tricky, however, to completely avoid gluten.  Wheat, spelt, kamut, triticale, barley, millet, amaranth and rye contain gluten. Other words meaning “wheat” are cous-cous, semolina and durum.  Oats don’t contain gluten, but are often contaminated with gluten in the fields or silos.  There are sources of gluten-free oats.  Trace contamination can cause symptoms to come roaring back in sensitive patients.  In families where some folks can eat gluten and others must avoid it completely, it may be impossible to share kitchen utensils.  For example, two separate colanders are essential — one for gluten-containing pasta and another for rice pasta.  Also, the silverware drawer can become contaminated with tiny specks of gluten, which can trigger a reaction in the celiac patients. 

Luckily, most folks do not have celiac disease.  However, wheat sensitivity is extremely common.  Anyone who is fully or half (from one parent only) bloodtype O, or is a non-celiac member of a family with a celiac patient, is advised to consider 12 weeks strictly off wheat, if their health has room for improvement.  Please remember that mental health is equal in importance to physical health.  Wheat sensitivity will often manifest as grumpiness, or desire for binge eating, or mania, or moody PMS.  While avoiding wheat, and certainly all gluten-containing grains, can seem impossible at first glance, there are many foods, and many world-wide cultures, who are not dependent on cheap processed flour. 

In fact, once you delve into the world of non-processed food, and begin to regularly enjoy luscious, organic fruits and vegetables as the staples of your diet, all those cookies and crackers and cheese spreads become quickly unappealing.  Check it out!  You might as well live this life as radiantly healthy as possible!
 

Best book for celiac/gluten intolerance:
“Living Gluten Free for Dummies” by Danna Korn — helpful, user friendly, very funny
 
Gluten-free food and cooking supply sources:
Pamelas (415) 952-4546
Miss Roben’s (800) 891-0083
Gluten-Free Pantry (800) 291-8386
Ener-G-Foods Inc (800) 331-5222
Sylvan Border Farm (800) 297-5399
Celiac Disease Foundation (818) 990-2354
Van’s International Foods (waffles) (310) 320-8611
Authentic Foods (800) 797-5090
The Great Valley Mills (800) 688-6455
 
foods unexpectedly containing wheat:
Grape Nuts
Bouillon cubes
lunch meats
cooked sausages (weiners, bologna, hot dogs)
most gravies
candy bars
ice cream (thickenings)
many thickening agents (use kudzu or guar gum)
any alcoholic drink made with grain: beer, gin, non-potato vodka, whiskey
malted milk
ovaltine
many chocolate drinks
synthetic pepper
some yeasts

More resources:
One brand of yeast that DOES NOT contain any gluten is Red Star Active Dry Yeast               (800) 423-5422.
To make a delicious gluten-free sourdough bread, you need to make a good “starter.”  Rice flour has the ability to ferment easily, creating a wonderful base for delicious breads with a slightly sour flavor.  Once made, the sourdough starter can be used over and over again.  Replenish it each time it is used to nourish the yeast and keep the starter alive.  As the starter gets older, the flavor will become tangier.  Therefore, baked products made with “aged” starters will have more sourdough flavor.  The starter serves as the leavening, so no additional yeast is needed.  To make a starter: in a 4-cup glass or stainless steel container, combine 1 cup water (110-115 degrees F) with 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) of Red Star Active Dry Yeast and 1 1/2 cups of white rice flour.  The mixture will be thick.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap or foil.  Let stand in a warm place for 1 to 3 days, stirring 2 or 3 times each day.  The starter will “rise and fall” during the fermentation period; it becomes thinner as it stands.  When the starter is developed, it is bubbly and may have a liquid layer on top.  Stir this liquid into the whole starter before using.  The starter can then be used for baking, or placed in the refrigerator to use later.

Adrenaline is the “fight and flight” neurotransmitter and causes numerous physical responses such as narrowed peripheral blood vessels, shunting blood to the internal vessels, such as in the big leg muscles and the heart and away from the digestive organs.  An adrenaline rush might feel like a strong shot of caffeine, or the heart-twanging scare of a near-miss on a busy highway. 

Humans evolved, for many thousands of years, in an environment much less cozy than what many of us enjoy today.  We were built to outwit and kill larger mammals, and to use our brains to choose between running away when we couldn’t win a fight, or intense spurts of fighting.  Early humans had many protracted periods of significant inactivity, relative to today’s standards of business. 

Whereas we once had occasional, horrific stress, we now tend to have chronic, low-grade stress.  Low-grade stress day after day (bad boss, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, insufficient sleep, drugs) will build to a point of exhaustion or dysfunctional anxiety.  This is what is meant by adrenal “burnout.” 

What is actually happening is adrenal atrophy.  The glands literally “wear down” and secrete adrenaline on a hair trigger — with no buffering capacity.  There are varying degrees of burnout, which can be measured. 

I have found most success in my naturopathic medical practice in using saliva tests to measure levels of cortisol during 4 periods of the day.  Cortisol is a type of sugar, and doubles for blood sugar maintenance overnight when typically we are not eating.  Cortisol levels should be highest in the morning, then decrease steadily to a low at the end of the day. 

People in adrenal burnout typically show no decrease in cortisol after breakfast, or display some other abnormal variation.  The specific cortisol pattern can provide insight for therapy. 

Some of my favorite techniques to restore adrenal function are centered around getting enough sleep, which often means avoiding stimulants, avoiding unnecessary stressors (such as white flour and white sugar, mean people and too much time on the computer) and committing to finding fun in life, on a daily basis. 

For nutrient support, Licorice (Glycerrhiza glabra) is specific for restoration of the adrenal glands.  Fringe benefit: licorice is also a potent anti-viral.  I strongly recommend licorice tea, or solid extract (sort of a syrupy goo, which is really tasty if you like the strong taste of licorice) or in capsule form if you don’t care for the taste.  Aim for about 2 grams worth of Licorice daily.  Licorice is also very helpful for gastric stress ulcers, which sometimes plague stressed people, particularly men.  Sorry, the red and black candy sticks don’t count!

If you have high blood pressure, Licorice theoretically can worsen hypertension because it acts as a mild potassium-wasting diuretic.  I have rarely seen this to be true, however you can get a special type of Licorice (deglycerinated glycerrhiza – or DGL) which has the diuretic part stripped out. 

Another wonderful supplement for adrenal stress is Vitamin B-5, or pantothenic acid.  You can take a high potency B-multi along with an additional separate dose of B-5 each morning.  Aim to get 200-250 mg of B-5 for 6-12 months, while implementing the lifestyle changes.

If your bloodtype is O or B and you typically require at least 50 grams of protein daily for optimal wellbeing, you may consider adding home-made “bone broth” using an organic chicken carcass, celery, onions, garlic, ginger, etc. or a similar clear broth from simmering a fresh fish head.  For making juice from the fresh organic produce I like the good old Champion juicer, also the “Juiceman” juicer, but there are many good ones out there.

Shopping list:

25 pound bag of #2 organic carrots (not the prettiest, but perfect for juicing)

10 pound of organic beets

10 packets of organic celery stalks

10 pounds of organic apples

5 pounds of organic pears

2 pineapples

cilantro, basil, parsley, mint, ginger, garlic, lemons for juicing

Day One:

morning drink: 4 apples, 1 pear, a little basil and a little ginger

noon and evening drinks: 8 carrots, 2 beets, a little garlic, 4 stalks celery

Day Two:

morning drink: 4 apples, 1 pear, a little mint, a little lemon juice

noon and evening drinks: 8 carrots, 4 stalks celery, 1 beet, a little ginger

Day Three:

morning drink: 1 pineapple, 2 beets, a little ginger

noon and evening drinks: 8 carrots, 8 stalks celery, a little garlic

Day Four:

morning drink: 4 apples, 1 pear, a little mint, a little lemon juice

noon and evening drinks:

8 carrots, 2 beets, a little garlic, a little ginger, 4 stalks celery

Day Five:

morning drink: 4 apples, 1 pear, a little basil

noon and evening drinks: 1 pineapple, 2 beets, a little ginger

Please consider using all the pulp that is generated either as compost in your garden, or freeze to make veggie patties later.  To make veggie patties, mash some tofu (or whisked egg if you don’t need to go 100% veggie) with some of the veggie pulp, form into patties and bake for 10-15 minutes at 325, then flip over for 4-5 more minutes.  Lightly grease the pan with coconut butter or grapeseed or olive oil first.  With the fruit pulp, you can concoct tasty cookies and cook in the same way.

Yes, if you:
Smoke
Are regularly exposed to environmental toxins
Drink less than a litre of water daily
Drink soda pop, coffee or alcohol
Eat processed foods such as white flour baked goods and candy
Crave junk food
Are tired, constipated, bloated and lack focus
Have sticky or malodorous bowel movements
Have pasty skin or dark circles under your eyes
Have blood sugar problems
Have unstable emotions
Have unsatisfactory libido or sleep
Are over or under-weight
Use prescription or recreational drugs regularly

If you peruse natural health news, you certainly have read the word “detox” lately.  You may have heard about how “body burden” of unnatural chemicals is higher than ever before. Industrial run-off into our rivers, pharmaceutical pollution flushed down toilets, burning fossil fuels belching into the air, fake food, plastic everywhere — all of this and more comprises an enormous burden for our internal self-cleansing systems.

The amazing human body has several mechanisms by which to rid itself of non-nutrients which come in daily through our nose and mouth.We process food across the entire mucous membrane from the mouth to the rectum.  The enzymes in our saliva, the all-important stomach acid, the pancreatic enzymes, and the bile from the liver all prepare our food for digestion then absorption into the bloodstream.  Elements of our meals which are deemed unsatisfactory for absorption will be eliminated, via the large intestine.  In case you haven’t heard: pooping at least once daily is crucial to optimal health.  It is unhealthy to allow waste products to linger in the colon. Once in the bloodstream, we have several other methods of screening for “toxins” which is defined as anything our cells can’t use for energy.  As the blood passes through the kidneys, they are “strained” by hundreds of super fine sieves.  Of important job of the kidneys is to remove nitrogen from the blood, which we pee out as ammonia. The lymphatic system, which has a vast network traveling alongside the blood vessels all over the body, also picks up “goop” in the blood and funnels it to the “master” lymph node, called the cisterna chyle, which is located between the heart and the left kidney.  From there, the lymphatic fluid passes into the renal system (kidneys). Last, but not least, the skin is a large and important organ of elimination embedded with sweat glands.  Ideally, strenuous exercise would induce free-flowing and non-odorous perspiration.  Smelly sweat and drenching sweats at rest are signs of elimination difficulties.

Other signs of toxic congestion (and therefore need for “detox”) include constipation, bad breath, irritable skin, fatigue after eating, poor sleep quality and moodiness. A body which eliminates properly will stay healthy.  It’s as simple as that.  I approach “detox” with my patients as an opportunity to change bad dietary habits, and to become enamored of feeling great.  The first order of business is to open the “emunctories” which is an old naturopathic word meaning the portals of elimination.

Start with the skin: I encourage everyone to take up the habit of dry skin brushing every morning.  This is a marvelous “bath” which removes the outer layer of dead skin and not only cleanses but invigorates.  Brush the entire body, fairly firmly, except the face, always towards the heart.  See the sidebar for a more detailed description.

Next, the renal system:  during cleansing it is advisable to drink lots of water.  Pure water is the very best drink.  I don’t agree with the idea of alcohol being “therapeutic”.  It is toxic to the heart, liver and kidneys.  Sure, it will help some folks relax — but there are better ways to relax!  And if you are after the deep pigments of red wine, for example, you can take resveratrol in capsule form or simply eat lots of deeply colored fruits and vegetables.

Do whatever it takes to enjoy the daily poop.  Three times a day, after each meal, is ideal, but many of us just can’t make time for that.  I like using a stool, or “Welles step”, under my feet while at the toilet because it helps simulate a squatting position, which is how we were designed to poop. Cold stewed prunes (just put some prunes and water in a small covered jar and keep in the fridge) or 500 mg of Magnesium at bedtime are simple, non-addictive laxatives.  Avoid cascara sagrada — it is too harsh.  Digestive aides such as fennel seed, ginger root and mint leaves, in teas or whole form, can help improve digestion and elimination.

I advise my patients to avoid cleansing or fasting during cold weather, when we are directing energy towards staying warm..

It’s a good idea to cleanse or fast with at least one “buddy” if possible — so you can cheer each other and help maintain your mutual commitment to optimal health.  I advise against advertising to all your friends and family that you are undertaking a cleansing project because they might not all be supportive.  If they ask, you can tell.  Figure out a good time and how much time you can commit.  Remember, this is not a crash diet.  It’s a chance to open the emunctories, enjoy some deep internal cleansing, and explore the possibility of healthy eating and healthy living every day for the rest of your life.  The most important part of detox is coming off the program.  Your stomach will be smaller and your internal organs more sensitive to “junk.”

Please go slowly in the week after a detox program.  Do not plan or attend a gastronomic extravaganza soon after cleansing.

Three Day Plan
This is an all-fresh fruit cleanse.  Fruits are high in water, fiber and slow-releasing sugars.  They are tasty!  Neither juice nor dried fruit is allowed — too concentrated.  Eat whatever fruits appeal to you, one serving every two hours while awake.  A serving means 1 large or 2 small apples, 6 apricots, 1 medium banana, 1-2 cups berries, cherries or grapes, 2 oranges or nectarines, 1 cup of pineapple, 1 large pear, 2 kiwis, 3 plums or tomatoes, 2 cups of cubed melon.  Mix it up!  Eat only fruit.  For a complete description see “Fruit Flush” by Jay Robb.

Seven Day Plan
This involves 2 days of preparation, 3 days of “fasting” and 2 more days of slowly re-introducing your regular (but hopefully transformed) diet.  During the first 2 days, eat only raw food: mixed salads, fruit, steamed veggies.  Drink plenty of water between fruit or veggie meals.  Avoid juices.  However, during the 3 “fasting” days you will drink diluted juices and broths and tea and plenty of water.  No solid food because the idea is to give the digestive system a rest.  Sip on fluids all day long.  Fresh juices are best.  Green drinks or protein powders are fine.  The last 2 days are like the first 2: raw fruits and veggies only.  I recommend fruit only in the morning and veggies after noon.  For a complete description, see “Prescription for Nutritional Healing” by James and Phyllis Balch.

Fourteen Day Plan
This allows 3 days of preparation with raw food only, and also using a bulking drink (1 T psyllium husk or other fiber such as ground flax seeds, mixed with water) three times daily, ½ hour before eating.  Next follows 5 days of liquid only: broths, fresh juices, tea, water.  You should be able to go to work and do your normal day, you will have good energy, but don’t plan extra activities.  Allow for more rest in your schedule.  If no stool is produced during the liquid-only days, an enema is strongly recommended.  Colonics are fine too if you are squeamish about giving yourself the treatment!  The last 6 days are the most important.  You will SLOWLY re-introduce foods one day at a time.  For a complete description of this plan see “The Fasting Diet” by Dr. Steven Bailey.

Twenty Day Plan
This is a slightly longer but less rigorous cleansing plan.  The rules are simply to eat foods high in beta-carotene (sweet potato, carrots, spinach, cantaloupe, pumpkin, kale, winter squash) and high in Vitamin C (citrus fruits, broccoli, strawberries, tomatoes, melons, potatoes, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, cabbage) for 20 days.  Additionally you will drink plenty of water between meals and snacks.  You are allowed to eat anything in moderation except for the following:
Wheat and other gluten-containing grains        
Milk and dairy products        
Eggs, meats or farmed fish        
Sugar        
Artificial sweeteners        
Alcohol        
Caffeine        
Soft drinks        
Foods containing artificial flavorings, colorants or preservatives        
High-fat foods        
Salty foods

The idea is, you will feel so good after this program that you’ll decide to eat this way for the rest of your life!  For a complete description see “The 20-Day Rejuvenation Diet Program” by Dr. Jeffrey Bland.
Detox Super-Tool:

Skin Brushing

Brushing your skin with a long handled dry skin brush (I like Bass or Yerba Prima brushes) each morning before or instead of showering is the finest “bath” your body could ask for.  Nearly 80% of ordinary household dust is shed skin cells from the outermost layer, a completely natural process.  Brush in long firm strokes towards the heart.  I start standing next to a chair or bathtub so I can put one foot up at a time.  Brush firmly under the sole of the foot then up and all around the leg.  Repeat on the other foot and leg.  Then gently brush the hips and buttocks, which should turn a bit pink.  Brush the hands and up the arms.  Stroke the belly in a clockwise direction (to follow the flow of the colon) and up the side ribs.  Brush up under the breasts (and, ladies, be aware of the consistency of your breasts as you do this).  Brush under the chin and down the top ribs, then reach behind with the long handle and scrub the back as thoroughly as possible.  Don’t forget the shoulders.  You may want to get a small soft brush for your face.  This feels absolutely divine and is marvelous for your skin.
Detox Reactions

When you give your body a rest from the daily onslaught of processed food, elimination begins to progress immediately.  This can “stir up” toxins that have been stored in the colon or in fat cells and create a variety of reactions such as depression, headaches and fatigue.  Your skin may break out as toxins are eliminated.  Here are several ideas that can help:

1) drink more water to flush toxins through the kidneys more quickly

2) increase Vit C to up to 10 grams for tissue repair and to hasten the ridding of toxins

3) use bentonite (clay) baths to pull toxins out through the skin.  These baths may be taken twice daily: use ½  cup liquid clay in a tub of warm (not hot) water and soak for 20 minutes

4) eat steamed organic beets, which will turn your stool deep purplish.

The modern use of milk thistle extract began in 1949 when animal studies showed that it could protect the liver against carbon tetrachloride poisoning.  Since then over 100 clinical trials have been performed on this miraculous medicine and it is carried in the Emergency Department pharmacies of most major European hospitals.  Milk thistle has successfully saved lives by reversing acetaminophen (Tylenol) and Amanita mushroom (one of the most deadly) poisoning. 

Milk thistle is thought to work in three main ways: first as an antioxidant, “quenching” free radicals created from poisoning or environmental pollution.  Folks living in a smoggy area are well advised to take 600-750 mg daily of standardized milk thistle.  The best quality milk thistle is standardized to contain 70% by weight of the major ingredient silybin.  The other mechanisms of action are by protecting the cell membranes (most studied in liver cells) and by stimulating production of new liver cells (hepatocytes).

While the most prevalent uses of this potent plant medicine are for liver diseases (including all type of hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and liver toxicity) milk thistle is also useful as a venous tonic (protects and strengthens weak veins), including, for example, reducing bleeding tendency in folks with thin gums or nasal passage mucous membranes.  

If your gums bleed when you brush your teeth, you may need more Vitamin C, and folic acid (1000 mcg daily) and CoQ10 (100-200 mg daily), but milk thistle will also help.  For nose bleeds, have your doctor check if you have an open blood vessel that needs cauterization (very easy and quick fix); otherwise extra Vitamin A (25,000 IUs daily) plus milk thistle may help reduce the sensitivity of nasal mucous membranes. 

Milk thistle is also helpful to promote circulation, particularly in the pelvis, so would be good for many aspects of PMS (cravings, bloating, irritability).  Because one of milk thistle’s actions is “anti-fibrotic” it can help to improve blood flow through fibrous tissue, such as in fibrocystic breasts.  It is important to remember that fibrocystic (lumpy) breasts are completely normal — almost all women have them.  This does not put you at higher risk for breast disease or breast cancer.  However, fibrous breasts may be more tender premenstrually.  Vitamin E also helps with PMS breast tenderness.  

Milk thistle is especially useful to women because it can reduce or prevent organ prolapse after childbirth.  Milk thistle also stimulates breast milk production (along with goat’s beard, fennel and hops).  Milk thistle is well tolerated and very safe, with no known contraindications.  It may produce darker or slightly looser stools, since it stimulates the flow of bile in the liver.  Furthermore, many chronic skin disorders are due to suboptimal liver clearance of toxins, “bad” fats and excess hormones. 

Milk thistle is often key to resolving pesky skin problems ranging from acne to eczema to psoriasis.

One the most important uses of milk thistle in my office is to support patients going through chemotherapy.  While chemo can save lives, it is very toxic and can permanently damage heart, kidneys, brain, bone marrow and the liver.  Using milk thistle during and after chemo is not thought to undermine the effectiveness of the chemo drugs, and has been shown to reduce likelihood of permanent organ damage

References:
Ogletree RL and Fischer RG “Physician’s and Pharmacists’s Guide to the Top 10 Scientifically Proven Natural Products”, Natural Source Digest, 1997

Tilgner S “Herbal Medicine From the Heart of the Earth”, Wise Acres Press, 1999

Drug addiction and various forms of pathological gambling has widely ruined personal finances, family cohesiveness and health.  Relapse rates are extremely high.  These studies offer much hope for an inexpensive, non-toxic option for healing.

N-acetylcysteine, a form of the sulfur-containing amino acid cysteine is a precursor to the brain neurotransmitter glutamate.  There is observational evidence that low levels of glutamate in the brain will increase compulsive and addictive behaviors and intensify cravings. Taking NAC by mouth has been shown to increase glutamate concentrations in the regions of the brain (the nucleus accumbens) which, when low in glutamate, promotes addictive behavior.

In the first study, 15 volunteers with a history of cocaine addiction received either 600 mg of NAC
or placebo every 12 hours for 2 days.  The test subjects taking NAC were significantly less likely to scan the internet for cocaine-related news than those on placebo, and the NAC group also revealed in a questionnaire an impressive reduction in cocaine craving (1).

A second study conducted by the same investigators, gave 23 cocaine addicts who were seeking treatment 600, 1200, or 1800 mg of NAC twice daily for 4 weeks.  Sixteen patients completed this study and cocaine use dropped dramatically.  The amount of NAC didn’t seem to matter, and no side effects were noted.  Before seeking help, the 16 patients who stuck with the 4 week program, on average, decreased their cocaine use from 8 days out of the month before starting the NAC, to only 1 day during the month taking NAC (2).

This sounds great (85% reduction in cocaine use) but keep in mind that these patients sought treatment.  The will to arrest a destructive behavior is key to successful therapy.  NAC may help correct brain chemistry, for less than $2 per day, and cement the desire to quit with the ability to
modify behavior.

The third study looked at offering up to 1800 mg daily of NAC to those wanting to relieve themselves of their addiction to gambling.  A positive response to treatment was defined as at least a 30% decrease in parameters measured by a tool called “Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale Modified for Pathological Gambling.”  The average effective dose of NAC was 1500 mg daily.  Sixteen gamblers completed the study and their scores improved 42% (3).

Earlier studies have suggested that there is a biochemical component to addiction.  The beneficial effects of glutamine, B vitamins, lithium, and dietary modifications have been shown for people addicted to alcohol. The field of optimizing brain chemistry is in its infancy.  Hopefully future research will continue to focus on safe, natural, inexpensive and effective nutrients to provide much-needed help for the millions of people who want to quit, but haven’t yet.

References:

1. LaRowe SD, Myrick H, Hedden S, Mardikian P, Saladin M, McRae A, et al. Is cocaine desire reduced by N-acetylcysteine? Am J Psychiatry 2007;164:1115-1117.

2. Mardikian PN, LaRowe SD, Hedden S, Kalivas PW, Malcolm RJ. An open-label trial of N-acetylcysteine for the treatment of cocaine dependence: a pilot study. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2007;31:389-394.

3. Grant JE, Kim SW, Odlaug BL. N-Acetyl cysteine, a glutamate-modulating agent, in the treatment of pathological gambling: a pilot study. Biol Psychiatry 2007;62:652-657.