Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Should Marijuana Be A Medical Option For Arthritis?

Although marijuana is still an illegal drug in many part of the US, it has been legalized for medical use in twenty states. In 1972, US Congress determined that marijuana had no accepted medical use and placed it in the Controlled Substances Act. Despite that, the use of marijuana, medical or not, is legal in 2 states, is decriminalized in many others, and is used as medical treatment in even more.

There is a great debate going on as to whether the use of marijuana for medical conditions is safe and effective. Those who are in favor of medical marijuana usage say that it is successful in treating many symptoms of illnesses such as cancer, AIDS, epilepsy, pain, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, and many others. Indeed, there have been many studies conducted by medical institutions, private establishments, or government departments that have supported these statements by facts and figures.

On the other hand, those arguing against the use of medical marijuana say that it is too dangerous to use. Marijuana is a drug that has not been approved by the FDA. They claim that there are many other FDA approved drugs out there that treat the same symptoms and that marijuana is therefore unnecessary in the medical community. The opposition has cited their own studies that conclude that marijuana is addictive and is a gateway drug to other dangerous substances such as cocaine or heroine. They argue that using marijuana to treat illnesses can be counteractive since marijuana use has negative side effects and can lead to infertility, cause lung damage, induce brain damage, lower your motor senses, and damage your immune system. Those against the legalization of medical marijuana claim that those who partake in the use of medical marijuana are not really in need of treatment and just use it as an excuse to engage in recreational use.

Marijuana, scientifically known as cannabis sativa contains many different compounds. While many of said compounds are unclassified, 70 are considered as phytocannabinoids and 2 of them have medical interest namely tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). Those two constituents have been known to alleviate pain and reduce nausea. Cannabinoid can serve as appetite stimulants and can have analgesic effects.

There are some known short-term side effects such as increased appetite, drowsiness, respiratory issues, increased paranoia or anxiety, insomnia, short-term memory loss, and dryness of the mouth. Although there are safety concerns about long-term cognitive effects, studies to find the long-term effects of medicinal marijuana use are still inconclusive.

There has not yet been a scientifically approved and accepted research paper or study result that proves that marijuana can effectively treat rheumatic diseases. Arthritis Care & Research has published that marijuana as a painkiller for rheumatoid arthritis or any rheumatic related disease is not recommended. Researchers have admitted that they cannot recommend the use of marijuana to treat rheumatic diseases, not because they believe that it will be ineffective, but simply because there is not enough studies and data about medical marijuana. Researchers have not yet been able to extensively study marijuana and its side effects and there are no regulations when it comes to dosage.

Most doctors conclude there is very little information and evidence available in order to justify the use of medical marijuana. Despite the advice of these professionals, many individuals still obtain marijuana illegally and engage in self-medication through marijuana use.


References:

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/http://www.arthritistoday.org/arthritis-treatment/natural-and-alternative-treatments/remedies-and-therapies/medical-marijuana.phphttp://www.healthline.com/health-news/not-enough-evidence-marijuana-treat-ms-lupus-fibromyalgia-030614
According to a recent study, cannabis or medical marijuana may help ease arthritis-related pain. Read more about this alternative treatment.

    Tuesday, April 29, 2014

    Should Watermelon be Part of your Summer Diet?


    Watermelon is a fun, nutritious way to make sure active kids don't get dehydrated; it's 92 percent water. But does it provide any real value and should it be part of your diet from a nurition and health standpoint

    Watermelon is fat-free and also contains fiber. Its beautiful red color comes from all-natural lycopene, an antioxidant that can help keep kids' bodies healthy. A 1 cup serving of watermelon is an excellent source of vitamins A, B6 and C, and it provides 7 percent of the recommended daily value of potassium, with only 40 calories.

    Natural Ways to Reduce Stress and Anxiety


    Exercise - Exercise helps reduce depression and increase hormones in the brain that actually help make you happier. It also lowers blood cortisol levels.

    Meditation - A great way to cope with stress, depression, and anxiety is to meditate.

    Massage - A great way to cope with stress, depression, and anxiety is to get a relaxing massage.

    Breathing techniques - A great way to cope with stress, depression, and anxiety is to practice proper breathing techniques. he main one that I do is one technique that I like to call the 5 second pyramid. You breath in through your nose for 5 seconds, hold it in for 5 seconds, and then exhale for 5 out of your mouth. 3 sides, like a pyramid!!! While you’re doing try to focus on the breathing and visualize happy things (like a nice walk on the beach). Once you complete the exercise you’ll notice that you will feel better.

    Here are a few herbs that can help with anxiety and depression.

    Valerian Root - This herb helps calm down the nerves and has shown to be very safe and effective in most people who take it for anxiety and depression.

    Kava - Kava - Kava has been used to help promote a balanced state of mental and physical wellness for many years. It helps to promote it by stabilizing the neurotransmitters and helps to reduce muscle tension because of the active phytochemicals called kava lactones.

    Korean Ginseng- This natural herb has been used medicinally in Korea, China, and Japan for hundreds of years. It helps to support mental and physical performance. It has a strong adaptogenic presence, in other words it helps you to adapt to the impact of stress within the body.

    Monday, April 28, 2014

    How Many Carbs Do You Need Post-Exercise?

     

    Muscular Development prides itself on bringing our readers the most cutting-edge research available, but it's amazing how fast just one research paper can change a person's thoughts on a subject. If a bodybuilder asked our research department last week, "Do I need carbohydrates in my drink, post-exercise?" they would have said, "You probably need some carbohydrates because of the anti-catabolic actions of the insulin spike." If someone were to ask the exact amount of grams, we wouldn't have an answer. As you know, insulin is an anti-catabolic hormone that suppresses protein breakdown.

                 In contrast, infusion of a low dose of insulin directly into the brachial artery has been reported to achieve the maximal effect on protein breakdown.5,6It’s interesting that diabetics or patients with insulin resistance have increased muscle protein breakdown and increased muscle atrophy, due to the defects in insulin signaling. The increased breakdown of muscle in diabetics is also due to elevated ubiquitin-proteasome pathway (UPP) levels, which create a catabolic scenario.1

                 Carbohydrate supplements reduce muscle protein breakdown, but have no effect on muscle protein synthesis.2,3 In fact, even though carbohydrate ingestion reduces muscle tissue breakdown, the net balance of protein kinetics still remains negative.Most bodybuilders recommend incorporating periodichigh-glycemic meals, which spike insulin— especially post-workout. This is not only effective for maintaining an anabolic state, but the insulin spike that results also shuts down the UPP pathway and reduces muscle tissue breakdown.

                 A study published in BMC Molecular Biology reports that increasing amino acids, or leucine alone, acts with insulin to downregulate muscle protein breakdown and reduce UPP. Thus, the use of l-leucine while dieting seems to be effective for reducing muscle tissue breakdown by reducing UPP. In addition to hormonal stimulators of UPP, resistance exercise also increases UPP, which is a normal adaptation to exercise. For years, bodybuilders have been told to consume a high-glycemic index shake with some added protein/BCAAs after exercise, but a new study will make you ask, do you need a ton of carbs, post-exercise?

      How Much Is Enough?
                 A study published in the American Journal of Physiology examined both low and high carbohydrate ingestion before resistance exercise to determine how many carbs is enough. The researchers used equivalent amounts of essential amino acids (~20 grams) but differing amounts of carbohydrates (low carbohydrates = 30 grams; high carbohydrates = 90 grams). The male research subjects ingested nutrients one hour after an acute bout of leg-resistance exercise.

      30-Gram Rule
                 The results of the study were quite interesting. Of course, the group that consumed 90 grams of carbohydrates had larger increases in blood glucose levels, but the results in protein synthesis were similar.The researchers concluded that the findings were similar to previous studies, which found that muscle protein synthesis is not enhanced when carbohydrates exceed 30 grams. The researchers did not detect any significant differences in gene expression for markers of muscle catabolism following larger dosages of carbohydrates.7They concluded that the changes in muscle protein synthesis were due to changes in the essential amino acids, while only a moderate dose of carbohydrates (~30 grams) is needed. Furthermore, these changes occur irrespective of the carbohydrate dose or circulating insulin levels.
                 So when bodybuilders are using post-workout carbohydrate beverages such as Vitargo or maltodextrins, 30 grams are all you need— and taking more than that does not seem to provide additional benefit in terms of muscle protein breakdown.

      References:
                 1. Wang X, Hu Z, Hu J, Du J, Mitch WE. Insulin resistance accelerates muscle protein degradation: Activation of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway by defects in muscle cell signaling.Endocrinology, 2006 Sep;147(9):4160-8.

                2. Roy BD, Tarnopolsky MA, MacDougall JD, Fowles J, Yarasheski KE. Effect of glucose supplement timing on protein metabolism after resistance training. J Appl Physiol, 1997 Jun;82(6):1882-8.

                3. Roy BD, Fowles JR, Hill R, Tarnopolsky MA. Macronutrient intake and whole body protein metabolism following resistance exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2000 Aug;32(8):1412-8.

                4. Borsheim E, Cree MG, Tipton KD, Elliott TA, Aarsland A, Wolfe RR. Effect of carbohydrate intake on net muscle protein synthesis during recovery from resistance exercise. J Appl Physiol, 2004 Feb;96(2):674-8.

                5. Louard RJ, Fryburg DA, Gelfand RA, Barrett EJ: Insulin sensitivity of protein and glucose metabolism in human forearm skeletal muscle. J Clin Invest, 90:2348-2354, 1992.

                6. Meek SE, Persson M, Ford GC, Nair KS. Differential regulation of amino acid exchange and protein dynamics across splanchnic and skeletal muscle beds by insulin in healthy human subjects.Diabetes, 1998 Dec;47(12):1824-35.

                7. Glynn EL, Fry CS, Drummond MJ, Dreyer HC, Dhanani S, Volpi E, Rasmussen BB. Muscle Protein Breakdown has a Minor Role in the Protein Anabolic Response to Essential Amino Acid and Carbohydrate Intake Following Resistance Exercise. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol, 2010 Jun 2.


    Top 5 Foods that Effect your Mood


    Here are the top five foods that can give you the blues.

    ALCOHOL: The liquid depressant. Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. The central nervous system is responsible for taking information from the five senses, motor function, thinking, reasoning and understanding. It also controls human emotions. Regular or excessive consumption of alcohol slows these processes down. This aggravates the symptoms of depression.

    CAFFEINE: Caffeine affects your sleep and the ability to stay asleep. Too much caffeine in the system can cause serious sleep disorders. This affects moods, causes agitation and nervousness.

    ARTIFICIAL SWEETNERS: Makes you crave for carbs. Aspartame is an ingredient in artificial sweeteners and diabetic products. This is bad news for people prone to depression. Aspartame does the job of blocking the production of neurotransmitter serotonin causing headaches, sudden mood dips and insomnia. In fact, artificial sweeteners make you crave for more carbohydrates and end up making you fat. They also affects your memory.

    JUNK FOOD: According to a 2012 study carried out by Public Health Nutrition, people who consume fast foods are 51% more likely to develop depression than their counterparts who don’t. Foods cooked in hydrogenated oils contain trans fats which is a great recipe for depression.

    SOFT DRINKS: According to Brain, Behaviour and Immunity, women who consume soft drinks as a regular part of their diet are likely to experience higher rates of depression. Drinks with high fructose content lead to fructose malabsorption. It corresponds to depression because fructose reacts chemically with tryptophan – the amino acid precursor to the ‘happiness chemical’ serotonin. The sugars degrade tryptophan so there’s barely any left to be absorbed into the body. The doorway to common depression is here.

    How to Improve your Mood and Lessen the Damage of the foods above:

    Include dark cocoa chocolate, nuts and seeds in your diet. They are known to improve your mood.

    Increase Omega-3 fatty acids. Sources include fish and eggs are also great for reducing the symptoms of depression. This also reduces inflammation in the body, which increases pain and can lead to depression.

    Increase Vitamins like B12. Found in egg yolk and fish improve neural function.

    Add green tea to the diet. Green tea stimulates alpha brain waves and is known to have a calming effect on your body. 

    How to Catch the Early Warning Signs of Breast Cancer

     

    Breast cancer continues to be the leading diagnosis when it comes to cancer amongst Canadian women. Although fewer people are dying from this devastating disease, the medical industry still has a long way to go in terms of finding an absolute cure.

    One of the most devastating aspects of breast cancer is that its symptoms are often unnoticeable in its early stages. This is why doctors recommend that women get checked regularly for breast cancer, particularly if you have a history of the disease within your family. Although you can check for lumps and irregular growth at home on your own, it is a good idea to get it done by a health professional instead.

    Signs:

    Lump in the Breast or Underarm

    Lump in the Breast; Lump is usually painless, but could cause a prickly feeling

    Changes in Breast Shape/Color

    Indentation or flattening of the breast accompanied by pain or tenderness in the breast; Reddish, pitted surface can be a sign of advanced breast cancer

    Nipple Changes (Itching, dimpling and a burning sensation, rashes, discharges

    What Causes Breast Cancer?

    Your genetic DNA

    Family history of the disease

    Genetic mutations and the way our bodies repair damaged cell DNA

    The lifestyle we live and the stress level it generates

    Amount of exercise

    Eating habits


    Warning Signs of Breast Cancer

    Apart from monitoring our bodies and looking for early warning signs, there are a number of ways to reduce your risk of breast cancer right from the outset. It’s a proven fact that the way in which we choose to live has a huge impact on whether we will develop cancer. Our lives are shaped by a variety of factors including our income, the neighborhoods we live in, the air quality around us, and our access to public parks and recreation centers.

    Now we all know it can be very difficult for us to increase our incomes or change where we live. Getting a better-paying job or moving to a nicer community are not things that happen overnight — if ever. But, we can change the choices we make on a day-to-day basis when it comes to things like exercise and eating habits.

    These seemingly small changes can lead to “living well”, which can dramatically decrease your chances of developing breast cancer. Living well entails:

    Getting yourself down to a healthier weight

    Eating a more balanced diet, which includes reducing your dependence on fast food

    Increasing your fitness levels by walking, running and generally keeping active

    Quitting smoking and avoiding second-hand smoke

    Reducing your overall alcohol consumption (alcohol is a cancer-causing substance)

    If you notice the early warning signs of breast cancer (or if your family has a history of the disease), be sure to get in touch with your doctor right away. Diagnosis can be performed in a number of ways:

    Diagnostic Mammogram

    Breast Ultrasound

    Other Imaging Techniques (like MRI)

    Although it may be terrifying to learn the truth, you will dramatically increase your chances of survival if the tumor is detected early. Spare yourself and your loved ones the pain by monitoring your health closely and fighting cancer as soon as it hits.

      Sunday, April 27, 2014

      Key Dietary Strategies to Protect Yourself from Alzheimer’s


      Alzheimer's disease has become nothing short of epidemic in the US. Could it be that some commonly eaten foods are the primary culprit? According to neurologist Dr. David Perlmutter, author of the book Grain Brain, your diet has majorimplications for your Alzheimer's risk.
      Grain Brain has been on the New York Times Best Seller list for six months now, which is unusual for a health book. He has also been on a few PBS specials. Dr. Perlmutter is also the editor-in-chief of a brand new Harvard-based journal calledBrain and Gut, slated to come out next year.
      He came to the conclusion that brain dysfunction is rooted in a flawed diet, particularly our modern-day high-grain diet, after scouring the medical literature looking for clues to the underlying cause.
      He'd grown weary of treating his patients' symptoms, and wanted to get to the bottom of the problem. As it turns out, the scientific literature is actually replete with information telling us that, yes, diet plays a crucial role in brain function. He says:
      "What we've crystallized it down to now, in essence, is that diets that are high in sugar and carbohydrates, and similarly diets that are low in fat, are devastating to the brain.
      When you have a diet that has carbohydrates in it, you are paving the way for Alzheimer's disease. I want to be super clear about that. Dietary carbohydrates lead to Alzheimer's disease.It's a pretty profound statement, but it's empowering nonetheless when we realize that we control our diet. We control our choices, whether to favor fat or carbohydrates."

      High-Carb Diets Associated with 89 Percent Increased Risk for Dementia

      As just one example, he cites research from the Mayo Clinic, published in theJournal of Alzheimer's Disease, which found that diets rich in carbohydrates are associated with an 89 percent increased risk for dementia. Meanwhile, high-fat diets are associated with a 44 percent reduced risk.
      Clearly, with Alzheimer's disease now hot in the tracks behind heart disease and cancer as one of the top three killers in the US, we really need to pay attention to such findings.
      "[T]here is absolutely no treatment for Alzheimer's disease. And yet, according to Dr. Deborah Barnes, publishing in the journal Lancet Neurology, more than half the cases of Alzheimer's disease today – 54 percent – could have been prevented had people gotten this information,"he says.
      Fortunately, even if you're already having "senior moments," you can turn back the clock, as it were. You can regenerate cells in your brain's memory center. This occurs through a process called neurogenesis.
      According to Dr. Perlmutter, the evidence clearly shows that high-carb diets and elevation of blood sugar is directly related to shrinkage of your brain's memory center. And when your hippocampus—your memory center—shrinks, your memory declines.
      "That is the harbinger for Alzheimer's disease," Dr. Perlmutter says. "It's the first place you look on a brain scan. But here is why we're having this conversation today: (1) it is preventable and (2) more importantly, it's reversible."

      Saturated Fats Are a Critical Part of a Heart- and Brain-Healthy Diet

      Like myself, Dr. Perlmutter has been talking about the benefits of saturated fat for a long time. Conversely, for well over half a century, the media and a majority of health care officials have warned that saturated fats are bad for your health and lead to a host of negative consequences, including high cholesterol, obesity, and heart disease.
      There's little doubt that this wholly inappropriate fat phobia has had a lot to do with our burgeoning Alzheimer's epidemic. Fortunately, the importance of these healthy fats is starting to become more widely recognized. One of the largest meta-analyses1, 2, 3 to date, included data from more than 600,000 people from 18 countries.
      The study concluded that current evidence does NOT support guidelines that encourage low consumption of saturated fat for heart health. Saturated fats, which have the longest history of being (wrongfully) demonized, were in fact found to have NO adverse effect on heart disease risk.
      "We've been led down the wrong road," Dr. Perlmutter says. "[Saturated] fat is your friend. You desperately need fat. You desperately need to have good cholesterol in your body. That war on cholesterol is a perversion of the science that was even used to tell us we should stop eating foods with cholesterol...
      We know quite well that in elderly individuals, for example, those in the highest level of blood cholesterol have about a 70 percent risk reduction for becoming demented. These are the things that are good for the heart. They're good for the immune system. Cholesterol is the precursor of vitamin D, progesterone, estrogen, testosterone, and cortisol...This is probably one of the reasons why statin drugs are so damaging. You lower cholesterol, and you set the stage for things that are very, very worrisome."

      Diabetes Doubles Your Risk of Alzheimer's

      Dr. Perlmutter cites a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, which found that women who are given cholesterol-lowering statin medication have a 44 percent increased risk for becoming a type 2 diabetic. Diabetes, in turn, doubles your risk for Alzheimer's disease.
      Our ancestral diet was very high in saturated fats and virtually void of non-vegetable carbohydrates. Today, not only do we eat tremendous amounts of carbohydrates, these carbs are refined and highly processed. In the last decade, we've also shifted over to genetically engineered grains and sugar (GMO sugar beets and corn).
      At present, you have close to a 50/50 chance of developing Alzheimer's disease if you live to be 85 years old, according to Dr. Perlmutter. His mission is to radically shift those odds, by giving people like yourself the information you need to avoid being one of the unlucky ones destined to die without your mental faculties intact.

      Alzheimer's Is Directly Related to Elevated Blood Sugar Levels

      A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in August 2013 demonstrates that even mild elevation of blood sugar—a level of around 105 or 110—was already dramatically associated with an elevated risk for becoming demented. Dr. Perlmutter believes it's very important for physicians to become cognizant of this link, and to stop downplaying the risks associated with even mildly elevated blood sugar.
      If your fasting blood sugar is even mildly elevated (over 95 mg/dl), it's time to address your diet to lower it. Dr. Perlmutter makes a very important point here, noting that "normal" blood sugar really should not be the same as the average. It should be the optimal or ideal level. You do not want to be right smack in the middle "average" when the population sample is severely diseased!
      So what is an ideal fasting blood sugar level? Dr. Perlmutter suggests that anything over 92 or 93 is too high. He believes the ideal fasting blood sugar level is around 70-85, with 95 as the maximum. If you're fat adapted, there's no reason to shun even lower fasting blood sugar levels. According to Dr. Perlmutter:
      "It really depends on whether you have adapted your body to burning fat. People who have been on a high-fat, low-carb diet are able to tap into body fat as an energy resource. They've undergone a change called keto-adaptation. It means they're burning fat and they can get by with much lower blood sugar because they're burning fat and don't need to worry about blood sugar as much.
      This notion that your brain needs sugar is really old news as well. Fat, specifically ketones, which your body produces by metabolizing your fat, is now called a 'brain superfuel.' There is even a pharmaceutical product; a medical food that you can write as a prescription, which raises the level of ketones or fat in the bloodstream of patients, offered up now as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease. Who knew? The point is the brain loves to burn fat. That's what we have to shift it over to..."

      Intermittent Fasting Can 'Reset' Your Body to Burn Fat Again

      One of the tools I've found particularly useful is intermittent fasting, which can really help jumpstart your body into burning fat instead of carbs as its primary fuel. In his book, Grain Brain, Dr. Perlmutter also starts off the intervention section with a period of fasting, which can be viewed as pressing the Reset button. He's particularly aggressive about it in patients who are insulin/leptin resistant. 
      I typically recommend keeping your fasting insulin level below 3. The so-called normal, however, is anywhere from 5-25 microU per mL. This despite the fact that the upper edge of this "normal" clearly indicates you have a problem with insulin resistance! Again, you do not want to be average here. You want your insulin/leptin levels to be ideal or optimal for health and disease prevention.
      "If somebody has an insulin level of 26, they are in deep dudu. They need a lot of work. They need to fast. They need to drop the carbs. They need to add back the good fat. They need to add in some anti-glycating agents like benfotiamine and resveratrol. We need to hit these people aggressively. This is what works. This is what reduces their risk of converting to diabetes, and therefore has a huge role to play in protecting their brains," Dr. Perlmutter says.

      Eat the Right Types of Fat, and Remember That Food Is Information

      The type of fat you eat naturally makes all the difference in the world. Avoid all trans fats or hydrogenated fats that have been modified in such a way to extend their longevity on the grocery store shelf. This includes margarine, vegetable oils, and various butter-like spreads. Sources of healthy fats to add to your diet include:
      AvocadosButter made from raw, grass-fed organic milkRaw dairyOrganic pastured egg yolks
      Coconuts and coconut oil (coconut oil actually shows promise as an effective Alzheimer's treatment in and of itself)Unheated organic nut oilsRaw nuts, such as pecans and macadamia, which are low in protein and high in healthy fatsGrass-fed meats

      "Let me make one other important point. Fat, protein, and carbohydrates are the Big Three in terms of food. That said, we've got to understand two things: (1) the human requirement for carbohydrates is zero. We require no carbohydrates in the diet, unlike fat and protein. (2) Well beyond the sources of calories that we take in, food is information. The foods that we choose to consume are instructing our DNA in terms of its expression. This is called epigenetics. How empowering is that?
      I make this point because our genome takes 50,000 to 70,000 years to make significant changes to adapt to new environments and adapt to new foods. We are instructing our genome with this perverted information by giving our genomes signals from high levels of processed foods and carbohydrates. To me, job one is to get people to understand that you are affecting your gene expression and giving it bad information. This is a cornerstone in terms of almost every health malady that we are trying to deal with today," he says.

      Exercise Promotes Neurogenesis

      Beyond its ability to burn calories and fat, aerobic exercise is a powerful epigenetic player. It can help alter your gene expression to code for things that will result in a longer and healthier life. Exercise also reduces free radical production and inflammation, both of which are drivers for chronic disease. More directly, exercise has been shown to turn on a brain growth hormone called BDNF, which stands for "brain-derived neurotrophic factor." BDNF codes for your brain's ability to both repair itself and grow new brain cells. The latter occurs through a process known as neurogenesis.
      This is indeed new information. Back when Dr. Perlmutter and I were in medical school, we were taught that once a brain cell dies, that's it; there's no going back. This view has been completely demolished by more recent research, which clearly demonstrates that your brain can both regrow neurons and even rewire itself to "work around" damaged areas. As for the type of exercise, Dr. Perlmutter recommends high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which provides you with the equivalent of two hours-worth of conventional aerobic exercise in just 20 minutes.

      Other Recommendations That Promote Brain Health

      Dr. Perlmutter's Grain Brain program also includes a number of other recommendations, including but not limited to:
      • Turmeric, for its anti-inflammatory potential and ability to activate BDNF, the hormone involved in brain health and neurogenesis.
      • Monitoring your vitamin D level. Dr. Perlmutter recommends maintaining an optimal level of around 70-90 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) year-round.
      • Optimizing your gut health by reseeding your gut with beneficial bacteria (probiotics). One recent study cited by Dr. Perlmutter correlates the risk for becoming an Alzheimer's sufferer in various countries; countries that have a lot of parasites in the gut as a marker of poor hygiene actually had the lowest risk of Alzheimer's. Countries where there were no parasites in the gut or very few, courtesy of superior hygiene, had a significantly higher risk of Alzheimer's.
      • "Who knew? Who knew that eating foods that have a little dirt on them can be good, and that delivering our children through the birth canal is so important for building their microbiome from day one? We've got a lot to learn," he says.
        Equally important as adding probiotics is avoiding antibiotics. Non-breastfed babies are more prone to ear infections, which can easily set them up for excessive antibiotic use—even though antibiotics typically do not work for ear infections... So please, do your homework before demanding antibiotics. Eating CAFO meats will also provide you with traces of antibiotics in each bite. All these antibiotics kill beneficial bacteria, and the resulting chronic poor gut health can place your brain at significant risk.
      • Measuring your gluten sensitivity with a Cyrex [Array 3] test. Research suggests gluten can play a damaging role by the changes it imparts on your microbiome, the bacteria in your gut. But gluten can also wreak havoc with your neurological health via the inflammation it causes. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity may involve 30 to 40 percent of the population, Dr. Perlmutter says, and according to work done at Harvard by Dr. Alessio Fasano, it may even affect every single human being.
      • The reason for this is because gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye, has significant effects on your gut cells, which leads to the production of a chemical called zonulin. Zonulin enhances inflammation and tends to make your gut porous and leaky (i.e. leaky gut syndrome). But that's not all. Dr. Fasano discovered that it can also make your blood-brain barrier leaky, allowing foreign proteins to migrate into your brain, where they clearly do not belong.
      • Fecal transplantation, in cases of severe neurological dysfunction where poor gut flora appears to be a contributing factor. Your microbiome is critical for multiple reasons, including regulating the set point of inflammation, producing neurotransmitters like serotonin, and modulating systems associated with brain function and brain health. This form of therapy is now the standard of care for life-threatening C. difficile infections.

      A Brain Healthy Diet Will Benefit All Neurological Disorders

      It's worth noting that a high-fat, low-carb ketogenic diet is not just for the treatment of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. It's the right diet for ALL brain-related disorders, including but not limited to:
      • Parkinson's disease (according to Dr. Perlmutter, the rate at which a Parkinson's patient will decline perfectly correlates with the elevation of their blood sugar)
      • Migraines
      • Seizure disorders like epilepsy
      • Autoimmune disorders like multiple sclerosis (MS)
      • Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

      Core Ingredients of a Brain-Healthy Diet

      In terms of a brain-healthy diet, Dr. Perlmutter emphasizes the importance of favoring above-ground colorful vegetables, as these contain less starch, which your body breaks down into simple sugars. Healthful options include kale, chard, collards, broccoli, and spinach. These also contain plenty of healthy fiber—you really do not need grains to meet your fiber requirement.
      Dr. Perlmutter also recommends cooking your food as little as possible. The more food you can eat raw, the better, especially as it relates to your microbiome. To this, I would add fermented vegetables, to promote healthy bacteria in your gut, and sprouted seeds, for a boost of nutrients that is hard to match. Sprouts are also really easy to grow at home, which is an added boon for anyone seeking to improve their nutrition for the least amount of money. As for animal protein:
      "I think that if you choose to be a meat-eater, you should be choosing meats that are grass-fed and that are organically raised. There's no alchemy that happens when cattle are given genetically modified grain, treated with antibiotics and hormones, and who knows what else. There's no alchemy that happens to create this wonderful meat. You've got to be super selective," he warns.
      "Meat, by and large, is a dangerous food with the exception, in my opinion, of those grass-fed products – wild fish as opposed to farm-raised, antibiotic-treated Frankenfish, pasture-raised chicken, and farm-raised or pasture-raised eggs as well. We look at foods in terms of how they're going to treat us with respect to inflammation, and we know that, for example, factory farm-raised eggs are about 14 times as high in omega-6 fatty acids, the pro-inflammatory fatty acids, as compared to natural, pasture-raised, free-range eggs."

      Take Control of Your Brain Health—For Life

      In closing, Dr. Perlmutter quotes the Yellow Emperor of 4th century B.C. who said: "Maintaining order rather than correcting disorder is the ultimate principle of wisdom. To cure disease after it has appeared is like digging a well when one feels thirsty or forging weapons after the war has already begun." Your lifestyle choices have a huge role to play in determining whether your brain will maintain its function throughout your lifetime, or degenerate with age into a potentially deadly neurological disease like Alzheimer's. Again, the key lifestyle factors that will promote lifelong brain health are:
      • Eating a whole food, low- or no-carb, high-fat diet; ideally organic with a focus on raw foods. Your main source of carbohydrates would be above-ground vegetables, which are low in starch and high in beneficial fiber. Every effort should be made to keep your fasting blood sugar level at or below 85, and your fasting insulin level below 3. Avoiding carbohydrates (think processed foods, refined sugars, processed fructose, and all grains) along with exercise are the right tools for this.
      • Intermittent fasting can help "reset" your body, jumpstarting its ability to use fat as its primary fuel.
      • Maintaining a healthy gut flora by regularly eating fermented foods (and/or a probiotic supplement), and avoiding all medically unnecessary sources of antibiotics. This includes antibiotic treatments for viral infections (which do not respond to antibiotics) or minor infections that can be treated with other natural alternatives, and eating animal products (meat, dairy, and eggs) raised in confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) as these are fed low doses of antibiotics for growth-promoting purposes.
      • Optimizing your vitamin D levels, ideally through appropriate sun exposure or by using a safe tanning bed. A vitamin D3 supplement can be used if neither of those options is feasible. Just remember that if you take supplemental vitamin D, you also increase your body's need for vitamin K2.

      Wednesday, April 23, 2014

      Black Garlic and Sprouted Garlic Have Enhanced Health Benefits

      Of all the foods Mother Nature provides, few foods offer more of a “botanical bonanza” for your health than garlic. Garlic is a bulbous root closely related to the onion, mentioned in historical documents dating back 5,000 years—before its fame wafted into the rest of the known world.
      Speaking of wafting, garlic’s nickname “stinking rose” is well-deserved due to its undeniably pungent aroma that some find objectionable, but others find intoxicating.
      Numerous studies show garlic’s amazing health potential in nearly every area of your body, from clogged arteries to gangrene to preventing insect bites and ear infections. There is even evidence that garlic is able to help slow your aging process. When it comes to this magical bulb, what’s not to love?

      Garlic Epitomizes a ‘Heart Healthy Food’

      Like so many other complex plant foods, garlic contains a wide range of phytocompounds that act together to produce a wide variety of responses in your body. Garlic is rich in manganese, calcium, phosphorus, selenium, and vitamins B6 and C, so it’s beneficial for your bones as well as your thyroid.
      Garlic also helps your body cleanse itself of heavy metals, such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic.1 Green Med Info has also assembled a list of studies demonstrating garlic's positive effects for more than 150 different diseases.2 In general, its benefits fall into four main categories:
      1. Reducing inflammation (reduces risk of osteoarthritis as mentioned in the video above)
      2. Boosting immune function (antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and antiparasitic properties)
      3. Improving cardiovascular health and circulation (protects against clotting, retards plaque, improves lipids, and reduces blood pressure)
      4. Toxic to 14 kinds of cancer cells (including brain, lung, breast, and pancreatic)
      The fact that garlic is so effective in fighting multiple types of cancer is probably related to its potent antioxidant effects. Garlic contains the precursors to allicin—a compound I’ll be discussing in detail shortly. Allicin is one of the most potent antioxidants from the plant kingdom.
      In fact, researchers have determined that sulfenic acid, produced during the rapid decomposition of allicin, reacts with and neutralizes free radicals faster than any other known compound—it’s almost instantaneous when the two molecules meet. And as an anti-infective, garlic has been demonstrated to kill everything from candida to herpes, MRSA, drug-resistant tuberculosis, and even HIV.

      Garlic’s Secret Weapon: Allicin

      Researchers have found that allicin is an effective natural "antibiotic" that can eradicate even antibiotic-resistant bugs. An added benefit is that the bacteria appear incapable of developing a resistance to the compound. However, the garlic must be fresh because the active agent is destroyed in less than an hour after smashing the garlic clove.
      Garlic technically does not contain allicin, but rather, it contains two agents in separate compartments of the clove that react to form the sulfur-rich compound allicin when the plant needs it: alliin and an enzyme called allinase. So, what makes them react?
      Garlic has a robust defense system to protect itself from insects and fungi. It enzymatically produces allicin within seconds when it is injured. The crushing of its tissues causes a chemical reaction between the alliin and the allinase, and allicin is produced—nature’s “insecticide.” This is what makes garlic such a potent anti-infective, as well as what produces that pungent aroma when you cut into it.
      But allicin is short-lived, lasting less than an hour. Therefore, cooking, aging, crushing, and otherwise processing garlic causes allicin to immediately break down into other compounds, so it’s difficult to get allicin up to biologically active levels in your body.3

      Plus, an Army of Sulfur-Rich Phytochemicals

      More than 100 different compounds have been identified in garlic, some of which come from the rapid breakdown of allicin itself. The absorption, metabolism, and biological effects of all these compounds are only partially understood. So, although garlic is known to possess a wealth of health benefits, we still do not know exactly which benefits come from which compounds, what compounds get into which tissues, etc.
      As powerful as allicin is as an anti-infective, it only makes sense that garlic’s other health effects come from the synergism of those many OTHER compounds. This is a complicated topic, and if you want to explore it further, the Oregon State’s Linus Pauling Institute has a comprehensive article in their online Micronutrient Information Center.4

      What About Garlic Supplements?

      Most commercial garlic supplements perform quite poorly when it comes to actually being able to form allicin in your body. Allinase is destroyed by the strong acids in your stomach, which is why most supplements are “enteric coated,” to keep them from dissolving until they enter your small intestine. But most supplements tested produce only minimal amounts of allicin under these tough digestive conditions. Many garlic supplements list “allicin potential” on the label, which refers to how much allicin could be formed when alliin is converted, not how much allicin is actually produced.
      Claims of actual “allicin release” may be more reliable, but with digestive conditions being so individual and variable, I would be less than confident you’re getting what the label promises. Therefore, when it comes to garlic, I believe it is much better to eat the real food rather than rely on a supplement. And due to the fact that allicin won’t be formed unless the garlic clove is crushed, you have to crush it before swallowing to get the full benefit, or chew it up. If chewing up raw garlic is a bit too hardcore for you, then you may have cause for celebration: aged black garlic to the rescue!

      Aged Black Garlic Has Arrived!

      Developed in Korea, black garlic has been gaining popularity among Western foodies for several years now, but it has recently caught the eye of the health-minded due to studies revealing its impressive nutritional properties. Black garlic is produced by “fermenting” whole bulbs of fresh garlic in a humidity-controlled environment in temperatures of about 140 to 170 degrees F for 30 days. No additives, no preservatives... just pure garlic. Once out of the heat, the bulbs are then left to oxidize in a clean room for 45 days. This lengthy process causes the garlic cloves to turn black and develop a soft, chewy texture with flavors reminiscent of “balsamic vinegar” and “soy sauce,” with a sweet “prune-like” taste. Aficionados claim the flavor will impress even the most avid garlic-hater, as the pungency and spiciness is gone.5
      Although the process is consistently described as “fermentation,” it really isn’t that in the strictest sense, as the transformation does not involve microbial processes—specifically, enzymatic breakdown and the Maillard Reaction are responsible for the caramelization of the sugars, dark color and deep, complex flavor profile.6  As the pearly white cloves slowly transition into their final black appearance, compounds in the fresh garlic transform into a whole new range of compounds. Compared to fresh garlic, black garlic is low in alliin but it is astonishingly high in other antioxidants!

      Double the Antioxidants of Fresh Garlic

      In a 2009 mouse study, Japanese researchers found that black garlic was more effective than fresh garlic in reducing the size of tumors. The study was published in the journal Medicinal and Aromatic Plant Science and Technology.7 In another study, black garlic was found to have twice the antioxidant levels as fresh—the aging/fermenting process appears to double the antioxidants. Black garlic is packed with high concentrations of sulfurous compounds, especially one in particular: s-allylcycteine (SAC).8Science has shown a number of health benefits from SAC, including inhibition of cholesterol synthesis.9
      Perhaps this is why Mandarin oil painter Choo Keng Kwang experienced a complete reversal of his psoriasis after just four days of eating half a bulb of black garlic a day—this, after trying countless medically prescribed skin creams that were all complete failures.
      An advantage of SAC is that it is well-absorbed and much more stable than allicin and 100 percent bioavailable. Researchers are confident it plays a significant role in garlic’s overall health benefits.10 Be mindful, however, that black garlic’s benefits may be more effective than fresh garlic for some conditions but not others, given its allicin content is low. For example, I suspect it may not be as effective if you have an infection, as allicin is thought to be the primary anti-infective agent in garlic, and fresh garlic is higher in allicin than black.  According to Blue Fortune Farm (which admittedly sells black garlic), black garlic has the following favorable nutrient profile:11
       SAC (mg/g)Calcium (mg)Phosphorus (mg)Protein (g)
      Black Garlic5.8436.668012.5
      Raw Garlic0.325.0402.2

      Sprouted Garlic Is Fresh Garlic, Multiplied...

      Do you toss your garlic into the compost pile when it begins sending up those bright green shoots? You might want to stop doing that after you read the most recent report about sprouted garlic. In an article published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry,12 garlic sprouted for five days was found to have higher antioxidant activity than fresher, younger bulbs, and it had different metabolites, suggesting it also makes different substances.
      Researchers concluded that sprouting your garlic might be a useful way to improve its antioxidant potential. Extracts from this garlic even protected cells in a laboratory dish from certain types of damage.13 This isn’t really surprising when you consider the nutritional changes that typically occur in plants when they sprout. When seedlings grow into green plants, they make many new compounds, including those that protect the young plant against pathogens. The same thing is likely happening when green shoots grow from old heads of garlic.

      Sprouting—Intentionally!

      Growing your own sprouts is a great way to boost your nutrition, especially if you have limited space for gardening. Sprouted seeds of various kinds can contain up to 30 times the nutrition of homegrown organic vegetables and allow your body to extract more vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and essential fats from the foods you eat. If you want more information, please refer to our earlier article about sprouting. While you can sprout a variety of different beans, nuts, seeds, and grains, sprouts in general have the following beneficial attributes:
      1. Support for cell regeneration
      2. Powerful sources of antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and enzymes that protect against free radical damage
      3. Alkalinizing effect on your body, which is thought to protect against disease, including cancer (as many tumors are acidic)
      4. Abundantly rich in oxygen, which can also help protect against abnormal cell growth, viruses, and bacteria that cannot survive in an oxygen-rich environment

      Black Garlic or White, They're Both Good

      Whether you choose to go raw or adventure into the black, you can’t go wrong with garlic. It gives new meaning to the term “heart healthy food”! And garlic goes with just about everything. You can smother your roasting chicken with it, sauté it with veggies, add it to your salad dressing, or run it right through your juicer along with the other veggies for a real immune-booster. Whatever form of garlic you prefer, you can have some fun experimenting as you widen your culinary repertoire, and build your health at the same time!