FIX A LEAKY GUT

The gut is the gateway to health. If your gut is healthy, chances are that you’re in good health. However, there’s a condition called leaky gut that can lead to a host of health problems.

WHAT IS A LEAKY GUT?

The gut is naturally permeable to very small molecules in order to absorb these vital nutrients. In fact, regulating intestinal permeability is one of the basic functions of the cells that line the intestinal wall. With sensitive folks, gluten can cause the gut cells to release zonulin, a protein that can break apart tight junctions in the intestinal lining. Other factors — such as infections, toxins, stress, and age — can also cause these tight junctions to break apart. Once these tight junctions get broken apart, you have a leaky gut. When your gut is leaky, things like toxins, microbes, undigested food particles, and more can escape from your intestines and travel throughout your body via your bloodstream. Your immune system marks these “foreign invaders” as pathogens and attacks them. The immune response to these invaders can appear in the form of any of the nine signs you have a leaky gut, which is listed below.

WHAT CAUSES A LEAKY GUT?

The main culprits are foods, infections, and toxins. Gluten is the number one cause of leaky gut. Other inflammatory foods like dairy or toxic foods, such as sugar and excessive alcohol, are suspected as well. The most common infectious causes are candida overgrowth, intestinal parasites, and small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Toxins come in the form of medications, including NSAIDS like Motrin and Advil, steroids, antibiotics, and acid-reducing drugs. They can also present in the form of environmental toxins like mercury, pesticides, and BPA from plastics. Stress and age also contribute to a leaky gut. If you suffer from any of the following conditions, it’s likely that you have a leaky gut.

1. Digestive issues such as gas, bloating, diarrhea or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

2. Seasonal allergies or asthma.

3. Hormonal imbalances such as PMS or PCOS.

4. Diagnosis of an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, lupus, psoriasis, or celiac disease.

5. Diagnosis of chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia.

6. Mood and mind issues such as depression, anxiety, ADD or ADHD.

7. Skin issues such as acne, rosacea, or eczema.

8. Diagnosis of Candida overgrowth.

9. Food allergies or food intolerances.

She refers to her 4R Program, which stands for Remove, Restores, Reinoculate, and Repair.

First, Remove foods that we’re sensitive to—dairy, caffeine, sugar, alcohol.  Second, Remove infections in the gut—parasites, candida, fungus.

Third, Reinoculate with good bacteria.  Your “army.”  Benefit from a probiotic.  50 billion units a day.

Fourth, Restore—digestive enzymes and stomach acids.

Fifth, Repair—bile salts if you’re missing your gallbladder.  Gut healing herbs and amino acids.  Slippery elm, marshmallow, L-glutamine rejuvenates gut lining.  Multivitamins to help with wound healing.

http://eatlocalgrown.com/article/12052-leaky-gut.html?c=sfm

Accumulated Pesticides Disappear After Eating Organic

from Yahoo/health

This Is How Eating Organic Affects The Pesticide Levels in Our Bodies  

There’s a growing interest in eating organic, especially among parents concerned for the health of their family. But you might be wondering if, compared a diet of conventional foods, choosing organic packs anything more than negligible benefits.

New research from Sweden’s Coop and the Swedish Environmental Research Institute put the effects of eating organic to the test. For the study, the scientists recruited a family that closely resembles those found in many modern households, consisting of two adult parents, and three kids ages 12, 10 and 3.

The family started by eating a conventional diet for one week, followed by a fully organic diet for the next two weeks. During the testing period, each family member provided morning urine samples to be analyzed for 12 known pesticides or metabolites — you can watch the details in the video, above. 

The family’s exposure to pesticides drastically dropped when they switched from conventional to organic eating. “A change in diet from conventional food to organic food made an average decrease in human exposure to the investigated pesticides by a factor of 9.5,” lead researcher Jörgen Magnér tells Yahoo Health. “The largest decrease was observed for the children.”

Even he and his colleagues were surprised “that the pesticides left the body rapidly after the participants change to an organic food diet,” according to Magnér. “If you are the least worried about what these chemicals can do to your health, you can control it through your choices of food.”

The way any given family eats is a personal decision. But according to Lisa Moskovitz, RD, founder of New York Nutrition Group, there are at least some known benefits to eating organic:

Fewer Pesticides

Unlike conventional farmers, organic farmers avoid synthetic pesticides to protect their crops, opting for natural mechanisms to ward off crop-destroying molds, insects and diseases. “These include insect traps, predator insects, natural selection, and beneficial microorganisms,” Moskovitz tells Yahoo Health. “While organic crops can still carry pesticide residue, it is well under government safety thresholds.”

Environmentally-Friendly

Beyond that, organic farming is also part of the “go green” movement. “It helps promote the environment by protecting soil quality, water supply, and reduces pollution,” Moskovitz says.

GMO-Free

If you’ve been following all the GMO buzz lately, and are now a bit worried about genetically-modified ingredients, eating organic can eliminate the fear. “The USDA completely bans the use of genetic engineering or genetically-modified organisms when it comes to organic foods,” says Moskovitz. “This means, from the seeds that are planted to the ingredients listed in an ‘organic’ food product, there can be no trace of GMOs anywhere.”

Restricted Food Additives

Nutritional trends are turning away from anything artificial, and eating organic is the essence of that move. Moskovitz notes “the use of preservatives, artificial sweeteners, colorings, flavoring agents, and MSG are not allowed” to be used in organic food products.

There are some misconceptions about organic eating that everyone seems to get wrong, says Moskovitz. The most common one is that organic foods are more nutritious,” she explains. “Very little, if any, evidence supports this theory. For example, an organic carrot is very similar in nutritional value to a conventionally grown carrot.”

Moskovitz also says that people commonly believe consuming trace chemicals or GMOs can lead to a real health decline – but that’s not a proven fact. “Pesticides and GMOs are not nearly as harmful or dangerous as many people like to believe,” says Moskovitz.

Ultimately, if you want to reduce pesticide exposure and eliminate GMOs from your diet, eating organic is a plenty a good idea; as this Swedish research shows, it can rapidly reduce chemicals in the body. Magnér also says organic foods may help those exposed to pesticides in large quantities, like farmers, cut back on unneeded after-hours intake.

But do we overvalue eating organic? Not necessarily, says Moskovitz. “This statement is true when referring to nutritional value, but it is still better for the environment – which is important.”

All in all, this new research is simply more to consider.

Stand Up

Sitting down for long periods is unhealthy. See what Dr. Mercola says about the hazards. Then consider the remedies, like standing up.  Put your computer or laptop up on a taller dresser or on a filing cabinet.  In other words, stand up.  

ORGAN DAMAGE

Heart: When you sit, blood flows slower and muscles burn less fat, which makes it easier for fatty acids to clog your heart. Research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, for instance, showed that women who sit for 10 or more hours a day may have a significantly greater risk of developing heart disease than those who sit for five hours or less.5

Pancreas: Your body’s ability to respond to insulin is affected by just one day of excess sitting, which leads your pancreas to produce increased amounts of insulin, and this may lead to diabetes.

Research published in Diabetologia found that those who sat for the longest periods of time were twice as likely to have diabetes or heart disease, compared to those who sat the least.6 Sitting for more than eight hours a day has also been associated with a 90 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Colon Cancer: Excess sitting may increase your risk of colon, breast, and endometrial cancers. The mechanism isn’t known for certain, but it could be due to excess insulin production, which encourages cell growth, or the fact that regular movement boosts antioxidants in your body that may eliminate potentially cancer-causing free radicals.

Findings presented at the 2015 Inaugural Active Working Summit also found that sitting increases

Lung cancer by 54 percent

Uterine cancer by 66 percent 

Colon cancer by 30 percent

Another reason for this increased cancer risk is thought to be linked to weight gain and associated biochemical changes, such as alterations in hormones, metabolic dysfunction, leptin dysfunction, and inflammation—all of which promote cancer.

Digestion: Sitting down after you’ve eaten causes your abdominal contents to compress, slowing down digestion. Sluggish digestion, in turn, can lead to cramping, bloating, heartburn, and constipation, as well as dysbiosis in your gastrointestinal tract, a condition caused by microbial imbalances in your body. 

According to Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease,

“There is growing evidence that dysbiosis of the gut microbiota is associated with the pathogenesis of both intestinal and extra-intestinal disorders. Intestinal disorders include inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and celiac disease, while extra-intestinal disorders include allergy, asthma, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and obesity.”

BRAIN DAMAGE

Your brain function slows when your body is sedentary for too long. Your brain will get less fresh blood and oxygen, which are needed to trigger the release of brain- and mood-enhancing chemicals.

POSTURE PROBLEMS

Strained Neck and Shoulders: It’s common to hold your neck and head forward while working at a computer or cradling a phone to your ear. This can lead to strains on your cervical vertebrae along with permanent imbalances, which can lead to neck strain, and sore shoulders and back.

Back Problems: Sitting puts more pressure on your spine than standing, and the toll on your back health is even worse if you’re sitting hunched in front of a computer. It’s estimated that 40 percent of people with back pain have spent long hours at their computer each day.

The disks in your back are meant to expand and contract as you move, which allows them to absorb blood and nutrients. When you sit, the disks are compressed and can lose flexibility over time. Sitting excessively can also increase your risk of herniated disks.

Personally, after I reduced my normal 12 to 14 hours of daily sitting to under one hour, the back pain I’d struggled with for decades disappeared.

MUSCLE DEGENERATION

Standing requires you to tense your abdominal muscles, which go unused when you sit, ultimately leading to weak abdominals.

Hip Problems: Your hips also suffer from prolonged sitting, becoming tight and limited in range of motion because they are rarely extended. In the elderly, decreased hip mobility is a leading cause of falls.

Sitting also does nothing for your glutes, which may become weakened, affecting your stability and the power of your stride when walking and jumping.

LEG DISORDERS

Varicose Veins. Sitting leads to poor circulation in your legs, which can cause swelling in your ankles, varicose veins, and blood clots known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) 

Weak Bones.  Walking, running, and engaging in other weight-bearing activities lead to stronger, denser bones. Lack of activity may cause weak bones and even osteoporosis.

World's Toughest Job

This may seem a little tardy to post, but it really is timeless. A nice reminder. 

Magnesium (Orotate)

The above organizes the information really well in a nice little chart.  As for food sources, you can see your options there at the right.  But as for supplement options, I think there is one form of Magnesium that is omitted that actually gets absorbed better than Malate or Citrate and that is Magnesium Orotate.  Try Advanced Research's Magnesium Orotate.  I am surprised that it is not listed, since the orotate has come recommended by a couple of different doctors that I've contacted. I cannot even speak to the recommend amounts in this chart, for some individuals or conditions may require more or may require less from one day to the next.  That is kind of up to your discretion.  "Doctor, Heal Thyself" sort of thing.  Gauge it.  See how you feel.  Take a certain amount one day and see how you feel.  If you need to back off, then do that; if you feel you could tolerate a little more, then try that.  You be your own doctor.  A nurse friend of mine has shared a conflicting opinion with me with regard to magnesium but he does not in his opinion differentiate which form of magnesium to take.  He warned against it causing diarrhea. I've been taking Magnesium Orotate and have not once come even close to that condition, so not sure what the concern is. Maybe the concern exists with other forms, like Magnesium Oxide as the chart suggests.