December 15, 2009
Inflammation: Now You See It... Now You Don't
Every time your body is injured – whether you scrape your knee on the pavement or the lining of your arteries becomes irritated – your immune system triggers an inflammatory response. It is a sign of damage and repair.
Like a woodpecker banging on your house, the signs of inflammation ON your body are hard to miss. Redness, swelling, warmth and pain are all associated with inflammation.
But when inflammation occurs WITHIN your body, it does not come with such obvious signs. You may have no idea. But that doesn't make it any less destructive. It is only years later – like my friend Adam – that you learn the true extent of the damage. And by then, it could already be too late.
Inflammation is a cornerstone of physical aging. And it is one of the primary causes of every degenerative disease, including diabetes, cancer, arthritis, macular degeneration, Alzheimer's and heart disease.
The Best Biological Marker for Inflammation
Chronic internal inflammation is difficult to measure. However, when it is present within the body, your liver secretes a substance called C-reactive protein (CRP). And that can be measured. When inflammation is high, CRP increases. When inflammation falls, so does CRP.
C-reactive protein is the best biological marker for sub-clinical inflammation. And because inflammation is so strongly related to heart disease, that makes CRP a very accurate indicator of your risk for heart attack and stroke. It is far more reliable than LDL cholesterol.
A study of men, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that those with higher levels of CRP have a three times greater risk of heart attack than those with normal levels. The research also shows that people with very low CRP levels rarely suffer heart attacks.
Heart Disease is Not a Plumbing Problem – It is an Inflammation Problem
Most cardiologists explain plaque buildup and narrowing of the arteries as a plumbing problem: Fat and cholesterol stick to the walls of the arteries and build up. The arteries then become stiff and narrow.
But this is only partially true. And it does not explain why fat and cholesterol stick to the walls of your arteries. That point is critical.
Your arteries bear only a superficial resemblance to pipes. A closer examination reveals smooth muscle tissue, sandwiched between two "structural" layers. These muscles and connective tissues are vulnerable to inflammation. When inflammation strikes, it occurs within – not on – the arterial walls. When it is persistent – as a result of nutritional deficiencies or eating foods that are not native to your physiology – the inflammation causes damage.
The cholesterol and fat that sticks to your arteries is part of your body's repair mechanism. These "plaques" help to cover up and heal the damage. As they build up over the years, blood flow to your tissues becomes restricted. The blood vessels become stiff and blood pressure rises. And when these plaques dislodge, they can cause a heart attack or a stroke.
You don't reduce plaque buildup in your body by reducing cholesterol and healthy fat in the diet. You reduce plaque buildup by controlling the inflammation that causes damage in the first place. So how do you do that?
Leading Heart Surgeon Quits Practice to Focus on
The Real Cause of Heart Disease – INFLAMMATION!
Dr. Dwight Lundell has spent his whole career helping people to prevent and treat heart disease. As a cardiac surgeon, he has performed more than 5,000 open heart surgeries!
But something bothered him. More than half of his patients had "normal" cholesterol levels. And the advice he used to give – to eat a low-fat diet – didn't seem to be working. Many of his patients ended up right back in the hospital just a few years later.
Then he discovered the REAL cause of heart disease. The one factor that was present in ALL of his patients – Inflammation! As he recommended ways to treat inflammation, his patients began to heal – and they never needed another visit to the heart doctor.
Dr. Lundell has put his entire body of research and his specific recommendations in a groundbreaking new book – The Great Cholesterol Lie. Learn to quench the fires of inflammation from one of the world's leading heart doctors. Click here.
Stop the Raging Fires of Inflammation...
There are two steps you MUST take to reduce inflammation:
1. Reduce your omega-6 fatty acids and increase your omega-3s. The omega-6 fatty acids found in vegetable and seed oils, processed foods and conventional meats are highly inflammatory. Omega-3 oils, on the other hand, are highly anti-inflammatory. Excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids are wild salmon, sardines, grass-fed beef and, of course, fish oil.
The modern food processing industry has introduced an abundance of omega-6 fats into our diet. And most people do not consume nearly enough omega-3s. This unnatural imbalance is the primary cause of inflammation for most people.
2. Just say "no" to sugar and eat a low-glycemic diet. When your blood sugar and insulin spike, it causes a cascade of biochemical and hormonal changes that result in inflammation. A recent study from Harvard showed that women who ate foods with the highest glycemic load had nearly twice the inflammation of those who ate lower glycemic foods. Follow a low glycemic diet by avoiding fruit juices, sugar-sweetened drinks and desserts and carb-rich foods like mashed potatoes, pasta, white rice, bread and cereals.
Follow these two steps, and you will eliminate the primary causes of inflammation. And by doing so, you will dramatically reduce your risk of every disease associated with aging.
Less CRP, Less Inflammation...
Termites can destroy your house from the inside, while leaving hardly a clue. And the same is true for inflammation. This silent killer can destroy your arteries and corrode your brain, without you feeling or noticing a thing.
Don't assume it isn't happening because you "feel okay." Take measures to curb inflammation. And then take measures to measure it. The best biological marker for internal inflammation is C-reactive protein.
So, forget about your cholesterol. The next time you go for a checkup, ask to have your CRP measured. According to several doctors I consulted, less than 1.0 mg/dL is optimal, but the lower the better. Higher than 1.0 and your risk of disease increases.
Beware of body inflammation, it is not to be ignored! See more of Jon Herring at Total lHealth Breakthroughs (THB)
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Posted by Zenaida C..
December 15, 2009
OBESITY
Obesity has been plaguing not only the Americans, but the Filipinos as wel!. What has been causing it? Let's journey to Jamaica and hear from Dr. Tim. By Dr. Tim As I write this, I am sitting on the beach in Jamaica staring out at the ocean. The sun is just above the horizon and is about half full and a burnt orange color. It shines off the ocean and provides the perfect tranquil setting.
I just finished a Red Stripe beer, as is my tradition when I visit Jamaica, and I've been having a conversation with one of the locals about USANi Bolt, who is now a Jamaican and world icon. This is life, eh?
I love visiting other countries and interacting with people from those countries. I am intrigued with the way others live their lives and what we can learn from them.
In the first days here, I was struck with how fat Americans visiting Jamaica are. If I see a fat Jamaican or a fat European it is a surprise and the exception, but I have yet to meet an American here who is not fat. In fact, sadly I can tell the Americans from the Europeans by who is fat.
I am not talking about the extra five to 10 pounds we all struggle to keep under control. I am talking about really fat. I am also not talking one or two people. I am talking about the vast majority of Americans here in Jamaica. It is embarrassing.
I often forget when I am in the states how fat Americans are becoming. I think because we are surrounded by obesity in the states, we become tolerant and almost complacent with it. But when I travel and see my fellow Americans outside of the states, our problem with obesity becomes so much more apparent. It makes me wonder why we have allowed ourselves as a nation to become so morbidly obese and be ok with it.
The irony is Americans live in the most abundant nation on earth (part of the problem) with access to the healthiest diets available and the best nutritional supplements money can buy. Despite that, we are a nation of excess fat. We have decided that if a little is good, a lot must be better. If I can Super Size for only 39 cents more, why wouldn't I?
I find it interesting that we worry about our young girls looking at magazine covers and thinking they have to obtain the perfect body. While that may be a minor problem, the opposite is a much bigger problem. We now accept being fat as if it were normal.
When I was young, the fat kid in school was the exception, usually about one per class of 30 kids. Now, when I go to my kids activities at school, it is almost the norm. Everyone seems ok with it. There are many who think this may be the first generation where the life expectancy decreases instead of increasing because of obesity.
If there is one thing Americans are good at, it is solving a crisis. Well this is a huge crisis, and we seem to be ignoring it. We are debating health care reform at the highest levels, but we may be missing the most important part of all...the necessity to teach our nation about having a health lifestyle. Steven Covey describes this as cutting at the branches of the problem while ignoring the roots.
Obesity may be the number one cause of health problems in the United States. It increases rates of diabetes, cancer, back problems, heart attacks, and stomach problems, in addition to a myriad of social and psychological problems.
So what can we do about it? I have a few ideas that might help.
1. Take control of your own life.
Decide that you will not fall victim to our culture of over consumption. Formulate a Health Plan for Life. I am in the process of writing a book on this very subject, but don't wait for the book. Educate yourself on nutrition including exercise, healthy eating, supplements, and good health practices. Look back at some of my previous articles on staying healthy:
*The 85/15 Rule for Healthy Eating
*Why You Need a Health Plan
*Find the Hidden Sugar, Lose the Weight
2. Teach your children health practices.
If you have an obese child, help them now. Meet with your pediatrician or other trusted provider and create a plan for them. Remember you are the parent; it is your responsibility to teach them to be healthy.
3. Get involved!
Become an active part of your communities and your schools to make sure the things they serve at school and social events at least offer a healthy alternative. Can you improve what they are teaching in schools or add some teaching? Encourage schools to increase the amount of physical activity our kids get every day.
4. Contact your representative.
Let your public servants know you are concerned about having health initiatives in health care legislation. We need to let Congress and the Senate know we are not just interested in who pays when we are sick, but we are also interested in developing national programs to keep us heatlhy.
Ok, my rant is over. I am going to get back to enjoying my time on the beach. The sun is actually up now and the first of the bikinis are out. Wow, some of them need to put on some clothes!
Posted by Zenaida C..
December 14, 2009
Antioxidants: The Aging Antidote
Antioxidants are your body's natural free-radical fighters.
Many of them are produced by your tissues and organs themselves. Others occur
within the foods and nutrients you consume. Vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals
and enzymes can all function as antioxidants.
But your antioxidant system declines with age. That
means the harder you live and the more stress your body is under, the more
overwhelmed your antioxidant defense will become. The solution is to consume a
diet rich in fresh,
colorful, organic plant foods. Use herbs, spices and cocoa
whenever possible (these are actually much higher in antioxidants than most
foods). And you should adopt an aggressive regimen of antioxidant
supplementation..
 This is an excerpt from the article of Mr. Jon Herring of THB on a favorite topic,
combating aging.
Posted by Zenaida C..
December 14, 2009
` Aging
Do you remember the first time you realized your body was "aging"?
Maybe it started in your thirties with a few more aches and pains in the morning. A tendency to get tired earlier in the day. The first signs of wrinkles around your eyes. A memory not quite as sharp as it used to be.
As the years have progressed, those little twinges have probably gotten more frequent. And if you're like most people, you brushed it off as a "normal" part of the aging process... just something that happens when we get older.
The thing is, you don't have to give in to the frailty, disease, and memory issues associated with aging. These symptoms are not "inevitable." They are signals that your body needs something.
When it comes to aging, we've been fed a load of unsubstantiated assumptions our entire lives. But emerging research from top experts suggests that we can have all the advantages of youth, well into our later years.
That means supple, smooth skin... a brain that is sharp... energy to last all day... and an immune system that provides powerful protection against illness.
In fact, you can learn how to defy aging in the privacy of your own home... without expensive doctors, drugs, or unproven methods.
Who do want to maintain our vigor through the years, appearing youthful than our chronologial age. Then,  follow the advice of Jon Herring of the Total Health Breakthroughs
Posted by Zenaida C..
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