Day 10- I Am- the shift is about to hit the fan

Earlier this week, My husband's company had the opportunity to be a sponsor at a release party for a new documentary film called, "I Am."

The filmmaker behind "I Am," is the well know director Tom Shadyac, who directed films such as “Ace Ventura,” “Liar Liar,” “The Nutty Professor,” and “Bruce Almighty.” After Tom experienced a tragic cycling accident, which thankfully he recovered from, he gained a new purpose in life; to make a change.

This documentary focuses on not only what Tom, himself can do to make a change in this world, but what we can do as a race to cause a shift. He sets out on his journey meeting with a variety of thinkers and doers–remarkable men and women from the worlds of science, philosophy, academia, and faith to learn more about what this change would involve.

Here is a clip from the documentary, "I Am"



To learn more about the film "I Am," or the foundation, visit:
www.Iamthedoc.com

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 9- Goodbye Gluten!

Although, I am not Catholic, I have decided to partake in the 46 days of Lent (46 is including Sundays). For 46 days I will give up the yummy and oh-so prevalent GLUTEN! Why, you may ask would I decide to do this to myself just for the fun (or lack there is) of it? Well, one reason is because I have a red spot on my neck that has been coming and going for over 10 years and I would like see if the removal of gluten from my diet would make that spot disappear for good. I also think that by experiencing this deprivation from gluten it will allow me to become more compassionate to those that must be gluten-free for life.

For those of you that think that gluten-free is just the current fad and that people will soon forget about it, let me go into a little bit of detail on this popular protein.

Gluten is a sticky protein that is found in certain grains, such as wheat, rye, barley, spelt, and kamut. It is also found in oats that don't specify "gluten-free." Gluten is used in baked goods, sauces, and dressing and acts like a glue that binds ingredients together. It is most likely included in the list of ingredients of just about every box of processed food that you pick up. Hidden sources of gluten on labels include: soy sauce, food starches, food emulsifiers, food stabilizers, artificial food coloring, malt extract, dextrins, etc.

Most of us are familiar with the condition Celiac disease, which is an autoimmune disease associated with gluten intolerance, but did you know that even if you aren't celiac that you still may need to avoid gluten?

Here are some symptoms that can be associated with gluten intolerance:

• Depression
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Constipation and/or diarrhea
  
• Hives (or the red spot on my neck)
• Brain fog
• Nausea
• Dairy Intolerance
• Sugar Cravings
• Bloating/Inflammation

What can cause all these symptoms?
When the body reacts to a food that it is sensitive to, in this case gluten, it does so by sending out an inflammatory message protein to tag the food particle to be destroyed. The tagged food particle is then attacked by other inflammatory chemicals, like cytokines and leukotrienes. This process in the mean time is creating inflammation in our GI system, which can affect digestion. An affected GI system can mean a leaky gut, which allows food particles to pass through the gut lining and into the blood stream, creating inflammation all over the body. It may be possible that autoimmune conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis are triggered by an unresolved food reaction to gluten.

When I talk to people about gluten sensitivities, the common response that I hear is, "oh, I already know that I am not sensitive to gluten, I don't have any of those issues!" To be honest I am one of those people, but the problem with this response is that our bodies may just be used to all the inflammation that we have been living with on a day to day basis. So how do we know if we are sensitive to gluten or not? There are several ways to find out, you can ask your doctor to run a gluten sensitivity test on you, but depending on the test it may be flawed. Or you can eliminate it from your diet for a period of time, like I am about to do and then reintroduce it and see if you notice any reactions (I'm crossing my fingers that I don't). Also, studies have shown that most people with an autoimmune disease do better when avoiding gluten, especially people with Hashimoto's.

One question that seems to be on everyone's mind is, "why has the prevalence of gluten sensitivity increased so much in the last few years?" It may just be that we are more aware of the effects of gluten on the body, or it could be due to the huge increase of genetically modified foods, the fact that gluten is stored in storage bins for long periods of time causing contamination and toxins, increase in leaky guts, poor nutrition, enzyme insufficiency, just to name a few.

So as I embark on my 46 adventure sans gluten, this is what I have to look forward to. First of all no more beer (this is hard since my husband is a beer rep) and no more grain based alcohols, which includes my favorite, vodka- unless it is potato-based. Sadly, this will be the most difficult part for me when going gluten free, but I will also have to pay more attention to hidden ingredients. I will have to replace my condiments with gluten-free options, since even mustard contains gluten!

I have been creating gluten-free recipes for my company for some time now and during this process I have come across some great gluten-free cooking websites that I would like to share:

• http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/
• http://www.elanaspantry.com/
• http://simplygluten-free.com/
  
• http://www.causeyourespecial.com/
• http://www.gfreecuisine.com/

Well, here I go! Wish me luck!

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 8- Hypoglycemia

Today's blog is on a subject that is so common in people nowadays, but most of us don't know better; I know I didn't. I thought that getting light headed and shaky just was a sign that I was hungry. Little did I know that this was a sign of a blood sugar issue called, hypoglycemia.

Hypoglycemia is a state of low blood sugar, and is usually related to our diet and lifestyle. Hypoglycemia is usually a result of abnormal fluctuations in insulin and cortisol. It is typically caused by diets high in simple sugars as well as frequently skipping meals. The body responds to a meal by signaling the pancreas to release a hormone called, insulin, which allows the glucose to be taken up by the cells. Some glucose is also taken up by the liver and stored there for later use. When the glucose levels from the last meal decline, insulin levels also decrease; this mechanism helps keep the blood glucose levels from falling too low. Furthermore, stored glucose is released from the liver back into the bloodstream with the help of glucagon, another pancreatic hormone.

People that eat a large amount of carbohydrates and sugars on a regular basis cause the body to respond to the large influx of sugar by releasing more insulin. When the pancreas over shoots and releases more insulin than is necessary it causes glucose in the blood to become very low, which triggers the adrenals to respond by releasing hormones to counteract. In a hypoglycemic person the adrenals release a large amount of these adrenal hormones, epinephrine and cortisol, which drive the blood sugar level back up in the blood. The over release of these adrenal hormones are where we get some of the classic symptoms of hypoglycemia: shakiness, foggy thinking, and fatigue.

After time the body gets use to releasing more insulin than is necessary to deal with the high sugar meals, eventually causing the insulin receptor sites on the cells to become unresponsive to insulin. This can lead to a more serious issue such as, insulin resistance and possibly even down the road diabetes.

Hypoglycemia symptoms are:

• Crave sweets during the day
• Irritable if meals are missed
• Depend on coffee to keep yourself going or started
• Get lightheaded if meals are missed
• Eating relieves fatigue
• Feel shaky, jittery, or have tremors
• Agitated, easily upset, nervous
• Poor memory/forgetful
• Blurred vision

A person without a blood sugar disorder should not have symptoms before or after a meal, eating should merely leave them satisfied and not hungry.

The medical community justifies hypoglycemia with a fasting glucose level of below 70. In the functional medicine world we believe this is too low and we see hypoglycemia at a fasting glucose level below 85. The goal with raising the level is that we begin to address hypoglycemia in hopes of preventing further blood sugar issues down the road, this is what we call a "preventive range" or "functional range."

So, now that you know what hypoglycemia is, what can we do about it?

Well, I mentioned earlier that hypoglycemia is mainly a diet and lifestyle issue, so that's what we need to focus on. First of all YOU MUST EAT A PROTEIN RICH BREAKFAST! I think this is the hardest point that I have to make with people. A classic sign of someone who is hypoglycemic is that they are not hungry in the morning, or if they are, they usually opt for a cup of coffee and a muffin. Breakfast is exactly like it sounds...it “breaks the fast" which is what the body is doing while we are sleeping. As we sleep the body doesn't stop using glucose, so when we wake we need to restore our glucose reserves. Eating protein in the morning instead of carbohydrates will keep our body energized longer without a big crash like the muffin would cause.

People that complain they are not hungry in the morning, or even that they feel too nauseous to eat anything that early, must still eat. It is important to understand that the feeling of nausea is due to the fact that the body is in a sympathetic (fight or flight response) overdrive from hypoglycemia. If this is you then begin by taking small bites in order to engage the parasympathetic system (rest and digest).

Here are some healthy breakfast ideas:

• Eggs- hard boiled, scrambled, poached, fried, etc.
• Turkey bacon- nitrate free
• Almond butter with celery, apple slices, rice crackers
• Yogurt with nuts (make sure yogurt is full fat and unflavored)
• Grilled veggies with chicken breast
• Piece of fish
• Handful of nuts
• Protein shake (double check ingredients to make sure that it is a good source of protein and that there are no additives and excess sugar)

Once you have mastered the protein for breakfast concept there are two other diet/lifestyle changes that you need to work on as well. These changes are to avoid quick sugars as meals and snacks and to avoid eating sugar before you go to bed. It is important to eat every 2-3 hours with a protein rich snack; going too long in between meals will cause blood sugar to drop. If you choose to eat fruit then make sure that you are eating protein along with it. Anything eaten before bed, should be high in protein and low in sugars and carbohydrates. Foods eaten at all meals should be low in the glycemic index.

If you change your eating and lifestyle habits and you are still having symptoms of hypoglycemia then you may need to consider food sensitivities. Food sensitivities can exacerbate insulin surges and cause fatigue and cravings for sugar after meals. If you are experiencing this then I recommend trying a food elimination diet in order to pinpoint those troubling foods.

Learning how to maintain your blood sugar is so important; maybe even more important than you realize! Glucose is the fuel for the brain, about 20-25% of the body's entire glucose load is used by the brain. Blood sugar imbalances can wreak havoc on neuronal function and may promote degeneration. Studies have also shown that constant insulin surges promote serotonin dysregulation.

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 7-In defense of my friend Joe

One of my favorite parts of the weekend is to be able to sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee...or two...and maybe one every once in a while during the week days as well. So today I decided to look into some of the research done on this wonderful beverage and see what they have to say.

What I came across that interested me was some studies that have been done in recent years showing that coffee may have some benefits, such as protecting against Parkinson's disease, type 2 diabetes and liver disease. It also has been shown to contain a high content of antioxidants and that coffee may improve endurance performance in long-duration physical activities.

Type 2 Diabtetes- The studies on coffee and type 2 diabetes are pretty extensive, with over 15 published studies. The compounds magnesium and chromium that are found in coffee help the body use the hormone insulin, which controls glucose in the blood. This is very important since in type 2 diabetes the body loses its ability to use insulin and regulate blood sugar effectively.

Cirrhosis- Studies in United States, Japan, Europe, and Norway shows that coffee may help to protect the liver against the effects of alcohol. According to an article in the Seattle Times, researchers speculate that when the liver metabolizes coffee, this somehow inhibits the chronic liver inflammation involved in metabolizing lots of alcohol.

Parkinson’s- There have also been studies that show that the caffeine in coffee may increase the production of dopamine. In Parkinson’s the brain cells that make dopamine stop working, so the studies suggest that caffeine wards off Parkinson’s by protecting these cells.

Antioxidants- There is large quantities of antioxidants in coffee, but research is still pending on whether these antioxidants appear in the bloodstream.

Along with the good I also unfortunately found some bad information that I had never heard before. There are apparently 2 substances found in coffee, kahweol and cafestol that raise cholesterol levels. Supposedly using paper filters to brew your coffee captures these substances, but for those drinking non-filtered coffee drinks these substances get left in the drink.

Without going into much detail, coffee can also trigger a TH-2 response for someone with an autoimmune disease. If you know you are autoimmune and any of these ingredients seem to make your autoimmune disease flare up or you feel worse then it may be important to avoid them: pine bark extract, grape seed extract, green tea extract, resveratrol, pynogenol, and coffee.

Coffee also stimulates the adrenals, which can wear them down and eventually affect your blood sugar as well. If you require coffee to get you going in the morning this may be a sign of hypoglycemia. Or if you need coffee as an afternoon pick-me up or in order to stay awake after lunch, this could be a sign of insulin resistance.

The moral of the story is the same as it is for many things; moderation. We know that coffee can increase blood pressure and heart rate. While it can also cause insomnia and dehydration.

We also need to be careful what we are adding to our coffee, since most of us don’t just drink it plain. Instead we like to add sweeteners, cream, sugar, or we order blended icy concoctions. All these additions are just extra calories, and more junk that our bodies would prefer to live without.

Before I end this blog I would like to leave you with a funny story about my husband:

I have been a coffee drinker for some time now, especially since I lived in Seattle, but my husband never liked coffee until I came around. The first time he made a pot of coffee he decided to drink the entire pot so not to waste it. After that he headed to his checkup at the doctor's office. The nurse then took his blood pressure, and then took it again and then again while giving him a worried look. At that time he decided to mention that he had just drank a whole pot of coffee and was wondering if that would affect his blood pressure. I think that she was relieved that there was an explanation to why his blood pressure was so extremely high, but let him know that she did not advise him to drink a whole pot of coffee, and that sometimes it is OK to waste coffee.

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Sources:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/health/2003159425_healthcoffee30.html

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/coffee-new-health-food

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/the-buzz-on-coffee

http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/coffee_health_risk