LifeCare Chiropractic

The Best Chiropractic Care in Mesa, Arizona

Diet Choices for Your Best Health

WHAT YOUR CARDIOLOGIST ISN’T TELLING YOU WILL HURT YOU.

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WHAT YOUR CARDIOLOGIST ISN’T TELLING YOU WILL HURT YOU.  Research has shown that lifestyle change has a very powerful effect on risk of first and subsequent heart attackes.  Most times lifestyle is much more powerful (and safer) than medications.  However, it seems our focus is not on the right things for those patients who have had a heart attack.  Basically, most patients were somewhat compliant with their meds for the 30 day follow up, but fewer were compliant with the needed lifestyle change (diet, exercise, quitting smoking).  However, for those who made the right choices, their risk of having another heart attack was cut in half.  For those not smart enough to get it (kept smoking, no diet chanes and no exercise), they had 3.8 times the risk of another heart attack.

Bottom line is that lifestyle changes are more powerful at protecting our heart, but patients don’t seem to follow recommendations.  There are two reasons this might be happening.  First, patients are too dumb and stupid to understand they are more likely to die if they don’t make the right choices.  OR, the cardiologists are not adequately expressing just how powerful lifestyle changes are…  So, if you’ve had a heart attack already and haven’t made the needed changes, which scenario fits you?

SOY IS EVIL, BUT NOT SOLUBLE FIBER

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SOY IS EVIL, BUT NOT WITH SOLUBLE FIBER.  Funny how the first 20 or so websites that come up when you search for soy are all based around the fact that even sitting in the same room can be deadly.  Of course, this is flying in the face of heavily dominant soy-positive medical literature.  But of course, this is non-GMO, non processed soy (no veggie burgers or Tofurky).

One of the things anti-soy people talk about is the “anti-nutrients” in soy such as phytic acid and that phytic acid attaches to minerals and keeps them from being absorbed.  Well, so does tea and flaxseed, but you don’t see website after website demonizing them.  Anyway, in this study, the authors find that fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) such as those in soluble fiber actually help with mineral absorption and counteract the “anti-nutrient” effect of soy.  So, shockingly, a healthy diet containing soluble fiber and soy would actually have an overall very positive effect.  Who would’ve thunk it?

IS ALL GRASS FED MEAT THE SAME?

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The easy answer is no.  There are many people who are trying to improve their diets, but without knowing a single small detail it can be derailed quickly, even at stores like Whole Foods.

First, we need to address the “red meat” issue.  We  clearly have hunter gatherer genetics.  We spent some 55,000 generations as hunter gatherers and it’s just not that easy to change.  But, let’s face it–we probably weren’t the greatest hunters.  Sure, we all envision our ancestors in a well disguised lean-to in camouflaged gear sporting a hunting rifle ready to take out a 12 point buck.  In reality, our ancestors were probably better at hunting squirrels and insects than big game, although I’m sure the occasional hunter got lucky.

Overall, though, a plant based diet with <20% animal protein seems to be the best for us.  Our choices for the animal protein we take in are critical and need to be of high quality.  This last aspect is what is severely missing in our country and we’re paying the health price for it.  When most people think of meat, they think of chicken, beef and pork.  Or rather, commercially grown, hormone laden, grotesquely large-breasted chicken, corn fed, highly stressed, living in their own feces beef or pork.  And we won’t even begin to get into the concept of xenohormesis in this post…

The greater our protein options are, the better.  When we choose animal proteins, these need to be of the highest quality.  That means organic, free range chicken.  It means wild game.  It means grass FINISHED beef.

The last is an important factor that many are not aware of.  Even if an animal is raised as grass fed, if they grain finish (most commonly with corn), the ranchers have completely undone the benefits of the grass feeding.  This will raise the omega 6 content of the meat, instead of the higher omega 3 content found in animals grass fed throughout the entire life cycle.

This particular study, although it is a mouse study, illustrates this point beautifully.  Researchers looked at the effect of different feeding practices of animal proteins (grass fed, grain finished, wild) and how they affected prostaglandin levels.  Prostaglandins can be pro- or anti-inflammatory depending on the type.  PEG2 will promote inflammation while PGI2 will help to keep our blood clot free and lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

The results, after 2 weeks on specific diets, are summarized as follows:

  • chicken-based diet increased PGE2 (bad)
  • PGE2 was lowest in with range-fed beef, range-fed bison, and elk (good)
  • PGE2 was highest with grain-finished beef (bad)
  • elk meat had the greatest PGI2 (good)

The bottom line is that we should maintain a plant based diet with our animal protein < 20% of our intake.  If we take in animal proteins, they need to be of the highest quality and consist ideally of locally grown, grass fed throughout the entire life cycle beef, wild caught fish or wild game.  The extra cost will be offset by the small quantities.

WANT YOUR CHILD TO HAVE BETTER FOCUS?

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WANT YOUR CHILD TO HAVE BETTER FOCUS?  Boy–don’t we all!!  Actually, there are many things we can do to improve our children’s brain function.  Think about the foods many Americans are feeding their kids, the lack of any communication with nature, the poor quality diets at school, the high intake of sweetened beverages and the low rates of sustained breastfeeding.  How is a brain supposed to function without the right building blocks?

As a parent, how can you NOT do everything to give your child what they need to function?  That means reevaluating all the snacks in the house, the wonderful corn fed beef, farm raised salmon, the high intakes of diary, the amount of time they spend in the house.  If you can look in the mirror and honestly say to yourself that 95% of what your child is doing for their health is the best it can be, you’re ok.  If not, it’s time to rethink some priorities.

IMPACT OF EARLY FEEDING ON CHILDHOOD ECZEMA

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IF YOU’RE NOT NURSING, WHAT’S BETTER–COW’S MILK OR SOY?  Actually…neither.  Mother’s milk is superior to anything and every single attempt needs to be made to nurse before moving on to formula.  That being said, it is not always possible.  Regardless of what type of formula you use, the newborn’s GI tract is not ready to be bombarded with one type of protein again and again and again.

I really feel that hydrolyzed formulas (Nutramagen, Alimentum) are the best choice for formula feeding if nursing is not an option.  This gives that developing GI tract and immune system less intact proteins to react to and develop an atopic profile with allergies and asthma.  Couple this with no antibiotics, use of probiotics and Vit D and you’ve got a nick recipe for a healthy immune response.

IMPORTANCE OF DIET QUALITY IN CHILDHOOD

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We’re harming our children. Few things scare me more than the idea that girls are hitting puberty & experiencing breast development earlier and earlier. A girl’s body developing because the environment forces it rather than it happening naturally is a recipe for breast and endometrial cancer. So how do we help?

Diet is incredibly important in helping her body develop the way it’s supposed to. No artificial colors, preservatives, sweeteners. No refined carbs. More healthy fats, avoid bad fats. Exercise. A good quality multi wouldn’t hurt either (again–NO artificial sweeteners or colors!!)

Read entire article here

 

STEPS TO REDUCE MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION IN KIDS

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Prediabetic children already have mitochondrial dysfx. I know most of us slept through biology class, but the mitochondria generate energy for our cells to function. Some billion reaction occur per SECOND, & every one requires energy. Not enough energy & fecal matter hits. EVERY chronic disease, cancer begins here. Seeing this problem in kids is a sign of worse things to come. Stop processed foods. Reduce chemical exposure. Increase fruits, veggies, spices, tea.

Read entire article here

WANT TO LIVE 15 YEARS LONGER?

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Certainly if these years were spent in a nursing home having to be wheeled around in a wheelchair the answer for most of us would be “no.”  But what about an extra 15 years of life traveling, spending time with grandkids and playing golf and tennis?

There is absolutely no doubt that the way we take care of ourselves has everything to do with how we age.  Anyone who falls back on the old “Uncle Jerry smoked and drank Jim Bean until he died in a brothel at 103” is deluding themselves into thinking that THEY won the genetic lottery and can abuse their genes as much as they like.

 This particular study just confirms this further and quantifies the benefits a little more.  Basically, participants were given a score based on 4 factors:   adherence to a Mediterranean diet, nonsmoking, normal weight [BMI (in kg/m2): 18.5 to <25], and regular physical activity.

Those women with the lowest scores had 4 TIMES the risk of dying in the next decade compared to those with the highest scores.  In men the number was 2.6 times higher.  This translated into 15 more years of life in women and 8.4 years in men.  THAT, readers, is a lot of life to live.

These aren’t difficult guidelines to adhere to.  Non smoking is a no brainer and no one today would look you in the eye and tell you they’re improving their health by smoking.  Regular physical activity.  Adherence to a Mediterranean diet is something most people find very pleasant and compliance is high because of this.  And, the Med diet, when combined with calorie restriction, will likely aid in maintaining an ideal body weight.

So if you’re not there, are you willing to make these changes for 15 more years of life???  If you are NOT, then how do you value your own life and happiness when it’s not worth some simple changes?

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