The BASICS for GOOD HEALTH

Did you know ? .......  Sugar and some carbohydrates cause you to have pain.
The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition warns that processed sugars trigger the release of inflammatory messengers called cytokines. Sugar goes by many names so look out for any word ending in “ose,” e.g. fructose or sucrose on ingredient labels.
http://www.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/arthritis-diet/foods-to-avoid-limit/food-ingredients-and-inflammation-2.php


There are no short cuts for improving your health.  We can check your genetics, test for pathogens, optimize your nutrition with supplements, and even use a prescription here and there, but there must be a focus on improving the following areas of your life to maintain balance and sustained health.


Eat REAL food.  Limit food products that come in a box or package and have ingredients that you cannot pronounce. Eliminate food colorings/dyes, GMO foods, and artificial flavors. Limit all forms of sugar except fruit as much as possible. Do not eat sugar or carbs in the morning. Instead have protein to stabilize your blood sugars to prevent diabetes. Consume healthy fats like avocado, coconut, olive oil, and grass-fed organic animal products to build brain and nerve tissues.


Fresh air and sunshine. The breath of LIFE.  We need oxygen to permeate our cells for proper function.  Without ample oxygen our internal chemistry becomes unbalanced and a ripe environment for diseases to thrive.  Sunshine is not the enemy! We need sun to create vitamin D which is a hormone that affects every system in our body.   "Increasing levels of vitamin D3 among the general population could potentially prevent chronic diseases that claim nearly one million lives throughout the world each year. Incidence of several types of cancer could also be slashed in half!"   Please get your vitamin D level checked and aim to get it up to about 70 using supplements if you need to.


Movement/exercise. Our bodies are designed to move. The lymph system, (the waste removal system) does not work optimally if our muscles are not contracting, this leads to a build up of toxins that affect every system in our bodies.  Exercise boosts our immune system, releases endorphins which decrease pain, balances neurotransmitters to lower anxiety and depression, tones the heart and vessels to prevent heart disease and stroke, builds stronger bones, lowers blood sugar and improves insulin sensitivity to prevent diabetes, builds more neurons to prevent Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, stimulates colon health and helps prevent constipation, and releases many natural hormones that prevent cancer.


Sleep. Sleep is the anabolic or "healing and repairing" time. If we do not get adequate quantity or quality, the damage from the previous day is not repaired and this accelerates aging/pain/anxiety/illness. Studies also show that sleep deficiency alters activity in some parts of the brain. If you're sleep deficient, you may have trouble making decisions, solving problems, controlling your emotions and behavior, and coping with change. Sleep deficiency also has been linked to depression, suicide, and risk-taking behavior.  Using a sedative drug or medicine like ambien is not the answer, they sedate you rather than letting you flow through the differing sleep waves. Using calming herbs or amino acids can help by resetting the sleep rhythm.


Hydration. Many common ailments are a result of chronic dehydration. Coffee, tea, and sugary carbonated drinks further dehydrate us. We need to consume half our body weight in ounces per day of pure water to keep our cells hydrated, our bowels regular, and our electrons moving correct to make energy.


Emotional/spiritual/mental health. A good attitude and happiness is CRUCIAL to any healing.  If you don't have believe that you can heal, it will be harder.  If you have a negative attitude, feel like a victim, and obsess about things that aren't true, you will strengthen those neural networks. You will replay those tapes over and over in your head. This can be a self sabotage.    If you FOCUS ON THE GOOD, have hope, BELIEVE in the powerful healing ability of your body you WILL improve!    You will manifest the physical body to repair and heal itself.
The mental state cannot overcome a lack of nutrients and bad habits.  However a pessimistic and futile attitude can derail a perfectly healthy body and diet/lifestyle.


Social support/relationships. surround yourself with positive supportive people and messages.  If the news is fear based and negativee and causes anxiety, find a new news source or skip it all together!  If a relationship is toxic and causing constant stress or demeaning feelings, figure out how to change it, get out of it, or learn healthy boundaries and self care skills.


Avoidance of toxins. We have more chemicals in our world than ever before. Some are obviously not good for us and others we are lead to believe are perfectly harmless. This is rarely true.  Some of the most harmful chemicals are found in our everyday products like shampoo, fabric softener, air fresheners and cleaning products. Phthalates, parabens, and artificial fragrances cause a disruption of our endocrine system which will alter the level of hormones in the body causing symptoms or illness in any system in the body. Chemicals also put extra stress on the liver which can get 'behind in its job' and cause effects on the endocrine system, cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal system, immune system, nervous system, and more. This leads to hormonal imbalance, thyroid dysfunction, high cholesterol and heart disease, digestive distress, frequent illness, anxiety, depression, and more. Purifying your life, using chemical free products, & eating organic can make a huge impact on your health. Visit www.ewg.org/skindeep to check the toxicity status of your products.


Supplements/targeted nutrition Our food does not contain as many nutrients as it used to.  And a lot of our food has added toxins and chemicals that are not good for us.  Using supplements to augment the lack of vitamins and minerals, support detox pathways, and manipulate metabolic processes can be highly therapeutic and speed recovery time.


Testing Biomarkers. You can eat right, exercise and meditate all day but if your thyroid is off you may still have anxiety, depression, weight gain, constipation, etc.  This emphasizes the need for regular testing to fix an underlying problem that may be hijacking your health and wellness. Try to find a Naturopathic physician or Functional Medicine doctor who will do thorough and if needed advanced testing to find the underlying cause of your symptoms.  Call ME!  :) . 520-887-4287