Are Your Reflux or Heartburn Symptoms Not Improving?

Have you been suffering from reflux or heartburn for months or years? Have you tried every over the counter and prescription medication with little or no noticeable changes? You are not alone. According to the the American Gastroenterological Association estimate that 33% of Americans have acid reflux disease! In April the Center for Research on Aging found that 23% of men and women over 65 in nursing homes or other care facilities are suffering from some form of gastric problem. What's worse is that these conditions are the most expensive GI disorders in the United States and costs of treatment are approaching $10 billion every year!!

Doctor's frequently prescribe reflux medications and over the counter antacids such as Tums to help reduce symptoms and battle the excessive acid that is thought to be the cause of reflux and chronic heartburn. But here's the thing that will blow your mind... Stomach acid production and thus stomach acid pH DECREASES WITH AGE!! This means that if you're over 30, your stomach acid production has already begun to decrease and thus you're not digesting your food as well. As you reach 40 your stomach acid production is about half as much as when you were 20. This means that if you are on a reflux medication that decreases your acid production you are literally making the problem WORSE!!!

Researchers have known that acid production decreases with age for over 30 years!!! Don't believe me? The A study published in 1986 in the Journal of American Geriatric Society found that 30% of men and women over 60 have atrophic gastritis where they produce little or no stomach acid. Another study 1963 in Gastroenterology found that 40% of post menopausal women have NO basal gastric acid secretions!!!!

So what we need to do instead of dampening the stomach acid production with medications is to eat foods that help to naturally increase stomach acid and/or take a supplement with digestive aids and enzymes designed to assist in food digestion. We should also cut down on foods that increase or trigger symptoms of reflux or heartburn.

So what can you do?
1) Cut down on how many over the counter antacids you are taking each day and talk to your doctor about reducing or eliminating your medications that may be interfering with stomach acid production.
2) Drink water 30 minutes before or after your meal rather than with the meal so that you don't lower the pH of your stomach and effect how well you digest your food.
3) Eat five smaller meals throughout the day rather than three large meals so your stomach has less food to digest at one time.
4) Try Peppermint Tea. Peppermint has been used as an antibacterial and for increased gastric acid production. It can also combat gas, increase bile flow, and aid in healing the stomach and liver.
5) Try a digestive aid such as Gastro Plus. This supplement combined pepsin to assist in digestion with betaine hydrochloride to help restore the normal stomach acid and support healthy gut function. It will also help to decrease the amounts of bacteria in the gut that can lead to stomach ulcers.
6) Take a probiotic such as Ultrabiotic to help restore intestinal balance. This supplement will help to get those "good" bacteria back to normal quantities in your gut so you don't have as much stomach upset and so you can absorb the nutrients your body needs.

Pumpkin Seed Oil Reduces Hot Flashes, Improves Cholesterol, and Reduces Blood Pressure in Women

We are always looking for the next best thing when it comes to improving our cholesterol scores and lowering our blood pressure, but many of us may not be looking to the harvest of the season for answers. Pumpkin seed oil has long been used for treating intestinal disturbances, cholesterol and blood pressure regulation, and most recently prostate hypertrophy.

However a pilot study released in October of 2011 looked at the links between women taking pumpkin seed oil and the many positive effects on their health. Not only did these researchers find that these women's blood pressure decreased, but they also found an improvement in both HDL (good) cholesterol levels and menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and mood swings.

What these researchers may be looking into in the near future is, why? Well the answer is two fold so I'll try to keep it simple.

Pumpkin seeds have high incidence of chromium which is an essential nutrient needed for proper function of sex hormones and insulin in the body. This means that the chromium present in this miracle seed may actually be helping these women's bodies to function and direct their hormones to be more balanced. This balancing effect can help with not only menopause but women suffering from PMS, painful periods, PCOS, and even infertility. If the researchers would have looked at diabetes or weight loss, they might also have found that the women involved in the study would have also had improvement in their rate of weight loss and managing their diabetes as well since the insulin regulation would have been improved.

Pumpkin seeds are also rich in magnesium which is a really important mineral that is said to be even more important that calcium!! 80% of the population is magnesium deficient, so most likely the women involved in this study might have had some deficiency. Magnesium is a natural muscle relaxant that helps to relax the skeletal and smooth muscle of the body so it can help to reduce muscle spasms and cramping as well as relax the walls of the blood vessels to improve blood pressure. In addition, magnesium is an essential mineral that is used to regulate the enzymes used to produce cholesterol in the body, so supplementation using pumpkin seed oil would have increased production of HDL cholesterol in the body.

Wow that's some great stuff, but what do I want you to take from this? Make sure you're eating your seasonal fruits and vegetables so you're not only rounding out your diet but getting many of the essential minerals that are needed for everyday body functions. If you're not a bit fan of pumpkin or pumpkin seeds, I'd recommend talking to a doctor or a specialized nutritionist that would be able to make some suggestions for supplements that would help you get enough magnesium and chromium to improve your health. If you need some guidance, AlignLife offers nutritional phone consultations to those that feel a bit overwhelmed by the many different food sources and supplement choices there are available on the market today. Just call 309-689-6200 to set-up your appointment today.

Vitamin C Reduces Labor Time and Stretch Marks

During pregnancy the demand for vitamin C skyrockets due to the increased stress on the body and the need to form protein and connective tissue for mom and baby. However, since humans can't make vitamin C like other animals and vitamin C crosses over the placenta for baby's development, moms-to-be really need to make sure they are getting enough from their diet or using supplementation to get the amount their bodies need. The current RDA of vitamin C according to the National Academy of Food Science and Nutrition Board for pregnant mothers is 60mg, however this is only the amount known to reduce the risk of scurvy. Many doctors are finding amazing results with increased vitamin C intake during pregnancy including reduced labor times, less or no appearance of stretch marks, and faster healing of the perineum after birth. In fact, these doctors are recommending amounts of vitamin C for their patients that are 2 to 83 times more than the RDA!!

Dr. William Saccoman, general practitioner and preceptor at the University of California, has found that in women taking large doses of Vitamin C not only has labor time decreased by less than half, but these labors are less painful and have less incidence of tearing or lacerations due to the increased tissue elasticity. He also commented on the fact that these same women have less incidence of stretch marks and heal quicker to get back to normal activities. His observation has been documented over 500 pregnancies and deliveries made over the past 10 years.

According to Dr. Robert Scott, Head of the Southern California Women's Medical Group in Los Angeles and assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Southern California, " I have seen no adverse reactions to the Vitamin C and never a deformed baby when the mother was on this program [high Vitamin C dosage]." He reports that over 500 of his patients have been put on the high dosage with labor times that in many cases are little over an hours time.

Dr. Archie Kalokerinos from Austrailia reports that he has seen the same "marvellous" results with Vitamin C supplementation while serving as the medical officer for the government funded Aboriginal Medical Service. Dr. Kalokerinos has been using mega doses of up to 30 grams of Vitamin C in practice since 1971 while serving as the medical superintendent for 20 years at the Collerenebri District Hospital northwest of Sydney. He also commented that, " A large number of them were alcoholics who ate very poorly and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't correct this problem. Nevertheless, what I found was that by supplementing them with Vitamin C, they actually produced babies that were healthier than a lot of babies in the community. And, as the babies were growing, they were showing fewer signs of recurrent infections and problems in infancy than other babies. To me, this has always been quite incredible. Even if we couldn't correct the diet, just the simple supplementation was doing so much good."

While these doctors are using high dosages of vitamin C in the field, researchers have yet to explore these effects with large scale research and supplementation. However, some research has been done on the effects of low levels of vitamin C during pregnancy and have found an increased risk of pre-eclampsia, anemia, and lower birth weight babies. In addition, a recent study has also been looking at the impact of vitamin C supplementation in reducing the risk of asthma and lung development for babies in smoking mothers and showing that a dosage of 500mg is enough to help reduce this risk.

Drinking more orange juice isn't going to cut it, so if you want more information on nutrition during pregnancy call AlignLife at (309) 689-6200 to schedule a nutritional consultation today.

Flu Vaccination is a HOAX

For years we've been told that we need to make sure to get our flu vaccinations to protect ourselves and our families from "catching" the flu, however experts and medical research reviews have uncovered evidence that this ISN'T TRUE!

According to Dr. Charles B Simone, an immunologist and oncologist, there are more than 200 viruses that cause influenza and influenza-like illness and vaccines might be effective against only about 10% of all the viruses that cause the flu like syndromes. The Cochrane Collaborations and Lancet's published findings, which are relied upon as the golden standard in independently reviewed research, found that the vaccine does not prevent flu in babies, adults, or in the elderly populations.

According to a 2008 Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews, involving 51 studies and 294,000 children aged 6 months -2 years there was "no evidence that injecting with a flu shot was any more effective than placebo." In children older than 2 years old, it was only effective 33% of the time in preventing the flu!

In a 2006 study Cochrane found that "vaccination only reduced the risk of influenza infection by 6% and reduced the number of missed worked days by less than one day after studying 48 reports including 66,000 adults!!

Agreements between the Lancet and Cochrane Database were reached in their reviews of over 5707 screened articles that "Evidence for protection is lacking" for flu vaccinations used in the elderly populations.

So what's the harm?
Well there are risks of serious harm and injury to those that receive the vaccine including narcolepsy, febrile convulsions, and even neurologic diseases such as Guillain Barre. In addition, there are many toxins and additives in the vaccines that have potential health and allergen risks including nerve toxic mercury derivatives and formaldehyde, corrosive sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid, and cancer causing injectible aluminum.

Is it really worth the risk?

Want more information??? Call AlignLife (309) 689-6200 to setup a consultation to discuss natural ways of improving your body's immunity and ways to protect yourself from the flu!!

Poor Gut Health Causes Diabetes

Many of us aren't drinking enough water or eating the proper diet that supports proper gut health and as a result our body's normal balance is being thrown off course. This abnormal bacteria balance is predisposing our bodies to all different sorts of health conditions and ability to cope with the changes in our natural environment. Keep reading to hear more about how to keep you and your family's gut health in the green and  some useful tips on how to keep it balanced properly.

Your gut bacteria levels should contain high levels of a number of different lactobacillus and other normal species of bacteria, however many Americans today have high levels of E. coli and pathogenic bacteria that can lead to gut inflammation, excessive gas production, decrease nutrient absorption in the intestines, and even cause gut cell wall death. Recent research including the studies in the paragraph below, have been looking into the role of gut bacteria in the development of common health concerns including diabetes, colorectal cancer, autoimmune diseases, obesity, and also food allergies.

The University of Copenhagen's Department of Biology is now embarking on research examining these gut bacteria genes and their role in the development of diabetes. In a recently published study, a link was found between environmental factors in pathogenic gut bacteria that are speculated to contribute to the inflammation that leads to the development of diabetes. A 2011 study looked at the impact of gut flora and their role in the development of the immune system and increased rates of obesity and diabetes when that normal balance was altered.

A proper diet includes 3-5 servings of lean protein and 7-10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily. During digestion the protein is broken down into amino acids which are used for everything in your body including hormone and enzyme production and building tissue such as muscle and ligaments. This means that if your diet doesn't include the right amount of protein you may not have the building blocks necessary for tissue rebuilding needed for healing and maintenance or the amino acids used for enzymes and hormones. The fruits and vegetables are actually a carbohydrate (YES that is correct carbohydrates are not just breads and pastas) that are broken down and used for nutrient and mineral absorption as well as for feeding the healthy gut bacteria I mentioned above. The waste products from these healthy gut bacteria actually coat and protect the cells of the gut wall from damage and death. If these bacteria don't have enough of the fruits and vegetables they need, they will not produce the waste products necessary for gut wall protection and your gut wall may start to become damaged or sections of the gut wall may die. This can lead to undigested food products being released through these dead cell walls and the potential for allergies to develop at a cellular and blood level. In order to restore a healthy bacterial balance we need to alter our diet to help promote the healthy gut bacterial growth and possibly even take a probiotic supplement to help increase the levels of healthy gut bacteria in our systems.

So what can you do to protect yourself?

1) Eat a healthy diet. Make sure to get 3-5 servings of lean protein and 7-10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily. Also make sure to drink plenty of water which should be about half your body weight in ounces, not just the 8-10 glasses of 8 oz of water anymore.
2) Cut down on sugars and junk foods. Sugars and junk food can cause an acidic environment in the intestines and a hostile environment for the healthy bacteria that need to be thriving in your gut. So cut out as many processed sugars as you can and try to restrict the bread and pasta sources of carbohydrates in favor of the health promoting carbohydrates present in fruits and vegetables.
3) Take a probiotic supplement. A probiotic supplement can help to restore normal gut flora and decrease the number of pathogenic bacteria in the gut. A good supplement should have numerous different strains of lactobacillus and recommend you take them multiple times a day, however children may need a probiotic with different strains of bacteria. If you're on any immune system suppressants or medication, you should talk to your doctor before beginning any supplemental regiment.
4) Get your gut bacteria tested. This will give you an in depth look at your current bacterial balance and dictate whether you need a special diet and/or dietary restrictions to control the digestive environment.

Over Exercising Decreases Your Results

Many people have heard that diet and exercise are the keys to achieving your weight loss and health goals. While this statement is true, there are many differences in opinion as to how much exercise is required and what type of exercise you should be doing.

Many people tend to rely on a scale to measure their goals to achieving a healthier lifestyle, however this is a very bad indicator!! When you step on a scale (especially if you're measuring your body weight more than once a week) you are measuring the weight of your muscle, fat, and water retention as well. However many people don't realize is that muscle weighs more than fat. So in fact, if you're building muscle with your workout your weight may actually not change or it may increase if you rely on a scale. Muscle is also where your body's metabolism lies, so if you're trying to lose fat and be healthier you must build your muscles to reach your goals. This means weight lifting and using your body to perform natural movements.

People that are exercising and noticing a drop in weight may actually be losing excess water or they may actually be losing muscle mass and thus lowering their metabolism. Short term the dropping scale numbers may make you feel good, but over the long term you are decreasing your metabolism and making it much easier to put on weight later on. This is why people that tend to reduce calorie intake and cut down on eating while dieting tend to have a much easier time gaining the weight after their diet.

In a recent study from the University of Copenhagen, researchers found that in comparing exercise times and intensity it was essential to make sure that you weren't exercising for long of a period of time. They found that in comparing 30 to 60 minutes of daily exercise there wasn't a significant difference, however past studies have found that exercising for longer periods of time actually tends to decrease your results and expenditures.

So what can we take from this?
1. Don't rely on a scale. Take measurements around arms, legs, hips, and waist on a weekly to bi-weekly basis if you really want to measure fat loss.
2. Don't cut your calories. Your body will decrease its metabolism and these changes may cause it to be easier to gain weight later on.
3. Make sure to build muscle while exercising. This will ensure you're effecting your metabolism in a positive light and keep bone density more stable.
4. Keep exercise around 30 minutes daily and try to vary your workout so that you're building muscle in different parts of your body rather than one area. Don't be scared to add some cardio a few times a week rather than weight lifting. Your workout will have better effects if its varied and keeps your body guessing.

If you'd like more personalized recommendations, feel free to setup a consultation in my office to get some advice on how to reach your health goals. Give us a call at (309) 689-6200!

3 Ways to Improve Attention Deficit Symptoms

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 5.2 million children are diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder in the United States today. In fact, the number of children diagnosed with attention deficit disorder increased by 21.8% over the four year time span from 2003 to 2007. The growing number of diagnoses are disturbing because this condition can effect the social, academic, and even physical development of our children and may also be responsible for the decreased productivity and concentration that we've seen in the workplace due to adults that are suffering from ADD as well.

So what is Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? It's a growing diagnosis that is based off a questionnaire or rating from parents and teachers and a short subjective evaluation from a doctor of child's intelligence, social, emotional, or attention function. A medical examination is not necessary and there are no definitive test to diagnose this condition. As you can tell this diagnosis is highly subjective and can be interpreted differently between practitioners and different environments.

After a diagnosis of ADD or ADHD is made, parents are frequently encouraged to begin a lifetime medicine regiment in order to keep symptoms under control. Most frequently children are placed on Ritalin which is a Schedule II Controlled Substance that is in the same class as morphine and cocaine. This class of medications are highly addictive and have the greatest potential for abuse. This medication is not specific to children with ADD or ADHD and similar calming effects can be seen in normal children not suffering from the condition. In addition, many parents are not properly informed about the serious side effects or long term damage that can be caused from this medication. For example, studies on Ritalin have found that it impairs blood flow to the brain that can impair thinking, learning, and cause memory loss in addition to causing brain shrinkage and permanent physical abnormalities that can affect children and adults for the rest of their life. In addition, some studies have revealed a worsening of hyperactivity and inattention in children undergoing pharmaceutical treatment with this medication. Long term treatment with this medication will usually alter brain levels of serotonin and can lead to depression later in life that may require further medication.

So how can you improve symptoms of ADD and ADHD naturally? Recent studies on children suffering from ADD and ADHD have found many instances of nutritional deficiencies in essential fatty acids and proteins that are the essential building blocks of our brain, nerves, hormones, and muscles. Without these building blocks our bodies do not have the capacity to upkeep the nervous system function that is required for proper brain function and communication with the rest of the body. As a result, many physical symptoms such as inattentiveness, emotional withdrawl, and even clumsiness can result. An evaluation of your child's nervous system function and a nutritional assessment to check for deficiencies in these building blocks or any vital vitamins and minerals can be a large part in improving the body and brain function in your child or yourself. In addition, many of these children have alteration of their primary senses such as smell and taste that can affect their diet and contribute to food allergies and nutritional deficiencies. I have found that comprehensive allergy testing for sensitivities or intolerance can be a valuable tool in identifying underlying factors that may further complicate gut absorption of these essential nutrients and contribute to these deficiencies.

So what do I recommend?

1. Have your child's nervous system evaluated by a specialist. Chiropractors are trained to assess nervous system function and can assess not only any undetected nerve damage that can contribute to altered brain function or communication but can also identify any sensory disabilities that I have mentioned above.

2. Have your child's diet assessed for deficiencies or possible allergens that can complicate nutrient absorption. Some dieticians may be trained to perform this kind of evaluation, but I always recommend looking to a clinic that specializes in assessing children with ADD. There are certain markers and  trends in children with ADD and ADHD that can only be properly evaluated by a specialist or someone well versed in treating children with ADD and ADHD.

3. Comprehensive allergy testing is a must for children who's nutritional assessment shows abnormalities. This testing can reveal sensitivity or intolerance to many food additives, preservatives, or even main food products that can cause gut inflammation and affect nutrient absorption. Skin scratch testing may not be enough in most cases as there may be reaction at a cellular level in the body so I recommend a comprehensive test in a laboratory to check for blood reaction to allergens.

4. If you'd like more information on natural ways to improve symptoms of ADD or ADHD , I'd highly recommend attending the  Drug-Free ADD and ADHD Solutions presentation and workshop at Naturally Yours in Peoria on Saturday September 22nd at 10am.