New One Hour Format

Misinformation on health

Fish oil and breast cancer risk

Inflammation and cancer development

Loss of smell

Sinus …

1. Coca Cola conspiracy – caffeine, sodium, diuretic effect creates thirst
2. Food industry
3. Fish Oil – omega 3 & 6, omega 3
4. Alzheimer’s disease
5. Autism spectrum disorder
6. Detox
7. Water contamination
8. Sodium benzonate and leukemia
9. Refluxing bile
10. Parkinson’s disease
11. Dairy products – casein protein
12. Tetanus
13. Raw foods and sensitivities
14. Sunblocks
15. Protein bars & casein
16. Lyme disease
17. 5 hour energy drink
18. No interest in food

Orthorexia nervosa – being nervous about correct eating (people who focus on healthy eating)
Supplements (vitamins)
Amount of omega 3s to take daily
Coumadin & vitamin K
When to take fish oilBlood platelets
Coumadin & Levaquin
Medication and eye problems
Omega 3, 6, 9  & osteoporosis
Stomach irritation & spices
Cholesterol medications
Plavix
Nose bleed
Cingular
Blood pressure & turmeric
Calf muscle spasm
Curcumin & inflammation
Anemia
Omega 3

Fibrinogen is a protein that is produced by the body and plays a very important role in the process of clotting. When there is damage to a tissue, for instance if you cut your finger, the fibrinogen acts to form the scaffolding on which the clot can form.

As you can see, this is a very important process and fibrinogen is an important player in keeping you from bleeding to death during injury.

So far so good, so why are we talking about fibrinogen?

Fibrinogen – The Jekyll and Hyde of the body

Fibrinogen apparently has a dark side as well. As with most compounds produced by the body, when they get out of balance they become potentially harmful and fibrinogen is no different. Because fibrinogen acts as a precursor to clots, you can imagine that if fibrinogen levels rise it can lead to abnormal clots such as deep vein thrombosis, heart attack and stroke. In addition, having a chronically elevated fibrinogen has been linked with plaque formation in the arteries and thus becomes a major risk factor in the development of heart disease. Fibrinogen can also impede normal blood blow by thickening the blood, thus making it difficult for oxygen and nutrients to be delivered to vital organs and muscles. This poor blood flow can cause fatigue, muscle pain and even memory loss.

You can see how an elevation in fibrinogen can lead to chronic health problems that ultimately decrease the quality of our lives. So what can be done about elevated fibrinogen?

How to Normalize Fibrinogen

First, have your doctor test your blood to determine if your fibrinogen levels are too high. Research suggests that fibrinogen levels should remain between 200 and 300 mg/dl, even though the blood test may list a much higher range as “normal”.

Now that we know that your fibrinogen levels are elevated, we recommend the following lifestyle and supplement change

1. Control blood sugar. Diabetics are at a much higher risk of heart attack and stroke. This increased risk occurs for many reasons, however, higher fibrinogens are likely one reason. Controlling blood sugar can have a significant impact on fibrinogen levels.
2. Exercise. Regular exercise can help to promote better blood flow while decreasing the amount of fibrinogen that is circulating through the system.
3. Adding olive oil to your diet has been shown to lower fibrinogen levels in people who have elevated levels.
4. Supplement with omega-3 fatty acids, specifically fish oil. The omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil have been shown to decrease the risk of heart attack. In addition, fish oil decreases triglycerides, stickiness of blood cells and…you guessed it, fibrinogen levels! For best results we recommend that you take enough fish oil to provide 1000 mg of EPA and DHA. A good recommendation would be WholeMega by New Chapter 2 capsules twice daily.
5. Normalize homocysteine. Homocysteine is a byproduct of protein metabolism that has been linked to heart disease. Your doctor can order a simple blood test to assess homocysteine levels. Elevated homocysteine prevents the body from breaking down fibrinogen and thus can lead to an increase in blood fibrinogen. If they are high then you will want to take supplements containing certain vitamins and nutrients such as B12, folic acid, B6 and trimethylglycine (TMG). One such product that combines all of these nutrients is called Homocysteine Factors by Pure Encapsulations.
6. Vitamin C can help to keep fibrinogen levels in check. It appears that you must take at least 2,000 mg of vitamin C daily in order to lower fibrinogen levels significantly. If you have high fibrinogen levels, you may want to take 1,000 mg of Pureway vitamin C from Your Prescription for Health, twice daily.

Have you ever stopped to wonder who taught a monkey what to eat? I realize that you are here to learn about the benefits of potassium, bare with me a moment, I promise I will give you the answer. for now,, back to the monkey question, it will all make sense in a second…

I am willing to bet that you’ve never given it much thought because, admittedly, the question is quite ridiculous. Monkeys just seem to know what to eat. Through this mysterious force we call “instinct”, most animals exit the womb and just know exactly what to put in their mouths.

Although humans are more than animals, we do have instincts, like our monkey ancestors.

In recent years scientists have been trying to understand what man consumed when we didn’t have government agencies to tell us what to eat. During this time, approximately 50,000 to 100,000 years ago, Paleolithic man was comprised of hunters and gatherers who consumed a diet motivated by instinct. Then approximately 10,000 years ago began the Neolithic Revolution.

The Grand Mistake

During this new age of human development; we adopted more of an agriculture and animal husbandry practice. I imagine this is about the time when those nasty little creatures called “food scientists” came into existence. A “food scientist” is someone who thinks they can make food better, tastier, and more nutritious than nature.

Although the study of the Paleolithic lifestyle is quite complex, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what kinds of foods our ancestors consumed. It’s no surprise to see that most experts in the area of Paleolithic eating suspect that these people consumed primarily fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and some wild game. If you’re reading this list and feel that this is common sense, that “knowing” that you are experiencing is the remnant of your Paleolithic instinct.

Our abandonment of the Paleolithic way has resulted in a number of harmful and even life-threatening nutrient deficiencies…

Potassium Deficiency and the Benefits of Potassium

One nutrient that many scientists believe was much more abundant in our diet during Paleolithic times was potassium.

The Stone Age humans likely consume approximately 15 grams of potassium on a daily basis. Compare that to the recommended daily allowance of 4.7 grams per day. A ridiculously low level, I may add, that most of us never achieve.

In addition to a deficiency of potassium, the average American consumes a large excess of sodium. The sodium to potassium ratio is important for proper function of the body; when this ratio gets imbalanced the body suffers. Our Stone Age ancestors only consumed less than a gram of sodium (0.6 g) and it is estimated that the average American now consumes approximately 3.5 g of sodium and an embarrassing 2.8 g of potassium.

Why Should We Be Concerned With Our Sodium/Potassium Balance?

The balance of sodium and potassium is crucial for the function many cellular systems; some signs of potassium deficiency include:

1. Fatigue
2. Heart arrhythmias
3. Heart failure
4. Muscle weakness
5. Constipation
6. Delayed emptying of the stomach

Isn’t Potassium Dangerous?

Contrary to popular belief, potassium is a safe nutrient when taken properly. In healthy adults without heart or kidney problems, daily potassium intake should not exceed 8 grams.

If you suffer with kidney and/or heart disease, or you are on certain medications for blood pressure, potassium toxicity can occur at lower dose. For this latter group, ask your doctor before taking potassium supplements.

When supplementing with potassium, you must take into account how much potassium you are taking in through diet. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish, legumes are all good sources of potassium. It is possible to get sufficient potassium levels from your diet, however, it requires discipline and a hefty appetite for fruits and vegetables.

For the rest of us, supplementation may be required in order to achieve healthy potassium levels.

Who’s At Risk of Potassium Deficiency?

Before we get into the benefits of potassium, let’s talk about the risks of potassium deficiency.

It is important to realize that certain lifestyle habits, medications, and conditions can lead to an increased risk of potassium deficiency, these include:

1. The use of diuretics
2. Diarrhea or vomiting
3. Chronic dieting
4. Chronic kidney failure
5. Magnesium deficiency
6. Strenuous exercise

Keep these variables in mind when considering supplementation. See our Daily Potassium Requirements for Optimal Health for more information on supplementing with potassium.

What Are the Benefits of Potassium?

Potassium is essential for regulating fluid balance, acidity within the body, blood pressure, and muscle function. There are numerous outward benefits of supplementing with potassium, including:

1. Lowering blood pressure – An analysis of 33 published studies have demonstrated potassium supplementation to be of benefit in people who suffer with hypertension. The effective dose used in the research was 2,400 mg daily. (JAMA 1997;277:1624–32
2. Protection from Cardiac Arrhythmias – Studies show that people with low potassium levels are at a heightened risk of arrhythmia. Supplementation with 1,000 mg of potassium was shown to decrease the risk of arrhythmias in people who were prescribed a potassium-depleting blood pressure medication called hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ). (Int J Cardiol 1989;25:93–8)
3. Prolonged life and Improved Quality of life – One study demonstrated that men who consumed high levels of potassium had a longer life. More importantly, those with higher potassium intake enjoyed an improved quality of life. See the article: Potassium for a Longer and Healthier Life – Benefits of Potassium for Seniors
4. Improved energy – Electrolytes, such as potassium, can allow the body to manufacture needed energy. Potassium deficiency can cause physical and mental exhaustion.
5. End to muscle cramps and charlie horses – Potassium deficiency can promote muscle cramps, as can calcium or magnesium deficiency.

In 1918 a horrible pandemic swept the globe and supposedly claimed the lives of 500,000 Americans and 20,000,000 people worldwide. Even though many experts feel that these numbers are likely wildly exaggerated due to poor record keeping of this time period, we will continue as though they are accurate.

This would represent worst case scenario. It is also worthwhile to note that at that time, it was common practice to bathe once a week. Now, it appears that a similar strain of this virus is sweeping the globe again. The CDC has already issued a pre-pandemic alert, readying the government for the possibility of widespread infection to rival the pandemic Spanish flu of 1918.

There are a few simple rules to follow when choosing the foods that are permitted to enter your mouth. Remember, every year all of the molecules in your body have been replaced with entirely new molecules. Those molecules will be comprised of the molecules that you put in your mouth through your food. So, it would make good sense to fill your body with healthy, living enzymes and nutrients.

This section will introduce you to natural eating, it is not a full course on healthy eating but it should give you plenty of information to get you started.

Rule number one, follow the golden rule: “Eat foods in the package that nature provides!” You don’t see orange juice growing on a tree, you see oranges growing on a tree. Follow this rule and you will be half way to a healthy diet. You see, when you drink a glass of orange juice you are getting the sugar equivalent of 4-6 oranges. This sugar has been liberated from the fiber of the pulp and is thus much more readily absorbed into the blood. Whenever sugar enters into the blood at such a fast rate it reeks havoc regardless of whether that product comes from fruit or not. It is much healthier to eat the whole orange. You will get the fiber and the extra bioflavonoids! This rule goes well beyond OJ, if you apply it to the majority of your diet, you will literally change your health in one swoop. It is THAT powerful. You don’t need to learn complex rules, count calories, or read packages, just eat REAL food from nature as often as possible.

Rule number two, nutrient density decides the quality of food. Nutrient density has to do with how much nutrition there is in a food in comparison to how many calories are present. High levels of nutrition and low calorie count make for an ideal food. Any food with low or average nutrient levels along with high calorie levels is considered unhealthy. If you eat lots of vegetables and fruits while following the Golden Rule, then you can almost never go wrong. Pick the fruits and vegetables that are the most colorful as these will have the most healthful qualities! Although you can not always guarantee the presence of vitamins and minerals, you can always guarantee the presence of healthy phytochemicals such as carotenoids by merely looking at the product. These phytochemicals are what give fruits and vegetables their vivid color.

What About Meat?

There is a lot of controversy regarding how meat impacts your health. On one side of the story you hear the high protein arguments and on the other the vegetarian arguments.
If we look at our Paleolithic ancestors, it is estimated that 45-85% of their calories came from animal sources such as fish, insects, birds, amphibians, mammals, etc. Scientists estimate the daily protein intake of Paleolithic man to be 300-400 grams of protein per day, along with 200 grams of fat.  (Sisson, Mark. Primal Blueprint)

The debate surrounding vegetarian versus omnivores living is ridiculous because it is possible to be very healthy or very unhealthy eating either way. Personally, I choose a omnivore lifestyle that includes large quantities of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. I choose lean meats and consume these lean sources of protein with most of my main meals. If you choose to be vegetarian, you must be sure to supplement with sublingual B12 and consume plenty of sources of vegetarian protein. Regardless of whether you choose a vegetarian or omnivore lifestyle, there is one rule that you must follow to enjoy optimal health…

Third, cut out refined carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, white rice, candy and sugar as much as possible. There is nothing good coming out of these foods but taste. We do not need to drop them out of our diet completely, however, we do need to significantly limit their intake. With a little self-discipline we can learn to love healthier foods like we love these nutrient poor, carbohydrate based products. If you can achieve these goals, you will be well on your way to optimal health!

If you would like a great book suggestion to get you started on the path of healthy eating I would highly suggest Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson. This book really helps people understand a healthy diet and provides TONS of great health tips that you can put to use right away.

Finally, drink your water! Few people realize just how important water intake is to your body’s health. I have seen peoples energy skyrocket, blood pressures drop, allergies improve,  and memories return to youthful levels, simply by drinking more water! Here are some tips for working more water into your lifestyle:

1. Keep a 32 oz bottle of water on your desk, sip at it all day long. If you freeze it over night you can sip at it as it melts throughout the day. If you do freeze it please be sure to fill the bottle only two-thirds the way to allow the water to expand.
2. Get a NSF certified filter for home use and USE IT! A good filter is New Wave 10-Stage Filter .

What You Will Learn:

1. When Good Fruits Go Bad
2. When Refined Carbohydrates Are Ok to Eat
3. Where Dr. Atkins Went Wrong
4. How Many Meals to Eat per Day

Diet is perhaps one of the most confusing areas of health because there are so many people claiming so many different diets are the “best”. There are more different diets on the market today than ever before. Which has the best formula? Well, this question does not have a cut and dry answer because there is a lot of metabolic variance in our population. Let me give you an example. Fruit is considered very good for you as long as you eat it in the package that nature provides. Generally speaking people do not develop diabetes or get fat from eating fruits. However, if you are diabetic or heavily insulin resistant then it would be in your best interest to limit your fruit intake until your insulin resistance is improved. Not to confuse you further but many diabetics can eat fruit freely without any negative consequences to their blood sugar. The simple point is the diet that works best for you is the diet that works best for you! We can make general statements about what is most likely to be healthy but in the end you must put it to the test for yourself. So let’s start with a review of the tried-and-true principles that appear to apply to most people, we will then speak to the possible exceptions. Remember, as we move into intermediate and advanced principles, we are moving away from cookie cutter suggestions into more fluid and customizable principles:

1. Eat your food in the package nature provides. Simply put, oranges are good, orange juice is not so good. Eat fresh veggies over canned veggies. High fiber grain products generally are healthier than low fiber grain products. Simple enough…le’s move on.

2. Refined carbohydrates are generally bad…most of the time. For most people refined carbohydrates are not useful unless food is scarce. In a world of culinary abundance refined carbs are the most common cause of obesity, diabetes and heart disease. However, there is a place for refined carbohydrates amidst people who workout heavily or take part in competitive sports. When you workout heavily you can quickly deplete your carbohydrate stores in your muscles. During heavy activity, muscle is damaged and requires repair. This repair can not take place until the sugar stores have been replaced and can then fuel the repair process. By taking your refined carbohydrates directly after weight training, when your muscles are most sensitive to insulin, you can enhance recovery from activity, speed muscle repair and decrease soreness. Here is the golden nugget for people who are not competitive athletes, when you intend to have a pasta meal or some other high carb meal, try timing the meal soon after your workout. This will help with recovery and keep your blood sugar from spiking. This is especially helpful if you are lifting weights. So, this means that if you simply refuse to give up your pasta then the second best option is to make a pact with yourself that you will exercise vigorously before having your meal.

3. Eat lean protein. One area where me and the late Dr. Atkins part ways in our protein philosophies is in the quality of the protein in question and the quantity. I do not ascribe to the philosophy that you can eat bacon, butter, high fat beef, etc for every meal and still be healthy. Great sources of protein include lean beef, chicken, eggs and fish. I believe that people should lean towards a raw, vegetable and fruit rich diet. If you eat meat, you must make sure that you make an effort to enhance your intake of living plant foods to help balance your body. I also suggest eating free range meat and eggs whenever possible. So how much meat should you eat? The answer is…it depends. When you look at our closest mammal relatives you see that the apes are primarily vegetarian, although, if a lizard happens to scurry by they may pick it up and toss it in their mouth. They are what is called opportunistic carnivores. I declare myself the same. I try to eat most of my food as raw vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, however, if a filet mignon falls on my plate I will eat that too. I suggest limiting meat intake to one serving or less per day and making sure that we eat lots of fruits, vegetables and healthy nuts. If you are a bodybuilder or on a heavy weight lifting program then you may want to increase this intake. Athletes and fitness buffs should get extra protein from egg whites and whey protein shakes and smoothies to account for their extra needs.

4. Meal Frequency, how often should we eat? This is a common questions, so let’s answer it. From my research I have come to the following conclusion. Generally, most people will be healthiest with small, frequent meals. This is especially the case with people who are working out on a regular basis. If you eat meals with refined carbohydrates then make sure that you limit the portion size and only three of the five or six meals contain refined carbs. You should allow a 4-5 hour period between those refined carb containing meals. This will allow time for the body to process the carbohydrates, metabolize out the insulin and will allow the body time to burn some of those carbs away between main meals.