There are hundreds of detox diets and programs out there that promise the consumer quick fixes for weight loss, improved energy, better digestion, and other reasons.  For many of these people, they may have been indulging in an unhealthy lifestyle for too long and want a fast way to reverse it. 

If you have been wondering if a detox is something that you should do, this may actually be the worst time for it because it is a sign that the body is in a weaker state and needs nutrient support.  The body naturally detoxifies itself every day through the liver, the colon, kidneys, skin, and the lymphatic system.  If, for example, the liver is already sick, and you do an extreme cleanse, you may end up with serious side effects or even a hospital visit. 

"A crash diet once won't hurt your heart. But crash dieting repeatedly increases the risk of heart attack"

Avoid crash diets for weight loss

Aggressive detox diets promoted by some celebrities like the...

Dietary fat serves many important functions and is good for the body when the right fat is consumed.  Secondly, having excessive adipose tissue—body fat—does not denote that a person lacks self-control or will power, but is the result of an inappropriate diet.  Humans evolved with a “famine reflex” that caused metabolic changes to conserve fat and ensured survival when food was scarce.

Humans depicted in Baroque traditional art, that by today’s standards would be considered, “fat” lived before industrial vegetable oils and seed oils became the norm in most processed food, and before our intake of processed omega-6 linoleic acid doubled or tripled, while our intake of omega-3s from plants and marine animals fell tenfold.

Luckily we can control this to a great degree.  The key is to reduce your omega-6 intake and to consume undamaged, unprocessed omega-6 in the form of plant seeds and tree nuts, not vegetable oils, while...

We’ve been told to avoid high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in our daily diets, but what is it? It is a particular type of sweetener that is derived from cornstarch. In order to create high fructose corn syrup, enzymes are added to glucose and converted into another simple sugar known as fructose.⁽⁹⁾ Most high fructose corn syrup is comprised of 42- 55% fructose; the rest is water or glucose. ⁽⁹⁾

High fructose corn syrup is typically cheaper than table sugar making it attractive in the food industry as a sweetener. It was originally developed in the late 1950’s, but it wasn’t until the 1970’s that HFCS was introduced as sweetener in soft drinks.  Coca-Cola was one of the first soft drink companies to use it in their products. ⁽⁴⁾ Since then the use of HFCS has sky rocketed in our food and beverage industry.

Americans are consuming more HFCS and sugar in pharmacologic quantities, never before experienced in human history: 140 pounds a...

The awareness of evidence regarding aluminum exposure and its negative effects on our bodies is growing.  Researchers have been linking aluminum exposure to neurological disorders such as Alzheimers, Parkinsons, ADHD, and even cancer for years.  In fact, “there has been a strong link between human exposure to aluminum and the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease for half a century or more” says Chris Exley, PhD, of Keele University in England who has been studying the impact of aluminum on the human body since 1984.¹ Aluminum occurs naturally is the soil, water, and air but we are contributing to the load by manufacturing of aluminum products, power plants, pollution from industrialization, “chemtrails” from aircraft in the skies, and vaccines.

If significant aluminum load exceeds the body’s capacity to eliminate it, it is deposited into various tissues that include bone, brain, liver, heart, spleen, and muscle.²  ...

Nearly 25 million American adults suffer from pain on a daily basis and 23 million report experiencing severe pain.¹In fact, pain affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined and is cited as the most common reason Americans access health care.

Pain is a major contributor to health care costs and a leading cause of disability.² The WHO, or World Health Organization estimates at least half adult population in the world experienced at least one headache in the past year.³ In the U.S. nearly 70 million prescriptions are written and 30 billion doses are consumed when over-the-counter (OTC) NSAIDS are included.⁴ Although they may appear safe as they are sold in local convenience stores, by conservative estimates, over 105,000 people are hospitalized every year from side effects of these drugs and over 16,000 have died.⁵ Long-term side effects from NSAIDS are varied, but research demonstrates short-term use significantly increases your...

Did you know that while 90% of Americans know having breakfast is important for health and function, only 49% report to eating breakfast every day.¹

It’s no wonder that after sleeping for eight hours, and being without food during the night, our brain and muscles need energy and fuel to function. Breaking this fast with consumption of a healthy meal including protein and fats instead of a high carbohydrate meal has been shown to have the biggest benefit. Research has shown the many benefits of including breakfast in your daily routine. These include weight loss, improved energy and concentration, improved physical endurance, and overall improvement of a quality diet.

A study was conducted on teen’s breakfast health habits. It found that those who skipped breakfast were likely to be five pounds heavier than a teen that ate breakfast.  They study also concluded that those who skipped breakfast, also made poor food choices throughout the day and experienced a...

Thyroid medication topped the list of prescription drugs dispensed in the United States in 2015.  For many, symptoms are not improving when put on thyroid medication by their doctor; however, most of these people still affirm that they are tired, exhausted, and have trouble getting motivated.¹

“It’s a strong signal that this is an overused medication,” said Dr. Juan Brito, an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic. “Some people really need this medicine, but not the vast majority of people who are taking it.”

As people age, they tend to see their doctors more.  Many patients will have the complaints of fatigue, low energy, weight gain, constipation, mental “fogginess”, etc. Clinicians will typically order a Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and T4 blood tests as part of a routine panel.  The pituitary gland detects low thyroid function, which is indicated with low T4 and more so with T3 Free.  In response to low thyroid...

Saunas: what they can do for your health!

Saunas have historically been a strategy used in Eastern European, Asian and Scandinavian cultures for relaxation and detoxifications.  Athletes are using extreme heat of saunas for more than just pot-workout stress reduction and relaxation.  Increasing the body’s core temperature actually offers conditioning that may improve athletic performance by increasing endurance.¹

Exposure to extreme temperatures also has a beneficial effect on mitochondrial functioning, the minute powerhouses in your cells that provide your body with the energy required to function.  The key to continued energy production is to remove old and worn-out ones and generate new mitochondria, a process known as biogenesis.

Researchers had previously determined that exposure the extreme heat can help reduce the risk or cardiac death and high blood pressure.  They have now identified the direct effect that sauna heat has on a vascular health, blood...

How many hours sleep do you think is appropriate each night?

Would you be surprised to know that on average it is recommended to get at least 7 hours of sleep a day? According to The American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society, 1 in 3 adults (ages 18-60) sleep less than 7 hours each night.

Sleeping less than 7 hours for adults has shown an increased risk of critically disturbing the body and brain, causing weight gain, increasing impulsive behavior and the potential of memory loss. ⁽²⁾ Increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and thyroid deregulation are also side effects of not getting the right amount of sleep.

Our bodies produce a natural substance called leptin, which is a hormone produced to trigger our “fullness” or satiety feeling and it is lessened when we are sleep deprived. At the same time, ghrelin which is a hormone that triggers hunger, is heightened. Results of one study conducted at the University of Chicago in...

You’ve DONE a consumer DNA Test and are concerned about the results…

You have every right to be concerned, here are just some of the reasons why:

Although only one company is approved to share information about medical risk for some health conditions, nearly all companies share the raw data; research finds nearly 40% of medical data from these tests may be false positives.  Your DNA contains deeply personal information about your health, personality and familial history.  This information can potentially be used to discriminate against you in the workplace, affect your ability to acquire insurance policies and can even be sold, without your knowledge, to research companies.

The number of people requesting a direct-to-consumer DNA test during 2017 more than doubled from one year prior.  According to Ancestry.com they claim the largest DNA database with more than 7 million people’s DNA stored.¹ While tests like these are highly advertised and an...