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Natural Choices Newsletter
Natural Choices Newsletters – January, February, March 2005
brought to you by: Jane Oelke, N.D., Ph.D.
DoctorOelke@aol.com
January 2005 - Anti-Inflammatory Foods
Each new year brings fresh thoughts of personal improvements to help your life be better in 2005 than it was in 2004. What New Year’s Resolutions have you made? We all at least think about changes that need to be done and improvements that should be done (often according to others) in our lives.
Of course change is inevitable. Everything is either growing or dying. Our bodies, our plants, our animals, and even our careers are either growing, becoming more energetic, more dynamic, more creative and healthier, or they are becoming more worn out, tired, or sick. Where are you on this scale? This is a good time of the year to evaluate your life and make even subtle changes to ensure that positive growth continues to occur everyday.
Drugs vs. Whole Food Nutrition
Medical doctors are beginning to prescribe certain drugs to prevent common diseases such as heart disease and stroke. But what works better, improving your diet or taking drugs. As is commonly asked by nutritionists: “We know we have a fruit and vegetable deficiency (especially since we now need to have 8 to 10 servings per day.) But do we ever have an aspirin or statin drug deficiency? I don’t think so.”
Statin drugs are being prescribed to prevent certain disease profiles, like high cholesterol levels, yet these drugs cause so many side effects that 60% of people quit taking them. Taking statin drugs can reduce your risk of heart disease by 30% in 4 years.
But taking regular doses of enough fruits and vegetables can reduce heart disease by 70% in two years, and diabetes by 58% in one year.
Anti-Inflammatory Foods
With many drugs being taken off the market recently, and others being questioned on their safety, we need to be looking at nutritional alternatives. A number of articles I have read lately talk about the top 10 anti-aging foods or superfoods. These foods can make a huge difference in improving health issues much better and faster than drugs. In all of the articles it talks about foods that are anti-inflammatory containing high amounts of phytochemicals and omega-3 fatty acids. My compiled version of the top 10 Anti-Aging Foods are:
1. Salmon – and other fish high in omega-3 fatty acids
2. Almonds – high in good fats, and minerals, especially calcium
3. Broccoli – very high in phytochemicals that reduce free radicals
4. Blueberries – very high in antioxidants and phytochemicals for mental clarity
5. Green Tea – high in antioxidants that help the liver to detoxify
6. Spinach – high in B complex vitamins and minerals to prevent macular degeneration
7. Apple – high in malic acid that helps to increase oxygen uptake in cells
8. Yogurt – has calcium and acidophilus that help digestive upsets
9. Flax seed – high in omega-3 fatty acids, along with fiber in freshly ground flax seed
10. Chickpeas – high in fiber that helps keep the blood sugar in balance.
Foods containing phytochemicals include antioxidants and bioflavonoids that are the only ones that can reduce free radical activity. Free radicals cause cell damage, which increases aging more quickly. These whole foods with phytochemicals can also repair DNA damage.
One of the foods relatively new to lists is blueberries. Blueberries have recently been found to improve brain function. The main phytochemical in blueberries is called anthocyanins that help to speed up communication between nerve cells in your brain, and actually prevent cell death that causes degenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s. Blueberries also release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps improve energy levels, especially mental energy.
How are you cooking your vegetables?
In my book “Natural Choices for Fibromyalgia” I have a chapter on the dangers of microwave cooking. I get a lot of comments about that chapter when I do presentations. People do not realize that foods get heated in microwave by friction that alters the composition of the food.
More studies are coming out that confirm that nutrients are broken down in unrecognizable products. Breast milk when microwaved depletes the antibodies and natural enzymes according to a study in Russia. Also the packaging releases toxins to the food when the food is in its microwavable packaging, as discovered by our own FDA.
A newer Swiss study took blood tests from research subjects, and compared results after one group ate microwaved food and the other ate conventionally cooked foods. In the microwaved food eating group they found that the hemoglobin (red blood cell count) decreased significantly potentially causing anemia. Also they found that the white blood cells levels increased indicating a response to inflammation or infection; that the microwaved food altered protein molecules so new cells would not be healthy, and that LDL cholesterol (the 'bad' cholesterol) increased relative to HDL cholesterol (the 'good' cholesterol).
So if you are trying to get the full benefit of 8 to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables in your diet, do not plan on microwaving any of them! Regular baking and steaming of vegetables does not affect their nutrient quality. Baked vegetables had a lot of flavor without losing anything other than the enzymes. And baking actually helps to break down the fibers in the harder vegetables so that they are easier to digest.
How Do You Get Your 10 Servings of Fruits and Vegetables per Day?
Getting ½ cup of cook fruits or vegetables or 1 cup of raw fruits and vegetables equals one serving. A medium size apple is one serving, so a large apple is 1 ½ servings. A whole banana is 2 servings of fruit. Most salads that are eaten as a main meal have 3 to 4 cups (or servings) of vegetables. So is not impossible to get 10 servings per day. Careful planning is what is needed.
If you are having trouble getting whole fruits and vegetables in your diet, look at supplementation with Juice Plus Orchard Blend (fruits), and Garden Blend (vegetables). I know at this time of the year, I take extra Juice Plus, since I live in Michigan we do not get the benefit of freshly grown produce in winter. You can learn more about Juice Plus at Juice Plus Website
And now the new Juice Plus Vineyard Blend has blueberries, concord grapes and seven more dark blue and purple fruits that help improve circulation reducing heart disease risk so effectively. We eat a lot of blueberries in July and August in Michigan, but can’t get good quality in our grocery stores in January, so now I take this blend regularly also.
As recently revealed, 90% of people who begin taking Juice Plus stay on it. They find it so convenient and reassuring to know they are getting the high quality of fruits and vegetables they need. They are reaping the long term benefits of accumulated high quality nutrition on daily basis not found in any other supplement.
February 2005 -Statin Drugs and Heart Disease
It is National Heart Month (and not just Valentines’ Hearts).
Women’s Heart Awareness Day is February 4. So if you get this before February 4 – remember to wear red that day to remind others to take care of their heart!
Statin drugs are being recommended to be used preventatively. Is that safe? What are the long-term complications?
Hopefully you know by now that statin drugs, like Lipitor, Zocor, Pravachol, and Mevacor, commonly used to lower cholesterol, deplete our bodies of CoQ10. Deficiencies of CoQ10 weakens the heart muscle leading to congestive heart failure, and affects brain function leading to memory weakness and impaired thinking ability.
A healthy body stores about 2000 mg of CoQ10, and our liver makes about 500 mg per day. Our liver makes CoQ10 and cholesterol, and when we take statin drugs it stops our liver from making cholesterol and CoQ10 naturally. That is why we need to supplement with CoQ10, when we are stopping our liver from making CoQ10 on a daily basis.
Other drugs also reduce CoQ10 and other vitamins. A commonly prescribed drug for diabetics is Glucophage. This drug also depletes CoQ10 and also depletes Vitamin B12. Some anti-depressants also deplete the body of CoQ10 and Vitamin B12, including Elavil, Pamelor, Sinequan, and Norpramin.
Some heart medications when taken with stain drugs increase the rate of depletion of CoQ10. Some of these drugs include: Inderal, Lopressor, Tenormin, Apresoline, Aldomet, and Catapres. If you are taking any of these drugs, or know someone who is, make them aware of their need for supplemental nutrition, especially of CoQ10.
Many medications cause adverse side effects that are probably caused by nutrient depletion. I have found that supplementation with 100 mg of CoQ10 daily helps to keep the circulatory system healthier. Other nutrients are needed as well. A good blend of specific B vitamins is helpful for preventing heart disease. One of the supplements I recommend is Vessel Care. Vessel Care helps to keep the homocysteine levels down and improve heart circulation. It contains vitamins B6, B12, folate, with intrinsic factor and other specific nutrients to help those vitamins to be absorbed better.
Do you know your homocysteine reading? It is a blood test often used to along with cholesterol to measure heart health. Your homocysteine level should be 7.0 or under. Every number higher than 7.0 increases your potential level of heart disease. It can also affect your brain function. When it is over 14, you have a 40% better chance of getting Alzheimer’s disease.
New Ordering Procedures and Health Appraisal Questionnaire
I have changed my ordering procedures for a few of the products I have talked about in these newsletters. If you have ordered Cholarest, EPA-DHA Complex, Vessel Care, Ultra CLA, or another of the specialty nutritional supplements I commonly recommend to prevent diabetes and chronic diseases, and you cannot find it on my web site, you will now find it at http://www.drjane.meta-ehealth.com At this web site, you register as a “patient,” then you can log on and browse the complete online store. These products are high quality, nutritional and herbal combinations that are researched to help in certain symptom conditions. I have all the supplements at 10% off retail and you will be saving on shipping charges also.
Also now available is a FREE online Health Appraisal Questionnaire. I will have to personally register you for this health assessment, and the results will be sent to me to be analyzed. Then I will forward to you by email, and regular mail, your results. You will get a graph containing the levels of imbalance in over 20 areas, and a list of recommended Metagenics supplements. You can browse through the list on-line and determine which ones fit your symptoms and/or I can give you some feedback.
If you are interested in doing the Health Appraisal Questionnaire, reply back to me with:
Your full name:
Your age:
Your weight (approximately):
Are you Male or Female, and if Female are you pregnant?
Are you sensitive to dairy (Yes or No)
I will create a login name and password for you when I register you, and then you will get an e-mail with your login information. When the test is complete, I send your results to you.
If you have any questions about this new ordering procedure or the Health Appraisal Questionnaire, contact me at DoctorOelke@aol.com
March 2005 - Cholesterol and Antioxidants
Currently, the magic number for good cholesterol levels is below 200. And some doctors are actually trying to bring the number under 150 “to be on the safe side”. Yet, our body needs cholesterol for a number of purposes, including protecting and repairing cell membranes so that nutrients can move into and out of cells. The liver uses cholesterol to make bile that helps to improve digestion of nutrients. Cholesterol is also needed to balance the hormones that deal with stress and libido.
We have been told for years to reduce foods in our diet that contain cholesterol, especially eggs. But now we are finding that cholesterol is not the real problem. Inflammation is the real factor in heart disease. Active and underlying inflammation causes cholesterol build-up in the arteries that lead to heart attacks.
Drugs that are used to lower cholesterol, including Crestor, Zocor and Lipitor, artificially lower cholesterol, and do not reduce inflammations that the cholesterol may be trying to control. This is why some people still have heart attacks with cholesterol levels under 200.
The liver produces cholesterol as needed by the body. The two main types of cholesterol are the HDL “good” cholesterol, and LDL “bad” cholesterol. The LDL is the low-density lipoprotein that protects the cell membranes and helps improve digestion. The LDL is the stickier cholesterol that protects the arteries from inflammation but can also cause plaque build-up when it gets stuck there. The HDL is the high-density lipoprotein that helps to move the LDL away from the artery walls and back to the liver. That is why we need more HDL to keep the LDL moving through our arteries.
How do we keep our cholesterol in balance naturally?
There are three major improvements than can be made to keep cholesterol in balance. First, get enough good fats, the omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil or flax oil to keep the inflammation levels down. Avoid the bad fats found in partially hydrogenated oils and trans fats (heated partially hydrogenated oils.) The more bad fats you consume, the more inflammation you will create, and then the more omega-3 fats you will need.
Next, get as much fiber in your diet as possible. Keep the digestive tract moving, so that inflammation in the colon, known as IBS (Irritable Bowel Disease) does not have a chance to occur. Also the bile created by the liver needs to be absorbed by fiber in foods so that the bile is moved out the system. Avoid food additives, sugar based foods, and preservatives as much as possible. The more processed foods we eat, the more toxins our liver has to metabolize, which slows the rate of liver metabolism and detoxification.
Last, but not least, get a high amount of antioxidants in your diet or with whole food supplementation. Antioxidants are needed when the LDL cholesterol becomes oxidized by the free radicals formed by inflammation. Antioxidants reduce free radicals and will rid the body of the dangerous oxidized LDL cholesterol. Not just any antioxidant supplement will do. You need a full complement of all the antioxidants and phytochemicals that reduce free radicals in your system. The commonly labeled antioxidants, vitamins A, C, and E, work best with the less commonly known phytochemicals found in whole foods, to bring down the free radical levels most efficiently.
In fact, when you eat fruits and vegetables that contain the most antioxidants you are able to reduce cholesterol levels more effectively because the plant based foods have plant sterols that act like cholesterol-based substances. This tricks the liver into believing that there is more cholesterol in the body than there really is, and it will not produce too much.
So the benefits of fruits and vegetables help to reduce cholesterol in two ways:
First by killing free radicals, moving the oxidized LDL out of the arteries, and assisting liver detoxification, and secondly in sending a signal to the liver that less cholesterol is needed.
Are you getting your fruits and vegetables daily?
In enough quantity to counteract inflammation that comes on from stress in your life?
If you are one of the many people having trouble getting enough fruits and vegetables in you diet, either from time constraints, or that you do not like the taste, look into taking whole food nutritional supplements.
My favorite one is Juice Plus+, a truly high quality food supplement that gives the phytochemicals that reduce free radicals, and in the variety that is found in 7 different fruits and 10 different vegetables. Click here to learn more about Juice Plus. If you have specific questions about using Juice Plus+, let me know at www.DoctorOelke@aol.com . I have been recommending it to many clients for over 10 years now, and have seen how it can help a variety of health challenges.
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