Monday, October 31, 2011

Kindsight

"View your life with kindsight. Stop beating yourself up
about things from your past. Instead of slapping your forehead
and asking: "What was I thinking?" Breathe and ask yourself the
kinder question: "What was I learning?" - Unknown

A Dream

"A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream
together is reality." -John Lennon

Thursday, October 27, 2011

The 6 Fat Flush Commandments: Part 3

Lower your insulin and eliminate “false fat.”
5. Lower Your Insulin to Lower Your Weight
Like cortisol, insulin is another fat-promoting hormone. Remember, hormones—and not just calories—dramatically impact weight. Insulin, the key hormone that controls blood sugar levels, is triggered by an excessive intake of carbs. Insulin helps store blood sugar in the liver and tissues as glycogen. However, the body can only store a limited amount of glycogen and any excess is converted to body fat with the assistance of insulin.

Fat-deprived individuals tend to eat too many carbs, programming their insulin levels to remain high. The insulin in turn instructs the body to store fat. So, the key is to keep insulin levels low by eating a diet high in protein and essential fatty acids (all insulin-lowering macronutrients). Eating protein purposely stimulates the pancreas to produce glucagon, the hormone that counteracts insulin and mobilizes fat from storage.

Fat Flush addresses high insulin levels with a balanced diet of lean protein, low-glycemic, slow-burning carbohydrates, omega-3 oils and foods (like flaxseed oil, fish oil or whole chia seeds), as well as omega-6 botanical oils. Fat Flush features a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and “clean carbs” (starchy veggies, cereals, and non-gluten grains) that are both low-glycemic and hypoallergenic so they do not create an inflammatory response leading to water retention, adding insult to injury. This is why the most commonly reactive foods—like wheat, milk, sugar, and corn—are eliminated on Fat Flush.

It is also interesting to note that sleep, as we have seen with cortisol, also plays a part in balancing insulin. According to the National Sleep Foundation, sleep loss can lead to insulin resistance and reduced levels of growth hormones that help to regulate fat and muscle proportions. This is another reason I am so gung-ho about Earthing and its ability to promote restful sleep.

6. Recognize False Fat

Weight gain can also be related to “false fat”—a term coined by my dear friend and associate Dr. Elson Haas, which means water-logged tissues that results from numerous underlying causes: prescription medicines (over fifty have been connected to weight gain), food sensitivities, hormonal imbalances, and insufficient water and protein consumption. Many medicines, including antidepressants, steroid hormones, and anticonvulsants can cause weight gain by spiking appetite and decreasing metabolism.

When it comes to food sensitivities, research published in Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine strongly makes the case that chemicals involved with toxic responses to common foods inhibit the body’s ability to burn stored fat. This can lead to food addictions and binging due to the temporary “high” (an opiod-type chemical response) that eating the wrong food can produce.

There is a whole slew of troubling symptoms that are related to food sensitivities, from unexplained mood swings to panic attacks, sinusitis, chronic fatigue, extreme tiredness after eating, a racing pulse, puffy eyes, and swelling beneath the eyes. Weight can yo-yo up and down every day by as much as five to ten pounds due to an inflammatory response whereby the body holds water to dilute the perceived “toxin.”

Note that unlike food sensitivities, a true food allergy (like a peanut allergy) can lead to anaphylactic shock, an allergic response during which the body releases histamines that cause tissues to swell and inhibit breathing. But food sensitivities are not like immediate allergic responses; they may have a delayed response that can manifest up to two days after the “toxic” food is ingested, making it difficult to pinpoint the problematic food.

Fat Flush helps you overcome food sensitivities by eliminating the most commonly “reactive” foods—wheat, milk, corn, yeast, and sugar. When these foods are slowly re-introduced back into the program, you are encouraged to note your responses in a food journal so that you can better determine the possible food cause of that bloating, gas, “false fat” weight gain (water retention), and/or stalled weight loss.

When food sensitivities are eliminated, weight loss becomes a no-brainer. Fat Flushers typically say, it’s not what they are eating but what they are not eating that is making them lose weight without any caloric concerns. In fact, many Fat Flushers eat more food, not less, than ever before.

Fat Flushing helps rid you of “false fat” by supporting the liver’s ability to better metabolize all drugs and prescription medications through liver-healing foods. Each stage of the program is packed with cruciferous veggies that provide sulforaphane, a phytonutrient that triggers the liver to produce more detoxifying enzymes; green leafy vegetables high in purifying chlorophyll and magnesium that also have natural diuretic properties; high vitamin C citrus; and sulfur-rich foods such as garlic, onion, eggs, and daikon radish that also help the liver eliminate toxins. Zinc-rich, high-protein foods (lean beef, eggs, pumpkin seeds) counter a copper build-up in the liver that can also impede its function. For those who don’t always eat their greens, I like the Liver-Lovin Formula because it is the only one on the market that is made from copper-free chlorophyll and L-Taurine to help the gallbladder produce bile acids to break down fats as well as toxins.

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Laugh Away High Blood Pressure

"A good chuckle increases the level of endorphins- feel-
good hormones- in your body while reducing the kind that
causes anxiety. Relieving stress can help fend off hypertension
(a blood pressure of more than 140/80). In fact, a recent
Japanese study found that people who participated in laughter
yoga- a combination of breathing exercises and laughter-
decreased their blood pressure by 5 mm Hg on average after
three months. So watch your favorite comedy, crack a joke or
make up a funny word- whatever sends you into stitches!"

-Diabetes Focus Magazine, Fall 2011

What You Need To Know

"89 percent of women with breast cancer survive for five years
or more, thanks to better detection and more personalized
therapies. Experts now divide breast cancer into three subtypes,
and are developing treatments for each type. More than half of
breast cancer sufferers can skip chemo and radiation and opt for
medications with fewer side effects, like tamoxifen."

-Healthy Living Magazine, Fall 2011

Comfy Cooking

"Do you get uncomfortable while standing at the stove? Place
a rubber mat or a chef's gel mat under your feet to cut arthritis
pain in your hips and back."

-Healthy Living Magazine, Fall 2011

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Undercover Vegetables

"A calorie-cutting strategy that won't leave you hungry:
Add pureed vegetables to your soups and stews. People whose
dishes were one-quarter pureed vegetables ate 357 fewer
calories a day, according to the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition. Parent alert: This trick works on kids too."

-Prevention Magazine, November 2011

Inhale For Heart Health

"Want to make your holiday feast healthier? Change the way
you breathe. New research shows that breathing deeply for
40 minutes after eating a large meal lowers heart damaging
blood sugar levels. How? By reducing heart rate, which
triggers the release of extra insulin."

-Prevention Magazine, November 2011

The 6 Fat Flush Commandments: Part 2

Stress less (and sleep more) for less fat.
Cortisol, the stress hormone secreted by the adrenal glands, is a fat-promoting hormone that creates belly fat, much to our dismay. When you are under any type of stress it triggers enzymes to store more fat because your body believes there is “danger ahead” and instant energy may be needed. Since deep abdominal fat contains four times more cortisol receptors than other fat sites, cortisol is drawn to it.

One of the secrets of low-stress success is simply getting the proper amount of sleep. Too little sleep can make you fat. A study that tracked the effect of sleep habits on the weight gain of nearly 70,000 middle-aged women recently confirmed this principle. This research showed that women who slept five hours per night generally weighed more than women who slept for seven hours per night. In fact, women who only got five hours of sleep versus seven were 32 percent more likely to experience major weight gain (an increase of thirty-three pounds or more). Plus these sleep-deprived women were shown to be 15 percent more likely to become obese over the course of the sixteen-year study.

When it comes to sleep, cortisol can cause a real domino effect on metabolism and overall health. Insufficient sleep can cause the release of cortisol and stimulate hunger. Cortisol surges throughout the night may keep you from sleeping and then impact changes in metabolic rate leading to a decreased ability to burn fat. As sleep levels decrease, cortisol increases, so elevated cortisol levels are connected with sleep-deprived weight gain.

In fact, a lack of sleep creates cravings. Researchers at the University of Chicago who deprived healthy young adults of sleep found that in addition to increased overall appetite, the volunteers experienced a particular surge in cravings for sweet and salty foods.

According to a landmark sleep study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, if you sleep between 7.5 to 8.5 hours per night you will secrete half as much cortisol than those who get 6.5 hours or less. Furthermore, inadequate sleep interferes with the body’s ability to metabolize carbohydrates and depresses leptin levels. As my Fat Flushers already know, going to sleep by 10 p.m. is an essential part of the Fat Flushing lifestyle habits to assure quality sleep and enough sleep—the best diet secret of all. The unavoidable action of natural aging compounds this fattening cycle.

When we are young our bodies naturally regulate cortisol levels by creating more cortisol in the morning (two to three times more), allowing us to start our day full of energy, and then our bodies naturally decrease cortisol levels in the evening so that we can easily fall asleep. Unfortunately by middle age our baseline cortisol level naturally begins to rise, making it tougher to go to sleep and to stay asleep. In fact, we become even more sensitive to the additional cortisol created by these same sleep disturbances, triggering even more hormone havoc, accelerating aging and increasing our waistline. Supporting the cortisol-producing adrenal glands can lessen this impact on cortisol levels…I’ve formulated Adrenal Formula to do just this!

Fat Flush also helps correct this vicious cycle by limiting cortisol spiking-caffeine in both coffee and tea, as well as recommending a meal plan with suitable between-meal snacks to keep cortisol at bay. Journaling is also a stress-controlling, and therefore cortisol-lowering, habit.

Of course, sleeping at least seven to eight hours is another must. Inadequate sleep also inhibits the body’s ability to metabolize carbohydrates, which lead to higher insulin levels.

One of the best kept secrets for balancing cortisol is the Earthing technology which has demonstrated that individuals who sleep “grounded” sleep longer and wake up more refreshed. The Earthing technology allows you to tap into the balancing and harmonious energy of Mother Earth which is teeming with free electrons that tamp down inflammation and act as natural antioxidants. A study will be released shortly demonstrating the weight loss effects of the Earthing phenomenon with test animals who were grounded during their lifetime and lost statistically significant amounts of weight simply by being “grounded.”

Stay tuned for the final two commandments in my next blog – The 6 Fat Flush Commandments: Part 3!

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Be Happy Now

"Self-compassion may be the key to better health, says
Kristin Neff, Ph.D., a psychologist at the University
of Texas at Austin. Neff shares three simple exercises
to give yourself a little TLC from her book, Self-Compassion:
Stop Beating Yourself up and Leave Insecurity Behind (William
Morrow, 2011):
Speak kindly. Write down what you say to yourself when you
slip up on your health routine. If you are harsh, reframe
your words to reflect the positive support you would give
a friend, then say this to yourself instead.
Soothe with touch. Cross both arms and apply gentle pressure
over your chest (literally give yourself a hug!) until you feel
calm.
Breathe deeply. Close your eyes; breathe deeply and evenly.
Scan over any parts of your body that may be achy or sore.
Continue to breathe as you repeat to yourself, "Soften, soothe,
allow."

-Diabetes Focus Magazine, Fall 2011

Quick Tip

"Cook a big pot of black beans on a Sunday afternoon and
freeze the leftovers- you'll have a delicious, incredibly
affordable source of protein and fiber for the entire week!"

-Diabetes Focus Magazine, Fall 2011

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Fat Flush Commandments

Surprising links between weight loss, your liver, your lymph and eating the right fat.
1. Love Your Liver

Fat Flush is dedicated first and foremost to supporting the liver in its daunting role as the body’s purifier. In reality, the liver is perfectly designed to detoxify itself automatically, without any help from you or Fat Flush, for that matter. As the body’s premier detoxifier (think of it as the filter in your personal engine) and fat-burning organ, the liver has an amazing built-in process that is in charge of breaking down everything that comes its way, from chemicals, preservatives, and heavy metals to the food and beverages you ingest.

Ah, but here’s the rub.

In order for the detox process to work smoothly, your body needs a plethora of heavy-duty nutritional elements to keep the detox pathways working optimally and to break down toxins. So, you need to be very well nourished to detox.

A liver clogged with poisons or excess fats cannot perform its fat burning and other essential duties, like maintaining blood sugar levels, storing glycogen, synthesizing and normalizing blood proteins, and helping to keep your body in hormonal balance. A poorly functioning liver results in stagnation. Freeing up your liver to do its job may be the single most important step you ever take in improving your overall health and achieving your weight loss goals permanently.

The Fat Flush program accomplishes this task in several ways. One is through the antioxidant/phenol-rich cranberry and water mixture you will be drinking during each seasonal Fat Flush to keep those detox pathways moving right along. The recipe for the signature Fat Flush cran-water is 1 oz. unsweetened cranberry juice to 7 oz of water (makes an 8 oz. glass of cran-water) to be consumed eight times throughout the day (64 oz. total).

And the benefits of cranberry keep on accruing. Cranberries were analyzed with other fruits for their antioxidant power by measuring their ORAC value (oxygen radical absorbance capacity). Cranberries register a 9,584 ORAC value compared to the second runner up (raspberries), which were only 4,882. So cranberries are powerful medicine in neutralizing harmful free radicals and preventing them from taking a foothold in the body.

Daily intake of foods in the liver-loving veggie cruciferous family (think cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts) also speeds the breakdown of fat-storing toxins and keeps new body fat from forming. Lemon and water first thing in the morning helps to thin out bile and tone up both the kidneys and liver. Eggs (preferably from chickens that don’t do drugs) are part of the regimen because their high sulfur content and lecithin helps the liver’s detox pathways and aids in the forming of bile salts.

Fat Flush also includes several servings of unheated, non-denatured hormone-free whey protein to provide amino acid building blocks that are precursors to glutathione—the liver’s premiere antioxidant, which destroys free radicals and detoxifies carcinogens and all kinds of poisons in the body.

When you clean up your act, the liver and its beautiful bile are nourished with the right foods and supplements, which will ensure efficient fat metabolism as well as efficient elimination of toxins and wastes.

2. Love Your Lymph

If the liver is your body’s filter, then the lymph channels are your body’s drainage system. Your lymph system is the foundation of your immune system and includes your spleen, tonsils, and thymus. If you have never heard of the lymphatic system, you are not alone. So many people, even those into detox, have no idea about the crucial role this system plays in health and in weight loss.

The lymphatic system is a complex network of needle-thin tubes filled with fluid that continually bathes our cells and then carries away the body’s “garbage”—toxins, waste products of metabolism, fat globules, and excess liquid—to filters called lymph nodes, where these substances are stored and then neutralized. But while blood has a pump (your heart) to keep it moving, the lymph must be pumped by the movement of muscles or through deep breathing. (You can begin to see how a sedentary lifestyle can affect your health.)

The lymph, like the liver, can be overloaded with chemicals, pesticides, and a variety of pollutants that can shut down lymphatic flow. Plus, the everyday stress we are under also is a lymph stressor. The muscles and motion of breathing are a primary way to move lymph and when we’re under stress, our breathing becomes shallower.

So what does this mean for your waistline? First off, if your lymph isn’t flowing, your tissues aren’t draining excess fluid. This creates a backlog that results in bloating. Waterlogged tissues can cause your body to swell up to two sizes—weighing-in with an extra ten to fifteen pounds—yikes! A lazy lymphatic system may also be connected to cellulite because backed up fluid “sticks” to fat cells. Last but not least, waterlogged tissues interfere with nutrient and oxygen absorption and utilization, so cell starvation starts to take place.

Cleanse your lymph with a special fitness program that focuses on rebounding —the best exercise for the lymphatics due to the gentle bouncing action. I recommend the ReboundAIR rebounder (let them know I sent you). The exercise component is fortified with Fat Flushing Super Star Foods that saturate the system with detoxifying enzymes, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. The cran-water drink in the program, for example, is packed with flavonoids, enzymes, and organic acids that appear to act like natural digestive enzymes. From my observations, cranberry helps to digest lumpy deposits of lymphatic waste, which could be one of the key reasons Fat Flushers report that their cellulite disappears.

People who detox their livers and get their lymph flowing also notice they have clear, smooth, glowing skin and toned bodies. Sugar cravings vanish. More nutrients get to the cells and more calories become energy when lymph flows freely. Swelling and bloating are a thing of the past; radiant good health takes their place. So, healing the lymphatics is a big deal, not only for Fat Flushing but also for disease control. For those of you with Crohn’s disease, please take note. In the January 2008 issue of the journal Gut, it was found that Crohn’s is caused by inflammation and thickening of the lymphatics connected to the intestines—not an autoimmune disease or a genetic condition, as previously thought.

3. Eat the Right Fat to Lose Fat

A flurry of new studies about fighting fat with fat came out in The New England Journal of Medicine in early 2009. The media heralded these studies as the newest obesity theory, claiming that good fat, also known as brown fat because of its color, is a potent regulator of metabolism and weight. The research said that brown fat is deficient in overweight people and is primarily activated by cold.

This good fat, which triggers the body to burn more calories and generate more body heat, is key in keeping infants warm. By adulthood, brown fat is metabolically inactive in many individuals. However—what the researchers completely overlooked is the role of the essential fatty acid, gamma linolenic acid, more commonly known as GLA. Since the 1980s, it has been known that GLA stimulates brown fat activity through its prostaglandin pathways.

This is exactly why GLA has played a crucial role in Fat Flush since the origins of the program. It is found in its most balanced form in black currant seed oil, although borage and evening primrose oil are other rich sources. GLA is also included in the starter Fat Flush Kit as the GLA-90 supplement. It’s a must for beautiful, glowing skin and appears to keep the skin taunt during weight loss.

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Pick The Perfect Pillow

"Sleep away neck aches with these tips...
For side sleepers. A firmer pillow is a better bet than
a softer one. For maximum comfort, a pillow should keep
your neck aligned with your spine. To support the neck,
the lower edge of your pillow should rest between your chin
and shoulder.
For back sleepers. A softer pillow gives you better support
than a firmer one.
For stomach sleepers. Use a thin, soft pillow so your head is
level with your chest. You may want to try alternate positions;
sleeping on your stomach can put strain on your neck by causing
you to turn your head to the side too much."

-UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, Healthy Living Magazine, Fall 2011

What's Inflammation?

"Inflammation has been implicated in allergies, arthritis,
even heart disease. But inflammation is both positive and negative.
On the positive side, inflammation is your immune system's natural
response to infection or injury. Here's an example: When the area
around a bee sting becomes red, swollen, and painful, it's because
white blood cells inside the body are converging on the site, releasing
chemicals to help your body get rid of the bee's toxin.
On the negative side, inflammation can be harmful. In rheumatoid
arthritis, for example, which leads to inflammation in your joints,
the body's white blood cells mistake joint tissues for infectious
invaders."

-Healthy Living Magazine, Fall 2011

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Gluten-Free Holiday Food Fair

The NW Oregon GIG Branches are having a Food Fair on
Saturday, October 22nd, from 10am-2pm at:

The International Fellowship Family
4401 NE 122nd St., Portland, OR
(NE 122nd & Sandy, across from Kmart)
$5 per person, $10 per family, Kids under 12 are free!

Don't miss it!

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

It Is Not All In Your Head

Electrical hypersensitivity triggers and treatment.
I’m concerned. No – make that worried. Really worried.

With the debut of the iPhone 4S, the breaking news about how children absorb 50% more microwaves than adults is truly alarming.

So, I turned to EMF expert Melody Chan Graves to give us an update on the latest research regarding electrohypersensitivity and what cutting edge environmental docs like Dr. Bill Rea of the Environmental Health Center in Dallas, TX are really seeing with their patients.

By the way, Melody Chan Graves herself overcame a debilitating case of fibromyalgia with the help of alternative treatments and building biology. Because of her remarkable recovery after eliminating electromagnetic radiation exposure in her home, she became not only passionate about spreading awareness for electrical hypersensitivity syndrome, but now specializes in electromagnetic radiation detection and mitigation in clients’ homes (www.ecodynamicliving.com).

Here’s Melody’s report:

People who find themselves sensitive to electrical fields and wireless devices have a difficult struggle ahead of them, as the US has yet to recognize electrical hypersensitivity as an official medical syndrome. Sweden has already recognized this illness, and the government gives electrically sensitive individuals access to low-exposure housing and the right to claim the illness as a disability.

But the majority of people who have electrical sensitivity (ES) in this country often have other chronic illnesses linked to ES, such as fibromyalgia. They are often written off as malingerers or psychiatric cases because their symptoms can mimic a variety of other conditions, and the medical community is hesitant to recognize new syndromes, citing the need for more epidemiological studies.

At the 2011 Institute of Baubiologie™ and Ecology Conference this past September in Tucson, Arizona, renowned environmental medicine pioneer Dr. William Rea shared insights about electrical hypersensitivity gleaned from nearly thirty years of working with environmentally ill patients.

Rea opened by saying that human beings are all antennas with different levels of sensitivity, and finding safe places for sensitive people is like trying to “reinvent the cave.”

He described his 1989 study designed to evaluate the electrical sensitivity of patients, in which twenty-five patients reacted to electrical frequency stimulation but did not react to placebo. Sixty-four percent of those patients had documented changes in their autonomic nervous system, and the affected group responded with 100% accuracy when challenged a second time with the same offending frequencies. It became evident to Dr. Rea that these patients were telling the truth and electrical sensitivity does exist.

He has observed a high correlation with sensitivity to metals like zinc, copper, stainless steel, titanium, molybdenum, manganese, and magnesium. Metal implants like dental fillings, metal jaws, shoulder joints, etc. will contribute to electrical sensitivity, because they act as antennas.

Underscoring the synergistic relationship between different types of environmental exposures, Dr. Rea remarked that 80-90% of ES is preceded by multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), and pesticide exposure is the initiator in 80% of patients seen. Moreover, food and chemical sensitivities show up in 90% of ES patients’ breath, blood, hair, and urine samples.

A growing area of concern is chemical exposure from fracking associated with natural gas wells. Dr. Rea is convinced that whatever is in the gas line is present in the air around the gas well and is being inhaled by occupants inside the fracking zone. He attributes this to the use of hydrochloric acid in conjunction with toxic chemicals in the fracking fluid. This can be confirmed through a breath analysis that he performs on patients at the clinic. In other words, he can detect specific fracking chemicals in the exhaled breath of patients living in fracking zones, thereby linking toxic chemical exposure to individuals living in supposedly safe areas within a gas field.

Because of this, he has now ranked natural gas drilling as the second most prevalent trigger to electrical sensitivity in the patients he has seen in his clinic. The four major triggers are listed below:

Four Major Triggers to Electrical Sensitivity

1. Exposure to Pesticides, Molds, and Mycotoxins
2. Fracking from natural gas drilling
3. Formaldehyde
4. Technology, such as occupational exposure to high levels of electromagnetic fields

He also shared the methods of treating electromagnetic sensitivity he had developed over his many years in practice.

Treatment of Electromagnetic Sensitivity

* Live away from electrical and pesticidal areas in regions like West Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana.
* Live in areas where it is difficult to pick up Wi-Fi, television, cellular service, etc.
* Live in areas where grounding is feasible, and avoid underground wires, cables, metal, pipes, etc. ES patients must be grounded.
* Inside, decrease your toxic load.
o Pay attention to your building materials and design. Build with wood, ground rods, a floor raised off the ground, not situated over iron veins or old railroad tracks. Choose low-terpene woods.
o Shield the computers and TV.
o Shield building wiring, and try to have some walls in each room with no interior wiring.
o Place the bed in the middle of the room. This aids in reducing exposure to any electromagnetic fields coming from your existing house wiring.
o Choose a hardwood or ceramic floor. These are the materials least likely to trigger chemical sensitivities.
o Sleep on a wooden bed frame made of hardwood, not pine or cedar. Pine and cedar are high in natural terpenes, which often trigger reactions in sensitive people.
o Use cotton or silk bedding (no wool). Most commercial wool and some eco-wool is still treated with toxic fire retardants.
o Sleep on a “metal-free” bed. Dr. Rea’s clinic uses rawhide springs in the box springs of their beds.
o Eat organic foods and adhere to a rotary diet to minimize food sensitivities.
o Drink spring, distilled, or filtered water. Some ES patients can tolerate distilled water better because of its lack of minerals.
o The best spring waters are as follows:
+ Mountain Valley Springs Water (Hot Springs, AR)
+ Evian
+ Some German waters
+ Some British waters
o Various treatments he uses at his clinic include:
+ Neurotransmitter supplementation
+ Magnesium, multivitamin, multimineral, and lipid/oil supplementation
+ Oxygen and hyperbaric therapy
+ Immune modulators
# Gammaglobulin replacement
# Autogenous Lymphocytic Factor (ALF) for improved T-cell function
+ Traditional sauna treatment with wood and glass or ceramic sauna

When asked to describe the end result of ES, Dr. Rea said the syndrome most definitely telescopes into a fatal disease. He stated that ES has a genetic component waiting for a trigger, and that Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dead nerves in the brain, and heart arrhythmias are all examples of end results of ES patients left untreated.

Despite the rather gloomy news about ES, he expressed hope at the continued growth of the environmental medicine field. Currently, there are three physician’s organizations dedicated to environmental medicine, and there are about 5,000 complementary doctors worldwide. Please visit www.buildingbiology.net for more information.

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Frightening Food!

Prevent gut grief with my three GI “miracle molecules.”
It was hard to miss the glaring headlines last week warning us of listeria-ridden cantaloupe.

But the problems with America’s inner workings go way beyond today’s cantaloupe or tainted meats and peanut butter, or the contaminated spinach of years past. Food maladies are definitely on the rise, pathogens are bombarding us—and we’re fighting them off around the family dinner table. Now more than ever, we need a plan of action to defend our bodies against gut-wrenching woes.

I think it is high time we take a look at the forgotten foundational building blocks of healing. I call them Mother Nature’s GI “miracle” helpers:



Hydrochloric Acid
Hydrochloric Acid (HCl), the good stomach acid, is the body’s front line of defense against hostile gas-producing bacteria and parasites. One to two tablets daily of HCL+2 with protein-based meals will insure digestion and help trigger pancreatic enzyme production.

Probiotics
Probiotics, the good bacteria, inhabit the walls of the small intestine and colon, fortifying them and making it harder for pathogenic bugs to take root. One to two teaspoons a day of Flora-Key—which now contains the gas-fighting L. plantarum flora, is recommended on a daily basis. Mild enough for children and infants, this dairy-free probiotic alternative doubles as a natural sweetener in no-heat recipes.

Digestive Enzymes
Digestive Enzymes are the best catalysts for food absorption that speed the breakdown of food into carbohydrates, proteins, and fat with their amalyse, protease, and lipase content. One to three tablets per meal of Inf-Zyme Forte will help with digestion, and taking between meals will help to tamp down inflammatory conditions. This product has also been used to clean up aterial plaque between meals—three tablets, three times per day.

These GI Good Guys are all critical to smooth digestive functioning and to defend the body against pathogens and superbugs like MRSA, H. pylori, Salmonella, E. coli and listeria.

Digestive wellbeing opens the door to enhanced immunity, soaring personal energy and trouble-free digestion. Since we’ve all had days when GI woes have left us sick, tired and bloated without knowing the culprit, fortifying our digestive systems with HCL, probiotics, and enzymes may be just the permanent fix we’ve all been looking for!

Breast Health Dos

Diet, supplement and environmental strategies.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I think that the most terrifying words in the English language for a woman are “you have breast cancer.” But knowing that genetics only play a role in 5% of breast cancer cases should be very encouraging news for all of us because it means that we have nearly total control over the destiny of our bodies! The stats suggest that 1 out of 8 woman can develop breast cancer sometime during their lives yet, more women than ever before are survivors because of early prevention, detection, and awareness.

Diet wise, keep in mind that the omega-3s found in flax and fish oils have a protective effect against the development of breast cancer. Japanese women have a very low incidence of breast cancer and they are large consumers of cold water fish rich in the awesome omega-3s. Get on the right fat track—at least one to two tablespoons of ground flaxseeds (high in hormone-balancing lignans) and/or a minimum of 1 to 2 g of fish oil daily.

The women of Mediterranean countries also have a very low incidence of breast cancer and they receive about 40% of total calories from fat—in the form of delicious olive oil, a monounsaturated fat that can be used for salad dressings and stir-frying.

There is another promising disease-defying nutrient on the horizon: the antioxidant Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Perhaps best known for its role in preventing heart disease, CoQ10 is so vital to your health that is it found in virtually every single cell in your body. It helps to convert energy in the mitochondria from glucose and oxygen. The highest energy organ of the body—like the heart—needs twice as much CoQ10 as other body parts, but this super supplement has also been linked to the breasts!

In the early 1990s, a research team led by Danish scientist Knud Lockwood, M.D. reported that CoQ10 in dosages as high as 390 mg per day had successfully treated patients with breast cancer. In 2006, CoQ10 again made headlines when University of Miami researchers presented a study at the 2006 American Association for Cancer Research that suggested CoQ10 “not only inhibits the growth and spread of cancer cells but effectively programs the cancer cells to self regulate and destroy themselves.”

Since CoQ10 is oil soluble, I always recommend that it be taken at the same time as your omega-3s. I personally take three 100 mg CoQ10 softgels per day—I spread them out at breakfast, lunch, and dinner—as a preventative since evaluating the research.

Other tips for helping to protect your breasts by shielding against toxic exposures from the environment:

* Keep air, water, and workplace clean by using filters.
* Avoid prolonged exposure to household chemicals, solvents, and cosmetics with synthetic preservatives. Eliminate plastics and pesticides as much as possible.
* Have X-rays taken only when needed. Avoid electromagnetic fields from home appliances and wireless gadgets (cell phones, cordless phones, laptops). Sleep grounded to restore natural electrical balance to your cells by infusing your system with healing electrons.
* Check out the Iodine Loading Test to assess your body’s levels of iodine—an overlooked “adaptogen” mineral—that can increase breast cancer risk. I was first made aware of this test thanks to the work of Nan Kathryn Fuchs, Ph.D. Iodine is heavily concentrated in the breasts and balances estrogenic effects on breast tissue. According to Dr. Guy Abraham, the developer of the Iodine Loading Test, “there’s strong evidence that women who are deficient in iodine are more prone to breast cancer.”

Last but not least, for those of you who are concerned about the radiation from mammograms, there is now an inexpensive at-home test you can perform called the Liv Aid. This heart-shaped soft pad made from polyurethane was found by Italian researchers to be 100% effective in detecting tiny lumps the size of a sugar grain. Used with thermography, this inexpensive screening could be a lifesaver. Check out www.liv.com today!

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Samplefest

Our Samplefest today was a big success! For those of you that came
out to support us, thank you very much! For those of you that missed
it, we hope you will join us for the next one.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Samplefest Help Needed!

We are looking for motivated people that are willing to help
us with our upcoming Samplefest, Saturday, October 15th, 7:30am-2pm,
or for as many hours as possible. Your admission will be free and
you will get a free sample bag of gluten free goodies.

If you are interested, please contact Kristi at justus323@yahoo.com
as soon as possible. Thank you for supporting GIG and making this gluten
free event a big success!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Samplefest 2011

It's finally here!! Samplefest 2011 is tomorrow!!
Gluten Free Food and a whole lot more!! So come join
us for lots of fun!!

Saturday, October 15th, 9am-1pm
Unitarian Universalist Church of Vancouver
4505 E. 18th St. Vancouver, WA 98661

Admission: $2, children 12 and under are free

All proceeds support GIGSWWA
http://gigswwa.blogspot.com

Don't miss it!

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Solitude

"If you want to savor your time with loved ones, make sure you
also spend time away from them. Adam Waytz, PhD, explains that
our highly connected world leaves us "socially stuffed," which
hampers our ability to genuinely empathize. Periods of solitude
refresh our appetite for togetherness the same way being hungry
before a meal can make it seem more delicious."

-Prevention Magazine, November 2011

Gut Instinct

"Rationality is overrated. Recent research from the University
of Iowa shows that your body's intuition- sweating hands or a
sinking feeling in your stomach- will point you in the right
direction faster than your brain. Next time you're bogged down
by data, check your palms and go with your gut instead."

-Prevention Magazine, November 2011

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Outback Fundraiser Alert!

Due to circumstances beyond our control, the Outback Fundraiser
scheduled for Saturday, November 19th, has been canceled.

If you have already purchased your tickets, please contact Kristi
at: justus323@yahoo.com if you would like a refund, or if you wish to
donate the ticket amount to: GIGSWWA.

Thank you for your support and we apologize for any inconvenience.

Bob & Ruth's Deluxe Grand Orient Gluten-Free Getaway III

Join us on from October 12 ~ 26, 2011 on our ongoing Gluten-free Adventures around the world.

We'll see the famous sights of the Forbidden City, Great Wall, Panda Zoo, the Terra Cotta Warriors, Nathan Road and so much more.

On our previous visits to China we have found the people to be warm and welcoming to us as westerners. English is the second language taught in schools.

We'll stay in luxurious hotels including the newly renovated Fairmont Peace Hotel on Shanghai's famous Bund.

And, of course, THE FOOD. You will experience a variety of safe, quality Chinese foods throughout the tour and cruise.

For a detailed itinerary and all other pertinent information check out our website at http://bobandruths.com/

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Samplefest

Our annual Samplefest is on Saturday, October 15, 2011

9am-1pm, at The Unitarian Universalist Church of Vancouver
4505 East 18th Street, Vancouver, WA 98661

Admission is $2.00 per person, children 12 and under are free
Food galore and a whole lot more!
Don't miss it!

Famous Fat Flush Soup

Celebrate the flavors of fall.
My Fat Flush Diet Soup is “briskly” simmering on stoves across the nation.
Introduced in Woman’s World Magazine (October 3, 2011), issues quickly disappeared from newsstands across the country as determined dieters were ready for a “yummy” soup that’s a perfect meal the whole family will love when Fall nips the air.

Inspired by a study at Penn State that found eating soup can trigger you to consume up to 448 fewer calories per meal, this satisfying soup is an easy go-to recipe to help jumpstart long term weight control.

For those of you new to Fat Flush, the soup serves as a delicious entrée (pun intended) into the world of Fat Flush – a “pre-flush” if you will.

The results speak for themselves: One New Hampshire Woman’s World reader lost 11 lbs in one week, and another shed a whopping 10 lbs in just three days! Others dropped 6, 7, even 11 lbs within a week. Find out how much you’ll lose with this super-filling recipe:

SoupFat Flush Soup

2 tsp. olive oil
1 ¼ lbs lean ground beef, turkey or shredded chicken
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
8 oz. mushrooms, chopped
1 (14 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 (32 oz.) bottle reduced-sodium tomato or vegetable cocktail juice
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 (14 oz.) can black, navy or pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 Tbs. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. cayenne, or to taste
¼ cup each fresh cilantro and parsley, chopped

1. In stockpot, heat olive oil over medium-high setting. Sauté meat/poultry until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Sauté onion, garlic, peppers and mushrooms until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in remaining ingredients, except cilantro and parsley. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in cilantro and parsley.
4. Cover; simmer 10 minutes longer. Store soup in refrigerator up to 5 days. Freezes well. Make 12-14 cups. 1 serving = 3 cups.

A Tip from our Fat Flush test kitchen: For a chunkier soup, add a 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes.

Note: We have made small tweaks in the recipe (the type of beans that work best, for example) for added clarity after receiving thousands of emails from dieters with common questions after making the soup.
The Complete Fat Flush Soup Diet

Here are the basics:
1. A protein-rich breakfast
2. 2 daily servings of soup
3. Fat-flushing snacks

Tip: Make sure you drink plenty of water (about ½ your body weight in ounces of water daily).

Breakfast – choose one daily

* Eggs: 2 eggs plus ½ cup mixed veggies
* Fat Flush Body Protein smoothie:
In blender, mix
1 scoop Fat Flush Body Protein
8-10 oz. water
1 –1 ½ cups frozen or fresh berries
1 tablespoon flaxseed oil
2 tablespoons ground flax seeds or chia
Ice cubes (optional)
* Greek Yogurt: 1 ½ cups each fat-free Greek yogurt and berries


Lunch – enjoy daily
1 serving Fat Flush Soup

Dinner – enjoy daily
1 serving Fat Flush Soup

Snacks – choose two daily

* Unlimited veggies with salsa
* Garden salad with 1 tsp. olive oil and fresh lemon or vinegar to taste
* 1 hard-boiled egg
* 1 piece fruit


Looking for a little variety?
Swap the soup for 5 oz. lean protein (such as eggs, fish, chicken, turkey or beef) and 2 cups veggies prepared with 1 tsp. olive oil; add herbs, spices and lemon juice as desired.

What’s next?
After a week or so on the Fat Flush Soup Diet, move on to my classic Fat Flush program, outlined in my book, The Fat Flush Plan. If you have 50 or more pounds to lose, head to Phase 1. If you have less than 50 pounds to lose, head to Phase 2.

Note for Veteran Fat Flushers: For those of you currently following my classic Fat Flush program, please note the soup recipe would be most appropriate for Phase 3. If you are currently following Phase 1 or Phase 2, omit the beans from the soup recipe to stay on-plan.

Is soup “on” at your house yet?

-Edge On Health, Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman

Outback Fundraiser

Canceled


Outback Fundraiser

G'day mates:
come join us on
Saturday, November 19th from 11:00-1:00pm
at The Outback Restaurant
8700 NE Vancouver Mall Dr Ste 121
Vancouver, WA 98661

Purchase tickets at Lingonberries Market or contact Jennifer Saxon at 360-882-8350 cjdsaxs@msn.com

Tickets: $15 per person
choice of chicken/steak
baked potato
soft drink
their famous "dessert thunder down under"

Monday, October 3, 2011

Chew More Eat Less

"You already know it's good for your waistline to take your
time to eat. Now new research finds that chewing each bite
40 times (instead of the typical 15) may help you eat 12 percent
fewer calories per meal. The extra munching doesn't just slow
you down- it may actually help fight hunger by lowering levels
of an appetite-stimulating hormone called ghrelin and increasing
an appetite-reducing hormone called cholecystokinin."

-Health Magazine October 2011

The New Power Fruit

"Blueberries are famous for their health benefits-one recent study
says that a cup a day can lower risk of cancer. But even better is
the new super-berry: Scientists have found that wild blueberries
from the tropical regions of Central and South America have two to
four times more antioxidants than the berries we know and love. You
can't buy them by the bushel yet, but you can sample them in a Pacari
Andean Blueberry Dark Chocolate Bar ($6 per bar; chocolatepath.com)."

-Health Magazine October 2011