The most important nutritional factor in healthy aging

Fat used to be the bad guy, but recently carbs have become the dietary villain.  Low carb diets have convincingly shown more benefit than low fat diets for weight loss . But WHAT KIND of carbs we are talking about matters a lot.  A doughnut is a carb, but so is broccoli! 

In an effort to reduce the starchy carbs in our diet (which is a a good thing to do!) we need to be careful that we don't end up eating less fiber.  

A recent Australian study looked at 1,600 adults aged 50 years and older and evaluated their dietary risks for long-term sensory loss and systemic diseases, related to their carbohydrate consumption. Out of all the factors they evaluated,  including total carbohydrate intake, total fiber intake, glycemic index, glycemic load, and sugar intake - fiber intake resulted in the biggest difference in "successful aging.  

"Essentially, we found that those who had the highest intake of fiber or total fiber actually had an almost 80 percent greater likelihood of living a long and healthy life over a 10-year follow-up. That is, they were less likely to suffer from hypertension, diabetes, dementia, depression, and functional disability."

Here are a few possible reasons behind these important findings.   

1. Bowel regularity.    Insoluble fiber helps to keep you regular by "sweeping out" your colon.  Having regular bowel movements is an important part of detoxification.  We are all exposed to environmental chemicals and natural waste compounds from our own bodies that we need to eliminate.  Many of these compounds are excreted into the digestive tract.  If you aren't moving your bowels regularly, there is a greater opportunity for these compounds to be reabsorbed and result in increase health risks.

2.  Stable blood sugar levels.  Fiber in your meal also helps to slow the rate that your blood sugar rises as you digest your meal.  A slower rise in blood sugar is healthier - it allows the body to make an appropriate amount of insulin to handle the sugar load.  A meal high in sugar or refined carbohydrates (like white bread) and low in fiber results in a rapid spike in blood sugar and the body has to scramble to gain control over the metabolic situation.  Over time, this can lead to insulin resistance and diabetes.

3.  Prebiotics.  You have probably heard that the healthy bacteria in your digestive tract is very important to your health and disease prevention.  Probiotics are the healthy bacteria (for example found in yogurt) that you need to stay well.  Have you heard of Prebiotics?  This is the food source for the probiotics!  It is not enough to simply take a probiotic supplement - you need to nourish your gut bacteria by feeding them plenty of prebiotics.  And can you guess what your probiotic bacteria eat?  Fiber, of course!  So a diet rich in fiber is a diet rich in prebiotics, which help to nourish your healthy gut bacteria.

4.  Healthy cholesterol levels.  Soluble fiber does not dissolve in water (think about how oatmeal becomes gelatinous when you mix it with water).  Soluble fiber binds to cholesterol and helps you to clear it from your system.  We know that the actual AMOUNT of cholesterol is not really what is important - it matters much more whether or not the cholesterol is inflamed or oxidized.  But eating enough soluble fiber helps to maintain cholesterol levels in the normal range.  

5.  Estrogen metabolism.  Another factor to consider is the very important role that fiber plays in hormonal balance, and this is important in women AND men.  Each day you excrete estrogen into your digestive tract to clear it from your system (whether you made the estrogen in your own body or whether you are on estrogen replacement or birth control pills).  The insoluble fiber in your diet helps to keep you regular so you can excrete estrogen.  Soluble fiber helps carry estrogen out in your stool, and helps prevent it from being reabsorbed into the blood stream.  This makes sense when you remember that many of your hormones (including estrogen) are made from cholesterol!  So just as fiber is important for lowering your cholesterol, it is also important for clearing estrogen.  

This is especially important in women who have "estrogen dominance" with symptoms like heavy periods, PMS symptoms, breast tenderness, weight gain, insomnia, anxiety, fibroids, fibrocystic breast disease, or ovarian cysts.  Estrogen dominance is a risk factor for breast cancer, and a high fiber diet can help reduce the risks (we have lots of research to support this).  Too much estrogen is also a risk factor for prostate cancer.  As men age, they often convert more of their testosterone into estrogen, and an increase in fiber can help minimize the amount of estrogen that accumulates.

How much fiber do you need?  Many studies have looked at a goal of 30gram of fiber per day.  One challenge in trying to achieve this goal is that I typically recommend eating "whole" foods that do not come in a package (and therefore don't have a label to tell you how many grams of fiber per serving).   But here are some foods that are good sources of fiber, especially soluble fiber which is the best for balancing hormones.  

Fruits including citrus fruit, berries, apples, apricots, dates, prunes, and pears.  
Vegetables including asparagus, brussels sprouts, squash, zucchini, broccoli and root veggies like carrots, turnips and sweet potatoes.  
Legumes including lentils, chickpeas and pinto beans
Nuts such as almonds and walnuts
Seeds like ground flax seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, raw pumpkin seeds

While you are eating these terrific foods to make sure you get enough fiber, you will also be benefitting from the antioxidant vitamins, trace minerals and abundant "phytonutrients" (plant compounds) that will help keep you heathy.  Perhaps higher fiber intake was not the only reason the people in the study had reduced rates of disease - it may have been because fiber tends to come packaged by nature along with the other important nutrients you need to stay well!  So eat more fiber today to help maximize your chances for a healthy tomorrow.  

For more information on healthy hormone balance and healthy aging, please see our website www.signaturewellness.org or contact the office at 704-752-9346 or questions@signaturewellness.org

Yours in health,

DrM


1.  Association Between Carbohydrate Nutrition and Successful Aging Over 10 Years. The Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 2016

2.  High fiber diet reduces serum estrogen concentrations in premenopausal women.  American Society of Clinical Nutrition.  1991

P.S.:  New testing allows us to measure your estrogen metabolites.  Would you like to know whether you are metabolizing estrogen in a way that increases your breast cancer risk (and then do something to correct the problem?)  Please contact the office for more information.  The test is $200 and is not covered by health insurance.  

Is this the cause of your hormone problem?

Are you concerned about chemicals in the environment?  Did you know that chemicals may be the cause of your hormone imbalance?

There are literally tens of thousands of chemicals that have been invented in the past 70 years.  Most of these have never been tested to see whether they are safe for humans.   We are exposed to small amounts of these chemicals on a daily basis through food, water, cosmetics, and air.  These compounds are often persistent (they don't get flushed out of the body) and build up over time.

Many of these chemicals are "hormone disruptors", meaning that they interfere with our normal hormone function.   Examples include industrial chemicals like dioxins and PCBs, pesticides including DDT, plasticizers like BPA and phthalates, and preservatives like parabens.

Health problems in women that may be associated with hormone disrupting chemicals include uterine fibroids, fibrocystic breast disease, endometriosis, infertility, PMS, and menstrual problems.  

In men these chemicals have been associated with low testosterone levels,  reduced sperm count, infertility, and impaired sexual function.  

Lets look at some of these in more detail.

Bis-phenol A (BPA) is a component of plastic and has estrogenic effects.  (In fact, it was first discovered in the 1880's and was evaluated for use as an estrogen drug, before it was abandoned in favor of a compound with even stronger estrogen effects - DES.  DES was one of the first hormone disruptors identified and was banned by the FDA for causing birth defects. )

BPA is found in hard plastic bottles (including baby bottles!), dental sealants that we put on our kids teeth, credit card receipts, dollar bills, and the inside lining of cans of food.  

 To minimize your exposure,  avoid plastic bottles (especially if scratched or old),  buy fresh or frozen food instead of canned whenever possible, strongly consider the pros and cons of dental sealants (BPA-free sealants are available), and avoid products packaged in recyclable plastic containers marked #7.

Phthalates are found in soft plastic, such as water bottles, teething toys, baby bottle nipples, and plastic wrap for food.

To minimize your risk,  don't reuse your water bottles, and don't microwave your food in plastic (the heat increases the leaching of the chemical into your food) - use glass instead.








Parabens are preservatives found in personal care products like cosmetics, lotions, and shampoo.

Read the labels of all the products that you put on your skin to see if they contain parabens. Anything you put on your skin will be absorbed into your body.



Dioxins come from industrial processes, such as incineration of medical waste, smelting,  pulp and paper bleaching, and production of pesticides and herbicides.  Agent Orange is a dioxin, and dioxins are closely related to PCBs which were banned in the 1970s.  Both dioxins and PCS are persistent, meaning they last for decades in our bodies and in the environment.

The chemicals are deposited on the ground and ingested by farm animals, where it is concentrated in their fat tissues.  Our main exposure is through consumption of meat and dairy products.

According to the EPA, adults consume approximately 300-600 times the "safe" limit for dioxins. These chemicals tend to be concentrated in breast milk, and nursing infants are estimated to to consume 15,000-30,000 times this limit!  The average levels of dioxins in all Americans are now estimated to be "at or approaching" the point where we can all expect to experience adverse health effects.  Because dioxins (and PCBs) are eliminated very slowly from the body, they can last (and cause effects) for up to several decades after exposure.

Avoiding exposure to dioxins is a challenge.  The primary solution is for industries to change so that our environment is not being polluted.  Limiting consumption of meat and dairy products is a partial solution.   In this case, buying organic meat and dairy products will not prevent exposure.

Pesticides  DDT was banned decades ago when it was found to be a hormone disruptor, but overall our use of pesticides has increased over the years.  In recent research,  30 out of 37 commonly used pesticides tested by the University of London were found to be hormone disruptors.  The one found to have the most potent effects at blocking male hormones was an insecticide called fenitrothion, which is an organophosphate used on orchard fruits, grains, rice vegetables and other crops.

There is significant concern for fetuses and nursing infants, as these hormone disruptors may have effects on the developing reproductive tract.

In this case, buying organic foods DOES help to reduce risk of exposure.    A study found lower levels of pesticide residues in the urine of preschoolers fed an organic diet compared with preschoolers fed a standard diet.  It is so shocking to me that pesticides are found in ANY preschoolers!



So apart from avoiding toxins, what else can be done?

Hormone testing is available to help identify the problem;  sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone), thyroid hormones, and stress hormones including cortisol.   It is also possible to do genomic testing and nutritional testing to learn how well your detoxification pathways are functioning and to help optimize your ability to clear toxins from your system.

If you are having hormonal symptoms and would like to be evaluated, please call us!  704-752-9346 or email questions@signaturewellness.org.  Please visit our website to learn more  www.signaturewellness.org 

Why not ensure 100% absorption of your vitamins and minerals?

Did you know that for many people, over 50% of the vitamins and minerals taken by mouth are poorly absorbed?  This can be due to digestive problems like gut inflammation from food sensitivities, dysbiosis (imbalances in digestive microflora), or yeast overgrowth (candida).  Stress and aging can also influence nutrient absorption - most people over the age of 40 are not  optimally digesting and absorbing nutrients.  Even in young, healthy people, the gut is only able to absorb a limited amount of certain nutrients.

In a nutritional IV, vitamins, minerals and amino acids are infused directly into the bloodstream.  We are able to deliver much higher doses of the nutrients since we bypass the limitations of the digestive system, and this allows much better correction of intracellular nutrient deficiencies.  

A good example of this is Vitamin C.  The antiviral effects of Vitamin C are seen when blood levels are approximately 10-15mg/dL.  Oral intake of Vit C typically raises blood levels only up to 1.2-4mg/dL,  so trying to overcome a cold with oral Vit C is unlikely to be very effective. We can deliver a higher dose with IV therapy,  and are able to raise levels up to 50-90mg/dL.

Besides boosting immune system function, another benefit of improved intracellular nutrition is increased energy production.  Mitochondria are the energy producing batteries in each cell. The influx of vitamins and minerals in a nutritional IV fuel the mitochondria and help to “kick start” the energy production in the cells.  This is especially valuable in treating patients with fatigue.

Already fairly healthy?  IV Therapy is great for boosting health and preventing illness.  

Planning an elective surgery?  Nutritional IVs before and after surgery can help to promote a reduced risk of complications from surgery and anesthesia, and promote faster recovery time with less swelling and bruising.  

Having your silver fillings removed?  Nutritional IVs can be very important to help reduce the effects of mercury exposure.  

High stress circumstances coming up, like a wedding, running a marathon, travel, final exams, or a sports competition?  Nutritional IVs can help keep you feeling on top of your game and reduce the risk of a weakened immune system due to stress.

Feel like you are coming down with a cold or flu?  A nutritional IV can resolve symptoms quickly.  This works best if the IV is administered within 24 hours of the start of symptoms.

For patients with medical problems exacerbated by intracellular nutritional deficiencies, IV Therapy can be an important tool in helping to restore wellness.  Conditions that may be helped with nutritional IVs include:

hormone imbalance

poor detoxification

poor memory and concentration

chronic stress

candida 

weakened immune system

fibromyalgia

chronic fatigue syndrome

muscle twitches and spasms

hypertension

athletic performance recovery and endurance

diabetes

migraines

depression

anxiety

arthritis

asthma

allergies

sinusitis

eczema and other skin conditions

chronic pain

cardiovascular disease

poor circulation

post-gastric bypass

Epstein Barr

heavy metal toxicity

influenza

Crohn's disease/ulcerative colitis

cancer

and even the common cold!

What is a Myers’ Cocktail?

During the 1960s, Dr. John Myers’, an internist from Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, proposed that a mixture of key nutritional supplements might be given in a single intravenous 

infusion– literally flooding the body with nutrients– to help improve cell performance. Each of the vitamins and minerals Dr. Myers’ selected had actually been available in intravenous form for years, but no one had ever considered combining them into an intravenous “cocktail.”

The basic Myers’ formula consists of a mixture of Vit C, B Vitamins, magnesium, and calcium.   All of these nutrients have known benefits and low potential for serious side effects. 

What is IV Glutathione?  

Glutathione is the most important anti-oxidant in the body.  It is produced in the body, especially the liver and is very important for detoxification of carcinogens, toxins, drugs, alcohol, and heavy metals like lead and mercury.  It activates the immune system and plays an important role in DNA synthesis and repair.  It activates nitric oxide to dilate arteries.  When given intravenously it helps with liver and brain function, and can be helpful for fatigue, brain fog, memory, parkinson’s and other neurologic conditions. 

Interested in learning more about how nutritional IVs can help you?  Give us a call!  704-752-9346  Or email us at questions@signaturewellness.org.

New Year Detox for Optimal Health

The New Year is a wonderful time of year to consider a detox program.  Seasonal cleansing can help reduce symptoms of disease as well as prevent illness from developing in the first place.  Many of us have seen the packaged detox products in retail stores.  But do they work or are there more effective ways of cleansing and when is it appropriate? 

We live in a sea of toxins.  Millions of tons of chemicals are released into the North American environment each year, exposing us on a daily basis.  Manufacturing and mining are sources of contamination for our air and water, pesticides lace our foods, and cleaning products and cosmetics are just a few of the chemical substances we encounter in our homes.

Our bodies have detoxification pathways via the skin, lungs, bowels, kidneys, lymph system and especially the liver.  Over time, these systems can become impaired due to excessive exposure, poor nutrition, drugs, or ill health.  Symptoms can occur such as fatigue, headaches, skin eruptions, pain, allergies, muscle weakness and foggy thinking.  Over time, repeated cell damage can lead to more serious diseases.  Cleansing can help address the source of these ailments and promote overall health.

There are various detox programs available to the public ranging from gentle to more aggressive.  Gentle approaches may be as simple as improving your diet and starting yoga.  More aggressive methods may include the detox kits sold at health food stores. While some of these kits are produced by reputable companies, they can have detrimental side effects.  Many are based on cathartic, laxative herbs that can cause frequent trip to the bathroom.  They may not contain appropriate amounts of beneficial vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids such as cysteine and glutamine that aid the cleansing process and help reduce the possibility of detox symptoms (such as fatigue, headaches, and gastrointestinal distress).  Intense cleansing protocols performed improperly can actually harm your health.   

Yearly or bi-yearly cleansing is appropriate for most people, but may not be safe for young children, the chronically ill, pregnant or nursing mothers, and those suffering from a serious disease.  Anyone who falls into these categories should seek the advice of a qualified healthcare practitioner when considering a detox program.

Some of the most effective cleansing protocols take a comprehensive approach and involve a whole foods hypoallergenic diet, rest and relaxation techniques, and ideal amounts of nutrients, antioxidants and herbs.  In addition, learning where exposures to toxins occur in our environment and what we can do to reduce or prevent them can immensely benefit our overall body burden of chemicals.

Signature Wellness is offering an effective 6 day detoxification program to jump start the New Year and cleanse our bodies from holiday revelry.  For more information, please call 704-752-9346.