Lectins are a type of protein found in various plants, especially grains and legumes, that can bind to cell membranes. They serve a protective function for plants as they grow but can also have negative effects on human health when consumed in large amounts. Despite their natural origins, dietary lectins can be damaging and unhealthy due to their resistance to human digestion and their ability to bind to the cells lining the digestive tract. This post covers the reasons behind the potential harm caused by dietary lectins and provides advice on how to minimize their negative impact on our health.
Read MoreI have a morning routine that I've been doing for years, but I only recently shared it with a stranger while we were discussing our daily habits. It occurred to me that my routine is quite ritualistic and resembles a luxurious spa treatment. As I was describing my routine, I thought about how I sounded like Christian Bale's character, Patrick Bateman, from the movie American Psycho, when he described his morning routine and saw the humor in it. As much as I see the benefits to doing it, it also sounds comical, so I am going to share it in this post in hopes of amusing most of you and, maybe, enlightening some of you to some lesser-known health interventions. I hope you enjoy it.
Read MoreAll animals, including humans, evolved to contact the Earth. We mostly walked barefoot or with footwear made of animal skins and slept on the ground or skins. Humans routinely do not touch the Earth anymore due to shoes with synthetic soles, modern homes, and beds. Insulating ourselves from contact with the Earth has had negative health consequences that few are aware of, including health care providers. Have you ever noticed that you feel better after a barefoot day at the pool or beach? It isn't just the sun and fresh air that is responsible. The contact with the Earth is too. This post will cover the numerous health benefits of routinely contacting the Earth's surface, a practice called Earthing or grounding.
Read MoreTraditional thinking views our bodies as vessels containing thousands of coordinated chemical reactions. While this is true, electromagnetic processes occur simultaneously but get less attention. The reality is that since the discovery of electricity and its cousin magnetism, scientists have been looking into how they interact with biological systems. The classic example of how the body uses chemicals to produce electrical impulses is our nervous system, but every cell does the same thing using electrical potentials. This post will give a little background on the biology of electromagnetism, how it relates to our cells and tissues, and, finally, some of the benefits of applying low levels of electromagnetic energy to optimize health. The technology is called pulsed electromagnetic field application.
Read MorePhilosophers have long distinguished two basic forms of well-being: a hedonic form representing the sum of an individual's positive affective experiences and a deeper eudaimonic form that results from striving toward meaning and a noble purpose beyond simple self-gratification. It turns out, so do scientific researchers. There is robust scientific evidence that living a eudaimonic life extends life. This post will cover some of the science behind eudaimonia and how to achieve it.
Read MoreI want to share a shocking brief digital simulation showing how our faces have been drastically shrinking over several hundred years. I got it from Dr. Michael Gelb DDS in NYC, who got it from best-selling author James Nestor. Please concentrate on the lower face; you will see how the jaws are shrinking and moving back toward the throat. This causes the tongue to partially or fully occlude the airway, especially when we sleep. You should also notice how the face is less attractive now. In fact, it is rare to see someone who has realized their potential for full facial development. People with properly developed faces will always have straight teeth, room for their wisdom teeth, superior beauty, and better health. Whatever they do for a living, they appear to be actors and models. Since most of us have underdeveloped faces, this epidemic has gone primarily unnoticed by us, including most physicians and dentists. This needs to change because, as you will see in this post, it is one of the major contributing factors for many, if not most, of our modern health problems.
Read MoreHeart disease is the number one killer in America, and LDL cholesterol has gotten most of the blame. But for the last 40 years, researchers have known that oxidized LDL, not LDL, is the true villain implicated in heart disease. Furthermore, only a few randomized controlled trials have ever tested the traditional diet-heart hypothesis that blames saturated fat for heart disease, yet it remains the gospel truth. Ongoing 40-year-old research shows that linoleic acid is the real culprit that causes oxidation of LDL, contributing to atherosclerosis-associated inflammation. Similar research actually shows saturated fat to protect against oxidation. Today I will cover this new research and tell you about a simple way to lower your risk of heart disease.
Read MoreMedical researchers have known for some time that we cannot always assume that our bodies always use vitamin D efficiently. About 25% of the population do not respond to standard doses of vitamin D3 supplementation. Many of them have healthy levels of vitamin D. A new condition has been identified called vitamin D resistance. Only a fraction are genetic in origin. Most cases are acquired during life. Some of the causes are known. This blog discusses the causes and the treatment options.
Read MoreThe combination of obesity, specific heart-health markers, and some metabolic measurements are collectively known as metabolic syndrome. Essentially our metabolism has a direct impact on our overall health and heart health specifically. The health implications are dire, not just for our cardiovascular systems. With Covid-19, obesity is strongly associated with increased severity of COVID-19 infections, even in the absence of other underlying health issues. In this post, I have included an interactive guide to all of the steps you need to include to improve your looks, mood, and energy level. Your "body composition" will take care of itself as you focus on the things listed in the guide. Best of all, your chances of dying from disease and infection will diminish.
Read MoreAs many of you know, I started the carnivore diet on January 1, 2020, hoping to give it one year. The year sped by without me experiencing any significant issues being a carnivore. I cured two chronic orthopedic problems (thumb and elbow) and improved my body composition, sleep, mood, and more. I achieved near-perfect health and wellness. I decided to start adding plant-based items, including some alcohol back into my diet and see how I fared. My goal was to add variety to my diet, not to improve my health, as it was about as good as it gets. It went poorly. This post will cover what I learned about adding things back into my diet.
Read MoreIt has been about one year since we started to hear about Covid-19. In that time, we have amassed tons of data on the disease. One thing is clear: the average person who dies from it has 2.6 underlying illnesses. Since most of our modern ailments are rooted in inflammation, I want to suggest six things you can do starting today to decrease it.
Read MoreNow that we are heading into winter in the northern hemisphere, many of us may experience lower vitamin D levels as the sun is no longer capable of helping us produce it. A promising study showed that using a form of vitamin D called calcidiol reduced the risk of ICU admission by 93% compared to the group that took no calcidiol in Covid-19 patients. But some people don’t respond to supplementation when their levels are already low. I will tell you how you can improve your production of active vitamin D, whether you should supplement, and how a commonly available supplement can really help.
Read MoreOn March 18th, I discussed how Coronavirus is more likely to kill the elderly. In that post, I highlighted the fact that many older individuals have more underlying diseases, including heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, pulmonary disease, obesity, etc. We now have statistics regarding deaths from Coronavirus that demonstrate that trend. I would like to share them with you today.
Read MoreTraditionally, humans have always eaten fats and oils that were predominantly saturated and animal-based. New industrial seed oils have replaced the traditional fats like butter, tallow, and lard. These oils contain large amounts of omega-6 oils which are problematic for our health. We utilize fats for a variety of uses including building blocks for cell membranes, and energy storage. This high omega-6 substitution has had a dramatic effect on our health which I will discuss in today’s post.
Read MoreA recent study shows a strong connection between gum disease and Alzheimer’s Disease. The germ that causes gum disease has been found in the brains of Alzheimer Disease sufferers. Substances known as gingipains are secreted by the bacteria are responsible for much of the damage. The good news is that gum disease is easily treatable. The same study shows that there may be a new drug on the horizon to inactivate gingipains.
Read MoreToday I want to talk about the connection between gum disease and heart disease. I am going to talk about one specific recent study, and I am going to get more scientific than usual, so forgive me, but the information is too good to ignore.
Read MoreThe Paleo Diet has come a long way since it first hit the scene in 2001. Now that Paleo f(x) has concluded, I would like to share with you some of my thoughts about where the movement is today.
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