Digestive Health | NATUROPATH DALLAS

New research suggests the solution to insomnia might be as easy as changing your diet and adding beneficial probiotics to your gut, The Guardian reports. While it’s a new concept, scientists said what they do know about the relationship between lack of sleep and other aspects of your diet, such as appetite, obesity and glucose regulation, may be hints that the well-being of your stomach is linked to your sleep health.

Click the button below to read the rest of the article.

From Mercola

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Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar

John Ayo — Fri, 16 Nov 2018 13:51:41 +0000

Fabulous drink to help with so many health issues in the body…

It’s apple-pickin’ time in North America, and while all eyes are on apple pies and everything else apple-related, you may want to take a closer look at the health benefits of apple cider vinegar, A Great Gut Feeling suggests. From helping with satiety and weight loss to improving blood sugar levels and reducing triglycerides, apple cider vinegar has proven to be a great health booster.

The virtues of apple cider vinegar just go on and on, but before you rush out to buy a bottle, be sure that you know the difference between regular filtered apple cider vinegar and the unprocessed, unfiltered, raw, organic apple cider vinegar that offers you the best health benefit for your dollar.

What I’m talking about here is apple cider that comes with its distinguishing feature called “mother” — dark, strand-like chains of cloudy, enzyme-rich, probiotic bacteria found floating in the bottom of the bottle.

The good news is, if you’re not yet familiar with the many beneficial uses of this versatile and economical home remedy, besides helping with blood sugar and weight loss, apple cider vinegar (ACV) also helps with acid reflux and an upset stomach — and more.

From alleviating symptoms of sinusitis and sore throat to using it to address certain skin conditions, ACV is a versatile product with unending applications. It even is a great and safe, all-natural, cleaning product!

If you’re wondering what the difference is between the ACV with the “mother” and the filtered jug of clear vinegar beside it on the store shelf, ACV is made from fermented apples in a process similar to the one used for making other homemade fermented brews, such as kombucha.

In the first step of the process, sugar is dissolved in filtered water that is then poured over a variety of coarsely chopped apples. This mixture is allowed to set at room temperature until bubbles begin to appear as the sugar ferments into alcohol. (Because the sugars are digested through the fermentation process, apple cider vinegar contains very little sugar and carbohydrates, making it a very attractive food from a dietary standpoint.)

Next, the apples are strained out and the liquid is maintained, again at room temperature, for an additional three to four weeks. At this time, the alcohol is transforming into vinegar through the action of the acetic acid bacteria — this particular acid gives vinegar its distinctive sour tang.

As the bacteria do their job, a small amount of sediment will appear on the bottom of the container and the “mother” culture will form on top, which is a colony of beneficial bacteria. From this point, you can quickly recognize organic, raw, unfiltered, unprocessed apple cider vinegar by the distinctive presence of the mother, which can only exist in vinegar that is not pasteurized or filtered.

From Mercola

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Protect Bowel From Unwanted Inflammation; Good Bacteria Can Keep Your Gut Healthy

John Ayo — Sat, 28 Jul 2018 15:16:07 +0000

We are seeing more and more research that shows that a healthy digestive system is foundational to overall good health!

I think a good probiotic is absolutely key these days to helping you achieve this

Here is one of my favorites: MegaSporBiotic ...click HERE to get it…

Good news from The Economic Times reinforces previous studies showing that good bacteria in your gut go a long way toward giving you a healthier immune system. Looking to explain the mechanisms by which gut microbes work to fight pathogens in your intestinal epithelium, researchers said the bottom line, take-home, message is that “a healthy microbiota is necessary” to fight infection, eliminate pathogens and boost the immune system.

Study after study is showing that the gut microbiome is an absolute game-changer when it comes to your immune system and overall health. Dozens of health conditions have been traced back to the influence of gut microbes, including obesity, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, allergies and cancer.

Basically, your gut is your second brain, with your vagus nerve being the primary route your gut bacteria use to transmit information to your brain — and establishing a direct relationship between your gut health and your physical health and mental health, both.

The connection between mental health and gut health is so strong that some have proposed probiotics may be the new Prozac. It turns out that probiotics alter brain function for the good, and the implications are particularly significant in our current era of rampant depression and emotional “malaise, making probiotic supplementation something you may want to consider if you’re suffering from depression or anxiety.

One thing I can’t emphasize enough, however, is the importance of addressing gut health with foods. One of the best strategies to ensure you have optimal good bacteria levels in your body is to consume fermented foods. The good news is you can ferment your own foods, yourself, right at home, and quite easily too. From homemade kimchi to regular fermented vegetables, fermenting isn’t difficult and the rewards are great.

From Mercola

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Vitamin D

John Ayo — Sat, 16 Jun 2018 20:58:47 +0000

Interesting insights in this brief about the links between Vitamin D deficiency and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).

IBS is one of those “catch all” diagnoses when docs aren’t sure what is causing your digestive issues.

Here is one possible factor – click on the LINK below to read the full article.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic disorder of the digestive tract primarily involving the large intestine. The symptoms of IBS typically include bloating, cramping, constipation, and diarrhea. It is quite common, estimated to affect approximately 10 percent of the population. The cause of IBS is not clear, but there are known triggers such as eating certain foods and experiencing stress. And now new research has uncovered a new possible risk factor for this disease as it showed a strong association between IBS and low levels of vitamin D.

To obtain a sufficient intake of vitamin D, your best bet is spending a little time in the sunshine. Unfortunately, the components of sunblock that help us avoid sunburns also hamper our bodies’ ability to create the necessary amounts of vitamin D. So if you aren’t an outdoorsy type or use your SPF 50 religiously, it’s possible you may end up with a vitamin D deficiency. All but the most sun-sensitive of us can safely be outside for 15 unprotected minutes a day, which is enough exposure to get the sunlight we need for vitamin D production. (Note: the sun needs to be at 50 degrees in the sky for sun bathing; but keep in mind that at 45 degrees latitude–which runs through the northern US–the sun rises and sets at 45 degrees, which means that it’s almost always 50% or higher during the day.) And taking supplements can also help ensure you get enough vitamin D. Choose a supplement with 1,000 to 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 to take daily.

Full Article

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Eat Less, Live Longer?!

John Ayo — Sat, 16 Jun 2018 20:06:04 +0000

Is it possible that by eating less, we can actually prolong our life?

This is a great article that asks the tough question: “Is it worth the sacrifice to eat less?”

Our daily lifestyle choices – what to eat, how much to eat, exercise, stress management…truly have a MAJOR impact on our health and prevention of disease.

We all want to find the fountain of youth. And we’d like it to be pleasant to partake of, thank you very much. If we don’t get sparkling water from a legendary fountain, a simple supplement or two is an acceptable alternative.

Research in animals, including primates, has uncovered a potential candidate for the fountain. But it sounds much less pleasant than we would like – caloric restriction (CR).

The effect of CR on lifespan was first noticed in rodents. Rats lived up to 40 percent longer when placed on the CR diet from a young age. While promising, what works in rats doesn’t necessarily do the same for humans.

In 1989, though, researchers at the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center began to study the effect of CR on rhesus monkeys. Monkeys still aren’t human, but they are a lot closer than a rat.

This research found that, at any point in time, rhesus monkeys on a normal diet “had 2.9 times the rate of death from an age-related cause when compared with animals under CR.” Monkeys under CR also had lower all-cause mortality than their pals who got to eat a normal diet.

Again, this isn’t a human study. More research needs to be done to definitively say humans would experience similar results. But it does get the wheels turning, no?

Sadly, this approach to longevity is neither the stuff of legends nor an easy fix. In fact, one wonders if cutting calories – for life – to add a few extra years is even worth it. Won’t the misery it adds negate those years? If it were a brand it might market itself like this:

Caloric Restriction: Eat Less, Eek Out a Few Extra Miserable Years

We aren’t the only ones who wonder about the unpleasant effects of such a CR lifestyle. A study in the June 16^th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine looked at how a calorie-restricted diet affected quality of life. In humans.

They took a group of 220 normal weight people and put one-third of them on an ad libitum (eat what you want) diet. The other two-thirds were placed on a 25 percent calorie-restricted diet. After two years, researchers asked the subjects a few questions about their lives. They found the CR group had:

improved mood,
decreased tension,
improved general health,
improved sexual drive and relationship and
improved sleep duration compared to the group who got to eat as much as they wanted.

All members of both groups started out at a normal weight, with BMIs ranging from 22 to 28. But the CR group lost weight as one would expect – an average of 7.6 kilograms, compared to the control group’s 0.4 kilograms. The greater weight loss was associated with increased vigor, less mood disturbance, improved general health and better sleep quality.

So, the words “caloric restriction” may not sound like a lot of fun. But the benefits seem to yield a real improvement in quality of life, even if it doesn’t end up leading to a longer life. The tagline for CR might actually be:

Eat Less, Live Better, and (Maybe) Live Longer

Full Article

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