Back Clinic Natural Health Functional Medicine Team. This is a natural approach to health care. It is a natural healing practice or a branch of alternative medicine that looks at nature for answers and explanations. There are a few Western forms of alternative medicine that NCCAM has classified as Biologically Based Therapies, as well as, Mind and Body Interventions used in stress management.
There is nothing magical about it. It is about natural healing therapies for prevention and healthy lifestyles. This means eating natural whole foods, nutritional supplements, physical exercise. This is nothing new, but it has evolved over the years within certain prevention parameters, and healthy lifestyles have proven to work repeatedly. There is nothing anti-intellectual or anti-scientific about it. All health, wellness, illness, and healing can be positively affected by simple and inexpensive natural therapies.
Intermittent fasting is one of the most ancient secrets of health and wellness. Because it’s been practiced throughout all history. Intermittent fasting is considered a secret because this habit had been long forgotten.
But now, many people are re-discovering this dietary intervention. It may carry advantages if it is done correctly, including: reversal of type two diabetes, weight reduction, greater energy and many other things. In this beginner’s guide you can learn the function of intermittent fasting on the body.
How Does Intermittent Fasting Work?
At its very core, fasting simply allows the body to burn off extra body fat. It is necessary to realize that this is ordinary for humans and people have evolved to avoid negative health consequences from it. Body fat is merely food energy that’s been stored away. If you do not consume food, your body will simply “eat” its own fat for energy.
Life is all about balance. The good and the bad. The yin and the yang. The same is applicable to fasting and ingestion. Fasting, after all, is simply the flip side of eating. If you aren’t eating, you’re fasting. Here is how it works:
Once we eat, more food energy is consumed than can immediately be used. Some of the energy must be stored away for later usage. Insulin is the hormone involved with the storage of food energy.
Insulin rises when we consume food, helping to keep the excess energy in two separate ways. Sugars can be connected into chains, called glycogen and stored in the liver. There is limited storage space; and the liver starts to turn the glucose into fat, after that is achieved. This procedure is called De-Novo Lipogenesis.
A number of the newly created fat is stored in the liver, but most of it is exported into additional fat deposits within the body. Even though this is a complex procedure, there is no limitation to the total amount of fat which can be created. Therefore, two complementary food energy storage systems exist within our own bodies. One is readily accessible but with limited storage area (glycogen), and the other is more challenging to access but has infinite storage area (body fat).
The method goes in reverse when we don’t eat (fasting). Insulin levels fall, signaling the body to start burning stored energy as no more is coming through food. Blood glucose falls, so the body has to pull sugar to burn for energy.
Glycogen is the most readily accessible energy resource. It’s broken down to give energy to the cells. This provides enough energy to power the body for 24-36 hours. After that, your system will begin breaking down fat for energy.
So, the body just really exists in two states, the fed (insulin high) condition and the fasted (insulin reduced) state. Either we are storing food energy, or it is burning food energy. It is one or another. Then there is not any weight gain if fasting and eating become more balanced.
If we start eating the moment we roll out of bed, and do not stop until we go to sleep, we spend almost all our time at the fed state. As time passes, we will gain weight. We have not allowed our body some time.
To restore balance or to lose weight, we simply need to boost the quantity of time we burn food energy (fasting). Essentially, fasting enables the body to use its energy that is stored. After all, that is what it is there for. The important thing to realize is that there isn’t anything wrong with that. That’s how our bodies are designed. That’s what cat, dogs, lions and bears do. That’s what humans do.
If you are constantly eating, as is frequently advocated, then your body will simply utilize the incoming food energy rather than burn the body fat. It’ll be only stored by you. It will be saved by your own body for a while when there’s nothing to consume. You lack equilibrium. You lack fasting.
Fasting is Not Starvation
Fasting differs from starvation in a crucial way. Control. Starvation is the involuntary lack of food. It’s neither deliberate nor controlled. Fasting, on the other hand, is the voluntary withholding of food for health spiritual, or other factors.
Food is readily accessible, but you opt not to eat it. This could be for any time period, from a couple of hours up to days or even weeks. You will begin a fast and it may be ended by you at will. You may start or stop a fast for any reason or no reason at all.
Fasting has no typical length, as it’s merely the lack of ingestion. Anytime that you aren’t eating, you are fasting. As an instance, you may fast a period of approximately 12-14 hours, between breakfast and dinner the next day. In that sense, fasting ought to be thought of as a part of life.
Fasting is but a part of regular, normal life. It is possibly the oldest and most powerful dietary intervention imaginable. Yet somehow we have forgotten its power and discounted its potential.
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By Dr. Alex Jimenez
Additional Topics: Wellness
Overall health and wellness are essential towards maintaining the proper mental and physical balance in the body. From eating a balanced nutrition as well as exercising and participating in physical activities, to sleeping a healthy amount of time on a regular basis, following the best health and wellness tips can ultimately help maintain overall well-being. Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables can go a long way towards helping people become healthy.
Healthy, well-nourished women who breastfeed while pregnant don’t seem to increase their risk of delivering prematurely, miscarrying, or having a low-birth-weight baby, the authors of a new research review conclude.
But Gemma Lopez-Fernandez of Corporacio Sanitaria Parc Tauli in Barcelona, Spain, and colleagues write in the journal Women and Birth that more research is needed on the implications of nursing during pregnancy for mothers and children’s health.
While many women will decide to wean after getting pregnant, it is not uncommon for women to continue to nurse, Melissa Kotlen, an international board-certified lactation consultant based in New York, told Reuters Health in a telephone interview.
“If you’re healthy, you’re low risk, you’re not on bedrest, there’s really no problem with continuing to nurse while you’re pregnant,” Kotlen said. “Most of these moms end up tandem nursing once the baby’s born anyway.”
But even pediatricians and obstetricians can fall prey to unproven but common beliefs about nursing during pregnancy, Kotlen added, for example that nipple stimulation will trigger the release of oxytocin and bring on labor prematurely, or that nursing during pregnancy will deplete a mother’s nutritional stores.
To investigate these and other potential risks of breastfeeding in pregnancy, Lopez-Fernandez and her team reviewed 19 studies published between 1990 and 2015 and including a total of about 6,300 women.
They found some evidence that women who nursed during pregnancy gained less weight, had fewer fat reserves and lower levels of hemoglobin – the molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen. But the reviewers note that most research on the issue was done in the developing world.
The investigators found no support for the idea that breastfeeding women were more likely to deliver prematurely or to miscarry. Evidence on the effects of nursing during pregnancy on fetal and infant growth, as well as on the growth of the nursing child, was mixed.
Mothers who become pregnant while nursing should not be overly concerned about their nutritional status, as long as they are eating and drinking well, Kotlen said. “Your body knows exactly what it needs to take in. If you’re pregnant and you’re nursing, your body is going to know very quickly you need to eat a little bit more and you need to drink a little more.”
Lopez-Fernandez was not available for an interview by press time.
Menopause can be a smooth transition for some women, but others are plagued with flushes, night sweats, fatigue, depression, headaches, and other troublesome symptoms. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which used to be routinely prescribed to replace lost estrogen and mitigate symptoms, has come under fire in recent decades for a possible link to breast cancer.
Red clover has long been a major weapon in herbalists’ defense against the symptoms of menopause. Red clover contains isoflavones, which are plant-based chemicals that have effects similar to estrogen. Now, a Danish study finds that fermented red clover extract effectively prevents the hot flushes, hormonal swings, and bone loss that often accompany menopause.
Researchers at Aarhus University found that red clover extract significantly decreases both the number and severity of daily hot flushes, one of the most annoying symptoms.
It is the fermentation of red clover that makes the herb so effective, says researcher Max Norman Tandrup Lambert. “The lactic acid fermentation increases the bioavailability of the bioactive estrogen-like compounds, known as isoflavones or phytoestrogens, that red clover has in abundance.”
“The challenge with isoflavones is that they can be difficult to digest as they naturally occur in the plant bound to sugar molecules which prevent absorption,” he said. “Hence, a large proportion of the isoflavones that are consumed as a pill or capsule can pass through the intestine without entering circulation.
“This problem is bypassed when the red clover extract undergoes a fermentation process,” he continued. “To be technical, the process separates the sugar molecules from the isoflavones, thereby increasing bioavailability.”
For the study, 130 women with menopause symptoms were recruited. Of those, 60 were selected because they reported at least five severe hot flushes a day.
The women were divided into two groups of 30. One group drank 150 ml (about 5 ounces) of red clover extract each day for 12 weeks while the other 30 drank a placebo product. The researchers were “speechless,” said Lambert. “There was a much greater effect than we had hoped for.”
Other studies have found that red clover increases HDL — the “good” cholesterol — in women, and another found that menopausal women taking red clover supplements had stronger and more flexible arteries. Some studies have found that red clover extract slows bone loss in women.
In addition, a study appearing in Phytomedicine found that red clover could prevent potential brain damage triggered by the food additive MSG (monosodium glutamate).
For decades, health experts have warned about the dangers of being overweight, pointing to an increased risk of many conditions, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and some cancers. But several recent studies have found that sometimes being overweight — even obese — can actually be helpful, especially in seniors. The phenomenon is referred to as the “obesity paradox.”
“Society has often led to people being fixated with extreme thinness, particularly for appearance,” says Dr. Carl J. Lavie, a cardiologist at New Orleans’ Oschner Heart and Vascular Institute.
“However, almost every study shows that the underweight and the low end of ‘normal’ weight almost always have the highest mortality rates,” he tells Newsmax Health.
“The obesity paradox is even more noted in older folks than in the young,” says Dr. Lavie. “Older people can be very healthy with weights typically considered in the ‘overweight’ and ‘mildly obese’ ranges, especially if they are fit.”
Check out the following situations and conditions where a few extra pounds can not only be helpful, but could possibly save your life:
Heart attack. Cardiologists from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center studied patients who had suffered a major heart attack. They found that those who were mildly obese were 30 percent more likely to survive and spend fewer days in the hospital than those of normal weight. Researchers defined “mildly obese” as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 to 34.9 compared to a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, which is considered normal weight.
In an earlier study published in the European Heart Journal: Quality of Care and Clinical Outcomes, UT Southwestern researchers examined records from Medicare patients discharged after a heart attack involving total artery blockage. They then compared them with later treatment records to determine how the patients fared over the next three years. The mildly obese patients did better than all other groups, while those who were of normal weight or extremely obese fared the worst.
Stroke. Even though obesity increases the risk for stroke, a study from Boston University Medical Center found that people who are overweight or even mildly obese are more likely to survive strokes over the following 10-year period than those of normal body weight. The benefit was strongest in males and in those under than the age of 70.
Angioplasty. Dr. Luis Gruberg at the Cardiovascular Research Institute in Washington found that overweight and obese patients died at half the rate of normal-weight people following angioplasty, a procedure that unblocks arteries in the heart. He nicknamed the phenomenon the “obesity paradox.”
Longevity. An analysis of 97 studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that although obesity raised the risk of death, people who were mildly obese (a BMI of 30 to 34.9) had a 5 percent less chance of dying than those with normal BMIs. Those who were considered overweight with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 had a mortality rate that was 6 percent lower than those with normal BMIs. In addition, a British study found that people with Type 2 diabetes who were overweight, but not obese, had a lower risk of dying over a decade than their counterparts who were normal weight or underweight.
Sexual stamina. Sex with a person with a higher BMI lasts an average of 7.3 minutes longer when compared to underweight men or those of average weight. The answer appears to be the hormone estradiol, a form of the female hormone estrogen. It is found in excess abdominal fat and is known to slow male orgasm.
Heart failure. In studying his patients who were recovering from heart failure, Dr. Levie found that for every 1 percent increase in body fat, overall survival increased 13 percent.
Dementia. Those extra pounds may help protect you from dementia, found a study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Researchers found that those who were classified as overweight with a BMI of 24 to 29 had an 18 percent lower risk of developing dementia. The risk was even lower for those whose BMI was 30 or above. But people who were underweight increased their risk by 29 percent.
Arthritis. A Swiss study published in the journal Rheumatology found that the higher a man’s body mass index (BMI), the lower his chance of developing chronic arthritis. Overweight and obese men were found to have a decreased risk of up to 63 percent when compared to men of normal weight.
As long as it doesn’t take more than 30 minutes to an hour, a nap is good for our health in many ways. It’s perfectly natural for mammals and is even part of the work culture in China. Why not take advantage of the warm, relaxing weather to have a little snooze after lunch? Here’s a list of all the benefits of a short siesta.
– A healthier heart
A nap is beneficial for the heart because it lowers blood pressure and allows the cardiovascular system to recover. Two hormones, adrenalin and noradrenalin, which help to keep the body awake, stimulate the heart rate. A Greek scientific study in 2007 showed that a habitual 30-minute nap (three times a week) reduced the risk of death by heart failure by over 30%. Try it out this summer to improve your sports performance.
– Boosting creativity
By improving attention, memory and vigilance, a nap stimulates creativity and helps with solving difficult problems. It is virtually obligatory in Japan, and other countries are beginning to realize its benefits. Employees who rest at the beginning of the afternoon are more productive and come up with new ideas more easily. A summer nap is ideal for recharging your batteries and will pay dividends when you go back to work.
– Catching up on lost sleep
Chronic insomnia, drowsiness, and sleep debt are all part of modern life. There’s nothing like a power nap to catch up if you didn’t get enough sleep last night. And contrary to popular belief, a nap does not prevent you from sleeping the next night (as long as it doesn’t last longer than an hour). In fact it helps nocturnal sleep. It’s the perfect way to stay alert and in a good mood until the evening.
– Improving immunity
A lack of sleep affects antiviral proteins produced by the immune system. And sleep deprivation is associated with lower resistance to infections. Even a short nap restores the levels of hormones and proteins which help fight stress, thereby improving our immune system. Nap to your heart’s content this summer, so you’ll be able to drive out colds and viruses in the fall.
– A perfect non-drug treatment
The French National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance (InSV) considers sleep to be a non-drug treatment with analgesic effects. Migraines and muscular/joint pain can be improved by a short sleep. The InSV says that napping could reduce the need for medicines such as antihypertensives (a treatment for high blood pressure), stimulants and vitamins. Better to take 40 winks this summer instead of a cocktail of dietary supplements in the fall.
Wallpaper may contribute to sick building syndrome, a new study suggests.
Toxins from fungus growing on wallpaper can easily become airborne and pose an indoor health risk, the researchers said.
In laboratory tests, “we demonstrated that mycotoxins could be transferred from a moldy material to air, under conditions that may be encountered in buildings,” said study corresponding author Dr. Jean-Denis Bailly.
“Thus, mycotoxins can be inhaled and should be investigated as parameters of indoor air quality, especially in homes with visible fungal contamination,” added Bailly, a professor of food hygiene at the National Veterinary School of Toulouse, France.
Sick building syndrome is the term used when occupants start feeling ill related to time spent in a particular building. Usually, no specific illnessor cause can be identified, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
For the study, the researchers simulated airflow over a piece of wallpaper contaminated with three species of fungus often found indoors.
“Most of the airborne toxins are likely to be located on fungal spores, but we also demonstrated that part of the toxic load was found on very small particles — dust or tiny fragments of wallpaper, that could be easily inhaled,” said Bailly.
Mycotoxins are better known for their occurrence in food. But “the presence of mycotoxins in indoors should be taken into consideration as an important parameter of air quality,” he said.
The study was published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology.
Creating an increasingly energy-efficient home may aggravate the problem, Bailly and his colleagues said.
Such homes “are strongly isolated from the outside to save energy,” but various water-using appliances such as coffee makers “could lead to favorable conditions for fungal growth,” Bailly explained in a society news release.
Whether your friend has hurt your feelings or you’re upset over a lovers tiff, swearing could help to ease your pain, according to new research published in the European Journal of Social Psychology.
Carried out by Dr Michael Philipp, a lecturer at Massey University’s School of Psychology, New Zealand, along with Laura Lombardo from the University of Queensland, Australia, the work looks at the effect of swearing on “short-term social distress,” which could be anything from an argument with your partner to being excluded from a social situation.
Although previous studies have looked at common methods for relieving both physical and social pain, fir example with paracetamol, none have so far looked at whether swearing aloud could also help relieve social distress in the same way that it has previously been shown to ease physical distress.
To test this idea, the study looked at Pain Overlap Theory, which suggests that physical and social/emotional pain share the same underlying processing system, and anything affecting physical pain will also have similar effects on social pain.
For the research 70 participants were split into two groups, and tested for feelings of social pain and sensitivity to physical pain.
During the study participants had to write either about an inclusive social situation, or a distressing one, to induce the corresponding emotions. They were then were randomly assigned to either swear aloud or say a non-swear word aloud.
The results showed that those participants who were socially distressed experienced less social pain and less sensitivity to physical pain than those who didn’t swear.
“Previous research suggests that social stressors, like rejection and ostracism, not only feel painful but also increase people’s sensitivity to physical pain,” explained Dr Phillip. He also added that swearing can help ease both social and physical pain by reducing its intensity, by distracting the person in pain.
However, Dr Phillip also pointed out that swearing may not have the same effect if used on an everyday basis or in a situation which is only mildly irritating or stressful, when the use of profanity may lose its impact.
He also added that swearing is not a quick answer for those experiencing serious emotional pain and stress such as grief or abuse, when clinical care may be needed.
Previous research on swearing has also found that cursing aloud can make you stronger. In a small-scale study published early last month, a team of researchers found that participants who completed a test of anaerobic power — a short, intense period on an exercise bike — and isometric handgrip test — produced more power and had a stronger grip if they swore while completing the exercises.
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