Energizor Tonic for the Adrenals

I have designed this tonic as a boost in the morning instead of coffee. Many nutritional plans seem to involve a lot of coffee that is not conducive for good health. Take away the coffee and you fall flat. Not with Energizor...more energy than before. This can be supported with a whole food diet.

Energizor Tonic contains herb Licorice, Rehmannia and Rhodiola. The dose is 10ml in the morning with water ( there are 2 doses in every bottle).

Licorice has become synonymous with a strong candy flavor, but the herb itself , Glycyrrhiza glabra, has very different strengths. An adaptogen herb, licorice root can be found growing in Europe, the Mediterranean and Asia, and it’s been used for thousands of years and dozens of purposes, including as a leaky gut remedy and adrenal fatigue.

Rhodiola is used for increasing energy, stamina, strength and mental capacity; and as a so-called “adaptogen” to help the body adapt to and resist physical, chemical, and environmental stress. It is also used for improving athletic performance, shortening recovery time after long workouts, improving sexual function; for depression; and for heart disorders such as irregular heartbeat and high cholesterol.

In Western herbal medicine, rehmannia root extract is looked upon as an adrenal tonic and is believed to support the cells of the adrenal cortex and pituitary during times of prolonged stress. These three work together to create a synergistic action that is greater than any of these herbs by them selves.  Try it today.  Available for sale at Cranes Pharmacy or Cremorne Pharmacy or ONLINE.

3 Must Have Products for Oxfam Training

It is traditionally thought that carbohydrates are required in preparation for or during exercise as a source of energy. However, emerging evidence has demonstrated that the ketogenic diet is a safe and viable option for those exercising regularly. In fact if you look up, Dr Jeff Volek, you will find his trials where he took elite athletes who fueled their body on carbohydrates and matched them against elite athletes who fueled their bodies on fats.  Who won?  The fats of course. He has found in his research that low carbohydrate diets exceed expectations for athletic performance.  This is thought to occur when something called 'keto-adaption' occurs.  This just means you teach your body to run on fats and not carbohydrates.  Research has also found keto-adapted athletes avoid the well-known and feared concept of 'hitting the wall'.
If you want to give it a go drop your exercise a bit for a week, stop eating high GI carbs ( bread, pasta, rice and potatoes) and increase your fat intake.  I take one tablespoon Bioceuticals MCT oil each day and make sure you have lots of oils, nuts, seeds, fish, avocados and eggs every day.
I've being doing this for more than a year, I ran the city to surf and finished in the top 20% of women and I can't even run. I've completed a 2 hundred kilometer bike races just on 2 tablespoon oil.  All I can say is give it a go.
I've got this far and haven't answered your question.  My three must have products are;

1. Bioceuticals MCT oil 500ml , 
2. Lean Clean Protein Powder 1 kg  (  to feed muscle mass and enhance  endurance and stamina ) &
3. Metagenics Fibroplex powder 220g ( balanced magnesium originally formulated for American Olympic cycling team).

Combine them all into a frappé with frozen berries and water...yum

BUY the PACK.  These 3 products together and receive 10% OFF.

Keto-adaption PACK  $159

".......emerging evidence has demonstrated the ketogenic diet is a safe and viable option for those exercising regularly."

FODMAPS

WHAT ARE FODMAPS?
“FODMAP” is the acronym for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides and Polyols, a group of short-chain carbohydrates and sugar alcohols (polyols).1 These nutrients are ubiquitous in the diet. The key FODMAPs are:

• Oligosaccharides, such as fructans/fructo-oligosaccharides (found in grains and vegetables) and
  galactans/galacto-oligosaccharides (found in legumes)
  
• Disaccharides, such as lactose (found in milk)
  
• Monosaccharides, such as fructose (found in fruit)
  
• Polyols, such as sorbitol (found in sweetened products)

WHAT EFFECT DO FODMAPS HAVE IN THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM?
Susceptible people can experience intestinal symptoms from ingestion of FODMAPs for a number of reasons. 

• The carbohydrates are not well absorbed into the body and remain in the digestive tract for longer periods.
  
• FODMAPs draw water into the intestines, which can increase bowel motions and promote diarrhea 
  
• These carbohydrates can be metabolized by the bacteria that normally reside in the bowel, producing gas, bloating and wind. 
  

To determine if FODMAPs might be contributing to your symptoms, the most effective strategy is to eliminate all FODMAP-containing foods and observe your symptoms. Following the elimination of all FODMAPs, the next step is to complete systematic re-challenge one-by-one of each FODMAP to help determine the tolerable doses and types of FODMAPs for you. 
It is not generally recommended that you follow a low FODMAP diet for life; restricting dietary intake of a wide array of foods should generally be avoided if possible to reduce the risk of nutrient deficiencies. FODMAPs are a normal part of the diet and have benefits for health, such as providing fibre and prebiotics for gastrointestinal health.

HOW TO EAT A LOW FODMAP DIET – ELIMINATION PHASE
To trial the low FODMAP diet, all high-FODMAP foods need to be eliminated from the diet for at least two weeks, until there has been a significant reduction in symptoms. Relevant symptoms should be monitored and recorded (using the diary in Appendix A) on a daily basis, to track any benefits from the dietary program.
Table 1 gives a detailed list of foods in each FODMAP category that should be avoided. Where quantities are given, these foods should be avoided only above the given dose. Many alternative foods can be consumed whilst following a low FODMAP diet. Table 2 provides a list of suitable foods which can be enjoyed.

 The REINTRODUCTION PHASE

• The reintroduction phasebe commenced after two weeks in the elimination phase, when some significant resolution of symptoms has been achieved. The goal is to systematically reintroduce each FODMAP to determine the level of individual FODMAP consumption that can be comfortably tolerated.8,9
• A five week program for the reintroduction phase is outlined in Table 3. Each week, one specific carbohydrate type is trialled, with a serving consumed on three separate days. Symptoms are monitored (using the diary in Appendix A) for 48 hours after each dose to determine if there is a possible reaction to that carbohydrate. If you believe there is no reaction over the following 48 hours you can continue with the next dose of that carbohydrate. If you experience a worsening of symptoms following the reintroduction of a specific FODMAP, then it is recommend to discontinue trialling that FODMAP and wait until symptoms resolve. Once the symptoms have resolved you can move onto the next type of FODMAP to trial.
  All other FODMAP sources should continue to be avoided for the duration of the five week reintroduction phase, even if a particular FODMAP appears to be well tolerated from the rechallenge. Small doses of individual FODMAPs may have an additive effect which makes it difficult to determine the individual cause.
  
  
  
  

  

  
  
  
  

  CREATING YOUR INDIVIDUALISED LOW FODMAP DIET
  

  After the five week trial, it is recommended to integrate foods from all the FODMAP groups which were well- tolerated into your normal diet, to determine your tolerance of the combination of FODMAPs. Symptoms should continue to be monitored closely during the reintroduction. If there is a return of symptoms then it is recommended to eliminate those FODMAP groups again until symptoms resolve. The combination of FODMAPs should then be reintroduced at a lower dose.
  For the FODMAP types which aggravated symptoms, it is recommended you continue to avoid, or significantly restrict, foods containing these FODMAPs in your diet. 
  

Hara Hachi Bu...Are you eating too much?

Can you remember a time, a specific time, when you have nearly had to carry your stomach from the eating table, you are so full? And then you’ve had to sit down or doze until you feel well enough to continue with life.

Our society is all about eating. Never in our history have we had so much to choose from for food. It's called 'the omnivores dilemma'. So how much is the right quantity of food?

If you’re ever lucky enough to eat with Okinawan elders, you’ll learn about their habit called hara hachi bu, which means eat only until you are 80 per cent full. Stopping at 80 per cent capacity is actually a very good strategy in order to avoid putting on weight without going hungry. Why? The stomach’s stretch receptors take about 20 minutes to tell the body how full it really is, so 20 minutes after stopping eating is when you will really feel full.

The traditional Okinawan diet, with its emphasis on vegetables, whole grains, fruits, legumes (soy foods) and fish, with limited amounts of lean meats, serves as a model for healthy eating and healthy aging that also reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease.

In Okinawa, heart disease rates are 80 per cent lower, and stroke rates significantly lower than in the United States. Cholesterol levels are typically lower; homocysteine levels are low; and blood pressure tends to be at goal levels. Rates of cancer are 50–80 per cent lower especially breast, colon, ovarian and prostate cancer. The incidence of hip fractures is 20 per cent lower than for mainland Japanese and 40 per cent lower than in the United States. Dementia is rare. Interestingly enough, if an Okinawan moves to mainland Japan and starts to eat the traditional Japanese diet, these advantages disappear.

Eat with the Sardinian elders and you’ll find a similar story. They regularly live to over a hundred years old. One of their secrets is that they consume on average 2000 calories per day.

Studies in mice have also found that a low-calorie diet can extend lifespan. Normally fed elderly mice have been compared with age-matched mice that have been subject to caloric restriction from 2 months of age. The calorie-restricted mice are known to age at a slower rate and to live approximately 40 per cent longer than do the mice in the control groups.

This phenomenon is thought to have evolved to promote survival in a harsh environment where there are poor prospects of reproduction.

We humans are likely to overeat in response to our circumstances, friends, family, plate size, occasions, day of the week or because it is Christmas. We are trained to eat until we are full rather than the Okinawan way of eating only until we are no longer hungry.

What can we do? There are all kinds of little tricks you can use on yourself to modify your eating.

• Two of my friends lost a whole heap of weight together. When I questioned them about how they’d gone about it, they explained that they hadn’t changed any of the foods they were eating, they just chose to eat off side plates instead of dinner plates. Good idea.
• Serve yourself and others, then put the food away before you sit down to eat. That reduces the temptation to have seconds even though you are not hungry.
• Don’t cook extra food; you’ll feel like you need to eat it. We’re all aware that some people don’t have enough food, so who wants to waste it? Spread food out on your plate so it looks like there’s plenty of it. Studies have found that if you think you are eating a big meal, you’ll feel just as full at the end.
• Eat mindfully. Have you ever had a meal watching TV, on the computer or on the phone and can’t remember the actual experience of eating? Eat slowly, eat in a peaceful place and chew your food up well. Have a seat and focus on the food. This has been shown to increase satiety by between 10 and 15 per cent.
• Another trick is to put your knife and fork down between mouthfuls. My mother used to say: ‘Don’t wolf it down.’ Have we turned into a nation of wolves? Slow down and enjoy the moment.

To give you an idea: if you bunch your two fists together, this is the size of your stomach. This is the amount of food we should not exceed at each meal. There are a few exceptions to this when people are aiming at putting on weight or recovering from illness but for the rest of us, stick to two fistfuls of well-balanced food.

For more information read more about the Blue Zones at https://www.bluezones.com

Methylation so far just remember we do not know everything yet......

As you can see on the diagram the MTHFR enzyme determines how fast supplemental & dietary folate is turned into 5-MTHF.  This is  the only form of folate that reduces homocysteine & is necessary for the production of our #1 methyl donor, SAMe.

If you look at the junction with the second circle you can see that once MTHFR produces 5-MTHF, methyl-folate then donates or gives its methyl group (CH3) to cobalamin to make the active form of B12, methyl-cobalamin .  The MTR enzyme plays a critical role in transferring the methyl group from 5-MTHF to cobalamin.

In the second circle the methyl-cobalamin donates its methyl group to homocysteine to make methionine (this is important because we want to prevent the buildup of homocysteine).  The MTRR enzyme recycles B12 to make sure it stays active & viable, which means it is able to accept the methyl group from 5-MTHF .

Various mutations in the 3 above mentioned enzymes (MTHFR, MTR & MTRR) has been observed to reduce folate activity & thus increase homocysteine levels.
 
5-MTHF has important advantages over synthetic folic acid:

• it is well absorbed even when gastrointestinal pH is altered
• its bioavailability is not affected by metabolic defects.
• Using 5-MTHF instead of folic acid reduces the potential for masking haematological symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency 

The 2 exciting things are;

1. We can test MTHFR in a blood test and this can indicate to some extent what form of folate is the best to start with.  If MTHFR works fine then folic acid is good for you.  If the enzyme is not functioning due to a genetic adnormality the whole cycle comes to a standstill right up at the beginning.  This will slow down cellular growth and repair in the body and effect some neurotransmitters.
2. 5-MTHF is now available as a supplement in Australia

How do I know if I have a leaky gut?

One of the functions of the cells that line the intestinal wall is to regulate what gets absorbed through the walls into the blood steam. Things like some foods, infections, toxins and stress can effect the tight junctions between the cells to cause them to break apart.  This means that small particles can now leak from the digestive lumen into the blood stream.  In this case it's the job of the immune system to attack and mop us these particles.
One of my clients asked me last week.  How do I know if I have a leaky gut?
Unfortunately there is no test but there are lots of signs. Here are some of them;

• Digestive signs include malnutrition, flatulence, burping, bloating, stomach ache, constipation and diarrhea.
• Autoimmune diseases
• Chronic fatigue symptoms
• Thrush and signs of candida over growth
• Hormonal imbalances
• High Cholesterol readings
• Allergies
• Mental Health issues. Anxiety, Depression, Behavioural changes, ADHD, forgetfulness sometimes described as a fog.
• Acne, rosacea, eczema

How do I heal it?
In my clinic we have a program called Clean Within.  This is a digestive healing program.
As part of the program we look at;

• Nutritional changes.  Recent research has indicated as fast as one week can show significant healing to the digestive walls and microbiome.
• Healing and sealing the digestive walls using supplements that contain zinc and glutamine 
• Adding digestive enzymes
• Balancing your microbiome
• Removing anything that shouldn't be there.
• 
  

PH testing available Now

PH testing available Now

The pH test is simple and quick, all it takes is your saliva and then measure the reading.

Some of the benefits of being high alkaline include….

• hydrating and detoxifying the body
• increased vitality
• weight loss
• energy production and tissue oxygenation
• boosts the immune system
• maintain or regain optimum health
• trace elements are essential for physical and mental development and health

A balanced pH is around 7.35pH

Less than 6.5 pH is considered acidic and I suggest you buy a 6 pack of Alkalizor, drink one per day then come back and retest.