Don't Wait for Your Doctor

Wellness is your responsiblity so don't wait for your doctor to make you well.  Taking a pill for high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol doesn't make up for a bad diet and lack of exercise.  Here are a couple of easy things you can do to take charge of your health:

1.  Get creative with exercise -- you can do simple things like taking a parking spot in a far, out of the way, corner of the parking lot, or walking the stairs rather than the elevator.  How about joining a walking club or going mall walking.  Make if fun and mix it up.  The key is to move your body every day.

2.  Get smart about nutrition -- know what you eat, and what it does to your body.  Check the local hospital for a free nutrition or weight-loss program.   http://www.healthcastle.com/ is a free web site run by registered dieticians that has great information about nutrition and weight loss.  I made one simple change to my diet and have lost eight pounds in less than three weeks.  Email me and I'll tell you what I have done.

3.  Don't let chronic health problems sideline you -- A chronic health care problem is not a prescription or permission to become a couch potato.  Check with your doctor and see what activites are right for you.  If you do have a chronic health care problem then I really suggest that you talk with your doctor about safe activities.  Check the resource section on my website for a free PDF on Qi Gong.  It is an easy and safe way to start moving.

Remember that there no pills that can take charge of your health . . . that is something that only you can do.

Change Your Brain Through Meditation

A study published in the January 30 issue of Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) concluded that an eight-week mindful meditation practice produced measurable changes in participants’ brain regions associated with memory, sense of self, empathy and stress. 

MR images were taken of the brain structures of 16 study participants two weeks before and two after they participated in the 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program at the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness.  In addition to atttending weekly mindfulness meditation practice sessions the research subjects also listened to audio recordings of guided meditation practice and were asked to log their daily meditation time. MR brain scans were also taken of a control group of non-meditators over the same time interval.


The meditators reported spending an average of 27 minutes a day practicing mindfulness meditation. The MR images showed increased grey-matter density in the hippocampus (an area of the brain known to be important for learning and memory) and in structures associated with self-awareness, compassion and introspection.  In addition the MR images showed reductions grey-matter density in the amygdala, (the part of the brain which is known to play an important role in anxiety and stress).  None of these changes were seen in the control group.

It's exciting to know that by practicing meditation we can cause physical changes in the brain and can increase our well-being and quality of life.

Feed Your Brain

As I get older I start to worry about little things like degenerative brain conditions like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.  Not happy thoughts, but there is some new, good news.  I call it "Nerf 2" but it's real name is Nrf2.  Nrf2 is a protein that turns on genes that produce a wide arry of antioixidants, like Glutathione, in the body and particularly in the brain.  Antioxidants protect against free radicals, the little nastys that cause disease.  Because the brain uses so much energy there are more potential damaging free radicals up there.

Dr. David Perlmutter, MD, is an integrateve neurologist and has written several books about brain health (You can see my favorite in "Recommended Readings" at the right).  He recommends nutritional supplements to boost the brains ability to protect against free radicals.  Here are some ways to crank up your Nrf2:

• N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) help boost glutathione production.  ALA can reduce blood sugar so diabetes need to be monitored if they take ALA.
• Docosahezaenoic acid (DHA) dramatically boost Nrf2-related antioxidant activity and increases the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).  BDNF is a protein the stimulated the growth of neurons and synapses and helps protect neurons from trauma damage (a bump on the head).
• Tumeric, oh I love tumeric.  It's active ingredient in curcumin, a powerful antioxidant, anti-inflamatory substance that also increases the production of BDNF.  Just for good measure, it also has a stimulating effect on Nrf2.
• Broccoli, or really sulforaphane, is one of the strongest Nrf2 activators.  If you don't like eating broccoli then you can take broccoli seed extract.
• Blueberries, or the active component pterostilbene, is effective in boosting Nrf2 levels.  In addition, it seems to be more easily assimilated by the body than its chemically related cousin resveratrol.
• Green Tea Extract contains antioxidants that help eliminate free radicals.  It also stimulates Nrf2.

In addition to feeding your brain you might try replacing some TeeVee time with quiet meditation, spending some time in nature, or enjoying loved ones.

Don't Eat That!

I just finished a fasicnating book, In Defense of Food, by Michael Pollan.  He notes that humans historically consumed over 80,000 different species fo edible plants, animals, and fungi; and that about 3,000 of those have been in widespread use by humans.  When was the last day that you ate 3,000 different foods?  What about last year?  Did you eat 3,000 different foods last year?

It turns out that you probably got most of your calories from only three (yup, 3) foods:  corn, soy and wheat.  About 67 percent of most people's diets come from those three foods and their derivatives.  It's no surprise that we face a health crisis today, a crisis of obesity and life-style diseases.  Some of the common derivatives include:

• High fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
• Corn oil
• Soybean oil (hydrogenated or plain refined)
• Refined wheat flour

Think about how many foods that you eat that contain HFCS; foods like soft drinks, marinades, salad dressings, ketchup, breads, and 100's of other fattening HFCS.  Don't forget all of the fried foods that you may eat that are cooked in corn or soybean oil.  These oils are found in processed foods like chips, candies, cakes, salad dressing, tomato sauces, burrito wraps, corn chips, breaded chicken.  Then their are all of the foods made from processed wheat:  breads, cereals, pastas, and muffins.

So, what's wrong with that?  Well for starters:

• It skews the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in our diets from the healthy 1:1 to 2:1 to an unhealthly 30:1
• Gluten intolerance caused by heavy wheat consumption
• Weight gain
• blood-sugar swings and reduced insulin sensitivity
• And, if too much corn and soy is bad for us, what do you think it does to the farm animals that eventually find their way onto our tables.

So what can you do?  Here are a few ideas:

1. Don't purchase processed foods and eat one-ingredient foods instead like fruit, vegetables, beans, eggs (free froaming if you can get them), nuts, seeds, a meats from grass-feed or free roaming animals
2. Get most of your carbs from fruits and veggies, rather than from grains
3. Make your own salad dressings (olive oil and quality vinager are an easy choice)
4. Make sure that your tomato sauces don't have HFCS or soybean oils, or make your own
5. Eat guacamole or hummus with veggie sticks rather than with crackers

My goal is to get my corn/wheat/soy calorie count down from the American average of 67% to a healthier 5% of my diet.  See what you can do.

Exercise for Better Sleep

A recent article published in Sleep Medicine indicates that aerobic exercise (walking, cycling, biking or jogging) can reduce insomnia in middle-aged and older adults.  All it takes is two twenty-minute sessions four times a week, or one 30 to 40 minute session four times a week.  Exercise was shown to improve the quality of sleep, and to reduce symptoms of depression and daytime sleepiness.  Exercise was also shown to increase vitality.

Source:  K. J. Reid, et al.  (2010).  Aerobic Exercise Improves Self-reported Sleep and Quality of Life in Older Adults with Insomnia.  Sleep Medicine.