New Year's Resolutions

As we close out 2007 and welcome in 2008 many New Year's resolutions will be fill the air. Resolutions that are becoming all too trendy. We we will see an increase in the number of people in the gym or the health food store and then suddenly March and April comes around and all resolutions are forgotten. "I just don't have time, or organic raspberries are too expensive" are just some of the potential excuses we use to justify neutralizing these resolutions. Let's take the word resolution out for 2008 in regards to our health. So from today going forward make it an everyday ROUTINE to exercise regularly, eat right everyday, and think positive. Remember that each day counts and not just the first quarter of the year. Happy New Years to all!

Food: A Tool for both Prevention and Ammunition against Disease

Our immune system is responsible for protecting us from foreign invaders like bacteria, viruses, parasites, and cancer. It is a complex system that gets abused regularly by daily activities such as poor diet, lack of exercise, and our 21st century environment. The correct foods along with proper quality (organic vs. non-organic) can help to strengthen the immune system and prevent disease and infection, whereas, the wrong foods can cause immune system errors and allow chronic infections, cancer, colds, AIDS, asthma, allergies, autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue), and even Type I Diabetes to flourish.

Around 2,500 years ago, Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, first popularized the "food as medicine" concept, which unfortunately, fell into obscurity by the 19th century. The first 50 years of the 20th century saw the discovery of the essential elements and vitamins. This led to "enrichment" of processed foods to help people regain the health they lost when they abandoned real whole foods. However, today we are realizing that processed and refined foods “fortified with nutrients” is not beneficial and actually harms the body’s immune system. A diet lacking whole, unprocessed natural foods free from pesticides and hormones is a valid explanation for the declining function of our immune system. Lets get back to what Hippocrates said, “let thy foods be your medicine and your medicine be thy food.”

Chronic Digestive Problems

Chronic digestive problems (gas, bloating, constipation, heartburn, loose stools) are very common in the United States. The mass consumption of processed, refined and genetically modified foods have created undo stress to our entire digestive system from the stomach to the liver and colon leading to chronic inflammation. When treating the digestive tract one must focus on decreasing this inflammation. The first thing would be to determine which foods are causing this destruction. This can be done by a generic allergy-rotation diet eliminating the most common culprits (dairy, corn, wheat, gluten, soy, eggs, garlic, chicken, yeast, & sugar), or through food sensitivity testing. In addition one must provide support through nutritional supplementation to strengthen both the inner and outer layers of the digestive tract. N-acetyl glutamine helps protect the outer layer and a herbal combination therapy known as Robert's Formula helps protect and heal the inner layer. Results can typically be seen in about 4-6 weeks. Always consult your doctor prior to starting such therapy.