What about food and nutrition? Eating to heal.

In this country most people die from heart disease, the kind that follows  fatty deposits within the inner linings of the arteries. One American dies every 38 seconds from cardiovascular disease (American Heart Association, as of December, 2009 data).

In a classical study in the New England Journal of Medicine, 23 March 2006, researchers concluded that moderate reductions in “bad cholesterol” levels in the blood could shrink the incidence of coronary heart disease by 80%. Proper nutrition is capable of significantly lowering these levels. Research also indicates several dietary maneuvers and supplements are capable of  lowering cholesterol levels as well.

The Nutrition Committee of the AHA has issued dietary and lifestyle recommendations. Some things to do are

• Keep weight down through calorie limitation, wise eating, and activity
• Increase fruit and vegetable intake, especially the kind with more antioxidants and phytochemicals
• Eat whole-grain, high fiber foods
• Add little sugar to the diet
• Consume two servings of fatty fish, high in omega-3 fatty acids, twice or more weekly, with children and pregnant women avoiding mercury-contaminated fish
• Consume no more than 2300 mg of sodium daily if you are healthy, and
• Consume no more than 1500 mg of sodium daily if you are middle-aged, African-American, or have high blood pressure, now over 25% of us
• Eat lean meat, fat-free dairy, and replacing meat with vegetable alternatives, so that saturated fat intake is <7% of total calories, and trans fat in take is <1%.
• Make selections when eating out to lower portion size, total and saturated and trans fat intake, and lower sodium and sugar intake.

AHA’s recommendation to cut intake of added sugars
A new (August 2009) Scientific Statement (See Health Links on this site for  link) published in Circulation, a Journal of the American Heart Association, makes strong recommendations about limiting sugar intake.  Added sugars are sugars and syrups added to foods during processing, preparation, or at the table. Just as with fat, within minutes after consuming sugars (any source, even honey), there are a number of inflammatory molecules released that are harmful to your metabolism and arteries, thereby raising your risk for cardiovascular disease.

Summary:

• An upper limit for added sugars should be less than half your discretionary calories, based upon US Dietary Guidelines, 2005.
• Most American women should consume no more than 100 calories of added sugars per day; most men, no more than 150 calories. This is equivalent to 6 teaspoons of added sugars a day for women and 9 for men. The last 2001-2004 NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) found that the average intake of added sugars was 22.2 teaspoons per day or about 355 calories.
• Added sugar, fats, and alcohol in the diet put on weight, which drives chronic diseases, and they should be reduced.
• Sugary drinks, such as soda pop and non-carbonated drinks are the major source of added sugar. A 12-ounce can of regular soda contains about 130 calories and 8 teaspoons of sugar.

Scientific evidence shows that the current epidemic of obesity, overweight, and diabetes is related to intake of sugary beverages.

Additional Scientific Statements have also been issued by the AHA, most recently on omega-6 fats.

These recommendations are basic essentials, but do you understand them sufficiently to put them into effect tomorrow? We can translate this into plain English for you and write out a plan that you can actually follow to achieve the weight control, overall superior health, protection against inflammation, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, that the AHA intends. We monitor you and make sure you do what is necessary to achieve happiness through health. This is only part of what we do—put guidelines like these to work for you. Actually, we go much further, using multiple guidelines and information from many sources, trying to achieve all the results outlined in the sections above.

In general, we favor fresh, whole, organic foods.

Hippocrates said “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”, but Maimonides added, “Let nothing which can be treated by diet be treated by any other means.”

Importance of nutrition to health

 The phrase “you are what you eat” is entirely true. As a child develops, growth of every organ depends upon the nutrients available. As an adult, the constant turnover of tissues demands a continuous supply of nutrients for maintenance, repair and re-growth of all components of the body. Lack of one or more nutrients inevitably causes malfunction and eventually, physical distortion of cells and tissues. Your appearance, strength, feelings, immunity (susceptibility to infections), movement, thinking, virility and sex life, repair and growth, muscle and bone health (and height), heart function, elimination by the kidneys, ability of the liver to detoxify and metabolize foods, and every other aspect of your health is determined by your nutrition. Nothing happens in the body without proper nutrients. Many times when nutrition is inadequate, but not severe enough to cause overt “disease”, such as rashes and organ failure, it may still cause trouble, in the form of nagging symptoms, such as dullness, or fatigue, or even mild reduction in IQ or cognition in a developing child, so that he or she does not reach full academic potential.

Scope of nutrition concerns

Nutrition is concerned with energy production, the digestion, absorption, and utilization of what is eaten, water and acid-base balance, gene-nutrient and nutrient-drug interactions, food intolerance and allergy, malabsorption, and adaptation. It covers carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals, vitamins, fiber intake, special vitamin-like substances, deficiencies, and inherited problems in each of these areas. Fitness and sports performance, as well as the course of pregnancy and aging, are strongly dependent upon nutrition. Food preparation, safety (food borne diseases), supplements, nutraceuticals, detoxification and genetic abnormalities are part of nutrition.

Nutrition affects disorders in every organ and tissue. Inflammation and oxidation, involved in so many diseases, as well as enzyme function and their deficiencies, are also subjects that nutritionists study. Nutrition may be used to prevent or treat disease, to support an ill person, or to optimize health. Obesity, cholesterol, triglycerides, osteoporosis, diabetes, intestinal diseases, and intake of alcohol and its consequences, are intimately connected with abnormal nutrition.

Just as poor and inadequate nutrition may cause ill health, enhanced nutrition can be an important part of the treatment of most diseases: coronary artery and other heart diseases, lung problems, gastrointestinal illnesses (including feeding through the veins and tubes), kidney abnormalities, cancer, blood diseases, neurological disorders, infections and parasitic infestations, hormonal alterations and abnormal sexual function are all affected by nutrition geared to assist in healing.

All organizations, from the most conservative, including the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, National Institutes of Health, to the most alternative, acknowledge the central role of nutrition in creating and maintaining optimum health, as well as the power of nutrition to help the ill.

Inseparable nature of nutrition and disease or wellness

Most chronic illnesses in Western societies are due to degenerative, chronic diseases: atherosclerosis, cancer, lung disease, stroke, and diabetes, all operating with obesity and high blood pressure together. Proper nutrition can reduce the development of atherosclerosis and heart attacks to a mere fraction of what it is today. At a minimum, forty percent of cancers can be prevented by nutrition and lifestyle changes, and estimates go quite higher. Elimination of smoking could lower the impact of lung disease to a pittance. Over twenty percent of all strokes can be eliminated through improved nutrition and other lifestyle changes. Diabetes itself and its deadly complications are preventable diseases and might be cut 85% through nutrition interventions. Many cases of hypertension, and the heart failure it produces, could be prevented by proper nutrition and lifestyle changes earlier in life, and certainly nutritional improvements may lower the number and/or dose of drugs needed to control blood pressure once it has taken hold. Finally, with perhaps 15% of adolescents and 69% of our adults overweight, we are in the midst of an epidemic and crisis of gargantuan proportions which threatens to break our national budget within several years from the expense of medical complications. Remember, 35% of us are obese, over 44% have high cholesterol levels, one in five has heart disease, over one in five has diabetes (nearly 1 in 5 Americans also have the metabolic syndrome, a step away from diabetes)-and-93% of us are deficient in one or more essential vitamins and minerals. The way things are going, nearly 10% of the entire population will be diabetic in 21 years.

The incidence of diabetes and sugar intolerance is increasing sharply in our society, and the suffering and economic burden affects us all. Developing the illness is equivalent to aging fifteen years. Improved nutrition may prevent, improve, or reverse many of these problems.

What we do concerning nutrition

We apply nutritional basics and health science so that you can maximize health potential. The view of food choices benefiting health goes back to Hippocrates. We take a nutritional history, review eating habits and patterns, do a computer analysis of possible deficiencies from a statistically validated food frequency questionnaire and program, measure BMI, % body fat, muscle mass, total body water, bone mass, visceral fat index, analyze your food diary, and assess nutritional status and individual needs, which are unique in each of us. Basal metabolic rate and calories expended to maintain your present weight are calculated. Together with any special studies, we consider nutritional strengths and weaknesses, which come from your personal genetics, backgrounds, and our environments. Each of us has particular concerns which may alter our nutritional status.

Note: The Food Frequency Questionnaire is a well-respected method of dietary analysis which has been studied extensively at Harvard School of Public Health. Reproducibility and validity of these FFQs are high when compared with multiple 1-week diet records and biochemical markers. After analysis of your food frequency record, we can review what nutrients you need to replace or adjust with confidence.

We usually suggest dietary and nutritional improvements, but also offer guidance on digestion and absorption support, promotion of colon health, avoidance in consuming or inhaling toxins or allergens, and advice on natural detoxification. We provide published information about the potential impact on health.  We will also touch on the various specific  properties of certain foods—which may provide support for certain bodily systems—and those which you need to avoid. Without a doubt, we will talk about salt and sugar, fat and protein, and types of carbohydrate best for you.

Are supplemental nutrients necessary?

In an ideal world, when people chose the world’s healthiest foods over 90% of the time, and those foods contain all the nutrients that they should have in them, meaning they are grown in nutrient-rich soil, not stored or delayed in delivery to your supermarket, and if we also make sure our diets are optimally balanced, moderation and prudence are always followed, you do not have any chronic health problems, do not take any prescription drugs that deplete your body of nutrients, you are also not exposed to excessive pollution and other toxins, oxidative stress, which may raise your requirements — and, other aspects of your lifestyle are controlled (weight, exercise, and sleep) — sure you might not need supplements.  Except possibly for vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium and magnesium, which are apart from the above.

But only about 7% of us actually do what we should, as mentioned above. This means for all of us in the 93%, we do need supplements to bring us up to par. And as time passes, age-related changes are inevitable, health issues arise, stress affects us all as our obligations increase, restful sleep becomes a memory, unless our memories are hazy too. Then there are things out of our control-food contains fewer nutrients than they once did, and in fact the safety of our food supply is always in question.

For these reasons, as a practical matter, many people consider supplements helpful, if not absolutely necessary, to maintain optimal health. Dr Mark Hyman, author and prominent member of the Institute of Functional Medicine, emphasizes the need for supplements as basic to the health of many organs and systems in the body. Basic nutrients include vitamins A, B (all), C, D, E, K, B-related biotin, choline, inositol, and macrominerals, trace minerals, essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, and numerous polyphenols and other phytochemicals.

If sophisticated blood and urine tests for vitamins and minerals are done, as you age more and more abnormalities are likely. We do not mean simple levels of nutrients in the serum. We mean doing the tests that are more likely to reveal the true picture. Most times, sophisticated functional biochemical evaluations (see the special report on nutritional biochemistry) are needed, which are not performed.

The following chart illustrates the typical evolution of our lives. In the chart below, the curve in black shows how health declines with age, leading to one or more of the common degenerative, inflammatory illnesses that usually disable, impair, or eventually do us in. On the other hand, the blue line illustrates how personalized, targeted  nutritional intervention may potentially shift the curve of ill health upward and to the right. This new curve is one of restored and renewed health, with improved quality of life, full cognitive function and memory,  and greater survival and happiness as a result of personalized nutritional intervention using pharmaceutical grade supplements.

He who takes medicine and neglects diet wastes the skill of the physician.
-Chinese Proverb

In the Presidential Address at the 2007 American Heart Association’s  Scientific Sessions, Dr. Eckel asked “How important is nutrition and physical activity [in preventing and treating heart disease] in this modern era?” And he quickly answered that it is extremely important, with the potential to reduce the incidence of heart disease by up to 90%!

To return to What we do, at the end of your visit, we will discuss the widespread misinformation about certain aspects of nutrition with you, as discussed in the media and on the internet, which may be pertinent to your health.

It is imperative to use only pharmaceutical-grade supplements. There are thousands of manufacturers in the United States, and many discount products are suspect. Consumer’s Union found very little (or no) CoQ10 in some brands being sold in grocery-supermarket clubs a few years ago. Some manufacturers use low-grade vitamin C contaminated with toxic arsenic and lead. A survey of DHEA in local stores showed that some of them contained only 10% of the potency on the label. Calcium preparations are also sometimes contaminated with lead. A study of several brands of SAMe showed 2 that contained no SAMe at all, one that used the wrong kind, and several had much less than 100% potency. Some brands of ginkgo and green tea extract contain lead, and some companies skimp on chondroitin in combinations with glucosamine. Supplements bought in drug store chains, local health stores, and even national vitamin store franchises may not be pharmaceutical grade. Some don’t disintegrate as they should for proper absorption. We only use pure, authenticated, potency-tested products of exceptional quality — which you can trust.

Deficiencies are found on every nutrition survey

It’s no secret that most of us do not eat properly and as a result deficiencies and symptoms are common. A continuing food survey of food intake showed the following percentages of women over 20 who failed to consume the recommended intake in nutrients. This is the RDA intake, the minimum needed to prevent obvious disease, which is not nearly the amount needed for optimal mental and physical performance:

Women over 20:

And in a larger study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, over 70% of people did not even meet two-thirds of the RDA for one or more nutrients. Surveys consistently show that inadequate intakes of vitamins and minerals are common in the United States. The USDA reported that the most common deficiencies were in vitamins A, E, B₆, calcium, magnesium, iron (especially in women), and zinc. From other studies, add folate, chromium, copper, and others to the list. Despite that fact that the US Government ordered folic acid fortification of food in 1998, as of October 2006, a report in the Amer J Public Health reported that folic acid deficiency was still not sufficiently corrected in the population and constituted a health hazard. The USDA’s Healthy Eating Index reports that 90 percent of American diets score “poor” or “needs improvement” when rated for nutrient intake.

Not many of us actually take in the 4700 mg of potassium (minimum) we are supposed to. And now, we are in the midst of an epidemic of vitamin D deficiency, as reported in Time and Newsweek. This is of particular concern, since a number of published basic science and epidemiological studes suggest that vitamin D helps protect against a number of cancers. If we just look at older folks, the number or people with serious deficiencies become staggering.

Nutrients most important to women include calcium, vitamin D, iron, folate, magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil and flaxseed), flavonoids and other antioxidants, soy, and olive oil (an omega-9 fat).

In an ideal world, where people eat all the right foods, in the right amounts, often enough (broccoli everyday, anyone?), there would be no need for supplements. None of us live in that ideal world, and fewer than 7% of us even meet minimum food requirements and get enough exercise. As a result, many authors suggest that people may suffer with nonspecific symptoms constantly, which include lack of energy and motivation, fatigue, depression, poor concentration, loss of interest in sex, moodiness, weight gain, loss of skin tone, lack of organization, fuzzy memory, even poor complexion, and poor hair and skin health. Mark Hyman, MD, author of Ultra-metabolism, remarks that a surprising number of people, only after they get well, realize that for a long time they accepted feeling poorly. They thought it was normal to be that way, when they were actually ill for a significant period of time.

The landmark “Life… supplemented” Healthcare Professionals (HCP) Impact Study, November, 2007, found that more than three quarters of U.S. physicians (79 percent) and nurses (82 percent) recommend dietary supplements to their patients. The study also shows that an almost equal number-72 percent of physicians and 89 percent of nurses-personally use vitamin, mineral, herbal and other supplements either regularly, occasionally or seasonally, which is a higher percentage than the 68 percent of adults in the general population who report they take nutritional or dietary supplements. These physicians and nurses realize that in today’s world, it is difficult to take in enough nutrients to meet the body’s need and function properly. The American Medical Association, Harvard Health Letters, and other authorities recommend a multivitamin supplement, and Harvard School of Public Health, as well as many other erudite nutritionists add a calcium, magnesium, vitamin D supplement as well. Surprisingly, although women report they understand the value of taking multivitamins more than men, men actually do take them more often.

Finally, in a significant study reported in the American Journal of Epidemiology online in August 2009, taking a multivitamin consistently lowered incidence of heart disease 16%, and vitamin E taken for 10 years lowered the death from heart disease by 27%.

In a recent study sponsored by the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), it was found that 72% of physicians, and 89% of nurses, take supplements.

Benefits of optimum nutrition (information condensed from the literature)

The potential benefits of optimum nutrition are many, and may include:

• Mental alertness, clarity
• Peak physical performance
• Stable moods
• Lifting of depression, fatigue
• Greater and sustained energy
• Improved concentration and focus
• Weight control with better appearance
• Accelerated learning
• Fuller memory
• Greater productivity
• Reproductive and sexual health
• Enhanced resistance to disease
• Proper healing
• Greater muscle mass
• Increased capacity to handle stress
• Healthier body composition
• Improved self-image and self-esteem
• Sound sleep
• Improved bowel habits
• Less illness
• Lower health costs
• Decreased chances of accidents
• Cleaner, smoother skin
• Greater happiness
• Improved sugar handling by the body
• Lower triglyceride (fat) and cholesterol levels
• Relative protection from developing
  - Diabetes
  - Heart disease
  - Cancer
  - Osteoporosis
  - Stroke
  - Other degenerative diseases, such as AMD, gout
  - Deficiency syndromes
• Fewer allergic symptoms, if any
• Reduced need for prescription drugs
• Healthier levels of hormones
• Improved internal efficiency in hormone metabolism
• Longer life
• Reduced blood pressure
• Protection from dementia (Alzheimer’s Disease)
• Better vision
• Sharper reflexes
• Better hair and nail health
• Lower risk of becoming disabled
• Stronger, denser bones
• Less pain experienced
• Protection from fatty liver
• Improved capillary and blood vessel function
• Fewer arthritic symptoms
• Greater emotional health
• Renewed interest in sex and relationships
• Greater musculoskeletal efficiency
• Greater and more complete recovery from injuries
• Wellness of newborns (women only!)
• Correction of abnormal body clock settings, sleep-wake cycles (circadian rhythm)
• Improved ability to repair genetic material (DNA)
• Faster recovery from stroke
• Less asthma and fewer allergic symptoms

We help you with a plan to correct any deficiencies, and move on to better health and wellness. Note: if you are interested in weight management, please see the section UNIQUE SPECIALTIES and/or contact us for separate information.

Nutrition and heart disease

In this country, most people die of heart disease, the kind that comes from deposits within the inner linings of the arteries. In a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine, 23 March 2006, researchers concluded that moderate reductions in “bad cholesterol” levels in the blood could shrink the incidence of coronary heart disease by 80%. Proper nutrition is capable of significantly lowering these levels. There are several supplements that are available to lower cholesterol levels as well.

The Nutrition Committee of the AHA has issued practical and evidence-based dietary and lifestyle recommendations. Some things to do are

• Keep weight down through calorie limitation, wise eating, and activity
• Increase fruit and vegetable intake, especially the kind with more antioxidants and phytochemicals
• Eat whole-grain, high fiber foods
• Add little sugar to the diet
• Consume two servings of fatty fish, high in omega-3 fatty acids, twice or more weekly, with children and pregnant women avoiding mercury-contaminated fish
• Consume no more than 2300 mg of sodium daily if you are healthy, and
• Consume no more than 1500 mg of sodium daily if you are middle-aged, African-Americans, or have high blood pressure, now over 25% of us
• Eat lean meat, fat-free dairy, and replacing meat with vegetable alternatives, so that saturated fat intake is <7% of total calories, and trans fat in take is <1%.
• Make selections when eating out to lower portion size, total and saturated and trans fat intake, and lower sodium and sugar intake.

The AHA has also released a number of recent Scientific Statements, among them on on omega-6 fats and another extremely important one on sugar intake. Sugar, a pro-inflammatory molecule adding empty calories to diets, is a significant factor in driving overweight and obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

These recommendations are basic essentials, but do you understand them sufficiently to put them into effect tomorrow? We can translate this into plain English for you and help write out a plan that you can actually follow to achieve the weight control, overall superior health, protection against inflammation, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, that the AHA intends. We monitor you and make sure you do what is necessary to achieve happiness through health. This is only part of what we do—put guidelines like these to work for you. Actually, we go much further, using multiple guidelines and information from many sources, trying to achieve all the results outlined in the sections above. Wellness coaching and beyond.

In general, we favor fresh, whole, organic foods.

Hippocrates said “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”,
but Maimonides added, “Let nothing which can be treated by diet be treated by any other means.“