Most people believe that bacteria are “bad” for you and that if you can wipe them all out, you will be healthy.

Nothing could be further from the truth!

Most things aren’t  good or bad of and by themselves, it is usually a degree of amount(s) that determines that.

As with most things in life, if something is going to work well for us, it is about  finding and maintaining  a proper balance of that particular thing or activity.  This is especially true with health and there is no better example than the balance of “good” bacteria to “bad” bacteria that is needed to be healthy.

In this article from Dr. Mercola he addresses the importance of  promoting the correct bacterial balance in your gut and specifically how eating processed (junk) foods promotes an imbalance:

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Until recently, most doctors dismissed the notion that your digestive system did much of anything outside of breaking down food, but in recent years scientists have revealed just how inaccurate this thinking was.

For example, an estimated 80 percent of your immune system is actually located in your gut, so supporting your digestive health is essential to also supporting your immune system, which is your number one defense system against ALL disease.

Therefore, it should come as no major surprise to find out that lack of beneficial bacteria in your intestines will also allow allergies, inflammation and autoimmune diseases to flourish where they might not otherwise.

Common signs and symptoms that you may need to address your intestinal balance include:

• Gas and bloating
• Constipation or diarrhea
• Nausea
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Sugar cravings, and cravings for refined carb foods
• The Many Health Benefits of Maintaining Healthy Gut Flora  

The ideal ratio between the bacteria in your body is 85 percent “good” and 15 percent “bad.” That’s right – you need FAR more beneficial bacteria (probiotics) than you might think in order to maintain the right balance.

The key here is to avoid as many processed foods as you can. This is a challenge because over 90% of the foods that Americans eat are processed and the number source of calories is high fructose corn syrup. So the general principle is to avoid processed foods, but some foods are more particularly pernicious than others so let me give you some examples.

This ratio is essential for:

• The proper development and function of your immune system
• Protection against over-growth of other microorganisms that could cause disease
• Digestion of food and absorption of nutrients
• Producing vitamins, absorbing minerals and eliminating toxins

As you can see, probiotics perform a wide variety of functions, which renders them useful and beneficial for a number of health concerns, including the prevention or control of:

• Food and skin allergies in children
• Vaginitis 
• Premature labor in pregnant women
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Recurrent ear and bladder infections
• Chronic diarrhea

One of the ways friendly bacteria help prevent allergies, infections and inflammatory conditions is by training your immune system to distinguish between pathogens and non-harmful antigens, and to respond appropriately.

When you’re deficient in these healthy bacteria, your immune system is ill equipped to address the many pathogens and antigens entering your system on a daily basis, and health problems can easily ensue.

Your Gut’s Microflora Also Impacts Your Weight

The microflora in your digestive system is also emerging as a major player in weight management, and needless to say, junk food and weight gain typically go hand in hand.

Your gut flora is by no means the only underlying reason for this, but it does play an important part.

Multiple studies have shown that obese people have different intestinal bacteria than slim people, and it appears that the microbes in an overweight body are much more efficient at extracting calories from food.

Researchers have also suggested that certain bacteria may cause low-grade inflammation in your body, further contributing to obesity and difficulty to lose weight.

One such study found that the bifidobacteria counts taken from infants at the age of 6 months and 12 months were twice as high in healthy weight children as in those who became overweight, while S. Aureus levels were lower.

Interestingly, this finding may explain why breast-fed babies are also at a lower risk of obesity, as bifidobacteria flourish in the guts of breast-fed babies.

The breast-fed Italian babies in the study above were also the only ones harboring bacteria resembling the African children’s, which indicates your “diet may dominate other factors such as ethnicity, sanitation, geography or climate,” the researchers said.

Two previous studies found that obese people had about 20 percent more of a family of bacteria known as firmicutes, and almost 90 percent less of a bacteria called bacteroidetes than lean people. (Firmicutes help your body to extract calories from complex sugars and deposit those calories in fat.)

This latest study confirms those results, as here too, the African children had significantly higher levels of Bacteroidetes and far lower levels of the firmicutes linked to obesity.

How to Optimize the Bacteria in Your Gut

Fortunately, influencing the ratio of bacteria growing in your body is relatively easy. One of the most important steps you can take is to stop consuming processed and sugary foods. This includes cutting down on grains, as most grains are quickly converted into sugar in your body.

Keep in mind, of course, that if you or your children need to lose some excess weight, balancing your gut bacteria is only one part of the equation. Regular exercise and addressing any emotional blocks are also very important.

When you eat a healthy diet low in sugars and processed foods, one of the major benefits is that it naturally causes the good bacteria in your gut to flourish.

Yet, even with an extremely low-sugar diet, there are other factors that influence your gut bacteria. Antibiotics, chlorinated water, antibacterial soap, agricultural chemicals, pollution — all of these things help to kill off your good bacteria. This is why it’s a wise choice to “reseed” your body with good bacteria from time to time by taking a high-quality probiotic supplement or eating fermented foods.

In the past, people used fermented foods like yogurt and sauerkraut to support their digestive health, as these foods are rich in naturally beneficial bacteria. This is still the best route to optimal digestive health.

Healthy choices include:

• Lassi (an Indian yoghurt drink, traditionally enjoyed before dinner)
• Fermented milk, such as kefir
• Various pickled fermentations of cabbage, turnips, eggplant, cucumbers, onions, squash and carrots
• Natto (fermented soy)

If you were to eat a diet rich in fermented foods that have NOT been pasteurized (as pasteurization kills the naturally occurring probiotics), then you would likely enjoy great digestive health without any additional supplementation.

However, if you simply do not like any of these types of fermented foods, your next best option is to use a high quality probiotic supplement.

I have used many different brands over the past 15 years and there are many good ones out there. I also spent a long time researching and developing my own, called Complete Probiotics, in which I incorporated everything I have learned about this important tool over the years.

Keep in mind, however, that processed foods in general will destroy healthy microflora and feed bad bacteria and yeast, so you can’t use the drug approach to probiotics — meaning, you can’t maintain a diet high in processed foods while taking a probiotic supplement to counteract the ill effects.

You may be able to temporarily suppress some of the troublesome symptoms caused by that kind of diet, but it won’t work in the long run.

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Hopefully you are realizing that bacteria are everywhere.  So the issue is not to eliminate them, but to take reasonable measures to promote the correct ratio of good to bad. 

Besides the issues Dr. Mercola brought out, there are two other common problems that further reduce the level of beneficial gut bacteria.

One is frequent or extended antibiotic treatment, and the other exposure is through the antibiotics given to our meat and diary products.  We are getting a dose of these drugs  everytime we consume one of these foods.

Since I realize that the food is very sterilized and I don’t like fermented or pickled foods , I supplement with probiotics and nattokinase  everyday.   On those few ocassions I have to take antibiotics, I double up on the probiotics through out  the antibiotic course of treatment, and up to a week after.

I use Dr. Mercolas’ probiotics formula but I have also gotten good results with VRPs’ BioPro formula (vrp.com).

Many of my patients have noticed significant improvement in their allergies, asthma, cravings, chronic urinary tract infections, etc., when they began using probiotics.

You might want to check into it.

Yours In Health,

Dr. Dan

Can we talk?  If you are ever going to get control of your weight there is something you are going to have to realize and admit.  Are you ready for this? 

YOU ARE A CARBOHYDRATE ADDICT!

Now before you get offended and send me hate mail and such, hear me out, because once I explain to you how this came about, you will realize again, It’s not your fault!

Just recently David Kessler the former commissioner of the FDA came out and revealed how in his words, “the food companies are making you fat”.  If you goggle his book, “The End of Overeating”  you can read how the food companies spend huge amounts of money on research on the science of getting people to crave their foods so they will eat them and eat them and eat them. 

From the texture, to the look, the feel, the smell, and of course the taste, to the packaging, to the portions, to the marketing, they have gotten it down to an absolute science on what stimulates the maximum cravings in people for their foods.  

The bottom line is they have discovered all the techniques to get people addicted to their foods so their can maximize their profits.  Good for their bottom line, bad for yours.  They have been, and are being very sneaky about manipulating your food cravings and you did not even know it.  Before you knew, it wasn’t your fault.  Now that you know, what are you going to do about it?

I know, I know, I am suppose to tell you, after all if you knew you wouldn’t be reading this right? Right.

OK, here goes.

For this to work you need a change in your basic philosophy of eating, your selection of foods and how you eat them.  A change that you can stick to the rest of your life.

What I recommend first and foremost, is dumby the process down, do not make it complicated.    If you trust in nature and eat foods as close to their natural state as you can get them, that have not been altered, then it is hard to go wrong, your body and your weight will naturally normalize.

No reading labels, no counting calories, no weighing portions, no expensive designer foods,  no fake foods or condiments, …. Just good wholesome food.   Couldn’t be much easier than that now could it?  

Best of all once you go back to eating properly not only will you feel and look better but most likely other chronic health complaints you might be experiencing will probably go away.

Some specifics:

-           As much as possible, do not eat anything that is packaged (boxed, canned, bottled, vacuum packed, etc.) as to some degree it is processed.

-          Stay away from all grains (almost always the source of bad carbs) in the beginning as these are the drugs of you addiction.  Once your body has normalized you can slowly start consuming good grains again, but always sparingly.

-          No High Fructose Corn Sweetener.  It is in almost all sweets and hidden in most all processed foods.  It also converts to fat at 40 times the rate of table sugar.  This one is very important.

-          All foods need to be as close to natural state as possible:

1.  Fruits and vegetables fresh and ripe.  Organic and local grown are best.
2. All animal foods  (beef, chicken, diary, eggs) should be from free/range fed animals. 
3. Fish from natural locations not farmed.  Wild salmon is the best.
4. Avoid High Fructose Corn Sweetener as converts to fat at a rate 40 times that of table sugar.
5. Treat and eat fruit like you would a desert, as a snack.  No Jamba Juice.
6. Eat good fats (range fed animal, avocados, olive oil, nuts, wild fish, raw milk and butter, etc.) avoid bad fats (hydrogenated, vegetable oils, margarine, pasteurized milk and butter).
7. Eat foods in the following proportions to each other:

         A)  50-60% high quality proteins

         B)  30-40% complex carbohydrates (mostly vegetables)

                                        C)  10% natural good fats.

Obviously this is the basis program and there are some further details, but this is about 90% of it.  It is simple, inexpensive and it just makes sense.

It is the way nature and our creator intended and designed us to eat.

For now this should be enough to get you started.  In the coming weeks and months I will give you more in depth information so that you can fine-tune your weight loss.

Until then, lets get going!

Dr. Dan

FAT. 

It is a ugly word, isn’t it?

Is there any context you could use it in, where it doesn’t have a negative connotation?

I doubt it. 

And if you are overweight or worse obese, I apologize for using the term, but I have some information that I think it is really, really, really important, that you need to know.

In my mind it is so important, that it just might save your life.  I am not kidding, it could have a life changing impact on you.

So in order to up my chances of you reading this and getting the knowledge, I risked the chance that I may offend some,  but in the end help more.

So I will say it again!

It’s not your fault that you haven’t been able to loss weight!

It’s not your fault that you keep gaining more weight!

It’s not your fault that you are frustrated, confused and maybe a little depressed about past failures!

And

It’s not your fault that you do not know what to do next!

So what do I mean it’s not your fault! 

It must be your fault if your Doctors, your friends and family, the media, all the diets books you have read, the programs you’ve gotten on….  Have all told you that if you eliminate enough of the foods you love, starve yourself enough, exercise enough, eat foods you hate enough, have enough discipline…  you would loss the weight. 

But when you tried some, or all of these things and more, you did not loss the weight, you failed.  In fact you may have tried many times and failed many times.  Or maybe there was a time when you got really fired up and for awhile were able to stay on a rigorous program and actually lost weight.  But the program was so hard that you soon lost your willpower and you fell off the wagon and soon gained all the weight back, and then some. 

So now you are left with the fact that if all these sources are right , then you should not have failed, you should have lost the weight and if you did not, then there is only one answer. 

It is your fault.   There is something wrong with you!

What if I told you that is wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong!  In fact you could not be more wrong .   You see with the current information people usually get on dieting, they are almost guaranteed to fail!   Yes, you read that right, they are pretty much guaranteed to fail. 

Now you might say, how can that be?   Don’t we know more about the body and how it functions than we ever have, in the history of mankind? 

You would be right we do have more information than we have ever had before, and that is a part of the problem.   You see we have too much information, but at the same time, not enough.   We know just enough to really muck up to works, to get ourselves in trouble.    Some of the information we have has been interpreted incorrectly and other information has been forgotten or left out of the equation.

So what we are left with is theories about weight  gain that are based on false premises.   The solutions  offered  are then based on those incorrect  premises, and therefore cannot possibly work.  Hence you have a recipe for almost certain failure!

If that is true, then it would mean that you did not fail and it’s not your fault!  

It would also mean that with the right information ,you could most likely succeed and finally loss the weight!  

You just need to know what that information is.

There are a couple of common misconceptions that are held about the causes of weight gain that need to be addressed first.   The answers are going to surprise and challenge you as they are pretty much the opposite of what you have been led to believe. 

The current premise that most diets are based on is that the primary cause of weight gain is due to too much fat, protein, and sugar.    This is only partially true but mostly wrong.  You see a proper diet should primarily be based on quality protein, and secondarily on quality carbohydrates, with small to moderate amounts of good fats.  This is contrary to the prevailing thinking which recommends high levels of carbohydrates, with small amounts of protein and very limited fats. 

There is also very little if any emphasis on the different types of proteins, carbohydrates and fats.  Each of these components of foods have good types and bad types and it would be important to know which to avoid and which to emphasis. 

The prevailing wisdom considers calorie counting to be essential to managing a weight loss program when in reality calories are utilized completely differently in the body depending on the food type.  So unless a conversion table is used to take this in to account ( is complex and very time consuming) then calorie counting as a method of managing weight is mostly worthless.

These are the two key misconceptions that most dieters are told and why some many of them are failing.  So now you need to take this information and apply it to the way you eat so that you can get results, meaning lose the weight and keep it off!!

How to accomplish that , will be the subject of my next e-mail.

Stay tuned!

Dr.  Dan

This is one of the biggest nutritional misconceptions that has been in”grained” (no pun intended) on the public.  In this report Dr. Sears does a good job of explaining why grained based foods are almost always a poor nutritional choice.

In particular he talks about the common misconception that grains provide “good” fiber.

They are the only type foods we eat that you cannot eat raw.  Some of the others (like meats, chicken) you might not want to, but you could.

Grains you cannot, unless they are modified somehow by cooking, fermentation, etc.. and even when that is done they are very poorly digested, if at all, except for high levels of glucose (sugar).

Dr. Sears explains further:

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The other day G.S. came to my office for a visit.

I won’t get into his personal medical issue, but the subject of fiber came up.

He said, “Dr. Sears, I’m getting all the fiber I need. Every morning I have my whole wheat toast or a big bowl of Frosted Mini-Wheats.”

I’m telling you this because it’s kind of typical. My patients believe they’re getting the right kind of fiber from whole grains.

The truth is all fiber is not created equal. You could call a cardboard box “fiber,” because it’s cellulose and your body wouldn’t digest it.

But it’s not the type of fiber nature intended for you to have in your body.

There are different types of fiber. Some are natural to your diet, and others – like the fibers you get from grains – are not natural to your diet.

But they can all be put into two different categories: “soluble” and “insoluble.”

Soluble fiber binds with fatty acids in your body. It stays in your stomach longer, allowing sugar to be released and absorbed more slowly. It helps lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, reducing your risk of heart disease. It also helps regulate blood sugar, which is helpful for those with diabetes.

Insoluble fiber helps move bulk through your intestines. It helps you stay “regular” and helps prevent constipation. It also helps move toxins through your colon more quickly.

Both soluble and insoluble fiber can’t be digested. So they’re not absorbed into your bloodstream.

Instead of being used for energy, fiber is excreted from your body.
Soluble fiber forms a gel when mixed with liquid, while insoluble fiber does not. Insoluble fiber passes through our intestines largely intact.
When it comes to fiber, I prefer to always use what is natural. I’m not comfortable with products that add psyllium and call it fiber just because you can’t digest it.

The real solution is to use the fiber we’ve had in our diet since primordial times. Before grains were domesticated.

The mainstream medical approach on this is misguided. You shouldn’t be eating a lot of cereal or taking grain-based laxative products which we’re told over and over is the best way to care for the digestive tract.

In fact, fiber from grains found in many breakfast cereals could be increasing your risk of getting diabetes. The high glycemic index of most cereals, breads, and pastas makes them poor food choices.

The quality of fiber started going down around the time our native ancestors began harvesting cereal grains. Grain products have only been around for a few thousand years. They were not our original source of fiber.

You need to get your fiber from fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Nature has given us all of the natural fiber we’ll ever need.

Here are some of the best sources of natural fiber:

• Vegetables: Vegetables should be your number one source of fiber. Just remember to eat the skins and edible seeds. They contain the good stuff. My favorite vegetable sources of fiber include broccoli, spinach, squash, cabbage, asparagus, and Brussels sprouts. Eat them along with high-quality protein at every meal.
• Nuts: One of the best natural high-fiber foods. A handful of nuts everyday makes for an easy fiber-filled snack. Don’t let the low-fat police scare you away from nuts. Nuts with the most amount of fiber in them include almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, and Brazil nuts.
• Fruit: My favorite fiber-rich fruits include berries, pears, apples, mangos, and oranges. When you eat fruit, leave the skins on. It’s a major source of fiber. Berries especially have fiber-rich skin. You can also eat their small seeds. And considering how sweet and tasty they are, they have a surprisingly low glycemic index.
• Legumes: Green beans are one of the best sources of fiber. Try and stick with green instead of the dried beans. They are a superior source of fiber.
  Remember, it’s important that you drink plenty water in order to get the most benefit from your dietary fiber. Without enough water, fiber can’t do its thing.
  Also, be sure to eat your fiber a little bit at a time throughout the day. Eating it all at once can lower its benefits.

To Your Good Health,

Al Sears, MD

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 The reason for this myth is of course economic.  The vast majority of profit the food industry enjoys is with these foods.  This is self perpetuating in that when people become addicted (which they easily do) they eat more and more of the food, way beyond what they would of a natural food and beyond their caloric requirements.

This not only sets them up for obesity, but also chronic diseases, heart and cancers primarily.

If you are addicted to grain based foods do yourself a favor and follow the guidelines Dr. Sears recommends and watch your waistline go down and help protect yourself from a host of chronic diseases.

Yours in health,

Dr. Dan

Poison in Your Car

My wife sends me a few emails.  Usually it is fun stuff, recipes, jokes, inspirational, etc.  Once in while she sends me something that pertains to health and some of them are pretty good. 

Don’t know if this is true, but it is interesting and certainly worth paying attention to as it is so simple…..

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Please do NOT turn on A/C as soon as you enter the car.

Open the windows after you enter your car
And then turn ON the AC after a couple of minutes.

Here’s why:

According to research, the car dashboard, seats, air freshener emit

Benzene, a Cancer causing toxin
(Carcinogen – take time to observe the smell of heated plastic in your car).

In addition to causing cancer, Benzene
Poisons your bones, causes anemia and reduces white blood cells. Prolonged
Exposure will cause Leukemia, increasing the risk of cancer. Can also cause miscarriage.

Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50mg per cu.ft.
A car parked indoors with windows closed will contain 400-800 mg of Benzene.

If parked outdoors under the sun at a temperature above 60 degrees F,

The Benzene level goes up to 2000-4000 mg, 40 times the acceptable level.

People who get into the car, keeping windows closed will inevitably inhale, in quick succession, excessive amounts of the toxin.

Benzene is a toxin that affects your kidney and liver..

What’s worse, it is extremely difficult for your body to expel
This toxic stuff.

So friends, please open the windows and door of your car -

give time for interior to air out -dispel the deadly stuff -
Before you enter.

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You know this makes sense to me.  I always wondered why my car windows got a film on them, as I don’t smoke in it.  I figured something was evaporating in there. 

It makes good sense to air out any place that has been shut up for awhile if there is the possibility some toxic chemical is building up in there, especially when plastics are involved.   Benzene is one of those chemicals you definitely don’t want to be breathing in anymore than necessary.

It is an easy precaution to do and doesn’t take much time. 

Why not?  You have nothing to loss, might want to give it a try.   I know I will.

Yours in Health

Dr. Dan

There is some very exciting news coming out lately in the science of anti-aging.  For the past year or so I have been getting reports from Dr. Sears on his involvement in the study of telomeres and how they affect the aging process.  

Although it sounded very interesting and promising, to at the very least, slow down the aging process, the science is still very young and unproven.  Also the products he recommends are rather costly, enough that until I am more sure, I would want to wait before making the investment.

However I recently got a report from Dr. Mercola that not only clarifies more about the science behind telomeres, but gives much more inexpensive ways (some of which I already do) to slow down the decay of telomeres.

Here are some of the excerpts (the report is rather lengthy) that I believe best summarizes the info you need to start utilizing this knowledge.

Here is an excerpt from his report:

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What is a Telomere?

The human body is made up of 100 trillion cells. According to one theory, you age because your cells age. Hence if you can control the aging process in your cells, you should be able to control your aging.

Every cell contains a nucleus. Inside the nucleus are the chromosomes that contain your genes. The chromosome is made up of two “arms,” and each arm contains a single molecule DNA, which is essentially a string of beads made up of units called bases.

A typical DNA molecule is about 100 million bases long. It’s curled up like slinky, extending from one end of the chromosome to the other.

At the very tip of each arm of the chromosome is where you’ll find the telomere. 

If you were to unravel the tip of the chromosome, a telomere is about 15,000 bases long at the moment of conception in the womb. (Remember the length of the entire chromosome is about 100 million bases.)

Immediately after conception your cells begin to divide, and your telomeres begin to shorten each time the cell divides.

Once your telomeres have been reduced to about 5,000 bases, you essentially die of old age.

This telomere shortening process cannot be affected or stopped by healthy eating habits or exercise.

Why Do Telomeres Shorten?

First of all, there are individual differences at work. Some are born with longer or shorter telomeres than others, and cells can divide at different rates.

However, it’s important to realize that telomere shortening can be accelerated by an unhealthy lifestyle. Obesity, lack of exercise, psychological stress and smoking, all cause production of free radicals.

Free radicals can cleave telomeres, which speeds up the telomere shortening process.

Although you cannot control the rate of your natural telomere shortening process, you CAN control this accelerated telomere shortening, by eating healthy, exercising, practicing meditation, and taking antioxidants, for example – all the strategies that make for a healthy, balanced lifestyle.

Interestingly, researchers have discovered that reproductive cells do not age. They do not undergo the same telomere shortening process as all other cells in your body do.

This is due to the presence and production of an enzyme called telomerase.

Somatic cells (all cells other than your reproductive cells) do not produce telomerase, however, they do contain the gene for telomerase production. The gene is simply turned off, which causes the telomere shortening process to proceed.

The strategy at Sierra Sciences is to find out how to turn the telomerase gene back on in somatic cells. They’re doing this by searching for chemical compounds that will bind to the repressor protein, which will allow the gene to turn back on.

As of November 10, 2009, Sierra Sciences had screened 161,008 different chemicals for their ability to turn on the telomerase gene, and they had 33 hits. According to their estimates, the first true anti-aging drug may be available as little as 10 to 15 years from now.

You May Be Able to Naturally Decrease Telomere Shortening Already!

Although much of the research in this field is on proprietary chemicals to stop telomere shortening, I have discovered there are studies in progress showing that increasing glutathione levels will actually provide similar results.

This, folks, is great news!

Now, glutathione (GHS) is not a compound you can ingest directly. It is manufactured inside your cells from its precursor amino acids, glycine, glutamate and cystine. But this is the exciting part – you don’t have to take expensive glutathione supplements. I confirmed with some of the leading scientists at the 2009 Longevity Summit that you can actually increase your glutathione levels through dietary manipulation alone.

Interestingly, one of the most potent dietary strategies to increase your glutathione levels is whey protein. Whey also has so many other health benefits, it’s one of my favorite “super foods.”

The best way to increase and maintain your GSH levels is to make sure your diet includes foods rich in the sulfur amino acids your cells need to synthesize glutathione.  Whey Protein is the easiest and most convenient way to do this. Other food sources include animal foods and eggs.

Just remember that there are vast differences between whey products. You’ll want to make sure your whey protein is of high quality, from grass-fed cows, and very carefully processed to preserve the fragile amino acid precursors.

I am so convinced of this research that I take our Miracle Whey Protein every morning (typically after my morning exercise program). The coming anti-aging pill may or may not work, but maintaining healthy GSH levels by adding whey protein to your daily diet is something you can do today, which may help you lead a longer life.

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If you are not doing it I would recommend you start your day with a protein drink.  I have been doing it for years and it really makes a difference.  I have been getting it at Costco (as can you) but I am going to start using Dr. Mercolas whey protein as I feel more confident about the quality than other sources. 

For years I have also been using Immunotecs Immunocal product at mid-day as a little snack.  They have good research showing it increases GSH levels in the cells.  I have to say when I use it consistently, I don’t seem to get sick.  If you are interested in their research or the Immunocal product you can go here and check it out.  

If you want to take it a step further and investigate Dr. Sears program you can go here and find out more.

Whatever you do, remember that all the information I give contributes to some degree to extending the length and quality of your life.   I believe the telomere info can have a very significant impact on your overall health and longevity, so I would recommend you definitely make consuming some Whey protein a priority in you daily diet. 

Howevere  you will still need to incorporate and practice as many other healthy lifestyle habits as possible to assure good, if not excellent, results.

Yours In Health,

Dr. Dan

This is a subject so many of you need to know about and it so important that you stop polluting your health, the earth and wasting your money.  I know it is a long one but Dr. Mercola covers so many important points I couldn’t bring myself to edit much of it.  Please take the time and read the whole thing and you will see what I mean…..

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The next time someone offers you a bottle of water, take a stand and say something clever like, “No thank you, I don’t believe in it.” This simple move will open up a conversation about the massive swindle that is bottled water … and possibly persuade one more person to give it up entirely.

Please also make a point to see this fantastic new movie, “Tapped”, which is playing in select theaters in the United States and is available on DVD.

Even beyond the issues of your health and the environment, bottled water represents a novel form of privatization, in which private corporations have succeeded, and quite successfully I might add, at making water a commodity.

I would say, and I suspect you would agree, that water is more a “right” than it is a commodity. And private corporations should have no more control over the selling of water than they do the selling of our air supplies. Well, this is already occurring to some extent as corporations make a profit selling water — which at times even makes water less available to the people living in the area.

Even public water supplies are being increasingly taken over by private corporations, and in some areas of the world are up for grabs by the highest bidder.

This has been publicized in countries such as Bolivia, where residents battled police and the military to protect their water rights from the US-based Bechtel Corporation, but you should know water privatization initiatives are being pushed all over the world … including in the United States.

If you’re interested in learning more, an excellent, eye-opening film on this topic that I highly recommend is Thirst.

Getting back to bottled water, however, many, many Americans still drink it, believing it is somehow healthier than tap water.

In 2008, U.S. bottled water consumption reached nearly 9 billion gallons, raking in revenues of more than $11 billion.

Folks, this is for a “product” you can get virtually for free by turning on your kitchen tap!

Are You Paying 1,900 Times More for Unhealthy, Earth-Damaging Water?

If you drink bottled water, yes, you are!

Bottled water typically costs more than $1.50 per bottle, which is 1,900 times the price of tap water.

Yet, that very same bottled water that you’re paying a premium for is, in about 40 percent of cases, simply bottled tap water, which may or may not have received any additional treatment.

On top of that, most municipal tap water must actually adhere to more strict purity standards than the bottled water industry. Further, while the EPA requires large public water supplies to test for contaminants as often as several times a day, the FDA requires private bottlers to test for contaminants only once a week, once a year, or once every four years, depending on the contaminant.

An independent test performed by the Environmental Working Group revealed 38 low-level contaminants in bottled water, with each of the 10 tested brands containing an average of eight chemicals including disinfection byproducts (DBPs), caffeine, Tylenol, nitrate, industrial chemicals, arsenic, and bacteria were all detected.

So what you are paying for is often no different, or even worse, than the water that comes out of your faucet.

When you factor in other elements, like the chemicals that can leach from the plastic bottle and its impact on the environment, bottled water becomes a losing proposition no matter how you look at it.

Drinking From Plastic Bottles is Not a Wise Health Move

When drinking bottled water you need to think not only about the water but also about the bottle itself. Plastic is not an inert substance as its manufacturers would like you to believe. It contains chemicals like BPA and phthalates, which mimic hormones in your body.

Even tiny concentrations can cause problems such as:

• Structural damage to your brain
• Hyperactivity, increased aggressiveness, and impaired learning
• Increased fat formation and risk of obesity
• Altered immune function
• Early puberty, stimulation of mammary gland development, disrupted reproductive cycles, and ovarian dysfunction
• Changes in gender-specific behavior, and abnormal sexual behavior
• Stimulation of prostate cancer cells
• Increased prostate size, and decreased sperm production

Anytime you drink from a plastic bottle you risk exposure, but if you leave your bottle of water in a hot car or reuse it, your exposure is magnified because heat and stress increase the amount of chemicals that leach out of the plastic.

Plastic is Hurting the Earth in a Major Way

About 1.5 million tons of plastic are used to manufacture water bottles each year around the world, and the processing itself releases toxic compounds like nickel, ethylbenzene, ethylene oxide and benzene. Further, according to the Sierra Club, the U.S. alone uses 1.5 million barrels of oil to make plastic water bottles, the majority of which then end up in landfills.

In fact, 1,500 water bottles are thrown away every second!

This massive waste is one reason why there is now a plastic “stew” twice the size of Texas swirling through the Pacific Ocean.

Also extremely harmful to the environment is the way corporations are pumping water from underground aquifers. These natural springs serve as water sources for nearby streams, wells and farms, but the aggressive pumping can easily dry them out prematurely.

A Simple Solution is at Your Disposal 

One you realize that many sources of bottled water is:

• No safer than tap water
• Extremely expensive
• Often contaminated by plastics chemicals
• Contributing to massive environmental harm … the choice to stop using it becomes simple. Fortunately, the alternative to having pure water is also simple: filter your own at home.

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Your best choice is filter your tap water at home.  If you don’t want to spend much money than at least filter with one of those britta or pur filters that you can get at walmart or target.  At least you will get a fair amount of the contaminants (mostly chlorine) out and it will be purer than bottled water.

If you really want great water you should spend a little bit of money and either get Mercolas filtering system or like we have in the office, the best system is the one from Nikken.  It not only has a great filtering system, but it also ionizes (magnets) the water and puts the essential minerals back in.  It tastes great, I am actually drinking more water because it tastes so good.

However much you decide to act on this info, please at the very least, stop drinking bottled water!

Until next time.

Yours in health,

Dr. Dan

P.S.  If you haven’t already, please go to my website uncommonhealthsecrets.com, go to Products and  click on the links to Dr.s Mercola, Sears and Jon Barron and start getting  their newsletters.  It is awesome information and its free!

Dr. Klein here,  

I written many times on the reasons why you should not be sun-shy.  The popular belief that the sun is bad for you is just not true (as long as you use common sense) when in reality you need the sun to have healthy skin and promote general health.

In this article Dr. Sears reveals more scientific evidence why it is important to get enough sun exposure.

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There’s one nutrient that has more health benefits than any other I can think of. I’ve written to you about this nutrient before. But today, I have a startling new benefit you should know. It has to do with Parkinson’s disease…

Parkinson’s disease doesn’t follow the rules. There’s no known cause. And everyone is at risk.

Including you.

This disease affects the brain and muscle control. It messes with nerve cells that produce dopamine.

Dopamine is like a messenger that runs to different parts of your body to tell it how and when to move. When your body doesn’t produce enough “messengers,” parts of your body won’t know what to do. This causes the tremors and spasms associated with Parkinson’s.1

But, there’s something you can do right now to lower your risk of getting Parkinson’s disease. It’s right outside your door.

This non-drug has no side effects. And you can get all you want for free.

I’m talking about vitamin D.

Vitamin D is the only vitamin you get from sunshine. This vitamin is well-known to dramatically reduce risks of cancer and heart disease. And a study I recently read suggests that it can also reduce the chances of Parkinson’s disease by up to 65%.2

I can think of no drug that even comes close.

You see, the part of the brain most affected by Parkinson’s is full of vitamin D receptors. And vitamin D has been shown to prevent loss of the cells that produce dopamine (dopaminergic neurons).3

In today’s world, everyone could use more vitamin D.

Our native ancestors were out in the sun for most of the day working, walking, and hunting. Today people aren’t outside as much. Many of us spend most of our day in an office, in a car, or in our homes. Some people never see daylight.

I recommend you get vitamin D from natural sources like the sun. As little as 10 minutes in the midday sun produces 10,000 units of vitamin D.

But if you can’t get outside, you can add vitamin D to your diet.

Here are some of the best options:

If you need to supplement, I recommend you aim for a minimum of 2,000 I.U. of vitamin D per day.

To Your Good Health,

Al Sears, MD

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As Dr. Sears states, the best source of vitamin D is the sun, as you can’t overdose (except to get burned) since your body regulates the conversion to vitamin D beautifully. 

I recommend at least 20 minutes 3-4 times a week minimum, exposure as much skin as you can (without getting arrested).  Pay attention to your skin starting to get red and then cover up as you don’t want to get burned. 

I just cover up with clothing when I have had enough exposure.  I don’t like most sunscreens as they have toxic ingredients.  A couple of my patients have tried Dr. Mercolas’ all natural sunscreens and report back that they work great.

I will go over how to safely supplement Vitamin D, if you can’t get outside (winter or other circumstance) in a future report.

In the interim get outside as much as possible and feel better!

Yours In Health,

Dr. Dan

Lack Of Sleep Killing You?

We all know that to be healthy, you need to get enough rest, but despite that recent studies show that way too many of us are chronically sleep deprived. 

We regenerate mentally and rebuild physically when we rest.   When we are getting less than optimum amounts of rest (sleep) it is a foregone conclusion that we are speeding up the aging process or in effect (as with any unhealthy habit) hastening our own demise.

Most of us don’t really realize to what extent lack of sleep affects our health or the specific mechanisms or habits by which we do so.

In a recent report Dr. Mercola talks about some the ill effects that  (according to recent research) lack of sleep promotes:

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“Your circadian rhythm evolved over hundreds of generations to align your physiology with your environment. Your body clock is “set” to sleep at night and stay awake during daylight hours, just like your ancestors did.

If you deprive yourself of sleep, or switch your waking/sleeping rhythm due to shift work, for example, you send conflicting signals to your body.

Too little sleep impacts your levels of thyroid and stress hormones, which in turn can affect your memory, immune system, heart and metabolism, and much more. Over time, lack of sleep can lead to:

• High blood sugar levels and an increased risk of diabetes — Sleep-deprived subjects tend to eat more sweet and starchy foods rather than vegetables and dairy products. Researchers suspect these cravings stem from the fact that your brain is fueled by glucose (blood sugar); therefore, when lack of sleep occurs, your brain searches for carbohydrates.

In short, sleep deprivation puts your body into a pre-diabetic state, and makes you feel hungry, even if you’ve already eaten.

• Weight gain — When you are sleep deprived, your body decreases production of leptin, the hormone that tells your brain there is no need for more food. At the same time it increases levels of ghrelin, a hormone that triggers hunger.
• Accelerated aging
• Hypertension (high blood pressure) Depression  
• Increased risk of cancer by altering the balance of hormones in your body. (Tumors grow two to three times faster in laboratory animals with severe sleep dysfunctions) “

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Now there is plenty of other research out there showing many other affects.  However even without that I doubt that anyone is going to disagree, or needs proof that lack of proper or enough sleep is going to affect you negatively.   To some degree, in every aspect of you health.

So what is the correct amount of sleep?

First off realize that it is not just the amount, but also the quality of sleep.  Many of patients that use sleep meds complain that although they sleep they never feel rested.  Generally it is felt that drugs interfere with REM, the portion of sleep where we actually rest. 

Other factors that reduce our ability to sleep well:

Watching TV right before bedtime.  The sensory input “jacks us up” mentally, so stop at least a hour before going down.  Too much physical activity will do the same, use same time limit.  Therefore it is helpful to do calming  type activities at this time such as reading, listening to soothing music, meditating, etc.

Bright lights in the house fool your body into thinking it is still daylight and suppress melatonin, the hormone your body uses to help make you drowsy.   So keep the lights low or soft after dark.

Eating sugars or grains before bed increases your insulin level which jacks you up, making it hard to drop off and then later on when it drops you will wake up and not be able to go to sleep again.    Instead eating quality protein (the old glass of warm milk) about an hour before will provide l-tryptophan to promote secretion of melatonin and serotonin.   Supplementing with melatonin (1-3mg) about 1/2 hour before  bed can be very effective for some.

Many people keep their bedroom too hot (should be below 70 degrees) and have too much light, should be as dark as possible.

There, of course, are many other techniques that can be used to help promote proper sleep.  These are some simple ones that almost anyone can implement very easily.

By the way, research tells us that although there is a small percentage of people that can get by with a little less or a little more, the vast majority of us need about 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.  

But I suspect that not a big surprise to most of you as it just makes good sense.

Yours In Health,

Dr. Dan

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Dear Friend

If you are like me, you are concerned about your future health.  You would like to avoid medications or dangerous surgeries.  But whenever you go to your doctor, it seems like that is all he/she has to offer.  In fact they do not seem to know anything about natural health remedies, even get a little testy or dismissive if you ask about it.

So where are you going to get the knowledge you need to stay off drugs and surgery?  There is so much information (especially on the internet) and it can be very confusing.  Alot of it seems kind of questionable and even”scammy”.  You don’t have the time or inclination to waste money or put your health at risk without some assurance that the information you are getting is valid.

What to do?

That is where I come in.

About 35 years ago, I was where you are now.  I wanted the information, but did not know where to get it.  Unfortunately we did not have the internet back then so I basically had to start from scratch.  After over 15 years of college, including 5 years of chiropractic college I obtained my Doctorate.  Now after 20 years of practice I have accummulated a wealth of experience in helping people get and stay healthy….

Naturally!

And you can benefit from my experience, you don’t have to do all the hard work, I have already done it.  All you have to do is take the information and apply it!

If you can do that, I have no doubt that it may very well change you life!

How To Use This Site

The information presented here is not meant to take the place of any advice or treatment given to you by your medical physician.  It is meant to give you access to natural health option information that they may not (most likely) or won’t (hopefully not) give you.

The job of any physician is not to tell you what to do, but rather to help you understand “all” your options so that you can choose the course of action that will most likely give the results YOU desire.  It is recommended that you have discussions with your physician about all your options before deciding.

However the dialogue should be open and unbaised with the doctor willing to explore with you any natural alternatives to drugs or surgery you might be interested in.  If this is not the case, you might want to consider changing physicians to someone that truly has your best interests at heart.

Remember though no matter what decision is made, what course of action is taken, and what the results are, it is your responsibility.  It is your body, your health, and you have to live with the results.

This site is designed to help you get information you most likely won’t get through the normal medical channels, so that you might have a more complete picture of all your options.  This should allow you to make the very best decisions for your health and well being.

Another important thing to remember….

Not everything is going to work for everybody.  The only way you will find out what works for you is to try it.  As long as you use good common sense, stay within reasonable limits, and transition slowly, it is nearly impossible to harm yourself with natural health practices.  Unlike drugs and surgery, there is an extremely large safety margin.  Even if something you have been trying doesn’t work, you are almost always no worse for the wear and you can move on to something else.

So if you are ready…

Go up to the “More” tab in the upper right hand corner and go thru the different pages.  I suggest you go thru the information and use it in the order I have written it in, as the sequence is designed to give the best results.

Lets get going!

Yours in Health!

Dr. Dan

DISCLAIMER:  The content and information contained on this website, in newsletters, emails, and blogs are for educational purposes only.  It should not be construed as medical advise.  It is not intented  that the information be used to diagnose any condition or as a prescription for treatment.  If you have a medical condition you should always seek the advise of  the apppropriate medical physician.