HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Q: Why are some monsters so quiet?
A: Because silence is ghoul-den

We could not help it we had to add a cheesy joke. 

Have a Happy Halloween.

GINGER - A REMEDY TESTED

Used in cooking and herbal medicine around the world, ginger is the rhizome (underground stem) of Zingiber officinale, which grows in warm climates. It contains many interesting compounds. 

The best known of these are called gingerols, which produce the hot sensation in your mouth, as well as the pungent flavor and aroma. Fresh or powdered, pickled or candied, ginger adds a unique zest to any dish.

Like many herbs and plant-derived foods, ginger does great things in the lab (in animals or isolated human cells), but its proven medicinal effects, in real life, remain limited. Studies usually use ginger extracts, which can vary in their chemical composition.

Some findings:

Ginger may have anti-cancer properties. For instance, a lab study from the University of Michigan, published in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine back in 2007, found that ginger keeps ovarian cancer cells at bay—in a test tube. Similarly, at 2013 lab study in Nutrition and Cancer found that compounds in ginger extract may inhibit the proliferation of prostate cancer cells. Other studies suggest that ginger may have beneficial effects on breast cancer and colon cancer cells. This is a long way from saying that ginger can prevent or treat cancer in humans, however.

ARTHRITIS - HOW CHANGING YOUR DIET COULD HELP REDUCE PAIN

According to Arthritis Care Northern Ireland nearly 230,000 people live there with the debilitating disease. Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form, followed by rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

As the drugs used to treat arthritis often work through action on the immune system or reduction of inflammation, the role for diet in arthritis is targeted at these functions also. Unfortunately some medications can come with negative side-effects. Nutritional interventions, although perhaps not as consistent and sometimes not as effective as medications, will more often than not help with a condition, without consequences to health.

Additionally tailored dietary intervention will offer other health benefits alongside its expected therapeutic aid. This is why many people use dietary manipulation - alongside medications or in some incidences instead of medications - when tackling a health complaint.

A dietitian's role goes beyond treatment and prevention of arthritis. A dietitian must also help combat the side effects caused by the medications such as taste changes, mouth sores, abdominal pain, ulcers, loss of appetite, nausea, thinning of the bones, weight loss and weight gain.

In addition to nutrition-related side effects of the medications, dietitians also help with drug-nutrient interactions. For example certain medications interact with folic acid, calcium and potassium within the body.


Related: Managing Pain While Avoiding Opiod  Abuse

Osteoarthritis

When it comes to osteoarthritis (OA), obesity is a strong risk factor. Obesity is the greatest modifiable risk factor for OA. People with a BMI>30 kg/m2 are nearly seven times more likely to develop knee OA than people with a healthy weight. The reason for this is twofold.

Top 12 Cholesterol-Lowering Foods

            


Hi check out this video on cholesterol reducing foods. They also have lots of other benefits. Let us know if you found this useful.

PROBIOTICS - PROS AND CONS

Probiotics are a big and rapidly growing business, with annual global sales of products expected to rise to $42 billion by 2016. The term probiotic refers to dietary supplements (tablets, capsules, powders, lozenges and gums) and foods (such as yogurt and other fermented products) that contain “beneficial” or “friendly” bacteria. The organisms themselves are also called probiotics.

They are promoted to improve digestion, strengthen immunity, help in weight loss and even protect against periodontal disease, among other proposed benefits, as well as for general health. Will the friendly bacteria in these supplements and foods keep you healthy?

Proponents claim that probiotics (meaning “for life,” as opposed to antibiotics) confer health benefits primarily by rebalancing the normal microflora in the large intestine (colon). There are many general types of bacteria used as probiotics (two common ones are Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium), and many different species as well as strains within species. They have different physiological effects—and thus possibly different health benefits (as well as possible risks). Some yeasts, such as Saccharmyces, can also act as probiotics.

OMEGA 3'S FROM ALGAL OIL?

Q: Are algal oil supplements a good alternative to standard omega-3 (fish oil) supplements?

A: They seem to be. Derived from various types of micro-algae, algal oil is gaining popularity among vegans and other people who want a source of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) but don’t want to get them from fish or fish-oil supplements. But it’s also gaining buzz because it’s a more sustainable alternative to deriving oil from fish (due to declines in certain fish populations) and doesn’t pose the risk of contamination with pollutants, such as PCBs, that are found to some degree in many fatty fish.

Algal oil is largely composed of DHA, along with smaller amounts of EPAand alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which the body can be convert to DHA and EPA to a limited extent. Both DHA and EPA have known heart benefits, as well as helping to reduce blood clots, arrhythmias, inflammation, high blood pressure, and triglycerides (fats in the blood), though clinical trials on supplements containing them have largely had disappointing results.

Coffee Health Benefits

                 
                             


Check out these health benefits from coffee, and helps to reduce inflammation. Let us know what you think?

PROBOTICS - THEIR ROLE IN SUPPORTING OUR HEALTH

In recent years there has been a lot of conversation about the gut flora and this thing called the gut brain connection. Never before have people been so concerned about the trillions of bacteria that reside in our gut. The trillions of bacteria inside your body make up your microbiome. A majority of these bacteria reside in your gut and are referred to as the gut microbiota.

Pre-existing science used to think the gut had but one single purpose, to break down our food into fuel for our body. This is no longer the case.  In the past few years science has discovered that the gut plays a vital role in our psychology, in regulating inflammation, and in protecting immunity.

The gut microbiota plays a major role in our psychology through the 100 million nerves that line the gut called.  This neurological superhighway is called the enteric nervous system (ENS).  This system allows the brain and the gut to communicate through a series of hormones, neurotransmitters, and electrical pulses. The pathways of nerves that these two organs communicate through include endocrine, immune, and neural pathways. The discovery of the connection between the gut and the brain explains why emotions and psychological factors can show up in the stomach.

 Related: The Gut Microbiome? How Does It Affect Our Health.

Just as we might take care of the brain by eating antioxidants and omega-3, we should take the same precautions for the stomach. How? By introducing adequate amounts of live microorganisms into our system that incur health benefits on the host, also known as Probiotics. 

Thinking About Taking a Dietary Supplement?

               

                  

Always worth reinforcing the message that we always suggest that you check with your health care providers before taking any supplements.

EVERYDAY FOODS TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM.

Unfortunately, summer has ended and cold and flu season has started to arrive.  

Many individuals are quick to receive their flu shot in an effort to prevent a weeks worth of malaise and illness, but did you know that the foods you eat every day can also boost your immune system?  Try incorporating in these four foods as part of your regular diet…well at least from November through February.  

Garlic. Containing an organosulfur compound called Allicin, garlic has been proven to boost immunity by preventing viral illness. In the unfortunate event you do get sick, it has also proven to decrease the severity and length of illness.

How to include this in your diet?  Chop 1-2 cloves of garlic and allow to sit for a few minutes.  Allicin is created when garlic is chopped and exposed to the air. Try incorporating into salad dressing to avoid cooking garlic, which can destroy allicin.  Don’t like salads all that much?  Try a garlic hummus for a great immune boosting snack.

5 SURPISING THINGS THAT HURT YOUR HEART

                        

Check out this video and let us know your thoughts?

OMEGA 3 SUPPLEMENTS CAN HELP REDUCE LEVELS OF DEPRESSION

Omega-3 fatty acids, which can be found in hemp, fish, and flaxseed, yield a number of health benefits including prevention of heart disease. But recent research found that a high dose of omega-3 supplements is not only great for one's physical health but can reduce symptoms of major depression.

Published in Translational Psychiatry, the analysis featured 13 studies with 1,233 participants with depression. Researchers looked at the effects of omega-3 supplements on their symptoms as well as how eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) — acids found in fish — had an effect in different doses. The former has been known to decrease levels of the disorder, and results showed that higher doses of EPA greatly reduced symptoms, especially for patients already on antidepressants.

"Omega-3 supplements may be specifically effective in the form of EPA in depressed patients using antidepressants," said the study's lead author Dr. Roel JT Mocking, researcher at the Program For Mood Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in a released statement. "This could be a next step to personalizing the treatment for depression and other disorders."

Related: Can Probiotics Help With Treating Depression

Although the addition of omega-3 supplements isn't a definitive treatment for depression, the study supports the correlation as well as the health benefits of both EPA and DHA omega-3s overall.

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