Are You Stressed??

Working in a health food store I see people daily with an array of health concerns, but the most common complaint I get is STRESS! I'm sure most of us don't have the opportunity to lounge around all day, kick back, take in some sun, down some pina coladas....I mean some health conscious antioxidant green tea...of course! Stress can lead to a host of health problems, including digestive upsets, intestinal problems, weight gain, acne, hormonal imbalances, fatigue, high blood pressure....you name it! Researchers estimate that stress contributes to as many as 80 percent of all major illnesses! Stress can be emotional, physical, social, or even mental. There is good stress and bad stress. I know that may sound a little strange, but working out for example, is stress physically on the body. It's great for our overall health, but if we are not eating properly or using the rights supplements for recovery then we may just be adding stress to our bodies! So.....how do we handle stress!? First and foremost, we need to eliminate our stressor, if that's at all possible. For most people, this can be rather challenging. If we can't eliminate stress in our daily lives, we need to learn how to manage our stress, productively! So here is my go-to list of things to do/supplements to take when stressed:

1. BREATHE!! How often do we rush through the day feeling time-constrained and overwhelmed and never pay attention to our breathing?! This is one of the most important...and easiest... and cheapest ways to manage our stress. When we are stressed, our breathing tends to be shallow and fast, instead of slow and steady. Practice breathing through your diaphragm...here's how:
1. Start by lying on back(use your bed or the floor). This will make it easier to develop the proper deep breathing technique the first couple of times.
2. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other on your belly just above your waist.
3. Breathe in slowly through your nose. You should feel the hand on your belly rise.
4. Breathe out slowly through your mouth. The hand on your belly should gradually lower.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 a few times, then focus on allowing your ribcage to expand and widen as your belly moves out, so that you are filling up your entire lungs, from bottom to top.

2. Take a B-Complex- Our B vitamins (along with other nutrients) get depleted when we are stressed which can lead to many nutrient deficiencies. B vitamins are important for the proper functioning of our nervous system and B5 in particular is the anti-stress vitamin! B5 plays a role in the functioning of our adrenal glands and our adrenals can become quite fatigued if we are constantly under stress.

3. Antioxidant Supplement- Stress causes free radical formation and to fend off the damage of these free radicals, we need to constantly supply our bodies with lots of antioxidants. (AOR makes a great supplement called Antioxidant Synergy). We can get antioxidants through our food- fruits, vegetables, and some sprouted grains but often it's not enough to fend off free radical damage.

4. L-Theanine- this amino acid, found primarily in green tea leaves produces a relaxed mental and emotional state without any sleepy side-effects. It even improves memory, concentration and performance! It works by generating different brain waves and increasing the formation of GABA, a neurotransmitter that is key to relaxation and memory. You can generally find this in chewable forms (Natural factors makes a great one), and 100-200mg should do the trick!

5. Adaptogens- these nutrients are in a class of their own and I could go on and on about which ones to take. Adaptogens are metabolic regulators. They help an 'organism' adapt to its environment to avoid damage. Since our adrenal glands come become overworked and fatigued from daily stress, it's important to help nourish these glands. Some adaptogens I love:
1. Rhodiola- can boost brain function and memory and has significant anti-fatigue effects. It's great for reducing mental fatigue, improving sleep patterns and stabilizing mood. Dosages can range from 250-500mg.
2. Ashwagandha- this tonic herb enhances mental function, improves overall health, increases energy and vitality all while strengthening the immune system! Dosages can range from 100 up to 750mg!
3. Holy Basil- this herb helps to reduce anxiety, helps with mental focus and promotes a positive stress response. It is also known to elevate your spirits and is a herb used often in Ayurvedic medicine. It is said that "Holy Basil delivers nutrients to the mind necessary for the experience of enlightenment." Dosage range is typically 500mg.

I hope this info helps you feel calmer, lighter, energized, and full of vitality.
And remember.....often times, all we need to do is BREATHE!

Cancer Causing Hot Dogs

I received this article from the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service and thought I would share it with all of you! It's pretty shocking how many hot dogs are consumed every year! Hot dogs are loaded with nitrites! These nitrites are used as preservatives and are very carcinogenic. Nitrites aren't actually the real danger, it's the by-product of nitrites that becomes the real problem. What about carcinogens? Well these are substances that can alter or mutate your cells which can then lead to cancer. These cells, because they become mutated create chaos and start to inhabit other parts of your body, and could potentially effect your organs. So here is the article below....read on and find out the potential dangers of consuming hot dogs........(p.s. check out the links/sources at the bottom of the article for further information on nitrites/carcinogens and the dangers of eating hot dogs)

This article may be reprinted free of charge provided 1) that there is clear attribution to the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, and 2) that both the OMNS free subscription link http://orthomolecular.org/subscribe.html and also the OMNS archive link http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/index.shtml are included.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, July 2, 2010

Pass the Mustard, or Just Pass on the Hot Dog?

Comment by Andrew W. Saul
Editor-In-Chief, Orthomolecular Medicine News Service

(OMNS July 2, 2010) More hot dogs are eaten at the 4th of July holiday than at any other time of the year. The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (yes, an all-too-real trade organization) says that "during the Independence Day weekend, 155 million will be gobbled up" and that Americans will consume more than seven billion hot dogs over the summer. "Every year," they proudly proclaim, "Americans eat an average of 60 hot dogs each." (1)

That looks to be a modest average of just over one hot dog per week per American. But there are at least 7 million vegetarians in the US, and another 20 million who would be inclined to avoid meat. (2)

This means that even if you do not eat any hot dogs at all, someone else is eating your share.

But a hot dog or two a week? Big deal!

Maybe it is. Children who eat one hot dog a week double their risk of a brain tumor; two per week triples the risk. Kids eating more than twelve hot dogs a month (three a week) have nearly ten times the risk of leukemia as children who eat none. (3)

And it is not just about kids. Of 190,000 adults studied for seven years, those eating the most processed meat such as deli meats and hot dogs had a 68 percent greater risk of pancreatic cancer than those who ate the least. (4) Pancreatic cancer is especially difficult to treat.

Think twice before you serve up your next tube steak. If your family is going to eat hot dogs, at least take your vitamins. Hot dog eating children taking supplemental vitamins were shown to have a reduced risk of cancer. (5) Vitamins C and E prevent the formation of nitrosamines. (6,7)

It is curious that, while busy theorizing many "potential" dangers of vitamins, the news media have largely ignored this clear-cut cancer-prevention benefit from supplementation.

May I also suggest that you have your kids chew their hot dogs extra thoroughly. In landfills, "Whole hot dogs have been found, some of them in strata suggesting an age upwards of several decades." (8)

Bon appétit.

References:

(1) http://www.hot-dog.org .

(2) http://www.vegetariantimes.com/features/archive_of_editorial/667 .

(3) Peters JM, Preston-Martin S, London SJ, Bowman JD, Buckley JD, Thomas DC. Processed meats and risk of childhood leukemia. Cancer Causes Control. 1994 Mar; 5(2):195-202.

(4) Nothlings U, Wilkens LR, Murphy SP, et al. 2005. Meat and fat intake as risk factors for pancreatic cancer: The Multiethnic Cohort Study. J Nat Cancer Inst 97:1458-65.

(5) Sarasua S, Savitz DA. Cured and broiled meat consumption in relation to childhood cancer: Denver, Colorado (United States). Cancer Causes Control. 1994 Mar; 5(2):141-8. Comment at http://www.ralphmoss.com/hotdog.html .

(6) Scanlan RA. Nitrosamines and cancer. http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/f-w00/nitrosamine.html

(7) Cass H; English J. User's guide to vitamin C. Basic Health Publications, 2002, p 64-67. ISBN-10: 1591200210; ISBN-13: 978-1591200215.

(8) Smithsonian, July 1992, p 5.

Nutritional Medicine is Orthomolecular Medicine
Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org
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