A Refresher on Probiotics

The World Health Organization defines a probiotic as:

"Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host"

So there are 3 key components to this definition:

• Live
• Adequate amounts
• Of the type that confer a health benefit

The probiotics we recommend (Genestra, Metagenics, Innate Response) generally fall into the category of some of the priciest probiotics going.  But, they are worth the extra cost because you can be assured that you are getting live, viable probiotics whereas some of the other products will contain only dead bacteria. Another trick to watch out for: probiotic labels that say "x billion viable bacteria at time of manufacture."  What they contained at time of manufacture is completely irrelevant, it's what they contain when you consume them that matters.  What this is really saying is "we're not sure how much will survive until you take them."  The better manufacturers will usually test their products for at least 6 months beyond the expiry date to ensure that you are still getting living bacteria in the amount on the label.

1 or 2 billion bacteria per serving just doesn't cut it, when it comes to good bacteria the higher the amount per serving the better. Over 100 trillion bacteria of 500 different species live in the human gut, if you want to have an impact, you need to add more than a drop in the bucket. There are a few manufacturers promoting something called "soil based organisms" that are supposed to be what we naturally would have inhabiting our guts if we were eating fresh from the ground.  There has been very little research supporting their use and a few case studies of people who were severely immune compromised and suffered life threatening infections after consuming these products.  There is tons of research showing the health benefits of Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacteria infantis and Bifidobacterium lactis.

Here are the benefits of healthy good bacteria in our digestive tract:

• Diarrhea prevention, especially when taking antibiotics or travelling
• Colorectal cancer prevention
• Immune system regulation and enhancement
• Asthma and allergy prevention
• Prevention of infection in the gut by Salmonella, Shigella, H pylori, yeast etc
• Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's and Ulcerative colitis) and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
• Provide the host with vitamin B12 and K
• Moderation of immune system function to prevent severe complications from H1N1

Oh and by the way, a class action lawsuit was filed and won against Dannon/Danone in January 2008 in which the company stood accused of spending $100 million promoting clinical benefits of Activia and DanActive that its own tests had disproved.  To add to that, Bifidus Regularis is a made up name by Danone for Bifidobacterium animalis. Commercial yogurt is not an adequate means to obtain good bacteria.

There's a new recipe for Immune Boosting Soup on our website to view it click here.

Yours in health,

Pamela
http://www.ForcesofNature.ca
http://www.NaturopathToronto.ca
http://naturopathicdetox.blogspot.com
http://h1n1naturopath.blogspot.com
http://naturopathtoronto.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/pfranknd

Copyright 2009 Forces of Nature

What's So Special About Rooibos?

While doing my current detox I have had to forgo my usual soy chai lattés - soy, caffeine and sweeteners are all strictly out. In my search for an herbal tea alternative most were not very satisfying until I tried David's Teas Caramel Rooibos.  It was heavenly!  Rooibos tea is naturally somewhat sweet (without any sugar or other sweetener added) and slightly nutty.  The caramel flavouring blends well with the natural flavour of the rooibos and it's healthy too!

Rooibos is becoming more among health-conscious consumers, due to its high level of antioxidants such as aspalathin and nothofagin, its lack of caffeine, and its low tannin levels compared to fully oxidized black tea or unoxidized green tea leaves.  Rooibos also contains a number of phenolic compounds, including flavanols, flavones, flavanones, and dihydrochalcones which give it potent antioxidant, immune-modulating and cancer preventive effects with zero adverse effects. Rooibos is purported to assist with nervous tension, allergies and digestive problems. Traditional medicinal uses of rooibos in South Africa include alleviating infantile colic, allergies, asthma and skin problems.

The next few weeks of weekly recipes will be devoted to Immune Enhancing recipes to keep us all healthy over the winter.  On that note, there's a new recipe for Immune Boosting Salsa on our website to view it
click here.

Yours in health,

Pamela

www.ForcesofNature.ca
http://www.NaturopathToronto.ca
http://naturopathicdetox.blogspot.com/ Detox Blog
http://h1n1naturopath.blogspot.com/ H1N1 Blog
http://naturopathtoronto.blogspot.com/ Weekly Emails Blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/pfranknd

Copyright 2009 Forces of Nature

Green Tea Prevents Pneumonia

Quick Note on Green Tea:

Pneumonia risk seems to be reduced even by drinking small amounts of green tea.  Drinking as little as one cup or less of green tea per day was associated with 41 percent less risk of dying from pneumonia among Japanese women, investigators have found.

There's a new recipe for Green Tea Chicken Stock on our website to view it click here.

Ear Acupuncture for Back Pain

In a recent study, women who had tiny acupuncture needles held in place with tape at three acupuncture points in their ears for one week, were more likely to experience significant reductions in lower back and pelvic pain than those who had the needles placed at three "sham" points or women in a control group who didn't get either real or fake acupuncture. A 30 percent or greater reduction in pain was reported by 81 percent of women in the acupuncture group, 47-59 percent of the two other groups.

Thirty-seven percent of women in the acupuncture group were pain-free after a week of acupuncture. Improvements in function were significantly greater among women who had real acupuncture compared to those who got the fake version or received no treatment. The only side effect was temporary tenderness in the ear area, reported by only 4 out of the 159 women in the study. The treatment is inexpensive and takes about three minutes for the needles to be put in place.

SOURCE: American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, September 2009.

Yours in health,
Pamela

Which Nut Decreases Your Risk of Breast Cancer?

With the Run for the Cure for Breast Cancer still fresh in my mind, this seemed like a timely topic.

There was a study done at the Marshall University School of Medicine that showed that when mice were fed the equivalent of 2 ounces of walnuts per day in a human the mice had a significantly lower incidence of breast tumors.

To get more walnuts in your diet, there's a recipe for Garlicky Pumpkin Seed and Walnut Snack Mix on our website, to view it click here.

In health,
Pamela

When You Eat Matters

It’s not all what you eat, but when you eat it that might lead to weight gain, according to a new laboratory study. In the study, the Northwestern University researchers fed two groups of mice a high fat-diet: one group ate only during the day and the other only at night. Mice are normally nocturnal and consume less during the day and more at night.

After six weeks, the daytime eaters gained significantly more weight than the nighttime eaters, that is the mice eating at odds with their normal sleep/wake cycle gained more. The daytime eating mice were slightly less active and ate slightly more than the nighttime eaters, note the authors, which may have led to a cumulative effect. The results show that simply modifying eating times may affect body weight and suggests that the body’s natural 24-hour circadian rhythm may play a role in metabolic processes.

And on the topic of what you eat, the National Cancer Institute recently estimated that Americans consume 22 teaspoons of sugar per day (355 calories), on average. Imagine the health improvement, weight reduction and reduced cost on the health care system if everyone reduced that number by half!

There's a new recipe for Squash Supreme on our website, to view it click here.

Yours in health,

Pamela

Swine Flu and Naturopathic Medicine

As we all know, prevention is always the best medicine. As much as I'm not buying into all the hype around the swine flu (just as I didn't around the avian flu or West Nile virus), it never hurts to do a little preventative maintenance just to be safe.

There was a 2007 study comparing the flu vaccine with 1 capsule of colostrum daily. The study had 2 parts. The first part looked at healthy adults and the second looked at patients with advanced cardiovascular disease.

Groups in the first part were vaccine alone, colostrum alone, vaccine + colostrum, and no treatment.

Colostrum was 4 times more effective than the flu vaccine. Colostrum was 3 times more effective than no treatment. The flu vaccine was actually worse than doing nothing at all. The vaccine + colostrum group did equally well as colostrum alone.

The highest incidence of flu (57 cases) were in the flu vaccine only group, not the "no treatment" group which had 41 cases of flu.

In the second part of the study colostrum was twice as effective as the flu vaccine (3 on colostrum vs 6 with the vaccine) and 1 patient died from complications of the flu in the vaccine group.

Other prevention measures - Allimax garlic, Gastrointestinal (GI) cleanse, probiotics, vitamin C and/or MediHerb Echinacea Premium (alternating 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off).

There's a new recipe for Newfoundland Cod Cakes on our website, to view it click here.