Community Health

Health Recommendations:

1. Teeth cleaning and dentist check up every six months - the health of your mouth greatly affects your gut health which eventually affects your mood, immune system and hormones.

2. Regularly monitor your blood pressure! - there is a BP monitor near the pharmacy at many major stores including all Shoppers Drug Marts and Walmarts. I have seen different cases of abnormally high blood pressure recently in practice. We do not know the aftermath of Covid affecting the body. Ideal blood pressure is 120/80 mmHg and blood pressure above 135/85 mmHg is recommended to seek treatment. Hypertension (high BP) is silent and often does not have symptoms, even at alarmingly high states, but it can cause stroke or heart attack if left untreated and thus is important to know about. It is advised to check out your blood pressure occasionally either by booking an appointment for a check up or next time your near a pharmacy that provides a BP monitor. For more information: https://guidelines.hypertension.ca/

3. 2023’s Dirty Dozen and Clean 15:

Organic food is important: it minimizes toxins, antibiotics and hormones into YOU. If you are not fully organic, it is recommended to buy the “Dirty Dozen” organically.

DIRTY DOZEN:

• Spinach

• Kale, collard, and mustard greens

• Nectarines

• Apples

• Grapes

• Strawberries

• Bell and hot peppers

• Cherries

• Peaches

• Pears

• Celery

• Tomatoes

• For more information and the list of the “Clean 15”:

  https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/ewg-dirty-dozen-and-clean-15-lists

4. Gynecology:

A PAP at 21 and every 3 years: Cervical Cancer screening guidelines in Canada recommended women to have a PAP at 21 years old and then to have a gynaecological exam every 3 years (unless otherwise told) until age 70 years.

STI Testing: A reminder that sexual ethics means testing after unprotected sex. Unfortunately Fernie does have a prevalence of sexually transmitted infections. Please make sure your testing is up to date.

DID YOU KNOW That you do not have to interact with a doctor to do this and can simply fill out a form and go into Lifelabs in Kimberly to have this done nonchalantly and without cost? Please spread the word: http://www.bccdc.ca/our-services/programs/getcheckedonline

Mammogram at 50 and every 2 years: Mammogram screenings are recommended to start at 50 years old for women without any familial medical history of breast, uterine or ovarian cancer. Mammogram screening is then recommended every two years. Clinical breast exams are not often occurring with allopathic care and are recommended with cervical cancer screening (PAPs). Home breast exams are recommended regularly. If there is family medical history of breast, uterine or ovarian, it is recommended to book into a mammogram starting at 30-40 years depended on personal medical history.

Prostate health: A simple blood test of PSA (prostate specific antigen) can inform of risk of prostate cancer and is recommended to start measuring at 45 years old.

5. DEXA bone scans for women at 50: A bone scan is recommended for women at 50 years old to assess your bone health. For more information: https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/dexa-scan.html

6. The Enhanced Healthy Living Assessment:  is a serum (blood) laboratory provided in the clinic that will literally tell me the health of your body in every aspect and if I need to investigate anything deeper. The cost of this laboratory is $320 plus a $50 phlebotomy fee. It tests many blood markers that are not being tested by the government medical system and is recommended to do at 30 years old and then every 5 years minimum.

7. An Enhanced Thyroid Panel: a complete check up of your thyroid includes many blood markers that the government medical system is often not measuring. If you are feeling unwell, there is a strong chance that your thyroid has not been investigated properly by the government system and is recommended to investigate. The cost of this laboratory is $182 plus a $50 phlebotomy fee.

8. Vitamin D Status: is so very important to your health! The only way to know if you have healthy levels is by a serum (blood) test. Vitamin D measurements are covered in the Enhanced Healthy Living Assessment and we can also just test your Vitamin D Status alone. The cost of this is $60. Vitamin D is imperative to mood (seasonal affective disorder), immune health and resiliency, hormone health, libido and fertility - for both men and women - and to the entire gastroenterological system (digestive tract and organs). Latest news in the last five years is the discover of how many Vitamin D receptors are all over the  digestive tract. It absolutely plays a role in digestion and absorption and acts as a hormone in the body.

Diet has the word 'Die' in it.

The phenomenon of the way society has become so obsessed with what they eat and yet we live in the very same society that is so unhealthy! It’s crazy to me. People are obsessed and it’s the obsessiveness that is half of the battle! Your worry about your weight can cause you to gain weight, or hold on to your weight. Have you ever heard the saying: Where the mind goes, energy flows?

Yes this is totally on the spectrum of Mind-Body Medicine and you bet I believe in it. Thoroughly.

What is going on in your mind is half of the toxicity behind food, the feelings you have, the thoughts you think. These are a big deal. Did you know that your Nervous System (capitalized because it is such a big deal) does not decipher between the reality of a thought and if something actually happened in reality? All it does is get the message and responds.

This happens with the way you think of yourself, if you are healthy. If you look in the mirror and think your fat. If you eat a food and feel guilty about it. Your Nervous System takes it all in and responds.

So when anyone who comes and talks to me about their diet, I first direct them just like I am directing you here... After I tell them that Diet has the word ‘die’ in it. And it’s no way to be.

For the sake of this, I am going to change the word “Diet” to ‘Healthy Food Plan for the sake of moving away from this word I have grown to despise, let alone for our Nervous System not to hear the word ‘die’ when we are talking about food. I can’t stand that I see young girls thinking they are fat and worried about their ‘diet’ in our society. I see 8 year old little girls thinking they are fat and can’t eat something because of their ‘diet’. What North America has done to women (and men) around body ideals and food is just totally sick behaviour, and everyone suffers because of it.

What I firstly coach is getting away from this whole mindset.

How I healed myself from this is I firstly stopped buying those ridiculously stupid magazines in the checkout isle. Not only are they full of garbage and pollution in so many ways, they’ll even cost you an extra 5$. I stopped reading up in the ‘health’ magazines about this, that and the other and I just moved away from all the propaganda around food and body image. I stopped hanging out with women and men that I realized I wasn’t healthy around and these were individuals that were simply less healthy than me. I found that I was simply less healthy by being around them, Especially the women that were clearly obsessed with themselves: the ones that were always talking about weight, mentioning other women’s bodies, complaining about their own, obsessed with calories - I had to protect myself from these kinds of people. You can be healthy in your own mind and very easily with hanging out with someone like this, start thinking about how many calories was in that and yada, yada, yada. If you want to get healthy, you must protect yourself first. Move away from items, people and places that are not the best for you. It’s just that simple.

Beyond this, here is my education on the matter and after reading this, if you wish for more help, make an appointment as it is truly very individualistic and lots of people also need some proper counselling and coaching alongside their years of poor eating habits, eating choices and terrible mental chatter.

A comprehensive Healthy Food Plan is truly individualistic, we are all different and that is a truth. I do believe that ethnicity affects what you should eat, you have thousands of years of biocellular memory data. I do also believe your blood type is a general indicator of what foods are better for you than others but I believe in these things with a loose frame. I have learned that anything too rigid is just as unhealthy and yet rigidity and discipline is also required. Everything in life is a fine balance and real health is about always maintaining this balance. I definitely follow some very basic nutritional knowledge however I do not and will not go to the fads. No way. If you really want my personal opinion on all those “diets” - I think most of them are totally out of balance, are not for longevity and will make you sick. That is my opinion: I think they are toxic behaviour.

To me, all they really do is create a distorted reality that eventually results in mismanagement and subtle anxiety around health, food, nutrition and weight management. Diets (the way most North American people think about them) are unstable: once the trend is gone, it will be over and forgotten about.

I really believe if you LISTEN to yourself, your ancient wisdom within, without all the garbage mind-chatter and worrisome warped ways you wouldn’t have a weight problem in the first place and this is my primary goal in teaching you how to go about this. How to be kind to yourself and how to truly create health so that it is a life time situation and not a trendy phenomena that will be history within a few months (with most likely an unhealthy rebound in the cycle of your body, your health and your self-esteem.)

So, back to it all:

A comprehensive Health Food Plan is changeable upon each person, each situation and throughout different days, months and times in life. The best generality I have come up with to teach my main recommendations to everyone is this:

1. YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT

   Beauty and inner and outer health comes from choosing healthy, clean and full-of-life foods! We all learned in grade-school how energy moves up from the food chain and how the food we eat gives us the life energy that originally comes from the sun. When you choose healthy beautiful (organic) foods, the sun will start shining through you! You will radiate, there is no doubt in my mind. Choose fresh fruits and vegetables, eat healthy proteins and if you eat meat, be conscious of where your meat is coming from. Antibiotics in meat mean antibiotics in you. Animals that lived a horrible life were probably severally depressed. How do you think that might make you feel? How about the animals that were killed not in a good way? That means they have a lot of stress hormones and chemicals full of fear that were travelling into their tissues…do you not think you would incorporate that into yourself too? This is very old wisdom, I just understand it well and I wish you would understand this too.

2. CONNECT WITH YOUR FOOD

   This is almost unheard of today but your food does come from somewhere, obviously…and it does contain the nutrients and energy from that place. Take a minute to look at your plate with wander, say a thank you, think of where your food came from to be on your plate. Sit down to eat and just be with your food, Do not be doing a bunch of different things at once, or talking too much to someone else. Pay attention to your food! This does several things. Firstly, it slows you down, allows your body to change over into the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PSNS) also called ‘rest and digest’ and allows your body to start secreting gastric juices. Smell your food, look at it. This is called the ‘Cephalic Phase of Digestion’ and is a very important phase that most of North America misses out on these days. Why is everyone so quick all the time? It’s terrible. At the same time you are doing this, you are becoming very present. This does a wonders for both your digestive system, your nervous system and the health of your brain. Thirdly, in doing this, you might awaken a true sense of gratitude in yourself, an awe, an amazement of how lucky you are , every day. This also does wanders because what it does over time is it will literally make you a more grateful and happy person. Truly. Finally, this allows you to really sit for a minute and in connecting to your food, lets you connect more with yourself. What on your plate do you really want to eat? Are you actually not interested in some food you put on there? Have you noticed perhaps that some of those foods don’t benefit you? Are all those ‘foods’ really food? Are they nutritious and beneficial? Sitting and connecting to your food and doing this every day will do wanders for you. It will take you much farther than fad diets. Digestion by the way, only happens when we are in the PSNS (the ‘rest and digest’ part of the Central Nervous System). When you get your digestion working properly, your entire being changes and eating becomes an amazingly wonderful experience that brings you genuine happiness! A properly functioning digestive systems means that you have harvested a true hunger every time you eat: you do not eat just to eat, you eat because you are hungry and excited to eat the nourishing food, and you have learned to eat the best foods for yourself and created healthy dynamics with food. Sitting down to eat and the taste of food actually can be one of the greatest joys of this world and it should be! It is a tragedy that so many people are so far away from this state. Food, when health is abundant, illicits enormous happiness and fulfillment, I can not underline that statement enough; this is known as The Mind-Gut Connection. A healthy connection with food brings you a very healthy state of mind, alongside a genuine happy demeanour.

3. ASK YOURSELF: IS THIS “FOOD” FOOD?

   How do you define food? Do you need some more eduction on the subject? That is totally possible and I am happy to be of support to that. But let’s start with this. How do you define food? Have you even ever thought about it?

   My opinion for the best way is whole foods, found from the natural produce isle in the store is food. Healthy organic fruits and vegetables, and meats (for some) is food.

   The way I would define it is anything that comes in a box, a package or a can -to me- is no longer food. It’s too processed. To me, I think of that as chemicals.

   If you can’t understand the ingredients, I would not be eating it. Preservatives are chemicals so if you are eating preservatives in “foods” you are ingesting these things..Do you really think your living cells want to be ‘preserved’ too? I highly doubt it. Another great thought is if you can’t really understand what it is, let’s give the wild example of a ‘sour soother’, does that make it a good idea to eat? I wouldn’t be eating it. That’s for sure.

4. CHOOSE ORGANIC

   I was coached on this within my first week of sitting in school for Naturopathic Medicine: Eat Organic. If you want to be healthier start by minimizing the chemicals you are exposing your body to and if you haven’t noticed the pictures of the way people dress to spray the non-organic foods with chemicals then please go ahead and look into it. There’s something very wrong with chemicals being sprayed on the food people are consuming. I can guarantee you can somehow allocate your money to eating more organic. Yes, it’s definitely more expensive but you have way better quality and please believe me when I say that when you clear out the toxins from the food you have been eating and go organic, including meats, you will definitely be able to taste the toxins in non-organic foods on the rare chances you eat them. For sure.

   On this same note of Organic, choose non-genetically modified foods which are now being labelled and marketed as ‘bio-fortified’. Organic typically means that the food is non-GMO anyways but keep this in your mind too.

   I have in the past few years started growing my own food in the summer and planting only Heirloom Seeds. This food is more amazing than any food I have found anywhere so if you get to the place where you can master all this and want to go farther, start buying Heirloom foods that have been growing organically- from good, awakened farmers. They are rare. Most likely you will have to start to learn to grow your own food but oh my goodness is it ever the most rewarding thing I have ever done. There is so much magic in the Garden! It truly takes a few seasons and some genuine work and investment to get it going but I can not tell you how rewarding it is to start to grow food and how much better Organically grown Heirloom Fruits and Vegetables are! I do not know what people that don’t garden do all Summer!

   Finally, if you want to go further: learn the traditional foods of your area. Find the old apple trees, they have good apples (and they are not sprayed). Pick the wild berries and vegetables that are natural to the area you are living. This area of knowledge is kept quite secretive. I have learned a lot of the natural ways of harvesting food and medicines from spending most of my time with the First Nations. This is the real, real heirloom and organic diet and you bet it is healthy.

5. EAT PROTEIN WITH MOST MEALS

   This helps stabilize blood sugar and creates a longer sensation of satiety. Protein is definitely not only in the form of animal protein (meats, eggs, dairy), other forms are chickpeas and other lentils, nuts and seeds, and food combining is especially important if you are vegetarian or vegan.

6. EAT REAL SUGAR

   I mean it. If you want something sweet, choose fruit but if you want something sweeter, like you want to really indulge and that is just what your body is craving, I definitely urge you to follow it but I urge it this way: choose a pop with real cane sugar in it. Do not eat sugar substitutes. Aspartame, Sweet & Low and all the countless other sweetners are chemicals. I don’t even like Stevia, which is apparently a natural compound, I don’t buy it. If your body is craving sugar, it wants calories fast and guess what: your body is the smartest of all of us. It’s telling you exactly what it needs and when you choose a sugar substitute. you really mess with your body. You basically confuse your body by telling your body, via your taste, that you have consumed something with high calories because sugar-substitutes are especially sweet. This gustatory (taste) message then sends a message to your brain that you just consumed sugar (but not really because your body is highly intelligent and knows it just consumed a chemical) but the taste is saying ‘hey, pump out the insulin because you have some simple carbohydrates coming into your blood stream soon’ so the body revs up and insulin starts to release, but then there is no caloric input. So your body releases all this insulin in preparation for the sugar and there’s nothing there. This wrecks havoc on your body, which eventually turns your nervous system onto stress mode and the cravings come back full force. Just believe me when I say: Listen to what your body is telling you and simplify it with grounded sense: if you want sugar, eat some real sugar. The same goes for fat. My job is to coach you into the healthy ways to listen to this, to make healthy choices and then to keep following the healthier path to higher and better levels of choice. It is in some ways about retraining your body, mind and your nervous system alongside your taste buds and habitual patterns but mostly it is about coaching how to loose all the garbage knowledge this sick society has taught you about food and how to eat. Everything else is actually fairly simple after the retraining of what is actually healthy with respect to food and nutrition (and listening to your body) as your body is truly very intelligent. Gaining control over your digestive tract and truly creating health in the forms of food and food choices is a great endeavour which can definitely be done with the right knowledge and coaching.

   Choose REAL sugar: this includes fruits, especially berries, alongside, berry sugar, cane sugar, honey, molasses.

7. DRINK WATER

   Water is needed for health, plain and simple. A general rule for a women is 1.5 L of water every day, minimum. 2 L for a man. That’s minimum, I say increase those by at least half a litre and you’d probably do better if you increased it by a litre if you have spent most of your life dehydrated. Add some fresh organic lemon if you have a tough time drinking water. If you drink tap water, leave it out in a pitcher for 24 hours before drinking it so that the chlorine evaporates. I personally drink spring water and I have made a mission to go to a spring and fill glass jars once a week since I was a child. I dislike tap water personally. Have you heard of Dr. Imoto’s work around the memory of water? It’s fascinating if you have not. I believe it is true! Send your water a beautiful message as you drink it and watch your cellular levels transform.

   Did you know water is the main solvent of every chemical process in the body? That water is needed for digestion, and for the proper absorption of nutrients? When you are dehydrated, your body is suffering in many ways!

   Did you know that when the body is dehydrated it also often sends out the messages that it is hungry? Being dehydrated can actually be a culprit behind weight problems, alongside many other things, including fatigue, poor digestion and via a long a convoluted understanding of pathophysiology, also anxiety and depression.

   Another layer to this, that you may progress to is to minimize juice, pop, coffee and alcohol. Just drink good healthy water, ideally spring water but at least leave the water out so the chemicals the city put into the tap water can evaporate. It is crazy how aware of everything we have to be these days to have good health.

8. INCLUDE FATTY FISH OR SUPPLEMENT WITH HIGH-GRADE OMEGA 3’S:

   Fatty fish are considered: salmon (yep, try to eat the skin) Mackaral, Herring, lake Trout, Tuna, Sardines and/or a high end Omega 3 supplement should cost you about $30 a month. I do not love fish so I do both. I eat salmon 2-3 times a month and take my Fish Oils every morning.

   This is probably the most important piece of advice I learned in Naturopathic Medical School.

   I was already healthy when I started to attend it but holy, when I started to take my Omega 3’s everyday, my health peaked. I have never looked back. I take 2-4 capsules of Omega 3’s every single day and I have done this since 2009.

   Omega 3 Fatty Acids are also found in walnuts, marine phytoplankton, hemp and flax. High quality Omega 3’s are required for our body to not be in an inflammatory state which means less oxidative stress which means a slowing down of the aging process. Beyond this, Omega 3’s are required for a healthy brain, a healthy cardiovascular system and healthy hormones. They will do wanders for your skin, your heart, your liver. These minimize the risks of thromboembolic states (stroke) while also support brain health including minimizing depression and anxieties. They support your digestion, your sleep and your well being. I don’t believe in taking many supplements but I definitely believe in taking my Omega 3’s, every day!

9. WASH YOUR HANDS, YOUR FOOD AND YOUR PREP AREA:

   I have a habit that I wash my hands every time I come home, even if I only went to a yoga class. I use natural soaps in my home. Perhaps it’s a bit different being a Doctor but I think it’s just a really good habit everyone should form. I definitely wash my hands before meal prep, even if I had been at home, even if I had just washed them ten minutes earlier, I always wash my hands before meal prep.

   I rinse my vegetables and my fruits, and if I cook meat, I rinse the meat too, just with plain water.

   I believe in using bleach in the kitchen and the bathroom, once a week.

   I can’t tell you how many people I have counselled that were healthy people seemingly and yet they were not well and couldn’t figure it out. They had gone to Doctor after Doctor and when I came into their kitchens and saw the state of their DISH RAGS, I was aghast. I suppose it is just something that not everybody thinks about and it’s an important lesson: you can buy healthy organic food and eat very well but still be sick from the state of kitchen, home or in many cases, your dish rags. Unhealthy and improperly cleaned kitchens and rags can, believe it or not, make your digestive system sick. If you have old dish rags, toss them out, get new ones and start fresh with the following advice:

   Change your kitchen rag daily but make sure that it dries out properly while it waits for the laundry. Make a laundry pile ONLY for dish rag and towels and at the end of the week, soak them all in a little bit of bleach water and wash them alone. Do not wash them with other clothes -ever. The amount of bacteria on your mouth and from food means they are on those rags. Bleach goes into luke warm water only, you do not want it to be too hot or it will evaporate the bleach and that is useless. Put the bowl with the rags outside for 20 minutes so that you don’t have to breath in the bleach water. Put the rags into the washing machine by themselves. Kitchen towels and rags stay in the kitchen only, do not ever be using them in other places of the house. Clean your counter tops and sink out with bleach once a week and make sure your home is aired out with the doors and windows open while you do this. Make sure your sink and taps are cleaned properly every week. If you have a cat, I hope you clean your counters every day with a bit of bleach. If your cat uses a litter box, clean it out every day too. The level of cleanliness of that litter box is literally the level of cleanliness all over your house. It’s a big deal. I do not believe in any of those spray bleach products because you inhale that spray. The only chemical I use in my home is a little it of liquid chlorox bleach and I dilute it into water, wear gloves and minimize the extent of it in the house by making sure windows and doors are open. Airing out the space is key. The state of your kitchen sink tells me a lot about your health and literally decides the health of your digestive system. It is very important to pay attention.

10. EAT A SMALL SNACK BETWEEN BREAKFAST AND LUNCH AND BETWEEN LUNCH AND DINNER:

    An apple with some nut butter at these times will do you wanders. Bananas are a good option. Oranges are easy. Almonds, Walnuts or Pistachios are also perfect and so easy to keep in all the places until you have formed better habits about eating. They fit in small bags into pockets, purses, drawers and somewhere near your driving wheel. Change it up, don’t get bored!

11. MAKE SURE YOU EAT HEALTHY FIBER, EVERY DAY:

    It is old school knowledge and it is important for your digestive system and the health of your colon: Apples, Celery, Chickpeas, Nuts, Legumes, Beans. If you do well with wheat, always choose whole grains: rye bread with some nut butter is an amazing snack. Multigrain toast is also delicious (with real grass-fed organic butter -yum!). Adding some flaxseeds to your apple increases fiber intake, if you want to put it in high fat and unsweetened yoghurt - that sounds like a great idea to me! Bran muffins are another great idea if you do well with gluten, as is couscous, bulgur and barley. If you do not do well with gluten: quinoa, oats, buckwheat, brown Rice and amaranth are choices to support your fiber intake. Carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, various forms of squash, yam and spinach are some high fiber vegetables. Even adding chia seeds to your (spring) water with some fresh squeezed (organic) lemon is an easy change to make that provides an abundance of health over time.

12. CHOOSE HEALTHY FATS!

    Healthy fat is needed in the body. It keeps you full and satisfied, and is required for healthy hormones, healthy cells and a healthy nervous system. Fat actually combats obesity and allows proper digestion and metabolism to occur, alongside the proper absorption of vitamins and minerals. Add (organic is best) nuts to your diet: almonds, walnuts, brazil nuts. Add avocado! Eat Butter! Oh my god the benefits of butter. Butter makes the world go ‘round as far as I am concerned :) . Use Extra Virgin Olive Oil in your salad dressings. Cook with Grapeseed Oil, Sesame Oil or Coconut Oil.

13. EAT A WIDE VARIETY OF FOODS WITH LOTS OF BRIGHT COLOURS:
    A healthy variety of good quality foods will give your body the nutrition, minerals and vitamins it needs for optimal functioning. Alongside this, the bright colours inherent in many fruits and vegetables are typically related to their antioxidant potential which means that they go and ‘scavenge’ the reactive oxidative species (ROS) in your body that are a biproduct of the simple fact of living. Reactive Oxidative Species and free radicals cause your body to age so eating bright fruits and vegetables helps slow the aging process alongside minimizing the inflammatory process. My favourite potatoes by the way are these dark purple “Russet” potatoes and they are the most beautiful potato I have ever seen. The dark pigment found in these potatoes, alongside blue berries, saskatoon berries, raspberries, black berries and black rice are called ‘anthocyanins’ and this is one of the most potent antioxidants which is highly beneficial to the capillaries and blood vessels, the brains and the health of the eyes. Another very potent antioxidant is Green Tea which has the constituent epigallocatechingalate (EGCG) is amongst one greatest ways to minimize the aging process. I highly recommend adding a cup of (organic) green tea to the diet in the early morning or early lunch time, even swapping it with your regular cup of coffee. Green Tea has a lot of hype for a reason. An amazingly worth while trick to remember: once your (organic) green tea bag is done seeping for you tea, blot it on your face which adds these antioxidants directly to the skin of your face and once done doing that, then also squeeze it into your hands and let it dry. I do this every day and my skin is very supple and soft and people think I am 10-15 years younger than I am! It is a fun way to notice the difference in your skin because then you will understand the power of these foods within your digestive tract too, which is very similar, just on the inside. :)

14. REMOVE “WHITE” (bleached) FOODS

    Eat whole grains, brown or wild rice, colourful potatoes, quinoa, barley. Basically choose unmodified carbohydrates. We all need carbohydrates so I am not going to tell you to not eat them, just make healthy choices of how and which ones to eat. If you want to eat potato chips by the way, go ahead, I eat them all the time but buy the healthy brands as they do not contain MSG. They are definitely more expensive (the brand ‘Kettle Chips’ for example)… you will be able to tell which ones are the healthier brands as they are definitely more expensive and might be down the healthier isle of the food store. By the way, don’t consume MSG, it is basically the same composition as the street drug called PCP or Angel’s Dust and it is simply very bad for you but that’s a whole other article.

15. EAT FERMENTED FOODS REGULARLY

    I eat a fermented food every day and I notice when I do not. Healthy options are kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, kombucha and properly fermented soy sauces. These are a good investment and as you become more comfortable with this lifestyle, these become easy foods to learn to ferment yourself. They are very important and all ancient cultures knew the importance of maintaining a healthy gut biome. Our bacterial flora are the fate of us. I do not state that lightly. Such fate that I will write an entire article of their importance and how the overuse of antibiotics has caused such a gravity in the state of many peoples gastrointestinal health and resultant mental-emotional and immunological health. Please see my article: Your Inner Biome: The Microbiota and Your Health.

Good Blessings on your journey. Helping support people through Healthy Food Plans and Healthy Life Choices is a total joy for me so please do not hesitate to ever ask for help or support or to ask any questions. There is no judgement here and I understand the process, truly.

In Health,

-Dr. Ashley Kristina

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

Roasted Chicory Root and the Digestive Tract

Botanical Monograph of Cichorium intybus:

Genus: Asteracea Family: Compositae

Other names: Wild Endive, Succory

Sanskrit: Kasani, Kasni Arabic: Hinduba Syria: Ambuibaia

Part used: radix (root) -must be roasted or else has strong sedative and strong laxative qualities

leaves -can be eaten in a salad

seeds- used as a brain tonic

**for the purpose of this article, we are discussing the medicine of the roasted root of Chicory

History: Use of this medicine dates back in its use with the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. It was known also across the Middle-East and parts of China as a panacea that fixed affections. Chicory is native to Punjab and Andhra Pradesh and does well in temperate regions, especially in the mountains. Ancient Egyptians used this medicine to treat everything, ranging from pulmonary disease including cough, tuberculosis and cancer along with heart disease and osteoarthritis. They used this particularly for glucose control and management and/or the potential reversal of diabetes. Galen, the famous Physician of the second century referred to this medicine as a ‘friend of the liver’. Traditional Ayurvedia uses this as a cooling medicine for biliary complaints.

The German Legend of this plant is that this was originally a beautiful princess that was deserted by her husband and at her own request, she asked to be turned into this beautiful healing plant.

Constituents: Glycosides and Polysaccharides: comprised of up to 20% Inulin

Sesquiterpene lactones: lactucin, lactucopicrin

Polyphenols: Aesculetin, aesculin, cicoriin, umbelliferone,

scopoletin, 6,7-dihydrocoumarin

Tannins

Vitamins and Minerals:

per 100 g root [1]:

1143 mg Calcium 24.6 mg Iron

30o mg Magnesium

470 mg Phosphorus

33 mg Zinc 23 mg Vitamin A

30 mg Vitamin K

2.26 mg Vitamin E 159 mg Vitamin C 1.01 mg Thiamine (Vit. B1) 1.74 mg Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 5.8 mg Niacin (Vit. B3)

1.16 mg Panthothenic (Vit.B5)

0.11 mg Pyrodixine (Vit. B6)

1.07 mg Folic acid (Vit.B9)

Actions: Antioxidant, Anti-inflammatory, Nutritive, Depurative, Hepatoprotective, Hypoglaecemic, Hypolipidemic, Antidiabetic, Anticancer, Sedative, Analgesic, Mild Laxative, Mild diuretic, Cholagogue, Choloretic, Cardiotonic, Antimicrobial, Antihelmintic Antimalarial, Digestive tonic and Gastroprotective, Immunity support, Anti-Gout

Improved Digestion: Bitter effect stimulates the Vagal Nerve which immediately turns on the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PSNS) and therefore switches the body into ‘rest and digest’ mode. This creates the slightly sedative effect that Chicory has and therefore can also be used in the anxiety-depression spectrum, especially if there is digestive problems as well. By switching the body to PSNS, peristalsis and digestive hormones and enzymes start to be excreted and the body begins to prepare for food. It is critical when you ingest ANY bitter, be it chicory root tea, or coffee, you should eat food within 30 minutes as bitter does this to the body, it prepares it for food so your stomach acid starts to excrete a little bit, along with other digestive juices and if you do not consume food, you are highly at risk of developing an ulcer!

At the same time, Chicory root increases liver function while stimulating the liver and gallbladder to increase bile flow to help you digest fats. The inulin in Chicory root is also known as a ‘prebiotic’ which helps keep a healthy gut micro biome by legitimately providing food to your digestive flora, especially the digestive flora of the colon so it really helps keep the large intestine in good health. In supporting the digestive function, Chicory root creates a decrease in transit time by means of its mild laxative effect and in doing this, due to its fiber content, it also helps to ‘bulk’ up the stool so that you pass a bowel movement easier and quicker and this is great for the digestive system. Chicory root is an incredible source of dietary fiber.

Chicory root has also been found to be Hepatoprotective which means it literally protects the liver by protecting the liver cells (the hepatocytes) and reducing the levels of the hepatic enzymes: alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) which are indicative of liver disease when high.

The dietary fiber present in Chicory root then also works to balance your blood sugar levels and because it has been working on the liver, it has been also found to bring down your triglycerides which are highly indicative of cardiovascular disease. The starch and fiber that is present in this medicine also balances acidity in the body and thus this plant is very useful in support to control diabetes (which is typically both a high blood glucose situation and a low pH/acidic environment). Laboratory efforts have shown in vivo and in vitro effects of increased regulation of blood glucose levels along with a decrease in LDL (the ‘bad’) cholesterol while HDL (the ‘good’) cholesterol raised and both total cholesterol and triglycerides lowered [1].

The polyphenols give Chicory root huge antioxidant potential and therefore is a strong free radical scavenger, binding and excreting the unbound radicals which create the aging process through oxidation (very similar to how oil goes bad if exposed to oxygen for too long).

Beyond this, the anti-microbial, anti-helminth and anti-fungal effects of this medicine can be used for candida overgrowth or parasites, along with issues with molds and other microbes.

The anti-gout effects this plant has is due to its diuretic action and it has be shown to help rid the system of excess uric acid without depleting potassium and other minerals. This plant is therefore helpful also in cases of rheumatism.

The plant phenols in this medicine create a strong anti-inflammatory effect as well, which is useful in any form of pain.

Research shows that the medicinal use of Chicory decreases bowel acidity and therefore decreases the risk of colorectal cancer, and inflammatory bowel diseases (Chrons and UC) along with decreasing blood sugars, blood pressure and hearth rate. Due to its prebiotic effect (which is further discussed below) Chicory root is found to help increase calcium absorption and the absorption of other vitamins and minerals. Immunity is also increased due to its prebiotic support of a healthy gut biome and also by its ability to decrease infections related to bacteria, parasites or fungi.

The most interesting aspect of roasted Chicory root is its amount of inulin (17-20% of root) which is very rare to have so much of it. In fact, it makes this root the highest form of Prebiotics of any food:

TOP TEN PREBIOTIC FOODS: PREBIOTIC FIBER BY WEIGHT:

Chicory root 64.6%

Jerusalem artichoke 31.5%

Dandelion root 24.3%

Garlic 17.5%

Leek 11.7%

Onion 8.6%

Asparagus 5%

Wheat bran 5%

Whole Wheat flour 4.8%

Banana 1%

A Prebiotic is defined by meeting the following criteria:

1. nondigestable and resistant to breakdown by stomach acid and digestive enzymes in the human gastrointestinal tract

2. selectively fermented by intestinal micoorganisms

3. selectively targets and simulates the growth and activity of beneficial bacteria (gut microflora)

Prebiotics are typically founds in plant-based oligosaccharides such as fructans, including fructooligosaccharides (FOS) and inulin, galactins and galactooligosaccharides (GOS), pectins, beta-glucans, xylooligosaccharides and other resistant startch.

Prebiotics basically travel down the gastrointestinal tract not metabolized until they typically reach the end of the small intestine or the colon (aka the large intestine) and there they become food for the microflora by selectively inducing the growth and activity of the beneficial bacterial flora of the gut. Prebiotics therefore support a healthy digestive function by feeding primarily Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus (amongst other strains of the gut micro biome’s flora aka ‘good gut bacteria’) which allows for increased immunity, increased detoxification, increased digestion and increased vitamin and mineral absorption.

Therapeutic Indications: Any digestive disorder including slowed digestion, poor fat digestion, Dyspepsia, Loss of Appetite, Diabetes, Cardiovascular disease, Gallbladder disease, Jaundice, Gout, Gallstones, Increased Heart Rate or High Blood Pressure, Liver Disease, Rheumatism, Nutritive: Vitamins and Minerals, Candida, Infections, Intestinal parasites, Malaria

Caution: Too much inulin can leave you with severe stomach cramps and very painful gas, bloating, flatulance, diarrhea, nausea, vomit and even constipation. This article is intended for information and not for treatment. If you wish for treatment, please book an appointment with me.

No serious therapeutic adverse affects have been documented.

Contraindications: Asteracea allergies (rash), Pregnancy, Lactation

References:

1. Muhammad Saeed, Mohamed E. Abd El-Hack, Mahmoud Alagawany, Muhammad A. Arain, Muhammad Arif, Muhammad A. Mirza, Muhammad Naveed, Sun Chao, Muhammad Sarwar, Maryam Sayab and Kuldeep Dhama, 2017. Chicory (Cichorium intybus) Herb: Chemical Composition, Pharmacology, Nutritional and Healthical Applications. International Journal of Pharmacology, 13: 351-360.

2. Ahmad, M., R. Qureshi, M. Arshad, M.A. Khan and M. Zafar, 2009. Traditional herbal remedies used for the treatment of diabetes from district Attock (Pakistan). Pak. J. Bot., 41: 2777-2782.

3. Al-Snafi, A.E., 2016. Medical importance of Cichorium intybus-a review. IOSR J. Pharm., 6: 41-56.

4. Bischoff, T.A., C.J. Kelley, Y. Karchesy, M. Laurantos, P. Nguyen-Dinh and A.G. Arefi, 2004. Antimalarial activity of lactucin and lactucopicrin: Sesquiterpene lactones isolated from Cichorium intybus L. J. Ethnopharmacol., 95: 455-457.

5. Das, S., N. Vasudeva and S. Sharma, 2016. Cichorium intybus: A concise report on its ethnomedicinal, botanical and phytopharmacological aspects. Drug Dev. Therapeut., 7: 1-12.

6. El-Sayed, Y.S., M.A. Lebda, M. Hassinin and S.A. Neoman, 2015. Chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) root extract regulates the oxidative status and antioxidant gene transcripts in CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity. PLoS ONE, Vol. 10. 10.1371/journal.pone.0121549

July 24, 2019

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

Hawthorn: The Great Protector of The Heart and The Forest

Hawthorn, or Crataegus laevigata/oxycantha in Botanical Medicine terms is part of the Rose family (Rosaceae) and therefore, just as Rose does, has both medicinal and energetic properties connected to love and the heart.

The berry of this tree, which is found throughout British Columbia, contains the medicinal constituents that classify this medicine as a Cardiotonic: that which regulates the timing of the heartbeat (Chronotropic) and the force of the heart contractions (Inotropic) while also providing clinical antiarrhythmic effects and therefore improving coronary circulation while also improving efficacy of the heart by directly acting on the cardiac muscle cells to enhance their nutrition and activity so that energy is available and best utilized. Hawthorn berries are full of flavonoids which are required for the health of connective tissue and therefore also helps support other tissues of the body by providing adequate nutrition. Studies have found that Hawthorn facilitates a gentle and sustained reversal of degenerative and/or age-related changes with regards to the Heart.

Hawthon has no side effects or contraindications and therefore is a very safe and effective medicine for the heart and ranges in benefits from anyone with Hypo- or Hypertension, Angina or other spectrums of more serious heart-related issues such as Coronary Artery Disease, mild Congestive Heart Failure and so forth. Hawthorn berry does not create toxicity, habituation or accumulation of any kind and therefore is safe for long-term use in the elderly where kidney and liver function (the detoxification pathways) are decreased. Hawthorn does interact with other Cardiac Pharmaceuticals and Cardioactive Botanicals and therefore should be utilized with respectful monitoring by a Naturopathic Doctor.

June 22, 2019

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

Castor Oil Packs

Castor Oil Packs are old and simple remedies to helping move toxins out of areas of the body. Predominantly used over the liver, these packs can also be used over areas of general soreness or pain, an area that has become infected, used over cystic acne or over sore female organs during that time of month and even over the kidneys and breasts. Castor oil is made from the Castor Bean, Ricinus communis, which is not in fact a true bean. The seed of this flowering plant is used as the medicine. Castor Bean originates from The Mediterranean Basin, East Africa and India and its use in medicine originates from Ayurvedia however Naturopathy has used this as one of our pivotal ancient remedies as well. Castor oil is high in ricinoleic acid which is an unsaturated-omega 9 fatty acid one of the most polar fats, a term you have probably not hear since high school Science class but kind of think of it like magnetic, we named the North and South Poles for their polarity so this means it will pull out debris from your lymphatic system, fatty tissues and holding organs, and suck it to the surface while also promoting blood flow to the area. When there is blood flow to an area, stagnation moves and stagnation in the body comes in the forms of inflammation and pain typically. There is a very important step that is not often mentioned and many people do know of the use of Castor Oil Packs however many do not know this important step: after a Castor Oil Pack, you must neutralize the toxins before washing away the toxic debris. This is done simply with putting baking soda over your skin after you have used your Castor Oil Pack for ideally an hour and then let the baking soda sit for about 5 minutes before washing the area well with a good microbial soap such as a natural Peppermint or Tea Tree Oil soap.

Castor Oil is also an ancient remedy to induce labour so this is not to be used in Pregnancy.

Stop by our store for our Organic Castor Oil and Flannel Packs and directions of use or come into the Clinic for a Castor Oil appointment.

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

Black Seed Oil

Black Cumin or in Botanical Medicine terms, Nigella sativa, is considered a divine plant with scriptures of this medicine dating back to ancient Arabic and Egyptian times. There are also writings of the medicine of The Black Seed in the Bible and the Quran. The Black Seed is of the Ranunculaceae family and is considered a Holy Plant by many different ancient cultures. It is said by the Prophet Mohammad to "use this Black seed, it has a cure for every disease except death" and Hippocrates mentioned it especially as a curative to digestive issues. Know this properly: Black Seed or Black Cumin, this medicine, is not of the same plant or genus as common Cumin.

Black Seed is believed to have originated in and around Egypt, the Middle East, Greece and India. It is not completely clear as this ancient medicine was so revered that Physicians that knew of its healing powers moved it and cultivated it so they had medicine to give the people. It is known that a Pharaoh in Egypt, King Tutankhamen, was entombed with litres of Black Seed Oil. This medicine requires hot and dry climates to grow wildly and it is in the form of bushes that reach approximately a half of a metre high and possesses blue flowers .Other names for this medicine are Kalonji by the habitants of India, Arabs refer to it as الحبة السوداء or Shooneez and also as Habbatul barakah, meaning the "Seed of Blessing." The old Biblical texts refer to Black Seed as Ketzah, the Assyrians called it Tin Tir while the Iranians refer to it as Baraka Seeds. It is translated from Arab to French as Haricots Noirs and thus we get the English term of The Black Seed.

Black Seed is known to have several properties related to it’s medicine, a list that follows is not exhaustive as truly the ancients say it is for everything except death. Predominantly it is known to have several medical actions in the body including: analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antispasmodic, antipyretic, bronchodilator, expectorant, anticholinergic, antidiabetic, hepatic, kidney protectant, hypotensive and works strongly on the immune system with several different mechanisms including inducing interferons, antagonizing leukotrienes and inhibiting TNF-alpha. There are several studies done for the ‘evidence’ of this medicine, which this Western World loves to rely on. It’s available online if you wish to doubt the ancient wisdom, or need proof, that is your own path.

Strong evidence of this medicine shows uses for Digestive ailments including H. Pylori and Strept/Staph infections, Lung infections particularly Bronchitis, Pneumonia, Asthma, Autoimmune diseases, Diabetes and Liver complications and so forth. It is found in several studies that insulin production is stimulated with this medicine along with increased sensitivity by the cells to the uptake of insulin. Thousands of years of Observation by the Scholars of Hadith say this medicine is good for Hot and Cold conditions and the Ayurvedic Scholars say this medicine removes obstructions from any part of the body while expelling gases and strengthening the stomach. Modern trials show effectiveness of Black Seed in the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus and skin issues such as Psoriasis, Eczema, Vitiligo. It is said to expel Kidney, Gallbladder and Urinary stones and the oil can be put into the ears for earaches. It is even said to take this before bed for a restful sleep most probably due to the anti-inflammatory action.

The composition of this oil is very high in Omega 3 and Omega 6 Fatty Acids with 55.6% Linoleic Acid (Omega 6), 23. 4% Oleic Acid and 12.5% Palmitic Acid. Essential Oils compose 0.5-1.5% of this medicine withy Thymohydroquinone (Nigelone) and Thymoquinone being the main components. Carvacrol, Thymol, Linalool, P-cymene are the strong Volatile oils of this medicine and therefore immediately shows its parallel to Oregano Oil.

Just to please anyone with doubts, here is some EBM:

Two grams of black seed a day resulted in reduced fasting glucose, decreased insulin resistance, increased beta-cell function, and reduced glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in Type 2 Diabetics [1]

Black seeds possess clinically useful anti-H. pylori activity that is comparable to triple antibiotic therapy [2] while Black seed have also shown strong anti-bacterial activity against MRSA by clinical isolates of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus [3] In cases of Acute tonsillopharyngitis, characterized by tonsil or pharyngeal inflammation (i.e. sore throat) which is mostly viral in origin, black seed was found to significantly alleviate throat pain, and reduce the need for pain-killers in human subjects.[7] While a randomized, placebo-controlled human study of chemical weapons injured patients found that boiled water extracts of black seed reduced respiratory symptoms, chest wheezing, and pulmonary function test values, as well as reduced the need for drug treatment.[8]

The daily use of 100 and 200 mg of black seed extract, twice daily, for 2 months, was found to have a blood pressure-lowering effect in patients with mild hypertension [4]

Thymoquinone, one of the main active constituents within Nigella sativa is superior to the drug Fluticasone in the treatment of asthma in animals.[5] An study on humans found that boiled water extracts of black seed have potent anti-asthmatic effect on asthmatic airways [6]

References:

[1] Abdullah O Bamosa, Huda Kaatabi, Fatma M Lebdaa, Abdul-Muhssen Al Elq, Ali Al-Sultanb. Effect of Nigella sativa seeds on the glycemic control of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol. 2010 Oct-Dec; 54(4):344-54. PMID: 21675032

[2] Eyad M Salem, Talay Yar, Abdullah O Bamosa, Abdulaziz Al-Quorain, Mohamed I Yasawy, Raed M Alsulaiman, Muhammad A Randhawa. Comparative study of Nigella Sativa and triple therapy in eradication of Helicobacter Pylori in patients with non-ulcer dyspepsia. Saudi J Gastroenterol. 2010 Jul-Sep; 16 (3):207-14. PMID: 20616418

[3] Abdul Hannan, Sidrah Saleem, Saadia Chaudhary, Muhammad Barkaat, Muhammad Usman Arshad. Anti bacterial activity of Nigella sativa against clinical isolates of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. J Ayub Med Coll Abbottabad. 2008 Jul-Sep;20(3):72-4. PMID: 19610522

[4] Farshad Roghani Dehkordi, Amir Farhad Kamkhah. Antihypertensive effect of Nigella sativa seed extract in patients with mild hypertension. Braz J Med Biol Res. 2006 Apr;39(4):421-9. Epub 2006 Apr 3. PMID: 18705755

[5] Rana Keyhanmanesh, Mohammad Hossein Boskabady, Mohammad Javad Eslamizadeh, Saeed Khamneh, Mohammad Ali Ebrahimi. The effect of thymoquinone, the main constituent of Nigella sativa on tracheal responsiveness and white blood cell count in lung lavage of sensitized guinea pigs. J Ethnopharmacol. 2009 Oct 29;126(1):102-7. Epub 2009 Aug 8. PMID: 19711253

[6] M H Boskabady, N Mohsenpoor, L Takaloo . Antiasthmatic effect of Nigella sativa in airways of asthmatic patients. Phytomedicine. 2010 Feb 8. Epub 2010 Feb 8. PMID: 20149611

[7] M Dirjomuljono, I Kristyono, R R Tjandrawinata, D Nofiarny. Symptomatic treatment of acute tonsillo-pharyngitis patients with a combination of Nigella sativa and Phyllanthus niruri extract. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Jun;46(6):295-306. PMID: 18541126

[8] Mohammad H Boskabady, Javad Farhadi. The possible prophylactic effect of Nigella sativa seed aqueous extract on respiratory symptoms and pulmonary function tests on chemical war victims: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. J Altern Complement Med. 2008 Nov;14(9):1137-44. PMID: 18991514

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

BEANS FOR THE CATECHOLAMINES AND DOPAMINE-RELATED DISEASES

Fava beans or Vicia faba, also known as Faba or Broad beans are a member of the pea family, Fabaceae, and thus look like peas, but instead of peas, they have large beans inside. These beans are easy to grow and have been a part of the eastern Mediterranean diet dating back to 6000 BCE, possibly even longer. They are grown and cultivated and a normal part of diets all over the world. Velvet Beans or Macuna pruriens, on the other hand, are only grown in Africa and tropical Asia and are thus no so easily to come by but their medicinal properties are almost identical.

Now these fascinating beans are eaten all over the world but what makes them extra special is they contain the precursor to Dopamine. This precursor is known as L-DOPA or levodopa or in more biochemical terms: L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine. While Fava beans also contain tyramine, and Velvet beans, contain trace amounts of serotonin, nicotine and bufotenine and thus would also be recommended for anyone along the anxiety-depression spectrum that is not being treated pharmaceutically.

Traditional Ayurvedic Medicine has known to use these beans for treating depression and Parkinson’s disease for centuries.

Now humans naturally synthesize this amino acid (L-tyrosine to L-dopa into the catecholamines) from eating proteins and this important conversion reaction in the body also requires appropriate amounts of vitamin C and Pyrodoxine (Vitamin B6) that are easily consumed and bioavailable in a typical healthy diet of consuming fruits, vegetables, nuts and grains. L-DOPA then becomes the precursor to the catecholamines: epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine. So, there is a variety of ways it shows up clinically when L-Dopa is low and requires some supplementation. Presenting symptoms can range from depression and fatigue to lack of muscle power and reactivity to stressors to addictive mindsets and cyclical thinking, strange face puckering, dystonias, dyskinesias, Parkinsonian like symptoms or true Parkinson’s disease.

The benefits of using these beans specifically with Parkinson’s is that L-DOPA can cross the blood brain barrier whereas dopamine can not so consuming these beans are a source of a natural remedy for Parkinson’s Disease or and Dystonias or Dyskinesias that are potentially related to low dopamine. Trials have found that those with Restless Leg Syndrome have also found beneficial affects with the consumption of Fava or Velvet Beans.

Because Fava beans do also contain tyramines and are in fact rich in tyramine, they should be avoided by anyone taking a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) and Fava Beans have been repeatedly reported to send people with G6PD deficiency into hemolytic crises and thus are contraindicated.

NOVEMBER 9, 2018

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

THE CRUCIAL AND NECESSARY NUTRIENTS FOR ENERGY PRODUCTION: GLYCOLYSIS, THE KREB'S CYCLE & THE ELECTRON TRANSPORT CHAIN

Cellular respiration is defined as the mechanisms the body goes through to create energy. Humans and animals are a step away from plants in that we don’t directly take the sun’s energy and convert it to energy, we instead must first eat the plants (and for some, the animals who have eaten the plants) and then the solar energy can secondarily be changed into the energy we require for our bodily functions. It is a process of three metabolic stages called: Glycolysis, The Kreb’s Cycle and The Electron Transport Chain which ultimately produce energy known in biochemical terms as a molecule called “ATP” (adenosine triphosphate).

Now, unless you have gone through medical school, there is probably no reason that you would know about this however it is a big, big deal. Of course for us who have had to go through medical school, we have had to learn this inside and out, memorized and tested and trialed and tested because THIS is how your body produces energy, and it’s the fuel of life, that which we all run on. It is very, very complicated and also very fascinating.

Now along with the elixir of life that gets all chemical reactions in the body going (WATER…do you drink enough water each day??), there are certain vitamins and minerals that are crucial to your diet that if you are not having enough you will feel a lack of energy. It is sad that we do live in a world where so many people everyday are living their life with a lack of proper energy and where to start is always a good question.

Basics. Go to the basics. You need 8-10 hours of regular sleep per night. That means going to sleep at the same hour and waking up at the same hour. Super basic.

The next basic. You need enough water intake to run the biochemical reactions that are occurring in your body all the time, a rule of thumb for good health is 2-3 litres a day. How much water are you drinking?

Eating good healthy food is the next process and of course, this is where people come and find good advice from a Naturopathic Doctor as education around food for the general population is typically poor. Making sure you are not eating food you are allergic to is a big deal, again your local Naturopathic Doctor is proficient at helping investigate these things.

The Krebs cycle requires certain B vitamins to go through to completion, that means to properly make the energy your body can make. In fact, certain B vitamins are known a the RATE LIMITING STEP in the cycle of energy production. This means, if you don’t have that B vitamin in your body, the cycle will not continue which means your cells are not producing energy (a molecule which is termed “ATP” in biochemistry and in medicine)

Energy production in the body is a hugely complicated concept to understand. The following is a list of necessary nutrients and Vitamins for The Cycle of Energy Production in the body, The Krebs Cycle and The Electron Transport Chain:

Firstly, a proper balance of healthy carbohydrate, protein and fats must be in the diet. Along with proper intake of water.

Next, The B vitamins are Crucial!!!

Thiamine (Vitamin B1)

Niacin (Vitamin B3)

Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B5)

Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6)

Biotin (Vitamin B7)

Folate (Vitamin B9)

[Methyl]Cobalamin (Vitamin B12)

Certain Minerals are also critical to the production of Energy in the body, specifically:

Magnesium

Iron

Potassium

Last but definitely not least, these two can be found in high grade nutraceutical supplements and are also critical to the energy needs of the body:

CoQ10

Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA)

Please refer to the articles “B Vitamins” “Magnesium” “CoQ10-Coenzyme Q10-Ubiquinone” “Alpha Lipoic Acid” and “Amino Acids-Essential and Nonessential” for more information and how to attain these through your food (or, if necessary, in a high grade neutraceutical supplement).

See article: What is a High Grade Neutraceutical Supplement.

NOVEMBER 2, 2018

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

APRICOTS: ARMENIA'S APPLE

 Etymology

The apricot tree is of the genus Prunus meaning that it bears stone fruits, called Prunus armeniaca and the species of fruit (the apricot) was originally termed in English as <<Mala Armeniaca>> meaning Armenian Apple 

The term Apricot first appeared in English as ‘abrecock’ in the 16th century from Middle French (aubercot, or later as abricot) which came from Arabic الْبَرْقُوق (al-barqūq, "the plums"), from Byzantine Greek βερικοκκίᾱ (berikokkíā, "apricot tree"), derived from late Greek πραικόκιον (praikókion, "apricot") from Latin [persica] praecocia (praecoquus, "early ripening" [peach]).[1,2,3]

Apricots are the National Fruit of Armenia and mostly grow in the Ararat Plain. It is believed that it originates from Armenia although some botanists believe it to be from China or India. Culturally it is said that the best apricots come from Damascus. Either way, they were definitely traded in the Persian trade route since antiquity and still remain a staple food in Iran. Apricot season is short though and because of that, it has given rise to the common Arabic expression filmishmish ("in apricot [season]") or bukra filmishmish ("tomorrow in apricot [season]"), generally uttered as a riposte to an unlikely prediction.  Today, the world’s largest producer of dried apricots is Turkey.

Phytochemicals and Nutritional Value

Apricots are an incredible source of Potassium and Iron as well as Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Vitamin E and B vitamins. The concentrations of their nutritional elements are increased in the drying process so eating a good source of naturally dried organic apricots actually holds more bioavailablity of the nutrients

The various phytochemicals in apricots include provitamin A beta-carotene, polyphenols (inclding catechizes and chlorogenic acids) as well as sucrose, glucose, organic acids, terpenes, aldehydes and lactones.

Bone of Apricot, The Apricot Stone:

Apricot Kernels, the seeds, contain amygdalin which can be converted in the body into cynanide and is thus considered a poisonous compound. There are two types of kernels, bitter and sweet and the bitter apricot kernels contain 5% amygdalin whereas the sweet kernes contain 0.9% amygdalin.

Health Benefits

1. Huge antioxidant potential that protects against free radical damage and thus helps prevent and reverse the signs of the aging process

Diets rich in the flavonoids and polyphenols (found in high concentrations in apricots) are linked to reductions specifically in human heart disease and maintenance of healthy arteries, veins and collagen. Important antioxidants in Apricots are:

• Quercetin

• Proanthocyanidins

• Catechins

• Epicatechins

• Hydroxycinnamics

• Gallic acid

• Caffeic acid

• Coumaric acid

• Ferulic acid

2. Apricots are rich in carotenoids and xanthophylls, nutrients are protect your eyesight from age-related damage. Specifically, one of the nutrients in apricots called lutein has been shown to protect the retina from damage from light.

3. Anti-inflammatory Action

Apricots are a good dietary source of catechins, which is also the notable flavonoid (EGCG) present in Green Tea that has given it its special known use of being very medicinal. A single apricot provides 4-5 g of catechins. Catechins are shown to inhibit the activity of an enzyme called cyclooxyrgenase-2 (Cox-2) which is one of the critical steps in the inflammatory cascade that occurs in the body. Therefore, the blocking of Cox-2 gives anti-inflammatory action (also resulting in less pain in the body as inflammation = pain).  Besides apricots and Green Tea, another strong source of catechins is from the Cocoa bean. Catechins are also shown, because of this process, to give better blood pressure control.  The synthetic pain relievers, such as aspirin, are synthetic copies of the salicylates found in botanical medicines (Salix alba aka White Willow Bark predominantly) that work on the same mechanism of irreversibly inhibiting the activity of Cox-2 however the wide range of side affects such as ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeds are not inherent in the natural food sources. Thus if you are in pain, find some apricots to eat before swallowing a pill.

4. Supports Digestive Health

Apricots are a good source of dietary fiber. They are also about half soluble finer and half insoluble fiber. We need both in our diet. Soluble finer shows to help control blood sugar levels and control blood cholesterol levels.

Apricots and Medicine

Apricots have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for centuries. The classical word 杏 壇 literally mean "apricot alter” (xìng tán 杏坛) which means "educational circle", and it is still widely used in written language. The Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu, in the fourth century BCE, told a story that Confucius taught his students in a forum surrounded by the wood of apricot trees. The story of Dong Feng (董奉), a physician during the Three Kingdoms Period, tells the use of apricot kernels in the ancient medicine. At this time, it was traditional that a healer or a medicine person required no payment from his patients however, this physician asked that they plant apricot trees in his orchard upon recovering from their illnesses, resulting in a large grove of apricot trees and a steady supply of medicinal ingredients. The term "expert of the apricot grove" (杏林高手) is still used as a poetic reference to physicians.

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

The apricot blossoms in the northwest Chinese province of Xinjiang.

MEDICINE FROM MOTHER EARTH: TARRAXACUM OFFICINALE , DANDELION

The folklore of Dandelion states that if you can blow all the seeds away in one blow than you are truly loved and if not, this magical flower wishes you to look further for your true love.  It is said as well that if you wish to send a message to a loved one, blow the whispy wishes towards their direction and visualize the seeds carrying the message to them in the wind. Another legend states that if you do not know the time of day, blow three times and the number of seeds left on the flower top will be the correct hour of the day. The final legend that has been told is if you wish to find out how long you will live, blow the seeds away with one blow and the amount of seeds left on the head of the flower will be the amount of decades in your lifetime.  The spiritual powers this medicine can bring are that of divination, wishes, and the calling of spirits. A decoction of its roots will bring energy similar to a cup of coffee while it's infusion can provide psychic powers. It is ruled by the element of air which makes total sense, and by the planet Jupiter, the planet that rules spiritual expansion, jovialness and connection with universal truth (1). 

Dandelion stood out to me as a child, as probably like lots of children, it was one of the first plants I could recognize and name and it's whispy wishes that would blow through the air brought me such incredible joy as I watched them fly away. This flower was so magical to me then and still today, and especially even more today, as now I have learned the sacredity of these "weeds", their powers and the medicine inherent within them.  I feel blessed to know the innate wisdom within me has always known something was special about them and I have felt deeply connected to the energy of this plant for as long as I can remember. Taraxacum officinale is the latin botanical name for Dandelion which is a member of the Asteraceae botanical family. Both the root and leaf are used for medicinal purposes while the yellow flower provides beauty and then the flower turns to whispy white delicate seeds and wishes that provide some sort of incredible magic to the ones willing to connect with those aspects of this reality. For this project, I will be using the root however Dandelion leaves can also be used as both a food and as a medicine. Truly, food and medicine are not separate entities and The Father of Medicine, Hippocrates, stated this a long time ago: Let thy food be thy medicine. Its leaves can easily be added to a salad throughout the spring and summer and this also provides lots of health benefits beyond the filling of the belly :) .  Many vitamins and minerals are present in Dandelion such as potassium, iron, zinc, calcium and silicon, and Vitamins A, B, C and D. The leaves of Taraxacum off. are one of the best sources of potassium and thus aide in balancing the body's sodium-potassium levels which are crucial for the proper functioning of all parts of our body at a cellular level.  The leaves, made into a tea infusion or eaten in a salad, can therefore create a powerful diuretic action in the body especially if the sodium and potassium concentrations are imbalanced, and sodium will be excreted from the body with the urine.  This is especially great for any women that hold water weight before or during the time of their menses and for those who eat the typical North American diet, as there is far too much sodium consumed so this provides support for that imblance. Dandelion root is popular for its hepatic, cholagogue, diuretic, laxative and anti-inflammatory actions.  These are botanical medicine terms meaning that the root of this plant medicine acts directly on the liver and gallbladder to maintain their proper functioning, help support digestion (especially of fats), keeps the liver strong and healthy and therefore clears the blood for optimal health in the body. Any excess sodium retention will be released and the bowels will evacuate for optimal health. In total, any pathological pathway that creates disease in the body has the main source being that of inflammation and therefore the action of being an anti-inflammatory medicine is multifactorial and always immensely beneficial for health within the body.  The botanical actions of this plant are due mostly to the botanical constituents within the root called sesquiterpene lactones, a form of a saponin, and other di- and tri- terpenes, specifically having the unique constituent names of: Taraxacin, Taraxacoside, and Taraxasterol, along with other sterols, specifically stigmasterol and beta-sitosterol.  The most prominent action of the root being that Dandelion root stimulates the liver to purify the blood while providing anti-inflammatory benefits so that the detoxification pathways of the body become hugely supported and the leaf works on the kidneys with its diuretic action, clearing, cleansing and supporting the kidney pathways. This medicine therefore is a safe and strong support for two of the body's most important detoxifying systems. According to RF Weiss, this medicine is one of the top medicines for anyone with any form of pain, specifically and especially of any form of rheumatism (2). Taraxacum off. is highly recommended for anyone that has any liver or gallbladder issues, any blood disorders or anyone that has consumed too much of any sort of toxic substance ranging from alcohol to cigarettes to illicit substances and junk foods.  For those who just genuinely care about optimal health and functioning of their body, this medicine is wonderful for a spring cleanse and for the late fall preparation for winter hibernation. This medicine detoxifies the body, plain and simple. In supporting the liver, it purifies the skin and therefore is highly beneficial to anyone suffering from skin eruptions of any form: acne, rashes, eczema or psoriasis.  There may be contra-indications to anyone sensitive to plants in the Asteraceae family and as there is bitter properties of this plant, anyone with GI inflammation or hyperacidity should be careful.  Because of the bitter principles in this plant, the simple taste of bitter stimulates the Vagal nerve, which is Cranial Nerve 10, and allows for the body to immediately be placed into it's parasympathic nervous system so anyone with anxiety would also benefit from this plant medicine and as stimulation of the Vagal nerve stimulates the digestive system to start excreting it's digestive juices, food should be consumed within 30-45 mins of a cup of its decocted root.

Botanical Monograph of Taraxacum officinale:

Family: Asteraceae

Parts used: Root, Leaf     

Harvest: Ethical harvesting of the leaf throughout the spring and summer.  If gardening and digging up this plant, take the root otherwise if harvesting the root, it is absolutely improper to harvest this medicine until the mid-late fall, after its flower has gone to seed and spread with the wind. Always give good tobacco to the plant medicines, with dry tobacco leaf dropped over them before harvest. Many ancient cultures recognized the gift of tobacco for a medicine. First Nations people around the world do this, specifically the First Nations of North America who believe the medicines are their ancestors. Harvest with love and gratitude, if the medicine resists you, do not apply any extra force, move to another, if it seems difficult, this medicine is telling you it is not for you. Pay attention.

Constituents:  Saponins: Sesquiterpene lactones: Taraxacoside

Diterpenes: Taraxacin  

Triterpenes: Taraxasterol, Arnindiol, Feradiol, Beta-amyrin

Sterols: Stigmasterol, Beta-sitosterol

Carotenoids: Luteolin, Violaxanthin, Xantophyllis

Flavonoids: Apigenin, Luteolin, Polysaccarides, Potassium

Actions: Root: Hepatic, Cholagogue, Bitter, Laxative, Anti-inflammatory, Alterative

               Leaf: Diuretic, source of potassium, Anti-inflammatory, Anti-rheumatic

Uses:  

• Best diuretic for congestive heart failure and any form of edema 

• Muscle tension due to mineral imbalances

• Replenishes potassium to the body and balances electrolytes

• General nutritive

• Kidney or Liver dis-ease or failure

• Alterative --> clears the blood, therefore any form of rheumatism, fever, inflammation

• Skin issues: acne, rashes, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis

Contraindications: Latex in stem can create a contact dermatitis. Caution/DNU in Pregnancy, Lactation, Infanthood. DNU in severe or end-stage kidney disease due to high potassium. Possibly allergic reaction with anyone sensitive to the Asteraceae family. Bitter action therefore careful with any -itises of the GI tract

Tincture, Tea and Dose:  Root: 4-8 ml (1:5 in 60%) TID   decoction: 3 tsps in 1 cup TID

                                        Leaf: 5-10 ml (1:5 in 40%) TID   infusion: 2 tsps in 1 cup TID

The purpose of my project is to identify, harvest, prepare and drink the decoction of the root of Taraxacum off. and note what occurs within my body. I primarily focused on the hepatic and purifying actions of Taraxacum off. and therefore noted difference along the lines of detoxification. 

Identifying and Harvesting:

Identifying Dandelion is simple as most people are aware of this plant from an early age however there is a FALSE DANDELION so be careful!!  Dandelion is a perennial and can be found nearly anywhere. In early spring, there is a single bright yellow flower with green leaves that are oblong with jagged edges which grow close to the ground in a rosette pattern. The leaves are smooth to touch but not waxy. The stems of the flowers are hollow and often leak a milky liquid when pinched or cut. There is always one flower per stem that open and closes with the sun and if the weather turns dull and the sun fades, the flower head will close.  By mid-summer and nearing fall, the flower changes to seed and yellow is no longer present. In seed form, Dandelion's 'flower' turns to look like white whispy parachutes a-top a stem that are easily blown away.  It is improper form to harvest this root until after the flower has seeded so I did this project in October in British Columbia, Canada. I learned from my First Nations friends that if you are to harvest any medicine, you must make an offering to the Medicine Spirit and give some good tobacco so I went and bought a pack of American Spirit. I identified the proper Taraxacum off. and  broke open the cigarette to give it to the medicine then I smoked a few puffs and blew it around the medicine before I dug up three large roots with a little garden shovel and said a quiet thank you to Mother Earth for her medicine. I brought the roots inside and washed them off in some water to remove the dirt then set them aside in my kitchen, away from direct sunlight, to dry for 2 weeks.  There is a dark and thin layer around the root that I then peeled away with a thin knife to unveil a root very light in colour, somehow reminding me of a natural form of a marshmallow. I then cut the roots into small pieces after this.

Medicine Making:

My method of analysis for this project is to drink 1 cup of tea, a decoction of it's roots, every morning for five days straight and note any change of how I felt, physically, mentally, emotionally and or spiritually. Since I decided to start this after Canadian Thanks Giving, I fasted the day before my first cup of Dandelion root tea to make sure my body was somewhat normal and healthy and no longer over-flooded from food. During the five days of drinking this tea, I kept my diet as normal and healthy as I usually would to not have any of the effects taking place occurring from other sources such as all of a sudden eating healthier.  There is strong evidence of the connection between taste, the brain and the effects that occur in the body and the digestive system specifically so I made sure to allow myself to taste this medicine as I drank it.

For my decoction, I looked to Hoffman's book Medical Herbalism (3) which recommended using 3 teaspoons of dried root per 1 cup of water. I tried to find out how many grams this should be and I decided to make my testing more precise so that I would use 15 grams, measured on a proper kitchen scale, for 1 cup of tea. I put the root into cold water and brought it to a gentle rolling boil with the lid on, I then turned the stove to minimal heat and let it simmer for 15 minutes as a proper decoction of a root is made this way. I then let it cool a bit and removed the lid, the water was slightly brown and surprisingly smelled nutty and good. I strained out the used root and put it back into the meadow where it belonged and drank my first decoction. It did not taste so bad. It is definitely bitter and it is definitely a medicine, there is no doubt about that, and something about it made me grin thinking some form of intelligent creator made this medicine taste like this so that it wasn't too bad for the palate, but also not totally appealing as then our primates would have probably used it too much.

Observations of 5 days of tea of decocted root of Taraxacum Officinale:

Day 1:  Decoction is slightly brown, smells pleasantly nutty and tastes not too bad actually, there is definitely a bitter principle present however it's mild and nutty and could easily be drunk regularly. 45 minutes post consumption, my stomach is speaking with me, it is time to eat. I definitely can tell this has stimulated my hunger and digestive system with the first cup. I watch for any diuretic action, although this is mostly due to consuming the leaves and I have only used the root. I also watch for any laxative action. By the end of the day, I have noticed nothing more than appetite stimulation.

Day 2: I do not notice anything thus far. I take my second cup at the same time in the morning (10 am). I am grateful for this medicine. I without a doubt get hungry 45 minutes post consumption. I notice today that my sweat smells however I have also gone from being an athlete to becoming a student and I have sat for the past 4 months straight so I can not say if this is due to this tea or not. I am definitely not sweating more than usual though. I do believe I was thirstier for water today.

Day 3: Still I do not notice anything unusual. I did seem to have a slight stomach ache tonight. 

Day 4: My bowel movements have not changed. I am not taking therapeutic dose of this tea however; that would be one cup three times a day. I do feel a little lighter, in all ways (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually). I believe this must be because my digestive system has been giving a boast. Again, my body odour smells strong, perhaps this is because of the alternative actions of this medicine? I was definitely thirstier than normal today.

Day 5: My digestive system feels like it is working better than usual, my bowel movements have always been healthy and regular however they feel even better than normal. I do feel lighter and happier. I am again thirstier than average and I believe my eyes seem to be a bit more shiny that normal. I believe I had a deeper sleep last night as well.

Findings and Suggestions:

Spiritually and emotionally, I felt uplifted, happy and connected to my surroundings. I did not sense much of a diuretic action within the root however I did notice more thirst and this is most likely due to the way this medicine works to detoxify the body. I do believe by day 5 my bowels moved more completely and easily and at day 3 I did have a slight stomach ache although it was very minor.  I think it would be best to do another few full weeks of this medicine working up to therapeutic dosage to truly understand it's effects on the body. I have also heard that you should always use a little bit of the entire plant as there is some special way that it all works together so it would be interesting to do a week where some of the leaves are also used within the tea.

I do plan to continue to use Dandelion root to see if my liver will benefit and my body will detoxify. I feel that since I have moved to the city to go to school that I breathe unclean air and I have been much more sedentary and have unfortunately begun to have a less healthy diet so I plan to use this medicine to learn about it more fully and to aide in supporting my body for more optimal health. I have always felt very connected to the plants and animals and I am really happy to be learning about and truly spending time with the medicines.  Thank you Dandelion, I love you.

References:

1. Cunningham, S. Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. Woodbury, Minnesota, Llewellyn Publications. 1993.

2. Weiss, RK. Herbal Medicine. Germany: Hippokrates Verlag. 1960

3. Hoffman, D. Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine. Rochester, VT: Healing Arts Press, 2003.

4. Tilgner, S. Herbal Medicine From the Heart of the Earth. 1999.

This paper was written November 10, 2010 for my Botanical Medicine course taught under Chanchel Cabrera MSc, FNIMH, (RH)AHG at The Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine.  All rights and reserve of this paper are held by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

MOUNTAIN ASH MEDICINE: MOON MEDICINE, EARTH MEDICINE, FEMININE MEDICINE <3

Moon series page 1:

Sacred dreams, earth mother, guardian of the womb <3
Dream weavers <3
Soul dreams
Soul
<3
Divine love, divine self
Wombs of the earth: nourish your femininity 

Pay attention to the moon

Your moon time, do you know the meaning of this?

How do you feel?

Chats on the menstrual cycle are important.

Let's first look at the Moon , outside in the sky: Today it is just past a half moon, and it is gaining ("waning" in proper moon language) and going towards a full moon in less than a week's time

The astrology of the moon can also be talked about here at this point, and the energies in the sky however, I am going to keep this very simple to start out with:

Females -Lionesses - beautiful women:

The ones who are in touch with their true feminine selves should get their moon either on the dark moon, just into the new moon or the full moon, each month.

Preach as it may sound, this is my honest and truthful experience.

Wombs in touch with their man, their love, their body, their femininity

Wombs at peace and in love, in touch with their femininity

Wombs of the Womb age

Om Aim Hreem Shreem <3  I invoke the most beautiful aspects of the Goddess within myself <3

Om Namah Shivaya <3  I bow to the divinity within <3

Tick tock

The natural clock

Moon time <3

YOUR LIFESTYLE AND YOUR HORMONES

This is mostly for the women out there, but men, you are not so different.

It just seems to be that the women really start to notice each month when their menses get different, men really only start to notice after a while and it just seems that men are a bit more resilient than their more feminine counterparts. Women, we are complicated beings, we have hormonal changes every day, we change with the change of the moon. Men, you are relatively stable, your testosterone levels stay about the same every day however, whichever sex you are: your lifestyle affects on your hormones.

The top of the cycle of hormones in the body is created by your sleep-wake cycle, called The Circadian Rhythm. We are meant, just like any other animal on this planet to follow the cycles of the Sun and Moon. Traditionally, we would sleep as dark comes into the night and a very special hormone called Melatonin is released. The next day, when we wake, our Serotonin, happy hormones gets released (which is made from the Melatonin).

Beginning here, most of North American culture firstly does not get enough sleep, and secondly does not fall asleep when they should thanks to TV’s, computers and bright lights that are turned on when the house gets dark. Also, most of this culture does not have regular sleep patterns, MAYBE during the week but then the weekend comes around and it’s a different story.

This is one of the first and very crucial parts of your lifestyle that affects your hormones. Sleep is so important, and a consistent regular >>sleep schedule<< is very important as well. Hormones are released like clockwork and therefore having that clock in the body needs you to go to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time every single night and day. Not four days on, three days off, with sleep deprivation on almost all of those days.

Then, let’s think about diet, about caffeine and alcohol intake and smoking, and lets talk about the levels of stress most people in North America are under every single day. These all have huge implications, especially to the women on how our progesterone and estrogen levels will be throughout the month.

For the females, hormonal changes and problems are started to be noticed quickly with fatigue, moodiness, perhaps some weight gain and sugar cravings. You may start to notice PMS symptoms (beginning or worsening), your menses might get heavier and might have clots, you may have a change in your skin (more breakouts). These all mean your female hormones are under stress.

MEN AND WOMEN: a very important issue is when you start noticing you are having trouble getting out of bed, if you find you are tired all day and awake all night, I would highly suggest you come talk. This is most likely your cortisol (the hormone that allows you to respond to stress) really starting to burn out and this is a critical point on the stress cycle.

Long term hormonal issues lead to hormonal depletion often. For the women, this means you could develop thyroid problems and even something called “Hirsutism”, you take on male traits as your female hormones change into more male hormones (yes, woman produce testosterone) and this is not so pretty. Hormones have a huge effect on your overall health, your energy levels, your reproductive capacity, your happiness levels and your general well being (and how you look) also...your sex drive. Estrogen and Progesterone affect your lungs, skin, hair, nails and bones. For the men, your hormones affect your manly traits, your capacity to build muscles, to have a deep voice, and your sex drive as well. When these deplete, you will notice your energy levels do too, you might start loosing your body muscle capacity, your depth of voice, even your hair.  Both men and women are affected, it is just that woman can really notice a very prominent month to month change in their menses.

Change your life before it’s too late. No woman wants traits of male characteristics (ex. chin hair and shrinking breasts) also with fatigue and weight gain, not such pretty skin and a moody attitude. While no man wants a loss of his muscle mass and fatigue.  There are lots of support that Naturopathic Doctors are trained in for this, additionally and probably, a change in lifestyle is most likely the biggest prescription and we can also help with those guidelines and how to achieve them :)

Blessings.

PS. For education on this, please see my article called The Pathophysiology of Chronic Hyperactivity of the HPA axis

JUNE 27, 2016

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

RUNNING TO BED WITH JEZEBEL

An Essay on how the environment turns on gene signals creating health or dis-ease:

Has contemporary culture cloaked our pheromones so much that not only are we possibly choosing the wrong partners (hellooo divorce rate!!!) but completely altering our genetic expression to feasibly be worse off? Is our species doomed with all the perfumes, colognes, deodorants, scented lotions, soaps and clothing detergents that the majority use every day? Are we making love to false prophets and thus creating false profits in return?

A Brief History on Pheromones, Honeybees and Mate Selection....

The act of mammalian courtship has been a phenomenon that has interested several disciplines of study with each creating their own theory on mate selection. For instance, biological anthropologists may talk about the breeding strategies or female dominance in choosing a mate while Psychologists may talk about sex, similarity, competence and communication skills. Social Scientists could take the point of view of access to resources and mate selection, and now-a-days, physicists may even talk about the matching of energy vibrations between two people leading to partnership... Clearly we better not forget the other important factors such as fashion sense, astrological sign and survival skills? The list could go on obviously, and to each their own. We all very obviously have several factors that become conducive to whom we pick to marry, however, rarely in these conversations do we talk about the relationship between pheromones and our mate.

The word Pheromone originated from the Greek language with “Phereine” meaning to carry and “Hormon” meaning to excite.  A pheromone is literally a chemical that we excrete through our natural body odour to be carried through the air to excite a member of the opposite sex for courtship. 

It has been found that olfactory/pheromonal conditioning in mammals plays a role in altered perception which extends to behaviours associated with sexual interest and self-reported attraction. For instance, androstenol, a [bio]chemical compound with a cortisol “backbone” that is secreted in male pheromones has behavioural affects on females by influencing her levels of luteinizing hormone which releases her female hormones and creates a cascade of other effects in the body, along with raising her mood [1]. It was even found that in a study of two groups of males, one group exuding their natural scents and the others covering their scent (with a scent deemed to be attractive by the way, but chemically created in a laboratory ie sythetic scents - not a natural essential oil) that women were more likely to make eye contact, interact and laugh with the group of men that smelled of natural body odour [1]. And do not get me wrong, this does not just apply to females. Socialenvironmental odour cues tests in rats showed that males are affected by female pheromones in which their levels of released luteinizing hormone change too upon stimulus which affects their pituitary-gonadal axis which eventually increases their level of testosterone.  Think about the apes! 

A very interesting study known as the White T-Shirt Experiment by Swiss Zoologist Claus Wedekind who hypothesized that pheromones are a method of survival for mammals as due to these natural chemicals, one can pick a mate with a different major histiocompatibility locus (MHC) to give their offspring advantages[8]. MHC genes encode cell-surface glycoproteins which bind short peptides and present them to T-lymphocytes (the killer cells of our immune system). Thus MHC works to help control immune recognition and non-recognition and are shown to play a role in autoimmune diseases [9], a phenomenon still not well understood in modern-day medicine. Evidence shows MHC polymorphisms are determined by odour and driven by sexual selection with mice indicating that both male and females prefer MHC-dissimilar mates. There is even thought that this evidence of choosing MHC-dissimilar mates may be to avoid inbreeding and thus preventing the diseases that come along with that. In correlation with the MHC-mouse experiment, the White T-Shirt experiment had 44 different men wear clean white t-shirts for 2 days and nights before they returned them to the scientists.  Each t-shirt was then placed in a box and 47 different females judged and rated the odour of the shirts based on intensity, pleasantness and sexiness.  Results showed congruency with the hypothesis as nearly all women gave the highest ratings to the men whose MHC genes were different from their own[8].

The chemicals excreted in an individual’s particular aroma are as special to them as their DNA and thus pheromones become a beacon which bring forth appropriate suitors. 

The counterpart to bring forth the appropriate suitor are based upon approximately 10 million olfactory receptor cells within the nasal mucosa of each human being! This signifies that olfaction plays a huge role in sensory input and has largely been underestimated with emphasis placed on visual input in the ideologies behind human reproduction and behaviour. Additionally, pheromone receptors have been found in the vomeronasal organ which sends messages to the brain that completely bypass consciousness so that the olfactory pathway goes to the limbic system (the emotional center) without hitting the cortex[4]. Thus emotion, which is the major currency in mammalian social interaction, can be directly tied with olfactory input that has no logical or conscientious component therefore allowing instinct to rule fully. The link between olfaction, sexual reproduction and genetics becomes quite evident in individuals suffering from X-linked Kallmann’s Syndrome which is ultimately due to an underdeveloped olfactory bulb in embryo.  Both female and male counterparts with this syndrome are anosmic and interestingly enough show underdeveloped gonads and a complete lack of secondary sexual characteristics [2].

Traditionally honeybees have been a model for studying human immunity, disease and antibiotic resistance, mental health development and diseases of the X-chromosome including memory and conditioned responses [2]. Honeybee castes (workers, nurses and queens) are physiologically, morphologically and behaviourally differentiated during their development by gene expression which has been mediated by hormones.  Because pheromones have hormone-specific affects, chemical sensory input from social odours can directly alter the phenotype of a given genotype [3]. Pheromones do this by changing the electrical activity in the brain which further sends signals down neurons that initiate the change in Gonadotropin Releasing Hormone (GnRH) in the hypothalamus leading to a neuroendocrine response and functionally changing behaviour. This has elicited interest into the feasibility of scents affecting the phenotypes of humans and the possibility of an epigenetic component leading to a heritable change upon generations to come.

The Epigenesis of Pheromonial Ritual

Epigenetics is a lineage in genetics where we are seeing heritable changes in gene expression and chromatin organization that are independent of the DNA sequence itself.   The genome is the entire DNA sequence and not all of that “genotype” is expressed as a trait, the “phenotype” is what is expressed.  So epigenetics is basically the study of how certain processes can change the phenotype (what is expressed) in a manner that is passed on through generations...SAY WHAT?

A quick tutorial on DNA, Genes and Epigenes....

DNA is your chemical make up that is created from the combination of traits from your mother and father. A human being consists of 46 X-shaped chromosomes (23 pairs) that define them from other animals and because one of those pairs are specifically due to your parents, it makes you extraordinary from all other human beings, nobody else has your exact genetic code (although they will be 99.9% the same). Histones are small proteins grouped into 8 that act as a spool for DNA to wrap itself around into the resulting unit which is called a nucleosome. Nucleosomes then chain together to from chromatin which compresses and fold to fit into the X-shape of chromosomes which then fit into the nucleus of the cell.  This is the interesting part in the story: the tightness of the DNA coils around the histones and the compactness of the compression of chromatin in its packing strongly influences gene activity.  

This is where epigenetics comes into the picture. DNA can have methyl groups added to it which represses its activity (turns off certain parts of it) and furthermore, when DNA wraps around these histones, there is a “tail” left (which allows each histone to link together into the nucleosome) and other chemical groups such as methyl, acetyl, and phosphoryl groups are highly attracted to these histone tails too. Thus if they are present and the DNA is exposed, or not coiled or compacted tight enough, they will methylate the DNA or modify the tail which represses the gene activity and turns off what would have been seen in the normal phenotype. Through the acts of imprinting, gene silencing and x-chromosomal inactivation, epigenetic effects are changing the germ-line and being seen trans-generationally. Most often this all occurs due to external factors which the external environment provides!!!!

What external environment factors may lead to these alterations in DNA you may ask. CHEMICALS seem to be the culprits!!!!  So far it seems that pesticides, industrial chemical, heavy metals and some pharmaceuticals provide the extra methyls, acetyls and phosphoryls into the wrong places of the body with bind with the DNA and alter it’s structure and function[5]. 

Examples of chemicals affecting generations can be seen in experiments such as the Vinclozolin Rat experiment, where rats were exposed to the fungacide Vinclozolin which is commonly used in a variety of agricultural products including garlic and wine grapes.  It was shown that their great-great-grandsons were still showing the impacts from certain parts of their genes being turned off and thus developing types of cancer, kidney disease, immunity problems and sterility.  On top of all of this, it was found that normal female rats were able to deduce the males that had been exposed to Vinclozolin via smelling their altered pheromonal secretions.  Thus the female rats could tell that the second or third generation of Vinclozolin-exposed-males were not appropriate for mating rituals[6] according to the hypothesis of Natural Selection and they did not mate with them.  

It is now quite common knowledge that plastics containing Bisphenol A (BPA) disrupts estrogen production in both males and females mammals. In mice, it is seen that BPA alters methylation patterns which phenotypically change their coat color and metabolic processes for generations from initial exposure [4], we do not yet know the complete generational impact on human beings although cancer seems to be the largest issue. Furthermore with mice, studies show prenatal exposure to increased estrogen caused epigenetic (multigenerational) transmission leading to disease patterns that ultimately lead to the same types of cancer in mice generations away that had never been directly exposed to estrogen [7]. I would expect this to be similar in human beings. One interesting note that we do know about human beings is that from 1938 to 1971, medicine believed that if they gave pregnant women extra high doses of estrogen via the pharmaceutical diethylstilbestrol (DES) that they would drastically decrease the chance of miscarriage. We are now seeing individuals generations away from the exposure to DES carrying the cancers originally seen only in the exposed mother, which came about after the exposure to DES [5]. This is further supported by studies done on mice with DES and the same cancers occurred generations down the line.

So this is where I am going with this double whammy of Jezebel’s teachings (modern day society utilizing scented chemical products to cover up natural beauty).  With all the other chemicals we are exposed to daily, the chemicals in perfumes, colognes, scented soaps and shampoos, lotions and deodorants, hair products and clothing detergents expose us to compounds such as:

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

Formaldehyde

Acetone

Benzyladehyde

Benzyl Acetate

Ethyl Acetate

Methylene Chloride

Terpinenes and Terpineols

Limonene

Linolool

Tartrazine

(To name a few.)

With the use of these, we are clearly masking our natural pheromones and dis-allowing ourselves from intuitively choosing the correct partner. Further, we can not dissociate who has MHC similar or dissimilar gene traits and thus may be mating with someone that will lead our children to having severe immune issues thus not abiding at all with the Law of Natural Selection and potentiating the decline of the human species. The worst part is is the chemicals in these products surely affect the methyls, acetyls and phosphoryls roaming around in our body and I would expect have huge epigenetic detriments.

So my hypothesis is that as modern day society has made it the norm to cover up our natural body odour, which parallels the deception of Jezebel, it has inadvertently also made it the norm to choose a courtship that is inappropriate according with the Law of Natural Selection and the chemicals used in these products potentially are causing changes in the germ-line which all boils down to a health crisis. Is it possible that we not only have inter-individual communication crisis of the covering of pheromones but also a trans-generational epigenetically-linked health disaster with the use of chemical scents? Could this detrimentally affect the survival of the human race? I suppose we will have to wait and see...

References:

[1] Human Pheromones, Epigenetics, Physiology and The Development of Animal Behaviour. JV Kohl, LC Helahan, H Hoffman. Clin. Lab. Independent Researcher, Epworth CA. http://cdn.fl1000.com/posters/docs/1387

[2] Honeybee Genome Sequencing Consortium.2006. Insights into Social Insects from the Genome of the Honeybee. Apis Mellifica Natura. 443(7114); 931-49.

[3] Human Pheromones and Food Odours: Epigenetic Influences on the Socioaffective Nature of Evolved Behaviours. J. Kohl.

[4] Vive La Difference. C.Dulat. PLOS. Genet 7960:e1002140.doi:10.1371/journal.pgen. 1002-140.

[5] Environment Becomes Hereditary. http://www.psmag.com/science-environment/environment-becomes-hereditary-4425.

[6] Transgenerational Epigenetic Imprints on Mate Preference. The National Academy of Sciences. April 2007. D Crews, AC Core. Rockefeller University, New York, NY.

[7] R. Newbold, J. McLachlan. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

[8]  MHC-dependent Preferences in Humans. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. C. Wedekind. 1995. 260: 245-49.

[9] MHC Genes, Body Odours and Odour Preferences. C. Wedekind and D. Penne. Oxford Journal of Medicine. Vol. 15. Issue. 9: 1269-1271.

JUNE 1, 2016

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF CHRONIC HYPERACTIVITY OF THE HYPOTHALAMIC-PITUITARY-ADRENAL AXIS

In nature, survival of a species is dependent on the animals quick organization and interpretation of its environment. The brain of the Homo sapien has advanced so much over time that we are the top of the food chain. It is the collective workings of the amygdala, hippocampus and hypothalamus that bring the body information to form perceptions of the outer world and the inner environment of the body for the basic mechanism for survival. When any state of disharmony is perceived, the body begins a stress response as homeostasis is apparently being threatened and therefore quick actions must be taken to adapt.  These actions include immediate physiological and behavioral responses such that the organism (you or I) is ready to react to a threat, when this occurs chronically, it becomes a stress. The common mechanism in the different pathways of these actions is hormones and the starting point of this hormone cascade begins in the Paraventricular Nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus. 

The hypothalamus is activated in the stress response by three main inputs: the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in response to any dysregulation of the circadian rhythm, cognitive input from the limbic system and the sympathetic portion of the central nervous system.  The hypothalamus then releases Corticotropin-releasing Hormone (CRH) which then travels and activates two main hormones in the pituitary gland, which by the way is known as the master gland of the body for it releases all the hormones required to activate the rest of the glands, organs and systems in the body.  The anterior portion of the pituitary gland holds six out of eight of the master hormones: Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH), Thyroid-stimulating Hormone (TSH), Follicle-stimulating Hormone and Luteinizing Hormone (FSH/LH), Growth Hormone (GH) and Prolactin (PRL) while the posterior pituitary holds the other two hormones: Vasopressin (ADH) and Oxytocin.The anterior pituitary gland largely becomes activated once the hypothalamus is activated under stress and releases ACTH into the blood stream while ADH is also releasing from the posterior pituitary.

The Fight-or-Flight Response is the term that is often used to describe the pathway of the HPA axis. This paper will firstly address the release of CRH and its down-wind detriments,  specifically focusing on the adrenal glands and then impact of stress on the ovaries. I will then discuss the Ovarian-Adrenal-Thyroid (OAT) axis and how gastrointestinal issues occur due to chronic hyperactivity of The HPA and OAT axis’. A note of the connections of all parts of the system and how dysfunction in certain organs or systems lead to symptoms in other systems will also occur in this paper as no part of the body stands alone and all of it becomes affected under chronic stress.

In referring to diagrams 1 and 2, once the hypothalamus becomes activated in the stress response, CRH is released which travels to and activates the pituitary gland then releasing ACTH and ADH.  ACTH is a polypeptide trophic hormone that is released from corticotropes by the cleavage of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and travels through the blood to act peripherally, mostly on the zona fasiciculata of the adrenal cortex. Naturally, ACTH follows the diurnal pattern of cortisol which should be regulated by the natural circadian rhythm of the moon and sun affecting melatonin and sleepiness in the brain. Therefore, naturally and optimally, ACTH should only be released in the morning when we wake with a slight release late afternoon (fig.3). Unfortunately this is not the case as the environment we live in; especially in modern day society which sends our brain stress signals from almost every direction and multiple times per day.

Once ACTH binds to its receptors in the adrenal cortex, it causes P450 enzyme to be cleaved so that glucocorticoids are then synthesized by a process called steroidogenesis while lipoprotein-uptake is simultaneously occurring in the cortical cells so that the bioavailability of cholesterol can be maintained for a long term response. It is thus the response of cholesterol into its different forms of glucocortioids by means of steroidogenesis that causes many of the pathologies resulting from long term activation of the HPA axis.

Cortisol (aka hydrocortisone) is the main glucocorticoid that should come to mind when talking about the adrenal activation response/fight-or-flight/stress response. It is a steroid hormone that is absolutely essential for life as it allows the body to rapidly be ready to react to a stressor by making energy readily available for a reaction. Once released, it immediately acts on the liver to mobilize glucose which increases blood sugar levels. Meanwhile, triglycerides are also being mobilized to maintain a longer term response once glucose reserves are used. Additionally, cortisol tells the body that it does not need to waste any of its spare energy so the immune system(fig.2)  becomes suppressed as immunity is low priority in the moments of fight-or-flight and all energy needs to be readily available for use by the skeletal muscles, the heart, lungs and senses (for example your pupils dilate to see farther, your sense of hearing and smell become more acute). Finally in its response, cortisol then causes the enzyme in the adrenal glands to convert epinephrine to norepinephrine which furthers the fight-or-flight response and then cortisol travels back up to the hypothalamus in a negative feedback loop(fig.1) to turn off the release of CRH, telling the hypothalamus, “ok, I’m ready”, which is by definition what the body was trying to do in maintaining/creating homeostasis in the first place! 

By now if we could just hypothetically say that that was the end of the story and it was just as simple as the CRH to ACTH to Cortisol release that we were worried about in the stress response, can you see how long term (daily and multiple times per day) activation of this response will long term create pathologies? With Cortisol alone, I see its anabolic behaviour on the liver leading to blood sugar issues then hyperglycemia then diabetes (as we truly aren’t using our muscles to fight or run away and thus the cells of the body just get saturated with sugar and insulin goes haywire). I then predict obesity and a fatty liver would result as triglycerides were also mobilized, muscle and connective tissue would deteriorate, and eventual development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease would occur. Finally, do not forget about the depressed immunity which we all know eventually leads to the big C (ancer). Lastly, the adrenal glands are in overdrive which means eventual adrenal fatigue with a lack of coping to any further stress anyways. That’s just the tip of the ice burg!!!!!Check out the rest of the pathway in figure 4, ACTH does not only cause cortisol to be released from the adrenal glands, aldosterone is also released, and the DHEA pathway is activated which forms the rest of the sex steroids. 

Aldosterone is a mineralcorticoid which is secreted from the zona glomerulosa of the adrenal gland and acts on the principle cells of the kidneys which increases blood pressure and changes the acid-base balance in the body. It is released in response to ACTH or in response to the Renal-Angiotensin-Aldosterone (RAA) System. Since I have finally mentioned the kidneys, I am going to remind you that ADH was also released from the pituitary which in its pathway, traveled down to the kidneys to reabsorb water which causes systemic vasoconstriction. Together chronic aldosterone and ADH release eventually lead to hypertension and cardiovascular disease with systemic acid-base imbalances and resulting extra stress on the kidneys.  Aldosterone also causes hirsutism in women.

Now let’s get back to fig. 4 and talk about the rest of the adrenal release of the corticosteroids and hypothesize the effects on the gonads!!! Our main form of reproduction (is that not our main purpose in life?) is then altered and often becomes pathological from continual activation of the stress response. For your information, fig. 5 shows the pathway of cholesterol into the sex hormones and so it would seem that activation of the stress response brings about increased levels of androstenedione, testosterone in males and estrone, estradiol, estriol, progesterone and androstenedione in females (the DHEA pathway).  This is actually the short term immediate result of stress because the sex hormones then send a negative feedback to the hypothalamus to stop the release of GnRH which in more longer term prevents FSH/LH from being released. Finally, under chronic stress, the adrenals get so fatigued that the DHEA pathway is shunted from (view the dark arrows in figure 4, known as “The Cortisol Shunt”) then we have another issue happening months/years down the line where the   push of the sex hormones from the adrenals during the stress response actually depletes and then there is no negative feedback loop to the hypothalamus so the hypothalamus starts increasing its GnRH which increase FSH/LH in the blood and by this time the ovaries and uterus are both very confused (so are the testicles however this paper is to focus on female reproduction).  The gonads read all this as massive fluctuations of extra sex hormones being made every time the stress response begins then the suppression of the FSH and LH due to negative feedback which then cause the ovaries to lower their production of estrogen and progesterone.  Then in the times where the female might be relaxed for a short period of time, the estrogens and progesterones decrease from the adrenal glands and FSH/LH increase so the ovaries then develop better and start producing more estrogen and progesterone and this is all very confusing for the system as all these four hormones that regulate the female reproductive system are literally all over the map. 

The endocrine system of the body along with its release of varying hormones is what controls the menstrual cycle of women and therefore when these hormones deviate from the norm, the female reproductive cycle becomes irregular. Fig. 6 very eloquently shows the connections of the hormones and their actions and you can see that Follic le Stimulating Hormone (FSH)  and Luteinizing Hormone (LH) are simultaneously released from the anterior pituitary and work synergistically for the purpose of reproduction. To understand how these hormones would change the female reproductive cycle under chronic stress, let us take the extreme example that a female is so stressed that she is consistently having negative feedback loops occurring back to the hypothalamus so that GnRH is barely released and FSH and LH are very minimal.  

FSH is required both in females and males for the maturation of germ cells and thus its deficiency alone can lead infertility. Furthermore the follicle maturing is what causes more estrogen to be secreted from the ovary so with a lack of folliculogenesis the women would then have deficient estrogens (although some are still being released from the adrenals. This gives symptoms such as:  changed sex characteristics (loss of breast tissue, increased hair growth, deepening of the voice...) decreased metabolism, osteoporosis, decreased clotting of the blood, worsening lipid profile with an increased risk in cardiovascular disease, sodium and water retention, increased cortisol levels (oh no!!), increased bowel mobility, decreased libido and deterioration of the mental health.  Finally, estrogen in very implicated in many forms of cancer, specifically breast cancers.

Deficient LH release means lack of an LH surge and thus no ovulation happens next in the female cycle and since LH matures the oocyte into the secondary oocyte, lack of the LH surge means the ovum may also not mature. Later on in the luteal phase, FSH and LH should work on the ovum to change it into the corpus luteum if fertilization has not occurred ad therefore progesterone starts to be released.  Decreased levels of progesterone in the female thenpresents as: increased blood pressure as it is a potent antagonist to aldosterone, increased uterine smooth muscle leading to cramping, bronchoconstriction and thus lung symptoms, systemic inflammation and decreased immunity, unstable mood, finally one of the most presenting symptoms of chronic stress on the female reproductive system is the lack of menstruation as it is due to the combination of progesterone release and estrogen withdrawal that a female sheds her endometrial lining.

Now this hypothetical example is very extreme, it would probably be that the hypothalamus is not under complete suppression by negative feedback and thus there would be some extent of release of both GnRH, thus FSH/LH however any of these symptoms could be appearing. Also recognize that the hypothetical case described above is only occurring until The Cortisol Shunt begins to appear when the adrenals get fatigued and then FSH and LH actually increase allowing for the follicles to perhaps develop properly but now sex hormones are not being released from the adrenals so in the big picture it is still estrogen and progesterone deficiency with a high probability of estrogen dominance. Aside from the symptoms above, FSH and LH are so inherently important to the release of estrogen and progesterone which have huge impacts on the mood and mental health.  Thus the stressed out female may come to the clinic for missed periods, more periods or skipped periods, all due to confusing fluctuations of hormones. She may present to the clinic wandering why she is gaining weight while feeling fatigued and slightly depressed with acne sh e has never had before. Ovarian failure and infertility are the largest of threats and are increasingly present in modern society and modern stress.

Now I will introduce another portion of this huge picture: The Ovarian-Adrenal-Thyroid (OAT) axis and how importantly intwined the thyroid gland becomes with the The HPA axis, sometimes known as The HPAG (Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal-Gonadal) axis(fig 7). Much like the ovaries, the thyroid is also controlled by the endocrine system of the body. Furthermore, it is considered the thermostat of the body, the regulator of metabolic processes and therefore once the stress hormones start to be released, the thyroid gland becomes this mother trying to regulate all the haywire hormones throwing temper tantrums in so many different places of the body. Finally she starts to burn out (become hypothyroid) and this is another big piece of the puzzle. The adrenal, thyroid and gonads are so connected by their hormones that any deficiency or excess in any one organ will surely tax the other two organs and since the adrenals are the huge connection to the HPA axis, when stress is occurring, the adrenals, thyroid and ovaries are all going haywire and becoming fatigued. Too much stress can lead to total failure in any one of these systems and it can become life threatening.

Activation and dysregulation of The HPA axis affects the thyroid in several ways with the most notable being that the secreted levels of T4 and T3 eventually fall while the peripheral conversion of T4 (thyroxine, inactive) to T3 (triiodotyronine, active) is also being largely suppressed by a compromised liver, gut and inflammatory cytokines all which are due to the adrenal release of cortisol. Chronic long-term stress leads to excess T4 (which is still lower than beneficial anyways) which travels in a negative feedback loop to depress the secretion of TSH. There are several methods by which the thyroid invariably becomes affected by the activation of the adrenals however it seems to be the most important effector is the decrease of immunity and increase of inflammation.  From this, autoimmune diseases against the thyroid (Hashimoto’s or Grave’s Disease) become a threat, as well as the lack of adequate levels of T3 and TSH as described above. Next, the inflammatory cytokines suppress thyroid receptor site sensitivity so less free T3 is binding and then after that while the adrenals are still pumping out sex hormones, the liver becomes saturated with estrogen and thyroid binding globulin (TBG) is increased so less functional free T3 or T4 levels are traveling around in the blood as they are bound. Nothing happens in the body in a linear fashion, it is all so dynamic and difficult to truly put into words however the patterns that occur specifically with the thyroid during acute stress are often that the thyroid firstly becomes hyperactive and then eventually becomes hypoactive as it can not keep up. The thyroid adrenal axis is imperative to understand as they truly are affect together and need to be treated together. Once the adrenals are activated with ACTH the thyroid is trying to compensate and the ovaries are getting confused. That is probably the best way to describe the OAT axis.  Acute symptoms of hyperthyroid then become: weight loss, excess body heat with heat intolerance, the quickening of hair/nail growth, skin becomes moist, palpitations, anxiety and irritability, even psychosis and paranoia can result. In chronic stress however, the female may simply become hypothyroid and present with symptoms such as: low blood pressure, fatigue, dry skin and hair, loss of appetite, slowed digestion, water retention, depressive mood swings, decreased sweating and carpal tunnel syndrome. The thyroid dysfunction then stress the adrenals out even more as the body is feeling more and more overwhelmed, then more cortisol is released again (recall the dysfunctional ovaries also do this) and it all truly becomes a defeating cycle.

As energy and nutrients for the body are being depleted in chronic stress, the Gastrointestinal system is also having trouble so it is absorbing less which means the body becomes truly deficient. The brain-gut axis is another portion of the body that gets very affected under stress as they are connected via sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves(fig.8).  Also adrenal and thyroid hormones affect the GI as both the release of ACTH and the decrease of thyroid hormones slow gastric emptying so that the gut becomes sluggish. Cortisol then increases insulin in the blood which decreases absorption of food in the GI and the lower immunity of the body from cortisol creates poor gut flora which means even less T3 is converted. Active thyroid hormone also regulate serotonin which means that the chronically stressed out individual may have intermittent periods of constipation, diarrhea or both. The feasibility of new food sensitivities or allergies and even problems such as Celiac Disease, Chron’s or Ulcerative Collitis can present as autoimmunity can occur in the GI tract as well.  We all know that the GI system simply does not work under fight-or-flight more, it must relax to digest and just talking about the GI could be a whole other paper, however the connection to The HPA and OAT axis’ are quickly outlined.

In conclusion, chronic stress can be life threatening. The body compensates in all systems and eventually gets fatigued. Our stress response was meant for our primitive ancestors in which only occasionally they had to run from a predator or fight for their food. We now live in a society where we are go-go-go all day with stress in all forms and all directions. As you have read, there are a plethora of symptoms of chronic stress and presentation in the clinic with hugely vary, one may come in with fatigue, depression and dysmenorrhea while another may come in with palpitations, anxiety, a missed period and alternating diarrhea and constipation. You may decide to call the first presentation PMS syndrome and the second hyperthyroid but is that the true etiology? Think about it.    ~Blessings.
 

References:

Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease. Kumer et al. 2010. Saunders. Ch.24. The Endocrine System. pp.1107-1108.

The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine. 3rd Ed. Murray et al. 2012. pp. 892.

Guyton & Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology. 2011. Saunders. Ch. 58. The Limbic System and the Hypothalamus. pp. 715-725.  Ch. 59. The Autonomic System and the Adrenal Medulla. pp. 729-739.

They Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis, neuroendocrine factors and stress. C. Tsigos, G. Chrousos. Journal of Psychosomatic Research. Vol 53, Issue 4. pp. 865-871. Oct. 2002.

Chronic Stress Influences the Immune System Through the Thyroid Axis. GA Cremaschi et al. Nov 2000. Life Sci. 67(26): 3171-9.

Figure 1:  www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2011/950461/fig1/

Figure 2: www.nature.com/nrc/journal/v6/n3/fig_tab/nrcl820_F2.html

Figure 3: www.robbwolf.com/2012/02/23/sleep-sleep-sleep-how-artificial-lighting-and-cortisol-impact-zzzs/

Figure 4: www.youthfulagingcenter.com/adrenal-fatigue.html

Figure 5: http://thatpaleoguy.com/2011/02/14/the-menstrual-cycle-and-exercise-metabolism-part-two/

Figure 6: http://ib.berkeley.edu/courses/ib140/ovarian%20cycle,%20uterine%20menstrual%20cycle,%20menstruation.html

Figure 7: http://www.drlam.com/articles/ovarian_adrenal_thyroid.asp

Figure 8: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165614704000276

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect

COGNITIVE BIASES AND THE DOCTOR-DETECTIVE DIAGNOSIS

A cognitive bias is an error in thinking that effects judgements, decisions and conclusions of an individual. In medicine, it is important for a Doctor to be aware of these in making the appropriate objective diagnosis and to make sure important information is not overlooked via the differential diagnosis. Cognitive biases are basically limitations in how our brain and power of logical and analytical reasoning and deduction can be blocked, typically these are called ‘heuristics’ in Psychology and usually deal with a variety of mental short cuts that we learn to naturally make to come to a conclusion on how we perceive a person, place or event. Having an understanding of these biases and then spending time (as the Doctor) to see where they might come into play in the Doctor-Patient relationship is an important facet of practice. 

There are many, many, many biases available and typically we know some of the basic ones such as Stereotyping: expecting the person to have certain qualities without having real information of the person. Most doctors try to make sure they do not make these assumptions however it is easy, especially if a patient walks in that is not of typical norm to the other patients. In the land of Bias, we as doctors must always check ourselves. I would argue that one of the most important aspects to being a Doctor is to have HUMILITY to the human race and to ourselves. Making a preconceived judgement or allocating a person or event into a category in the mind is very natural and part of how we have learned to survive, to make sure we are not in danger at the most basic and primitive level however Doctor, you are not the one that is struggling to survive, your patient is and having the humility to see that person as a wonderful being of this land, a living person, and to see them through eyes of love firstly (not immediate judgement) is critical in making sure a stereotypical bias is not somewhere inherent in your perception of this person and their story. Alongside a stereotype bias, I am going to throw in the bias of Selective Perception which is just as critical and very similar. Doctor: you can not allow your expectations to influence your perception of the outside event. To further end just this first paragraph, just so you have the definition itself, a Blind Spot Bias is failing to recognize your own cognitive biases and is a bias in itself :).  I would say then that spending time recognizing where we might have our biases as Doctors is a critical part of our job.

These are typical, we know these ones as Doctors. Let’s get into the other ones that are easy to understand but very much come into play and create issues in Diagnostics (and thus, not so easy to necessarily bypass). The first is Anchoring Bias: the over-reliance on the first piece of information received. In this Google Age, this is difficult. How many patients come in these days and firstly say, “I think I have …” then give the plethora of information (history and symptoms) for the Doctor to build on. This is TROUBLE. Super trouble. Because immediately, and very very naturally dear Doctor-detective, you have already been skewed by the first piece of information and I will tell you why…In meeting your patient for the first few minutes, you have already cleared your brain to pick up fresh information and this freshness will last for the first few minutes. Remember when you used to study? How long was it? Probably under the first 10 minutes that your brain drastically took up information and the recall was the strongest. This is the same in the patient-visit and this is why this is called an anchoring bias. It is very very strong. Beware. Alongside this very pulling bias, I would put the bias of the Bandwagon Effect which is the tendency and the heightened probability of one person adopting a belief increasing based on the number of people that also hold that belief. If a patient comes into your care presenting to you many other doctors previous diagnostics (and obviously they have not worked), you are being faced with both anchoring bias and the bandwagon effect. Humility again is important. Take a humble approach, be confident in yourself. Know that you both know nothing (have a clear slate on your perception of this patient and their story) and know everything (you ARE a Doctor). Find the balance here.

Next let’s go deeper into the interview where we will see some more biases come out as the Doctor gets to decipher a whole load of information, categorize it and decide what is pertinent and what is not. This is the art of medicine, anyone (not really, but you know what I mean) can study pathology and treatment. Deciphering information quickly and correctly is something that takes a lot of practice. Firstly, let’s start with Overconfidence by the Doctor. Lacking humility in our abilities can cause us to take greater risks, especially those that deem themselves “experts”, this can easily also lead to a plethora of many other biases too as if you are an expert, you will already have the anchoring bias inherent in your practice. Have you heard the saying ‘when you are a hammer, everything is a nail’? This is pertinent here. Again…Humility, humility, humility. I keep saying it, clear your mind, clear your ego. Begin with humility. The definition of humility is to have a modest view of ones own importance. This means to put yourself below the other person, to serve them, for their own highest well being (not yours ;)  ). Paradoxically, I am going to mention what is termed as the Dunning-Kreuger Effect: the theme that there is a tendency for unskilled individuals to overestimate their abilities,  while the skilled individuals underestimate their abilities. Incompetence prevents one from recognizing incompetence. As skill level rises, one becomes more aware of his/her own incompetence. There is a balance here once again, know your worth and be humble ;).

After this, I am going to argue that as a Doctor, you must find the line between the Anchoring bias, Saliencey: our tendency to focus on the most easily recognizable features of a person or concept and Recency: The tendency to weight the latest information more heavily than older data. Obviously Doctors know this takes practice, there is even a cognitive bias that is proven that too much information can skew ourselves from the facts of the matter. This is called the Information Bias. And this is where medicine becomes an art, Doctors must know the questions to ask, when to ask them and how to ask them and then how to collect and divide all of the information. Furthermore, we must ask ourselves if there is a tendency to seek information when it does not affect action…More information is not always better as it has been shown that with less information, people can often make more accurate decisions. So a quick summary of what I have just said is let’s realize that more information is not always a good thing. The first and last pieces of information a patient gives have been shown to hold a lot more weight in the mind than the rest of the story and there is a typicalness for even the Doctor to pick out the typical red flags or prototypical clues which can lead to bias in Diagnosis.

So now, let’s get into the Diagnosis. Beyond all these biases, we still have more! We have been trained as Doctors to extract certain pieces of information (again go re-read what the saliency bias is) in doing this, we need to be careful and aware also of the bias of Clustering Illusion: Tendency to see patterns (or not see patterns) in random events.  I am going to put this out there at this time, bloating, fatigue and feeling full easily are often some of the only signs and symptoms of some major cancers such as the lympathic cancers. Be wary. A Confirmation Bias is the tendency to listen to information that confirms our preconceptions and once we have formulated a theory, we pay more attention to items that support it and ignore evidence that disproves it. Somewhere in your interview, you started to align the information towards a specific diagnosis. Be careful that you are now not just collecting the information from then on to support this. This leads us into two more biases to recognize:  the Choice Supportive Bias which is the fact that when you choose something (ie. a diagnosis) you tend to feel positive about it even if there is flaws. The Ostrich Effect is the decision to ignore dangerous or negative information (also comes full circle with the clustering illusion bias). Holy moly! There is a lot to think about and the psyche is so interesting! This is by no means a complete list, there are so many more biases that cloud our vision (often called “The Veil of Perception”). Here are some more interesting ones: 

Action-Oriented Bias: we as Doctor feel pressure to take action, to know the diagnosis, to take course in treatment. This is our job. Remember when we were taught in school to say “I don’t know” and how this can be a very powerful tool. Don’t let your ego get in the way of somebody else's health.

Self-Interest Bias: Similar to above, and similar to the bias of Overconfidence. Doctors are somewhat competitive businesses themselves in a competitive market.

Publication Bias: Very important for the Doctors that put a lot of worth on EBM! Scientific Journals and Publishers publish studies with positive results and rarely with negative results.

Recency Bias: The tendency to weight recent information or history more than something that happened a long time ago.

Lastly, I am going to end this all (I could go on for very long time) with what is termed the Semmelweiss Reflex: the tendency to reject new evidence that contradicts an established paradigm/diagnosis/treatment.  the tendency to reject new evidence that contradicts an established paradigm. Each patient return-visit must have a clean platform and Doctor, be humble enough to recognize you might have not been right in your diagnosis or that your treatment is not working well, and be prepared to start over. Another fresh start.

JUNE 1, 2016

Written by Dr. Ashley Kristina Romanchuk, ND. All Rights to this Information are owned under Mountainash Medicine Corporation, Copyright © in effect