Detoxification – It’s More Than A Week Long Cleanse

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

When some people think of detoxification, they think of a specific regimen they follow to get rid of the toxins or wastes that have built up over time in their body. But the truth is, our bodies are amazing! It goes about it’s business of detoxing constantly without any help from us. Every time we take a breath, urinate, have a bowel movement or even cry, our bodies are getting rid of waste. Our various bodily systems target the toxins and eliminate them in remarkable ways.

Given the world we live in – with all of its environmental poisons, prescription drugs, polluted air supply, heavy metals, antibiotics contaminating even the water we drink and use for bathing – it’s no wonder I hear patients report they are feeling tired, achy and just not themselves. These unnatural toxins, which we’re exposed to us on a daily basis, can overwhelm our bodies, especially our liver and lymphatic systems. This in turn disrupts our hormonal balance. No wonder we don’t feel up to par. We’re fighting to just keep clean!

Let’s look further at this together. Your body has a remarkable way to take care of healing itself, with your support. You can help to boost your body’s natural detoxification processes and in turn feel refreshed and rejuvenated. Detoxing helps your mental focus, improves digestive processes, and promotes clear skin. It’s not an overwhelming or lengthy process. It’s one of the easiest steps you can take to dramatically improve how you feel.

We can help answer your questions about detoxification. Our resources give you a closer look at the lymphatic system and show you can incorporate an easy two-week detox process. We also have several other ideas on how to prevent toxins from threatening your wellness. You can come to know your own body’s rhythms and how nature meant for it to cleanse itself. You can feel at home in your own body!

Bone Health – Prevent Osteoporosis By Easing Inflammation

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

One factor that’s often overlooked in the prevention of osteoporosis is reducing chronic inflammation. It’s important to take a look at this, because inflammation can interfere with your own body’s natural ability to repair bone mass. Over time, this leads to brittle bones that are common in osteoporosis. You have several choices to help you limit the damage caused by chronic inflammation. Let’s look at them together.

A closer look at your bone health

Let’s look at some of the small changes you can make in your lifestyle and dietary habits to help maintain your bone health. Whether you are concerned about maintaining bone health, or you’ve already been told you have osteoporosis or osteopenia, it’s always a good idea to take good care of yourself. Symptoms of an inflammatory condition, including osteoporosis, can be managed in safe and natural ways which are effective. Changes you make today help shape your future!

1. Nurture healthy bacteria. Your gastrointestinal system is the source of nutrition for your cells daily functioning. If your cells are having trouble absorbing nutrients from the foods you take in, you are at risk for inflammation and osteoporosis.

Part of the problem we often have with absorption starts because we don’t have enough of the “good” bacteria that helps in digesting food and absorbing nutrients. This necessary bacterium also helps us to fight off substances like systemic yeast. Some steps you can take to help keep maintain good levels of gut flora are:

  • Get plenty of fiber in your diet. Friendly bacteria love fiber.
  • Add foods to your diet like yogurt, kefir, kimchee and sauerkraut. These are “living” foods.
  • Try to gradually decrease your intake of red meat.
  • Try taking a probiotic supplement on a regular basis if you have digestive troubles. This can help restore the natural bacteria in your GI system.

2. Pursue a high-alkaline, anti-inflammatory diet. An anti-inflammatory diet has a lot in common with an alkalizing diet that supports bone health. Consider these suggestions:

  • Try adding extra servings of alkalizing fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and high-quality fats to your daily diet.
  • Try cooking foods slowly or simmering, instead of frying. Foods retain more nutrients when they are cooked slowly; deep-fried foods are more difficult for our bodies to digest.
  • Try to avoid red meat and processed foods. Other things to limit in your diet are refined sugars and grains as these often contain high amounts of additives, artificial colorings, flavorings and preservatives.

3. Take gluten off your menu. Research has shown a direct link between gluten reactivity and bone health. Whether you have been diagnosed with celiac disease or just have a mild intolerance to gluten, it sets off an inflammatory process which places your bone health at risk.

It’s much easier to implement a gluten-free diet now that there is such a wide variety of a food available. Many stores have whole sections dedicated to gluten-free foods. There is an extra benefit in eating gluten-free: since many foods which contain gluten are acid-forming, removing these will naturally lead you in the direction of a more alkaline dense diet.

4. Detoxify. Sometimes we don’t realize a certain food is making us feel sick until we eliminate it. Food sensitivities and allergies place our bone health at risk by stimulating the body’s inflammatory process. To help identify foods you may be sensitive to, experiment by removing a suspected substance from your diet for two weeks. Then reintroduce it and see how you feel.

5. Add omega-3s to your diet. I really can’t overstate the importance of these fatty acids. They stop inflammation and reduce the risk of complications in many areas of our health, including our bone health.

Foods which are especially rich in omega-3s include wild-caught Pacific salmon, mackerel, flax seed and walnuts. It’s easy to include these in your diet and reduce inflammation. You may also want to think about supplementing with an omega-3 supplement.

6. Vitamin D. Nature provides us with Vitamin D through sunlight, but not everyone spends enough time in the sun. It’s been estimated that up to a billion of the world’s population is Vitamin D deficient!

Vitamin D is important, not just for bone health. Low levels of this important vitamin have been linked to diabetes, increased risks of cancer and to heart disease. All of these diseases have a component of inflammation.

Vitamin D is important in helping our bodies absorb calcium and also aides in the removal of old bone tissue. At Women to Women we recommend 2,000 IU of supplemental Vitamin D3 daily to ensure your health.

7. Vitamin K. Vitamin K has been somewhat of a mystery until recently. Now we have discovered that there is a whole family of these K vitamins. We know that they help limit the loss of calcium from the kidneys, and help to retain several of the proteins needed for bone production. Certain plant foods contain vitamin K1, and some traditional fermented foods contain vitamin K2 (sauerkraut, natto and kimchee). Most of us don’t get enough Vitamin K in our diet.

8. Magnesium (Mg). Research has shown low magnesium levels to be associated with decreased bone mass, which leads to brittle bones. Foods to include in your diet which are high in magnesium include spinach, almonds, avocados and soy. Taking a good multivitamin with minerals, including magnesium is also a good idea.

Looking ahead

It’s good to know there are steps you can take now to help support your bones. You don’t have to let inflammation disrupt your body’s natural balance as it processes healthy bone tissue. You can calm inflammation and feel healthy and whole today and in the future.

[banner id=”osteoperosis-nutritional-system”]

The Truth About Modern Healthcare

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

The healthcare industry changes quickly. With advances in medical technology, enhanced scientific research, improvement in treatments, and the ability to have so much information at our fingertips, the healthcare industry is an ever-evolving universe of numbers, research and changing practices.

The fact is, because healthcare changes so rapidly, it often does not leave room for the basics in patient care, establishing intimate doctor-patient relationships, time for trials and testing, and sometimes even the development of confidence in the whole system. Healthcare has become a very big industry, focusing on profits before patients’ health, which leaves us all at risk.

Clinicians, for the most part, have always had their patients’ best interests at heart. But the framework has changed. We have become a culture of “assembly-line medicine”, making it very difficult to tailor care to the individual. Practices deemed “best”, may simply mean the most accepted. Studies are released, protocols are quickly set forth, and “one size fits all” treatments are established. But sadly the unique circumstances and needs of each person are lost in the process.

Another huge building block in this new foundation is the Internet. This valuable resource has pros and cons. There is so much medical information out there – material that can range from completely accurate to totally nonsensical. It is hard to decipher what is real, what is important, and what to do with any of it!

I talk with so many women who want to understand how to manage all of these factors. Health issues instill fear, and women want to make informed decisions, but are not sure how. They may find themselves taking medications or undergoing procedures recommended by their doctors without understanding the implications. They read headlines revealing new medical research and treatment plans claiming to work, but without time to back them up. They consult the Internet for one thing, only to find many other things of concern.

Modern medicine can be very confusing. So let’s take a look at how to navigate through the system with confidence.

Prescription drugs

There are pills to treat nearly everything now, and taking medication is common practice to maintain health. But many providers automatically prescribe medication to treat a symptom, without even investigating what is actually causing the symptom. They are aided by pharmaceutical companies who tempt us with “cure all” solutions through advertisements and marketing. The problem is that this information is not always clear or accurate.

Here’s an example. One of the recent advertisements for Lipitor claimed this medication “reduces the risk for heart attack by 36%…in patients with multiple risk factors for heart disease”. But there are a few problems with this claim. First of all, when looking closely at the study, the numbers indicate a reduction of heart attack risk by only 1% based on the reporting of both those patients on Lipitor, and those taking a placebo. Furthermore, the study in which they base this information was funded by the pharmaceutical company that sells Lipitor, creating a potential for bias.

What many patients and their healthcare providers fail to realize, is that these reports often only present relative differences as opposed to absolute differences. What this means is that the numbers are not necessarily dishonest, they are just presented in a way to appear better. But when it’s broken down, the benefits are not what they appear to be. With Lipitor, the absolute difference indicates you have a one in 100 chance of being helped by this drug, not a one in three chance.

Sadly, most pharmaceutical companies manipulate statistics because it helps generate sales. If a product appears to be more advantageous than it is, they use that in their marketing so that doctors and their patients will buy the drug. Also, when the drug studies are funded by giant pharmaceutical companies, even the researchers are compelled to ensure positive results. Combined with the patient overload for the average healthcare provider, who may not have time to scrutinize the numbers from a drug study, we do not always have complete information about our medications.

It is very important for patients to understand the real benefits of a drug. In certain circumstances, prescription drugs can be lifesaving for many conditions. But they should not automatically be the first line of defense for every health issue. More than 20 percent of all prescriptions today are being prescribed for situations they were not intended for or approved for use for by the FDA. Off-label use of a drug can be lifesaving, but it also carries the risk of complications for people who may not truly need it.

The good news is that there are many effective natural alternatives to consider when treating health issues. Nutraceutical and plant-based medicine is beginning to come to the forefront in both research and usage. Natural disease treatment looks to a bigger picture, offering more complete improvement, and also offers fewer side effects than prescription drugs.

Patience pays off

Part of the problem with the changes in modern medicine is the demand for speedy solutions and quick remedies to fix our problems. We live in a culture obsessed with immediate gratification, and we want no less for our medical needs. And just as quickly as we want answers, drug companies want to be able to deliver the solution. So much so, that they often find ways to expedite their medications through the FDA review and approval process, which could jeopardize quality and lead to issues down the line with safety.

Richard Deyo, MD, from the University of Washington recently wrote an article for the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine cautioning providers:

“FDA review serves a critical function, but physicians should be aware that new drugs may not be as effective as old ones; that new drugs are likely to have undiscovered side effects at the time of marketing; that direct-to-consumer ads are sometimes misleading; that new devices generally have less rigorous evidence of efficacy than new drugs; and that value for money is not considered in approval”.

One such example is the release of the HPV vaccine Gardasil, marketed to protect against cervical cancer. I have a particular interest in this as a women’s healthcare practitioner. Although we have not seen the long term effects of this vaccine, healthcare practitioners, drug companies, and policy makers have quickly made this vaccine a requirement, after conducting studies on girls as young as age 9.

There have been thousands of reports of adverse effects with Gardasil, many of them very serious. Some reported side effects of this vaccine include nausea, infections, joint pain and weakness, and other side effects may include blood clotting, anaphylactic shock, coma, paralysis, foaming at the mouth, grand mal convulsions, and death. There have been 21 deaths to date from this vaccine, and we don’t even have all of the facts about the vaccine itself. It is irresponsible of policy makers to mandate a vaccine offering women and girl’s protection for only two out of more than 20 cancer-associated strains of the human papilloma virus (HPV), plus two of multiple strains associated with genital warts for which it is supposed to protect.

I am not suggesting to not get this vaccine. I am suggesting that parents be given the opportunity to make an informed decision based on realistic and proven information about the benefits and the risk, rather than mandating the vaccine’s use without accurate data on the long term effects.

This is when the old adage, “Good things come to those who wait”, could make a tremendous difference.

Preventative medicine

When “well visits” became part of routine care in our society, I think we all agreed that this is a good way to keep people healthier in the long run. But preventative medicine means different things to different people in the world of modern medicine. For some it is about saving money by helping people stay well as opposed to treating illness. For others, it means providing prophylactic medications, multiple vaccines, screening tests, and even surgeries.

A good example of that is the use of hysterectomies to correct many, if not benign, gynecological problems. About one-third of women in the US have a hysterectomy by the age of 60. Who benefits most from that? Doctors, hospitals, and drug companies make billions of dollars annually from this procedure. In many cases, women can have other less invasive options that doctors do not even consider, let alone offer. The same held true for cesarean section births until a few years ago when the numbers of unnecessary c-sections was so high, that people started to notice and made a case for returning to vaginal births in appropriate situations.

There are many practices considered to be valuable in modern medicine that may still raise questions. For example, infants today receive twice the amount of vaccines they received in 1985. Also, the American Academy of Pediatrics approved the use of cholesterol drugs known as statins in children as young as 8. The negative side effects for adults on statins are quite documented, but they are now approved for children who still have many years to develop. While vaccines and medications can save lives, they are not always appropriate for every single person. It is important to think about the possible consequences of this type of preventative medicine.

In functional medicine we look at preventative medicine in the form of natural therapies involving high quality nutrition, natural supplements, regular exercise, and stress relief. This type of medicine works best when it is tailored to the unique circumstances and needs of the individual. That does not mean conventional medicine is better or worse than functional medicine. It simply means that from a patient-perspective, you might want to consider looking at things differently from only what the current accepted norm dictates. I encourage my patients to become informed, do their own research, ask a lot of questions, and learn alternatives to assembly-line medicine and protocols dictating what may be the standard practice, but may not be the best one.

Participate in your own healthcare

Taking a lead role in your health care can help both you and your practitioner form a strong partnership leading to the right solutions for your personal health goals. The relationship between you and your provider requires both people to actively participate in the process. Remember, you know best how what you are feeling inside of your own body! Here are some ways to get the most out of your visits to your healthcare practitioner:

  • Be prepared and proactive. First determine what you want  and need to achieve in the visit. Make a list of your concerns, even if you do not think they are important. Evaluate your personal goals for your health and how you want your provider to help facilitate them. Be sure to ask lots of questions and do not leave until you feel you have gotten the answers you need.
  • Do your own research. Explore all of the possible resources offering you information to gain a better understanding of your own health situation. Whether you want to learn about a medication or procedure, alternatives in treatment, or simply expand your knowledge about a particular topic, feel empowered to research and have a deeper discussion with your healthcare provider during your visit.
  • Consider alternatives. There are so many ways to approach healthcare today. From conventional medicine offering standard practices – to integrative medicine offering a whole person approach (body, mind and spirit) – to Ayurveda practices, acupuncture, nutraceuticals, and homeopathy – to functional medicine, offering holistic and natural medicine focusing on the underlying causes of disease that lead to patient-centered therapies. There is strong scientific evidence now supporting the functional medicine approach to healing to be as effective, or even more effective in healing than pharmaceutical drugs. There are many avenues to better health. Don’t be afraid to investigate all of your options.
  • Keep copies of your lab results, reports, and keep track of your progress. As a functional medicine practitioner, I try not to focus on testing and numbers as much as I do how my patients feel. But it does help to have this information to see if things are changing. Keep track with your provider of blood sugars, cholesterol levels, thyroid hormones, vitamin D levels, bone density, or mammography, and when shifts occur, you can address them appropriately.
  • Communicate your healthcare philosophy. We all have personal preferences about what we feel comfortable with when tending to our health. Some people like to let their doctors make all of the decisions and allow them to initiate protocols. Others prefer to steer away from medications and follow a more natural approach. Some patients like to know every detail about what is going on with their bodies and others prefer to let their doctor manage that information. It does not matter what your preferences are, it matters that you discuss them with your practitioner so that you can receive the care that feels most comfortable. After all, feeling good about your care will help you have a successful outcome!
  • Practice good health habits. Nutrition and lifestyle can help make – or break – our health. Nourish your body with fresh, whole foods – lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy fats, unrefined or unprocessed carbohydrates, and a high-quality multivitamin can change your body’s functioning all the way to the cellular level. Exercise is another important way to not just prevent, but also reverse many common, chronic and degenerative health conditions and maintain good health. And of course get plenty of sleep, which helps regulate all of the systems in the body.

Change the traditional doctor-patient roles

I have many women who come to me in mid-life, when shifts in their bodies become evident. They often believe that any pains, fatigue or chronic complaints are normal for their age, as well as the need for medication or even procedures. I have good news! That is not true! I tell them to think about the health they would like to have, and to not settle for anything less. Creating a healthy and vibrant health picture in our minds is important for achieving that in our bodies.

It may seem overwhelming to navigate a complicated medical system offering so many alternatives. But optimal health is possible, no matter the path. You do not have to be a medical provider to know what is best for you – that is what our intuition (or our gut instinct) is for. When we tap into our own inner wisdom about what we need to feel good, and we trust that, we can walk with our healthcare provider on our personal path to good health.

How Does Healing Your Past Help Your Present Health?

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

“As humans, it’s our great fortune that any negative patterns we are capable of learning, once we become aware of them, we are also capable of unlearning” – The Hoffman Process

The issues for women are quite clear cut when it comes to emotional needs. By nature, women tend to be the caregivers to everyone – but themselves. In fact, most women put their needs on the back burner until everyone, and everything else is tended to. As demands pile up, women take them on, and find many excuses to put off their own needs for rest and renewal. This leads to exhaustion both emotionally and physically. Why do we put ourselves last on our list of priorities? And more importantly, how can we change that?

Oftentimes women are stuck in this pattern of self-denial because of their “personal stories”, or the lifelong emotional issues hampering their ability to care for themselves effectively. These stories take up a lot of room in our minds and our bodies! One method we find highly valuable to women who are seeking a way to address emotional issues is the Hoffman Quadrinity Process. This transforming program helps women integrate the four essential aspects of their being — emotions, intellect, physical body, and spirit.

A 2006 study done at the University of California Davis, found that participants in the Hoffman Quadrinity Process did as well as, or even better than, those who utilized other interventions to reduce anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and interpersonal sensitivity. The study not only showed success for the long term, but also found significant improvement in vitality, energy, emotional intelligence, spirituality, and forgiveness.

Raz Ingrasci, President of the Hoffman Institute, shared with us what this process teaches women, so they can better understand emotional health.

Emotions speak first, actions speak loudest

Most people realize that their emotional brain reacts much more quickly than their intellectual brain. When our emotions speak, they produce actions or reactions, as the case may be, and our intellect hangs back while this process goes on until our emotions have settled down. It is safe to say that our actions are mostly guided by how we feel, not by how we think.

“Think back to the last time we felt humiliated, upset, angry, or insulted”, says Raz. “It only takes a millisecond to put us in a state of paralysis. We’re reeling, trying to come up with words to use in conversation, but we’re struck dumb”.

It can take from minutes to hours to be able to articulate the feelings we had, or what occurred because of them, and this happens for nearly everyone. Raz estimates that at least 80 percent of our behavior stems from our emotional brains. This can cause confusion, especially when we know our ensuing reactions may be counterproductive.

Raz says one way to fix this dilemma is to begin to identify our emotions. When we do this, we are activating the intellectual part of our brain.

“The naming of an emotion takes place in the intellectual brain, though the feeling itself exists in the emotional brain”, he says. “When it is named, those two spheres are connected and you feel more whole”.

This is the first step towards improving our lives. When we recognize an emotion and pay attention to that, we are not burying it, which tends to cause the same emotion to resurface whenever it’s triggered. Raz reminds us of an old axiom, “What you can feel, you can heal”.

When we recognize the power of our emotions, we can tap into them, and use their power advantageously, towards healing.

Note: If the emotions are overpowering or frightening, it’s best to seek professional help while working through this process.

“The best way to begin dealing with an unwanted emotion is to allow yourself to experience it. Become aware of your feelings and move with them, allowing your body to experience your sensations”, says Raz.

Family patterns and negative love

Once we can identify our feelings, the next step is to figure out where they came from. Many of our behaviors are learned from our parents, both mimicking them, and seeking their approval, attention, and love. Bob Hoffman, creator of the Hoffman Process, calls this Negative Love Syndrome.

Until behavior patterns change, they intend to repeat. Negative love syndrome is no different. We often seek relationships as adults that provide us the same or similar emotional feedback we received as children. It makes sense, because this is the way we learned about love and relationships!

There is a real reason why people may say to you “You married your father” or “You have become your mother”. Your parents taught you their perception of how adults behave, and what love is supposed to look like. They likely received the same information from their own parents, continuing both positive and negative patterns and perceptions throughout generations, essentially unquestioned.

We can change who we are and what we’ve learned

We learn early on, as children, how to elicit the love we need from our parents and our caregivers, and when that did not always work, we learned to blame ourselves. As children, we cannot understand or accept our parent’s dismissal of us – for whatever reason – as anything but rejection, that we somehow created. Maybe we thought we were being bad, or were unworthy of love. We internalize these feelings and they grow with us, persisting into adulthood.

Some of the unconscious reasons for adopting negative behavior patterns from our parents, according to Bob Hoffman, include:

  •  The hope that our parents will love us if we are like them.
  •  To vindictively punish our parents by reflecting their negativity back to them.
  •  To punish ourselves for feeling unworthy and unlovable.

These negative love strategies will not only cause us difficulties in our adult relationships, but also can affect our physical health if left unexamined. While we may feel discouraged when we realize these negative emotional and behavioral patterns began early in our childhood, they were learned. This means with practice and patience we can unlearn them and change our lives. As children we have few choices, but as adults, we have plenty. This is the goal of the Hoffman Process for emotional healing.

From human doing to human being

Tim Laurence, author of The Hoffman Process, discusses how to transition from a “human doing” into a “human being”. This concept is quite simple. We react or do as we have been shown or taught in any given situation. But The Hoffman Process helps us unwind this programming by examining all of the parts of ourselves – our emotions, intellect, body, and spirit. We take a close look at those factors along with the subsequent patterns we have developed, and we decide what we want to keep and what we don’t. These choices are very empowering, and allow us to have a more spontaneous, free, open, and loving life.

The Hoffman Process is focused on helping us become more authentic and real. It shows us how to be ourselves, and not wear the mask we created to meet everyone else’s expectations. This is an amazing way to repair and restore our emotional health.

This process is also a wonderful way for women to put themselves on their own to-do list. Negative emotional patterns do not have to dictate who we are, or our way of life. There are many tools we can utilize in this process to become whole again.

To see if the Quadrinity Process is right for you, read this list of statements and think about them in your own personal context.

  •  I feel that something is holding me back and I want to take the limits off.
  •  I experience too much stress and I’m not having enough fun.
  •  I know what I should do, but often can’t generate the will to do it.
  •  I often feel angry, resentful, embarrassed or depressed.
  •  I flip flop between dominating and intimidating people below me and avoid being  dominated by people above me,
  •  I feel intimidated, coerced, and manipulated and can’t stand up for myself.
  •  I work compulsively, often to the detriment of other aspects of my life.
  •  Meaning is going out of my marriage, my career, or life in general. I often feel I’m just going through the motions.
  •  There’s a lack of intimacy in my life — I’ve been unsuccessful in creating relationships.
  •  I’m either unemotional or disconnected from my feelings or my feelings are running me.
  •  I’m in recovery from substance abuse (clean and sober for 90 days minimum) and want to deal with the original pain that led to addiction.
  •  I recognize that my parents were not as loving and supportive as I wanted them to be, or that bad things happened in my childhood.
  •  I see myself passing my own suffering on to my children.

Stress And Weight Gain – Are The Two Connected?

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

I think we can all agree that over the years women’s lives have really changed – our cultural expectations, our feminist expectations, and our personal expectations all combined with advancing technology have dramatically changed our day to day lives. Think about our grandmothers or great grandmothers – they stayed home and cooked the meals, often taking all day to prepare, setting aside dedicated time to visit with friends or take care of family responsibilities and experienced a much different pace than women today. This isn’t to say that these wonderful women didn’t work hard! They did! Today’s woman may prepare a meal, while answering work emails, responding to texts from children requesting rides, while supporting a friend going through crisis…all at the same time! This scenario doesn’t take into consideration the physical stress her body might be handling at that very moment – significant hormonal shifts could be happening at the same time – particularly if she hasn’t eaten in a balanced meal within the past few hours, if she hasn’t been sleeping, or if her sex hormones are out of balance. We are very complex beings! Our bodies respond to stress in a physical way.

Weight – particularly weight gain is a prominent topic with most of my patients. Some see the pounds sneaking on gradually; others tell me that overnight 20 pounds have jumped onto their bodies. Most tell me that they have tried to cut calories, increase exercise and at times have taken some dietary supplements. It seems as though these women are doing all the right things. These patients are always, yes always surprised when I steer our conversation to the stress in their lives. What does stress have to do with weight gain?

Our adrenal glands, walnut sized glands which sit atop our kidneys, govern our stress response and help regulate many other body processes can become imbalanced. We’ve all heard the stories about mothers having a surge of strength to lift a car off their injured child – this amazing strength comes from a surge of adrenaline and cortisol from the adrenal glands! This is exactly how our bodies were designed. These hormones mobilize energy product from fats and carbohydrates In a perfect world, we would experience that surge, then our stress would pass.

For many women today, periods of intense stress never stop and our adrenal glands keep producing the hormones they should, but begin to become unbalanced. Then our bodies start preparing for the worst by storing calories – our primal body kicks in – being stingy with how calories are used and insuring that it will have calories – and fat to pull from when needed. When are bodies are flooded with cortisol, we are less sensitive to leptin. Leptin is the hormone that makes us feel full – when less sensitive to it; we eat more than we normally might. Our bodies are wise – holding onto calories help us survive!

Women with adrenal imbalance most often experience weight gain around their middle – their waist grows disproportionately to other areas – we call this visceral fat depositing. When our bodies are not struggling with constant stress, cortisol, glucose and insulin all work together to keep our blood sugar stable. When we haven’t eaten for several hours, our glucose (blood sugar) drops and a message is sent to the adrenal glands to release cortisol. This cortisol mobilizes fat, amino acids (from our muscles) and glucose (from glycogen in the liver). All of this keeps your body and brain fueled in the absence of food, preventing low blood sugar also known as hypoglycemia. Insulin helps glucose into the cells and cortisol maintains glucose levels in the blood.

With long term stress, both insulin and cortisol remain high in the blood. Extra glucose is stored in the form of fat , primarily in abdominal fat cells. This is also known as visceral fat. Scientific studies have shown that fat cells have unique stress hormone receptors for cortisol and that there are more of these receptors on the fat cells in the abdomen than anywhere else in the body! Most women are shocked to learn that this visceral fat is not inactive! It seems as though the fat itself can act as an endocrine organ that reacts to the stress response – and will continue to build on to the abdominal fat deposits. What a terrible cycle to fall into! The answer is to help the adrenal glands get back into balance.

Where do you start? By eating!

Like many of my patients, you may be surprised, too! Yes, eating more instead of less is one of the keys. You want to convince your body that its not in danger of starving – and the way to do that is to eat – making sure you are making good choice to provide the nutrients you need.

Eating regularly is the way to go! We know that cortisol is integral to maintaining good blood sugar levels and stable blood sugar levels keep your adrenal glands from working overtime. When you get too hungry, you send the message that cortisol is needed – and the unhealthy cycle will start. To prevent this, I recommend three balanced meals and two snacks per day. Eating within one hour of waking lets your cortisol reach its morning peak, relieving your adrenals from maintain fast blood sugar levels. A healthy balanced snack between meals helps tremendously. I advise women to have lean protein at every snack and meal and to keep carbohydrate intake to 16 grams per meal and 7 per snack.

What you eat counts!

Keeping good choices close at hand is the key! When you’re hungry and tired our natural response is to reach for what’s close at hand. Sugar laden foods, caffeine and carbohydrate heavy foods may fill your need in the moment, but not in the long term. When in this healing phase it’s important to avoid processed foods, alcohol, caffeine and refined and processed sugars. Many of my patients are gluten sensitive and notice good, positive changes when it is removed from the diet.

Keeping the foods you need handy may take a little more time, but the end result is worth it. Lean proteins can be cooked ahead of time, vegetables can be purchased peeled and cut, and nut butters on an apple are quick and easy. And remember…you are worth every effort!

  • Breathe deeply. One of the best things you can do when you feel stress building is to pause, take in three very deep breaths through your nose, exhaling mindfully through your mouth…and feel your heart rate decrease. You can do this anywhere and no one will even guess what you are doing!
  • Disrupted or poor quality sleep can also affect your ability to lose weight! When your circadian rhythm is disrupted your cortisol cycle will follow! Create a goal to get at least 7 hours sleep per night. Follow good sleep hygiene – including turning off all electronics one hour before bed!
  • Exercise mindfully. Keep our heart rate under 90 beats per minute if you are currently exercising. You may want to consider easing up for a few months while you are healing. If you don’t exercise, try walking 15 minutes once or twice a day – outside if possible.
  • Find time to enjoy something every day – whatever that means to you! Is it meeting a friend for a meal? Skyping with a family member? Reading? A bubble bath? Taking your dog to a dog park? Taking a class once a week? One woman I know loves to take classes – she does everything from craft classes to wine tasting. These classes define what she needs for fun – connection, learning, new environments and a feeling of moving forward in her life. What’s fun for you?

Stress related weight gain does not have to be a part of your life!

[banner id=”adrenal-wired-system-1″]

Are You Someone With Weight Loss Resistance?

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

There are people in the world who don’t have to work at staying thin and trim, and there are people in the world who do. For those in the latter category, the battle of the bulge can feel like a nemesis impacting them on many levels, physically and emotionally. Everywhere we turn we see advertisements, infomercials, and even reality television shows telling us that we can lose weight, and all we have to do is stop eating so much and exercise more. In fact, health practitioners relay this information to their patients every day, and send them on their way with a “prescription” for what sounds like a simple solution. But it’s not.

There are many weight loss programs out there, all offering different methods and techniques to help people lose weight. I know, I joined Weight Watchers when I was 19. I followed the program to the letter, weighing and measuring every single bite of food I consumed. I exercised every day, I never cheated, and each time I got on the scale, I was devastated to see I had only lost a half pound, or worse – gained weight. It wasn’t Weight Watchers, it was me. I had weight loss resistance.

Weight loss resistance occurs when a woman has a physiologic/metabolic imbalance that makes losing weight and keeping it off extremely challenging, even when she puts forth her best efforts. It may be a preexisting condition or a new development, but until it’s addressed, no amount of working out at the gym will fix it.

This condition can be very frustrating for women. I talk to women every day in my practice who just don’t understand why they can’t lose weight, and I tell them what I know: we can fix that, and not only will the pounds come off, but they will stay off with the right daily efforts.

[banner id=”weight-management-system”]

Is weight loss resistance genetic?

Research shows that people metabolize fat differently. That’s why some people can eat a lot of food and never gain an ounce, and others barely eat and gain a pound or more. Genetics can play a role, and studies are in progress to help us understand more about that. But if genes do play a role, then that means we all benefit from different types of food and exercise when it comes to weight loss, to support our personal genetic makeup. For more information on genetics and weight, please read our articles, “Set Point Weight – Fact Or Fiction?” and “Reprogram Your Genes and Cells For Healthy Weight.”

We have all heard of so many different diet and exercise plans to help us lose weight, I’m sure more are being invented right now! But there are healthy ways to reduce — including lower-fat diets, Mediterranean style diets, higher protein diets, low-dairy diets, and many other choices — to optimize metabolism. The same holds true for exercise. Some people benefit from endurance-style exercise, others from strength training, and others still from things like yoga and Pilates. The good news is, regardless of your genetic makeup, there are many dietary and lifestyle choices that can increase your ability to lose weight and keep it off.

Although society tends to group everyone into the same category when it comes to health and fitness, we are all individual, and different things work for different people. It is not just our genetic makeup, but also our emotional makeup, and our lifestyle and environmental factors that play roles too. It takes time to figure out what is at the core of weight loss issues, and that is what we do in functional medicine – we get to the bottom of it so it can be corrected.

Core systemic imbalances and weight loss resistance

There are six core systemic imbalances that contribute to weight loss resistance in women. We may see a combination of them, but one usually becomes prominent as we investigate what is keeping a woman from losing weight. They are:

  •  Hormonal imbalance (including thyroid dysfunction)
  •  Adrenal imbalance (chronic stress)
  •  Neurotransmitter imbalance
  •  Digestive imbalance
  •  Systemic inflammation
  •  Impaired detoxification

For more information, read our numerous articles on above topics.

When we determine the primary cause of weight loss resistance, we offer the following measures to not only jump start, but to sustain weight loss and then maintenance regimes.

  • Know your unique physiology. Work with a functional medicine practitioner to identify any metabolic imbalances, and create a nutrition and exercise plan unique to your system.
  • Use herbs and supplements. When weight loss resistance is caused by hormonal imbalance, stress imbalance, and neurotransmitter imbalance, supportive herbs and supplements may help rebalance your metabolism and assist with weight loss. The active compounds and micronutrients found in herbs and supplements can go to work at the cellular level, helping you from the inside out. Women to Women offers many high-quality, pharmaceutical grade supplements to enhance your health.
  • Practice healthy eating. Eating three well-balanced meals and two snacks each day at regular intervals will help regulate your metabolism. Fresh, organic fruits and vegetables, as well as lean protein such as organic meats, fish, nuts and legumes, offer the best nutritional support. Since our lives are busy, having a snack shake made of whey protein and almond milk is a healthy alternative. Our Whey Protein helps support metabolism and satisfy cravings!
  • Sometimes we need more than food to get all of the vitamins and nutrients we need, especially when trying to lose weight. Chromium, zinc, vitamin C, D3, and the B vitamins are essential for a healthy metabolism. A high quality, pharmaceutical-grade multivitamin-mineral complex will support and enhance weight-loss efforts. Women to Women offers many high-quality, pharmaceutical grade supplements to enhance your health.
  • Exercise. Even if you have tried to exercise and not had too much success, finding the right type of exercise is key. It should not only move your body, but it should be enjoyable. Regular exercise is an integral part to good health and it will re-set your metabolism and help you overcome weight loss resistance.
  • Rest, restore, and sleep. Sleep is vital to not only restore metabolism, but help all of the systems in our body function properly. Sleep allows our body to repair itself, regenerate, and helps regulate our hunger mechanism – a very important part of weight loss! There are studies which actually show that people, who sleep less, eat more. We suggest trying to sleep for eight hours each night between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., can make all the difference.
  • Seek support. Whether you believe “misery loves company” or “it takes a village” or even “great minds think alike” – finding other people who are on a similar journey can go a long way in helping you feel good, stay encouraged, and achieve success.

Solving the weight loss puzzle

Weight loss resistance can cause a lot of emotional turmoil. The struggle is real, and you may feel disheartened, discouraged, angry, sad, or even guilty. But these feelings will not help solve the mystery as to why you cannot lose weight. It’s easy to say just let those feelings go, but you will find when you turn them around into hope, belief, enthusiasm, and renew your efforts, you can find the underlying cause, address it, and the weight will come off. Remember, it’s not your fault! We can work together to fix it.

Natural Treatments For Adrenal Dysfunction

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

Restoring The Energy You Thought Was Lost

In this article:

Phytotherapy for adrenal health — the role that plant medicine plays within our body

Medicinal herbs for adrenal imbalance — our suggestions

Real support, not just a one-size-fits-all solution

 Now let me ask you, does any of this sound familiar?

  •  Do you feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and stressed all the time?
  •  Do you need five cups of coffee or a constant infusion of soda just to make it through the day?
  •  Do you have trouble waking up, falling asleep, or staying asleep, no matter which herbal supplements you try?
  •  Do you find yourself feeling constantly irritable or on edge?
  •  Do you feel that you need to exercise to stay in shape even though you’re exhausted when you do?
  •  Do you feel as though everything you eat turns to fat?
  •  Are you always hungry, frequently craving sweets, or tempted by “carbo-binges”?
  •  Are you plagued by irregular or painful periods or PMS?
  •  Are you struggling with peri-menopause or menopause: lowered sex drive, vaginal dryness, mood swings, and hot flashes?
  •  Do you find yourself feeling forgetful, “foggy,” or unable to concentrate?
  •  Do you find that you do better when you’re always on the go?
  •  Do you find that you actually enjoy adrenaline rushes and feel a little bored without a crisis to handle?
  •  Are you struggling with anxiety, depression, or despair?

[banner id=”adrenal-wired-system-1″]

If I’ve painted a picture you recognize—in yourself, in your family, among your friends and colleagues—you’ve just gotten a good look at adrenal dysfunction, a distressingly common problem in which overworked adrenal glands combined with lifelong emotional patterns add up to a painful set of physical, mental, and emotional symptoms. In the early stages of adrenal dysfunction, you might feel “tired and wired”: keyed up, anxious, fatigued, and depressed. In the later stages, you might simply feel exhausted. Either way, you know something’s wrong—even if your health-care provider has assured you that you’re fine or hasn’t included adrenal dysfunction in his or her diagnosis.

In my practice, I have found that many women have come in feeling listless with energy levels so low that they feel this is normal. Many have felt that this is just part of the aging process. However, I am happy to say that it’s not natural to feel fatigued purely as a function of your age. And as long as there are no major health issues causing your fatigue, we can absolutely get you back to feeling as energetic and vibrant as you did in your younger years. What it really boils down to, is learning to listen to your body and being able to identify what is wrong. Understanding your body and its functions like how to better support your adrenal glands, two plum-sized but powerful glands that many women have never even heard of.

You may not think much about your adrenals, but they are crucial to your health, mood, and well-being. These little triangular-shaped glands sit on top of the kidneys, responsible for giving us those extra surges of vitality that we need to cope with unusual challenges, new demands, and heightened levels of stress. That vitality is commonly known as the fight-or-flight reaction. When a major challenge threatens, our adrenal glands kick up the stress hormones, enabling us to cope with whatever challenge or emergency befalls. Then, when the crisis is over, the stress hormones subside and we relax once more.

Today we live in a world that is troubled with so many challenges, that it is a relief to know that although your adrenal glands serve a number of functions within your body. Their primary responsibility is to help you react — and survive — in the face of stress. Sometimes we may not feel stressed, but unfortunately stress comes in many disguises which we aren’t always aware of: physical, emotional, perceived, psychological, environmental, infectious, or any combination of these. Because your adrenal glands work in tandem with your body and mind, they have the ability to respond to every kind of stress.

Unfortunately, your health-care practitioner is likely to ignore or dismiss adrenals as the source of your problem unless you are suffering from either Addison’s disease, in which case your adrenals severely under produce, or Cushing’s syndrome, in which they severely overproduce. These two conditions are well understood by conventional medicine. But if your adrenal imbalance is less extreme—as is true for hundreds of thousands of U.S. women—your practitioner is unlikely to recognize your condition. That’s because, despite the enormous body of science relating adrenal problems to a wide variety of symptoms, adrenal dysfunction is not a commonly accepted diagnosis.

From both my personal as well as my professional experience I understand the impact when your adrenal system and body is not working in harmony with one another. Sometimes we need to look beyond conventional medicine towards alternative forms of therapy that will enable you to live an optimally healthy lifestyle.

Are your adrenals imbalanced?

Our adrenals produce bio-chemicals that our body needs to function on a daily basis. Women with adrenal issues often say they have issues in other areas of their bodies as well, such as, irregular blood-sugar; thyroid and sex hormone imbalance; digestive problems; cardiovascular difficulties; immune and autoimmune disorders; mood complaints such as anxiety and depression; and cognitive difficulties, such as poor memory, fogginess, and an inability to concentrate and think clearly. This increase of symptoms can make adrenal dysfunction problematic to recognize. But if you know what you’re looking for, it can be done.

Below is a simple list of questions which may help you to identify whether your adrenal glands are functioning correctly and whether they are in-sync with your mind and body. Should you answer yes to more than one of these questions, I would suggest that you consult with a functional medicine practitioner regarding your adrenal glands.

  •  Are you always on the run?
  •  Do you often feel the inability to cope with things around you?
  •  Do you feel that you need to use far more energy than normal when you need to do something?
  •  Are you struggling to get out of bed in the morning?
  •  When your energies levels are low do you turn to caffeine and sugar to give you a boost?
  •  Do you feel tired and irritated with those around you?
  •  Are reading and watching movies your cue to falling asleep?
  •  Are you so hyped up at night that it is difficult to fall asleep?
  •  Do you feel listless, depressed, or emotionally numb?

Now that you have established that many of the symptoms you are feeling are ‘normal’ for adrenal dysfunction, we can now work together to see what the options are available to putting you back on the pathway to achieving adrenal health. With so many natural treatment options so easily accessible, why don’t we look at some of the options that can help restore your energy, balance your adrenal output and get you on the road to feeling like yourself again.

How herbs benefit your body

There are many new natural modalities that have come to light when it comes to restoring your energy levels and supporting your adrenal functions instead of depleting them. For thousands of years man had predominately lived on a diet using our natural resources – plants. With this in mind the properties of plants have been used as a source of healing either in its whole-food form or in standardized extracts and supplements. This process is called Phytotherapy and now with evidence-based research, we are able to back up the benefits of phytotherapy treatment.

Extensive research carried out in the in the US and across the world has established that the herb Eleuthero (aka “Siberian ginseng”) contains anti-fatigue and anti-stress properties that help to support the adrenal glands. Swedish researchers in 2009, found that there are certain molecules which are released by the adrenal glands to protect the body against physical and emotional stress. These same molecules are found in Eleuthro and by introducing these “molecular chaperones” to the body, we are able to help treat and repair damaged proteins during times of intense physical demand. The added benefit is that by taking Siberian Ginseng we are also able to improve our tolerance to stress and allows for less physical destruction. Furthermore, a research team in Australia demonstrated how Eleuthero inhibits the binding of stress hormones to their receptors.

Adrenal depletion can drain the entire body

As our stress levels reduce the functionality of our adrenal glands, so it affects other functions in our body. Other than their primary role in dealing with stress, your adrenal glands:

  •  Maintain the balance of over 50 hormones in your body
  •  Manage stress and sex hormones as well as a number of other hormones which they are able to synthesize
  •  Assist in regulating blood pressure and our heart rate
  •  Assist in balancing blood sugar levels
  •  Quiets inflammation throughout the body –
  •  Support nervous system function (behavior, mood, , memory, clear thinking)

As you can see, the adrenal glands are so intimately intertwined with our physiological and emotional well-being that we need to heed what our bodies are telling us. By understanding our bodies and the role that these ‘little glands’ play, there is no reason for us to suffer from weight gain, fuzzy thinking, insomnia, severe fatigue, thyroid disorders, and accelerated aging. For more on the connection between adrenals and thyroid, see our articles on hypothyroidism in menopause.

The good news is there is much that can be done. Advances in science are uncovering new understandings all the time. Recent research has shown that Eleuthero, a medicinal plant in the form of Siberian Ginseng, bolsters the immune system, aids with inflammation and boosts clarity of mind. It has also been found to help in nervous system function, assists in regulating blood sugar levels, and there is thought that it may benefit bone remodeling by increasing the amount of a hormone called osteocalcin in the blood.

With so many of my patients who although adept at multitasking are completely overworked and highly stressed, they have found relief and benefit from using adaptogenic herbs such as Eleuthero and other supplements. Unfortunately we live in an age where the expectation is one of immediate results and gratification. If this is not achieved the natural assumption is that the therapy is in fact not working. Sometimes we have to exercise patience and belief in what has been recommended by our health practitioner.

Phytotherapy and mineral supplementation are very gentle remedies and take time for your body to absorb and feel the benefits. Remember that we are all different and therefore one may have to try a number of options until you find the right one that works for you. Thank goodness the plant world is so diverse which means that there will be something available to help you – don’t give up!

Adrenal imbalance – suggested supplements

Western medicine has been taking its time recognizing the importance of adrenal health—but Eastern cultures have always given the adrenals their due time in the spotlight. When it comes to conventional medicine they have been focusing on acute adrenal-related conditions, like Addison’s disease and Cushing’s syndrome, which are not exceedingly common. However, more sensitive testing will show a trend toward one end of the spectrum that, though not an illness, may point to vulnerability. My goal is to have you look deeper and start at a place where we view food as medicine.

It is also important to think about using a number of safe and supportive herbs and supplements in your daily regimen. Below is a list of some of the herbs that I have used to treat my patients. When you are attempting to try a more holistic and natural route of medication, it is important to listen to your body, and to monitor your growth as you experiment with a natural approach as we all react differently to therapeutic agents. If you find that you are having a reaction to the herbs or are sensitive modify your dosage or consider working with an experienced herbalist.

Herbalists and many other alternative practitioners rely on herbal medicine, which happens to be the basis for many prescription drugs. Herbal remedies can take the form of teas, tinctures, oils, creams, and pills. Many herbs can be poisonous or interact dangerously with prescription drugs, so it is best to use them only under the supervision of a qualified practitioner.

  •  Astragalus root (A. membranaceus). Your body has a natural ability to adapt to stress, but sometimes this is not enough. Astragalus boosts your bodies capabilities to handle stress, gives your immune system a healthy boost, regulates normal blood sugar levels and alleviate insulin resistance.
  •  Cordyceps (C. sinensis). An antioxidant fungus, Cordyceps can slowdown the aging process, supports your the immune system, assists in inflammation and helps to stabilize your blood sugar levels.
  •  Eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus, also known as Siberian ginseng). As discussed before, Eleuthero is an adaptogenic herb helps to protect our bodies from the debilitating effects of stress, reduces fatigue, assists in clarity of memory aids in balancing blood sugar levels, and even perhaps supporting bone remodeling as well.
  •  Rhodiola rosea (“golden root”). Rhodiola is an adaptogenic herb that protects against stress-related fatigue and ultimate“burnout”, increases mental clarity, supports the immune system and assists in balancing blood sugar regulation. An added benefit of Rhodiola is it’s antidepressant and antianxiety effects.
  •  Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra). Licorice Root is well known for helping support adrenal balance as well as energy levels and endurance. Although many herbs do not have many restrictions with their use or dosage, there are certain forms of licorice which are known to increase blood pressure and lower one’s potassium levels in the body. So be cautious to check your blood pressure when using it.

(Images courtesy of GNU Free Documentation License).

As a holistic and functional medical practitioner, I have found the strengths in using diverse forms of intervention.. I believe that each health professional has their own unique expertise and whether one consults with a herbalist, naturopath, or functional medicine practitioner – it is all about you and finding the solution that is going to work best for your condition. Many times it may require you seeing multiple practitioners.

I’ve borrowed this phrase from healer and best-selling author Caroline Myss because I think it sums up so beautifully the other key factor behind adrenal dysfunction. No matter how disciplined we are about cleaning up our diet, taking our nutritional supplements, and getting regular exercise, if we don’t attend to the emotional piece of the puzzle, our adrenal symptoms won’t go away. The phrase that Caroline uses often is “Our biography becomes our biology “ if we do not pay attention.

Real support

We have become used to living in a world where there seems to be a solution for everything. Advertisers have led us to believe that we can expect immediate results and we’ve been brainwashed into believing that one-size-fits-all is the answer to our problems. It’s important to remember that phytotherapy isn’t a magic bullet, either. What it offers us is an additional source that will provide us with an extra energy and support as we make the necessary steps towards healing the adrenals. However, in order to have optimal adrenal gland functionality we need to be honest with ourselves to acknowledge and address the root causes of stress in our lives.

I am reminded of a patient whose toddler son was admitted into hospital after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Upon release he needed care 24/7 which left my patient sleep deprived and depressed. She also began to notice that her elevated blood sugar levels were entering into a pre-diabetes danger zone.

After intense discussion and evaluation of what was happening in her life and body, I recommended that she start with a combination herbal/mineral supplement. Very soon she started to feel much better but unfortunately her new sense of well-being tipped her overboard. She felt so invigorated that she joined a gym, took on more responsibilities at work and at home, and started writing a book! Now you may say this was amazing and wonderful, which it is but what she needed to understand was that the herbal support was just one piece to healing her adrenals. Even though you may feel infinitely better after starting phytotherapy, true adrenal health comes from creating conditions that sustain not just physical health but emotional and spiritual wellness, too.

All of these realizations can lead us on a path of discovery, understanding what our problems are and how or what can we do to change – to learn new ways of “being”. This does not mean that one has to undergo a radical change but rather by taking baby steps one can make one small change at a time. I understand that this sounds a lot easier than it actually is but I would like introduce you to a few changes that you can make to your lifestyle that will ensure a full adrenal recovery:

Modify your exercise. There are many benefits to regular exercise and although it may be difficult at first to get going, many of my patients marvel at how well they feel after a workout. If this is you, stick with it. However, some people will feel absolutely exhausted and their energy levels depleted. If this is the case then one needs to slowly introduce exercise into your daily life. Mornings are best for aerobic exercise because this is when your cortisol is naturally highest, but try not to let your heart rate go above 90 beats per minute. If aerobics are not for you, then find something that is not so demanding like a relaxing walk, yoga, or any kind of exercise that restores you instead of draining you.

Eat often and well. In the past I have written extensively on how to support your adrenal glands by eating the correct foods. Nothing is more discouraging than being disciplined about your eating plan and not losing the weight you’d like—only because you aren’t appropriately supporting your adrenal-friendly food choices with healthy lifestyle and exercise choice. By eating certain foods, and at specific times of the day can help you return to a natural cortisol rhythm thus avoiding the “crash and burn” of the peaks and valleys of sugar and caffeine. One point that I have always stressed is that a body that is allowed to be hungry places a huge strain on the adrenals and therefore it becomes absolutely vital not to miss meals or let too much time pass between meals or a snack.

Relieve stress. If you can find a way to quiet your mind periodically, you can release an enormous amount of stress. One of the most wonderful ways to quiet your mind is through meditation. Meditation offers many health benefits, improving blood pressure, circulation, and heart health; and it also supports mood, self-confidence, and relaxation. Even just five minutes a day of quiet breathing or meditation can do wonders for your adrenals. Create ‘me time’ and be kind to yourself. Find things that are going to make you feel relaxed like going for a massage or ask your partner to massage your feet or head. The practice of yoga, t’ai chi or qi gong is non-invasive, but smooth and tranquil. When was the last time you put your feet up with a cup of tea or had an extended phone call just to talk? Look at the things that you feel will best relieve tension and stress and follow this path.

Play. We so often take on responsibilities or agree to do things that require a lot of your time or just drain your energy. We need to learn to say no and take on things that are fulfilling and satisfying. Step out of your box and have fun – meet up with friends that you haven’t seen for a while, spend time with your family, take your grandchildren to a movie, go to the beach – the list is endless. Don’t feel guilty but rather embrace your new life and give yourself permission to do it during this time of healing.

Sleep. Get a minimum of seven hours of sleep each night. The connection between lack of sleep and weight retention is clear – insufficient sleep stresses your body, chronic loss of sleep equals chronic stress and chronic stress means chronically high levels of cortisol, which encourages your body to hold on to every extra ounce of fat. If you regularly go with-out at least seven hours of good, restful sleep, you are going to find it nearly impossible to lose weight or even to maintain a healthy weight. Often as women we are so busy that we end up burning the candle at both ends. Try to go to bed at a reasonable hour as sleep is one of the magic remedies to restore your adrenal glands. Before going to sleep try having a herbal tea or consider a natural herbal supplement to help you relax and ease you into a peaceful sleep. Not always possible, but a short nap during can boost your energy levels.

Natural methods on how to get your energy back

The mind, emotions, and spirit have an enormous impact on the body. How we think and feel about ourselves and the world, and how we experience a spiritual connection, can make a huge difference when it comes to healing the body. If we’re prisoners of our past, responding with amygdala-driven impulsiveness to replay the same panic, anxiety, sorrow, or anger that colored our past, our bodies will find it far more difficult to heal. But if we learn to reprogram our emotional responses, our bodies can begin to shake off the burdens of the past. How exciting and empowering is that? Just by the choices we make each day about what we eat and how we live, we can alter the way our genes express themselves and create our own good health.

Climb off the rollercoaster and shrug off the idea that you have to do more and that enough is never enough. Be kind to yourself and do what you can instead of keeping your energy levels up by relying on sugar, carbs, and caffeine to make it through the day. And you certainly don’t have to feel so tired and miserable anymore. Help is on the way! Why not support your adrenal glands by trying some of the natural herbal options that are available to boost your energy. It is important for you to take control so as to not exacerbate future health issues but to rather adopt a path that will lead to adrenal health and lifelong balance.

[banner id=”adrenal-wired-system-1″]

The Master Hormone – Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH)

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick OB-GYN, NP

Thyroid TSH Hormone Woman Holding ThroatThe thyroid gland has long been considered the master gland and is well known for its ability to affect metabolism. When a TSH test is ordered, I am trying to determine exactly how much of this hormone TSH is circulating in the blood. This provides me with information about how the thyroid and metabolism are working.

When the TSH level is high, it is producing too much “stimulating” hormone, which may indicate hypothyroidism. The converse to that is – if it produces too little, and the TSH level is low, then the thyroid is hyperactive.

Generally the TSH level is ordered depending on your symptoms. Though the “normal” range for TSH levels vary depending on the labs, the practitioners and individuals. In 2002, The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists changed the range for TSH to be between 0.30 and 3.04. Generally most of us in the Functional Medical World think most women feel best when the TSH is at 2 or below.

If one of my patients is above 2.0 or if she is symptomatic of a thyroid disorder, I always try to understand the root cause. This often means more detailed testing, so I can get a better understanding of how the thyroid and adrenals are functioning.

The thyroid is one of the master glands and is intimately connected to so many organs and systems in the body that dysfunction in other places, especially with the adrenals, may be at play.

For more information, read our many informative articles in our Thyroid Health and Adrenal Health sections of our Health Library.

[banner id=”thyroid-health-system-banner-1″]

Digestive System Problems – Causes And Diagnostics

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick OB-GYN, NP

Many of my patients make the needed dietary and lifestyle changes and find they continue to have digestive symptoms that simply do not go away. Our bodies are fascinating and understanding the digestive system is important to obtaining optimal health. We know that your bodies need food to provide it with energy, vitamins, and minerals. However, in order to use food, we must first break it down into substances that the various organs and cells in our body can use. This is the job of our digestive system.

If you experience digestive issues, like many do, it is important to get to the root cause of why you are having digestive issues. It could be something that is short lived and your digestive system is restored to health, but sometimes something deeper is going on, such as a bacterial or parasitical infection.

Below is a list of tests that you might encounter when you have digestive problems.

[banner id=”digestive-chronic-gi-system-1″]

Comprehensive Digestive Stool Analysis (CDSA)

Comprehensive digestive stool analysis (CDSA) tests for digestive system function, absorption, gut flora, and the colonic environment. This test is needed for evaluation of chronic gastrointestinal (GI) issues, such as indigestion, dysbiosis, constipation, bloating, gas and diarrhea, to name a few. In addition, it can be recommended for serious bowel changes and systemic diseases. CDSA evaluates digestion of food particles, absorption of nutrients, the presence of bacterial or yeast infection, floral imbalance, intestinal immune function, and dietary fiber intake adequacy. A stool is generally gathered at home and sent for analysis.

Testing for food allergies and food intolerances

If you think you might have an intolerance or sensitivity to food, I suggest that you omit foods such as gluten eggs, corn, peanuts and dairy. These are the groups that usually cause allergic responses. However, there are many foods and food additives, in addition to the environment (within your body and externally), that can cause digestive symptoms.

Stay away from foods that irritate you and cause symptoms at the same time , I suggest that you take supplements to heal your gut integrity. This should work with most food sensitivities within 4–6 months, and you might be able to once again enjoy a food that used to bother you. Sometimes the sensitivity does not go away or it could be a “true” allergy that lasts for your entire life (called “IgE” allergies).

If you’ve tried following healthy nutritional guidelines, but you still have symptoms, you might want to consider testing for food intolerance or sensitivity. The following tests are used in functional medicine to identify food intolerances and sensitivities (IgG).

Laboratory /diagnostic tests for food intolerances

Intolerances/Allergies/Sensitivities (IGG/IGE)

Challenge or elimination diet

  • IgG RAST to specific foods, such as milk, egg, corn, peanuts or wheat
  • Celiac panel and genetic tests (HLA DQ2, DQ8)
  • Organic acids (gut flora by-products, specifically)
  • Breath testing for lactose and fructose
  • Intestinal permeability testing (lactulose-mannitol)
  • Stool analysis (absorption, digestion, inflammatory markers, microecology)
  • Alletess testing will determine if you are sensitive to various foods and additives and possibly allergic.
  • Gluten sensitivity and Celiac Disease

Gluten sensitivity, once rare, is more frequently identified today. Up to 30 percent of the population carries a genetic predisposition to gluten sensitivity and celiac. This causes an inflammatory/autoimmune response in your gut when you are exposed to gluten.

Try to eliminate gluten to help reestablish optimal digestive system function. You might be able to eventually reintroduce gluten-containing foods with minimal ill effect. There are others, however, who find they are healthier by remaining gluten-free, after they’ve healed their digestive problems. Women who have celiac disease, the most severe form of gluten sensitivity, and are exposed to tiny amounts of gluten have a response that damages the small intestine, impairs nutrient absorption, and leads to additional complications.

If you have been gluten free to heal your digestive system, try to reintroduce a small amount of gluten. If this causes your symptoms to return, you are probably gluten-intolerant or gluten-sensitive. You might consider genetic testing (genotyping) or autoantibody screening (serotyping), if you have a genetic susceptibility to celiac.

Laboratory and diagnostic testing for celiac disease

  • Three-month trial of gluten elimination
  • Celiac panel
  • Anti-deaminated gliadin IgG and IgA
  • Anti-gliadin IgG and IgA
  • IgA anti-endomysium antibody
  • IgA and IgG anti-transglutaminase ELISA (tTG)
  • Total IgA (IgA deficiencies ten times more common in CD)
  • HLA DQ2, DQ8 typing
  • Intestinal biopsy

Parasite and pathogens testing

Many pathogens and parasites can upset your healthy digestive system and cause symptoms in the gut. There are some signs that indicate their presence, but the best way to find out for sure is to undergo testing.

If you can choose to have specialists evaluate your stool samples, that would be ideal. The greater the specialist’s experience with pathogenic organisms, the better equipped the pathologist will be to perform a thorough analysis that identifies any problematic organisms.

There are many labs in the United States and Mexico that screen for yeast overgrowth and the presence of ova (eggs) and parasites. The labs also test overall digestive function, including absorption and immune status.

Below is a list of some of the important pathogenic organisms that affect digestion.

Helicobacter pylori. This bacterial infection can cause bloating, belching, nausea, and pain in the stomach. Infection can lead to stomach ulcers and inflammation and an increased risk of stomach cancer. Your healthcare practitioner can request a test to find out if you have an H. pylori infection. This infection is treated with antibiotics and drugs that reduce acid.

Fungal dysbiosis/candidiasis. Molds and yeasts can stay in the body and grow under the “right” conditions. A well-known example is yeast, candida albicans, normally found in the digestive tract. Yeast grows when there is a digestive imbalance. Signs include oral thrush, vaginal yeast infections, diarrhea, constipation, flatulence, and irritable bowel disease. Candidiasis can be diagnosed with a stool test. Treatment is with an antifungal enzyme supplement (such as Candex or oil of oregano), following a yeast-free diet, and taking a probiotic to reintroduce floral balance.

  • Laboratory/Diagnostic testing for yeast and fungal Infections
  • Antibody testing (Candida, specific molds, fungi)
  • Fungal stool culture and stool smear (false negatives happen)
  • Nasal swab fungal analysis
  • Organic acids: D-arabinitol (false negatives happen)
  • Room analysis for molds and fungi (Petri dish culturing)

Small-bowel bacterial overgrowth (SBBO). If you have symptoms of indigestion, especially gas and bloating, with diarrhea, irregularity and abdominal pain, this can signal bacterial overgrowth in your small intestine. Like candidiasis, this overgrowth is common, but it is the underlying conditions that favor those organisms, which allows the overgrowth to happen. This must be examined to be sure that the problem does not reoccur. The presence of SBBO can be verified using breath testing. SIBO is harder to diagnose but when treated can make a huge overall difference.

Parasites. Your GI tract has many good microbes, but harmful ones exist as well and can be the culprit to many symptoms. “Don’t drink the water” is good travel advice, but there are other ways to get a parasite infection, such infected pets, farms, contaminated foods or surfaces, even walking barefoot on contaminated soil can infect you with a parasite.

Intestinal parasites usually cause diarrhea and abdominal pain, with flatulence, cramps, blood or mucus in the stools. They also cause other symptoms (seemingly unrelated), such as fatigue, fevers, chills. There have also been symptoms like rashes, hives, arthritis, and foggy thinking.

When you talk with your healthcare provider, ask for a panel of tests to determine the specific organisms that are causing the infection, and then you can be treated just for that. Some of the more common organisms that cause trouble include giardia, klebsiella, cryptosporidia, blastocystis hominis, entamœba histolytica, and helminths (flatworms and roundworms). Sending a stool sample to a laboratory that specializes in ova and parasites (O&P) will return more accurate results than using a general lab. At Women to Women we often use Genova Diagnostics Comprehensive Parasitilogy CP x 2 test for our diagnostics.

Digestive biochemical deficiencies testing

You digestive system has an extraordinary way of using the nutrients that you provide your body. Good digestion needs biochemicals to breakdown, assimilate, and eliminate nutrients. These include digestive enzymes, regulatory digestive hormones, stomach acid, and bile acids. Women can be deficient because of long-term digestive imbalance or other genetic factors. The CDSA panel (described previously) includes an evaluation of enzyme and acid sufficiency.

Enzyme deficiencies are treated depending on the enzyme levels. Certain foods and herbs increase enzyme creation, while in other cases supplemental enzymes might be needed.

If you have low stomach acid (hypochlorhydria), your stomach doesn’t produce enough hydrochloric acid – needed to breakdown proteins in your food and assimilate them in your intestines. The acid also fends off pathogens that you ingest. Unfortunately, the symptoms of low stomach acid and excess stomach acid are similar. Many women use acid suppressants, such as TUMS, before the real problem is discovered. This deficiency can often be corrected by using betaine-HCl supplements. It is available over-the-counter, but betaine HCl should only be taken with the guidance of a functional medical practitioner. If you use it improperly, it can cause harm.

This article has reviewed just a few of the indicators of GI tract dysfunction and disease progression. Other digestive system concerns that can be tested include sufficiency of bile acid production, markers of malabsorption and dysbiosis (such as organic acids), markers of oxidative gut stress, and sensitive markers of bowel inflammation (such as calprotectin and lactoferrin). Careful analysis will help determine and treat the cause of digestive illness. Many systemic issues are helped by understanding that the gut health and ill health can affect the entire body.

Don’t suffer with embarrassing and uncomfortable digestive issues any more! Take our quiz and get started today on alleviating those symptoms!

Healing Leaky Gut Syndrome – Open The Door To Good Health

womentowomen on January 2, 2014

by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP

It is not uncommon in my practice to have women come in with new physical complaints after major life events like having a baby. Ellen is a perfect example of one of these cases. She was diagnosed at a young age with lactose intolerance, and managed her symptoms quite well. She even went through not one, but two pregnancies without any issues and was able to digest dairy-products. She thought she had overcome the condition, until symptoms presented again at a particularly stressful time in her life. She was a young mother of two, her newborn had difficulty nursing, she was working full time, and had many uncomfortable gastrointestinal symptoms every time she ate – gas, bloating, even diarrhea. She was exhausted, irritable, and it all impacted her daily life.

As Ellen told me her story, I thought it sounded more like leaky gut, a digestive disorder that is not always at the top of many clinicians’ diagnosis list, but more common than you think.

Our digestive system influences everything. From controlling digestion and protecting us from hostile bacteria, to communicating with the brain – sending physical signals such as gas or hunger, and emotional feelings such as anxiety, stress, and even love. This complex union moving through the gut is often referred to as our body’s second brain, affecting our health physically and psychologically.

Not a “thinking” brain, our digestive tract actually has its own reflexes and senses, working hard to move things through our body, absorbing nutrients, and removing waste. Because of this complicated system of nerves and chemicals, sometimes these exchanges of information can veer off track.

It isn’t hard to notice when our gastrointestinal tract is off, changes in digestion can impact our daily lives. Whether it’s gas and bloating, cramps and diarrhea, fatigue, or even joint pain or skin rashes, symptoms can be uncomfortable, embarrassing, even debilitating.

More than half of my patients come in with complaints relating to a digestive imbalance, and many times I can attribute it to leaky gut syndrome.

[banner id=”digestive-chronic-gi-system-1″]

What is leaky gut?

Leaky gut is a condition affecting the lining of the intestines, creating a dysfunctional environment for proper digestion. It is also called “increased intestinal permeability”, because with leaky gut, the intestines lose some of their ability to filter nutrients and other substances. When this happens, particles of incompletely digested foods, bacteria, other waste by-products may leak through the intestines into the bloodstream. It is usually caused by some form of damage to the intestinal lining.

Our intestines are lined with cells, which are sealed together by something called “tight junctions”. In healthy intestines, these junctions work like gatekeepers, which essentially allow or prohibit particles to move through the gut and into the circulatory system. With leaky gut syndrome, particles can slip through the cells and tight junctions and literally leak into bloodstream or lymphatic system, and move freely throughout the body.

When the body recognizes these foreign substances and detects something is wrong, the immune system kicks in, and tries to fight what it perceives to be danger in the intestines. This causes inflammation and inhibits functioning. In this situation, a woman’s ability to digest food and absorb nutrients is decreased, and her immune system can become compromised. Impaired immune functioning here is extremely important, as our guts contain tissue known as gut-associated lymphatic tissue (GALT) which helps protect us from antigens causing food allergies as well as microbes carrying disease.

When the body is continually trying to repair itself from the effects of leaky gut, it can be caught in a never-ending cycle, especially when the source of the problem is not diagnosed. For example, if unrecognized food allergies are creating leaky gut, and the same foods are consumed over and over, a self- perpetuating, inflammatory cycle will be triggered, and the intestinal lining cannot heal.

Chronic inflammation in the intestines is a concern, because of the potential for its link to many serious disorders ranging from depression, osteoporosis, lupus, and multiple sclerosis to Alzheimer’s, heart failure, and more. Leaky gut may be also be linked to other gastrointestinal problems such as irritable bowel disease, Crohns disease or celiac disease, as well as immune system disorders such rheumatoid arthritis, and even asthma. That’s why I stress to my patients the importance of sharing all of their symptoms and concerns, no matter how small they may seem. As we examine each of the symptoms, we can figure out what may be causing them, and how to relieve them.

How do you get leaky gut?

Sometimes digestive problems originate early in our lives–such as lactose intolerance or food sensitivities. The problems may ebb and flow, especially during busy or stressful times. Other times we can develop issues related to taking certain medications or medical treatments that may have caused damage in our gut. Things like radiation, chemotherapy, corticosteroids, and even long term use of aspirin and antibiotics can wreak havoc with our intestinal flora, or the “good bacteria” that keep our digestive system functioning properly.

Any abundance of toxins in the system can burden our bodies. It is important to recognize imbalances and try to repair them naturally, before they lead to other disease and disorders.

How can I fix it?

In functional medicine, we look at the underlying causes of a disorder, and address it with a patient-centered focus. We evaluate lifestyle factors, environment, genetics, and history, and address individual aspects with a systems-oriented approach. The Institute of Functional Medicine developed a tool for clinicians to use when treating digestive disorders, called the Four “R” Program: remove, repair, replace, and reinoculate. I have added a fifth “R”, regulate. This method highlights effective ways to heal digestive imbalances.

1. Remove: Undertake an elimination diet

First we must stabilize and smooth the digestive tract. A 14-day detox cleanse is a gentle approach that helps eliminate common allergens, such as dairy, soy, gluten, sugar, yeast, and alcohol. It can help determine which foods may be contributing to symptoms. At Women to Women we work in partnership with our patients to help them manage and maintain an effective cleanse.

2. Replace: Investigate digestive aids

Oftentimes, using soothing digestive herbs, digestive enzymes, or other digestive supports, can help protect the lining from further damage, and coat the intestines while they heal. A functional medicine clinician can help determine which supports are best for each patient’s unique needs.

3. Reinoculate: Rebalance your gut flora

Friendly bacteria are important, and a well-colonized gut is vital to good digestive health. The good bacteria help abate the less-friendly ones, that lead to sickness and disease. Probiotics are an important way to re-introduce proper flora to the intestines. Proper diet, including fiber-rich foods also establish microfloral balance.

4. Repair: Rebuild your intestinal cells

There are many ways to repair and rebuild the intestinal cells and lining. Medical research continues to explore ways to advance this healing, naturally. Studies have shown glutamine is helpful for maintaining the structure and function of the intestine, and has been shown to improve damage from radiation and chemotherapy. Other therapies include methionine and N- acetyl cysteine, larch, kiwifruit, and zinc to aid in healing. It is important to work with a clinician to establish the best ways to treat and repair your digestive tract.

5. Regulate

Finally, we need to pay attention to how we feel when we eat, where and how we eat, and of course what we eat. First, we should avoid anything that we know causes GI upset. We should have our meal in a relaxed setting, eat slowly, and chew our food thoroughly. Digestion begins with an antibody in our saliva called secretory IgA (sIgA), which is an indicator of digestive immune function. Found throughout the digestive tract, sIgA is our first line of defense against bacteria and along with relaxed, healthy eating, is important to our entire immune system.

With time, patience, and a little extra help, Ellen was able to heal her leaky gut. Her life turned around, and she began to enjoy eating again, as well regain confidence that she could go out without fear of running to the bathroom! Leaky gut syndrome is not yet fully understood, but is real. The symptoms may be different for everyone, but identifying and isolating the cause can help eliminate this distressing disorder. I firmly believe digestion is the foundation of our overall health, and by nurturing and improving this very important function naturally, we can open the door to better health.