Dr. Roy Settergren Presents Case Study at Fascia Congress

Dr. Roy Settergren Presents Case Study at Fascia Congress

Antioxidant DNA Support- Glutathione

Glutathione is an antioxidant which is found in all the cells in our body, providing protection from free radicals and peroxides. It is the main endogenous (naturally created) antioxidant produced by our bodies, and its principal role is to neutralize free radicals and reactive oxygen compounds. It also helps to maintain exogenous (externally created) antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E (in their reduced active form).

Although glutathione is produced naturally in our bodies, levels can be boosted in a number of ways. These include intravenous delivery, certain foods, nasal sprays, creams and glutathione supplements. However, the most effective method (taking into account results, ease of use and cost) is liposomal glutathione, that overcomes the problem other orally taken glutathione supplements face when trying to get through the gastrointestinal tract.

The benefits of glutathione are almost endless and this antioxidant is essential in helping the immune systems to work to its full capability.

Glutathione levels tend to lessen as we get older and this may account for the many diseases that are associated with the ageing process, such as cataracts, Alzheimer’s disease, MS (Multiple Sclerosis), Parkinson’s, atherosclerosis and others. By increasing glutathione levels it may be possible to reduce, or even eliminate these risks.

There is some evidence to suggest that higher levels may also be able to combat certain fats in the bloodstream, including cholesterol. Controlling the plaque formation in the arteries would be an important step in avoiding heart disease and strokes.

Those who suffer from diabetes can expect a variety of problems in later life, or much sooner if they fail to control their blood sugar levels adequately. This can include (but not limited to) circulatory problems, heart disease, kidney failure and blindness. A large percentage of the population (worldwide) suffer from diabetes, which can be type 1 (insulin dependent), or type 2, which is often controlled by diet alone. Glutathione may provide a more natural solution to the problem and in some cases eliminate the disease altogether.

Some doctors have already used substances to increase glutathione levels, in order to treat lung diseases, including asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. It is also hoped that it may help those who are suffering from lung damage caused by smoking cigarettes, pulmonary fibrosis and other related illnesses.

Even the stomach and intestines can benefit from glutathione, as it helps stomach ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, pancreatitis and Crohn’s disease.

With ever increasing exposure to dangerous chemicals, it is comforting to know glutathione can also help to eliminate many carcinogens and provide protection against heavy metals like lead and mercury.

Increased glutathione levels can provide greater strength and endurance, which may explain why many athletes have taken to using these supplements. Strong physical exercise can create a situation that generates “free radicals”, which can cause muscle fatigue and of course harm the performance of the athlete. Many have also found that they are able to recover more quickly from injuries, but perhaps more importantly, they are able to compete at a much higher level.

Many people without health problems are also taking glutathione supplements, as a precaution against problems that may develop in the future. Higher levels appear to give increased protection against infectious diseases and pre-cancerous cells. It is also strongly believed that it can slow down the ageing process as well.

The liver, which is the main organ in our body for filtering out unwanted products, is where you will find the highest concentration of glutathione. Increased levels are known to restore the normal function of the liver.

"Health" Food

I was just reading some statistics about some of the "healthy" Mcdonalds foods.  I find it interesting that fast food chains make claims that they are putting efforts toward a healthier choice for customers.  That  they are not to blame or have an impact on the prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension in our society.  Looking for a "healthy" breakfast alternative at McDonald's.... their oatmeal is a great choice......it has ten fewer calories than either a cheeseburger or an egg McMuffin and more sugar than a snickers bar.  Sounds very "healthy" to me.

McDonalds is not the only company that does this, so my advice is: If you are not making your own food that is unprocessed and natural, be careful of what is actually IN the food your eating.  You are not likely consuming what you think you are.

Be a smart consumer, and do your homework.  It will pay off in the long run with healthful benefits.

Natural Cholesterol Modifiers

Increased blood cholesterol levels are a major modifiable risk factor associated with coronary artery disease. Dietary intervention combined with exercise is the first line of approach and reduction in the LDL levels and reciprocal increase in HDL levels, this combination has been found to reduce the risks. Several Studies have shown that there is an inverse relationship between the fiber intake and cholesterol levels. Dietary fiber is the part that is not digested in the human small intestine. They pass through the intestines and are processed by gut bacteria. These bacteria in turn secrete a byproduct that the intestinal cells (enterocytes) use as a source of nutrition.  Dietary fibers are mainly classified as soluble and insoluble .The insoluble fibers are those that have a  structural matrix such as lignins, cellulose and hemicellulose. The soluble fibers form a gel when combined with water such as pectins, gums and mucilages.

The soluble fibers are found in a variety of food products such as peas, soybeans, oats, plums, prunes, bananas, pears, apples, broccoli, carrots, Jerusalem artichokes, sweet potato, and onions, etc. Examples of insoluble fiber include whole grains, wheat, flax, hemp, green beans, Cauliflower, avocados, and kiwifruit. An adequate intake of total dietary fiber (soluble plus insoluble) has been set to 38g/day for men and 25g/day for women. This intake level has been found to have a protective effect against coronary artery disease as well as decreasing risk of diabetes and insulin resistance.

The effects of dietary fiber in lowering cholesterol are due to its effect on absorption and enterohepatic (gut to liver) recirculation of bile acids and cholesterol. As the fiber binds with bile acids and cholesterol they follow the fiber as it is excreted in feces.  This makes liver to synthesize more cholesterol for bile acid production thus reducing total circulating cholesterol. In addition to this the absorption of macro-nutrients such as fats and carbohydrates is also delayed. This leads to increased insulin sensitivity and decreased triglyceride concentration also considered a risk factor for CAD. Consumption of soluble fiber delays gastric emptying thereby slowing the process of absorption. This in turn lowers the post prandial (post meal) glucose levels and promotes satiety (a feeling of fullness).

Dietary fiber intake has also been associated with decreased risk of duodenal ulcers, promotes laxation and improves constipation, prevents diverticulosis and colon cancer.A number of trials have concluded that increasing intake of total dietary fiber can lower risk of coronary heart disease.  The strongest data are for oat products, beans and psyllium. These have been found to reduce serum total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels.

Vital Vitamins

Why Should You Not Stop Taking Vitamins?

A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine examined  38,772 women and found that “several commonly used dietary vitamin and mineral supplements MAY be associated with increased total mortality”. The greatest risk found was from taking iron after menopause (which is never prescribed unless the woman is anemic).

When performing research, you only get answers to the questions you ask. And in this case, the question was if there was an association between taking vitamins and death in older woman. This study was designed to look for or “observe” correlations. Studies like these look for clues that should then lead to further research, they are not designed to guide clinical medicine or to give public health recommendations.

 There is an overwhelming body of research that proves Americans as a whole are nutrient deficient, and that nutritional supplements have a significant impact in disease prevention and health promotion.

 
Overwhelming basic science and experimental data support the use of nutritional supplements for the prevention of disease and the support of optimal health. The Lewin Group estimated a $24 billion savings over 5 years if basic nutritional supplements were used in the elderly. Numerous literature reviews in the Journal of the American Medical Association and the New England Journal of Medicine also support nutritional supplimentation. Interventional trials have proven benefits tme and time again.

Saying that suppliments are harmful contradicts numerous studies published over the past 40 years. A number of experimental controlled studies (the standard for proving cause and effect relationship), over the past few years found positive outcomes with nutritional supplimentation for many different diseases. These include the use of calcium and vitamin D in women with bone loss, folic acid for cervical dysplasia, iron for anemics, B-complex to improve cognitive function, vitamin C, E, and carotenoids to decrease risk of macular degeneration.

Nature doesn’t work by giving you only one vitamin or mineral. We all agree that broccoli is good for you, but if that were all you ate you would be malnurished and die. The same is true of vitamins. Nutrients are not drugs, so they cannot be studied as drugs as drugs are. They are meant to be part of a biological system where all nutrients work as a team to support your biochemical processes.

Fat Burning Engine

Wouldn't it be fabulous if there was a way to take one area of your body, like your butt, your abs, the back of your arms, or your thighs, and make all the fat in that area disappear by doing one particular, magical exercise? Unfortunately, there isn't.

But with a few tweaks to your exercise regimen, you actually can pseudo "spot reduce.”But what you should know is how fat burning actually works. Imagine you have a big barrel of oil in the trunk of your car. Even though your car's engine uses gasoline, and oil is used to make gasoline, all that oil in your trunk isn't doing you a bit of good unless it somehow gets converted into gasoline and put into your engine!  Think of all that fat around your waistline like the oil in that car's trunk. You can't just take the fat and burn it right where it is. Your body must first convert the fat into a form of fuel that it can actually use for energy. That is done by mobilizing the fat, sending it to the liver, and breaking it down into fatty acids, which can be then used for energy.  When your body needs energy, it doesn't take it from a single body part. Instead, it takes fat from all over your body. So if you're trying to get rid of fat on your stomach by doing hundreds of crunches, you might be using a little bit of fat from your waistline for energy, but also a bit from your thighs, your calves, your forearms, and your chest.

So to pseudo target fat, you need to include a few extra steps in your workout regimen:

#1: Tone
Perform exercises that specifically work the muscles of the body part that you are trying to "spot reduce." So for the back of your arms, you could add circuit of dips, narrow-grip pushups several times per week. This will increase the tone of these muscles, and which will appear more lean.

#2: Burn
You also need consistent fat-burning cardio sessions and intervals, preferably a mix of long slow cardio sessions and high intensity cardiovascular intervals.

#3: Don't Constantly Fuel
In the same way that your car is going to stay completely full of fuel if you stop at every gas station you happen to pass, your body is going to stay full of fuel if you have no dietary moderation or you're frequently snacking. You must enable yourself to tap into storage fat by limiting calories and frequent eating….and yes, it's a myth that "snacking" increases your metabolism

Nutty Way to Lower Breast Cancer Risk

Nutty Way to Lower Breast Cancer Risk

The latest on links between breast cancer and diet suggests that consuming an abundance of vegetables, fruits and legumes may help women cut their risks of one type of breast cancer. Researchers have reported that those whose diets were rich in plant foods, while low on meat, sodium and processed carbohydrates had a 20 percent lower risk of developing estrogen-receptor-negative breast cancer, malignancies that account for about 25 percent of all cases. Here, breast cancer cells lack receptors for estrogen. When estrogen receptors are present, as they are in most cases of breast cancer, treatment can include tamoxifen and other drugs to "block" estrogen's access to cells, thus reducing the risk of recurrence. No drugs are currently available to reduce the risk of recurrence of estrogen receptor negative breast cancer. Studies have shown that breast cancer risk drops significantly when a regular diet includs walnuts in an amount of about 2 ounces a day. These findings don’t prove that eating vegetables - or walnuts - are directly responsible for the reported risk reductions, but suggest that follow up studies are worth pursuing.

My take? While there's no surefire dietary strategy to prevent breast cancer, we do know that women who gain weight as adults are at higher risk, as are women whose diets include the most meat (compared to women who eat little or no meat). In addition to watching your weight and eating less meat, I also recommend avoiding alcohol (drinking can raise your risk), eating lots of cruciferous vegetables, which give you protective phytonutrients, exercising regularly, which can help lower your risk of many diseases, and avoiding the long term use of estrogen replacement therapy at menopause.