Is shock therapy the answer to “cure” obesity?

10. August 2014 Lisa G (0)
The next obesity “fix” may be hitting the market known as "VBLOC therapy”.  This implanted device delivers intermittent electrical "blocking signals" to the intra-abdominal vagus nerve.  According to the manufacturer, the device "reduces sensations of hunger and produces satiety leading to weight loss.”

Seems to me like another classic case of conventional healthcare proposing surgery or medications to address the obesity epidemic. Pharmacologic treatment and bariatric surgery have been offered for years to win the battle of the bulge.  As a registered dietitian, who years ago begrudgingly counseled patients prior to undergoing bariatric surgery, I have seen countless people re-gaining all (if not more) of the weight lost after the first year of surgery. Same goes for pharmalogical interventions, such as Phentermine.  Sure it worked in the short-term.  But in every single case, when the medication was stopped, as it is not FDA approved for long-term use, the weight came creeping back.

My take on the releasing a significant amount of weight does not require going under the knife.  How about this instead? Address the cause of increase hunger and appetite.  This is a crucial missing link for many undergoing surgery or using medication(s) as a “solution”.  Not addressing the cause of increased hunger and ravenous eating behaviors precipitously results in rebound weight gain.  Rather than sending an electrical pulse to a nerve in the stomach, maybe the FDA should consider a Cureality-based nutrition program that is wildly successful stimulating a “side effect” of weight loss.  Wheat elimination offers a surgery-free option that reduces hunger and insistent drive to eat every few hours, thanks to freedom from gliadin driven appetite stimulation.  Weight loss is common experience due to reduced hunger and subsequent intake. Give it a try.  What else do you have to lose, but some love handles?

--Lisa Grudzielanek, MS,RDN,CD CDE
Cureality Nutrition & Health Coach

Are Your Beauty Products Toxic?

10. August 2014 Lisa G (0)
As a nutritionist and self-care advocate, I am very careful about what I put in my body.  Health benefits experienced through proper nutrition are well understood.  We avoid highly processed foods, wheat-based products, and sugary snacks because we know that are “unhealthy” for us.  But what about what we put on our skin?

An important piece of the health and wellness puzzle is not only what is on the end of our fork but on our toothbrush, slapped on our bodies and rubbed into our hair.  Skin is the largest organ and what we place on it on a daily basis penetrates the skin, enters the fat stores and contributes to the toxicity and adiposity of our bodies.  According to the Environmental Working Group, the average woman uses 12 beauty products per day, containing about 168 ingredients.  Yikes!

I’ve often held a high suspicious that endocrine disruptors such as parabens, triclosan, fragrance, and other punitive chemicals are a key suspect in the root cause of my endocrine disruption.  Interestingly, scientific evidence is now emerging to support this suspicion.

A few months back, I took a look at my hair, skin, and cosmetic products. I was shocked and horrified.  Parabens, an estrogen-mimicking preservative linked with endocrine disruption, was in dozens of products.  It reminded me of how I felt on that day years ago when I threw out all the products in my kitchen that contained wheat.  What are parabens not in?  Why was it in so many products?

In our next episode of Cureality Connections we will discuss key skin and beauty product chemicals to avoid along with other steps to take to attain beauty from within.

--Lisa Grudzielanek MS, RDN, CD, CDE

Top 3 Strength Training Exercises for Runners

28. July 2014 Amber B (0)
First and foremost, if you’re a runner and you’re not strength training you need to start.  This in and of itself could be an entire blog article.  But here I go with the synopsis. 

Strength training will indirectly help you run longer and faster.  Strength training exercises can improve your running mechanics, so that you run more efficiently.  Efficient running mechanics will lead to less wasted energy with each step and less injuries. 

Think about it.  You will take 80 to 90 steps per foot each minute you run.  If you have muscular imbalances that lead to joint mobility or stability issues you will move through an improper range of motion with each step. 

When you run for 30 minutes you take 2700 steps with each foot for a combined 5400 steps.  That could be 5400 steps of feet rolling in, rounded shoulders, wasted side to side movement or just pure pain.  Needless to say, when you are an endurance athlete it’s important that each step and every workout is adding to improved performance not to injury or fatigue.

The key to becoming a better runner is consistency.  For most runners, injuries are the biggest disrupter of consistent training.  Runners get a few good weeks or months of training, and then they are injured.   That means time off, loss of motivation, and a decrease in fitness. 

Strength training with proper form 2 to 3 times a week will reduce the onset of injuries and improve your running form.  Here are my top 3 strength training exercises for runners. 

Bulgarian Split Squat

You will need a bench, chair or stepper to perform this exercise.  Start by doing this exercise with just body weight and then progress.  The progression could include holding dumbbells, kettlebells or a barbell.  You can also make this exercise explosive. 




 
  • Place the to top of your back foot on.  If you are having a hard time with balance, flex your back toes and place them on the bench.   
  • Stand in a staggered stance about 2 to 3 feet wide.  This should allow your knee to bend while keeping your knees behind your front toes. 
  • Inhale as you begin to bend both knees. 
  • Focus on your back knee pointing straight down toward the ground and your body weight in your front heel.   
  • Keep your front kneecap inline with the 3rd toe of the front foot. 
  • Exhale as you straighten both knees to come back up to standing.  
Start with 10 repetitions on each leg and progress to 15. 

Calf Lowers

Use a stair or a stepper to perform this exercise.  Start by doing this exercise with just body weight.  The progression would include holding a dumbbell in one hand. 


 


  • Place the ball of your foot on the stair while holding on to the wall or railing.   
  • Rise up on the ball of your foot as high as your heel will go.  Make sure you have weight evenly distributed on all of your toes and that you are not rolling onto one side of your foot. 
  • Slowly, lower you heel back to the starting position.  Try counting 3 to 5 slow counts to ensure you really focus on lowering part of the movement.   
Do 10 reputations on each foot to start.  Work up to doing 20 reputations on each foot. 

Band or Cable Row

How many runners do you see hunched over logging long miles.  This exercise is for improved running posture, which can lead to improved respiration. 

To perform this exercise, use a band or a cable.  This exercise can be done with both arms or with just one arm. 





  • Stand in a staggered stance with relaxed knees.  Make sure your ribs on stacked on top of your hips to ensure good posture. 
  • Grab the handles of the band or the cable in the thumbs up position. 
  • Start the movement by protracting the shoulder blades.
  • Then bend the elbows straight back so that your biceps are close to your rib care.  Keep  your knuckles forward. 
  • To release, begin to straighten your elbows and bring your shoulders back to the starting position. 
Start with 10 repitions and work up to 20.  To increase difficulty, use a more difficult band or more weight on the cable system. 

Here’s to improving your running mechanics so that you can train more consistently.  Can’t wait to hear about the PR at your next race. 

How did Cureality get its start?

27. July 2014 William Davis (0)



In the Cureality program, we embrace information and strategies that empower you in health without drugs, without hospitals, without procedures. We convert your doctor from director of healthcare to your assistant in health. He or she is there when you need help, but you largely direct your own health future.

How did we gain the know-how, information, tools, even chutzpah to take on such an ambitious project?

It started around 10 years ago with the awkwardly named Track Your Plaque program. In fact, some of the current followers of the Cureality program are former Track Your Plaque members, having learned of the wonderful list of strategies that can be adopted to gain better control over, even reverse, coronary atherosclerotic plaque and risk for heart attack. They also learned that something special happens when you engage with other people with similar interests, all sharing ideas, insights, and resources to get the self-directed health job done. Over time, what started out as simply a source of better information for coronary health evolved into a self-directed coronary disease management program. We never set out to create something as wildly ambitious as a do-it-yourself-at-home coronary disease risk management program, but that is how it inadvertently turned out.

How we went from Information Provider to Health Empowerment Program

So we never intended to take on something so seemingly impossible as managing coronary risk on your own. But, because we armed people with such empowering, profound insights into better ways to manage their heart disease risk beyond “don’t smoke, cut saturated fat, be active, and take a statin drug”—the typical advice offered by doctors—they returned after an interaction with their doctors disappointed: doctors often declared such strategies unnecessary, or the doctor didn’t understand them—even when there were clear-cut clinical data already available to support their use. In other words, the patients—everyday people, not experts—knew more than their doctors. 

This flip-flop in the balance of knowledge made for some very interesting stories, like “Harold” (not his real name) who, having survived a heart attack and received a stent, was told by his doctor to cut his fat intake, eat more whole grains, exercise, take aspirin and a beta blocker drug, and reduce his cholesterol values with a statin drug. Upon learning all the additional information from the Track Your Plaque program, Harold returned to his doctor and asked “I’m not so ready to just go along with this idea of ‘reducing cholesterol’ to address heart disease risk. Because my goal is to gain as much control over coronary disease as possible, maybe even reverse it, I’d like to address some additional issues that I believe may be important. I’d like to have my advanced lipoproteins drawn to measure the proportion of small LDL particles I have, whether I have lipoprotein(a), an omega-3 fatty acid index and 25-hydroxy vitamin D level, and a thyroid assessment. Oh, and I believe I should also have an assessment of my inflammation status, perhaps a c-reactive protein and phospholipase A2, and my blood sugar status measured with a fasting glucose, insulin, and hemoglobin A1c.” Harold’s doctor was dumbfounded and speechless. Rather than reveal his ignorance, his doctor advised Harold that none of that was necessary, sending him on his way and telling him that he was fine.

But this left Harold with a sour taste in his mouth, having engaged in many online discussions with people who had followed conventional advice that resulted in more heart attack, more heart procedures—the conventional answers simply did not work. He also discussed his situation with people who had successfully obtained the additional information he sought, added it to their program and enjoyed dramatically improved health, including freedom from more heart attacks, heart symptoms, and heart procedures, as well as improved overall health. So Harold found an easy way to obtain the testing on his own. Within a couple of weeks, he returned to his online community and shared all his information. Within moments, he was provided useful discussion to help him understand the values, all leading to changes in nutrition, nutritional supplement choices, how and where to get the simple tools necessary, such as iodine and vitamin D supplements. He even entered his data, choosing which values he was willing to share with others, which remained private, allowing him to compare his own follow-up values several months later. Engaged in this process, self-directed but collaborative, he witnessed marked transformations in his health. Not only did he never again—over several years—ever re-develop heart symptoms nor require any more trips back to the cath lab, he lost weight, reversed a pre-diabetic sugar profile, improved his cholesterol values without drugs, got rid of the acid reflux symptoms he endured for many years, dropped his blood pressure to normal, enjoyed better mood, energy, and sleep. Slender, healthier, all accomplished without his doctor. 

Harold returned to his doctor for a routine follow-up. Slender, energetic, without complaints, on no drugs except the aspirin for his stent, the basic laboratory assessment his doctor ordered in front of him, his doctor admitted,” Well, I don’t know how you’re doing it, but these values look like a 20-year old substituted his blood for yours. They’re unbelievable. What drugs are you taking to do this?” “No drugs,” Harold replied, “I’m following a program to reverse heart disease, but it means doing some things that are different from conventional solutions.” His doctor closed their meeting with the signature response of doctors nationwide: “Well, I don’t understand what you are doing, but just keep doing it.”

Yes, Harold knew more about how to control heart disease than his doctor, more than his cardiologist. The cardiologist knew how to insert a stent or defibrillator. But deliver information that empowered Harold in all aspects of health from head to toe, while also dramatically reducing, perhaps eliminating, his coronary disease risk? As you now know, that is not what conventional healthcare does, nor is it interested in doing so, as it would relinquish control and threaten to cut off this hugely profitable revenue stream that drives “healthcare.”

Having managed to inadvertently create a self-directed coronary risk management program with such spectacular results and in probably one of the most difficult areas of all—heart disease—it became clear that a similar approach could be even more easily applied to many other areas of health, such as weight loss, bone health, cholesterol and blood pressure issues, diabetes and pre-diabetes, hormonal health, autoimmune conditions, and others. You can do it when empowered by safe, effective information, and supported by a community of sharing and collaboration. We don’t fire our doctors; they are there when we need them when, for instance, we get injured or catch pneumonia, or as an occasional resource. But doctors should no longer be able to get away with neglect, misinformation, or blindly directing you to the next revenue-generating procedure because you are empowered by the information and support you receive in Cureality.

As we get more effective in delivering this information and new tools to you, just imagine what we can accomplish in this new age of information and self-empowerment. The future for us is bright with ambitions for better interactive tools with Cureality expert staff, better ways to crowd source health answers, provide more engaging community conversation, all while the health insights that help accomplish our self-directed health goals get better and better. Each person that joins Cureality helps make this service more effective because your wisdom, insights, and experience are added to the collective knowledge. We are more powerful together than we are as individuals.

If you are already a Cureality Member, please add your comments and questions to the growing conversation. If you are not a Member, consider joining our discussions, as each new voice gets us closer and closer to better answers to take back control over health.

Sit Less and Move More.

21. July 2014 Amber B (0)


We sit way too much. Many of us have desk jobs where we sit for 8 to 9 hours a day. After we leave the office, we sit in our car to run errands. We follow that by sitting down to eat dinner. Our day ends by sitting on the couch to unwind by watching some television.

Many of us will be sitting a good 12 to 15 hours each and every day. Unfortunately the research shows that long hours of sitting can lead to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and even early death. Don’t be fooled that your workout is enough movement. You can still be active and sedentary.

How can you add more movement to your day? First, think about all the times you find yourself sitting during the day. Then come up with a creative way that you can get out of the seat and move your feet.

Here are a couple of examples:

Instead of driving everywhere, jump on your bike. The picture above is of the bike I use to go to work or run errands. Bike riding is great exercise, greener transportation and a great stress relief.

We spend a lot of time at work sitting in front of the computer or the phone. Prop your laptop on a bookshelf to create a standing workstation. You can also purchase a sit-stand workstation you can adjust throughout the day. Get a headset and stand during phone calls.

Walk during your lunch break. Walk to the coffee shop, the mailbox, and the dry cleaners. Get your errands done on foot or just enjoy a stroll outside.

Take a movement break every hour. Do some desk push-ups, squats or walk the stairs. Need to communicate with a coworker? Don't email, walk over and talk to them.

Human beings are meant to move, not sit in chairs all day. I want to challenge you to incorporate more movement into your day. I'd love to read your comments how you move more and sit less.

Have You Had Your Prebiotics Today?

11. July 2014 Lisa G (0)


Prebiotics and resistant starch may be the missing link to your digestive health. Indigestible fibers that allow healthy bowel flora to proliferate and thrive are often called prebiotics. They are also known as resistant starches, because they are resistant to human digestion. I recently had a client call the addition of resistance starch to her diet, “the missing link my body needed”.

A starch that resists digestion and reaches the large intestine becomes food for the healthy bacteria in the large intestine. These bacteria can break down and “feed on” the resistant starch thus providing the friendly bacteria with the fuel they need to survive.

Imbalance of the quantity and type of bacteria species present in the gut contributes to gastrointestinal illness, blood sugar imbalance, obesity, mood disorders, and immune system challenges.

Green unripe bananas and plantains are one of best sources for prebiotic fiber content with 27 to 30 grams of fiber in one medium banana. Green bananas are essentially inedible. They are most easily incorporated into diet by blending into a smoothie.

One mistake frequently made incorporating prebiotic fibers from bananas is consuming bananas that are too ripe. Once the banana ripens the resistant starch is degraded and become a digestible starch. Thus, no longer a good prebiotic fiber source. In fact, the riper the banana becomes the higher the glycemic (blood sugar) response.

It can be difficult to find bananas that are very green. I made several trips to my local grocery store to find these bowel flora champions. I find it helpful to ask the produce clerk to take a look at the shipment that just arrived, noting the day the shipment arrives, for the best chance to gobble up these green beauties.

In an effort to keep green bananas green I tried a few strategies. One that sounded promising was wrapping the end of the banana to prevent the ethylene gas, which ripens the fruit, from dissipating. You can see from the image this clearly did not work. After a mere two days the green bananas were no longer green. What I found works best is placing the green bananas in the fridge. This halts the ripening process. The skin of the banana will turn brown, which is normal, but the fruit inside is still good. I’ve kept bananas in my fridge for up to 8 days and they hold up well other than the brownish black discoloring that develops on the skin. The banana will be firm and require a knife to cut the skin off the banana.

If you’d like to learn more about prebiotics and strategies to support resolution of common gastrointestinal complaints read the recently release Cureality Guide to Healthy Bowel Flora by Dr. Davis. This guide is one of the many valuable resources available exclusively to Cureality.com members.
---Lisa Grudzielanek, MS, RDN,CD,CDE
Cureality Nutrition Specialist

Something is Better Than Nothing

2. July 2014 Amber B (0)


This past weekend I attended a fitness conference with an amazing lineup of presenters. Even after 11 years in the fitness industry, I love attending these events. I’m a lifetime student always learning more and honing my craft.

I went to a presentation by Al Vermeil about joint mobility, not knowing anything about him. To my surprise, Al was the strength and conditioning coach for the Chicago Bulls and the San Francisco 49ers the years these teams won championships in their respective sports. That’s a pretty impressive resume.

Al was a great presenter, full of fun and practical advice. During his presentation, Al said the following statement:

“Every time you miss a workout, the next one is easier to miss.”

This statement really hit home because I’ve seen this time and time again working in the fitness industry and in my own life. One workout is missed, then an entire week of workouts are missed, then it’s been an entire month of never setting foot back into the gym.

It’s easy to get thrown off your workout routine when life gets busy and days get long. So what do you do? Do you just trash your workout plan?

The all or nothing attitude is common when it comes to making health changes. Either you’re following your plan 100% or you not. I’m here to tell you that doing something is better than nothing. Doing part of your workout or a mini workout is better than missing an entire workout.

The other day I had the choice to do something or nothing. I had a full day of work meetings, video, and family commitments. Here is what happened. I did shorter variation of my joint mobility routine. I followed that with a quick kettlebell circuit of 25 kettlebell swings, 12 kettlebell overhead presses, and 12 kettlebell goblet squats. I did three rounds of this circuit. That’s it! The following day, I got back to my regular exercise routine.

Be consistent with movement and you’ll always see improvements. That’s the magic of exercise. You'll get better if you just do it.

What’s the Problem with My “Healthy” Bowl of Oatmeal?

26. June 2014 Lisa G Nutrition, Oatmeal (0)


Food manufacturers have clever ways to market foods to us. Unfortunately, many foods that have a reputation for being healthy are no more than junk food disguised as a healthy food choice. I commonly see people under the influence of a “health halo” effect. This is due to strategic marketing efforts. People overestimate the nutritional value of a food that is labeled “good for you” or they underestimate the negative impact of a food because it contains a healthful ingredient, like flaxseed or fiber. In fact, a recent study from the University of Houston found that terms on food labels such as antioxidants, all-natural, and gluten-free often are used to give an otherwise standard food a "healthy" halo, and influence consumption from the well- intended consumer.

Case in point-- oatmeal. We’ve all heard about the cholesterol lower benefits from soluble fiber contained in oatmeal. It’s blasted all over packages with a paid endorsement from The American Heart Association. However, that’s not the whole story. Most people enjoy a cup of oatmeal with one to two tablespoons of added sugar and fruit such as a ripe, yellow banana. In other words, let’s enjoy a bowl of “send my blood sugar through the roof” high glycemic oatmeal. The glycemic index of oatmeal is 55, and instant oatmeal is 83. Top that with more table sugar, glycemic index 58-65 and better yet top that with a high glycemic, ripe banana with a GI of 62.

Preparing one packet of regular instant oatmeal with one tablespoon of sugar and a medium ripe banana five days per week would result in the sugar equivalent of more than 5 1/2 cups of sugar per month!

Furthermore, the story many Americans are missing is all of that sugar intake, from their so-called “healthy” bowl of oatmeal, actually raises small-dense LDL cholesterol particles, increases blood sugar and contributes to insulin resistance, faulty gut flora, and belly fat.

How do we improve upon our bowl of oatmeal? Enjoy a bowl of hot coconut flaxseed cereal, eggs any variety of ways, or last night’s leftover salmon and vegetables.

The Cureality program provides tools, guidance, and support that does not follow the party line but rather offers nutrition solutions that address the underlying causes for proliferation of many chronic diseases.

Power in Numbers

25. June 2014 William Davis (0)


In his book, The Wisdom of Crowds, author James Surowiecki begins with the story of an ox judging competition in which 800 people—not ox experts nor breeders, just ordinary people attending a county fair—were asked to guess the weight of the ox. The competition was conducted by a scientist, Francis Galton, who held a low opinion of the intelligence of the average person, remarking that “the stupidity and wrong-headedness of many men and women being so great as to be scarcely credible.” He hoped to prove, by examining the various guesses, that the average person had no idea of how to judge the real answer. After all participants casted their written votes, Galton tallied up the total and averaged the result: 1,197 pounds—just one pound off from the real weight of 1,198 pounds. Few individuals actually guessed the correct weight themselves but, when the opinions of many were combined, the result was near-perfect.

Crowds can also be a source of irrational behavior, panic, and stampede. Witness any modern football or soccer game, for instance, in which fights break out over an issue as minor as a disputed call or a heckle. Or go back through history to the countless events when mass hysteria ruled, such as the Salem Witch Trials or Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds radio broadcast.

Let’s put aside examples of mass emotional chaos of the sort that causes crowds to stampede store doors on Black Friday. Let’s focus instead on conscious, considered, thoughtful opinions. We all accept that there are as many opinions on issues as there are people, not uncommonly with widely divergent views. But can we, as Galton’s famous experiment did, combine the opinions of many and come away with some fruitful insight—the correct answer? Just as the people participating in Galton’s experiment were not experts, so Cureality participants—a crowd-sourced collection of opinions—are not experts. If we were to poll everyone to identify their area of expertise or experience, it would likely include finance, the retail industry, raising children, or teaching—but not health. Yes, we have experts curating the direction of content, but we also crowd-source collective opinion.

Right now, Cureality is based on existing science, the philosophy of self-directed health, combined with guidance and community to help the participant along in the sometimes complex world of health questions. But as our processes and procedures improve, can we—like Galton’s ox weight guessers—come away with coalescent wisdom, answers to our health questions, near-perfect solutions to health conditions that have eluded the “experts” for centuries?

I think that we can. No, I know that we can. We enter a new age in information and harness the power of the crowd-sourcing of solutions, even when no single individual has the complete answer herself.

Use This Trick to Boost Exercise Motivation

23. June 2014 Amber B (0)


Are you been struggling to get your workouts in? 

Do you belong to a gym and find that you're not going?

Do you have exercise equipment sitting in your basement collecting dust because you find that you just can’t get yourself down there?

If you answered, “yes” to any of these questions you are not alone. Many people struggle with finding the motivation to exercise.

The problem here is that you have head trash going on. Head trash is that voice inside your head coming up with a million excuses that inhibit you from carving out a bit of time to take care of yourself.

Head trash will tell you that you’re too tired, even though a workout would give you a boost of energy.

Head trash will tell you that you’re too busy, even though you just spent a half hour on Facebook.

Head trash is barking at you to take care of others, even thought you know your health is important for you well being.

Head trash is a real conflict that can get in the way of our health and fitness goals. We start an exercise program with the intentions of a long-term commitment. But after the initial excitement wears off, we find our workouts occurring less frequently. Head trash begins to take over and soon we find ourselves not exercising at all.

Here is my secret for winning the battle over the head trash that keeps getting in way of your workouts. Tell yourself that you are only going to exercise for 10 minutes and evaluate if you want to continue. If you're truly too tired you can stop after 10 minutes. If you're truly too busy you can stop and move onto a task that needs your attention.

Making this deal with your mind that you are only going to exercise for 10 minutes seems reasonable. The head trash will become quite because your mind is convinced it has an out within 10 minutes.

I've used this 10-minute trick myself. I grind through the first few minutes, but then the magic happens. Once you hit the 10-minute mark your body takes over. Exercise feels amazing and your body is energized and enjoying the movement. You have tricked your mind to get over the hurdle of starting and now you’re in the exercise groove.

Try the 10-minute trick next time your head trash is getting in the way of your workout. You'll be amazed how your workout consistency improves.

Thumb your nose at swine flu

Thumb your nose at swine flu

29. April 2009 William Davis (35)
Judging from what we know about vitamin D, it is highly probable that it confers substantial protection from viral infections, including swine flu.

Dr. John Cannell of the Vitamin D Council (www.vitamindcouncil.com) first connected the dots, identifying the possibility of an influence of vitamin D on incidence of flu.

In 2006, Dr. Cannell reports noticing that the patients in his psychiatric ward in northern California were completely spared from the influenza epidemic of that year, while plenty of patients in adjacent wards were coming down with flu. Dr. Cannell proposed that the apparent immunity to flu in his patients may have been due to the modest dose of 2000 units vitamin D per day he had prescribed that the patients in other wards had not been given. (Since the hospital was run by the state of California, Dr. Cannell apparently had only so much leeway with vitamin D dosing.) While it’s not proof, it’s nonetheless a fascinating and compelling observation.

A similar conclusion was reached in a recent analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey demonstrating that the higher the vitamin D blood level, the less likely respiratory infections were.

Personally, I used to suffer through 2 or 3 episodes of a runny nose, sore throat, hacking cough, fevers and feeling crumby every winter. Over the last 3 years since I’ve supplemented vitamin D, I haven’t been sick even once. The past two years I didn’t bother with the flu vaccine, since I suspected that my immunity had been heightened: no flu either winter.

And so it has been with the majority of my patients. Since I began having patients supplement vitamin D to achieve normal blood levels (we aim for 60-70 ng/ml), viral and bacterial infections have become rare.

New research is uncovering myriad new ways that vitamin D enhances natural immune responses to numerous infections, including tuberculosis, bacteria such as those causing periodontal disease and lung infections, and viruses like the influenza virus. Enhanced immunity against cancer is also an intensive area of research on vitamin D.

Will vitamin D supplementation sufficient to achieve desirable blood levels confer sufficient immunity to swine flu should it come to your door? From what we know and what we’ve seen in the few years of vitamin D experience, I think it will in the majority. But I do believe that we should still heed public health warnings to avoid contact with others, minimize exposure to crowds, avoid travel to affected areas, etc.
Tags :

Comments (35) -

  • Anna

    4/29/2009 4:40:00 PM |

    Our family has had great results in regarding upper respiratory infections since getting our Vit D levels up to an optimal level (over 60 ng/ml).  While we sometimes do come down with a mild cold, the symptoms are now very short-lived and mild.  If we raise our Vit D dose by 50% for a few days at the first sign of a cold, the illness seems to stall and go away within 2-4 days.

    I've actually never had an influenza virus illness that I know of and only 1 flu shot about 8 years ago.  Other than my usual practices to maintain health, I don't plan to do anything different to avoid swine flu (even after visiting the home of one of my neighbors, who was exposed to one of the confirmed San Diego Swine flu cases - the single mother couldn't send the sick child to school, so she brought her to work).

  • arnoud

    4/29/2009 5:14:00 PM |

    Truly amazing, the scope and reach of the benefits of adequate levels of Vitamin D!  Even more amazing is that we are only now (recent years) are learning how essential Vitamin D is, while, sadly, adequate Vitamin D supplementation has not yet become part of main stream practice.

    As it is too early, not much is known yet about the current swine flu virus.   It is worrisome that it has been fatal for many people.  Interestingly, the deaths generally occur in the age group from 20 to 65 years old.  Could it be possible that these are the hard working folks who nearly spend every day-light hour inside office buildings and factories - no getting sun-light ---> not producing Vitamin D in their skins?   If Vitamin D shortfall is the critical risk factor, then this suggests a causal relationship could be identified?

  • Anonymous

    4/29/2009 6:42:00 PM |

    This post is a bit simplistic.

    I have been supplementing with Vitamin D for 1.5 years and my levels tested to where the medical enthusiasts for Vitamin D recommend it be.

    I've still come down with two nasty respiratory viruses over the past year.

    One of the other credentialled health bloggers I read suggests the exact opposite--the high levels of inflammation may protect against the flu.

    I don't think any of us know enough to make a call on this. The fatal 1918 flu killed people who had a robust immune response. It was that immune response that caused the pulmonary edema that killed them.

    The way everyone is grabbing onto this possible epidemic to support whatever their prized ideology might be, be it political or health-oriented gives a lot of insight into human nature but very little into how to deal with an emerging threat.

  • manny paul

    4/29/2009 6:53:00 PM |

    The World Health Organization raised its global alert level on the spreading swine flu virus Monday, but stopped short of declaring a global ...on swine flu worldwide

  • Anne

    4/30/2009 6:33:00 AM |

    I read that the reason why mostly young adults died in the 1918 flu pandemic was because their 'healthier' immune systems produced a “cytokine storm” which killed them whereas the weaker immune systems of young children and elderly people did not respond so. Where does that leave all of us with good immune systems then ? I've not had a cold for three years ! I don't want a “cytokine storm” reaction !

    Anne

  • pooti

    4/30/2009 11:30:00 AM |

    I agree with the cytokine storm threat for the newly emerging viruse strains of the H1N1 virus and also the H5N1 virus.

    But if you believe the information out there, most people didn't die of the swine flu during the 1918 epidemic. The majority of the enormous death toll from that epidemic was due to post viral/secondary streptococcus infection (a bacterial infection). So it really was the complications that killed them.

    Of course, you could apply the chicken and egg rational here and say that the reason so many contracted pneumonia and strep is because their system was compromised by the fluid generated as a result of the viral infection...(i.e. the CS).

  • Peter

    4/30/2009 12:43:00 PM |

    First reports of the H1N1 virus are that healthy people in their 20's and 30's are more likely to die from it than, say, old people who have lower D levels.  Might be better to stop vitamin D if the flu gets here and and the first reports turn out to be accurate.

  • Jonathan Byron

    4/30/2009 2:58:00 PM |

    There is some evidence that UV light and vitamin D levels are the seasonal factors that drive the winter flu epidemics. Not sure if this one may be a bit different, as it started in near tropical areas in the spring. But overall, there is good evidence that higher vitamin D leads to fewer respiratory infections.

    Another nutrient of interest is n-acetylcysteine, an amino acid that increases glutathione and other anti-oxidant/anti-inflammatory systems in the body.

    In this Italian study, twice a day acetylcysteine cut the symptoms of influenza by 2/3. The acetylcysteine group had just as many antibodies to the flu (indicating they were exposed) - but they were far less likely to go on to develop dis-ease from the virus, and when they did, it was usually much less intense.

  • Jenny Light

    4/30/2009 3:45:00 PM |

    One thing that I have yet to see reported in the media is the fact that Mexico City (the hot bed for deaths) has probably one of the worst air pollution problems in the world!  As this swine flu virus strongly involves the respiratory system, it should be no surprise that the already compromised lungs of these people can't handle it!  If there ARE deaths in the US (native citizens), watch them be centered in our most polluted cities!

  • StephenB

    4/30/2009 3:46:00 PM |

    I've just had an intestinal flu, despite my D levels being at 62ng/ml. My doctor said that it couldn't be swine because it wasn't respiratory.

    On the other hand, before supplementing with D, I would get one or more upper respiratory infections (usually bacterial) per year, and I didn't have any this year.

    StephenB

  • TedHutchinson

    4/30/2009 7:20:00 PM |

    Jonathan Byron
    Vitamin D3 also increases glutathione
    The role of vitamin D in the mental health of older adults"Not just that paper
    Dr Cannell Vitamin D council
    has several links to other sources confirming Vit d upregulates glutathione.

    I know it's only anecdotal but since I've raised my 25(OH)D no colds, no flu, no urinary tract infections (biggy for me as I must self catheterize 5 times daily and UTI's were persistent)

  • manny paul

    4/30/2009 7:26:00 PM |

    An NRI who flew to Hyderabad from Texas, the US state which reported the first swine flu death outside Mexico, was on Wednesday found to have the flu symptoms..
    swine flu to hyderabad

  • Anonymous

    4/30/2009 7:47:00 PM |

    Thanks for this POST!!!

    Another reason to run around with no clothes on when the "SUN" is shining and warm. Free Vitamin D....

    Has anyone done a study on nudist colonies, and the impacts of flu in these places...?

  • Dan

    4/30/2009 10:59:00 PM |

    The fact that this started in Mexico and so far has only killed Mexicans doesn't support your vitamin D theory.  I'm not saying its wrong or that I don't take plenty of D myself, just that it's premature to conclude D prevents this thing.  Also, the first patient to die was a door-to-door tax collector, and probably got mucho sun.

  • Dr. William Davis

    5/1/2009 12:19:00 AM |

    Don't forget that getting sun does NOT necessarily mean that vitamin D has been activated sufficient to increase blood levels to the optimal range.

  • Anne

    5/1/2009 7:11:00 AM |

    TedHutchinson wrote: "Anne Stoss Therapy from Dr CannellBiotech  etc"

    Ted - I already take a high dose of vitamin D3 and my serum levels are fine and my immune system great - which is why I'm concerned about a  "cytokine storm”  which was what they think killed so many people in the 1918 flu epidemic. A "cytokine storm"  happens when people have a good immune system, like us with our good levels of D ! That's why the people with poor immune systems, the eldery and very young, survived the 1918 pandemic: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytokine_storm

    Anne

  • TedHutchinson

    5/1/2009 2:59:00 PM |

    Anne
    If you clicked the links provided you would understand Dr Cannell was detailing how taking extremely large amounts of Vitamin D3 AT THE FIRST SIGN of flu MAY prevent the cytokine store.
    That was why I also provided a link to a supplier of cheap 50,000iu D3.
    I have raised my 25(OH)D to above 60ng. I think doing that will lower my chance of getting an upper respiratory tract infection but I also have a pot of 50,000iu/d3 in the cupboard and should things turn out worse than I expect I will follow Dr Cannell's suggestions to the letter.

  • Anne

    5/1/2009 6:31:00 PM |

    I couldn't find a reference to cytokine storm in Dr Cannell's article first time but now I have clicked on one of the links it in and it led to a study about vitamin D and influenza which mentions preventing cytokine storm.  Thanks Ted....now I understand !

  • Mike

    5/1/2009 6:43:00 PM |

    I located this reference document while visiting the Vitamin D Council's web-site, regarding Vitamin D and the Flu. Hope this gets widely circulated!

    http://www.virologyj.com/content/5/1/29

    You can find the links at their site under "Noteworthy News."

    Swine Flu and Vitamin D — 30 April 2009

    http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/

  • Anna

    5/1/2009 8:05:00 PM |

    Here's an interesting post on cytokine storms & the flu.  This researcher on inflammation seems to have views much in line with Dr. Davis and TYP.

    http://coolinginflammation.blogspot.com/2009/04/extreme-flu-remedies.html

  • Anonymous

    5/2/2009 1:23:00 PM |

    Notwithstanding the excellent information that the heart scan blog provides, I think we should all be cautious in drawing conclusions based on singular/individual experiences.
    Trevor

  • TICQueen

    5/2/2009 9:36:00 PM |

    Increase your intake of vitamin C. Vitamin C not only boosts your immune system, but in higher dosages has been shown to be an antiviral as well. The recommendation is to dramatically increase your intake at the first sign you may have been exposed to the flu. Search for "the Vitamin C Foundation" to find an effective dosage for you.


    You can get a complete Swine Flu guide at http://www.swineflurecommendations.com
    Ensure you are getting enough vitamin E in your diet. There has been at least one clinical study completed that links adequate vitamin E intake with reduced viral activity. Studies have also shown there may be a link between vitamin E and a reduced duration and severity of flu symptoms.

  • Hoop

    5/3/2009 2:12:00 PM |

    I've gradually dialed up my vitamin D3 dose over the last 8 years. Motivated by  hope of reducing my prostate cancer risks.
    I started at 2000 IU per day which dose didn't stop all my colds and flu episodes but since I reached 6000 (or more) I've had neither illness. I only take the larger dose during the Autumnn
    and Winter months and on those days
    when I miss the midday spring and summer sun. YMMV I suppose it still could be chance but so far so good.

    Dwight

  • maxthedog

    5/16/2009 12:13:00 AM |

    Regarding cytokine storms:  Vitamin D3, as 1-25(OH)D3 aka, "calcitriol" is said to modulate the immune response (in part) by way of upregulating the production antimicrobial peptides known as cathelicidins, and to a lesser degree, beta-defensin (cathelicidins are strongly expressed along the epethelial lining of the lung, for those interested in D3 and respiratory infections). This *does not* mean that taking vitamin D3 will increase the strength of the immune system's inflammatory response.  The opposite is the case:  vitamin D *increases* the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines and *decreases* the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, thereby throttling down the Th1 mediated immune response.  Think of it this way, you're out in the sun for a while, your skin becomes a bit red.. the body's response is to lower the tendency towards greater inflammation, while simultaneously upregulating the production of antimicrobial peptides that work by effectively cleaving bacteria and virus apart like a pair of scissors to paper.  Antimicrobial peptides do not work by way of releasing an oxidative burst in the way the Th1 mediated response works!  The immune system is far too complex to simply characterize it's behavior with words such as "strong" or "weak" - there is a whole lot more going on under the hood than such a simplistic view allows.

  • Anna

    5/16/2009 7:23:00 PM |

    Dr. Cannell has some info to that effect (anti-inflammatory characteristics of Vit D and flu-induced cytokines) in the newsletter that went out yesterday or today.

  • sadie

    5/27/2009 5:25:41 AM |

    I have been taking 5000iu a day of D3. My level is 23.9 so my GP wants me to take 50,000 D3 twice a week for 4 weeks and then once per week. I'm wondering if this much should be just to get the level up and then take a higher dose each day. And I'm looking for a higher dose gelcap of D3. Would appreciate others thoughts on this.

  • Amanda Crowe

    6/3/2009 5:18:08 AM |

    H1N1 (referred to as "swine flu" early on) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people. Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those caused by other influenza viruses. Health authorities across the globe are taking steps to try to stem the spread of swine flu after outbreaks in Mexico and the United States. The World Health Organization has called it a "public health emergency of international concern."

  • Ken

    6/16/2009 2:20:31 PM |

    Maybe in certain circumstances - like  being exposed to am infection such as swine flu - ingesting vitamin D is good for you. I still have to wonder - why is the amount made in a day of full body exposure to strong sunlight limited to 10,000IU in the first 20 minutes. Moreover that is just one way the potential levels of D are prevented from affecting blood levels; a high proportion of  ingested vitamin D is excreted in the bile according to Vieth.

    Somewhere along the line there's  a net disadvantage to constant high levels I think.
    Mad dogs and ....

  • Rebeca

    8/14/2009 12:42:49 PM |

    On Monday morning an Arkia airlines plane took off from Ben Gurion Airport carrying rabbis and kabbalists and flew over the country in a flight aimed at preventing the swine flu virus from spreading in Israel through prayers.

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