ProHealth’s Rich Carson calls it, “almost a miracle drug”. I call SAM-e the “triple threat”, for it threatens to vanquish depression, arthritis and liver dysfunction.  SAM-e is a powerful, natural supplement that can be superior to antidepressants and as effective as NSAIDs for osteoarthritis, without the negative side effects. Watch the video.  Learn how to use it and where to get it below.

IN THIS post, Rich Carson and Karen Lee Richards team up to laud the multiple powers of the natural supplement, SAM-e.  If you’d like to improve the health of your joints or liver, or could use a healthy mood enhancer, read Ms. Richards’ summary of the SAM-e research, and watch Rich Carson’s interview.

Rich Carson is my long-time friend, an expert on supplements and the founder of ProHealth, Inc. Karen Lee Richards is Lead Expert specializing in Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, for HealthCentral’s ChronicPainConnection.

You couldn’t find two better people to tell you about how SAM-e helps promote a natural improvement in the symptoms of osteoarthritis, depression and liver disease.

I call SAM-e the triple threat supplement – relief from joint pain, blue moods and liver ills.  I take 400 milligrams every morning.

Here, Rich Carson introduces you to the substantial benefits of SAM-e:

OK, now that you’ve absorbed the basics, I’d like to summarize some of Karen Lee Richard’s research on SAM-e from her article, SAM-e: a Hard-Working Molecule that May Help Ease Pain & Brighten Mood. (Thanks to ProHealth for reprint permission.)

Let’s start out by quoting Ms. Richard’s lead paragraph to set the stage:

“Clinical trials have shown SAM-e to be comparable to prescription antidepressants for depression and as effective as NSAIDs for osteoarthritis. But, as SAM-e supports the body’s natural mood and inflammation modulating functions, it doesn’t have all the negative side effects associated with those drugs.”

[I’d argue that SAM-e might be superior to prescription antidepressant, cause they’re ineffective for many users with mild to moderate depression, as Dr. Andrew Weil discusses in this post, Dr. Weil’s Four Alternatives to Antidepressant Drugs.]

Unlike most supplements, SAM-e (S-adenosyl methionine) is not an herb or a vitamin, but rather a molecule naturally produced in all living cells. It is sold as a dietary supplement in the U.S, although it is powerful enough to be designated as a drug, as it is in at least 14 countries.

Thousands of research studies have been conducted all around the world on SAM-e, investigating its supportive effect in those with many different diseases and conditions, including depression, osteoarthritis, chronic liver disease, fibromyalgia, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Let’s delve a bit into how SAM-e can help with each of these diseases and conditions.

SAM-e and Depression

Significant Improvement Seen in Major Depression with SAM-e

Based on my readings and simple, non-scientific self-experimentation, I’ve argued in Dr. Weil’s Four Alternatives to Antidepressant Drugs and A Little Depressed? 10 Actions That Help Me that antidepressant drugs are NOT the way to go for treating mild to moderate depression. (Get your doctor to weigh in here, cause I’m not one for sure!)

Consider three points that Ms. Richards presents about SAM-e’s value to helping with depression (and then note my comment right after):

•  SAM-e has been studied extensively over three decades as a possible option for those with depression, perhaps because 29% to 46% of patients with major depressive disorder have no response or only a partial response to pharmaceutical antidepressants. At this point, there’s an impressive body of literature suggesting the mood-supporting efficacy of SAM-e.

•  In an open trial, 20 outpatients with major depression were given SAM-e, beginning with 400 mg/day and gradually increasing to 1600 mg/day by day 12.  Nine of the participants had a prior history of not responding to traditional antidepressant treatment. All 20 patients showed significant improvement with SAM-e, including seven of the non-treatment resistant and two of the treatment-resistant patients who experienced a full antidepressant response.

•  A double-blind randomized trial compared the efficacy of supplemental SAM-e with the antidepressant desipramine in 26 patients with major depression. At the end of four weeks, 62% of those given SAM-e had significant improvement compared to 50% of those taking desipramine.

OK, here’s my note about the above three bullet points: The studies cited indicate what they indicate, but, frankly, I’d feel uncomfortable to suggest that people experiencing anything but mild to moderate depression trash their doctor prescribed antidepressants in favor of SAM-e.  If you’ve been diagnosed as having strong/severe depression or other psychiatric issues, DO NOT trash your prescribed drugs in favor of SAM-e; rather, take counsel with your doctor!

SAM-e and Joints

Impressive Results in Osteoarthritis Patients Using SAM-e

In her article, Ms. Richards continues with her review of SAM-e, citing how it can benefit those suffering from Osteoarthritis.

She reports that an estimated 27 million people have osteoarthritis, making it the most common form of arthritis.

(Below, I reprint Ms. Richards words; the bold words are my emphasis…)

The pharmaceutical treatment for osteoarthritis is non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) – either over-the-counter medications like aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen, or prescription medications like Celebrex, Relafen, Daypro, etc.

While NSAIDs can be effective pain relievers, their regular use can result in some devastating side effects such as ulcers and other gastrointestinal problems, increased blood pressure and kidney damage.

Notwithstanding the side effects, in the long run NSAIDs may actually worsen joint problems because they slow the production of collagen and proteoglycans, which help to make cartilage an effective shock absorber.

By contrast, SAM-e seems to support an anti-inflammatory response equivalent to the effect of NSAIDs, but without the toxic side effects. SAM-e does not harm the digestive tract, nor does it contribute to the breakdown of cartilage. Instead, one study shows it may actually help the body restore damaged cartilage.

•  A meta-analysis of 11 clinical trials involving 1,142 patients was done looking at SAM-e for support of osteoarthritis symptom relief. The study authors concluded, “SAM-e appears to be as effective as NSAIDs in reducing pain and improving functional limitation in patients with OA without the adverse effects often associated with NSAID therapies.”

•  A randomized double-blind cross-over study of 56 patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the knee compared SAM-e (1200 mg) with the prescription drug celecoxib (Celebrex 200 mg). The results showed no significant difference between the two – both patient cohorts demonstrated significant improvements in pain and joint function – leading the researchers to conclude that SAM-e was as effective as celecoxib in managing the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis.

•  In a German study, 21 patients with finger osteoarthritis were given SAM-e for three months. MRI scans done on their hands both before and after the treatment period revealed significant structural improvement in the cartilage.

SAM-e and the Liver

SAM-e Supports the Prevention and Improvement of Liver Disease

I’m still amazed when I think about how unique is the liver. The liver is unique because it is the only internal human organ capable of regenerating itself. Did you know that a liver reduced to 25% of its normal size could regenerate into a whole liver again?

SAM-e plays a leading role in that regeneration.

SAM-e is thought to be beneficial for those with liver disease by acting as a precursor of antioxidant glutathione; repairing the mitochondrial glutathione transport system; inhibiting the toxic effects of proinflammatory cytokines; and increasing DNA methylation.

There are nearly a thousand published studies documenting SAM-e’s ability to support prevention and improvement in liver disease.  Back to Ms. Richards:

•  In a study of hepatic glutathione levels in patients with liver disease, participants were divided into four groups. Nine patients with alcoholic liver disease were given SAM-e; seven patients with non-alcoholic liver disease were given SAM-e; 8 patients with alcoholic liver disease were given a placebo; and 15 normal subjects served as a control group. Prior to beginning treatment, all patients had very low hepatic glutathione levels compared to controls. Following treatment, patients receiving the SAM-e had a significant increase in their hepatic glutathione levels compared with both the placebo-treated group and controls.

•  When SAM-e was given to 62 patients with alcoholic cirrhosis in a clinical trial, they were significantly less likely to die or require a liver transplant within the next two years, compared with 61 patients who had received a placebo.

SAM-e and Fibromyaliga

SAM-e Is Promising for Fibromyalgia Patients

Although SAM-e has not been studied yet as much for support of fibromyalgia patients as for those with some other illnesses, the results thus far are encouraging. In one double-blind study of 44 patients with primary fibromyalgia, improvements were seen in the areas of clinical disease activity, pain, fatigue, morning stiffness and mood.

SAM-e and Alzheimer’s Disease

SAM-e May Help Prevent or Delay Alzheimer’s Disease

Since extremely low levels of SAM-e were found in the cerebrodpinal fluid and brain regions of Alzheimer’s patients in a 1996 study, researchers are examining the potential benefits of supplemental SAM-e in Alzheimer’s.(11)  A recent study stated, “…our findings suggest that dietary supplementation with SAM… holds promise as a therapeutic approach to prevent or delay AD. A preliminary study indicates that SAM can provide some cognitive improvement in AD patients.”

How to Use SAM-e

Facts About SAM-e You Need to Know

Dosage: Recommended therapeutic doses usually range between 400 – 1600 mg a day, although some individuals may require higher doses. Studies suggest that 400 mg per day may be adequate for osteoarthritis patients, while up to 1600 mg a day is often needed for mood support. The usual dose for those with liver disorders has been 1600 mg a day. (As with any addition to your health support regimen, supplementation with SAM-e should be considered only with the approval of your professional healthcare team.)

How to Take SAM-e: SAM-e works best when taken on an empty stomach. Because it is absorbed mainly in the intestine, enteric-coated tablets that allow it to pass through the stomach intact are preferable. Leave tablets in their foil or foil blister packs until you are ready to take them in order to maintain their stability.

Adverse Effects: There seem to be few adverse effects with SAM-e, even at high doses. Occasionally mild gastrointestinal distress has been reported. Since SAM-e can sometimes lead to insomnia, it is usually best to take it early in the morning. Because it plays a role in mood support, SAM-e may trigger manic episodes in people with bipolar disorder.

Contraindications: While there are no confirmed drug interactions with SAM-e, individuals using prescribed medications such as antidepressants, including serotonin re-uptake Inhibitors and MAO inhibitors, should consult a physician before using. Individuals with Parkinson’s disease, bipolar disorder or manic depression should not take SAM-e.

Some Final Words About SAM-e

The Data

The assertions reproduced here are footnoted by Karen Lee Richards’ article her from which they’re extracted.  If you’re interested in the studies she cites, please go to her article, SAM-e: a Hard-Working Molecule that May Help Ease Pain & Brighten Mood.

You’ll discover that more than three decades of solid research support the use of SAM-e to help promote natural improvement in symptoms of osteoarthritis, depression and liver disease.

Where to Buy SAM-e

I suggest you get it at ProHealth, where I get mine.  SAM-e has been one of the cornerstone supplements offered by ProHealth for many years because it’s useful for so many chronic aliments.

This is how I present it in the Products section of this site:

ProSAMe This supplement is a wunderkind – it helps to stabilize moods, support healthy joints AND liver function. It’s an important part of my arsenal, but I refrain from taking it all the time, as I like to check in, unadulterated, to see how my natural emotional well being is doing.

Note: I have an affiliate marketing arrangement with ProHealth, which means if you buy SAM-e from the above link, I will get a commission from them.  This does not at all affect the price you pay.  If you don’t wish for me to get a commission, simply go to ProHealth, search for SAM-e and buy it there.

Well, lots to digest with this post.  If you have comments or questions, please submit them in the Comments section below.

Related posts:

1. Do Depression Drugs Work?
2. Get Relief from Depression with Rumi
3. A Little Depressed? 10 Actions That Help Me

AS PROMISED in This Holiday, Overeat and Gain No Weight, posted on December 23, 2011, this is my report of how I fared following Tim Ferris’ protocol for binging without gaining weight.

IF YOU want to understand what’s going on in this post, please first read This Holiday, Overeat and Gain No Weight.

The idea is to do certain things during a day of binge eating in order to get away with adding all those excess calories to your mid section.  The basics involve:

-       Beginning the day with protein

-       Taking grapefruit juice before you binge meals

-       Drinking coffee and Yerba Mate tea

-       Ingesting certain supplements

-       Performing certain exercises at the right time

(At this point, you really should read This Holiday, Overeat and Gain No Weight.)

I confess right at the start that I didn’t prepare properly.  I wrote about the Tim Ferris protocol too close to my planned Binge Day, Christmas!

The plan for Christmas dinner was to go to my sister’s house.  I knew there would be all kinds of nasty, tasty food there for me to over eat.  The timing was good for the binging, but not good for acquiring the supplements recommended in Mr. Ferris’ protocol.

OK, with that said, let’s dive into what I did and what the results turned out to be.  First, what I ate, when I ate it and what else I did and didn’t do.

But before we launch into that, a little interlude brought to you by the Sunny Cowgirls singing, I Ate Too Much For Christmas:

Now that you’re properly tuned for this post’s topic, on to “My Binge Data”…

My Binge Data

This is the food eaten, when eaten, estimate calories courtesy of Google (for instance, search for “10 walnut pieces” and, magically, get 150 calories), as well as exercise sessions.

9:00 AM:

8 oz water with 1 Tbps of apple cider vinegar, 0

9:15 AM:

Protein drink consisting of — 6 oz almond milk, 4 oz water, 3 oz aloe vera juice, 20 grams whey protein powder, 3 Tbps flax seed powder and 10 grams Ultimate Greens. Approximately 120 calories.

5 raw Brazil nuts, 150 calories.

10:00 AM:

8 oz coffee with 3 Tbps low fat milk, 10 calories.

10 walnuts, 150 calories.

1 tangerine, 45 calories.

10:45 AM:

16 oz green tea, 0 calories.

2 dried figs, 70 calories.

6 oz orange juice, 100 calories.

12:10:

2 minutes squats, push-ups, squats, wall presses.

12: 15 PM:

200 mg alpha-lipoic acid, 0 calories.

200 mg garlic extract, 0 calories.

1 small oatmeal muffin, 125 calories.

6 oz coffee + 2 Tbps eggnog, 30 calories.

3 oz smoked salmon, 220 calories.

1 Tbps cream cheese, 35 calories.

1 sprouted whole wheat bagel, 250 calories.

3 slices tomato, 10 calories.

3 slices onion, 5 calories.

2 Tbps blueberries, 20 calories.

2:00 PM:

3 oz eggnog, 115 calories.

1 shot brandy, 65 calories.

3:15:

8 oz water + 1 Tbps apple cider vinegar, 0.

3:20:

2 minutes squats, push-ups, squats, wall presses.

5:30:

3 oz orange juice + 5 oz water + 2 Tbps psyllium husk powder (shake and drink), 50 calories.

5:45 PM:

25 pasticcios, 85 calories.

4 crackers, 50 calories.

10 almonds, 70 calories.

4 green olives, 45 calories.

2 oz cheese, 230 calories.

6:40 PM:

2 minutes squats, push-ups, squats, wall presses.

6:45:

12 oz salad, light dressing, 75 calories.

6 oz turkey, 200 calories.

1 oz stuffing, 108 calories.

3 oz kale, 43 calories.

2 oz sweet potato, 55 calories.

2 oz mash potato, 60 calories.

6 oz white wine, 150 calories.

12 oz beer, 150 calories.

12 oz green tea, 0 calories.

5 oz strawberry rhubarb pie, 400 calories.

14 peanut M&M, 140 calories.

9:50 PM:

2 minutes squats, push-ups, squats, wall presses.

10:30 PM:

8 oz water + 1 Tbps apple cider vinegar, 0 calories.

I’ll now grab the calculator and add up the calories…and the total is…

3,431 calories for my binge-eating day!

Now, if you’ve dutifully read This Holiday, Overeat and Gain No Weight as I instructed sweetly requested, you may now be snickering,

“Ha!  Ferris’s 6,214 calories blew the Garma-dude away!!”

Indeed he did, and I am humbled.  I really did try to eat more, but what can I say except to say that matching Tim Ferris in anything is a long shot — a statement that will be underscored as we get into BMR relative to calories consumed calculations.

A Primer on “BMR”

Let’s dig deeper into the calories consumed relative to Tim’s and my respective basal metabolic rates (“BMR”) – the calories a body uses at rest to maintain a body’s caloric needs.

In Ferris’ book, The 4-Hour Body, where I read about this “Binge Protocol”, he reports that his BMR over a 24-hour period is 1,765 calories, or 883 for 12 hours. To that he adds his estimate for calories expended that 12-hour day by walking and a twenty minute weight lifting work out, and then divides that total calories expended number into what he consumed – 6,214 – resulting in a net caloric intake of 6.8 times his BMR!

My BMR estimate is 1990.  As expected, it’s a larger number than Tim’s given that I weigh considerably more and therefore need more calories just to be a couch potato. (Get a crude estimate of your BMR as this calculation does not consider lean body mass – how much muscle vs fat you have on your body.)

On Binge Day, I walked two miles and did those two-minute exercises mentioned above, adding to an estimated calorie burn of 150 calories.  Add that to my BMR and you get a total of 2,140 calories expended on Binge Day.

3,431 in and 2,140 out, results in a net caloric intake of 1.6 times. Notice that 6.8 is a much bigger number than 1.6. I’m not even close to what Ferris achieved in terms of how many calories he consumed relative to his BMR. 

Surely, I should be able to match his feat of overeating without gaining weight.

Pay the Piper?  The Scale Speaketh

One hour ago, I stepped on the scale wearing the same clothes I did two days ago on the morning of December 25th, Binge Day.  Here are the results…

December 25^th weight:  216.4 pounds.

December 27^th weight:  218 pounds.

Yep, despite eating far fewer calories than Tim Ferris, I gained weight (1.6 lbs) and he lost weight (4 lbs).

I wasn’t able to test body fat as he did; those of you who read about his protocol will recall that his body fat percentage was actually a tiny bit lower two days after his Binge Day.

Spinning the Results

If you expect to duplicate the results of a scientific experiment, it must be precisely followed.  As I’ve noted, I fudged.  I did not have the specific supplements that Tim Ferris used and recommends for this protocol to work.

My hope was that some substitute actions would assist me in getting results similar to Tim’s.  Here were my all-too-weak substitutes:

-Rather than the grapefruit juice, I ingested apple cider vinegar as it mitigates blood sugar spikes.  I also tried orange juice to see if this citrus would work as well as that in the grapefruit juice.

-Of the four supplements, I had only, and therefore used only, two — obviously insufficient.

-Not having Yerba Mate tea, I drank green tea.  I also used the time-tested psyllium husk drink to pave the way to the exit door, thus underscoring Tim’s “Principle #2: Get the Food Out Quickly”, which did work, but could not overwhelm the other deficits in my reenactment of his protocol.

One other factor to consider is that on Binge Day, Tim did a 20-minute, moderate intensity weight lifting session.  I did not.  This could have helped measurably in boosting his metabolic rate over the next 24-hour period, and might have reduced the weight gain I experienced had I done the same.

Moreover, even though the next day, December 26th, was a scheduled exercise day for me, I did not do it as I had no information as to whether Tim exercised the day after Binge Day.  If he did not exercise and I did, I would be adding yet another curve ball in my attempt to maintain his protocol.

Lessons Learned

Despite not being able to overeat without gaining weight, can I justifiably feel that my interventionist actions reduced the pounds I would have gained if I had done nothing on Binge Day but binge?

Maybe.

This is near impossible to accurately know, or measure, because it’s very difficult to duplicate everything exactly, including what my body was doing on Binge Day and the intervening two days until weigh in.

Which underscores the soft spot in protocols like this one.

Given the difficulty for any of us not in the lab to reproduce an experiment, and given the uniqueness of our bodies and body biochemistry, one size does not fit all. What works for Tim or Joe (me) might not work for you.

That said, the science behind Ferris’ method seems solid, and I, for one, will endeavor to follow it more closely the next time I prepare for a Binge Day.

As ever, your comments are appreciated and may be presented in the Comments section below.

Related posts:

1. This Holiday, Overeat and Gain No Weight!
2. Sunday Summary: Weight Loss Truths, Weight Loss Steps and A Guide to Healthy Shopping
3. Lose Weight Without Dieting

Tim Ferris, author of The 4-Hour Body, tells us how to binge without gaining weight.  The secret is in the supplements, starting the day right, and a wee little bit of well-placed exercise. The end result: this Holiday, overeat and gain no weight!

WITH THE Holiday Season and New Year upon us, we will be overeating as if succumbing to an eating disorder.  Most advice on the matter is about eating abundantly of the good stuff while picking at the bad stuff.  This is a noble sentiment.  But during the Holidays, advice on how to prevent binge eating falls on deaf ears.

I say go for it.  Binge away! Overeat to your heart’s content. After all, it’s our Holiday Birthright.

Just do two things so you don’t pay the inevitable price of constipation, bloat and weight gain:

1. Choose one, or two at most, days to do your binge eating; and
2. Adopt the advice of Tim Ferris to prevent fat gain whilst you binge.

Number one is up to you.  Choose the day(s) when you’re going to the biggest food feast banquet of the Holiday season.

Number two is explained by Tim Ferris in his most recent book, The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman.

The rest of this post will explain the man’s methods for eating a bunch of high-calorie crap without gaining weight.  (Hopefully.)

The relevant chapter in Mr. Ferris’ The 4-Hour Body is titled: “DAMAGE CONTROL, Preventing Fat Gain When You Binge”.  There, Ferris tells the tale of his self-experimentation during a binge day, and his interventionist principles used to negate the binge calories’ propensity to create more fat on the ole body.

Tim Ferris on Binge Day

Tim meticulously recorded the food and drink eaten on binge day.  The calories total a mind-boggling 6,214! This was eaten by a thirty-something year old man who weighed less than 170 pounds at the time, and had then a basal metabolic rate– the calories burned without activity – of 882 calories over the 12 hour time period of total eating. (Calculate your BMR.)

My calculator tells me that on his binge day, Ferris ate 7 times the calories needed to sustain his BMR.  But, naturally, he didn’t stay in bed on binge day, so Tim estimated the calories he used from a very light calorie-expending day to be a mere 200, resulting in a net intake of 6.8 times his BMR!

Despite this amazing amount of overeating, remarkably, Tim was four pounds less and about the same percent body fat on the morning of the binge day as compared to 48 hours later. Specifically, on binge day he weighed 169 pounds at 9.9% body fat, and two days later weighed 165 pounds at 9.6% body fat. Remarkable!

At this point, the reasonable query is: “How did he do it”!

The Three Principles of the Lost Art of Binging

These three principles, says Ferris, are designed “to have as much of the crap ingested either go into the muscle tissue or out of the body unabsorbed”.

Principle #1: Minimize the Release of Insulin

If you’re familiar with Dr. Mark Hyman’s work and lectures, he is very focused on insulin levels produced by the body.  He links belly fat, high cholesterol, depression, fatigue, infertility diabetes and many chronic diseases – which he likes to roll-up into one term, “Diabesity” — to the overproduction of insulin.

[My post on Diabesity is called The Diabesity Epidemic – It May Be Coming to You.  I intend to post about Hyman’s PBS Diabesity lecture soon.]

The amount of insulin produced by the pancreas is diminished by smoothing out blood sugar spikes as a result of eating foods with high sugar content, such as white, refined, non-complex (“simple”) carbs (carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, etc.).

When the pancreas produces more insulin than the body can use, it becomes insulin-resistant, thus needing an excessive amount of insulin to do the same job of keeping blood sugar levels even. The high insulin level leads to an appetite that is out of control and the resulting weight gain gets concentrated in the most damaging part of the body — around the belly.   Belly fat!

Tim Ferris extols four actions to minimize the release of insulin:

1. On binge day, don’t make your first meal a binge meal.  That can wait till after your breakfast.  For breakfast, eat protein and fiber.  Aim for 30 grams of protein within a half hour of arising, and either mix fiber-rich food into that protein meal, or supplement with fiber supplements.

The protein can be eggs, meat or protein powder. The fiber can be legumes (lentil, pea, beans, chickpea, etc.) or something like flax seed  powder or psyllium husk powder.

2. Before your second meal of binge day – the start of your first “crap meal” (Tim, you have a way with words), ingest a small amount of grapefruit juice, which has a “near-flat-lining effect on blood glucose” (blood sugar).

3. Ingest supplements that increase insulin sensitivity.  Tim recommends “PAGG”, which consists of the following four supplements, along with the amounts of each he uses per serving:

1. Policosanol, 20 – 25 mg
2. Alpha-lipoic acid, 100 – 300 mg
3. Green tea flavanols, 325 mg
4. Garlic extract, 200 mg

You can get all of these separately at Lucky Vitamins, and a Google search found an all-in-one supplement called PAAG Supplements 2.0.  Lucky has good prices on all the top brands, but has slow mo shipping.  Don’t know anything about PAAG S. 2.0.

If you’re an Amazon shopper, there’s a page for all the PAAG-comprised supplements.

Note: Mr. Ferris took two doses on pig-out day, but says he would have taken up to three doses “If I’m going whole hog…”, which makes me wonder if he thinks 6,214 calories is half hog.

4. Consume citric juices.  These can be lime and/or lemon juice either in water or on food.

Principle #2: Get the Food Out Quickly

Proper eating is eating to maximize nutrition.  Nutrition is medicine, as Dr. Hyman and Dr. Weil like to say.  But on gluttony day, you want to absorb as little of the crap as you can.

This can be accomplished, Tim reports, by consuming caffeine and yerba mate tea.  Yerba mate tea is widely available and it contributes to this endeavor by offering theobromine (also in dark chocolate) and theophylline (in green tea).

He takes 100 – 200 milligrams of caffeine, or 16 ounces of yerba mate tea during crap eating.

Apparently, this concoction instigates focused toilet seeking.  I should add, you could similarly inspire this action by drinking down some psyllium husk powder (tablespoon) along with four ounces of apple juice and four ounces of water about one-half hour prior to crapmeal.  Simply shake in a jar and down the gullet before it all congeals into Elmer’s glue.

Principle #3: Perform Brief, Multi-muscle Contraction Throughout the Binge

Working your large muscles, even briefly, “brings glucose transporter type 4 (“GLUT-4”) to the surface of muscle cells, opening more gates for the calories to flow into”.

OK, that description might make a scientist cringe, but what you should take away from this is that there’s someplace for the glucose (sugar from all the simple crabs you’re binging on) to go, like to fuel contracting muscles, rather than building the midsection’s muffin top.

Here’s what to do: 60 to 90 seconds of squats (no weight but you), push-ups (on your knees if regular ones are too hard) and wall presses (feet three feet or so away from the wall, face it, hands on it, press chest to and from it).

Do the exercises a few minutes prior to and 90 minutes after the binging.  If you binge both at lunch and dinner, do this twice.

I’m Going To Do It!

Typically, I don’t binge on crap.  Instead, I may pick at the mashed potatoes, gravy and stuffing, and stuff myself with bird, veggies and salad.  (But here’s one time I surrendered to gluttony.)  This Christmas Dinner at my sister’s home, however, I’m going to go where the whims of the Binge God direct me.  I’ll do my own weigh in before and two days after, just like Tim Ferris.  And I’ll report back to you.

[Update: As promised, here's my attempt to "Overeat and Gain No Weight".]

In closing, I encourage to you try one or more of Tim’s “Principles” on binge day.  And if any of this intrigued you, know that you’ll find a bunch more “health hacking” in his book, The 4-Hour Body.  I encourage you to check it out!

Related posts:

1. Like Tim Ferris, I Try to Overeat Without Gaining Weight
2. Sunday Summary: Weight Loss Truths, Weight Loss Steps and A Guide to Healthy Shopping
3. Lose Weight Without Dieting

Since in America 2/3rds of us are overweight, knowing about the ultimate risk of belly fat is both urgent and important. The facts recently uncovered are shocking!  Learn about the damage that excess fat can do, and how to minimize the risks.

WITH THANKSGIVING one day away, this subject may be viewed as heresy because it deals with diet, but I just learned a few things from yesterday’s Dr. Oz show and if I don’t write about it now, it may elude me later.  Let me add that it’s important for you to know this.

As Dr. Oz reports, the science is clear, and what it says is disturbing given that about 2/3rds of all Americans are overweight.  What we know now is that…

Fat can cause cancer!

This eye-popping assertion was the subject of yesterday’s Dr. Oz show, where he and Dr. Kathleen Wolin, an expert on the matter, delved into how fat causes cancer, what types of cancer fat can cause and what can be done to mitigate the risk.

And the risk is substantial.  To underscore this, I’ll ask you a question.  What do you think has the greatest potential to cause cancer, smoking cigarettes or being overweight?

The answer: Both smoking cigarettes and being overweight carry the same risk of creating cancer – a 30% chance each.

What the studies now demonstrate is that belly fat not only increases the risk of diabetes and heart disease, the so called “diabesity”, but of four types of cancer as well.  The four cancers are: Pancreatic Cancer, Colon Cancer, Kidney Cancer and Endometrial Cancer.

If you’re overweight by more than ten pounds, and certainly if you’re obese, you now have a very big reason to take the bull by the horns and lose weight.  If you’ve tried before and weren’t successful, this is the time to seek help, particularly if anyone in your family had any of the four fat-influenced cancers, diabetes or heart disease.

A Special Kind of Fat

What is under scrutiny here is not all fat irrespective of where it is on your body, but belly fat.  Not all fat has the same damage potential.  The fat on your thighs is not as harmful as that hanging around your belly.

Belly fat is called the “omentum”. Omentum is defined by About.com to be:

“… a large fatty structure which essentially hangs off the middle of your colon and drapes over the intestines inside the abdomen to be It is a hormone producer that disrupts normative chemicals in your body. These hormonal chemicals can feed cancer cells and resist the immune system’s response to them.”  (Source here.)

Here’s what it looks like:  

The 4 Cancers that Fat Can Cause

The one common characteristic of the four cancers that fat can cause is that they are all in organs located in proximity to the belly fat, especially when the fat covers a lot of ground – left, right, up, down, out and round.

1. Pancreatic Cancer.  As you may know, the pancreas is deep in the abdomen below the stomach and liver, which makes it close to the belly.  The pancreas helps regulate how the body processes sugar by producing insulin.  If impaired, the pancreas may have difficulty producing insulin, which is the major cause of diabetes.  What’s now known is that a pancreas that can’t regulate sugar due to excess belly fat leaves it vulnerable to cancer.

Reduce this risk by eating foods rich in folates, such as eggs, asparagus, oranges and green leafy vegetables.

2. Colon Cancer.  The omentum lies over the colon and gets entwined within it.  The pernicious effect it has on the colon is through increasing inflammation and reducing immune function.

Reduce this risk by taking two “baby” aspirin daily in warm water so that it’s quickly dissolved. Another tip is to take a curcumin supplement, as this herb is very useful in reducing inflammation.  To increase immune function, consider the supplements listed in Power Up Your Immune System and Antioxidants Kill Free Radicals.

3. Kidney Cancer. Belly fat is a major producer of the hormone “leptin” which can fuel cancer growth as it helps the blood vessels that feed the cancer cells in the kidney.

Reduce this risk by lowering your salt consumption, increasing potassium, and eating foods such as bananas, apricots and broccoli (all high in potassium).

4. Endometrial (Uterine) Cancer.  The omenum fat excretes estrogen and bathes the uterine in it constantly, hyper-stimulating it.  This can result in cancer.

Reduce this risk by drinking a cup of coffee without sugar and cream.  The thought is that coffee helps stimulate metabolism which has the effect of reducing estrogen, although the science is not clear on this.  Personally, I rather drink green tea for the metabolic stimulating effect.  I do this and take the Green Tea Mega supplement.

A 35+ Inch Waist is Dangerous

How do you know if you’re carrying too much belly fat?  Well, I guess it’s a good sign if you’re unsure, for if it’s not completely obvious, you may not be in the danger zone.  But just to make sure, here’s how to measure your waist:

Take your tape measure and bring it across your belly button and hips.  You can suck your belly in. Look down at the tape and gasp!  If the measurement is more than 35 inches for a woman, or 40 inches for a man, you need to take some weight loss measures.

One important thing to point out here, particularly to those of you who don’t consider yourself overweight, and that is maybe tomorrow you will be. In fact, odds are that as the years unfold, so will your belly.

The reason is that the average American adds a couple of pounds each year as we get older. The weight sneaks up on us, and as it does, so do the cancer risks described here. Obviously, it’s really important that you pay attention and not be lax about what might initially seem to be the gaining of a few pounds.

[Here are Dr. Oz’s five life saving numbers you should know.]

Tips and Tricks for Weight Loss

It’s beyond the scope of this post to deeply dig into a weight loss system, and surely there’s enough information on the Web about that.  I can suggest a few things, however, to get you on your way.

1. Get educated on the subject.  On this blog, you can read Dr Oz and the 14-Day Reboot Diet Plan, Diet 101 and The Basics – My Approach to Health.

2. Choose a few things that you’re willing to do to lose weight and add one each week or so.  For instance, one week you can reduce your red meat consumption to two servings and increase your green leafy vegetables to five servings.  One week, walk x blocks, week two 2x blocks.

3. Recruit a buddy.  This person will keep you on your plan and vice versa.

4. Establish new, healthy habits that you do at specific time each day.  For instance:

- Upon waking, first thing, drink as much purified water as you can.

- Then consume 20 to 30 grams of protein, either a whey, hemp, pea or rice protein supplement, and/or eggs and beans… in any event, ALWAYS eat something balanced and good for breakfast (see #1).

- Throughout the day, drink water with apple cider vinegar in it, about one teaspoon per eight ounces, or if you can’t stand the taste that way, first put the vinegar in your mouth and then chase it with water.  Vinegar is a good fat emulsifier.

- When eating high glycemic foods (white food – wheat, rice and such, sugary foods, packaged foods) add some vinegar or cinnamon to slow down the blood glucose reaction.

- Eat fiber-rich foods and have a back-up plan in case your day is taking you away from such foods.  A back-up plan would be to have some flax seed powder (grind fax seeds in your coffee grinder, or buy them already grounded) or psyllium husk powder and scoop  a tablespoon into a shaker jar filled with water, lemon water, or water with a touch of apple juice.

Drink it down fast before it congeals.

Mobility – Use It or Lose It!

My final statement here goes without saying but I’ll say it:

Each of the risk reducing behaviors cited above for the four different cancers influenced by fat can be made dramatically more effective with exercise.

There’s no getting around the fact that our bodies are made to move.  For most of us in the modern world, they only move from a building to a car to the dinner table.  Insufficient!  If you don’t know how to exercise, find out.  As I mentioned above, recruit a buddy and make it your business to find out how to exercise.

And make sure part of your exercise program includes stuff that makes you breathe heavily (aerobic/anaerobic) , stuff that works your muscles thoroughly (resistance training) and stuff that stretches you (like yoga).  Here’s a five-minute session to get you started.

OK… it’s Thanksgiving, go be thankful, eat heartily but consciously, and resolve to do some things differently.  Please share this with everyone you think could benefit by it.  And good luck.

Related posts:

1. Dr. Oz on Preventing Breast Cancer (Watch Video)
2. The Seriously Serious Problems of Obesity, Cancer and Obesity
3. Guidelines Push Back Age for Cervical Cancer Tests

You’ll grin ear-to-ear while watching this short video animation of a very advanced yoga master doing “his” red wine drinking asanas.  Indeed, it’s yoga for (red) wine lovers.

THERE ARE many wine lovers out there, some of whom prefer red wine.  And there are plenty of yoga practitioners, some of whom may prefer red wine too.

Let’s get together!  Have fun watching this video…

… Oh, but first do realize that one glass of red wine in the evening may actually be healthy, but much more than that and the damage the alcohol does overwhelms any health benefits… and…

…Know too that resveratrol supplementation exponentially supersedes the benefits of red wine as they relate to antioxidant function and longevity enhancement which you can read in this post:

Watch: Aging.. Let’s Slow it Down (with Barbara Walters)

And now that I got that off my chest, do thoroughly enjoy the red wine yoga master video, courtesy of www.haroldsplanet.com.

Related posts:

1. Yoga in Your 90s — Watch!
2. New Research: Muscles = Longevity!

WebMD presents a good summary of what foods you need to eat to live a longer and better life. (Olive oil clears fat from blood vessels?)

MY HAT off to WebMD for their “Eating for a Long Life” sideshow.

This cogent presentation of 13 slides (one a commercial that bears review for what not to consume), brings together in one place a summary of various posts that echo what I’ve written about on this blog — How eating the right food can be the best prescription for living a long and strong life.

Here’s a quick summary, but go to the slide show for more information and the full flavor of the presentation (link below):

1. Antioxidant Foods Enhance Longevity – five-plus servings of colorful fruits and veggies each day.
2. Olive Oil is Healthy – can actually clear fat from blood vessel walls.  Choose double virgin, cold pressed contained in a non-clear glass bottle.
3. Berries – a good source of antioxidants and compounds that may help fight cancer and degenerative diseases of the brain.
4. Fish, the Brain Food – its fatty acids are beneficial to the brain and nervous system, and may lower the risks of dementia. (Watch the video at the bottom of: Detoxifying Your Way to Nirvana.  Make sure you eat the “right” tuna: The Right Tuna for You and the Ocean. Finally, learn about which fish has the most mercury here.)
5. Beans for Fiber – Get full faster, eat fewer calories and the fiber can help lower blood pressure, prevent constipation, cholesterol and digestion.
6. Veggies are Valuable to Health – For instance, eat 10+ servings of tomato products each week can reduce the risk of prostate cancer by 35%.
7. Greek Diet – Eat like the Greeks, the “Mediterranean Diet”, helps the heart, memory and cancer profile.
8. Nutty Nutrition – This is cholesterol-free protein and other nutrients.
9. Diary Goodness – Get all that Vitamin-D from diary is the claim, but here I demur a bit.  Many people don’t digest diary very well, and Vitamin D is better gotten from sun exposure of Vitamin D3.  Read what Dr. Weil’s comments about diary (and soy, vitamin D, soda, etc.) at Dr. Weil and Kevin Rose Talk Health.
10. A WebMD sponsor’s commercial, a nutritional energy drink. Go to the Dr. Weil link above and get his take on energy drinks.  Personally, I think there’s more garbage than good stuff in most of them.
11. Whole Grain Goodness – Yeah, lot better than processed white flour, but be careful to choose the dark, whole wheat stuff, not the disguised white flour wannabe.
12. Lose Weight – For every reason under the Sun.
13. Maintain Good Weight – A nuance of #12, but the focus here is on recognizing that as we age, we tend to add weight because we become less active, and lose muscle mass (lean body tissue) which requires more energy (calories) to maintain.

Don’t stop here… go to the WebMD slide show, and look around for the other good tips at that site.

Related posts:

1. Tips for Holiday Eating and Being
2. Top 10 Health Posts of 2011
3. Dr Oz’s Life Saving Heart Tips

When heartburn, indigestion, bloating and inflammation come knocking, try some of these eight remedies.

YESTERDAY WAS Thanksgiving.  Odds are, you over indulged; after all, that’s kinda what Thanksgiving has become – an opportunity to feast unrepentantly at the table of abundance.

Some of us will spend a few minutes reflecting on everything we should be thankful for, but that amount of time and intensity surely pales by comparison to the energy we muster for turkey, mash potatoes, sauces and pie.

To those who have pummeled yourself with food and drink on Thanksgiving, or any other time, there’s hope for a speedy recovery, courtesy of Leo Galland, MD, whose suggestions on how to recover from epicurean excess I hereby summarize, eight in total.

The first five remedies are good for Alcohol Debauchery, and the next three for Food Stuffing.

Take This to Combat Alcohol Debauchery

1. Milk Thistle is an herb has been used for centuries to cleanse and strengthen the liver. A journal article from Italy called milk thistle “the most well-researched plant in the treatment of liver disease.”, which  is good news for those tending toward Alcohol Debauchery, cause nothing quite messes with the liver as well as alcohol.  Buy it anywhere in capsule form.
2. Magnesium is an important mineral that gets depleted by alcohol, as well as foods high in sodium and sugar.  It has a laxative effect, and relaxes you, as well as your bowls, which is why many people take Calm (a powdered magnesium in bulk form) before bed.
3. Green Tea is my perennial favorite because it yields so many benefits (search for “tea” on this blog), such as improving metabolism and helping detoxification.  Plus it tastes great.
4. Protein is the key macro-nutrient (the others being carbs and fat) for rebuilding whatever in the body we tear down.  Alcohol can deplete your liver of glutathione (<–click and scroll down), the liver’s most important natural detoxifier. Eating protein helps to build the glutathione back up. Eat moderate amounts of protein, one serving at each meal.  “Moderate” because, unlike with fat, the body can’t easily store protein and then use it when needed.  If you’re not a body builder, you don’t need to eat your weight in grams (ie: 200 lbs = 200 grams protein).   I make it easy on myself by using a whey-based protein supplement (ImmunePlex) so that I get some at every meal, even if too lazy to open a can of tuna, or cook some salmon.
5. Fruits and Veggies have anti-inflammatory properties due to the flavonoids and carotenoids contained in the food pigments.  Alcohol is inflammatory, so it’s a nice marriage between it, fruits and vegetables (polygamous?), but one that isn’t on a path to success unless you consume about nine servings a day of some combo of the flavonoid/carotenoid stuff.

Take This to Combat Food Stuffing

1. Calcium relieves heartburn by tightening the valve that keeps stomach acid in its place, like anywhere other than your esophagus and throat.  Try calcium citrate powder, 250 mg, dissolved in water, after every meal and at bedtime (for a total daily dose of 1,000 mg). Swallowing calcium pills does not prevent reflux because the calcium is not instantly dissolved.
2. 2. Digestive Enzymes help break down protein, fiber, fat and carbs to help decrease distension of the stomach, reducing that bloated, stuffed feeling and easing digestion. The enzymes should be acid-resistant, so they work in the stomach itself, not in the small intestine.  A powdered enzyme preparation (1/2 teaspoon) can be mixed together with the calcium powder above and taken after each meal. Digestive enzymes are available in health food stores and drug stores, or you can take Vital Enzymes, which are the ones I use.
3. Exercise might be the last thing you can make yourself do if you’re hurting from creative overindulgence. But exercise boosts energy, helps you de-stress, improves the immune system and facilitates sleep.  Lace some comfortable shoes and tell yourself you’re just going to stroll to the mailbox.  Perhaps the fresh air and expanding lungs will take you further.

If you have any ideas to add, or wish to express how anything on this list aided you, please use the Comments section below.

Related posts:

1. Tips for Holiday Eating and Being
2. Medical Experts’ 11 Thanksgiving Health Tips
3. Over Indulgence — The Day After

Reduce Stress, Increase Antioxidants, Lose Weight

I’M WRITING this for myself as much as for you, for I need to keep reminding myself of the many marvels of green tea.  Yes, green tea, not coffee. (Yes, Joe, listen up – less coffee, more tea.)

Now, to be fair, I’m “only” drinking a cup of joe a day, and then green tea thereafter.  And I often quit coffee altogether for a month or so just to prove to myself that  it doesn’t “own” me.  But that constant voice lodged in the back of my mind asks why, if I’m so convinced of green tea’s superiority, do I continue to drink java?

Well, I do like the taste of coffee… that’s one reason.  And it does seem to be heartier than tea… that’s another reason.  Oh, what about that buzz… even one cup offers that in greater measure than tea.

So, there are reasons that I, and probably you, maintain my coffee habit.  (Oh, I cringe at that word, “habit”.) Unfortunately, there are also reasons to give it up – or at least substitute green tea for most of our coffee cups.

One reason is cortisol, a hormone released by the body in response to stress.  Cortisol is supposed to help you fight or give you flight.  If you do neither, it stays in the body, deleteriously affecting  insulin production, immune system function and learning, among a host of other not-so-nice stuff.

And guess what?  Cortisol levels ramp up with just one cup of caffeinated coffee for more than eight hours!

Which gets me back to the subject of this post – Green Tea; in fact, the nine compelling reasons to drink it daily.

I take these nine reasons from Michelle Schoffro Cook, posted here. I’ll summarize them and you can click over for the full enchilada.

The Nine Reasons to Drink Green Tea

1. Green tea is a superb fat fighter. Its active ingredient, EGCG, increases the rate at which fat is burned in your body. (Read this post about the thermogenic effect!)

2. It targets belly fat. Research at Tufts University indicates that EGCG in green tea, like other catechins, activate fat-burning genes in the abdomen to speed weight loss by 77 percent.

3. Green tea keeps energy stable by balancing blood sugar levels.

4. Research shows it may be helpful against lung cancer..

5. Green tea may halt colorectal cancer.

6. In research, it appears to cause prostate cancer cells to commit suicide.

7. Green tea may prevent skin damage and wrinkling. EGCG appears to be 200 times more powerful than vitamin E at destroying skin-damaging free radicals.

8. It contains a potent antioxidant that kills free radicals. Free radicals are increasingly linked to many serious chronic illnesses like arthritis, diabetes, and cancer. (More about free radical inhibitors – antioxidants — here.)

9. Green tea tastes good.

Well, that’s the story.  I recommend you try drinking green tea, perhaps gradually substituting it for coffee till the day comes that you’re liberated.  (Me too!)

Yup.

Related posts:

1. Drink Your Way to Health and Weight Loss
2. Will Your Belly Fat Cause Cancer?
3. Dr. Weil and Kevin Rose Talk Health (Video)

The bottom line on Soda, Energy Drinks, Diary, Soy, Vitamins (esp. Vitamin D), Omega-3, Cell Phone Radiation, Eye Health, Antioxidants, Atkins, Trans Fat, Depression, Exercise, Juice Cleanses and Tea… whew!

IN THIS insightful exchange, Kevin Rose, the co-founder of Digg, interviews Dr. Andrew Weil, medical doctor, integrative medicine specialist and botanist, about many of the hot health topics of the day.

You’ll enjoy the video, but I’ve also made a transcription below of the interview (not verbatim, mind you) organized within the topics discussed, with my comments or amplification [in brackets]. Enjoy.

___________________________

Soda

Sugar is the big problem. Sugar drives obesity and type 2 diabetes in the U.S. If you want a carbonated drink try sparkling water with lemon, or a bit of fruit juice. Beware high fructose corn syrup masquerading as some good form of sugar. It’s not. It’s a marker for cheap, low quality foods. [Corn is a heavily subsidized crop in the U.S. which accounts for its use as a sugar. Read more about this here]

Energy Drinks

They may keep you up at nights for some all-night bender or work effort, but the usual ingredient that enables this is caffeine. [Caffeine spikes cortisol levels. Cortisol is the "stress hormone".] Added to the caffeine is sugar. You can at least avoid one bad ingredient (sugar) by drinking caffeinated coffee or tea , though if addicted to caffeine, you’ll get an insufficient “lift”  for your all-nighter.

In Japan, they often drink Matcha Tea, developed to help keep monks awake during meditation. Another energy drink alternative is a drink with bitter orange in it. Chino, made by San Pellegrino, contains some variety of bitter orange and is known to help keep people alert.

Diary

Cow milk and its derivatives, such as cheese, can be problematic for some. High in saturated fats [more about fats], milk can challenge artery and heart health. For some, milk sugars (lactose) and/or the milk protein (casein) are indigestible. Casein protein can irritate the immune system and can cause or exacerbate allergies.

If one or both parents have a history of milk intolerance, it would be wise to keep their infants off milk for first two or three years of life in order to prevent skin issues, allergies and sinus problems.

Another issue with milk concerns how it’s made. It’s common to produce milk from cows given a steady diet of hormones and antibiotics.

A Mongolian physician studied diary practices in Mongola and the U.S. and reported her findings in a Harvard journal. She found that farmers in the U.S. keep their cows always lactating, resulting in a high level of sex hormones being produced in their milk. In Mongola, farmers did not attempt to do this; the cows there only produced milk during their natural cycle.

Soy

[The value of soy in the diet has become a hotel debated issue] It’s important that whole soy, not fake hot dogs with soy isolates or soy supplements, be consumed. Don’t over do it. A half cup per day is fine.

Vitamins

Does quality matter? Yes, although price is not always equivalent to quality, it’s worth going for quality. Although vitamins are not a substitute for food, they do provide insurance against gaps in your diet, and for specific therapeutic and preventative effects.

Vitamin D

Deficiency is the rule. Most of us are not producing enough vitamin D via sun exposure, which other than supplementation, is the only sure way of getting it. Latitudes north of Atlanta, the sun too low in the winter to get enough. 2,000 units per day with your largest meal for absorption [with vitamin A is a good idea to help prevent toxicity, although this is rare]. Latest research indicates that vitamin D users contract flu much less often than those bereft of it. Even 4,000 units per day is not too high. Get tested [a blood test] to find out your level [before taking more than 2,000 units per day].

Omega-3

This is our biggest nutritional deficiency. Two to three grams fish oil supplemented every day is a good idea, even if you eat fish. Sockeye salmon (not farmed cause only eats insects and algae) sardines, anchovies are good choices as they’re lower on the food chain and therefore less likely to contain contaminants. Krill oil is great but is being over-harvested, and the population is not sustainable.

Vegetable sources of omega-3 such as hemp, flax and chia are good to have in your diet, but they have a different molecule of omega-3 than fish oil, which isn’t as effective. Algae is a better option, but currently is not well developed.

Cell phone radiation

There’s contradictory research here. Money seems to be an influence, as large industries have a stake in the outcome. Err on side caution. Limit your use. Distance yourself from the source of radiation. Don’t glue the phone, or phone apparatus to your ears. The radio magnetic field falls off exponentially to distance, [meaning that for each increment of distance from, say, your head, there's a multiple reduction in the strength of the field]. Use the speaker phone.

Eyes

[Knowledge workers today stare constantly at computers causing eye problems as is described here.] Every few minutes look away from whatever you’ve been staring at intently close up. Two things that help eyes are glasses that protect from UV radiation, and vitamin supplements like carotenoids, vitamin E, zinc, vitamin C and selenium. There are good formulas in the market. [Check out Envision Good Eyesight.]

Antioxidants

There’s no need to consume lots of the so-called “super fruits”. Pomegranate juice is fine, but expensive and unnecessary. Blueberries are cheaper and a good fruit antioxidant. Make sure you eat across the color spectrum. Consume lost of different colored fruits and vegetables. Tea, red wine and dark chocolate with 70% or more coca, are all good antioxidant-filled foods.

Bittersweet (dark) Chocolate

There are several reasons for eating bittersweet chocolate. Dark chocolate has a stimulant called theobromine, a bitter alkaloid in the cacao plant. The fat in chocolate gives a pleasant mouth feel. It contains antioxidants, and might lower cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and contain mood enhancing chemicals. [More in this article: Make Love with Bittersweet Chocolate]

Atkins

[The Atkins has fallen out of favor of late over claims that it isn't healthy nor sustainable.] A better diet is the South Beach diet, a relatively easy way to drop weight quickly. An anti-inflammatory diet is also a good way to go. It’s similar to the Mediterranean Diet, consisting of low glycemic foods, the healthy fats. [Eating Fats is Good and A Blueprint for Eating Right]

One quick diet tip: Avoid products with flour and sugar.

Trans Fat

[This is a type of fat created to help maintain a long shelf life for processed foods] It’s similar to high fructose corn syrup in that it is unhealthy, doesn’t belong in food and is evidence of low quality food. Read labels.

Tip: If you don’t recognize the ingredient and/or you wouldn’t use it to make the food at home, don’t buy it.

Depression

If mild to moderate, you can self manage depression through daily aerobic exercise (at least five days per week), and consuming supplements like vitamin D, fish oil (up to five grams/day) and SAMe. It’s also very helpful to get enough sleep, and reduce the consumption of caffeine and alcohol. [More: Do Depression Drugs Work? and How Depressing is Your Food? ]

Exercise

At a minimum, get your heart rate up every day. If you’re dealing with depression, 30 minutes of aerobic exercise at least five days per week. [If you're not into biking, ruining, or gym machines, simply walk up a hill. If there's more gas in the tank, lean and do yoga stretches.]

Juice Cleanses

Vegetable juice oriented cleanse are better than fruit juice cleanses because of the high sugar content in fruit. But the first best detox method is to stop putting toxins in the body! Next, enhance the regular forms of detoxification by drinking more water to increase urination, aerobic exercise to increase breathing [which by this I think Dr. Weil is referring to the sweating that helps toxins inside the body exit through the skin]. [More on cleansing: Detoxifying Your Way to Nirvana and It’s Detox Time.

Tea

There are many good teas, but Green tea has been researched the most. A report last year conducted in Japan showed lower death rates among those drinking four to five cups of green tea each day.

Dr. Weil drinks Matcha tea each morning. He’s also intrigued by the fermented Turmeric Tea drunk in Japan, which is excellent for reducing inflammation. They drink the Turmeric Tea unsweetened and cold. Controlling inflammation seems to be a secret to avoid chronic disease. In India turmeric is used daily. Try a level teaspoon added to stews and soups. In Other than tea

The key to tea is quality which can be sourced in tea shops, tea parlors or online.

_____________________________

Well, that’s it.  Let me know in the “comments” section below if any of this was useful, or if you possess an alternative reality.  Also, let’s show Kevin Rose that we liked his interview by “Digging” his story… just click on the “Share This” icon below and then click “Digg”.

Related posts:

1. Dr. Weil’s Four Alternatives to Antidepressant Drugs
2. Sugar Lover? Which Type Are You?
3. How Depressing is Your Food? And You?

How Was His Illness Treated?

CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta recently contracted H1NI, the so called (misnamed) “Swine Flu”, while on assignment in Afghanistan.  It was tough going for Dr. Gupta and his cameraman, Scottie McWhinnie, who also succumbed to this flu, but after a few days of wrenching coughs, shivers, fever and fatigue they recovered.   How?

Related posts:

1. H1N1 Flu Tracker — Stay Up to Date
2. 144 Kids Die from H1N1 — Tamiflu Stockpile Released
3. Can You Wash Away H1N1?