Better Cancer Screening tool, if you must screen

In the last blog post I talked about the problem with typical cancer screening. namely mammograms.    Today I want to give you a solution--or two.

First of all, this quote from Dr. David Jockers:

Research has shown that the major mechanism involved with all degenerative disease is inflammation.  Most medical testing searches for disease processes that have already developed.  They are looking downstream to the effect rather than upstream at the underlying cause.  More advanced health care practitioners use instruments and technology that searches upstream for the cause of physiological abnormalities in the body.

So the best health strategy is to avoid inflammation and that, it turns out, is nearly 100% within your power.  That's what I talk about in this blog/newsletter.  BUT...if you've abused your body, have ignored the nutrition that it needs, then maybe testing for cancer is smart.  It makes sense, however to do so in ways that do not add to the risk.

Enter Thermography.  It is a screening that reads surface heat patterns in your body.  Extra heat indicates extra blood flow and that is an indication of inflammation, i.e. disease processes.  So here's what thermography shows in breast tissus.

Thermography is not invasive and does not expose you to ionizing ratiation, itself a cause of cancerous changes.  So my first choice is diet and supplements to eliminate chronic inflammation--the major mechanism of disease.  The human body is self-healing, self regulating and self correcting if given the raw materials to function correctly.  By impication, if it's not functioning correctly--if there is disease process going on--you can still self-correct.  Our culture has this erroneous assumption that diseases jump out and get us--especially when we are aging.  WRONG!!  Actually, we invite them in.  I choose to recind that invitation!  I hope that I'm encouraging you to do that too.

But, if you're worried about disease, choose screening that does not add to the body's toxic burden. Not so you will live forever, but so that whatever years you have ahead are great, fun, invigorating and thriving years!  More information about how to tackle the chronic inflammation that's making you tired, painful, and sick found at http://mindingthemiddleagedmiddle.com/e-books.shtml for the booklet, "Inflammation Run Amok"

The Role of Healthy Gut Flora in Health

Sometimes I learn slowly.  I got a lot of really bad health information over the years--especially before I started asking questions and challenging a lot of "everybody knows" stuff.  Some was by omission.  Or almost omitted.  Like the whole thing about gut flora.  What's really the case is that the healthy bacteria and yeasts in your digestive tract play a huge role in wellness, aging, digestion, how fat or thin you are and what diseases you have.

Boy, that's a lot to lay on gut flora!  Over the coming months I will try to recreate the links to the above information and be sure to give them to you.  But you've probably only heard about gut flora in terms of a very luke warm suggestion to eat some yogurt after you've been on an antibiotic.  That's because antibiotics kill all the good guys in your gut as well as the bad ones that are making you sick.  Unfortunately there are only two or three good bacteria in yogurt and you need lots and lots--both in variety and in numbers.  Remember that our ancestors--those hunters and gatherers--didn't wash their hands or their food.  They must have eaten a lot of dirt and bacteria all day long.  There is evidence that we are designed to eat dirt and bacteria!  Ok, not so practical now days!

So I have recommended to family, friends, and clients that they take a probiotic supplement.  That's a good start.  But most are not much better than yogurt.  In the literature and blogs I comb, many knowledgeable people are recommending fermented foods for the many healthy bacteria they provide.  Among these are  sauerkraut, kefir, kimchee and miso.  Other pickled, brewed and fermented foods may also provide good bacteria.  In these foods, friendly enzymes, fungi and bacteria pre-digest the food and it increases the flavor, medicinal value and nutrition.

I tried kefir.  It is a fermented milk product.  The closest thing I can say is similar is buttermilk, but it's way better!  The commercial stuff I tried was unremarkable and expensive (nearly $5 for a quart of it) and as a digestive aid (cure for diahrrea or constipation) a non starter.  Which highlights the importance of LIVE bacteria and yeasts!  If it's pasteurized or heat treated, those bacteria are killed and not doing you any good. I acquired live kefir grains and started making my own.   I now love kefir. It's too early to say it's making me healthier (probably) for one thing because I'm already darn healthy!.  But digestion is working without problems and I continue to slowly lose weight.  I certainly recommend kefir for anyone and everyone.  Ask me where to get your own grains (and they grow and multiply, too!)

But I started this today to tell you about a study that shows that kefir stopped the proliferation of at least one kind of malignant cancer cells.  Kefir might be the next great cancer drug!  OK, probably one cannot extrapolate yet to that degree--but it's suggestive.  And since we know that the development of cancers are a response to chronic inflammation, we probably can extrapolate that kefir is anti-inflammatory.  Get some!  make your gut healthier but it also reduces the inflammation of a gut out of balance!

Blood Sugar = Insulin = Chronic Inflammation = Disease

Even though much of this information is not generally available in the mainstream (your doctor may not be applying it yet) it is well established in the research and NOT controversial. I say that, because some things I talk about ARE controversial and I’ll generally let you know when it is. Today I want to lay out a logical progression of information that can make a huge difference—even if your doctor won’t or can't tell you.

Chronic inflammation is recognized as the initiator of virtually all disease states. Chronic inflammation changes both the architecture (physical structure) and biochemistry of cells and organ systems. Which cells and organs get damaged first is very individual. My arthritis, her breast cancer, his heart attack and their type II diabetes may all look like different diseases, but they all began with long term chronic inflammation that manifested differently in different bodies. Remember—this is not controversial, but well established information.

What causes chronic inflammation? The main thing I want to cover today is a dual partnership in your body—blood sugar and insulin. Another day I will talk about the Omega oil problems (ratio of Ω 3 vs. Ω 6 oils) that also contribute. Today is blood sugar.

Blood sugar is toxic and can kill you pretty quickly at high levels. One of insulin’s jobs is to get it down so you don’t die. Turns out that’s not really its main job, but sort of an emergency backup. We developed on a diet that had virtually no sugar in it, thus this emergency system rarely had to kick in. Turns out just a little can kill you, too.

Let me give you just a smattering of research on cancer—an inflammatory disease

A study that appeared in “Diabetes Care,” following participants for an average of eight years, reports this:

1) Overall, women with the highest blood sugar levels upon joining the study were more likely to be diagnosed with cancer before its end, compared with women with the lowest blood sugar levels. Also, cancer of the lining of the uterus (endometrial cancer) was more common in women with the highest blood sugar levels, compared with those with the lowest blood sugar levels. Breast cancer was more common for women younger than 49 with high blood sugar levels, compared with those with the lowest blood sugar levels. The results held when researchers considered other factors, such as participants' weight and age.

2) A mouse model of human breast cancer demonstrated that tumors are sensitive to blood-glucose levels. Sixty-eight mice were injected with an aggressive strain of breast cancer, then fed diets to induce either high blood-sugar, normal blood sugar or low blood-sugar. There was a dose-dependent response. The lower the blood sugar, the greater the survival rate.

3) In a human study, 10 healthy people were assessed for fasting blood-glucose levels and the phagocytic index of neutrophils, which measures immune-cell ability to envelop and destroy invaders such as cancer. Eating 100 g carbohydrates from glucose, sucrose, honey and orange juice all significantly decreased the capacity of neutrophils to engulf bacteria.

4) A study of nearly 550,000 people in Europe showed that more blood sugar equals more cancer risk—even within the normal range. The subjects' average age was 45 years and they were followed for 10 years. Researchers "controlled for" other factors that also can affect cancer risk, including smoking and overweight/obesity. For men, each 18 point increase in blood sugar levels was associated with a 5% increased risk of getting cancer and a 15% higher risk of dying of cancer. For women, each 18 point increase in blood sugar was associated with an 11% increased risk of getting cancer and a 21% higher risk of dying of cancer. Blood sugar matters more for women!!!

Diabetes is at the far end of the continuum of the blood sugar/insulin partnership gone awry. In 2005 alone, 233,619 adults died of complications of diabetes. There is no cure for diabetes, and its damage can be severe, leading to heart disease, stroke, nerve damage and kidney problems. It’s also the number one cause of adult blindness and loss of limbs. If over 233,000 people died in plane crashes every year, they’d ground every plane in the nation. That’s almost a quarter of a million people! Every year!

Misery and death result from chronic inflammation, cost this nation billions in medical costs and are directly related to blood sugar and insulin.

If you are not yet convinced, do a simple google search for “insulin and chronic inflammation.” Here are a few cut and paste quotes from just a few:

• Insulin resistance is increasingly recognized as a chronic, low-level, inflammatory state.
• Insulin insensitivity, as directly measured, may be associated with inflammation
• Several decades ago scientists noticed that people with type 2 diabetes have overly active immune responses, leaving their bodies rife with inflammatory chemicals.
• Eating Inflammatory Foods Will Cause You To Have Chronic Inflammation And A Beer Belly
• Inflammatory foods are what most of us have in our cupboards. The current food pyramid promotes foods that cause inflammation by giving advice to eat lots of grains and cut out fat. The problem with that advice is, we have been following it for over 30 years now and we are not getting healthier. In fact most people are getting sicker.

Here are a couple youtube videos that have good information.

• Dr. Barry Sears blurb for for his book but very good info http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUGP0eGWOG0&NR=1 his books are worth a look, too!
• Good information by someone who is new to me, but I like what this video says http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvMAFTP8Y44

The upshot of all the above info is this: Sugar in your diet causes inflammation--inflammation makes you sick.

If you live in this culture you cannot help being bombarded with enticements and even “health” information to eat “whole grains.” With only a modest exposure to wellness info, you already know sugar can get you in trouble. But the grain thing is pervasive and intrusive and a big fat lie. No way are whole grains good for you if they raise blood sugar--and they do! Let me recommend again this website to check the glycemic load of what you eat http://nutritiondata.self.com/

It’s the only place I know online to get the info easily and I use it daily. Glycemic load tells you how much blood sugar you get from a food and serving size—thus how much insulin. Ideal is to keep it all below 10 nearly all the time.

Glycemic load is additive. Double your serving size and you double the load. Eat two foods with a GL and you have to add the loads. Below 10 is healthy. Over 10 is inflammatory. Over 10 and you are increasing inflammation and your disease/unpleasant-aging risk. Here are some examples just to start you off.

NOTE: Only carbohydrates raise blood sugar. Meat does not. If you are a vegetarian, vegan or such, your blood sugar is taking a beating! Note the GL numbers for whole grains.


4.5 inch bagel 43 (killer)
yam 1 cup cubes 15
Subway roast beef 6" 17
1/8 piece apple pie (9") 32
Big mac 20
Mc donalds french fries 22
orange juice 9
4" pancake 6
1 TBS syrup 10
1 c cubed butternut sqsh 8
1 c cooked white grits 14
1 c whole wheat cereal 14
1 cup mashed potatoes 16
1 c med grain brown rice 22
1 c long grain white rice 24
1 cup milk--goat or cow 8
1 cup asparagus 4
1 c snow peas 5
1 c chopped broccoli 4
1 c spinach 3
4 oz chicken breast meat 0
4 oz salmon 0
4 oz roast beef 0
3 large eggs 0
1 cup cottage cheese 7
4 oz lamb 0
4 oz rainbow trout 0
4 oz hamurger 0
4 oz venison 0
4 oz port roast 0
1 cup cooked quinoa 18
1 cup cooked wild rice 16
1 cup cooked corn 12
1 cup cooked egg noodles 21

How Did You Feel the Last Time You Had a Fever?

Do you recall that really awful feeling when you had the flu or an infection of some kind? Once your temp goes up to about 100 degrees or so, you were experiencing the effects of inflammation--your body's immune system fighting off invaders, either bacterial or viral.

Even minor fevers feel pretty darn awful. There is lethargy and tiredness that puts you right down, usually literally into bed or flat on the couch. The all-over achy feeling sometimes morphs into pain every time you move. Your head feels hot, then you have chills, as temperature regulation is all over the place. Your brain gets fuzzy, and it’s hard to track the simplest ideas or sequences. That extra heat that we call fever, is designed to make your body inhospitable to the invaders. And it feels crappy to the max.

Inflammation is part of your body’s remarkably beautiful adaptation that keeps you healthy. It came about during millions of years of development so you would outlive bacteria that wanted to make a meal of you. During that development—right along with it in fact—your diet consisted of the things that small family groups managed to hunt and gather--leaves, berries, roots, small birds and reptiles, bugs, and the game they killed. Those things were ‘factored’ into the system of inflammation.

Along comes “civilization” and agriculture. Now you hunt a loaf of bread and gather a Big Mac and coke. Oops, the system was not developed with these things factored in. A biology that’s designed with low calorie, low glucose, high animal products and animal fat plus plenty of exercise now is trying to deal with high calories, masses of glucose and oil from plants rather than animals plus remote control. What’s a biology to do?

The short answer is that your biology says, “We’re under attack! Let’s raise a fever and kill off the invaders.” But this attack is not quite the same as bacteria so your body does the best it knows how—it causes an all-over, system wide inflammation that we now know as chronic inflammation. Every cell in your body is now inflammed—simmering.

So when you have chronic inflammation, you are more tired than you should be. You might be foggy. Or you have aches and pains that you didn’t used to have. You want a nap, or your knees hurt, or you can’t think straight, or you go to the doctor and he calls it “arthritis” or “you’re just getting older” or “high stress.” Or someone makes up a new name so they can sell you medication, like “restless leg syndrome,” or “chronic dry eye” or “light bladder leakage.”

Your birthright as a human animal is vibrant, vigorous good health and feeling good. Not tired, not achy, not foggy, not anxious, depressed or diseased. The trick to feeling good, not feverish, is to eat a low calorie, low glucose, high animal product diet and quit making your body think you’re under attack!

Chronic inflammation not only makes you feel crappy, eventually it damages organs, tissues and other things inside you. Now you have honest to goodness disease to deal with. But it all stems from departure from what your biology was designed to deal with. What this blog/newsletter is about is figuring out how to get back to what we’re adapted for because there’s a huge payoff in how we’re going to feel.

I'd love to hear your story! I'll be telling my own!