Health

May

2013

Fat Malabsorption Syndrome

SUMMARY

Fat Malabsorption will accelerate the aging process.
Disturbances after eating fatty meals or a history of gall bladder problems, liver or colon disease can be indicative of fat malabsorption.
Everyone can benefit by improving fat absorption.
Helpful supplements include lipase, pancreatin, bile salts, lecithin and choline.
These can be especially important for nerve and brain health.

One of the most underappreciated causes of aging and degenerative disease is Fat Malabsorption Syndrome. If you are dealing with any chronic breakdown disease where the body is progressively degrading and not healing and/or you are suffering from digestive distress after eating fatty foods, consider yourself a candidate for this ominous and often undiagnosed condition. This is especially true if you are sans gall bladder or have a history of liver, pancreatic or colon disease. And even if you have no obvious symptoms or disease, paying attention to fat absorption is a key part of any anti-aging protocol.

It wouldn’t hurt any of us to be using fat absorption supplements, starting off with digestive enzymes, specifically lipase, which is a generic term for a class of enzymes that dissolves fat. It’s found in pancreatin (available as a supplement) which is a group of enzymes that is made by the pancreas. These fat absorbing enzymes can improve overall health not only digestion. While they’re obviously important for the digestion of fats, they are also play in important part in the biochemistry of cell membranes and inflammation. Folks with arthritis may get tremendous benefits from pancreatin enzyme supplements as well as ordinary digestive enzymes. They can help thin the blood too.

Bile salts can help improve fat absorption. You’ll find these in most quality digestive enzyme supplements, or you can purchase them on their own.

And don’t forget about lecithin which a powerful nutritional supplement that is critical for the health of the brain and nervous system in addition to being important for the liver and fat absorption. Bile, the body’s superstar fat dissolving liquid, is largely composed of lecithin, the same stuff you can buy in a health food store. Most lecithin is derived from soy, a major GMO crop, but you can use rice or sunflower lecithin which are available via the internet (Organic Rice Lecithin, and Sunflower Lecithin). Food sources of lecithin include sprouts, peanuts, cauliflower, cabbage and eggs (the word “lecithin” comes from the Greek term for egg yolk). Lecithin is available as a powder or as a liquid. The liquid, is syrupy and thick and has a stronger taste while the powder is more concentrated and purified although a bit more expensive. Both go great in smoothies where lecithin’s emulsification properties will make your smoothie more “smooth”. Adding a raw egg to your smoothie is great way to get lecithin. You can also get lecithin capsules made are with the syrup. Lecithin really ups the nutritional value of all fats and fatty vitamins and will improve your body’s ability to assimilate these key building nutrients.

If you are trying to improve fat absorption you’d be wise to make sure your getting enough choline too. Eggs are a really good source of choline. Choline is a really fascinating nutrient. Its super important for the liver, can help diabetics process sugar and it’s is involved in the construction of important cell structures. Choline helps turn fats into something called phospholipids which make up cell membranes, the ultra-thin covering of cells. Cell membranes function as little computer chips. They are the brain of a cell and their information processing properties are dependent on phospholipids. Using choline to improve phospholipid production may provide support for anyone dealing with nerve and brain health issues including ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. They can be helpful for memory and learning too; almost all brain formulas on the market include phospholipids (lecithin is largely composed of phospholipids). As with lecithin, choline supplementation can positively impact fat absorption.

May

2013

Electricity is a Dieter’s Best-friend!

By Ben Fuchs | Pharmacist Ben

Living systems are electricity-generating at every level, from the atomic to the organismic. The brilliant Noble-prize winning biophysicist Albert Szent-Gyorgi, who is most recognized for his discovery of Vitamin C said: “…life is driven by nothing else but electrons (electricity) and by the energy given off by these electrons.”.

In terms of our human bodies, we are bioelectrical systems that depend on the generation and and conduction of electrical charges to operate effectively. This energy is at least partially carried via special atoms and molecules called “buffers” and “electrolytes”. There are 3 parts to our biological electrical system. There are alkaline substances like minerals (e.g. potassium, calcium, magnesium) and bicarbonate that function to suck up and carry electrical energy. These are said to be positively charged. Acid substances like fatty acids, ascorbic acid or amino acids spew out or contribute electrical energy. These are said to be negatively charged. And then there is the fluid medium (blood and lymph) that mixes everything together so the electricity can be conducted.

This relationship between electrolytes, vitamins and other nutritional components in combination with liquids is one of the easiest biochemical phenomena that we can take advantage of for our nutrition and good health. Because all living systems contain electrolytes and buffers we can soak fresh fruits and veggies and eventually the energy conducting compounds will gradually leach out, turning plain old water into a highly electro-conductive beverage packed with potassium, magnesium and calcium and chloride and vitamins among other substances. It will amp up the body’s electrical energy, without contributing a caloric load or stressing the digestive system. You’ll feel a sense of vitality and vigor without the drowsiness that can follow normal dining. That’s why lemon water is a dieter’s best friend! The same is true about cucumber water, strawberry water, blueberry water or even fresh veggie soup. Just throw your fruits and veggies sliced up (make sure you leave the peels!) into a pitcher of water and let it sit for a few hours. You will have a tasty, electrical drink that functions as a source of trace nutrients and electricity-carrying substances. Drink up, you will find it energizing, and stimulating in a smooth, healthy and non-caffeine-like fashion. It’s zero-calorie, satisfying nature makes it ideal for dieters too!

May

2013

Energy System of the Body & Electricity

By Ben Fuchs | Pharmacist Ben

The energy system of the body depends on the generation and movement of electricity. , which must be delivered to cells in an efficient and orderly fashion. This energy movement is, at the end of the day, the cells life blood.

This movement can be likened to a train. In a later post we’ll take about the wheels and rails and engine of the train, but for now I want to address the train itself, the cars of our electrical energy train, which deliver the electricity. Each one of our cars carries a little piece of electricity called “electrons”. And where do these little pieces of electricity come from? Foods, i.e. carbohydrates (which include sugar and fat) and protein.

Because foods are the body’s main source of electrical energy, we want to eat foods that are electrically active, electron dense. And the electron dense foods are live foods, or foods that are close to alive as possible. Veggies, fruits, raw eggs, raw dairy can all are considered live or close to alive foods.

You can also electrify foods. Spin things in a vortex. A cumber and a Vitamix and salt can be super delicious and satisfying and if you throw in some Celtic Sea Salt, you can amp up the electrical energy even more and if you put a touch if oil even more so. If you like your veggies cooked, try mixing butter and oil on roasted or steamed (don’t overcook or overheat) broccoli, or Brussels sprouts or onions. After the veggies are roasted or steamed, add some Udo’s Oil, or butter with coconut oil. A good, fresh EFA rich oil carries with it lots electrons, this is what makes essential fatty acids such a spectacularly multi-functional food. And don’t forget to be generous with salt which conduct electrical energy. And spices can add some electron support as well as phytonutrient medicinal value.

What you’re doing is increasing electronic energy, electrons that are available for use. When you add essential fatty acid oil and spices and salt to lightly steamed veggies you are likewise supporting the electrical energy of the food. Cold-processed, fresh EFA-rich oils from flax and hempseed can provide delicious flavor and lots of electrical energy. And salt contain elements which act as efficient conductors of electrical energy.

And when you grind a vegetable in a high-powered blender like a Vitamix, you are freeing the electrons from the vegetables. And if you drink the juice quickly enough, ideally, super quickly like a tonic, you can notice some pretty instant effects, mostly in a sense of well-being. But you need to use these kinds of foods/drinks quickly. Those electrons that have been freed in the juicing process don’t sit around. If you let a veggie juice sit on your counter you can watch the electrical energy dissipate as the solid matter in the juice, solid matter that was hanging in the liquid vita electronic forces begins to settle as the electrons dissipates into the atmosphere. The electron dense nature of food renders them unstable. Only life can lock up electrical energy. That is really the definition of aliveness, a locking up a controlling of electrci9al energy’s and electrical forces. Once the life force has been cut off, as when you pick a plant or crack an egg, it tends to dissipate and that food becomes unusable.

That’s why good food is so hard to come by. Good food is alive and live food is not ECONOMICALLY VIABLE. Much like we’ve created a medical system that couldn’t be better designed to destroy our health; we’ve created a food commodity system that is equally destructive to human health and well- being. Corporate profits are maximized by selling dead food. Dead food is easier to ship and easier to store and has a long shelf life. 90 per cent of American calories come from food with long shelf lives. If you eat a food that has a long shelf life you will have a short shelf life.

Dead foods are foods that have been mummified. It’s like when The Egyptians wanted to make a dead body look as it did was alive they would stuff it full of chemicals. That’s how a TV dinner or American “cheese” works. These kinds of foods are, as much as possible, stripped of their electronic energy, chemically killed via processing then coated, embalmed really with chemicals tom make them look the way they did when they were alive.

May

2013

Eggs, Lecithin, Choline & TMAO

By Ben Fuchs | Pharmacist Ben

Summary:
1) Gut bacteria can convert eggs and lecithin into chemicals that are associated with heart disease.
2) These chemicals are also produced by the body they have a long and proven reputation for NON toxicity and perform many vital functions especially for the heart.
3) While elevated blood levels of these substances are associated with heart disease, the body has very efficient mechanisms for clearing them out.
4) If your blood levels of this chemicals are elevated, don’t blame the foods which can very helpful, healthy and nutritionally valuable.
5) If your blood levels of these chemicals are elevated you probably are dealing with a digestive health issue or a detoxification issue and not a food issue.

Earlier this week a study was published in the New England Journal of Medline that has raised quite an internet ruckus. According to the article, gut bacteria can metabolize substances found in eggs like lecithin, and choline into precursor of something called TMAO which again supposedly is linked to heart disease. And now the mainstream media, as they tend to do, are making the leap to “eggs and lecithin consumption is associated with heart disease”.

The NEJM study follows fast on the heels of another study, this one released by the Cleveland Clinic that implicated carnitine, an amino acid found in red meat in the production of TMAO. As with the egg and lecithin study researchers as well as the media again the hastily linked the carnitine derived TMAO with heart disease.

Here’s the problem with drawing these types of conclusions. First of all, they leave out the important and relevant fact that these substances, (e.g. carnitine, lecithin, choline) that are supposedly so dangerous for the health of your heart in addition to being found in foods, ARE MADE BY YOUR BODY! And , researchers advocating abstinence seem to be unaware of the fact that there is voluminous literature published over the course of at least 50 years that lend credence to these biochemicals as not only being gentle and benign, but really being very, very important. They perform numerous vital functions in the body and are beneficial for overall health as well as cardiovascular health.

Is it conceivable, even likely that blood levels of chemicals like TMAO are increased by the ingestion of certain foods and perhaps supplements like choline and carnitine? Yes. And no one disputes the possibility, based on their chemistry, that when these chemicals build up in the blood, toxicity, especially heart toxicity, can result (remember however: possible does NOT mean proven!)

The link between the offending cardiotoxic chemical TMAO and eggs and lecithin and choline and meat are bacteria that live in our large intestine. The critters, generically referred to as “probiotics” feed on these types of foods and readily convert them into precursors which the body then metabolizes into TMAO precursors

Bacteria like fatty nutrients as much as we do! And bacteria produce waste materials as a function of their digestion of foods just like we do. Our gut bacteria eat the food we eat and then they poop! Bacteria poop! This makes all food is a potential problem. Eating and digesting can, even under normal healthy circumstances result in the production of these kinds of wastes. This is why we want to be careful about what and how we eat. But we do need to eat.

We have trillions of bacterial cells that live with us. And they are our friends! They make vitamins and purify our blood and help us digest our food. They make good fats for our digestive tract and the fight yeast and other bacteria and cancer. And, they need to eat too. And, they eat what we eat. In other words, anything we eat is likely to feed these little critters. And one of the things bacteria produce as a result processing and digesting eggs and other foods are TMAO precursors. They’re the bacterial version of feces. And like all waste, it’s not supposed to hanging around. That’s why the body has mechanisms for dealing with these types of chemicals. The liver has enzymes for processing it and most of it is eliminated very effectively through urine.

The bottom line is if blood levels of TMAO are elevated, eggs are not the issue. Nor is lecithin or choline or carnitine or any other vitamin or nutrient biochemical. The issue is bad blood chemistry following a breakdown in digestive tract health that leads to an accumulation of food derived WASTE; it’s not the fault of the food. If your metabolic and detoxification systems are whacked out and you are accumulating TMAO in the blood, solving the problem by avoiding eggs and lecithin and choline is simplistic and silly. These supposed bad guys like lecithin and eggs, are not only innocent bystanders, they are motherlodes of nutrients that make your heart strong and health. Substances like Vitamin A and D and Zinc, the b-complex, choline, essential fats and precious phospholipids. And meat carnitine is one of the most important, heart- strengthening amino acids you can ingest. Please, don’t blame these healthy foods. It’s not their fault. What we need to be doing instead of staying away from these powerful and important foods and supplements is fixing our guts, fixing our digestive systems.

Is elevated TMAO problematic? Perhaps. The chemistry is right for it. These kinds of chemicals are unstable and need to be eliminated from the body. That’s why you have a liver and that’s why you should be careful about how you eat. But this is a far cry from the claim that eggs or lecithin cause or are even associated with heart disease.

Apr

2013

The Dangers of Polypharmacy

By Ben Fuchs | Pharmacist Ben

It turns out that, while we’ve known for years that daily low dose aspirin causes stomach bleeding, the risk is even higher if you’re practicing polypharmacy, that is, taking multiple medications.

Aspirin achieves its beneficial effects by blocking the production of chemicals called prostaglandins. The problem is that prostaglandins (which we can call PGs) are also involved in helping stimulate the production of the stomach lining. This is a perfect example of the abject failure of prescription medicine. You take aspirin to lower PGs, which reduces blood clotting – but you increase your risk of a completely separate and new symptomology.

Now, according to a study from the University of Oxford in England, it turns out that if you’re taking Plavix (another anti-clotting drug) with your aspirin, you’ve now increased your risk of stomach bleeding and of having that bleeding include the first part of the small intestine. It’s bad enough to have bleeding in the digestive tract, but if now that bleeding includes the upper part of the small intestine, now you’ve really got a problem, because most of our nutrients are absorbed in the upper part of the small intestine. Which of course, means now you’ll be malnourished, which will increase digestive symptoms and cardiovascular symptoms and on and on and on in a downwardly spiraling vicious cycle.

According to the scientists who conducted the Oxford study, people taking any daily dose of aspirin were at almost twice the risk of having stomach bleeding than people not taking aspirin. What makes this strategy for taking low-dose aspirin especially bad is that there are much better nutritional strategies for accomplishing exactly what we’re trying to achieve with aspirin… and Plavix… and Coumadin… and other blood thinners. If the goal is to have a healthy heart and cardiovascular system, this isn’t the way to do it.

One important example of cardioprotective essential nutrients are Omega-3 essential fatty acids. These have been shown to dramatically improve mortality from a heart attack. A study published in the Journal Circulation, found that among patients who had recent heart attacks there was a 41% reduced risk of mortality, with no side effects or toxicity.

Now, what would you suppose would happen if some pharmaceutical company came out with a drug that decreased mortality 41% with ZERO side effects? Or even better, a drug that reduced mortality by 41% and the side effects were better skin, better eyesight, and improvement in arthritis? These are all important and well-documented benefits of Omega-3 supplementation and that, in a nutshell, explains the importance of nutrition and the relationship supplementation has to prescription drugs.