You truly are what you eat!

Not that you will turn into a giant stalk of celery when you start eating well but every morsel of food you consume will ultimately be transformed into the cells that make up our body and these cells need usable nutrients!

There are so many additives in food these days used to increase the shelf life as well as make synthetic over-processed products taste better, and the biggest nutrient robber is sugar!

Now most of us know intuitively that sugar is bad for you because it spikes your blood glucose levels, drives up insulin and packs on unnecessary pounds with its empty calories, but it’s a little known fact that sugar actually suppresses the immune system!

Many studies have been the subject of this phenomenon and this is typically what the results would yield:

“The results of a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN) demonstrates that the amount of sugar in two sweetened beverages lowers immune response by 50% for up to five hours after drinking or eating. A diet filled with complex carbohydrates has no detrimental effect on immunity and the high nutritional content of fresh vegetables, nuts and seeds provide the building blocks required to mount a healthy attack as needed.”

Learn more about this here.

So what are some of the most important things you can do to boost my immunity? Here's a short list:

1. Cut out sugar!
2. Include vitamin D supplementation: it activates your killer T Cells and has been shown to be even more effective than vaccines in preventing the flu virus.
3. Mushrooms supply a natural amound of Vitamin D and I am a big fan of shiitake mushrooms as they contain special poly-sacarrides called beta-glucan that boosts immunity.
4. Include vitamin C: this means in the form of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as supplementation. Vitamin C is water soluble and exits the system quickly so be sure to spread your doses out over the day!

Enjoy the spring season by keeping your immune system nice and balanced!

If you have ever experienced the symptoms of gouty arthritis you know that the pain, heat and inflammation can be so excruciating it will often drive people to use large qualities of over the counter medications that do nothing to resolve the underlying condition. The overt symptoms may develop suddenly, in one or a few joints such as a big toe, finger, wrist, knee, or ankle but the lead up to the attack is often a long time in coming.

Gout and other related conditions such as uric kidney stones are caused by an unusually high amount of uric acid in your system. Uric acid is the natural waste product your body produces when it is breaking down an organic compound called purine. Today there are many common every day foods such as chocolate, caffeinated beverages and alcohol that have a number of naturally occurring purines but this wasn't the case years ago. Once named the 'Rich Man's Disease' because of the lavish and expensive diet it often took to acquire the condition, gout now knows no economical or social boundaries.

There are two reasons why an increased level of uric acid would occur in the body:

1. An excessive amount of uric acid being produced
2. A normal amount of uric acid being produced that is not being affectively removed.

Which brings us to the "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" part of the story. Some of the reasons for excessive uric acid production include: 

  • Obesity
  • Excessive caffeine consumption
  • A diet rich in purines
  • Genetics
  • Diseases such as Hodgkin's and NonHodgkin's Lymphoma and Leukemia
  • An under active thyroid
  • Diuretic medications
  • Excessive alcohol consumption

The top 4 issues on this list can also cause a reduction in renal (kidney) function. In order to eliminate uric acid the kidneys must function well. So this begs the questions…Do the high uric acid levels occur because of repeated abuse of the kidneys from excessive alcohol or caffeine consumption or morbid obesity leading to diabetic renal disease? Or are the kidneys genetically unable to process the uric acid there by increasing it to a dangerous level that created kidney stones? In other words, was it lifestyle/diet or genetics? Either way a reduction in purines is called for.

Below is a list of the purine content of common foods. To reduce the amount of uric acid built up in the body it is important to stay clear of foods that are labeled 'high purine'.

With a high uric acid condition it is very important to have a thorough work-up done by a Naturopathic Doctor or other qualified health care practitioner. If you develop uric acid kidney stones the loss of renal function is a very real possibility and must be taken seriously.

Give your body every chance to heal by removing sugar, refined processed foods, white flour products and rancid/fried oils from your diet. Eat plenty of raw fruit, vegetables on the low purine list, nuts and seeds. Include lots of dark red and blue berries, which neutralize excess acidity. Choose vegetarian more often but even vegetable/plant based proteins can be a problem so it is important to find out the minimum daily requirement of protein that is specific for your age, sex, weight and activity level.

Increased fluid intake makes the urine more alkaline so it is recommended to take in 2.5 liters to 3 liters of water per day to dissolve uric acid stones. Sipping cherry, celery or parsley juice is very effective in flushing out uric acid from the tissues.

There are many herbs that can reduce inflammation and help flush uric acid from the body. Combination formulas that include turmeric, alfalfa, bilberry extract, rutin, bromelain, devil’s claw, grapeseed extract and celery seed extract can be purchased at your local health food store but be sure to have a workup done by a qualified practitioner before starting a herbal protocol.