Sally knows she needs to get more exercise. She walks from her house to her car, and from her car to the grocery store. But that’s all. After walking just the equivalent of a block or two, she gets a terrible pain in her legs and has to rest. Then the pain goes away. But as soon as she resumes her walk, the pain returns and Sally needs to stop walking again.

Other than that, Sally is pain free. “It only hurts when I walk,” she explained.

This worried me. I was concerned that Sally’s problem was due to clogged arteries in her legs — a serious condition caused by inflammation and atherosclerosis. But I wasn’t positive. So I suggested she see her doctor for a diagnosis.

Clogged arteries are nothing to fool around with. If this was the cause of Sally’s pain, she needed to take action immediately. It was possible that she had a vascular disease that results from atherosclerosis called peripheral artery disease (PAD). Sure enough, Sally’s doctor found that her pain was caused by PAD and suggested medical intervention. I was able to suggest another option — one with strong scientific evidence behind it — to discuss with her doctor. It had no side effects, and it worked.

What is peripheral artery disease?

PAD occurs when there is a buildup of plaque in arteries in the legs. If this leg pain occurs only occasionally, the condition is called intermittent claudication. Both are complications of atherosclerosis, and both cause pain and limit walking.
Clogged arteries in the leg are just as serious as clogged arteries around the heart. Both increase your risk for having a heart attack or stroke sometime in the future.

With PAD, cholesterol and scar tissue build up in the arteries of the leg and form plaque. This plaque narrows and clogs the arteries, slowing blood flow to the legs.

Symptoms of PAD include leg pain on walking, as well as numbness, tingling, and coldness in the lower legs and feet. Many doctors, including Sally’s, treat the narrowing of arteries with blood thinners, but blood thinners don’t get rid of the plaque or keep it from forming. The arteries are still narrow and the condition continues to progress. I see blood thinners as a temporary solution at best.

If you suspect or know you have PAD, you can take a medication like a blood thinner or a drug that dilates an artery, or you can have surgery like angioplasty. You can even have a stent put in to open a blocked artery. But what if an artery isn’t clogged enough to need a stent? Or if you have several arteries that need surgery? How much better and safer — and less expensive — it would be if you could avoid surgery by taking a non-prescription supplement. Well, you can.

A Tibetan herbal formula might be your solution

In the mid-1900s, through a fascinating set of coincidences, a powerful herbal formula known as Padma 28 made its way out of Tibet. An unknown person hand-carried the formula from Tibet to Siberia to prevent its destruction during the Communist invasion. Decades later, a Swiss pharmaceutical salesman re-discovered Padma and brought it to Europe.

Padma Basic is a cooling formula that increases circulation and reduces inflammation. We know that inflammation is directly involved in the buildup of plaque in arteries. We also know that this formula is particularly successful in keeping veins and arteries free from plaque. Whether you’re preventing or treating PAD or intermittent claudication, Padma Basic has dozens of sound scientific studies to back up its effectiveness. Since they show it can take from four weeks to six months to relieve leg pain, I suggest you use it long enough to give it a chance to work. And check with your doctor to make sure you have the time to try this supplement. Fortunately, Sally did. Two months later, Sally was pain-free and able to increase her exercising.

Manufactured in Switzerland under strict pharmaceutical standards, this formula consists of 19 plants, plus camphor and calcium sulfate — all of which help keep your arteries clean and healthy. The supplement is available through Advanced Bionutritionals (800-791-3395). Make sure you mention order code WH8213 when calling. You may want to order a three- to six-month supply, since there’s a money-back guarantee on all Advanced Bionutritionals supplements.

Chua, G.T., Y.C. Chan, and S.W. Cheng, “Vitamin D status and peripheral arterial disease: evidence so far,” Society of Interventional Radiology, November 2011, volume 2011:7.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/202887.php.

Melzer, J., et al. “Review: Treating intermittent claudication with Tibetan medicine Padma 28: Does it work?” Artherosclerosis, 2006.

You can read all about the discovery of Padma Basic and its properties in more detail in my revised and updated book, Padma: An ancient Tibetan herbal formula. You can order it by calling 866-810-6994.

Can Nitric Oxide Contribute to Alzheimer’s Disease?

If you haven’t heard about this nutrient, or paid attention to what it can do for you, it’s time you do. I’ve written about nitric oxide (NO) in the past, and have been taking a NO supplement every day for several years. I added it to my supplement regime because this single nutrient is more beneficial than a handful of other products to help regulate circulation and immunity, as well as to slow down aging. In fact, it may be the most important single chemical in your body.

Some people are saying that NO can lead to Alzheimer’s disease. Nothing could be further from the truth. NO is involved in the health of every tissue and organ in your body. And it protects against heart disease, lowers blood pressure, reduces your risk for diabetes, and prevents atherosclerosis.

Your body produces NO in your brain and in the lining of your arteries. And you’ll find its precursors naturally in several foods including beets, Chinese cabbage, and parsley. It increases blood flow, which, in turn, supports cognition and boosts stamina. Increased energy is one reason why athletes drink beet juice, high in NO, when they’re training and before a sports event.

But a recent study alarmed some people. Some scientists found that too much of this helpful molecule can contribute to severe strokes and neurodegenerative conditions like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. And there are times when the brain produces 1,000 times the normal amounts of NO — much more than you could ever take in a supplement or food.

The study found that excessively high amounts of NO do more than damage neurons. They actually prevent the brain’s ability to repair itself. When brain cells die prematurely, it’s a sign of a neurological problem.

So why am I so enthusiastic about NO if it’s so dangerous? Because your brain doesn’t just randomly generate dangerously high quantities of NO. It makes excessively large amounts only under specific conditions. One example of a condition that would cause your brain to produce excessive NO is in the presence of an acute inflammation. This could happen with an injury or infection. And this lasts only for a short period of time while the overproduced NO tries to put out the fire.

Even though there’s sufficient NO at the site of the inflammation, there’s not enough NO present throughout the body. What this means is that you can be generating high amounts of NO at the site of an injury or inflammation and still be NO deficient in other cells or tissues. If you take a NO supplement at this time to normalize NO throughout your body, it actually reduces acute and dangerous inflammation.

How you can benefit from nitric oxide

What this means is that too little NO is bad for you, and too much NO can be harmful. We have to maintain NO homeostasis. Your body makes small but sufficient amounts of NO when you’re young. However, after the age of 40, it makes less and less just when you need it the most to protect against chronic illnesses and slow down the aging process. Taking a supplement that turns into physiological amounts of NO is a simple solution.

The additional NO from beets can keep you and your brain young and healthy. Beets are exceptionally high in nitrates — something that the scientific world greatly misunderstands. You may be surprised to hear that nitrates and nitrites are not dangerous, either. They are beneficial precursors to NO. The good bacteria in your mouth turn the nitrates into nitrite — and then into NO. To make this conversion you need saliva, antioxidants, and other nutrients. If you don’t have adequate saliva and the right mix of bacteria along with these added nutrients, it will disrupt the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway. There is evidence to suggest that this leads to increased aging and susceptibility to disease.

Professional athletes know how important NO is to their performance. Some of them have been drinking beet juice before a sporting event to quickly raise their NO levels. But they need to drink more than a dozen glasses of this juice to get the ideal desired athletic boost. You and I don’t need such high amounts. The beet-based supplement I use is CircO2. It restores NO levels to the amount that a healthy person who weighs up to 150 lbs would produce in a day. If you’re heavier, just double the amount. You can get CircO2 from Advanced Bionutritionals (800-791-3395). It comes with test strips so you can see whether or not you’re NO- deficient.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, February 2013.

Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute. “In Stroke and Other Neurological Disorders, Nitric Oxide Damages Neurons and Blocks the Brain’s Ability to Repair Itself.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 7 February 2013. Web. 16 February 2013. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/255906.php>

How Your Emotions Trigger Inflammation and Affect Your Health

We’ve all heard of the mind/body connection and experienced physical changes triggered by our emotions. For instance, we know that stress can lead to interrupted sleep, and that excitement can cause an upset stomach. But scientific research has recently uncovered even more mind/body connections. These include how stressful thoughts increase inflammation, the effects of loneliness on your immunity, and how depression can lead to heart disease.

What science is finding out is that emotions can affect your health in some unexpected ways. What’s more, there are some simple ways to overcome the harmful effects that these emotions have on your body.

Stress & inflammation

By now you probably know that inflammation is at the heart of just about all chronic illnesses. For the first time, researchers at Ohio University found that C-reactive protein, a marker in the blood of tissue inflammation, rises after just thinking about a stressful episode.

C-reactive protein is the liver’s response to inflammation caused by traumas, injuries, and infections. It can also indicate whether or not a person is at risk for a future disease. Now we’re seeing that emotions can trigger C-reactive protein.
In this study, researchers asked 34 healthy women to either think about a particular stressful incident or a neutral subject. Then they drew blood samples from the women. These samples showed significantly higher levels of C-reactive protein in the women who thought about the stressful subject. What’s more, their inflammation continued to rise for at least an hour afterward.

What can you do?

You can begin by re-evaluating the minerals in your diet and supplements, and boost your magnesium intake. Calcium causes muscles to tighten, while magnesium causes them to relax. And stress robs your body of magnesium. This is why some people find an Epsom salt bath to be calming. Epsom salt is magnesium, and your skin absorbs some of the magnesium in bath water. You can also find magnesium bath salts to add to your bath, like Ancient Minerals Magnesium Bath Flakes (www.magneticclay.com).

When soaking in a bath isn’t practical, you can take a magnesium supplement. How much should you take? I suggest taking it to bowel tolerance — enough to give you soft, formed stools — up to 1,000 mg per day. As you raise your magnesium, reduce your dietary and supplemental calcium to 500 mg per day. This is enough to protect your bones without putting you at risk for heart disease. Remember that nuts, seeds, and grains are high in magnesium. So make sure you include them in your diet.

Next, turn off your monkey mind — the chattering repetition of stressful thoughts. I know, that’s easier said than done. But it’s not if you take kava, an
anti-anxiety herb. Studies out of Duke University Medical Center found that kava is as effective as Xanax or Valium without their side effects.

People have used kava for hundreds of years without any incidents. Yet, in the past few years, there have been questions of its safety. A handful of cases reported liver toxicity. There were even some deaths. But the dangers of kava have been refuted time and again. At this time, I feel comfortable suggesting kava to stop obsessive thoughts. The only time I wouldn’t recommend it is if your doctor says you have impaired liver function.

Loneliness & inflammation

I spend a lot of time alone, but I’m rarely lonely. I know other people who are alone much less than I and they are frequently lonely. Being alone and content won’t compromise your health, but being lonely may. It’s another chronic stressor, and it can actually wake up sleeping viruses.

If you’ve ever had a herpes virus outbreak, you probably know that stress can bring it on. This is more likely to occur when you have a taxed immune response because loneliness is a chronic stressor that turns on a poorly controlled immune system.

A study of 200 breast cancer survivors found that loneliness can reactivate the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) — a herpes virus. It found that study participants who were lonelier had higher levels of EBV than less lonely women. Lisa Jaremka, lead author of this research, said, “We saw consistency in the sense that more lonely people in both studies had more inflammation than less lonely people.” It’s also important to recognize that people who feel connected to others have less inflammation.

What can you do?

Don’t wait for someone to ask you to spend time with him or her. Stop your excuses and reach out to a friend, neighbor, or acquaintance. Invite them over
for a cup of coffee or tea. Suggest the two of you go for a walk or go to the supermarket together. Or just keep in touch by phone. You may be surprised to find that the person you’re extending an invitation to is another lonely person. Even people who are popular and busy can be lonely.

Stop concentrating on what you don’t have, and look at what you do have. Volunteer some time at a non-profit organization or join a book club. Meet other people who also want to connect. The feeling of purpose can chase away negative emotions.

Depression & inflammation

There’s a strong connection between depression and heart disease. In fact, from 40-60% of heart disease patients are clinically depressed. Their depression activates an inflammatory response, and inflammation, as you may know, leads to heart disease. Then a continuous cycle develops, as their heart disease causes depression.

A Loyola University Medical Center psychiatrist, Angelos Halaris, MD, PhD, headed a study that found an inflammatory biomarker, interleukin-6, was much higher in people with major depression than in healthy people. At first, this inflammation protects against stress.

But when it becomes chronic, it can cause hardening of the arteries and heart disease. You need to break this cycle to reduce both heart disease and depression.

Halaris thinks the medical profession should create a medical subspecialty called psychocardiology to increase awareness of this connection among doctors and the public. He has found that early detection and treatment of depression can prevent heart disease later in life.

I think it’s important to treat depression at any age, but not necessarily with pharmaceuticals — although at rare times they may be your best option. Natural antidepressants may be all you need to break this cycle.

What can you do?

There are dozens of natural antidepressants including St. John’s wort and SAM-e. But the standardized extract of Rhodiola rosea may be the safest and most effective. An Armenian study followed nearly 100 patients in a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial for six weeks. Participants were of both sexes and were from18 to 70 years old. All of the participants had mild to moderate depression. The researchers gave one-third of the patients 340 mg per day of Rhodiola rosea. They gave a second group 680 mg per day. And the remainder took a placebo. All of the participants taking the standardized extract significantly improved. Those on the placebo did not.

If you need help in finding an experienced health care practitioner, contact the Alliance for Addictions (www.allianceforaddictionsolutions.org). My good friend and colleague, Hyla Cass, MD, is one of their experts in this field, and one of the most knowledgeable practitioners I know.

Exercise is an important component in reducing depression. Get in the habit of taking a brisk walk for 30 to 60 minutes a day. And include regular meditation in your regime. This combination of movement and stillness can make a big difference in how you feel.

Finally, if you have a chemical imbalance, you may need a pharmaceutical antidepressant. Diet, hormones, and stress all influence how they work and which ones you may need. So work closely with your doctor to find one that works best for you. And make sure your doctor closely monitors you several times a year. Don’t stop taking them if you feel better. A chemical imbalance doesn’t just go away, but you can manage it.

Darbinyan, V., et al. Nord J Psychiatry, 2007; 61(5).

Ohio University, “Dwelling on stressful events can increase inflammation in the body, study finds.” ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 14, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com

Ohio State University, “The Immune System Taxed By Loneliness, Similar To The Effect Of Chronic Stress.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 22 January 2013.

NUTRITION DETECTIVE

If You’re Stressed, Reach for a Cuppa

Tea is the most popular beverage in the world and for good reasons. Its caffeine is a natural pick-me-up, while the l-theanine it contains has a mild calming effect. You might think that these two cancel one another out, but you’d be wrong. They support each other and reduce signs of stress that can be harmful.

When you’re stressed, your body makes a hormone called cortisol. High levels of this hormone, produced over a period of time, can contribute to osteoporosis, weight gain, depression, and many other health problems. While there’s no way to prevent stress, you can keep your cortisol levels down by drinking tea. I’m not talking about herb tea or green tea, but black tea — like the English drink every mid-afternoon. It doesn’t matter what you add to it: lemon, sugar, or milk.

Drinking black tea lowers cortisol.

In a study that appeared in Psychopharmacology, researchers divided a group of tea drinkers into two groups. One group drank only caffeinated black tea, while the other group drank a caffeinated placebo that had an identical taste. Then the researchers put all of the participants in strenuous situations that caused their blood pressure and cortisol levels to rise and their heart rate to increase.

An hour after drinking their beverage, the tea drinkers’ cortisol levels dropped by 47%. Cortisol lessened by only 27% in the placebo group. What’s more, the group that drank the black tea felt more relaxed, even after drinking a caffeinated beverage. While tea is not going to reduce stress, black tea seems to help people bounce back from its effects and restore hormones to safer levels more quickly.

If you’re sensitive to caffeine, don’t worry. Black tea lowers cortisol whether the tea you drink is decaf or regular.

Steptoe, A., et al. “The effects of tea on psychophysiological stress responsivity and post-stress recovery: a randomized double-blind trial.” Psychopharmacology, DOI 10.1007.

LETTERS

Q: I have been taking CircO2 lozenges for three weeks. Before I took them, the test strip indicated I was “depleted.” After one month, the strips said I was “low.” How long does it take to register “normal”? I do not want to take more unless I will go to “normal.” Will I get energy if I do? So far, my energy level has not changed, and I take a lot of supplements for energy. — N.C., Los Angeles, CA

A: How long it takes to register “normal” on the test strips varies from person to person. And some people will never get to “normal” because they lack the specific oral bacteria needed to generate nitric oxide (NO) – the active ingredient in this supplement. This doesn’t mean the lozenge is not working, but that the NO activity is not recycled through the saliva – which is what the strips are testing.

Here’s how you can test whether you have the right bacteria: Take a baseline saliva test using the test strip. Then eat half a cup or more of spinach or kale (cooked or raw). Test your saliva 90 minutes later. If the test strip improves, you have the right bacteria to generate NO through this pathway. If it doesn’t, it means you don’t have this oral bacterium and are more dependent on CircO2 for your NO supply. It’s working, but not registering.

As for your lack of improvement in energy, I always give a supplement from one to six months before deciding that it’s not working. It can take that long to feel the effects, although changes are occurring on a cellular level. So keep taking it and see if it helps.

Q: Is Ultimate Bone Support a vegetarian product? By this I mean does it contain any ingredients derived from animal products? I want to take only supplements that are 100% vegetarian. — C.A., e-mail

A: The ingredients in Ultimate Bone Support are completely vegetarian with one exception that many people still find acceptable: the vitamin D3. All vitamin D3 is made from animal wool. The only vitamin D that comes from plant materials is vitamin D2 – and it’s much less effective than vitamin D3.

Because no animals are killed or harmed to make vitamin D3, you may be willing to take this nutrient. We are very careful to use the best quality ingredients in all of our formulas while taking into consideration such preferences as vegetarian ingredients.

If you prefer to take only products that are 100% vegetarian, you’ll need to take vitamin D2 for bone support. This also means having to search out other individual nutrients like strontium, boron, and other important trace minerals and put together your own formula. This is possible, but you’ll find it is much more expensive.

I can understand taking a strict approach to vegetarianism when animals are harmed. I was one for 30 years until I added seafood to give me more protein and essential fats. But when a nutrient doesn’t hurt any animals, you may find the benefits of D3 makes it acceptable.