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from Your Nutritional Education Site
"Get Educated to Take Control of Your Health"

1. Structural Medicine vs. Functional Medicine
2. The Flu Season is here by Dr. Martin
3. Do you get enough potassium in your diet?
4. Nerve Damage Can’t be Repaired? You just have to live with it?

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What is Functional medicine?

How does it differ from Structural Medicine?

In the words of Dr. Joel Fuerman, MD, (paraphrased) “Structural medicine (our current medical care)is like parking an ambulance at the bottom of a cliff because people are falling off instead of building a fence at the top of the cliff.”

And we then should teach people to avoid the cliff. Which is getting people educated about their health.

Find out why we are susceptible to disease. An unhealthy body is a feeding ground for "germs".

Should we sanitize everything to get rid of a virus (structural), or allow our immune system to do its job – smashing any invading bacteria or virus. For this one enhances the function of the immune system.

We believe in Functional Medicine. It is defined as: “affecting the operation, rather than the structure, of an organ” In other words, you can address a stomach ulcer by surgery, cutting out the damaged area – affecting the structure – or you can address the function of the stomach so the body is not creating ulcers. Instead of a structural dentist drilling out decay from a tooth and filling it with a foreign substance (changing the structure), you can find out that decay is actually the de-mineralization of teeth, and that you have to change your diet, so that the body can re-mineralize your teeth. (see dental health)

Functional Medicine is: “Medical practice or treatments that focus on optimal functioning of the body and its organs, usually involving systems of holistic or alternative medicine.”

The focus of functional medicine is promoting health beyond just the absence of disease. The focus is finding the cause of the problem and getting the body to fix that. You might need to focus on building healthy nerves when they are painful or addressing heavy metal toxicity when it is raising blood pressure. There are many causes of symptoms. Finding the actual cause and addressing it by building health is functional medicine.

Instead of trying to prevent or stop disease, isn’t it better to start building health. As you build health, you will make changes for the better on a continual basis.”

Building heath for

The Flu Season is Here by Dr. Martin

We're in FLU SEASON…So it's time to talk about vitamin D once again.

Low vitamin D is an urgent problem no matter what time of year it is…Especially this time of year. You need UVB from the sun to make vitamin D.

But people spend an average of over 90% of their time indoors… And if they do go outside. They're usually lathered up in sunblock.

To make matters worse We're in FLU SEASON…

So it's time to talk about vitamin D once again.

Low vitamin D is an urgent problem no matter what time of year it is…

Especially this time of year.

You need UVB from the sun to make vitamin D.

But people spend an average of over 90% of their time indoors…

And if they do go outside…

They're usually lathered up in sunblock.

To make matters worse… Vitamin D blood levels plummet in September and continue to drop until it reaches the bottom in January. Even if you're outside in January, chances are you're covering up the critical areas for vitamin D absorption…Your arms, legs, and eyes…

You're not getting as much vitamin D as you think. And that's a big problem. Having optimal vitamin D levels is one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself from getting sick.

Not to mention… EVERY tissue in the body has a vitamin D receptor, including your immune system, skin, thyroid, stomach, colon, pancreas, and more.

This is why a person low in vitamin D suffers from the following:

→ Mood issues
→ Cognitive decline
→ Skin issues
→ Poor bone health
→ Weak immune system
→ Circulation issues
→ Poor muscle strength

And, to be honest… many more problems as well.

You should know your immune system DOESN’T WORK without adequate vitamin D. Your T-cells…They’re the killer cells that play a central role in your immune response… Don’t react and fight off severe infections without vitamin D.

That's because… When your body gets exposed to a virus or bacteria… Your T-cells search for vitamin D to activate. They won’t complete the activation process if they can't find enough vitamin D.

Think about that for a minute.

Your T-cells won't fully activate unless you have enough vitamin D… And you need T-cells to activate and do their job to fight off a virus. No vitamin D… no immune response to viruses.

That’s one reason why a study found:

“people with vitamin D levels above 38 ng/mL recovered from influenza in an average of 2 days, whereas people with vitamin D levels below 38 ng/mL took an average of 9 days to recover from influenza."

The fact is… The average person can't fight off the flu fast enough because they're going into it with WAY TOO LOW vitamin D levels.

Now, we mentioned that most alternative (integrated, natural, or whatever term people use these days) doctors agree that optimal blood levels are… 60-80 ng/ml in the US or 150-250 nmol/L in Canada.

I've said this many times… And I'll continue to say it…There's a battle taking place over vitamin D. This may sound crazy . I think vitamin D is so simple and cost-effective…If more people got the amount needed to bring their blood levels of vitamin D to an optimal range…Drug companies would see their revenues drop considerably.

And remember… The older you are The less your body produces vitamin D from the sun. For example… a 70-year-old makes 4 TIMES LESS vitamin D than a 20-year-old. Now, imagine a 70-year-old wearing sunscreen?

How much vitamin D do you think they're getting in the summer? Clearly, most people need to supplement vitamin D…

Especially THIS TIME OF YEAR!

Recommended by MCVitamins

Vitamin D3 & K2 - read about it to understand why this combination is so good.

Dr. Berg also has Advanced Immune Support with vitamin D and more.

Do you get enough potassium in your diet?

A potassium-rich diet is linked to many powerful health benefits. It may help reduce blood pressure and water retention, protect against stroke and help prevent osteoporosis and kidney stones.

Many foods that people say are high in potassium, like fruit, whole grains, beans, and potatoes, are not actually good sources of potassium. The phytic acid in whole grains can even block potassium.

The best sources of potassium are leafy greens—especially Swiss chard and beet tops. Avocados, fish, and beef are also excellent sources of potassium.

If you want to know what causes potassium deficiency and discover seven unexpected and amazing benefits of potassium,

Many people already know that potassium supports a healthy heart and healthy blood sugar levels and helps balance bodily fluids. But, there is so much more to potassium.

You need a lot of potassium. The body requires 4700 mg of potassium every day. You don’t require even a fraction of that for other nutrients.

Potassium supports two major areas: the muscles and the nerves—and it’s essential for energy production.

Many foods people say are high in potassium, like fruit, whole grains, beans, and potatoes, are not actually good sources of potassium. The phytic acid in whole grains can even block potassium.

The best sources of potassium are leafy greens—especially Swiss chard and beet tops. Avocados are also an excellent source of potassium. Adding fish and beef to your diet with vegetables is another great way to get the potassium you need.

Causes of a potassium deficiency:

• A lack of vegetables in the diet

• Experiencing stress

• Consuming too much sugar

• Consuming too much caffeine

• Consuming too much alcohol

• Taking diuretics

• Consuming too much salt

• Experiencing an injury

• Going through a surgery

Unexpected benefits of potassium:

1. Cognitive benefits

2. Cerebellum support

3. Mood support

4. Stronger muscles

5. Protection against leg cramps

6. Countering the effects of high sodium (salt)

7. Supporting regular bowel movements

Recommended

Dr. Berg's high-potassium Electrolyte Powder to help achieve your potassium requirements, improve your endurance, and support your health. Just remember to take more sea salt if you're exercising while taking a high-potassium electrolyte powder

Nerve Damage Can’t be Repaired? You just have to live with it?

I can’t count the number of times that I’ve been told by someone that their medical doctor said that there was nothing that could be done about their neuropathy as damaged nerves can’t be repaired.

It seems not all doctors believe that.

Here is a quote from Columbia University Medical Center that says:

“This is an important point when dealing with peripheral nerve injuries. The healing process almost invariably requires an extensive amount of time to occur.”

And another quote from a medical doctor and researcher:

“Peripheral nerve fibers can regrow- otherwise we’d lose sensation whenever we cut a finger.” The Body Electric by Robert O. Becker, M.D. and Gary Selden There is lots of information in this book about growth and regrowth of the nervous system.

Or this quote “.lifestyle changes, diet, superfoods, and the use of nutrients could potentially reverse the severity of the nerve damage” Ray Sahlian, M.D.

Or a speech at Peripheral Nerve Regeneration Integrated Neuroscience Session: “These findings indicate that methyl-B12 promotes regeneration of degenerating nerve terminals”

Says scientist K Yamazaki – 1994 “Ultra-high dose methylcobalamine promotes nerve regeneration.” Scientist T Watanabe – 1994

So, what is the truth?

Here is some research that has been done on repairing nerves.

Nerve Regeneration with Methylcobalamine Ultra-high dose methylcobalamine promotes nerve regeneration in experimental acrylamide neuropathy. Watanabe T Kaji R Oka N Bara W Kimura J, J Neurol Sci (1994 Apr) 122(2):140-3 Full Study

Regeneration of Motor Nerve Terminals with Methyl B12” methylcobalamine (methyl-B12) Promotes Regeneration of Motor Nerve Terminals Degenerating in anterior gracile muscle of gracile axonal dystrophy (GAD) mutant mouse Yamazaki K Oda K Endo C Kikuchi T Wakabayashi T, Neurosci Lett (1994 Mar 28) 170(1):195-7

“These findings indicate that methyl-B12 promotes regeneration of degenerating nerve terminals in GAD mice”

Benfotiamine and Improvement in Nerve Conduction Velocity A Benfotiamine-vitamin B Combination in Treatment of Diabetic Polyneuropathy Stracke H, Lindemann A, Federlin K.

This research tells you that it is possible to repair nerves, if you give the body what it needs to make those repairs.

You can look these up yourself at PubMed – just put in the name of the study.

Read more and understand Nerve Damage