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From Your Nutritional Education Site

1. Natural Support for Your Immune System
2. Is it an adverse reaction or “die-off”?
3. Probiotics: Your Thyroid’s Secret Ally
4. Autoimmune Reaction & Neuropathy (nerve damage)

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Natural Support for Your Immune System
By Elizabeth Leppart, MS, LN

Every year come fall, the weather gets cooler, we spend more time inside, our kids bring home new germs from school, and we inevitably find our immune systems needing a bit more attention.

You may be wondering what are some ways that you can boost your immunity to combat cold and flu season this year. In this article, we’ll cover what foods to eat to support your immune system, what foods to skip that are detrimental, and what high quality supplements you might want to include in your real food plan.

Foods to Boost Your Immune System

Always focus on food first. This means that the best way to support your immune system is by eating a variety of real, whole foods full of natural immune-supportive nutrients. Think of colorful fruits and vegetables full of protective phytonutrients. Good quality animal proteins are made up of immune-boosting amino acids. And healthy fats contain a variety of antioxidants. All of these help to support our immune system by fighting off harmful invaders.

The beauty about eating this way is that it focuses on all three of those components to make up meals and snacks: colorful fruits and veggies, quality proteins, and healthy fats. With this template in mind, you are creating immune-building foods at every meal, throughout your day!

Especially during cold and flu season (which happens to be fall and winter season), we are lovers of soups and stews. One pot meals are easy dishes that have your veggie carbs, protein, and fat all combined into one! Here are a few of our favorite immune-building recipes:

Spicy Coconut Stew – this also includes garlic, which is a great nutrient for immune health. Its sulfuric compounds are antibacterial and anti-inflammatory to fight viruses.

Bone-Building Chicken Wild Rice Soup – the bone broth in this recipe helps heal the gut, which strengthens your immune system. Plus good ol’ chicken soup is just good for the heart and the comfort.

Pumpkin and Root Vegetable Soup- this recipe is packed with immune-boosting nutrients like vitamin C from the bell peppers and vitamin A from orange and yellow root vegetables. Just pair with your favorite protein and you have a balanced meal.

Foods that Weaken Your Immune System

On the flip side, the most harmful food group for your immunity is sugar! This not only includes the obvious culprits like candy and baked goods, but any refined, processed carbohydrate like crackers, chips, and pasta. In fact, eating a serving of sugar or a meal full of highly refined carbohydrates can suppress your white blood cells (your invader-fighting cells most important for immunity) for several hours!

One way to help yourself cut out some of those processed foods is to find substitutions that you can enjoy instead. Does the family love pasta night for dinner? Try making zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash “pasta”. Find a healthier pumpkin muffin recipe that contains protein, fat, and a natural sweetener that won’t spike your blood sugar and weaken your immune system. Really craving a pumpkin spice latte? We got you covered with this pumpkin spice coffee recipe that is just as delicious but doesn’t compromise your health!

Vitamins & Minerals for a Strong Immune System

Now, don’t worry. There are ways to support your immune system if your diet falls short! In fact, even the best, real-food, nutrient-dense diets need some extra support now and then-- especially during cold and flu season when we’re bombarded with new germs to fight off. So, what do our nutrition experts recommend?

We’re going to dive into three essential immune-boosting nutrients and how to get them through our favorite foods and quality supplements.

Vitamin D3

You may have heard about the importance of Vitamin D3 during a flu.There’s an increasingly-supported correlation to your level of vitamin D and your immune system's ability to fight off invaders. The natural way to make vitamin D is from the sun.

We recommend getting your level checked at least once annually to make sure you are in a good range (around 50-80nmol/l), particularly in the early spring to see how you fared over the winter months with less sun. To achieve this good vitamin D range, taking 4-5,000 IU daily is recommended, especially in winter months or if your sun exposure is limited. As a bonus, adequate levels of Vitamin D can boost moods to help you combat those winter blues!

Vitamin C

Vitamin C might be your go-to immunity supplement. And there’s good reason! It’s been known for decades that Vitamin C is a powerhouse for fighting off infection and keeping our cells healthy. We can get a good dose of Vitamin C from eating a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables – and we’re not just talking oranges. A cup of bell peppers has over 100 mg of vitamin C! But if you’re in need of extra support, supplement.

Zinc

Zinc is another, perhaps less thought of, but still essential mineral for immune support.

To recap, you can support your immune system during this cold and flu season (and every season!) by eating whole, real foods with lots of colorful fruits and vegetables, high quality protein, and healthy fats. Skip the sugary, processed foods that weaken your white blood cells and focus on the immune boosting nutrients of vitamin D3, vitamin C, and zinc.

Is it an adverse reaction or “die-off”?

Have you had a surprising reaction when starting a health protocol? Did the supplements you took create an adverse reaction? Well, don’t give up.

Starting a new supplement or antimicrobial protocol can sometimes result in surprising symptoms like:

• Fatigue
• Flu-like symptoms (chills, nausea, etc.)
• Headache
• And/or skin reactions

This often, understandably, leads people to feel that they’re having an adverse reaction to what may actually be a helpful protocol and quit.

But what really may be happening is a Herxheimer reaction (also known as “die-off”).

A Herxheimer reaction is the body’s immune system responding to new and unknown substances. Put simply, it’s when a new protocol makes you feel worse before you start to feel better.

To make sure you aren’t jumping ship on a protocol that may actually be working for you, it’s important to learn how to recognize the difference between die-off and intolerance.

Dr. Ruscio

Probiotics: Your Thyroid’s Secret Ally

Hey, It’s Dr. Martin Here…

A few weeks ago, I wrote a newsletter about how your thyroid is being framed for something it didn’t do. You know the thyroid is being framed when:

Millions of women have classic sluggish thyroid symptoms, but their blood tests say ‘normal.’

Or…

How millions of others are on the thyroid merry-go-round: A relentless cycle of symptoms, abnormal blood work, constant thyroid med adjustments, and more symptoms.

The way most doctors approach thyroid treatment is the definition of insanity:

They’re doing the exact same thing over and over again but expecting different results.

Clearly…it’s time to RETHINK thyroid health

And the first step is for doctors to understand the thyroid is being blamed for symptoms it didn’t create.

You see your thyroid produces two crucial hormones: T3 and T4.
T3 is the active one, controlling metabolism, energy, and fat loss.

Here’s the catch: 94% of thyroid hormones are made as T4, not active T3. So, your body must convert T4 into T3.

Once made in your thyroid, T4 and T3 travel through your blood to be converted elsewhere. At this point, your thyroid’s job is done — it’s up to other organs to make the vital T3 conversion.

Knowing this…does it make sense to blame the thyroid for anything that happens after it has done its job?

Now…

One of the organs involved in framing your thyroid for something it is doing is your gut. In fact, 20% of all conversion of T4 to T3 takes place in your gut. So, if there’s a problem with your gut, there’s a good chance you’ll have “Thyroid” symptoms.

In a new study just published…

“Exploring the role of gut microbiota in autoimmune thyroid disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis”…

Found that patients with the most common Autoimmune thyroid diseases (Graves and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis) had SIGNIFICANT CHANGES in their gut microbiome diversity and composition.

Remember, your microbiome is made up of trillions of bacteria, and it connects your gut to every system, including your heart, liver, skin, joints, brain, pancreas, lungs, and THYROID.

For your gut to be healthy, your microbiome needs to be diverse — meaning lots of different types of probiotic strains.

There are two main ways that your gut microbiome can cause thyroid symptoms:

A messed up microbiome that leads to a thyroid autoimmune issue…

And a messed up microbiome that slows down or stops the conversion of T4 to T3.

Either way, you end up with thyroid symptoms CAUSED by your gut.

Let me say something obvious…

I’m a HUGE fan of probiotics.

I believe most need to take probiotics every day.

Probiotics are the "good guys" in your body. They're often called the "good bacteria."

Probiotics keep harmful bacteria in check and promote health.

Autoimmune Reaction & Neuropathy (nerve damage)

Autoimmune reaction and how it happens? Autoimmune reaction means that the body creates an overactive immune response against substances and tissues normally present in the body. In other words, the body actually attacks its own cells.

Nerve Damage can occur when the body attacks its own nerve tissue. This occurs in Guillain-Barre syndrome, celiac disease, Crohn’s Disease, Fibromyalgia, Grave’s Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Inflammatory bowel disease, and many others.

Autoimmune disorders – An antigen is any substance that causes your immune system to produce antibodies against it. An antigen may be a foreign substance from the environment such as chemicals, bacteria, viruses, or pollen. An antigen may also be formed within the body, as with bacterial toxins.

An Autoimmune disorder is defined as when the immune system can’t tell the difference between healthy body tissue and antigens. It is when specialized cells and antibodies of the immune system attack the body’s own tissues.

Viral and bacterial infections can cause indirect nerve damage by creating conditions referred to as autoimmune disorders.

How does this become neuropathy?

The autoimmune attack where the body is attacking its own tissue typically causes destruction of the nerve’s myelin sheath of the axon (the long fiber that extends out from the main nerve cell body). The myelin sheath is the outer covering of the axon. This destruction is nerve damage. It is also called Neuropathy.

See Neuropathy for more information on this, the symptoms of neuropathy and what can be done to get relief.

Gluten neuropathy

Neuropathy, or peripheral neuropathy, describes a range of disorders characterized by nerve damage to one or more nerves outside of the brain and spinal cord. Often autoimmune diseases and vitamin deficiencies are some of the potential causes, according to the Mayo Clinic. Gluten neuropathy is when the autoimmune response is the root cause of the nerve damage.

A study published in Muscle Nerve journal in December 2006 found that participants with neuropathy who followed a gluten-free diet showed significant improvement in symptoms after one year. The control group reported a worsening of symptoms. People who have gluten intolerance do not respond to simple allergy tests like someone with milk or nut allergy might. The gentlest way to figure out if someone is sensitive to gluten is dietary therapy. Avoid gluten for several weeks, then reintroduce it and observe any reactions.

Once it is known that a person has a problem with gluten there is only one form of treatment: abstinence. People with any degree of gluten sensitivity or intolerance must completely give it up. This means not only avoiding obvious foods like bread and pasta, but also foods like soy sauce and licorice that contain small amounts of wheat.

Fortunately, there are many alternatives. Pastas made with rice flour or quinoa* don’t have gluten in them. Rice bread can replace bread made from grains containing gluten. Buckwheat flour contains no gluten and works well for pancakes. Some companies even make soy sauce that doesn’t use wheat in the ingredients. It is simply a matter of reading labels and shopping around.

* Celiac disease: a digestive disease that damages the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food.

* Neurologic: of or having to do with neurology. Neurology is a branch of medicine concerned especially with the structure, functions, and diseases of the nervous system.

* Quinoa: a grain-like plant.

For complete article Gluten & Nerve Damage

Video on what to do about what causes the Autoimmune Problem

Treatment for Neuropathy from the Autoimmune Reaction

There are many medications, and other remedies to bring relief, you can read it in this article Neuropathy Treatments

What can you do?

Take a Quiz: Am I doing everything I can to daily help my neuropathy?

Find out what lifestyle changes will help, take the quiz and get our suggestions and get our assistance on what you can do.

Take Our Quiz

None of the various neuropathy treatments will build healthy nerves. You can cover up the symptoms and you can increase circulation and you can make a person feel less pain, etc., but if you build healthy nerves, there will not be any symptoms (healthy nerves don’t hurt, tingle, burn, are not numb, etc.) and the relief will be lasting.

Building Healthy Nerves

Healthy sensory nerves mean that they are not painful. Healthy nerves mean that they communicate and don’t send wrong signals such as burning, hot and cold, tingling when there is no reason for it. Healthy motor nerves mean that they relay messages from the brain to the muscle so that they move correctly. Nerves need to be healthy to function properly.

The body needs specific nutrients (vitamins) to be able to build healthy nerves.

It may not give immediate relief (although many do feel changes in the first week) as the vitamins are working at a cellular level, but it does address the actual problem, builds healthy nerves and brings lasting relief.

(For temporary relief while building healthy nerves, go to Pain Relief Formula)

What can be done for lasting relief?
Find out how to Build Healthy Nerves

*Studies & Research on Nerve Health

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Sidebar:

Nerve Damage - Why R-Alpha Lipoic and Acetyl L-Carnitine?

If you have nerve damage, R-Alpha lipoic acid and acetyl L-carnitine are two key supplements that you should add to your daily routine.

Evidence indicates that alpha lipoic acid has an ability to kill free-radicals which may help provide added nutritional support to people who have nerve damage in the arms and legs, such as:

- pain
- burning
- itching
- tingling
- numbness

Alpha lipioc acid comes in two forms. R and S. Alpha lipoic acid is a combination of these two forms. Most supplements have alpha lipoic acid with both forms, not just the R form.

The R form of alpha lipoic acid is the form normally found in the body. Studies indicate the R-alpha lipoic acid form appears to be better absorbed than the combination of R and S alpha lipoic acid.

Additionally, some small preliminary studies suggest acetyl L-carnitine may help provide nutritional support to people with pain and who want to improve feeling in affected nerves. It is also possible that acetyl L-carnitine can help nerves regenerate.

The Nerve & Energy Booster is a nutritional supplement which contains acetyl L-carnitine and R-alpha lipoic acid (the better, more absorbable form of R-alpha lipoic acid).

Find out more and order the Nerve & Energy Booster

Or you can call us at (888) 758-5590 or (818) 252-1038

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