Radio Naturopath Episode 447: More Medial Collateral Care, Microbiome, Sleep and GABA

This week., I am STILL limping on that MCL sprain/mensicus issue! More interesting stuff, like having to use a hinged brace, heavy and hot in June! And more staying off the bike.  I was a lot better a few days ago and rode a couple of days and  now I'm set back; obviously not healed yet. HInged brace, exercises, rest, ice, elevation, specific exercises. Unlikely need for surgery! We also went back to discussing the microbiome, GABA, and sleep, and there are easy ways to improve sleep by eating the right foods and getting the right probiotics. We touched on help for high blood pressure and we'll pick up on that next week.

Radio Naturopath Episode 264: Wear Your Mask Correctly; All About FIBER, Your Health and Digestion!

This week, I played a broken record: affirmed that people REALLY NEED to wear their masks CORRECTLY when they're in difficult-to-distance situations, such as grocery stores. This was inspired by several trips to local stores where I observed numerous people wearing their masks over their noses but not their mouths, at least 3 stores. I explained why this is useless. On a happy note, the topic of the day was all about fiber! How to promote it in your body, what foods to eat, various fiber supplements, why it's good for you.

Radio Naturopath Episode 197: Healthy Hot Cocoa, Rest Is the Most Important Part of Weight Loss, Why Jicama is Good For You

HOT COCOA. It can be good for you, and I think it can be even better with matcha in it! Rock those antioxidants! Or do cocoa chai, with turmeric, ginger, cinnamon and cayenne. Way to warm you up on a cold day. Don't forget the marshmallows! Also, REST is the most important part of weight loss! If your cortisol is too high, you'll store fat. So nap, meditate, breathe, walk in nature! The first rule of weight loss? Don't talk about weight loss. Talk about all the other good things that you can do for your health that can incidentally get you there. Plus JICAMA is good for you! It's crunchy, low calorie, and has lots of fiber. Great healthy alternative to crackers!

Radio Naturopath Episode 195: Rest Is Good For You, Good Stuff: Potatoes and Yacon Syrup

I want to remind people to slow down and enjoy the holiday season, not just do everything and anything! Meditate, read, relax, listen to music, go for a stroll. Watch the HALLMARK CHANNEL.  Get your negative ions and go out in nature! Also, POTATOES can be your friend. They have resistant starch to help blood sugar, potassium to calm you down, and their skins have lots of antioxidants to prevent tissue damage in your body! The darker the potato, the more antioxidants, just like berries. So grab those purple potatoes! Also, more on yacon syrup: that molasses-like syrup from that starchy tuber that can help with weight loss.

Radio Naturopath Episode 156: How Sweet It Is: Natural and Artificial, From Aspartame to Sucanat!

While it's not good to eat sweet stuff ALL the time, we know yer gunna. So, I talk about a few different sweeteners and whether they're good for you or not. It seems like aspartame is problematic. It can cause brain tumors, and at least brain damage! It breaks down into phenylalanine (not so bad), apartic acid which is a neurotoxin, and methanol which is a GENERAL toxin. The cutoff is 40 mg/kg body weight, but that is a general cutoff and it's possible that it could cause damage in doses lower than that. Sucralose (the active ingredient in Splenda) doesn't appear to be as potentially toxic as aspartame. It also hasn't been on the market as long. We can assume there's at least going to be digestive issues since it can't be absorbed. Then on to stevia, which is MUCH better for you and may actually have some blood sugar regulating properties. There are some studies that show that it's effective against Lyme disease spirochetes! The down side is some preparations have a bitter aftertaste, but I find that it depends on what it's in. I also discuss erythritol, the sugar alcohol that's least likely to give you GI upset because it IS absorbed and excreted in the urine. None of these non-sugars taste exactly like sugar, so let's talk about some interesting sugars! First of all, white sugar is bleached with chemicals and has all the nutrition taken out, so all you get is stuff that can cause you to gain weight and eventually give you diabetes and high cholesterol. ALL true sugars in quantity have that potential, but some in moderation are more natural and actually have some nutrition. We talked about evaporated cane juice (Sucanat/Rapadura), muscovado, piloncilo, demerara, and turbinado, all having varying degrees of  molasses, fluid and nutrition, and all varying in earthiness, so you have to experiment with various recipes for best flavor. Then, there's my favorite caloric sweetener, coconut sugar. It's really evaporated coconut palm sap, so still contains nutrition, and has a starch called inulin, a prebiotic that's good for your gut flora. It's lower calorie and raises your blood sugar less. Last for today was YACON, a tuber from South America. They make a syrup out of it, and it really has a lot of health benefits, like anti-cancer, immune boosting, appetite suppressing, weight loss, and lowering cholesterol. Watch this space for more info on sweet stuff!