8 Best Foods for Instant Detox

Article from Eat This, Not That!, By David Zinczenko, posted on Yahoo! Health   Fat. Sugar. Salt. Alcohol. If our bodies had minds of their own, they’d have put us on notice on Thanksgiving, served us with papers by Christmas, and be off dating a vegan yogi by New Year’s Eve.

So why not make friends with it again? These essential Eat This, Not That! Detox Foods will instantly cleanse your body without any painful fasts or expensive juices. You’ll find the complete list—and a simple and effective diet plan that can strip off up to 16 pounds in 14 days—in my new book, The Zero Belly Diet.


The Liver Fixer: Almonds

Downing those winter cocktails make you more than fat and hungover; the fatty deposits that build up around your liver after weeks of overeating and drinking put you at increased risk for liver cancer. But just a couple small handfuls a day of vitamin-packed almonds could help cleanse the deposits out, according to a recent study from the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Researchers found a clear inverse response between vitamin E intake and liver cancer risk; those that consumed the most—about 16 mg, or about 15 almonds—showed a 40 percent lower risk of liver cancer than those who consumed less.

The Stomach Settler: Guacamole

Think of guacamole as a designated driver for your digestive system. A study in The Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry analyzed the effects of feeding 22 different fruits to a group of rats with liver damage caused by galactosamine, a liver toxin. The fruit that proved most beneficial? You guessed it: the avocado. Cilantro, the savory herb that gives guac its distinctive flavor, contains a unique blend of oils that send a “simmer down!” message to an upset stomach. In fact, these two oils (specifically, linalool and geranyl acetate) are so powerful they’ve been shown to have a positive impact on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a study published in the journal Digestive Diseases and Science.

The Belly Fat Blocker: White Tea

Any tea will help soothe your nerves, but white tea packs a particular one-two punch that can actually attack belly fat. A study published in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism showed that white tea can simultaneously boost lipolysis (the breakdown of fat) and block adipogenesis (the formation of fat cells). The tea’s combination of caffeine and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) seems to set fat cells up for defeat.

The Pain Killer: Turmeric

You can put an ice pack on your throbbing head, but to get the same anti-inflammatory effect throughout the rest of your body, order the curry. Curcumin, a compound derived from the bright-orange spice turmeric, works as a powerful anti-inflammatory in the liver, research shows. A study in the journal Gut found supplementing with curcumin could significantly reduce bile duct blockage and curbed scarring (fibrosis) by interfering with chemical reactions involved in the inflammatory process.

The Hangover Cure: Asparagus

When you’re huddled over a plate of greasy diner food, begging the Hangover Gods for forgiveness, ask the waiter for a side of steamed asparagus. According to a study in the Journal of Food Science, the amino acids and minerals found in asparagus may alleviate hangover symptoms and protect liver cells against toxins. The veggie spears are also a natural diuretic, which will help flush the excess toxins from your system.

The Cholesterol Buster: Collard Greens

A staple vegetable of Southern cuisine, collard greens have an incredible ability to cleanse your system of excess cholesterol, especially when steamed. A recent study published in the journal Nutrition Research compared the bile acid binding capacity of steamed collard greens to Cholestyramine, a cholesterol-lowering drug. Incredibly, the collards improved the body’s cholesterol-blocking process by 13 percent more than the drug! Just hold the artery-clogging fried chicken.

The Detoxifier: Lemon Water

Start each day by making a large pitcher of “spa” water filled with sliced whole lemons, and make a point of sipping your way through at least 8 glasses before bedtime. Citrus fruits are rich in the antioxidant de-limonene, a powerful compound found in the peel that stimulates liver enzymes to help flush toxins from the body and gives sluggish bowels a kick, according to the World Health Organization.

The Artery Plumber: Wild Salmon

If quitting smoking is a New Year’s resolution, add a side of salmon. Researchers say a healthy diet rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids may then help to reverse arterial stiffness—a common side effect of smoking, which, like a kinked hose, inhibits the flow of cleansing blood through the arteries and to vital organs. A three-week study in the International Journal of Cardiology found smokers who supplemented with just 2 grams of omega-3s a day—what you’ll find in a 4-ounce portion of salmon—saw marked improvement in the elasticity of the arteries, allowing for healthy blood flow.

MyAchingKnees comment:  All good information above.  I prefer to de-tox daily starting with my breakfast meal replacement drink adding a fiber supplement that contains a combination of psyllium and inulin which is prebiotic that is believed to promote bifidobacteria in the digestive tract.  The psyllium adds fiber to my diet which is helpful to healthy cholesterol levels as well as reducing heart disease.  And because of years of Aspirin, Motrin and Flexaril abuse, before I got smart and healthy, I also take a daily pharmaceutical quality supplement for my liver providing nutrients that are helpful to stimulating liver enzymes and protecting against oxidative stress.   



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Understanding Intestinal Microbiota to Regain Balance in the Gut

Article from MedicalXpress, by Natalie Duggan. The human gut is its own ecosystem, hosting close to a thousand microorganisms, many of which are helpful and necessary. When you take antibiotics, some of the beneficial germs can be wiped out, leaving you more vulnerable to diarrheal infections—infections, in some cases, that are antibiotic resistant and life-threatening.

MyAchingKnees comment: Not only can anti-biotics, and certainly the over use or abuse of anti-biotics, destroy beneficial mircoorganisms in the gut where our immune systems begin leading to gastrointestinal infections, our whole immune system can be compromised.  I take a probiotic supplement that contains Lactobacillius rhamnosus and Bifidobacterium, twice a week just to ensure healthy bacteria is maintained in my gut.   

Fecal transplants are proving to be a highly effective, antibiotic-free tool to cure Clostridium difficile, known as C diff, often a health care acquired infection that is more common among the elderly or those who take frequent antibiotics.

Colleen Kraft, medical director of Emory's clinical microbiology laboratory and assistant professor in the Department of Pathology and the Division of Infectious Diseases, started the intestinal microbiota program to treat and understand these infections. "Now that we as a medical community have a better understanding of the damage we do to the intestinal microbiota with antibiotic therapy, this understanding became the motivation to restore the balance to improve health," Kraft

In a fecal transplant, a sample is taken from a healthy donor, mixed with saline, and transplanted into the small intestine or colon of the ill patient, where the good bacteria repopulates and restores the healthy microbiota. Tanvi Dhere, director of inflammatory bowel diseases at the Emory Clinic, performs the transplant via colonoscopy and follows up with the patients in the Emory GI clinic. There have been 81 fecal transplants since the program began in 2012.

Donors need to meet stringent requirements, including not having school-aged children, not traveling internationally, and not having taken any antibiotics for at least one year; the sample is screened for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, STDs, parasites, and more. Patients are offered the option of having a family member screened for donor eligibility, but few have requested this after the standardized donor program was started.

Pathology residents Ryan McCormick and Drew Davis are two of Emory's donors.

"During clinical rotations, we saw C diff cases on the wards," Davis says. "It's important to recognize how bad conditions like C diff and colitis actually are."

"For the record, I don't think it's as gross as it sounds," McCormick says, laughing. "My reason for donating is to have more direct involvement in patient care."

Of the 336,000 C diff cases in the US each year, 14,000 result in death, often because the standard course of antibiotic treatment failed.

Kraft and Dhere are enrolling participants for a clinical trial in which they will examine the microbiome of the sample at the mucosal level. "A patient's gut microbiome is changed after undergoing a fecal transplant," Dhere says. "We want to know what specifically is allowing patients to recover."

Collaborative research with other departments is ongoing, including a study with the Department of Surgery on the efficacy of fecal transplants in treating pouchitis, a gastrointestinal condition that may require chronic antibiotics and affects more than 40% of patients with ulcerative colitis who have had a colonic resection. The team, led by Virginia Shaffer, has been granted an investigational new drug designation from the FDA. Fecal transplantation is also showing promise for treating C diff in organ transplant recipients, who must take drugs to keep their immune systems from rejecting the transplanted organ.

The intestinal microbiota program has a success rate of more than 90%. "We receive a lot of thank-you cards from patients and their families," Dhere says. "The quality of life that patients get after the procedure speaks volumes for this treatment."

The video below helps explain not only probiotics but prebiotics as well.



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The Dangers of Off The Shelf Supplements

The following is an article posted in Yahoo! Health, written by Jenna Birch with the title "Death By Raspberry Ketones And Caffeine Powder: The Dangers Of OTC Supplements". It highlights the dangers of taking off the shelf (aka Over The Counter) supplements which cannot be guaranteed for purity, lack of toxins, efficacy, nor can you be assured that what is in the label is in the bottle.

Cara Reynolds, 24, took her first dose of Forza raspberry ketone supplements in February 2013 to help with a new weight-loss regimen. She went to her dad soon after with complaints about heart palpitations.

“She’d only taken the recommended amount of pills but was scared because her heart was going 10 to the dozen,” her father told The Daily Mail. “That’s when she said she wasn’t going to take them for weight loss any more — it had really worried her.”

However, after a split from her fiancé the following month, the British healthcare worker took a lethal dose of the supplements she had bought off Amazon for under $40.

Doctors tried 44 times to resuscitate Reynolds, but were unable bring her back.

Raspberry ketones are the chemical compound that give the fruit its scent, and have been touted by the media and personalities like Dr. Oz and Kim Kardashian as weight-loss wonders. Although a few preliminary studies have shown ketones may help with weight loss, the evidence of its effectiveness is mixed at best. Outside a few animal and test-tube studies, there’s little science that proves ketones really work for slimming down.

Along with raspberry ketones, Forza supplements combine resveratrol and caffeine. These tablets contain up to 250 milligrams of caffeine per pill, or roughly the same amount you’d get from four cans of Red Bull or seven cans of Coke. The dose Reynolds consumed was likely the equivalent of 2.5 cans of Red Bull.

Through a representative, Forza issued a statement regarding Reynolds, saying, “This is a tragic and understandably upsetting situation for her family and friends, but it could have been effected through the misuse of any supplement. Forza products meet vigorous health and safety standards and have clear labeling and directions for safe usage.” The representative also said that it is “regrettable” that the overdose of a supplement “potentially contributed to Miss Reynolds’ suicide,” but that our client entirely rejects any implication that an inherent safety issue with its products is responsible.”

A report just submitted to the British Medical Journal cited Reynolds’ case as an example of the dangerous side effects associated with untested supplements. The FDA placed raspberry ketones on their “generally recognized as safe” list all the way back in the 1960s, but only for use in very small amounts in food as an additive, not as a weight-loss aid.

That you can get supplements with a potent dose of additives like caffeine over the counter and online is disconcerting, highlighting the need for better regulation of these types of substances.

There’s been a recent boom in advocacy about the dangers posed by unexpected, unregulated substances. Reynolds’ parents are telling their daughter’s story in hopes that the untested ketone supplements will be taken off the market. And the parents of Logan Stiner — the 18- year-old who died last May after suffering from a caffeine overdose — were on Capitol Hill yesterday, pushing lawmakers to ban the sale of caffeine powder.

Stiner ingested 23 times the amount of the stimulant that you’d find in a standard coffee drink. While not a supplement, the powder is often marketed as a weight-loss helper. It is also legally and easily obtained, even though just a teaspoon can deliver a deadly punch of caffeine. The FDA’s investigation into the powder is ongoing.

Part of the problem with supplements in particular is that they’re regulated much differently than drugs. “They’re regulated more like foods,” says Eliseo Guallar, MD, DrPH, a professor of epidemiology and medicine at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “They don’t have as tough a standard, and some of the claims reflect that.” Think: miracle weight loss.

This is unsupported, however. “Very often they don’t have the studies to back up their claims, and then they start moving the target to fix that — like the study was on the wrong population,” Guallar explains.

In general, distinct populations are all supplements should be used for — and not the ones that claim big slim-downs and the fountain of youth.

Guallar, who has studied the widespread effects of supplements like daily vitamins, says even these common mineral forms have no clear evidence that they work to prevent disease or provide substantial health benefits for the general population. “They might work for a certain population, perhaps for overcoming a deficiency, but I can’t say any of these compounds work to reduce general risk of chronic diseases like obesity and cardiovascular disease,” he explains. “And half of adults in the adults in the United States take a daily vitamin.”

Big results are unlikely. In fact, a 2012 study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism did not find that any specific supplement promoted significant weight loss, only that some like green tea, fiber, and calcium supplements could “complement a healthy lifestyle.” But in particular, author Melinda Manore, PhD, RD, called out products containing substances like caffeine, ephedra and synephrine as “likely to produce adverse side effects,” saying that they “should be avoided.” This would include Forza supplements.

However, some are still under the impression that, because they’re “supplements,” they can’t possibly hurt — which underscores the need for more regulation in the U.S. — but in the meantime, we should heed the warnings.

Like Guallar says, there are many different kinds of supplements, and even “natural” substances can be harmful. The biggest danger might ultimately be in the idea that they’re not dangerous. “I think people have the idea that these supplements are safe, because you can buy them at the supermarket,” Guallar says. “And then they think, ‘If one is good, then why not take two?’”

So, beware and be smart: Over-the-counter supplements are not without dangers, and they can be just potent as the drugs prescribed by your doc.

Perhaps more so.

Correction Notice: A previous version of this article incorrectly compared the amount of caffeine in Red Bull with the amount of caffeine consumed by Reynolds through the Forza supplements. The piece has been updated to reflect that she consumed the equivalent amount of caffeine in 2.5 cans of Red Bull.



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The 10 Best Nutrition Tips Ever

This article came from Yahoo! Health. If it can help one person lose some weight and regain some quality of life and reduce pain, especially in joints where additional weight is usually felt, then I'm for this article. However, losing weight is simple, just not easy. Simple in the regard that you have to minimize the bad food and maximize the good; lead a physical lifestyle boosting your metabolism. Not easy in the fact, the people just don't like change or discomfort of a diet - getting rid of their comfort foods.

Diet advice is a lot like fashion. Trends come—wedge sneakers, drop-crotch pants, those skirts that are short in the front and long in the back—and a year or two later they seem hopelessly out of date. But the truly stylish always look smart; you’ll never see a photo of Pharrell Williams wearing crocs or Victoria Beckham in a meat dress. Here at Eat This, Not That! we see the same thing with the lean and fit: Those who stay slim don’t follow diets or nutrition trends. They follow common sense eating strategies that keep them looking fit for life.

Giving up gluten, throwing back shots of apple cider vinegar, juicing everything in sight—try them if you think they make sense. (And if you need a little boost to get you back on track, try our Ultimate One Day Detox.) But when those of-the-moment diet fads are gathering dust in the back of your metaphorical closet, the simple, smart, sensible approaches will be there like a favorite pair of jeans or a perfect little black dress—look-great staples guaranteed to never go out of style.

NUTRITION TIP #1. Hide your weakness.

If you see it, you’ll eat it. If you don’t see it, you’ll still eat it—but not so much. That’s what a study at Google’s New York office, dubbed “Project M&M” found. Office managers discovered that placing the chocolate candies in opaque containers as opposed to glass ones, and giving healthier snacks like nuts and figs more prominent shelf space, curbed M&M intake by 3.1 million calories in just seven weeks. A similar study published in the Journal of Marketing found that people are more likely to overeat small treats from transparent packages than from opaque ones. Out of sight, out of mind, out of mouth.

NUTRITION TIP #2. Use the 1 in 10 rule.

For every 10 grams of carbohydrate listed on the label, look for at least one gram of fiber. Why 10:1? That’s the ratio of carbohydrate to fiber in a genuine, unprocessed whole grain. The recommendation comes from a study published in the journal Public Health Nutrition that evaluated hundreds of grain products; foods that met the 10:1 ratio had have less sugar, sodium, and trans fats than those that didn’t. Getting your fiber-rich whole grains is one of these indispensible habits.

NUTRITION TIP #3. Boost flavor to cut calories.

Ever notice how everything inside a McDonald’s—the burgers, the fries, the shakes—smells exactly the same? That sameness of scent is actually a tactic that can inspire you to consume more calories. A study in the journal Flavour found that the less distinctive the scent of a particular food, the more you’ll eat of it. Adding herbs and sodium-free spice blends is an easy take advantage of sensory illusion that you’re indulging in something rich—without adding any fat or calories to your plate. Furthermore, a recent behavioral study that taught adults to spruce up meals with herbs instead of salt led to a decrease in sodium consumption by nearly 1000 mg a day (that’s more salt than you’ll find in 5 bags of Doritos!).

NUTRITION TIP #4. Chill pasta to melt fat.

You can gain less weight from a serving of pasta simply by putting it in the fridge. The drop in temperature changes the nature of the noodles into something called “resistant starch,” meaning your body has to work harder to digest it. Cold pasta is closer in structure to natural resistant starches like lentils, peas, beans, and oatmeal, which pass through the small intestine intact and are digested in the large intestine, where—well, it gets kinda gross from there on out. A study in the journal Nutrition & Metabolism found that adding resistant starch to a meal may also promote fat oxidation. Suffice it say, colder noodles = hotter you. But you’ve got to eat it cold: Once you heat the pasta up again, you destroy the resistant starch.

NUTRITION TIP #5. Dim the lights to get lighter.

A study of fast food restaurants published in the journal Psychological Reports found that customers who dined in a relaxed environment with dimmed lights and mellow music ate 175 fewer calories per meal than if they were in a more typical restaurant environment. That may not sound like a dramatic savings, but cutting 175 calories from dinner every night could save you more than 18 pounds in a year!

NUTRITION TIP #6. Eat, Don’t Drink, Your Fruit.

Juicing may be the rage, but like a certain Mr. Simpson, some juice can do more harm than good—including OJ. Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that people who consumed one or more servings of fruit juice each day increased their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by as much as 21 percent. Conversely, those who ate at least two servings each week of certain whole fruits— particularly blueberries, grapes, and apples—reduced their risk for type 2 diabetes by as much as 23 percent.

NUTRITION TIP #7. Eat before you eat.

Eating an appetizer of a broth-based soup or even an apple can reduce total calorie intake over the course of the meal by up to 20 percent, according to a series of “Volumetrics” studies at Penn State. Consider that, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association, the average restaurant meal contains 1,128 calories. A 20 percent savings, just once a day, is enough to help you shed more than 23 pounds in a year.

NUTRITION TIP #8. Choose paper, not plastic.

Here’s a simple way to improve the health of your shopping cart: A series of experiments by Cornell University looked at the effects of payment method on food choice. When shoppers used credit cards, they bought more unhealthful “vice” foods than they did “virtue” foods. Researchers suggest that you’re less likely to impulsively buy junk food if it means parting with a hundred dollar bill than swiping plastic.

NUTRITION TIP #9. Water down the calories.

You’ve been told to drink 8 glasses of water a day, but why bother? Well, what if staying hydrated could strip pounds off your body? According to a study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, after drinking approximately 17 ounces of water (about 2 tall glasses), participants’ metabolic rates increased by 30 percent. The researchers estimate that increasing water intake by 1.5 liters a day (about 6 cups) would burn an extra 17,400 calories over the course of the year—a weight loss of approximately five pounds!

NUTRITION TIP #10. Remind yourself to lose weight.

A recent study published online in Health Promotion Practice found that people who received weekly text reminders of their daily “calorie budget” and motivational emails made healthier meal and snack choices. A simple hack to help you slim down: set up reminders on your smartphone, so when 6 a.m. rolls around, it’s: You make 1200 calories-a-day look so good! And at lunchtime: Salad for the six-pack, baby!

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The Disease Many Americans Don't Know They Have

Written by Laura Tedesco and published on Yahoo! Health, this article exposes the diabetes epidemic not only gripping Americans but overwhelming our youth.

An alarming number of Americans are suffering from diabetes, a potentially deadly disease, without even knowing it.

Editor’s Note: The data in this study did not permit the researchers to separately analyze type 1 and type 2 diabetes, though 90 to 95 percent of cases are known to be type 2. Although type 1, or insulin-dependent diabetes, may be better diagnosed and more prevalent among young people, distinguishing the two diseases would not significantly alter the findings or recommendations, the researchers say.

You’d think a disease that can cause blindness, leads to amputations, and is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States would incite mass panic.

Yet Americans — and even some doctors — don’t take diabetes very seriously. (Did you even know it’s American Diabetes Month?) “Sometimes, people think ‘serious’ means things that kill you right away,” said Dr. Carlos del Rio, chair of the Emory University Department of Global Health. “But, the reality is, I would be more concerned about diabetes than Ebola.”

This lax attitude toward the disease may explain why nearly 30 percent of Americans who have diabetes don’t realize it, according to a new study in the Annals of Internal Medicine, conducted by del Rio and other Emory University scientists. They analyzed health data for 29,353 people from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey, identifying those with diabetes based on levels of fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1C (an indicator of blood-sugar control).

Overall, about 12 percent of all U.S. adults had diabetes, which translated to 28.4 million people in 2012. Among those, nearly 8 million hadn’t been diagnosed — a stat that’s made all the more alarming by the fact that most regularly went to the doctor: Two-thirds of undiagnosed diabetics had seen a health care provider at least twice in the past year, the study found.

Going undiagnosed — or even just delaying the process — is asking for internal trouble. The longer diabetes goes untreated, the worse the outcome tends to be. “Once the disease sets in, it’s really progressive,” study co-author Mohammed Ali, an assistant professor of global health at Emory University, told Yahoo Health. “It may be slow in some cases, but it leads to really disabling and often fatal complications.” Common but scary outcomes include vascular disease, kidney disease, or eye disease, which can lead to blindness.

On the flip side, if you catch and control diabetes early, “patients are very likely to do well, in terms of delaying the onset of all these horrendous complications, preserving their quality of life,” said Ali.

Unfortunately, the nature of the disease means that patients who should be undergoing blood tests often slip through the cracks: Diabetes is typically asymptomatic until people develop serious complications, so doctors don’t necessarily have clear cues to prompt them to suggest testing early on (although weight, family history, and lifestyle should be a consideration). “Diabetes is the silent killer,” said del Rio.

And because the U.S. is a nation of episodic care — that is, we seek medical attention for specific symptoms, rather than as a matter of routine — doctors aren’t necessarily thinking about performing preemptive blood tests on high-risk people. Instead, they’re usually focusing on, say, the patient’s back-pain problem, and not his or her overall care.

However, doctors are only one part of the equation: Patients may not be proactive about seeking care, Ali said, perhaps as a result of a low perceived risk of diabetes, poor insurance coverage, or even just time constraints. In the study, young people (ages 18 to 44) were especially likely to go undiagnosed, probably because they seek care only if they feel sick. “With diabetes, you don’t feel bad per se,” said Ali. “There’s a whole lot going on inside you, but you don’t feel it.”

Even after patients are diagnosed, they aren’t necessarily controlling their diabetes. “We may not link them to care properly or maintain them in care,” said del Rio. “It’s a whole ‘cascade of care’ issue.” In the study, only about 1 in 5 diagnosed diabetics refrained from smoking and had achieved the targets for hemoglobin A1C, blood pressure, and LDL “bad” cholesterol.

An estimated 75 percent of those with known diabetes also had high blood pressure. “It’s a double whammy,” del Rio said. “High blood pressure impacts your blood vessels, and diabetes impacts your blood vessels. And it’s blood vessel disease that leads to stroke and heart disease.” In fact, diabetics are 1.5 times more likely to be hospitalized for a stroke and about 1.7 times more likely to die of heart disease than people without the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association.

“Basically, the guidelines say, ‘Don’t just focus on sugar,’” said Ali. “Do the whole ABCD: the A1C is the sugar measurement that we use, B is blood pressure, C is cholesterol, and D is do not smoke.”

So how can our health care system ensure diabetes is caught, as well as treated? The first step: Increasing the emphasis on primary care, so patients regularly see doctors who monitor their weight, cholesterol, blood sugar, and vital signs, while also assessing their family history. “Chronic diseases are not controlled by episodic care,” said del Rio. “You need to have somebody that monitors you regularly.”

And patients who are diagnosed shouldn’t be shy about voicing their concerns about the prescribed treatments — for example, side effects of diabetes drugs or a lack of time to exercise. That way, doctors can help devise solutions that patients are more likely to comply with.

It’s not entirely up to the patient to halt diabetes in its tracks, though. “We need to start focusing on [figuring out] the interventions we need to do in order to improve outcomes,” del Rio said. “I envision doing more testing, and not only in the health care settings.” He sees workplaces, community centers, churches, and even local fairs as potential diabetes testing sites, and once people are flagged for the disease, he believes insurance companies should consider getting involved.

“We could work with insurance providers to ensure people are actually getting their medications and not falling out of care,” said del Rio. “Because, at the end of the day, if we don’t pay for care now, we’re going to pay for care later when they develop renal disease and other complications.”

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Vitamin D deficiency rampant in neuromuscular diseases, study shows

This report was posted in the Chicago Tribune. A study by two Pennsylvania doctors shows that people suffering from neuromuscular diseases have a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, the Newswise news service reported Friday. The results were presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine in Savannah, Ga.

"Previous work has shown vitamin D deficiency to be quite common in other neurological disorders such as multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis and Parkinson's disease. This study suggests this concern may be more prevalent in other neuromuscular conditions as well," said Dr. Ileana Howard, a member of the association's editorial board.

"While the connection between vitamin D deficiency and neurologic disease is likely complex and not yet fully understood, this study may prompt physicians to consider checking vitamin D levels in their patients with neurologic conditions and supplementing when necessary," Howard added.

The use of vitamin D supplements has been suggested previously to improve function in frail elderly patients at risk for falls and also for people with myasthenia gravis and Parkinson's. Whether vitamin D deficiency and supplementation play a role in other neurologic conditions requires more research, Newswise reported.

The study was conducted in Hershey, Pa., by Drs. Sankar Bandyopadhyay and Sol Dejesus.

Beyond vitamin supplements, sunshine is one of the best sources of vitamin D, but sun exposure plummets for most of the country during the winter. Good food sources include fatty fish like wild salmon, cod liver oil, beef liver, orange juice or milk fortified with vitamin D, and eggs.

MyAchingKnees comment: I would have liked to see this study talk about blood levels of Vitamin D and in relation to how much Vitamin D the patients are consuming each day. My wife was taking 900 IU of Vitamin D each day, which is more than twice the FDA recommended daily allowance (RDA) and yet he blood tests showed that she was Vitamin D deficient. We added 2,000 more IU and now her blood levels of Vitamin D are above normal. I take 4,900 IU of Vitamin D. 900 IU with my daily supplements plus two 2,000 IU tablets.

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How Your Body Signals That You're Vitamin Deficient

This is from an article with the same title by Wendy Schmid, Q by Equinox, posted on Yahoo Health

When your body is trying to tell you something — for example, that you’re skimping on critical vitamins — it may go to some strange lengths. “With today’s diet of processed foods it’s easy to become vitamin deficient — either by not eating enough of the right foods or not absorbing them properly due to digestive issues,” says Dr. Susan Blum, founder of the Blum Center for Health and author of the new book, The Immune System Recovery Plan. “You may not get a disease but you can end up with impaired functioning, because vitamins are co-factors for all the bio-chemical reactions in the body. We need them in order to function properly.” That impaired functioning can sometimes manifest in mysterious ways.

MyAchngKnees comment: I fully agree with Ms. Schmid on the lack of vitamins (and minerals) in today's common processed foods, but disagree that there are simple fixes for nutrient deficiencies by eating more foods as most foods today are much less nutrient dense then the same foods decades ago. You can grow your own organic foods and be pretty well off, both in getting nutrient laden food and free of toxins, but the simplest and most effective way to ensure you are giving your body the necessary nutrients for a robust immune system is by taking quality supplements.

Check out these unusual vitamin-deficiency warning signs. The good news: Most are fixable with dietary tweaks — all the more reason to make nutrition a top priority. When food cures don’t work, be sure to check in with your doctor.

1. Body Cue: Cracks at the corners of your mouth.

The Deficiency: Iron, zinc, and B vitamins like niacin (B3), riboflavin (B2), and B12. “It’s common if you’re a vegetarian to not get enough iron, zinc, and B12,” Blum says. Ditto if you’re skimping on essential immunity-building protein due to dieting.

The Fix: Eat more poultry, salmon, tuna, eggs, oysters, clams, sun-dried tomatoes, Swiss chard, tahini, peanuts, and legumes like lentils. Iron absorption is enhanced by vitamin C, which also helps fight infection, so combine these foods with veggies like broccoli, red bell peppers, kale, and cauliflower.

2. Body Cue: A red, scaly rash on your face (and sometimes elsewhere) and hair loss.

The Deficiency: Biotin (B7), known as the hair vitamin. While your body stores fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K), it doesn’t store most B vitamins, which are water-soluble. Body builders take note: Eating raw eggs makes you vulnerable, because a protein in raw eggs called avidin inhibits the body’s ability to absorb biotin.

The Fix: Reach for more cooked eggs (cooking deactivates avidin), salmon, avocados, mushrooms, cauliflower, soybeans, nuts, raspberries, and bananas.

3. Body Cue: Red or white acne like bumps, typically on the cheeks, arms, thighs and butt.

The Deficiency: Essential fatty acids and vitamins A and D.

The Fix: Skimp on saturated fat and trans fats, which you should be doing anyway, and increase healthy fats. Focus on adding more salmon and sardines, nuts like walnuts and almonds, and seeds like ground flax, hemp, and chia. For vitamin A, pile on leafy greens and colorful veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, and red bell peppers. “This provides beta carotene, a precursor to vitamin A, which your body will use to make vitamin A,” Blum says. “For vitamin D, though, I recommend a supplement—2,000 IU a day in one that also contains vitamins A and K, which help with D absorption.”

4. Body Cue: Tingling, prickling, and numbness in hands, feet or elsewhere.

The Deficiency: B vitamins like folate (B9), B6, and B12. “It’s a problem directly related to the peripheral nerves and where they end in the skin,” says Blum, noting that these symptoms can be combined with anxiety, depression, anemia, fatigue, and hormone imbalances.

The Fix: Seek out spinach, asparagus, beets, beans (pinto, black, kidney, lima), eggs, octopus, mussels, clams, oysters, and poultry.

5. Body Cue: Crazy muscle cramps in the form of stabbing pains in toes, calves, arches of feet, and backs of legs.

The Deficiency: Magnesium, calcium, and potassium. “If it’s happening frequently, it’s a tip-off that you’re lacking in these,” Blum says. And if you’re training hard, you can lose more minerals (and water-soluble B vitamins) through heavy sweating.

The Fix: Eat more bananas, almonds, hazelnuts, squash, cherries, apples, grapefruit, broccoli, bok choy, and dark leafy greens like kale, spinach, and dandelion.

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