Uncategorized

Dear Wendy’s Eating College Guy,

Your friends from high school called you “Frodo”, but I think you’re cuter than Elijah Wood and I really like your skinny legs.  Your ability to play Ghost with all those fancy guitar loops is super hot. What’s even hotter, is seeing you sing and strum to God on stage.  We might be meant for each other, since I just found out your birthday is two days after mine, and you are also the middle of three same sex children.

If it weren’t for your diet, you’d be the perfect guy.  Your diet is… unattractive.

Don’t worry.  This is a fixable attribute.  Since there’s a lot of confusion out there on how to eat a healthy diet, I thought I’d give you hints on what would constitute a super sexy diet.  Some foods marketed as “healthy” are far from sexy.  It seems as though you need a lot of guidance, so I’ll start with the basics (in no particular order):

1.  Eat as much fiber as possible.
If we added up all the fiber in your diet, you’d be lucky if it totaled 5 grams a day.  At minimum, you should be getting 5 times this amount (25 grams) in a day.  A Wendy’s 6 piece chicken nugget has ONE gram of fiber in it.  A Junior Bacon Cheeseburger has two.  High fiber foods such as whole grains, vegetables, and fruits are not found on the Wendy’s dollar menu in the quantities your body needs.

2.  Eat as many raw vegetables as possible.
If you really want some brownie points, pack a raw kale salad to eat in front of me when we meet for lunch in Otto’s commons.  You may be able to trick me into thinking you eat like that all the time.

3.  Eat as chemical free as possible.
Those sour patch kids sitting on your desk are full of beastly chemicals, and it’s not one bit cute.  Artificial flavoring and food dye and most likely GMO corn syrup.  Charming ingredients do not have pesticides, preservatives, food dye, and artificial flavorings.  Organic food in your dorm room’s mini fridge would really be a turn on.

4.  Eat protein with breakfast.
Strawberry frosted pop tarts are the worst thing you could ever eat for breakfast.  You need protein with your morning meal to set your blood sugar for the day.  The two grams of protein in one pop-tart is not enough.  Eating some protein like nuts, eggs, or beans with breakfast will make for a handsome pancreas.

5.  Stop eating late at night.
Ordering a double bacon pizza from Gumby’s at midnight is baaaad, baaad, baaaddd.  It is one of the most unbecoming things you could do to your metabolism.  Your body was not made to process this kind of garbage late into the night, let alone all the “free” Gumby’s Pokey stix you eat with it.  The better way to do things is to stop eating after dinner.

6.  Eat as unsweetened as possible.
Don’t buy me roses.  Save your money to buy yourself a bottle of stevia.  If you really, really, really want a sexy diet, you’ve gotta fall in love with stevia.  Stevia trumps sugar, honey, agave syrup, molasses, and coconut sugar.  It’s a good thing you don’t like splenda, because it’s not really natural and it might rot your brain.  The less sweet things are, the better, unless they are sweetened with stevia.  Actually, I’ll just pick up some stevia for you the next time I’m at Wegmans…

…because I think I really like you.

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

I recently mentioned that I eat several raw garlic cloves a day when I feel the sick coming on. You may have pictured me popping raw garlic cloves like breath mints every time I feel the hint of a sniffle. While I do consume them raw, I don’t just pop them in my mouth like my 6 year old nephew ate orange tic-tacs during my (other) sister’s wedding ceremony.  I doctor them up with some natural peanut butter, cinnamon, and honey.

Nobody should eat straight-up raw garlic cloves all day long because of how irritating it can be to the lining of the esophagus, stomach, and small intestine.  To minimize the garlic burn, there are two options.  The first option is to microwave the garlic cloves for 20 seconds or less.  The second option is to mix the raw garlic in peanut butter, honey, and cinnamon, under the principle, “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down”, but without the sugar.

A Bastyr researcher found that microwaving garlic cloves for 20 seconds or less preserved their antimicrobial activity.  Twenty-second nuked garlic cloves taste like mashed potatoes with lots of dried garlic powder.  Now remind yourself that I said taste, not texture.  The upside to this option is that you can get a lot more garlic down the pipes than you would with them 100% raw.  The downside is the microwave.  It’s still not going to be as potent as it is in the raw state.  The microwave may also be destroying other cold fighting constituents that may not have been discovered yet.  When my esophagus and stomach are hyper sensitive and inflamed, I defer to the microwave.  I’d rather have nuked garlic than none at all.

The second option for minimizing the garlic burn is to mix the garlic into a tasty peanut butter paste.  All you need is a dollop of natural peanut butter, 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, and a scant 1/2 teaspoon of honey.  Make sure to bless your liver with true cinnamon instead of cassia cinnamon. This is my preferred method for ingesting raw garlic, so I’ll give you the juicy details.

I like to start with a special dish.  A visually appealing eating receptacle helps me feel better when I feel like schmutz.  Sometimes I use my robin egg shell colored mini salt cellar from Anthropologie, but I don’t use the tiny spoon that came with it to mix up the paste.

Occasionally I omit the honey, since it’s not ideal for those who have whacko blood sugar issues like myself.  It really is a small amount, but just to be safe, there’s protein in the peanut butter to balance out the honey carbs.  I like the honey in this medicinal anti-cold paste because it coats the lining of the esophagus and stomach in a protective way, so as to off-set the excess heat of the garlic.

I’ve already told you about cinnamon.  It adds an extra antimicrobial boost and enhances the flavor.

Since all things are tested on my Wendy’s Eating Husband (WEH), I’ll be honest.  He can’t handle the lumpy garlic chunks dispersed in the peanut butter.  He’d rather get the hacking snots for two weeks than swallow one serving of my Anti-Hack Peanut Butter Garlic Paste.  When he’s desperate, he can sometimes handle the microwave option.

When I feel a cold coming on, or when I have a current sinus infection, I’ll eat 3 servings of this paste a day.  It almost always keeps me from getting sick, even in the midst of living with two germ magnets kids.  Of course, there are other antimicrobial herbs I can take (that I’m going to leave vague for the sake of brevity) that won’t give me lethal garlic breath.  The advantage of my Anti-Hack Peanut Butter Garlic Paste is that the ingredients can always be found in my kitchen.  For such convenience and little cost, it works brilliantly to ward off the common cold.

I also like to find an entertaining spot to eat my peanut butter garlic therapy.  This time, I ate it in tiny bites from the salt cellar spoon while I snooped on my new neighbors from the living room window.

This post is for educational & entertainment purposes only.  Consult your physician prior to using garlic medicinally.

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

I’m afraid to write, “I can’t remember the last time I had bronchitis because I eat garlic all the time”.  Even though that phrase is true, my fear is that God may zap me with the exact opposite if I type it out.  This kind of God zap would include the worse case of bronchitis I have ever known, in spite of an over consumption of raw, stink-out-your-friends garlic.

I have a fear problem with certain words or phrases that are spoken aloud.  Things get complicated when this particular fear mixes with my God-likes-to-zap-me complex (maybe they are the same thing?).  I worry that God’s gonna zap me with the opposite of things I say out loud, just to get me. In the delusional situation, God says, “Hah!  I’ll give her asthmatic bronchitis tomorrow, just because she said that”.  He seems to be a bit kinder than this messed up zapping mentality, but I’m just being real.  Am I the only one who has a reverse psychological problem when it comes to God’s zapping skills?

I had asthmatic bronchitis for two long months during my sophomore year in college.  I got it again my junior year.  Maybe my lungs were telling me something.  In Chinese medicine, grief is held in the lungs.  The volume of tears I cried out years later!  Perhaps I carried the heavy weight of sorrow in my lungs.  Perhaps I just needed Allium sativum instead of antibiotics and a steroid inhaler.  Let’s be official and call it by its Latin name when it’s up against conventional meds.

Powerful Kitchen Medicine for the Common Cold

Garlic is one of my favorite kitchen tricks for stopping an upper respiratory infection.  Whenever I feel the sick coming on, I eat several raw garlic cloves a day.  It will almost always prevent me from getting the full blown sick symptoms, and if it doesn’t, I’ll just get the snots for a day or two. Your body processes garlic by releasing its vapor through your lungs.  This vapor could have killed the respiratory bugs that caused the bronchitis I had in college.  So yes, your garlic breath is lethal.

The stinkier your breath, the better.  Because of the vapor thing, the antimicrobial properties of garlic are at their peak when it is fresh.  The more the garlic has been processed, the less potent it’s antimicrobial activity.

Antibiotic Alternative for Ear Infections

Garlic can be used topically to relieve the ear pain associated with a middle ear infection.  No, you do not need to stick garlic cloves in your ears.  A garlic infused olive oil is used to apply drops into the car canal with a dropper.  Garlic should NOT be substituted as an at home treatment in place of proper evaluation by a doctor.  If your ear drum is ruptured, you do not want to put drops in there.  There’s no way to know it’s ruptured unless it has been examined by a doctor.

Promotes Cardiovascular Health

Garlic can be used to fight against arteriosclerosis, probably because it is such a potent antioxidant. It can modestly reduce high cholesterol and help to balance the good vs. bad cholesterol. It has some ability to lower high blood pressure, but only on a small scale.

Cancer Prevention

Research has shown garlic to prevent both stomach and colorectal cancers.  The anti-cancer activity of garlic is highest in the raw state, as heat diminishes this quality.

Cautions

Garlic has some mild antiplatelet activity, and may interfere with anticoagulant drugs.  Allergic reactions to garlic are possible, and may include headaches, upset stomach, nausea, or skin rashes. Raw garlic can aggravate esophagitis and stomach ulcers.

If you would like to start taking garlic, please consult your naturopathic doctor.  A licensed healthcare practitioner can tailor the dose according to your needs. 

Resources:
^{1 Yarnell, Eric.  Botanical Medicine V.  Bastyr University.  Spring 2011.}

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

I am pretty good at maintaining my health when it comes to diet and environmental chemical exposures, but when it comes to sleep, I get a “U”.  Just like the “U” I got in my 8th grade sewing class that kept me off the distinguished honor roll.  Unsatisfactory.

I tell other people to be getting 8-9 hours of sleep a night, yet I’m barely banking 6 a night.  With two kids, medical school (almost done!), a blog, and a super high maintenance diet, there’s not much time left in the day.  Oh, and we just bought a house.  My life circumstances demand a lot of me, and unfortunately, I also demand a lot of myself.

I can’t make a resolution to sleep 8-9 hours a night.  It’s just not realistic for my life right now, even though I dream of a life where I can sleep that much.  I have two kids that wake up in the night at different times.  This blog, it keeps the fire in me going, even though I’m often working on posts late at night because it’s the only time I’ve got.  Medical school will be done in June, but then I take my licensing exams in August.

What is realistic is the nitty gritty of my resolution:  lights out by 11pm.  I usually aim to get in bed “by 11”, but what that looks like is stopping all my work (or online junking), by 11, then starting my bed time routine.  You can’t get in bed at 11, when you stop working at 11, and then you have to mix your calcium magnesium supplement and drink it with a straw out of a tea cup, mix your marshmallow root powder with your probiotics in a little water to drink it out of the same tea cup, swallow some glutamine and quercetin pills, floss really well, brush your teeth softly and not rushed, wash your face, and then get your night guard in place.  This evening routine probably takes 15 minutes.

Lights out at 11pm means that I should start my bed time routine at 10:30 pm.  This will give me enough time to do my bed time routine, prep for the next day, and still have enough time to turn out the light by 11pm.

What’s your number one New Year’s health resolution and how are you going to do it?

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

Let’s ID the cinnamon sticks you’ve been storing for your next batch of homemade chai. If you don’t have any in your cupboards, you can probably find one on your Christmas tree.  If the bark is thick and rolls cleanly in one piece, it’s most likely cassia cinnamon (Cinnamomum aromaticum). If the bark looks thin, with multiple layers, it’s most likely true cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum).

Cinnamomomoma what?

The two species, Cinnamomum aromaticum and Cinnamomum zeylanicum are not interchangeable, mainly because of the differences in their coumarin content.  Now hear me right, I did not say CoumaDin.  If I said Coumadin, it would mean that God put Wafarin in your cinnamon. But he didn’t.  He put coumarin in it.  Coumarin is a plant constituent that has no anticoagulant properties, but its fermentation product, dicoumarol, does.

The real concern with coumarin lies in its hepatotoxicity (another big word, I’m so sorry!). Hepatotoxic = liver toxic.  Depending on your liver enzymes, ingesting high amounts of coumarin can basically equate to swallowing liver poison.  True cinnamon has a minimal amount of coumarin (about 2.4 mg/kg of bark powder). Cassia cinnamon has lots more coumarin (about 1250-1490 mg/kg of bark powder).¹ You might have noticed that I have a bitty infatuation with saigon cinnamon, but unfortunately, it’s the cassia type that has more coumarin.  Maybe I should cut back.

Herbal Antimicrobial

The best way to utilize cinnamon’s antimicrobial activity is to use its essential oil, which can be used both topically and internally.  Make sure to dilute it in a carrier oil.  Cinnamon has a thing for the respiratory system, so it can be really useful in the treatment of respiratory infections.

Insulin Sensitizer

Insulin resistance occurs when the insulin receptors in your body start giving the middle finger to insulin.  This causes all kinds of blood sugar problems.  The good news is that cinnamon is here to get those insulin receptors to give the thumbs up to insulin instead of the bird.  There is conflicting evidence on cinnamon’s use in diabetes, but because of its mechanism of action in the body, it may help to delay the onset of type II diabetes by improving insulin signaling.

Good For Lady Bleeding Complaints

Because cinnamon is both astringent and hemostatic, it can do wonders for heavy periods.  For these same reasons, it can also help to control bleeding from fibroids and be used as an herbal treatment for mid-cycle bleeding.

Can Dry Up the Skitters

Forgive me for using my Pappy’s word for diarrhea.  Cinnamon’s astrigency can help to dry up diarrhea.  I’ve found it particularly useful for normalizing loose stool in kids after a Rotavirus infection.  Cinnamon also happens to be a mild carminative, which can help to soothe any gas that may be occurring with the diarrhea.

Cautions

• Consuming high doses of cinnamon in pregnancy or lactation is not recommended.
• A food allergy to cinnamon is possible.
• Because cinnamon is a warming herb, some people may experience mild reddening of the skin where it has been applied topically.

If you would like to start taking cinnamon therapeutically, please consult your naturopathic doctor. A licensed healthcare practitioner can tailor the dose according to your needs. 

References:
<sup>1. Yarnell, E, Abascal, K.  Plant Coumarins:  Myths and Realities.  Alternative and Complementary Therapies. Vol 15. Feb 2009.
2. Yarnell, E.  Phytochemistry and Pharmacy for Practitioners of Botanical Medicine.  Healing Mountain Publishing, Inc., 2004.
3. Powell, Dirk.  Endocrinology & Naturopathic Therapies.  Ninth Edition,  2010.</sup>

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

When I was in middle school, boxers were cool and briefs were dorky.  I was a 12 year old, sheltered church girl.  What did I know about men’s underwear?  Well, I knew that my (step) dad wore briefs, and he sometimes (maybe all the time) liked to walk around the house in them.  Since I thought briefs were totally uncool, I naturally associated him with being a dork when he wouldn’t wear normal person clothes at home.

Looking back, I commend him for wearing the healthiest underwear he could wear (good job, Dad!), but I do not commend him for sporting it around the house.  Seeing it in the laundry was enough.

Everyone seems to think that boxer shorts are the healthiest underwear for all men because they keep the scrotum cool, and hence enhance the sperm count.  This widely accepted notion may not be accurate.  A 1998 study that compared scrotal temperatures from boxers and briefs found no scrotal temperature differences between the two.¹  Even if there is a tiny temperature increase caused by tighter underwear, it’s not enough of a rise to decrease sperm production in a healthy, fertile male. However, infertile men may have innately higher scrotal temperatures.  For these men, boxers may be beneficial.

Briefs are for men as bras are for women.  However, bras are more cosmetic in function than briefs. There are more health pathologies that can result in a male from not wearing proper underwear support than there are for women not wearing a bra.  Underwear situations that cause the scrotum to dangle excessively can result in chronic, low grade trauma to the scrotum. Longstanding scrotal irritation from going commando or using boxer shorts can lead to epididymitis or the formation of an idiopathic hydrocele.  The same dangling situations also put males at risk for testicular torsion.

A 100% cotton pair of briefs is the healthiest type of men’s underwear.  Synthetic fabrics can trap humidity, whereas cotton is breathable.  The underwear should be snug, but not tight.  If you can’t give up your boxers, boxer-briefs are the gateway skivvies to briefs and are better than no support at all.  Overly tight fitting bikini underwear is not recommended.  Thank God my dad didn’t wear those around the house.

References:
<sup>1.  Munkelwitz R, Gilbert BR:  Are boxer shorts really better?  A critical analysis of the role of underwear type in male subfertility.  The Journal of Urology.  1998 Oct;160(4):1329-33.
2.  Yarnell, Eric.  Naturopathic Urology.  Bastyr University.  Fall 2011.
3.  Yarnell, Eric.  Naturopathic Urology and Men’s Health.  Healing Mountain Publishing. 2001.</sup>

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

Equisetum arvense, otherwise known as horsetail, is a very special plant because it’s considered a living fossil.  It’s the only living survivor of the Sphenopsida plant class.  Horsetail’s plant relatives can be found in the spooky coal mining banks of Pennsylvania as Calamites fossils.  Medicine made with horsetail has been used as far back as the Roman and Greek empires.  It grows all over the world, both in arctic and temperate regions of Europe, North America, and Asia.

I wish I had known about horsetail stems…

• Before I got pulled over for going 80 mph in a 55 mph zone.  If I had horsetail in my blood, maybe I wouldn’t have had to pee so badly.  At least the judge was nice enough to remove the points from my record, since I told him all about my urinary urgency issues.
• When my little sister broke several bones by flying her dune buggy full throttle into a spooky coal mining bank when she was in the 8th grade.  Horsetail would have nourished her bones.
• When my hair was falling out as a side effect from taking Elmiron for my interstitial cystitis. Horsetail would have done a better job on my bladder, and it would have given me pretty hair instead of less of it.

Natural Support for Painful Bladder Syndrome

Horsetail is an herbal comrade for those with interstitial cystitis.  It can soothe an irritated bladder, relieve urinary urgency, and strengthen weakened bladder tissue.  It also helps to gently bring water through the kidneys, without depleting the body of minerals.

Aluminum Detoxification

Because horsetail has a high silica content, it can serve as a means for aluminum detoxification.  A few studies have shown that silica rich mineral water can increase the urinary excretion of aluminum, which means that it can pull aluminum out of the body.^{1, 2}  Drinking horsetail tea may prevent aluminum from accumulating in the brain, and thus may provide protection against Alzheimer’s disease.³

Bedwetting in Children

As a bladder tonic, horsetail strengthens bladder tissue in a way that can help kids to hold their urine at night.  It can also soothe an irritated bladder, which is sometimes the cause of night time pee accidents.  It works great when combined with other herbs for this purpose, as it may not cure the problem solo. I like Wise Woman’s “Dry Bed Compound“.

Nourishes the Bones

Horsetail has been a traditional natural treatment for osteoporosis.  This feature is most likely due to its high silica content.  Silicon plays a key role in your body’s bone building process.⁴  For this reason, you may find horsetail in bone support supplements.

Natural Beauty Herb

Because horsetail strengthens connective tissue, it is an excellent herb for pretty hair, nails, and skin.  The natural cosmetics industry frequently uses horsetail in moisturizing lotions and shampoos, which is why I just found it in my DermaE Age-Defying Moisturizing Complex.

Cautions

• If you harvest your own horsetail, avoid using plants grown by roads and industrial areas. Horsetail readily absorbs any heavy metals found in the soil (especially cadmium and lead).
• Horsetail contains an enzyme that can deplete your body of vitamin B1 and result in a thiamine deficiency.⁵

If you would like to start using Equisetum arvense medicinally, please consult your naturopathic doctor. A licensed healthcare practitioner can tailor the dose according to your needs.

References:
<sup>1. Exley C, Korchazhkina O, Job D, et al:  Non-invasive therapy to reduce the body burden of aluminum in Alzheimer’s disease.  Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 10(2006) 17-24.
2. Davenward, S, Bentham P, Wright J, et al:  Silicon-Rich Mineral Water as a Non-Invasive Test of the ‘Aluminum Hypothesis’ in Alzheimer’s Disease.  Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.  2012 Sep 13.  [Epub ahead of print]
3. Miu, Andrei C:  The silicon link between aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease.  Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 10 (2006) 39–42.
4. Pizzorno, Joseph.  Pizzorno:  Textbook of Natural Medicine, 4th ed.  Churchill Livingstone, 2012.
5. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database.</sup>

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

When I was first diagnosed with interstitial cystitis back in 2003, it felt like my life was crumbling.  I was notably depressed but too disconnected from my emotions to admit it.  If my body jolted the wrong way, it triggered megadeath bladder spasms that felt like my bladder was contracting on razor blades.  I had little interest in taking care of myself, let alone my yellow parakeet named Babu (who was probably smuggled illegally from South America).

Because I went to the doctor like it was my job, I got a lot of doctor papers.  Those papers never made it into one centralized location.  I was too busy, too exhausted, too sick, and too angry to care.  At the bottom of all that, there was no desire to care because I hated myself.  There was no point in managing my health papers if I didn’t care about my health.

Making my own health management notebook was part of my recovery process.  It is a tool I still use every day to bless my body and not hate on it.  It has enabled me to lovingly sow health into my life.  I relish in the care I feel for myself when I look at it.  It reminds me that my health has value.

Creating a health management notebook is easy and inexpensive!  All you need is a 3 ring binder, something to segregate the binder into sections, and tabs for labeling each section.  Make it in a way that encourages you to cultivate health in your life.  If that means using Martha Stewart’s cute office supply line, than do it for the sake of your (precious) health!

Here’s what you should stick in it:

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

I have little children at home who pick up every gucky respiratory bug that goes around.  I often get flustered because I don’t have time to get sick every other week, but thank God I have thyme to beat it!  I keep a tincture of thyme stocked in our family’s medicine cabinet, and I almost always put it in the herbal formulas I make for them when they are suffering from the dreaded common cold.  When used as a tincture, it has a very sharp, bitter flavor that my husband detests.

Strong Antimicrobial

Thyme is one of nature’s best antimicrobials.  After it’s ingested, the body excretes it via the lungs and the kidneys.  This makes it particularly powerful in treating lung infections as well as kidney and urinary tract infections.  Thyme also works as an antimicrobial agent in gastrointestinal infections and can be used topically for skin infections (even fungal ones!).

Excellent for Respiratory Infections

Thyme is a lung superhero when it comes to fighting off respiratory bugs, even for the scary whoop.  It is especially helpful in the treatment of whooping cough because it has properties to stop the painful coughing fits that come with it.  Thyme can be taken orally for its antimicrobial action, but its essential oil can be used in a steam inhalation or part of a vaporizing chest rub.  I wish my doctor gave me thyme when I was in college, sick with asthmatic bronchitis.  Instead, I got the conventional bronchitis goodies:  antibiotics.

Quells Coughing Spasms

Inflammation in the lung tissue during a respiratory infection can cause the lungs to spasm in a way that results in unstoppable coughing bouts.  The goal of the cough during a respiratory infection is to get all the gunk out.  However, sometimes there’s no gunk to get out but the lungs are still inflamed.  The inflammation in the lung tissue can cause it to spasm, which can result in you coughing.  Thyme is anti-spasmodic, so it stops those spasms.  This same anti-spasmodic property is also why thyme can be used in herbal formulas to treat asthma.

Ways to Use Thyme Leaves

Thyme’s powerful medicinal energy lives in its leaves.  The botanical constituents found in thyme can be extracted in a tea, alcohol based tincture, or volatile oil (essential oil).  Because fresh leaves are more potent than dried ones, a tincture made with fresh leaves may be more powerful then one made with dried ones.  Thyme essential oil should be diluted in a carrier oil, unless applied to the feet.

Cautions

The main caution with thyme is its volatile oil form, otherwise known as its essential oil.  When taken in excess, it is neurotoxic!  If you have any kind of seizure disorder, do not use thyme essential oil.  Avoid using thyme essential oil during pregnancy, both orally and topically.

If you would like to start taking thyme, please consult your naturopathic doctor.  A licensed healthcare practitioner can tailor the dose according to your needs. 

References:
^{Yarnell, Eric. Botanical Medicine IV. Bastyr University. Fall 2008.}

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness

If you purchase gluten-free bread to eat with lunch every day, drink rice milk daily, regularly snack on Pamela’s Chunky Chocolate Chip cookies, and then eat some brown rice with your Thai curry for dinner, you may be exposing yourself to toxic levels of arsenic.  Brown rice is pervasive in allergy friendly food, so it is likely to be in your gluten-free bread and you can check the first ingredient on the Pam’s chocolate chip cookies.

Rice is a considerable dietary source of arsenic exposure.  In India, rice is the greatest food source of arsenic exposure in rural populations.¹  In the U.S., rice produced from the south central states is more likely to contain higher levels of arsenic due to the historical use of arsenic based pesticides in those regions.²  During its cultivation, rice can absorb arsenic from both contaminated groundwater and rice paddy soil.³

Earlier this year, a research study found organic brown rice syrup to be contaminated with two forms of arsenic:  dimethyl-arsenate as well as inorganic arsenic.⁴  Organic brown rice syrup has already inundated the health food market, not to mention allergy friendly foods like Enjoy Life’s Sunbutter Crunch Bars.

Consumer reports recently conducted an investigation of arsenic levels in both rice and rice products.  The results are serious.

A 2008 study found rice milk in the European Union to contain total arsenic levels above the permissible amount for drinking water, which is 10 micrograms of total arsenic per liter.⁵  Consumer Reports found inorganic arsenic levels to range from 2.9 – 4.5 micrograms per serving of rice milk (they tested two different brands), which has led them to conclude that children under 4 1/2 should not be drinking rice milk at all.²

Brown rice is worse when it comes to retaining arsenic.  Arsenic likes to hang out where all the nutrition is — in the bran.  White rice has its own perils — it’s really hard on the blood sugar, even if it has less arsenic in it.

Arsenic is a heavy metal that can accumulate in the body and lead to crazy, unexplained health problems.  It stimulates oxidative stress, which generates reactive oxygen species.  This process also makes you age faster.  There is a large body of evidence linking the development of type II diabetes to chronic arsenic exposure.

If you have eaten way too much rice on your allergy friendly diet and you are worried about your arsenic exposure, you can test your body’s arsenic levels through provoked urine testing.  If your levels are high, heavy metal chelation can be used to clean it out of your body.  This is something that is very hard on the body, should never be done as an at home experiment, and should always be done under the supervision of a licensed medical physician.

The best way to proceed is to cut back on the rice, especially if you are one of these vegan food allergy people where rice is an ingredient in almost everything you eat.  When you do eat rice, buy different varieties grown from different regions throughout the world.

Even though Mr. Arsenic has polluted your rice, he doesn’t have to win.  Beat him up with your kale stalks!  Throw a green ginger smoothie on his face!  Pound him down on the pavement.  You’re not the arsenic contaminated loser.

References
<sup>1.  Chatterjee D, Halder D, Majumder S.  Assessment of arsenic exposure from groundwater and rice in Bengal Delta Region, West Bengal, India.  Water Research 2010;44:5803-5812.
2.  “Arsenic in Your Food”.  Consumer Reports.  November 2012.  Online. <http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2012/11/arsenic-in-your-food/index.htm>
3.  Rahman MA, Hasegawa H.  High levels of inorganic arsenic in rice in areas where arsenic-contaminated water is used for irrigation and cooking.  Science of the Total Environment 2011.  409:4645-4655.
4.  Jackson, BP, Taylor VF, Karagas MR, et al.  Arsenic, organic foods, and brown rice syrup.  Environmental Health Perspectives 2012; 120:623-626.
5.   Meharg AA, Deacon C, Campbell RC, et al.  Inorganic arsenic levels in rice milk exceed EU and US drinking water standards.  Journal of Environmental Monitoring 2010; 428-431.
6.   Chakraborty D, Mukherjee A, Sikdar S, et al.  [6]-Gingerol isolated from ginger attenuates sodium arsenite induced oxidative stress and plays a corrective role in improving insulin signaling in mice.  Toxicology Letters 2012; 210:34-43.
7.   Mukherjee S, Das D, Mukherjee M.  Synergistic effect of folic acid and vitamin B12 in ameliorating arsenic-induced oxidative damage in pancreatic tissue of rat.  The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry 2006; 17(5):319-327.</sup>

Share this Article!

Enjoy More Archerfriendliness