Candida: Brain Fog, Fatigue, Sugar Cravings, Hypothyroidism

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I have been thinking about Candida a lot lately because it tends to be one organism, that left unchecked, can cause persistent issues in a patients.  I always say that every patient is different, and it’s so true.  I recently started treating an existing patient for Candida overgrowth (and I won’t give too much other background to maintain anonymity) but this is NOT what the patient originally came to me for.  What is interesting about this case is that along the way, the patient has done an amazing job listening to their body and was noticing certain foods causing issues.  We navigated through that and after realizing Candida could be a real issue, all the pieces fell into place in my mind.  I can’t emphasize enough how much of a puzzle complex cases are and it requires not only the doctor to be thoughtful throughout the journey, but it requires tremendous awareness and communication on the patient’s part, too.  Often times, the patient knows the experience better than the physician, but the physician often has the knowledge to help piece things together into a picture that makes sense and can be TREATED.  Without either person’s contribution, progress is often non-existent.

What is Candida?

Candida is a yeast known as Candida albicans. While everyone has Candida living in/on/around them, not everyone has an overgrowth.  The most common condition people are aware of including Candida overgrowth is a vaginal yeast infection.  However, you can have this infection in many other places including the gut, the ears, the mouth (thrush), sinuses etc.  It tends to love dark, warm, moist environments within a susceptible host.

Who gets yeast overgrowth?

This is often a condition we will see in people that have suppressed immune systems.  Immune suppression could be from AIDS, where seeing thrush is very common.  It could be immunosuppressants as in the case with Autoimmune patients.  Or, it could be a perfect window after antibiotic use, which is common.  Last, but not least, your primed for take over during pregnancy, too.  Why? Because your immune system is naturally dampened during pregnancy because of the mechanisms that don’t want you to attack too much foreign tissue that would include your baby.  (This is also often why an autoimmune condition will go into remission during pregnancy)

What are the symptoms of overgrowth?

Just wait.  These symptoms are common and often can be associated with other conditions, especially thyroid dysfunction.  That is often why this goes misdiagnosed and the patient doesn’t seem to improve. Patients can have just a few of these or all of the below.

  • Brain fog
  • Fatigue
  • Itchy ears, vagina, anus
  • Thrush
  • Joint pain
  • Sugar cravings
  • Allergies
  • Hormone issues
  • Anxiety

What’s the treatment?

Conventional treatment of recurrent yeast infections is Diflucan.  However, this tends to enter a patient into a vicious cycle and never eradicates the problem.  They may go on cycles of this medication multiple times a year.  Alternative treatment focuses on starving the food sources of the yeast, rebalancing the microbial environment within the body (after all, healthy people have Candida, too…it’s just balanced), and addressing the tricks Candida has to hide from the immune system.

Alternative Foundations:

  • low sugar/low carb diet
  • probiotics
  • antimicrobials (many are herbs like oregano)
  • coconut oil consumption and application

Alternative Foundations are what most alternative care providers will prescribe; however, I have found there to be some critical additions to protocols if someone isn’t responding to traditional alternative recommendations.  These could be things to consider if you are treating Candida naturally but still seeing reoccurrence.

  • biofilm disrupters via herbs or enzymes
  • refrain from sex with your partner for a period of time and have them undergo treatment, as well.
    • I often see women get better and have another infection following intercourse.  Your partner is passing it back to you, and just doesn’t have the same symptoms
  • enemas to reduce something known as a Herx reaction.
    •  As Candida begin to die, they release toxins that make people feel very ill.  This will often result in discontinuation, but can be drastically improved by backing down dosing or introducing enemas
  • consider a low oxalate diet

Why would you worry about oxalates in the diet?

Admittedly, this is a new concept to me, but as I continue to learn, evolve, and treat more patients, I think it’s worth sharing information!  I have not toyed with this clinically, so take it for what it is, but I was listening to a very seasoned physician talk about this topic, and some very interesting patient puzzle pieces fell into place.  Foods high in oxalates are things like nuts, berries, spinach, and chocolate.  Candida impairs your ability to break down this component of these foods and produces a precursor to oxalates itself.  It can also take collagen and transform it into oxalates.   Oxalates are the very thing that cause painful kidney stones, and you need to be able to break these things down.  When people change their diet, often times they are making smoothies with spinach and nut milk, they are eating more greens, they use nuts as a snack, and they are increasing bone broth in their diet.  HELLO OXALATES!  This was interesting to me because my patient kept saying they had more itchy orifices when they ate cashews.  Everyone is different, so I just cut them out and moved on.  Looking back, this could’ve been a queue because in addition to using bone broth in the face of autoimmunity (what they originally came to me for), we could have been pushing the limits with oxalates.  Without addressing the Candida, we were noticing those symptoms!

What was so weird about your patient?

Hindsight is 20/20, but looking back, it sort of made sense all of a sudden.  A person presents with an autoimmune disease that can absolutely account for fatigue, brain fog, poor exercise recovery, mood imbalance and hormone issues.  However, the person has taken antibiotics which wipe out any balance that exists with your microbiome, then had a baby, which suppresses the immune system, and then gets an autoimmune disease.  This can be a common scenario, but what I did not take into account is that trigger of the autoimmune disease could very well have been the Candida overgrowth.  This person came to me not being completely open initially about the yeast symptoms (understandably so!), but brought them up when they were feeling better but those symptoms were persisting.  Maybe I missed the mark?  I don’t know.  The person then started to notice issues with cashews….(oxalates.) The patient would then notice symptoms improving and then they would reoccur after intercourse. This patient also had some strange depressive patterns, and Candida makes estrogen.  That how it puts a wrench in the hormone system.  HOW DID I NOT PUT THIS TOGETHER?!  After introducing a biofilm disruptor, treating the sexual partner, and addressing the Candida, now this person can officially say they are improved from autoimmunity (what they came to me for), and don’t have weird symptoms persistently because of a yeast overgrowth.

If I did not have constant communication with this person, I would never have tied all the dots.  People are complex and a case is like an onion.  It’s layers upon layers to get to the bottom and hopefully reaching recovery.  This takes time.  So, don’t give up! How much of the symptoms from my patient were from the Hashimoto’s and how much were from the Candida, I will never know.  But I don’t need to know.  I will carry this case (and tidbits like this from every case) into the next set of patients.  It’s part of the art of medicine and what I love about being a doctor.

 

 

Oral Contraceptives: What You Need to Know

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Oral Contraceptives AKA birth control.  As the name suggests, this a prescription that alters a women’s hormones in efforts to prevent pregnancy.  And let’s be real here, IT DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB!  I have no issues with anyone’s decisions about what is right for them or their young girls; however, I think knowledge is power and ignorance isn’t an excuse.  So, read forth and consider all the information before deciding what is right for you.

Why is birth control such a hot topic?  

Most people have 1 of 2 reasons why they are using birth control:

  • to prevent pregnancy
  • to balance hormones, which means they usually have a symptom of disruption such as, PCOS, heavy periods, irregular cycles, PMS, acne, mood disturbance, cramps, ovarian cysts

The reason this may be such a hot topic is because many moms don’t want to give their teen daughters birth control to control symptoms of hormonal imbalance.  OR, they feel as though preventing pregnancy through birth control is an invitation that it’s ok to have sexual intercourse.  The debate of abstinence is not what I care about, but the early use of hormones to regulate such important chemicals in a young female’s body, is.

The common story: “the pill” for period problems

Personally, this was my story, and the story of many of my friends in high school.  Heavy periods, painful periods, or irregular periods lead you to your first OB/GYN appointment, and you leave with a prescription to clear things right up.  You begin taking them, things are great, and you continue to take your magic pills for the next several years, maybe even a decade or more!  Most women don’t get off of them until they wish to start a family.  Let’s think about this, you go on them around the age of 16, and you may not go off of hormones until 10 years later!  What a crucial time in your natural hormone development.  Some women have real issues transitioning off with all the symptoms flooding back with a vengeance, and some women don’t notice a thing.

What’s the big deal with taking birth control?

Taking birth control to artificially “fix” hormone symptoms is like taking pain meds to forget something hurts.  It doesn’t address the source of the issue and it can have huge impacts on the endocrine system long term.  Synthetic hormones are the not the same as your own hormones being made inside your body, and they can have serious health repercussions such as stroke, pulmonary embolism, hormone cancers or infertility.  A side note to that is the new versions of the pill that are low dose like Yasmin, Alesse, etc, have huge increases in the risk of cardiovascular complications!  They know this, and  the FDA updated the risk level for any pills containing drospirenone. You can read more here.

The artificial supplementation of hormones doesn’t address the reason hormones were off in the first place.  Can you imagine the amount of dysfunction that could build up over the course of 10 years if left unaddressed?!  What if you had a thyroid condition that was throwing off your hormones and you were prescribed birth control without ever realizing your thyroid was in crisis?  I would call that an epic fail.  What if you were developing PCOS and had no idea that your blood sugar was such an issue?  Another birth control fail.

What do we do instead?

Regulating hormones comes down to foundations.  Stress, diet, and exercise are all part of the picture. Conventional  animal products contain unhealthy hormones and hormone disruptors.  Certain plants act like estrogens.  Dairy is a huge driver of androgens.  Stress requires cortisol production, which is a hormone.  Too much cortisol can cause someone to have major shifts in their sex hormones.  Lack of fiber means free hormones are not bound and eliminated.  Excessive exercise is notorious for altering body fat percentages that don’t support normal menstruation.  We have all heard of young gymnasts who don’t get a period until they quit training.  On the flip side, lack of movement can predispose young people to store more fat.  Fat produces estrogen!  You can see how lifestyle is so huge.

There are also options in the herbal department, too.

  • Chasteberry is an herb that has been used for many years to regulate hormones by acting on the hypothalamus and the pituitary glands.  It ends up naturally raising progesterone levels without acting as a hormone.  Low progesterone give women the blues, heavy periods, or bad PMS.
  • Maca is a root vegetable that has been used for fertility in certain cultures because it balances hormones.  It aids in estrogen balance, and supports adrenal and thyroid function.
  • Saw palmetto is an herb that balances testosterone that can cause acne.
  • Black cohosh is an herb that can naturally boost estrogen levels.

Depending on someone’s imbalance, a combination of these ingredients can be a lifesaver in the symptom department!  Hormones can really dictate how stable a young person’s emotions are, how confident they are in their body, and how healthfully they develop a fertile environment for child-bearing years.

Are there things I should do if I decide to take oral contraceptives?

Oral contraceptives deplete certain nutrients like B-vitamins, vitamin D, Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, and Folic Acid.  Yup, folic acid, that B-vitamin necessary to keep a child from having a cleft palate. They can also alter balance in the bacteria living in the gut called the microbiome.  So, if you decide to take an oral contraceptive, I would NOT take one like Yaz or Alesse because of the increased risk in clotting.  I would also supplement with the following:

  • B-complex
  • Reacted mineral
  • Vitamin D
  • Probiotics

This is just scraping the surface, but I hope it helps you make a decision that is right for you!

 

Patient Journey: Crohn’s

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Despite working with patients for several years now and wanting to share everything I possibly can to make a difference, I have never taken the time to share any stories of patient journeys.  I have never pressured any patients to write testimonials and, quite frankly, I feel like sometimes they can be a little inauthentic.  If you think about it, who is going to agree to write a testimonial and say anything bad?!  However, I have sent my patients a journey worksheet to help me decide what was the most influential, what they believed to be the most impactful moments along the way, and what they would say to those that may be on the same path.  I have used these journey worksheets to help mold my treatment methods, but I feel guilty for not sharing them!  I’m ready.  I hope to share some patient journeys over the next few months so you can understand what healthy looks like through the eyes of patients like yourself.

First up? a Crohn’s patient that will actually be a case study published in my upcoming book on treating immune dysfunction! It’s interesting for me to see how patients perceive our work together, and as you will see, food was a huge part of this autoimmune journey!  I will let you know the question and response, unedited, completely honest and raw…..

  1. What health issues were you struggling with when you began to work with Dr. Angela? I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease about 5 years ago. I struggled finding the “safe” foods to eat without knowing what was really in food and how it was prepared. So honestly I would usually eat once maybe twice a day because it was just easier than getting sick…I lost about 40lbs within the first 6 months (only weighed 140lbs at lowest weight, so pretty low for a 6’ tall male). I also became very sheltered and was afraid to go out to eat, go to movies or just basically afraid to leave my comfort area “in case I got sick”
  2. What treatment methods had you tried prior to Dr. Angela’s program? The doctor had me taking 3 – 3mg Budesonide (equivalent to Entocort) each morning and then taking 2 Pentasa four times a day…so taking 11 pills a day. Basically tried to stay away from food the doctor told me to avoid. Also took a food allergy test which was 100% waste of my time after spending one short visit with Dr A
  3. What health benefits did you gain from working with Dr. Angela? Where do I start…I can eat without being too worried about getting sick, I can leave the house more often because now I know what I eat and where it came from and I am slowly gaining my weight back. I just finally feel better, but I still have my days but overall I feel better and I am currently taking 3 prescribed pills a day along with my other healthy pills.
  1. What was your biggest struggle during the transition to a healthier lifestyle? The first two weeks were the worst EVER!! I was basically having chicken broth for breakfast, lunch and dinner to clear my system of anything that was bad…it was 100% worth it and yes I would do it again it I had to. Another struggle is making breakfast, lunch and dinner is a chore on some days but when I get to sit down and eat and know that I will feel full and probably not get sick is a great feeling. It’s either all or nothing when choosing this lifestyle so get ready for the ups and downs but once you find some go to meals its fun and worth every penny you are paying.
  2. What did you find most beneficial to you in the program? That I am getting my life back, that I can feed my family good food and stay away from all the processed food. Becoming a better cook is also the fun part because I can cook more meals than I ever thought I could. Also I can eat dessert again and that is always great because Dr A has some amazing recipe’s for any sweet tooth out there.
  3. Did your food options taste good? Sometime they taste too good, like the almond butter chocolate chip cookies are the best thing ever. Its also amazing what you can do with honey, I never liked honey before meeting Dr A but I basically put it in/on everything…and not the fake honey you get in the store, it has to be the real stuff.
  4. Did you have an ah-ha moment that helped you commit to the change? If so, what was it? My moment was when Dr A had us take everything out of the pantry/house that had corn in it and I realized just how much crap we were eating and if I got rid of it. Also was when we learned how some of the cooking oils were made/processed…GROSS!!
  5. If you were going to give a piece of advice to someone on the fence of following a program like Dr. Angela’s, what would you say to them in order to help them decide? Give it time, it is worth it. There will be days that you’re not going to want to get out of bed to make another meal or make another trip to stupid fancy grocery store but I promise you that it does get better, there will be tears and there will be family fights because of what you can and can’t eat but hang in there, my wife also followed along by my side and after all the fights and tears shared we are both better and healthier. When you are addicted to anything, bad food in our case, it tough quitting that habit and you’ll have ups and downs but now we have a lot more ups then downs and love almost every step we are taking….it’s not easy but if I can do it know that anyone can.

Dr. Angela’s perspective:

This patient had evidence of intestinal permeability, some underlying infections that needed addressed, excessive stress in certain areas of life, and a list of about 50 foods that “he wasn’t supposed to eat.”  Thank goodness for that list of foods, because his wife contacted me (after hearing from one of you about me) at a complete loss as to how to cook for him with such restrictions.  This is often how it starts.  I get contacted with an intention, and after a short consult, we have a completely different direction that focuses are correcting the underlying cause of disease.  This patient has since removed all his meds and had a COMPLETELY CLEAR colonoscopy.  Every patient has a different journey, but especially with autoimmunity, I insist on the education component because the children of that patient inherent the DNA.  While DNA doesn’t cause the disease, it sets the stage for it.  So, the process he mentions about removing corn was a random idea I came up to get the kids involved in understanding just how many foods may contain things that make dad (and many others) sick.  Like I said, no two patients are the same, and therefore, I don’t think I’ve ever done exactly the same thing with any of them.  You are unique, your body is unique, your lifestyle is unique, and the things that matter to you are unique.  That means you need a plan that fits your unique circumstances.

 

PCOS: Where to Start

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Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, commonly termed “PCOS,” is something I am seeing more and more in my practice.  Often times, women have no clue this is an issue until they try to become pregnant.  Since infertility is one of the negative repercussions of such condition, trouble conceiving is often the red flag.  However, many women may notice something isn’t right before that and not associate it to PCOS.  For example, common symptoms of PCOS include things like:

  • Weight loss resistance
  • Blood sugar regulation issues
  • Increased hair growth in all the wrong places
  • Depression
  • Decreased hair in all the right places
  • Irregular periods
  • Sometimes high blood pressure
  • Pelvic pains that come and go
  • Often times high LDL levels

How’s that for a good time?  Overweight, with acne and facial hair, not knowing when you’re going to get your period, and depressed.  Then you feel like you can’t even do something as basic as get pregnant.  You know how many people get pregnant and don’t even try?!  This is the PCOS story.

What do doctors traditionally do about it?

They usually prescribe birth control pills and metformin (diabetes drug).  Since PCOS is an issue of hormone regulation, the birth control is supposed to put someone on a normal cycle with “normal” hormone levels.  The thought is also that the reason this occurs is due to blood sugar issues, which is why women often improve with diabetes medications.  This sounds great until you start asking why it started in the first place.  Not only does Metformin not address the issue, but it depletes your body of B vitamins and CoQ10, so you may even have decreased energy. If your blood sugar issues started it, why wouldn’t you change the habits associated with poor blood sugar?  Instead, those continue and everything associated with those is still taking place.  Your body is making too many androgens, which is what you can thank for those hair growth patterns and acne.  Taking a pill with estrogen does not remove the inappropriate hormone production patterns.  This treatment protocol is likened to adding green food coloring to water and to make someone think it’s juiced vegetables.  You may make things APPEAR differently, but once you look (or taste) further, you notice it doesn’t taste like green juice, it doesn’t have benefits of green juice, and it may be even worse because we had to add chemicals to the water just to make it APPEAR differently. Wouldn’t it be easier, and better, if we just made some green juice?!

What SHOULD your labs look like?  What should be the goal?

  • A1C should be 5.4 or less
  • fasting glucose should be 75 or less
  • Insulin should be 6
  • Homocysteine should be 6-8

Insulin levels are often not tested because we tend to test glucose more often; however, insulin decreases something called sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG).  The point of SHBG is to bind free hormones and if it’s ability to do so is impaired, we see elevated testosterone levels.  Testosterone is one of the androgens we touched on earlier.  This is why adding estrogen via a birth control pill can sometimes make your body APPEAR improved, but we are really just creating that appearance by adding green food coloring. Inside, we still have the issue of it just being dyed water.

Why does this even matter?  Is it that big of a deal?

For women who desperately want children, YES.  That can be a huge deal.  For the rest that don’t mind the childless lifestyle, having PCOS increases your risk for heart disease, hormone driven cancer, blood pressure issues, and if you have irregular periods, you are 7 times more likely to develop diabetes.  We don’t want to go down the rabbit hole of diabetes, but think diabetic neuropathy, limbs removed, eye sight issues, and a huge stealer of quality of life.

What things can we do from a lifestyle perspective?

  • Eat balanced macros with a focus on protein and healthy fats (this will help regulate blood sugar)
  • Increase fiber intake (think around 30g/day) (this helps bind hormones and cholesterol)
  • Avoid sugar and processed foods (this impairs normal blood sugar)
  • Avoid caffeine (this can drive androgens)
  • Decrease stress (stress drives cortisol and disrupts your hormone production)
  • Clean up your beauty products (these are often endocrine disruptors meaning they damage receptor capabilities for hormones)
  • Exercise (this sensitizes cells to normal blood sugar responses)
  • Drink spearmint tea (this decreases testosterone)

That’s great Dr. Angela, but I’m in deep.  Will I need more than just lifestyle changes?

This could be the case and often is by the time someone sees me.  THIS IS NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, and each patient is different, but I want to share some things that are often common with improvement.

  • Essential Fatty Acids-consider a good fish oil, cod liver oil, or fatty acid blend
  • Antioxidants- consider taking a spectrum of antioxidants because studies show one single antioxidant does not work the same
  • Detox- sometimes increasing detoxification pathways can be helpful
  • Herbs- Inositol, Fenugreek, Cinnamon, Vitex, Black Cohosh, Nettles, Green Tea, Licorice, Spearmint
  • Saw Palmetto-240-260mg 2x’s/day-lowers testosterone
  • Progesterone- day 14-25 days of the cycle taking 20mg transdermal or 110-130 mg oral (this should be started low and slow and directed by your health care provider who is testing)
  • Berberine-200mg 2x’s/day for those who also have high LDL levels

The take away message here is that cysts on the ovaries are a sign that something is going wrong with hormones and blood sugar regulation inside.  Taking medications for these issues acts like a bandaid and doesn’t address the underlying mechanisms.  I encourage you to take lifestyle changes seriously and find a knowledgeable practitioner who will talk to you about solutions to CORRECT the issue and not jump to birth control or metformin.  This is not a life sentence, and many women address these issues naturally.

 

 

Guide to a Coffee Sabbatical: Reducing Caffeine Intake

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I am a huge fan of coffee, and I don’t make that a secret. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that I recently took a 2 week coffee sabbatical. I kept getting asked why I was embarking on this caffeine-reduction journey, and the simply answer was:
“I love coffee, but too much of a good thing can be a bad thing.”
With my current work situation, I am waking up earlier, having more meetings, and doing more after lunch runs to Starbucks. I have always had coffee every morning before noon. However, lately it has been a venti bold before 10:30am, a 12oz before lunch, and an Americano for the afternoon. Let’s just say that this adds up to a lot of caffeine and lot of bad habits. I’m an all-or-nothing personality, so when I need a reset, I need to do the whole cold turkey thing. So, I decided to give up coffee for 2 weeks. I almost cried, got over it, and decided it was going to make it a mission to find alternatives! I have been giving alternative suggestions to patients for years, but wondered if there were new options out there. I’m here to report the deets! Keep a couple things in mind, number one on this list is really the only alternative that feels and somewhat tastes like coffee, and the rest are just fun alternatives to try. The other thing to keep in mind is that some of these options are completely caffeine-free and others have a little, so if you are trying to give up all caffeine, no green teas.

List of Coffee Habit Alternatives: (that aren’t sugar bombs and would be enjoyed by the health-conscious)
1. Dandy Blend

  • This stuff is by far the closest taste and feel to coffee!  It’s bitter, rich, and somewhat frothy
  • Caffeine free
  • Good for liver function
  • Buy on Amazon or at a health food store
  • Powder that just dissolves in liquid: hot or cold
  • Make coffee-flavored stuff with it like my Dandy Blend Ice Cream recipe!

2. Rebbl Maca Mocha

  • This you can find at Whole Foods
  • This tastes like a treat, let’s be honest
  • Dark cocoa, chicory, and coconut milk
  • Superfood addition: maca; I love maca for hormone health
  • Somewhat expensive if you want to have it often.  Think around $3 for 12 oz

3. Rebbl Reishi Chocolate

  • Buy at Whole Foods
  • This is like chocolate milk
  • Dark cocoa, vanilla, and coconut milk
  • Superfood addition: Reishi; I love the idea of using beta-glucans to improve immune function and liver detoxification
  • Somewhat expensive but remember you get a 10% discount at Whole Foods if you buy a case at a time

4. Starbucks Shaken Iced Tea: Passion Fruit

  • This is sort of fruity with a hint of cinnamon?
  • It’s pink and refreshing
  • Order unsweetened
  • Great option if you’re with people at Starbucks
  • Similar cost to your coffee

5. Starbucks Shaken Iced Tea: Peach Green Tea

  • If you like peach tea, this is a subtle version with a little bitter hint of green tea
  • This is also refreshing
  • Order unsweetened
  • Green tea has many anti-aging benefits and plant chemicals that improve health
  • Has some caffeine because of the green tea

6. Green juice

  • If you have a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s nearby, you can buy these pre-juiced
  • If you have a juicery close to you, it can be a good “get out of the office” run
  • If you have a juicer at home, it can replace your morning habit of making coffee to making juice
  • FULL of nutrients and great for your health and beauty
  • Store-bought needs to be cold pressed and not pasteurized, which can be tough to find
  • Juicery prices can be steep
  • You’ll have to clean up if you do it at home

7. Herbal Tea

  • Experiment with all kinds of flavors. You may find one that you love more than coffee!
  • Mint tea is great for those with PCOS
  • Ginger and turmeric are great for inflammation
  • Chai is usually a black tea base so has some caffeine, but this is a great alternative

8. La Croix

  • This is a fizzy, store-bought drink that comes in a can like soda
  • Grapefruit is the only flavor I like
  • You can buy it by the case
  • May fill the afternoon drink necessity

9. Flavored water

  • Flat or carbonated water will do
  • Add herbs like sage or mint
  • Add citrus like lemon, lime, or grapefruit
  • Possibilities are endless and free

10. Dandy Blend Mocha Latte

  • Use dandy blend to make 10 oz hot water and 1 1/2 Tbsp
  • Add a splash of almond milk
  • Add a TBSP collagen
  • Add TBSP of cocoa powder
  • Blend until mixed and pour into travel coffee mug and feel like a starbucks treat has been served at home

Why would I take people off of caffeine or coffee?

There are many reasons but many people don’t realize that coffee is contributing to the following issues:

  • Headaches
  • Jittery feeling or racing heart
  • Anxiety
  • Diarrhea
  • Allergies
  • Sleep disturbances
  • Hormone issues
  • Acne
  • Energy dips

If you decide to take a coffee sabbatical, set a time frame and just monitor how you feel.  If you feel great, then maybe you shouldn’t have it daily.  Sometimes I will then set limitations such as one day a week and one day on the weekend.  Many times these issues are due to exceeding a threshold.  Maybe it’s fine to have on occasion, but not so fine to have daily.  It’s your body, and you know it better than anyone.  Experiment on yourself!

 

The Carb Challenge Part 4.5: Sprouted Grain English Muffin (and Quinoa)

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I have some sad news: 1. I did the challenge with quinoa and forgot my glucose monitor at home, so I will not repeat it.  However, based on it’s performance during a meal, my guess is that it reached the same ballpark as banana. 2. I decided to test out a sprouted grain product that most people (including myself) would consider to be fairly healthy for most individuals….and it was almost as bad as the oats!  I scarfed those slices of Ezekiel cinnamon raisin English muffin down without any issues and 2 hours later, I forgot to test my sugars.  So, I did it 2 hours and 20 minutes later, which should mean I had 20 extra minutes to bring my blood sugar down and it was still 104.  I was secretly hoping that it would be a good reading so I could justify to myself why I could eat these delicious bread products without issue.  The reason I would never really eat them before all this carb talk was because they have wheat in them, and I try fairly hard to stay gluten-free.  So, there are 2 strikes against them now in my book.

Now that we have some sad news behind us, you want to know something funny?  I ate 2 paleo donuts the morning before to do a blood sugar test for my friend, Kristen, and THEY WERE BETTER FOR MY BLOOD SUGAR THAN EZEKIEL SPROUTED ENGLISH MUFFINS.  Now that I have done this carb challenge with a variety of foods, I want to point out something very interesting: My worst blood sugar responses were to oats and sprouted grain English muffins.  My blood sugar did fine with white rice, banana, and quinoa.  I tested meals with sweet potatoes and paleo donuts and those were fine, too.  How interesting that if I gave you that list of foods and asked which you thought would give the worst blood sugar response, you would likely say white rice because there’s no fiber, donuts for sure, and fruit because we all know fruit has sugar.  The last things to come to mind would be your heart healthy oats (which were soaked), and sprouted whole grains!  But the reality is, I should not eat these foods if I can avoid them.  For me personally, they just don’t do me any favors.  So, it’s a good thing I have plenty of other carb sources to choose from.

But Dr. A, we all know fat slows down metabolism of carbs, so you should have added fat.

I did.  I had butter with both the oats and the sprouted grain English muffin.  I did not add any fat sources to the banana, rice, or sweet potato.

Why do you think this is?

We are all individuals and we all respond differently to different food sources.  This is why individualized nutrition and medicine is important.  Often times, your body gives you signals that support this.  You may feel really hungry shortly after, or get a sugar crash, maybe brain fog, perhaps excessive weight gain or digestive issues.  Listen to your body.  If you don’t respond well to something, choose a different source of nutrients.  If you are a hardcore science person then get a meter and test!  I have a cheap one in my store tab that will give you 50 opportunities to see you sugar results.

Who should pay attention?

On some level, everyone should pay attention but those that suffer from diabetes, hormone issues, stress, digestive disorders, or sleep issues should all consider taking a closer look. Blood sugar regulation is a huge part of those issues and ignoring it is an opportunity to unlock some of the underlying causes.  Another population that should take a closer look is those with abnormal cholesterol levels.  Triglyceride levels often follow inflammation levels due to glucose metabolism.  These people are told to eat whole grains to improve their risk of heart disease; however, it may be contributing to the source of cholesterol abnormalities!

Summarize your numbers, would ya?

Oats:       pre# 74- post# 122
banana: pre#69- post# 84
Rice:       pre# 90- post# 99
Paleo donuts: pre #82-post#92
Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin Sprouted English Muffin: pre#82-post#104

Now that I am done with the carb challenge, I can go back eating my normal meals.  However, it has changed what I may choose as my carb sources for workout refueling.  The results also give me a good example to share with patients about why certain foods may never be a good idea to reintroduce.  It all depends on your body!

 

Beach Glass: Life’s Lessons

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Beach glass is an interesting thing.  It’s a simple thing.  It’s a thing that acts as a metaphor for so many people’s lives.  Beach glass is trash. It’s trash that has been discarded by someone after it no longer served them.  Those glass items tumble around in the water for years.  They get cracks, they break into pieces, they become weathered.  Until one day, they wash up on shore as treasures to be found by so many people searching daily for even just one piece.  These pieces of discarded trash become broken and end up as unique, beautiful, sought-after pieces of treasure.  Did you hear me?

Maybe at some point in your life you felt discarded, no longer needed, maybe even worthless.  You spent years weathering the storm of life just trying to survive and feel like you are worthy of something more.  You were broken, you were tattered, your hard edges were worn down.  For years.  Then one day you give in to the cycle and simply let nature run its course.  No more trying to will something different for life, no longer wishing for something else, just giving in to the events that will eventually create a new version of you.  A version that everyone will dedicate time to understanding, finding, and admiring.  This appreciation for what you have become is so much greater than your former “perfectly useful self” that was created to serve someone else.  Now you are you, a little broken, but much more beautiful.

I speak often about adversity in life.  I think this is an element to life that everyone encounters, no one wants to admit, and everyone feels unworthy because of it.  I see this every single day when working with patients because these feeling negatively effect their health. I don’t care if anyone screams their story from the rooftops or lets the world know their journey.  Many people appreciate this because it gives them something to empathize with.  However, I do care that everyone realize adversity is normal.  It’s not only normal, but it is, in some regard, your greatest gift.  It has shaped you, changed you, created your uniqueness, and it is what makes you interesting.  As a society, we are obsessed with an image that erases adversity from what we see.  We want no scars, no stretch marks, no wrinkles, and certainly no evidence of the past.  When it comes down to it, no one ever sits with that person and feels anything.  That person doesn’t change the world.  That person has no purpose.  It’s necessary to be a little broken, weather a few storms, and take a few blows from life to create the most purposeful version of you.  Know that it happens to everyone and that there’s something great on the other side if you allow it.

Headaches and Migraines: Exploring the Cause and Solution

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I was recently asked to write an article covering headaches and migraines. When I posted this suggestion, there was a number of people that also wanted this article! I didn’t think this was that big of a topic, but apparently, we have people who need help with this! So, first things first: I am a chiropractor that practices functional medicine. That means that while my doctorate is in manual medicine, I have spent a lot of years focusing on things outside of adjustments such as herbal therapy, nutrition, lifestyle medicine, and supplementation for restoring health. Why not pharmaceuticals? Because I found all too often that prescription and OTC medications were really good at symptomatic relief, but lacked in their ability to really get rid of the underlying issues. Add side effects on top of that, and I just feel more confident in my ability to RESOLVE a patient’s issue without the use of medications. Now that you have a little background on my philosophies, let’s talk about headaches and migraines.

What’s the difference between a headache and a migraine?
A LOT! A headache is annoying, painful, and while it is pain in the head, it is not a intense or debilitating as migraine. For the purpose of this post, we will classify migraines as severely disabling headaches. Migraines are often accompanied by something called an aura or a feeling of fog that denotes it’s onset. These patients also have light sensitivity, they may feel very nauseous, and it is very difficult for them to complete simple daily tasks while one is occurring. While this is awful, the really awful part is that this can last for hours or days! This makes life pretty difficult while you are experiencing a migraine, and that is why many people will turn to prescriptions when this happens. At that point, you will do whatever it takes to get relief and be able to accomplish daily responsibilities.

What’s wrong with my prescriptions for migraines?
The prescription medications used to treat migraines are often chemicals who’s original purpose had nothing to do with migraines. They may be blood pressure medication, antidepressants, anti-seizure medications, and even your favorite wrinkle treatment known as BOTOX. These medications do “alright” at best for making a patient able to tolerate and function during an episode, and may impact frequency for some, but they certainly don’t treat migraines. These medications all come with their own set of side effects that under longterm use may require another medication to address the side effect of the migraine medication. This is nothing new in the pharmaceutical world, and before you know it, you are a customer buying 5 medications when you thought you started with a simple problem.

What causes headaches and migraines?
There are so many sources of etiology for this type of issue that it’s hard to treat for that reason. If you haven’t done your due diligence digging around for the culprit, you will never find the root cause. Root causes that I see being most common for MIGRAINES are:

  • food sensitivities (especially things like gluten, lactose, and eggs)
  • diet sweeteners (check labels for sucralose, aspartame, truvia, equal, etc)
  • caffeine (coffee, soda, chocolate all have caffeine and this can be a trigger for those that don’t metabolize it well)
  • hormones (especially when progesterone is low or women find migraines cyclical to their menstrual cycle)
  • stress (this is a seriously overlooked trigger for tons of health issues)
  • magnesium deficiency
  • underactive mitochondria due to chronic diseases such as autoimmunity, cancer, or chronic infection

Root causes I see being most common for HEADACHES are:

  • postural issues
  • cervical subluxations
  • blood sugar issues
  • blood pressure issues
  • stress
  • eye sight issues

So, the first step in diagnosis and treatment is deciding if you suffer from a HEADACHE or a MIGRAINE.  If you suffer from headaches, then often times, they can easily resolve with:

  • visiting your chiropractor for an adjustment (this fixes misalignments that cause nerve discomfort causing headaches)
  • visit your massage therapist (muscle tension can occur from poor posture or subluxations and soft tissue work especially on the suboccipitals can work wonders.  Just tell your massage therapist to work on your cranium, jaw, suboccipitals, and muscles that elevate the shoulders)
  • ergonomics (position your desk, move frequently, and don’t look down at your phone constantly)
  • eat balanced meals low in refined carbs (this will help keep blood sugar stable)
  • check your blood pressure (identify if this throbbing is coming from how hard your heart is pumping)
  • adopt stress relief techniques like going for a walk, doing yoga, reading, enjoying hobbies
  • talk to an essential oil rep that can point you in the direction of a diffuser and use lavender specifically
  • get your eyes checked (if you find yourself squinting a lot or if you notice most headaches are in the afternoon it could be because of screen time)

If you suffer from migraines, then it may take some digging to find the cause.  You may want to consider the following testing or supplementation:

  • supplement with magnesium (300mg/day) (you could incorporate Epsom salt soaks too for transdermal absorption)
  • eliminate common allergens from your diet (I would start with gluten, dairy, and eggs)
  • remove all diet foods and MSG from your diet
  • get your hormones checked (especially if you are a woman or notice they have a pattern around your period)
  • supplement with nutrients targeted at helping your mitochondria function (this could be especially helpful for those with a concurrent chronic infection.

Hopefully this answered some of your questions!  There are tons of things you can do to self-treat headaches, but if they persist beyond those efforts, then I suggest finding good doctors to work with!  This is an area where alternative medicine shines and you will never regret going that route.  If you find you need further direction on your case, I would be happy to set up a consult or point in the direction of someone near to you that I trust!

*feel free to call or text 574-635-5808 to set up a 30-min phone consult: $75

*feel free to email angela@angelalucterhand.com to set up a consult or request links to the products I would recommend to my patients.

 

 

 

 

Carb Challenge Part 3: White Rice

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Catch up with what this is all about. How may your body respond differently to the same amount of net carbs, but from different sources? Would it effect your blood sugar the same? The answer is “probably not.” I set out to experiment on myself, so you guys can see a personal experience of the differences! Having said that, unless you test yourself, you won’t know if you fit the same profile as myself.

First test: 50g net carbs from Oats
Second test: 50g net carbs from banana

Third test: 50g net carbs from white rice

Why white rice?
Rice is a gluten free grain that I consume on occasion, especially with sushi. Consuming white rice vs. brown rice means there is no bran present, which means it’s not high in nutrients or fiber, but it also doesn’t need to be soaked for safe consumption. That makes it a quick, easy, and safe starch for those that handle it well. Since it wasn’t a high fiber carb source, I only had to consume 1.14cups to get 50g net carbs. This made me happy because if you read my experience with oats, eating over 2 cups was hard and unpleasant. I did prepare the rice with bone broth as opposed to water because I would normally prepare it as such.

How did I feel with white rice?
It was super easy to eat this amount of rice! I may even say easier than banana. I didn’t feel full and wanted to eat more. I didn’t feel shaky or nauseous or any other reason to call it a negative reaction. I was ready to eat again fairy shortly though, and found myself staring at the clock waiting for the 2 hours until I could take my blood sugar.

What were the results?
My 2 hour post-prandial reading was 99. If you recall, oats was 122, and banana was 84. The one major difference in my opinion was I decided to do it on a Sunday as opposed to a work day. That means that I didn’t do it quite as early in the morning, and therefore my blood sugar prior to eating it was higher than the other challenges. For oats, my blood sugar prior to eating was 74. Banana fasted blood sugar was 69. This time, I started at 90. So, to have 99 means even though it wasn’t as low as the banana, it came much closer to the fasting level prior to consuming the carbs within that 2 hour window.
Oats: pre# 74- post# 122= 48
banana: pre#69- post# 84= 15
Rice: pre# 90- post# 99= 9

So, oats have still had by far the worst response in my body, but I can’t really determine which was ‘better” between rice and banana because while the blood sugar value was better with banana, the ability to come close to my fasting number was better with rice.

What does this mean for me?
I will honestly probably start incorporating more white rice in my days that I have intense workouts. I like rice. I can use it as an amazing way to get bone broth into my diet, and I know that my body responds nicely to it.

What’s next?
I will likely do a vegetable next. Maybe a potato or sweet potato. Potatoes are probably one of my go-to carb sources, so I’ll be interested to see how they stack up to rice. The one downfall to choosing sweet potato is the volume I have to consume on that one. ;( This is also a testament to which carbs are easiest to ingest in certain quantities. If you are a sedentary person that wants to feel full but not consume too many carbs, then go with those that are less refined. However, if you are trying to build mass or recover and have the need or double or triple the amount of carbs as an average person, then choosing those easy to consume without as much volume may be much better options to comfortably fit your macros.

Circadian Rhythms: Are you Taking Your Meds at the Right Time?

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Circadian rhythm in layman’s terms means all the hormones and body functions that happen in a 24 hour period. From hormones that cause you to be sleepy at night to nervous system activity that causes bowel movements, your body is on a schedule. That schedule is something that all living things have based on their species and needs, but this internal clock has a close relationship with the day/night cycle of light, too. Having said that, we know that our bodies do certain things at certain times and when it comes to hormone release and immune function, that could mean that taking certain medications or vaccinations at certain times increases effectiveness.

Did you know that there have been studies showing those who received flu vaccines in the morning had higher levels of anti-flu antibodies than those that received them later in the day? This suggests that the WHEN someone gets a vaccine may determine it’s effectiveness. We won’t go into whether or not someone should even get a vaccine in the first place, but it”s worth gaining this data about timing.

The most common indication of circadian rhythm is cortisol release. Cortisol is inversely related to melatonin, which means as melatonin rises, your cortisol goes down. Melatonin makes you sleepy, but cortisol wakes you up. So, it makes sense that cortisol should be the highest in the morning. Cortisol also suppresses inflammation and regulates certain immune responses. What if we could time those immune responses to manipulate an outcome? It may make certain treatments safer and more effective.

Cholesterol medications:
Research has suggested that the enzyme that regulates cholesterol production in rats is most active at night. This may mean that taking a drug like a statin may be most effective if taken at night. While this is interesting and really helpful if you have a reason to take a statin, I would love to point out that statins are one of the most easily-avoidable drugs out there with appropriate lifestyle changes!

Chemotherapy:
Genes that determine cell division are rhythmic which means that chemo that targets cells actively replicating (think reproductive tissue and intestinal lining) can be timed to limit healthy cell death. ‘Over the past 30 years, experimental models and clinical trials have found that timing chemo regimens can significantly affect their toxicty and effectiveness.” ( The scientist Magazine)

Anti-histamines:
These allergy drugs are found to be most effective when taken at night or early in the morning. We also now know that they cause cognitive issues and brain shrinkage, so lets entertain finding the ROOT causes of allergies vs treating the symptoms!

Blood Pressure Medication:
It’s no secret that heart attacks happen more frequently during certain times of the day. Don’t believe me? Ask a cardiologist. If you take an angiotensin-2 receptor blocker for blood pressure, it is most effective at controlling blood pressure if taken at night.

I’m all about fixing the problem versus treating the symptom, but pay attention because I promise this will be a tweak in medication recommendations as time goes on. Don’t want to wait until they figure all that out? Then I encourage you to fix the reason you would need to take meds in the first place. ;)