Carrying excess weight around your middle could have profound impact on your heart.

There is an important medical condition so obvious that I can diagnose it without performing a single diagnostic test. I can spot it the instant a patient walks into my office. It’s so common that I see it everywhere – at malls, in restaurants, on the golf course, and strolling down the street. It has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. I’m sure you’ve seen it, too, among your family and friends, and maybe when you look in the mirror.

The ailment has many names, including metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, Syndrome X, and the name I will use, prediabetes. Why is it so easy to diagnose? There’s one clue that’s a dead giveaway: it’s your waistline. One of my colleagues says that when a patient’s belly is the first part to enter his office, the diagnosis is made. If you have gained weight in middle age and most of it is in your belly, you are likely part of the American epidemic of prediabetes. And if you don’t start eating better and exercising, full-blown diabetes will almost certainly be in your future.

Why would I be so concerned with your waistline? The reason has less to do with how you look on the outside than it does with how you look on the inside. I’m worried about what prediabetes and diabetes are doing to your arteries. Both conditions can injure the lining of your vessels and accelerate the production of plaque, greatly increasing your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

After a meal, it is the job of insulin to help transport fats as well as sugar from the blood into the tissues. As you develop insulin resistance, fats accumulate in your bloodstream and hang around much longer than usual. During this time, changes in your blood fats occur – your LDL particles become smaller and your total HDL is reduced. These changes favor the movement of cholesterol from your bloodstream into your artery walls. The smaller and denser the LDLs are, the less efficient they are at removing the cholesterol from those vessel walls. These changes are also associated with high blood fat levels measures in the form of triglycerides. The fact that these fats are in your bloodstream longer also favors their accumulation in the vessel walls.

So, if you have gained predominantly belly fat as an adult and there is diabetes in your family (even if it occurred in a parent or grandparent late in life), you probably are insulin resistant and have prediabetes. The diagnosis of prediabetes is made if you meet three of the five following criteria:

CENTRAL OBESITY: a waist circumference of greater than 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women

ELEVATED TRIGLYCERIDES: greater than or equal to 150 mg/dL

LOW TOTAL HDL: Less than or equal to 40 mg/dL for men and less than or equal to 50 mg/dL for women

ELEVATED BLOOD PRESSURE: systolic blood pressure of greater than or equal to 130 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure of greater than or equal to 85 mm Hg

ELEVATED FASTING GLUCOSE: greater than or equal to 100 mg/dL

-Arthur Agatston, MD

Dr Trudy says – Our office specializes in helping you bring your metabolic numbers in balance!

This is what we do. – And we do this with natural lifestyle changes! Call us and ask us your questions! (702) 363-9260

Step up to lower metabolic syndrome risk. The more you walk, the lower your risk of metabolic syndrome (factors that increase risk for diabetes and heart disease), reports a study of 1,500 people. Highly active groups (10,000 to 12,500 daily steps) were 72 percent less likely to have metabolic syndrome than sedentary subjects, and those in the low to somewhat active groups (5,000 to 9,999 daily steps) were 40 percent less likely.

-          American Journal of Preventive Medicine, May 2010

TV Ad Diets – NOT!

Don’t follow a TV-ad Diet. If you based your diet entirely on foods you saw in TV ads, you would eat 25 times the recommended servings of sugars and 20 times the recommended servings of fat, according to researchers who analyzed food ads during 84 of primetime and 12 hours of Saturday morning TV shows over 28 days (total of about 800 food ads.) Compared with the Food Guide Pyramid, the TV ad foods oversupplied sodium, saturated fat and sugar, but undersupplied 12 important nutrients including vitamins A, D and E.

-          Journal of the American Dietetic Association, June 2010

Omega-3 and Depression

Omega-3 Fatty Acids may treat depression. This is the news coming out of the largest study conducted on Omega-3s and major depression. Researchers found that among 432 male and female subjects with the major unipolar depression in this randomized, double-blind study, the group that received eight weeks of fish oil supplements (1050 milligrams (mg) EPA and 150 mg DHA per day) experienced improved depression symptoms.

-          Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, June 15, 2010

Trudy says –

Of course! Our brains have such a large percentage of these good fats that this improvement in depression seems so logical!

Is your fish oil clean of heavy metals?

If you’ve ever loaded your car’s trunk with heavy objects or driven with four adult passengers, you may have noticed that the ride wasn’t as smooth. Your car’s shock absorbers probably didn’t soak up the jolts from the bumps and the potholes as well as they would have with a lighter load.

Similarly, if you’re carrying too much weight on your body, your knees may also be in for a rough ride. The bones that meet in your knees are covered with cartilage, which provides a smooth, gliding surface for the thighbone, shinbone, and kneecap as they move around within the joint while you walk, says Jonathan B. Shook, MD, an orthopedic surgeon in Indianapolis who specializes in hip, shoulder, and knee pain.

When you weigh more than you should, you’re putting more force on that cartilage. “When you put more force on the cartilage, it’s going to wear quicker,” Dr. Shook says. A variety of studies have found connections between carrying extra body weight and having knee pain. And, in many cases, a condition called osteoarthritis is the link between them.

The Link between Weight and Knee Pain

In a British study, researchers surveyed people who were 50 and older about whether they had knee pain. When they returned three years later to track any changes, the factor that played the biggest role in whether people developed new severe knee pain was obesity — and obesity made them nearly three times more likely to have the problem. Extra weight also raised the risk for existing knee pain that worsened to a severe level during those three years.

In another study, researchers in the Netherlands took X-rays of people’s knees, then repeated them more than six years later. Those with a body mass index (BMI) over 27 were three times more likely to develop knee osteoarthritis. As an example, a woman who is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 167 pounds has a BMI of 27.

Carrying extra body fat may also lead to the releases of a hormone called leptin, which some experts think may play a role in the development of osteoarthritis. In addition, body fat can release substances that promote inflammation in your body. Two of these, called tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1, appear to play an important role in the cartilage damage seen in osteoarthritis.

Manage Extra Weight to Prevent Knee Pain

Losing weight is an important part of keeping your knees healthy, Shook says. The National Institutes of Health recommends the follow steps for exercising safely.

• Get a consultation. Talk to your doctor if you have any chronic health problems or you’re worried that exercise might cause an injury. If you already have knee pain, discuss types of activities with your doctor that might be safe for you.
• Exercise. Good types of exercises for heavier people include walking — even for just a few minutes when you’re starting out — bicycling indoors or outside, and strength training to build stronger muscles.
• Be more active. Simply work more physical activity into your daily routine. Walk around while you’re talking on the phone (after all, that’s why they’re cordless!), play actively with your kids or grandkids, and make personal visits at work instead of using e-mail.

-          Eric Metcalf

Trudy says –

We are experienced at helping you with weight loss and joint concerns!

Come in for guidance! Your knees will love it!

When it breaks down, all the sewage inside your intestines leaks into your blood stream and activates your immune system.

This turns on all sorts of signals that affect your whole body leading to autoimmune disease, allergies, joint pains, headaches, mood problems and cognitive issues.

Having a leaky gut is a huge problem. Even medicine is recognizing this more and more.

It’s called increased intestinal permeability. It’s a big word, so I call it a leaky gut. We now know how to identify it and how to fix it.

But how do you know if you have a leaky gut?

I’ll explain how to get the answer in a second. But first let me ask you another question.

Do you or someone you know struggle with eczema?

Most doctors, know how to put on potions, lotions and salves, which work on the outside, BUT skin problems like eczema really come from the inside.

So unless you address the underlying cause underneath your skin you won’t fix the problem…..

Youll just deal with the symptoms.

The things that trigger inflammation in your skin are the same things that trigger inflammation in your brain.

In fact some people, if they have an inflamed gut will get eczema, while others will get autism or depression.

But the treatment is the same; it’s treating a leaky gut.

So if you want to fix your skin, you need to fix your gut.

Why do I bring up these questions?

Because we have simple tests that can let us know if you are suffering with leaky gut and how to help alleviate your symptoms!

Email us (trudyephd@earthlink.net) or give us a call (702 363-9260)!

We are here to help you!

The greatest wealth is health!

Trudy Ekstrom, CN, PhD

Brown Bag Lunch: Calorie Counting Control

“Making a brown bag lunch is helpful because you can control what you put in it,” says Donna L. Weihofen, RD, MS, a nutritionist at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison.

Not only do you control the calories in your brown bag, but you also are able to control the portion sizes. Portion distortion – a general liability to judge correct portions of food that you don’t prepare yourself – is a significant contributor to diet failure and weight gain.

Researchers in Minnesota created an interesting study to test this idea. They recruited 19 women who agreed to eat a prepackaged boxed lunch each day at work for two months. The women were given either a small lunch of 767 calories or a large lunch of 1,528 calories (double the size) and were told to eat as much or as little as they wanted. Data analysis at the end of the study showed that the women who had the larger lunch ate 278 calories more each day. The results indicate that ongoing exposure to larger portion sizes causes people to unknowingly eat more, an effect that has been demonstrated in other studies as well. As expected, the women who ate the larger lunches also gains weight, about two pounds over the course of those two months.

Brown Bag Lunch: What to Pack

If you are used to eating out, you may face a learning curve as you experiment with brown bag options. As a general rule, you want to follow your calorie-counting guidelines and create a meal that will be filling. This requires the right mix of fiber, protein, fruits, and vegetables. For example, pack a chicken sandwich on multigrain bread with a small salad (with light or no dressing) and a piece of fruit or low-calorie yogurt.

Here are some ideas for healthy and filling brown bag lunches that will also save you money:

Wrap up your leftovers. Try a slight modification to make last night’s dinner a fresh experience. For example, stuff leftover chili in a pita with some veggies and avocado slices for a new taste.

Microwave a frozen meal. There’s a frozen lunch entrée to meet every diet and every budget. “A lot of these new microwave dinners are really, really nice and they are very controlled in calories. I think the industry has done a lot of good things in producing those products,” says Weihofen, adding that you can find some very tasty bargains in the frozen food section.

Pack a soup. Soup is filling and generally low in calories. In fact, if you eat soup before digging into your main lunch course, studies show you’re likely to eat 20 percent fewer calories.

Focus on cost-saving foods. In general, packing a brown-bag lunch will save you money compared to eating out every day. If you are stretching your pennies, Weihofen recommends using beans, eggs, potatoes, and leftovers from whole chicken meals (rotisserie or baked at home) for truly low-calorie and budget-friendly meals.

Brown-bag snacks as well. Create your own 100-calorie snacks to get you through the day. Making these yourself might require a food scale for careful measuring, but you’ll save a small fortune over prepackaged 100-calorie snacks and be more eco-friendly.

There are times when brown-bagging it won’t be possible because of your schedule or your worksite. In those instances, Weihofen recommends doing a little advance research to find healthy eating options nearby. By making smart choices when eating out, and with some creativity at home, you can enjoy tasty low-calorie lunch creations that suit your waist and your wallet.

-Madeline Vann

Trudy Says –

I’ve been brown-bagging my lunch for 12 years because I love the control I have over what I eat. Also, it takes less time to eat lunch than going out to eat and it is less expensive! Do you brown bag your lunch?

• For heavy metals: Hair Test

• For environmental & occupational chemicals:
  Pollutants Test

• For nutritional deficiencies possibly caused by toxicity:
  Urine Test

Next time someone offers you coffee, tea, or soup in a Styrofoam cup,  just say NO!

Reason: When hot liquids come into contact with Styrofoam, they cause it to break down. This releases styrene and bisphenol-A, two chemicals that are similar in composition to estrogen.

These estrogen-like chemicals wreak havoc with your hormones. In fact, studies show that exposure to these chemicals can lead to thyroid problems, low sperm count, menstrual problems, and even breast and prostate cancer!

But that’s not all.

Studies show that once you get some of these chemicals into your body, they can stay there for decades. So even though you’re getting a relatively small amount each time you drink from a Styrofoam cup, the amount builds up to toxic levels over time.

By the way, studies show that it’s not just hot liquids that cause chemicals to leach out of Styrofoam. Fatty foods like ice cream do it, too. And so do acidic foods like lemon.

Trudy Says: Avoid Styrofoam and use glass or paper cups instead.

Also, if you suspect you may have styrene or bisphenol-A in your body, (or any other toxin which may be increasing your symptoms)

-Come and take a simple urine test and find out!

The reason it can be difficult to eat healthily is that “hidden persuaders” can lead into bad eating habits, says new research. Try these tips to avoid mindless eating:

BE AWARE OF THE SIZE AND SHAPE OF CONTAINERS. It’s the amount of food that counts, not what it looks like.

USE SMALLER PLATES AND BOWLS. Empty plates and bowls, even those of a smaller size, cue some people to stop eating.

READ NUTRITION LABELS, PAYING ATTENTION TO THE SERVING SIZE LISTED. Consider the facts; don’t guess at how many calories you’re eating.

LOOK PAST THE PACKAGING. The wording on a food’s package or the language on a menu can influence you to actually like a food better, increasing your risk of overeating.

KEEP VISUAL REMINDERS OF HOW MUCH YOU’RE EATING. Keep wrappers, empty containers, bones, and other reminders of how much you’ve eaten nearby.

THINK ABOUT EATING A MEAL THAT’S HEALTHIER OVERALL. Don’t just focus on separate parts of the meal.

CONTROL YOUR IMPULSE PURCHASES. Don’t let signs encourage you to buy more than you need.

Trudy says:  There are also terrific supplement that help for feeling hungry and carbohydrate cravings!

If those are reasons you snack too much or too often – or over eat portions, let us know!

We can help that easily!

If you’re new to leafy greens, start with a mild variety like kale or collards. Mustard greens (which can be quite peppery) and beet greens and Swiss chard (with their earthy taste) have their charms but they’re an acquired taste that can come later.

It’s easiest to buy your greens washed, chopped, and bagged. If you don’t, you’ll need to remove and discard any tough stems and center ribs, wash the leaves thoroughly to remove any sand or oil, and chop. (You should also wash the bagged greens.)

The simplest way to cook leafy greens: sauté some garlic in olive oil for a minute or two, then add the greens (still wet from washing) and cook until soft – anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes – stirring occasionally. (If you cover the pan, they’ll steam a little and cook more quickly.) then squeeze on some lemon juice or add a splash of wine vinegar. Absolutely delish.

For variety, try sautéing them with garlic, diced tomato, chickpeas, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

You can also steam your greens (10-15 minutes for most kinds; about half that for Swiss chard). Once they’re steamed you can:

• Stir into a pan with an onion that you’ve sautéed in olive oil until well browned (about 10 minutes), or
• Stir into a pan with sliced shiitake mushroom caps that you’ve sautéed in toasted sesame oil until browned (3-5 minutes), then season with a splash of reduced-sodium soy sauce and rice or cider vinegar and a sprinkling of sesame seeds.

For a more traditional taste, simmer raw greens in a low-sodium chicken stock with chunks of smoked turkey sausage until the greens are soft. You can also toss raw greens into the pot as you lentil or bean soup simmers. Or throw away the rule book and make Crispy Kale: Toss raw kale with a little olive oil to lightly coat the leaves, spread on baking sheets, and pop in a 350° oven until crisp, about 15 minutes.

Kate Sherwood

Dr. Trudy says:

Start with collard greens just to get used to steaming greens with the onions, etc. (When I sauté them, I do not use oil all the time – just a little bit of water.)

You can then try kale, and Swiss chard, etc.-

The mustard greens? I can take a few bites, but they are a little too tart for me no matter how I “dress them” with spices, etc.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? I am open!

The value of dark leafy greens is unsurpassed!

Trudy’s comment:

Do you know your vitamin D level?

It is very easy to find out. Come in and get tested!

Vitamin D is important as cancer prevention, too.