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Jimi's Daily Health Articles

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
As a child, you were probably asked:

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Whenever someone asked me that question, my answer was immediate. I’d tell them, “I want to be a dermatologist!”

As young as 11 or 12, I was obsessive about my skin.

I’d wash my face every night before bed and again first thing in the morning. I’d steam my face and put on face masks.

I began amassing a huge collection of cleansers, creams, moisturizers, serums and toners.

All toxic of course. Haha. You don’t know til you know, right?

Later, in my early-20s and 30s, I started spending a fortune on high-end cosmetics, skin spas (my favorite was Face Place in West Hollywood), and even plastic surgery.

(I’ll share my plastic surgery nightmares with you soon.)

It took me years of (sometimes painful) trial and error to figure out what really makes skin healthy and beautiful.

And all this week, I’ll be sharing some of my best beauty and skincare tips with you.

Let’s start with a tip that might surprise you:

Get more sun!

Yep, that’s right. One of the best things you can do for your skin is to soak up more rays of beautiful sunshine.

As you may know, sunlight exposure is the main way your body produces vitamin D. In fact, vitamin D is also known as the “sunshine vitamin”!

Vitamin D helps regulate calcium for healthy bones, it helps regulate insulin levels, and it’s essential for maintaining a strong immune system.

But vitamin D is also a little-known skincare superstar.

That’s because vitamin D acts like a switch that tells your body to produce new skin cells. These fresh new skin cells then replace the outer layer of your skin that’s shed over time.

As a result, your skin looks brighter, clearer, and healthier.

Remember, our main source of vitamin D is sun exposure. But if you shun the sun, you’re not alone.

For years, I avoided the sun like I was part vampire. I’d slather my face with sunscreen every morning. I carried a sun umbrella when I walked outside. And I wore gloves while driving! I got NO sun.

And, yes, you should be careful about sun exposure. But don’t overdo like I used to do.

These days, I try to get at least 20-60 minutes of sun exposure per day, mostly on my arms and legs. (I often wear a hat and sunglasses to protect my face.)

You want to get sensible sun exposure but not to the point of burning. This point will be a bit different for everyone.

It’s the BURNING, not sun exposure itself that ages you and causes skin cancer. Get out of the sun or apply sunscreen before that happens.

Another source of vitamin D is your diet. Fatty fish like mackerel and salmon, mushrooms and egg yolks are all rich in vitamin D.

Note: I DON’T like vitamin D supplements - they’re a synthetic form of vitamin D. This does NOT work the same in the body. There are over 20 forms of vitamin D and you’re not getting them in a pill. If you do need to supplement, do cod liver oil for your vitamin D.

But whether you get it from sunshine or mealtime, make sure you’re getting adequate vitamin D.

This vitamin replenishes your skin, making it naturally softer and healthier.

Of course, just as you want to add things like vitamin D for more beautiful skin, there are other things you’ll want to avoid.

There’s one thing in particular you’ll want to avoid because it ages you up to 10x faster…

Trouble is, this one thing is everywhere (including your home). So avoiding it is almost impossible.

Fortunately, you CAN protect yourself against this one thing and stop it from aging you prematurely. I explain how in this short video:

 

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Hey ,


Americans are ingesting thousands of tiny plastic particles (at least 74,000 microplastic particles every year).


And those who hydrate exclusively from bottled water could be DOUBLING the amount of their intake!


This is scary news, according to a recent study published by The Journal of Environmental Science & Technology.


After all, plastic particles are rich in obesogens, a chemical that disrupts hormones and triggers weight gain.


It was also revealed that these small particles enter our tissues and cause even more problems.


Put simply, here's how it works:


The plastic particles we consume trigger a chain reaction, where heavy metals and other toxins that have bioaccumulated get released from our tissues.


It’s a toxic double-whammy that desperately interferes with not only our hormones and waistlines, but our gut microbiome and overall health.

To arrive at the aforementioned data about plastic particle ingestion, researchers reviewed 26 previous studies that analyzed eight categories: alcohol, air, honey, bottled water, salt, seafood, sugar and tap water.


They found that boys ingested 81,000 particles per year, 121,000 for men, 74,000 for girls and 98,000 for women.


Who knows how much metal was ingested—or displaced into their bodies—due to all this plastic consumption!


Don’t continue to go about your life without a proven strategy for managing this historic level of toxicity.
 

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Why do you need Vitamin B12 in your life?

The list of benefits associated with Vitamin B12 intake is long and varied, with boosting mood, cognitive function, and energy levels, top of the list.

And these are only the tip of the iceberg as evidenced by the GreenMedInfo database which now contains over 130 peer-reviewed medical abstracts on the power of Vitamin B12 and its beneficial effect in 150 conditions.

How can one nutrient be so effective?

Vitamin B12 is a metabolic powerhouse and is essential for a healthy nervous system, DNA synthesis, and hemoglobin production. Without adequate levels, critical biological features within our body fail to perform optimally, and some completely fail.

That being said, not all B12s are created equal.

In our article Why Do B12 Supplements Contain Cyanide, we discuss the potential significant drawbacks of the widely-used synthetic form of B12 known as cyanocobalamin. While cyanocobalamin may have a place in very specific treatments, we’d like to talk about methylcobalamin.

This naturally occurring form of B12 is often overlooked by supplement manufacturers due to its higher cost. We believe that methylcobalamin is the preferred option for regular B12 supplementation as it the most effective form used by our neurons and may provide better treatment.



How to get B12?

Food Sources
Dietary sources highest in Vitamin B12 include clams, liver, trout, salmon, dairy products, beef and fermented foods like miso. While this may work for some, not all of us choose to consume animal products and vegetarian options are limited.

Injections
It seems that you can get a B12 injection almost anywhere these days. Local pharmacies and health centers including CVS, promote B12 injections as a quick way to increase this nutrient in the body.

Unfortunately, by and large, these injections contain the synthetic cyanocobalamin and not the naturally occurring, and highly therapeutic methyl-donating form known as methylcobalamin. Moreover, injected B12 is not necessarily the only, nor the best way to get therapeutic levels into the body.

Supplements
Again, most B12 supplements on the market use cyanocobalamin and you need to make sure to check the manufacturer's label to see what form of B12 they are using. B12 is a water-soluble nutrient and depending on your age and gut health, does not store well in the body like fat-soluble ones, and may not be absorbed well by the body.

If you are looking for an effective and extremely absorbable B12 option, we like PuraThrive’s Liposomal B12. The addition of liposomes allows the B12 to pass safely through your digestive system fully intact. This liposomal protection provides that you get the full dose of B12.
 

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Food for Thought
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Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Protein Deficiency Can Cripple the Body’s Ability to Heal.

Lack of essential and bioavailable proteins are a major contributing factor to persistent illness in those with gluten sensitivity. Why? Protein is the main ingredient your body uses to build immune antibodies as well as heal inflamed structural tissues and muscles. These functions are vital for the following reasons:

  1. Antibody production, particularly IgA is essential for your body’s ability to combat infection, chemical toxins, as well as allergies. Research has shown that antibody deficiency is a common phenomenon in those with gluten sensitivity. Lack of these vital proteins puts you at risk for multiple chronic health issues.
  2. Muscles are required for movement of the frame. As part of this process, muscle serves as a pumping system for your lymphatic vessels. These vessels are crucial because they help the body transport immune cells and antibodies. They also help remove damaging toxins. Research has also shown that a large majority of those with gluten sensitivity have poor muscle to fat ratios.
Gluten Destroys Muscle & Causes Protein Wasting

In my experience of almost 20 years of treating patients and dealing with the consequences of gluten, one of the most common side effects of gluten is inflammation in the muscle and joints. The gluten proteins create an inflammatory reaction in these tissues that over time leads to many negative outcomes:

  • Muscle pain
  • Muscle atrophy (loss)
  • Joint pain and arthritis
  • Weight gain (increased visceral fat – AKA belly fat)
  • Weight loss (due to muscle atrophy)
  • Restricted mobility
  • Increased risk for injury in those trying to exercise
  • Poor immune function and increased risk for infection
Gluten consumption leads to body protein disruption in several ways…

  1. Inflammation – Gluten can cause the immune system to literally attack the muscle and joints leading to chronic pain and inflammation. A prolonged immune system attack contributes to chronic degradation of these tissues and subsequently atrophy of the muscle and arthritis in the joint.
  2. Hormone Release – To deal with this chronic damage, the body produces cortisol as an anti-inflammatory hormone. Increased cortisol leads to increased visceral fat (belly fat).
  3. Damage to the Stomach and GI Tract – Gluten can damage the specialized cells in your stomach and small intestines that secrete vital acid and digestive enzymes. Over time this damage makes it almost impossible to properly digest and break down dietary proteins from meats and vegetables. Many with gluten sensitivity have lost their ability to digest properly and develop protein and amino acid deficits.
Gluten Induced Gut Damage Can Make Meat Digestion a Challenge

Many who embark on a gluten free diet still have inflamed and damaged gastrointestinal tracts. Some suffer with low acid production making it hard to digest dietary proteins. This is a big part of the “Catch 22″ in healing. To heal the gut, you need protein, but to digest the protein, you need a healthy and functional gut.

The Critical Role of Protein

Protein balance plays a major role body function. It is essential for proper maintenance of the immune system, the detoxification systems in the liver, antibody formation, muscle maintenance, tissue repair, digestive enzyme production, neurotransmitter (brain chemicals), and hormone production. Protein is responsible for building cellular receptors (antennas) that help recognize hormones, regulate blood sugar, control our circadian rhythm, and control our metabolism.

Too Many Carbs

Most people following the gluten free diet seek out alternatives to bread, pasta, cereal, etc. Unfortunately, these alternatives are highly processed, contain GMO ingredients, and they disrupt the carb, fat, protein balance. Excessive carbohydrate intake causes damage to important proteins in our bloodstream. This damage, often referred to as AGE (Advanced Glycation End products) is a major contributing factor to inflammation and chronic illness. And if you remember from the lesson above, chronic inflammation leads to hormone changes that tax our body’s protein stores and our ability to heal and repair is minimized.
 

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
DRY JANUARY NOT A GOOD IDEA – HERE’S WHY

Every year a lot of people drink themselves under the table over the Christmas holidays and vow “never again”. Feeling guilty and morose, it’s fashionable these days to compromise and declare a “Dry January” (no alcohol for the whole month).

But actually this is not a good idea. And even if you don‘t drink at all (teetotaler), it’s important you understand the physiology I am going to explain, because it applies to many aspects of our intake, not just alcohol.

Ready?

We’ll start with the alcohol deprivation effect (ADE). What it tells us is that abstinence is doomed to failure. It does not work and here’s why: animals (in this case lab rats) bred to be alcoholics will, of course, abstain if they are denied any further alcohol supplies. But only because they are forced to abstain.

The moment the supply of alcohol is restored to the cages, THE ANIMALS DRINK THEMSELVES SILLY! Glug glug glug glug… It’s making up for lost time. It reverses all the good done by abstinence.1

This knowledge comes from the research work of Dr. John D. Sinclair in America during the 1960s. He later moved to Helsinki, Finland, to take his research forward using specially bred rats genetically predisposed to becoming alcoholic. The conclusion of Sinclair’s experiments? That alcoholism is a learned behavior and it can be UN-learned!


david_sinclair.jpg
Dr. John D. Sinclair

It’s the reason abstinence fails. It’s only holding back the tide of drinking. Unfortunately it has given rise to the myth that an alcoholic cannot be cured. Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic is what Alcoholics Anonymous teaches.

What is observed is that—no matter how long a person abstains—if he or she subsequently takes a drink, it triggers the glug glug glug glug of the lab rats! The result is fierce heavy drinking, passing out in a coma, maybe violence, lost weekends… the whole nine yards.

If you are unlucky enough to have lived with an alcoholic you will also be aware there are other issues: like dishonesty and secret drinking (hiding bottles), always followed by deep remorse and self-hatred. It’s pretty difficult to love an alcoholic, frankly.

But it’s all nonsense!

As I said, the problem is with abstinence. It does not and cannot EVER work to the person’s good. That’s why Alcoholics Anonymous have such dismal results. Members are TERRIFIED of breaking their abstinence, because they know it will all go south if they do! Will power does not solve the problem of WHY a person is drinking to excess.

Not surprisingly, AA has a low success rate, which some critic put at less than 10% (it depends of course on what criteria you use for “success”). According to Lance Dodes MD, “There are some studies that have claimed to show scientifically that AA is useful. These studies are riddled with scientific errors and they say no more than what we knew to begin with, which is that AA has probably the worst success rate in all of medicine.”2

By the way, we don’t use the term alcoholic much these days. It’s very restrictive. A much commoner term, that gives us an understanding of how widespread alcohol abuse is, we call alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Is there something better than abstinence? After all, the peoples of southern Europe drink a LOT and don’t get sick, are not alcoholics and can control their drinking on the whole. But a true Frenchman, Spaniard or Italian would not dream of giving up their drink anyway. He or she takes it almost daily and doesn’t come to harm. They rarely trigger the alcohol deprivation effect and so they can handle their drink.

Yes, the answer is to DRINK! Sounds crazy, doesn’t it. And there is an important caveat, which must be observed. Then we have a treatment which is 78-80% or more successful—not to achieve total abstinence, but to achieve controlled, moderate drinking. It’s called…

The Sinclair Method

After the above-mentioned Dr. John D. Sinclair. Unlike traditional treatments that require complete abstinence from alcohol, the Sinclair Method allows you to continue drinking alcohol at the beginning of treatment.

In fact, treatment success depends on the continued consumption of alcohol in combination with the prescription medication Naltrexone.

Naltrexone is at the heart of the Sinclair Method for Alcoholism. It is important to understand that alcohol triggers the same opioid reward pathways in the brain as does morphine. When a person takes Naltrexone prior to drinking, it blocks endorphins, the naturally occurring opiates in the brain, from being released when alcohol is consumed.

If the endorphins are blocked, there is no “buzz” or rewarding experience, and the alcohol doesn’t make you feel the pleasure that drives you to drink excessively. We call this pharmacological extinction.

But it won’t work unless the person takes a drink! Naltrexone must be taken at least one hour before drinking. Done right, the person gets less and less pleasure from drinking alcohol and may give up altogether, or drink only occasionally and moderately.

I’m sure this is good news for problem drinkers, for whom abstinence is very daunting indeed. Usually a person crawls to AA when he or she is so disgusted with themselves that they are ready to surrender. And the famous 12-steps are pretty rough and self-degrading.

I have never understood the purpose of making the person stand up in front of the group and announce: “I am an alcoholic.” It’s the wrong signal; bad motivation.

My idea of a successful cure is not abstinence but being able to (truly) control drinking. A person should stand up and say, “Alcohol used to be my master—but not any more! Yay!”

alcohol-intake.gif


You can watch a lady explain how she benefitted from the Sinclair Method on YouTube (a TEDx talk):

Naltrexone for Morphine Relief

As a closing note: You may have heard of naltrexone for morphine overdosing. It saves lives but blocking the opioid receptors in the body.

Low-dose naltrexone (LDN) has a place in fighting cancer too. Low dose means 4.5 mg per dose. The Sinclair Method uses 50 mg tablets.

According to a report in reported in the July 2011 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine3, LDN was found to have an extraordinarily potent antitumor effect on human ovarian cancer in tissue culture and xenografts (that’s when tumor tissue is implanted into the skin of a test animal). By the way, ovarian cancer is the 4th leading cause of cancer-related mortality among women in the United States.

The strategy of LDN therapy in repressing cancer was first reported over 30 years ago by Drs. Zagon and McLaughlin (Science 221:671-673). But why should it work?

It blocks one particular endorphin, opioid growth factor or OGF, which results in reduced cancer cell proliferation.

Pretty neat stuff, huh?

Here’s to healthy and vibrant drinking, with all the documented health benefits, and none of that nasty alcohol use disorder, OK?

If you do suspect yourself of AUD, see your doctor and show him this piece or a web article about The Sinclair Method! You’ll need a prescription for naltrexone (50 mg).
 

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