Concussion and Surprising Long Term Health Consequences

Has your child ever suffered a concussion while playing hockey?

If yes, then they are part of an estimated 10% of hockey players that suffer a concussion each year in Canada.

Short term symptoms of concussion include nausea, confusion, fatigue, lightheadedness, headaches, irritability, not knowing the time, date, or place, dizziness, ringing in the ears, loss of vision and vomiting.

Typically, these symptoms last a week to 10 days but in some children can last months.

Conventional treatment for concussions entails rest and avoiding any activity that aggravates symptoms.

While these initial symptoms can disappear, research has shown that the effects a concussion can re-emerge later in life in the form of neurological (poor memory, reduced motor skills, and reduced reaction times) but a concussion can also affect digestive function.

You may have heard of the gut-brain connection, where a poor digestion can affect brain function. The same applies the other way where brain damage caused by a concussion can influence the proper functioning of your digestive tract. More specifically, concussions have been shown to cause increased intestinal permeability or leaky gut.

Leaky gut is where not properly digested proteins are allowed to pass through the protective lining of your small intestines and into the bloodstream. This can lead to a multitude of different symptoms and conditions.

Symptoms of leaky gut include:

1. Digestive symptoms such as gas, bloating, diarrhea or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
2. Seasonal allergies or asthma.
3. Hormonal imbalances such as PMS or PCOS.
4. Diagnosis of an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, lupus, psoriasis, or celiac disease.
5. Diagnosis of chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia.
6. Mood and mind issues such as depression, anxiety, ADD or ADHD.
7. Skin issues such as acne, rosacea, or eczema.
8. Diagnosis of Candida overgrowth.
9. Food allergies or food intolerances.

Testing for leaky gut is available through Cyrex labs in the United States, through a Functional Medicine practitioner or Naturopathic Doctor in Canada.

The good news is that leaky gut is a treatable condition through dietary modification and supplementation.

If you have any questions regarding this article, please feel free to email me at dom@ottawaholisticwellness.ca.

11 foods to avoid to help alleviate your seasonal allergies

For thousands of Ottawans, the arrival of spring is a bittersweet time of year.

After surviving another long cold, snowy winter interspersed with the occasional cold or flu only to replaced by itchy eyes, sneezing and runny nose from the arrival of pollens.

More than 1 in 6 Canadians suffer from seasonal allergies, which equates to nearly 6 million people. The highest concentration is found in Ontario while the lowest rates are in Atlantic Canada. Exact numbers for Ottawa are not available, but it is known, by some commentators, as the allergy capital of North America.

Dependent on what the person is allergic to, the allergy season can start in late March, with melting of the snow, and last all the way through to the fall, with the first frost. At the end of March, the chief culprit comes in the form of leaf or snow mold, which emerges from beneath the melting snow. Throughout the spring and most of the summer different grass and tree pollens take their toll. At the end of the summer, ragweed makes it's appearance and from my observation can cause the worst symptoms.

With the beginning of the allergy season, the majority of people reach for their favourite brand of antihistamine medication. Histamine is a chemical produced by the body when it comes into contact with an allergen such as a mold spore or pollen. The release of histamine causes the itchy red eyes, runny nose and sneezing. Taking the antihistamine helps to stop the production of histamine so reducing symptoms. For some people who suffer from seasonal allergies, their bodies have an excess of histamine. So when they are encounter allergens they experience much stronger reactions. 

There are some different reasons why your body might have an excess, one of the reasons is a problem with your friendly bacteria.

If you do suffer from seasonal allergies, an effective way to lessen your symptoms is to reduce your intake of high histamine-containing foods. These includes:

• Fermented alcoholic beverages, especially wine, champagne, and beer
• Fermented foods: sauerkraut, vinegar, soy sauce, kefir, yogurt, kombucha, etc
• Vinegar-containing foods: pickles, mayonnaise, olives
• Cured meats: bacon, salami, pepperoni, luncheon meats and hot dogs
• Soured foods: sour cream, sour milk, buttermilk, soured bread, etc
• Dried fruit: apricots, prunes, dates, figs, raisins
• Most citrus fruits
• Aged cheese including goat cheese
• Nuts: walnuts, cashews, and peanuts
• Vegetables: avocados, eggplant, spinach, and tomatoes
• Smoked fish and certain species of fish: mackerel, mahi-mahi, tuna, anchovies, sardines

If reducing the above foods helps your symptoms then the next step is to work out why your body has an excess of histamine in the first place.

Once you have identified and resolved that reason, you will be able to go back to eating the above foods without any adverse allergy symptoms.

If you would like help with this, I offer a free consultation where we can review your case.

To book your free consultation call 613 230-0998.

Disclaimer

This article in not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

19 Signs Why You Might Need To Do An Organic Acids Test

An organic acids test is a urine test that examines biomarkers from different metabolic pathways. These biomarkers give a summary of various important systems in the body and an outline of nutritional deficiencies in the body. Many functional medicine practitioners consider an organic acids test to afford the most valuable information for dollars spent on any metabolic test.

The organic acid biomarkers are metabolic intermediaries that are manufactured in pathways of energy production, neurotransmitter breakdown, detoxification and gut microbial activity. When specific organic acids are found gathering, they frequently signal a metabolic insufficiency. These insufficiencies could be linked to toxicity, nutritional deficiency or an acquired enzyme deficit.

What health conditions would benefit?

There are several health conditions that could be corrected through the data the organic acids test provides. For example, many people are incapable of metabolizing folate entirely due to a condition called MTHFR deficiency. An organic acid test can show methylation rates and establish if an individual is generating folate and other essential B vitamin levels.

MTHFR deficiency is a dysfunction in folate metabolism and obstructs many critical metabolic pathways including serotonin production. These individuals frequently grapple with depression, mood disorders, thyroid difficulties, sleep irregularities and degenerative brain states. When somebody has this malady, it is essential that they employ a supplement with a pre-methylated version of folate called L-methyl folate.

This test can provide a real clue as to what microbes are dominating the gut such as Candida, fungus, Clostridium Dificile or Giardia. They also show glutathione levels and liver detoxification indicators. Overall this test gives excellent information for an appropriate supplement protocol.

Ailments that could profit from results of organic acids test include:

1. Sleep anomalies
2. Tiredness
3. Mood changes
4. Blood sugar dysregulation
5. Weight accumulation
6. Nausea
7. Multiple chemicals sensitivity
8. Bloating and gas
9. Joint soreness
10. Acid reflux
11. Autoimmune diseases
12. Dermatitis
13. Depression
14. Anxiety
15. Cancer
16. Inflammation
17. Headaches
18. Aging
19. Skin problems such as eczema

What does the organic acid test measure?

• Vitamin and mineral deficiencies
• Amino acid deficiencies including carnitine and N-acetyl cysteine (NAC)
• Oxidative stress and antioxidant adequacy markers
• Signs to evaluate detoxification sufficiency
• The best functional indicators of B-complex deficiency
• Neurotransmitter metabolites to evaluate central nervous system (CNS) function
• Mitochondrial energy production evaluation via citric acid cycle parts
• Methylation sufficiency state
• Lipoic acid and CoQ10 adequacy markers
• Particular dysbiosis markers for bacterial and yeast excess

Where to obtain an organic acid test?

Most conventional medical doctors are unfamiliar with this kind of testing. You will want to find a practitioner who practices functional medicine for this type of screening. The test can range from $200 - $500 depending upon how much information you are looking to discover. Most specialists would agree that the expense is worth every penny for the priceless information the test affords.

An organic acids test is non-invasive as it uses a simple urine collection. This method spares you time and expense as there is no requirement for a lab or a health practitioner to draw blood. You ship it in the mail once you have performed the test correctly. Organic Acids testing is not available in Canada, so I recommend US based Genova Diagnostics.

Separating Fat from Fiction: 10 Fat Facts You Need to Know

“Everyone seems to be talking about fat these days. That fat somehow is healthy now and can help with weight loss and disease prevention. How can that be true when for decades we all were told that fat was the villain? What are its benefits? Are there any downsides to eating more fat?”

This a recent question I received, and it comes at the perfect time. I have just finished writing my new book Eat Fat, Get Thin, hitting the bookstores on February 23, 2016. I wrote this book because almost everyone I know – doctors and patients and eaters alike are all confused about fat and still hold on to myths and misinformation that prevents them from taking advantage of the latest science to lose weight and get healthy.

You’re likely familiar with many of them: Fat makes us fat, contributes to heart disease, leads to diabesity; saturated fat is bad; vegetable oils are good…I could go on, but I think you know what I’m talking about.

None of these beliefs about fat are correct. In my latest book, I combined the most recent research with my several decades of empirical evidence working with patients to prove what I’ve long discovered: The right fats can help you become lean, healthy, and vibrant.

Fat is one of the body’s most basic building blocks. The average person is made up of between 15 and 30 percent fat! For decades, we’ve unfairly demonized dietary fat, diligently followed a low-fat diet that almost always equates into a high-sugar and high refined carb diet that contributes to insulin resistance, obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and numerous other problems.

Simply put: Sugar, not fat, is the real villain that steals our health and sabotages our waistlines.

With Eat Fat, Get Thin, I’m determined to separate fat from fiction by giving you the skinny on fats – what to eat and how to use dietary fats to regain your health and ideal body weight. Eating lots of the right fat will make you thin. The healthy fats increase metabolism, stimulate fat burning, cut hunger, optimize your cholesterol profile, and can reverse type 2 diabetes and reduce your risk for heart disease.

Over the next few months in these blogs, I’m going to blow up our myths about dietary fat and show you how this still-maligned macronutrient can help you become lean and healthy.

For now, let’s look at ten take-home fat facts.

Sugar, not fat, makes you fat. The average American eats 152 pounds of sugar and 146 pounds of flour that convert to sugar every year. That’s nearly a pound of sugar and flour combined every day! More sugar means your cells become numb to insulin’s “call.” Your body pumps out more and more insulin to pull your blood sugar levels back down. You can’t burn all the sugar you eat. Inevitably, your body stores it as fat, creating insulin resistance and overall metabolic havoc among other mayhem.

Dietary fat is more complicated than sugar. There are some 257 names for sugar, but despite minor variations, they all create the same damage. In other words, sugar is sugar is sugar; it all wreaks havoc on your health. Fat is more complex. We have saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and even trans fats, not to mention subcategories within each group. Some fats are healthy; others neutral; and yes, a few are bad.

Low-fat diets tend to be heart-unhealthy, high-sugar diets. When people eat less fat, they tend to eat more starch or sugar instead, and this increases their levels of the small, dense cholesterol that causes heart attacks. In fact, studies show 75 percent of people who end up in the emergency room with a heart attack have normal overall cholesterol levels. But what they do have is pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes.

Saturated fat is not your enemy. A review of all the research on saturated fat published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found no correlation between saturated fat and heart disease. As with all fats, quality becomes essential here. The fats in a fast-food bacon feedlot cheeseburger will have an entirely different effect than saturated fat in coconut oil. Let’s stop classifying it all as the same.

Some fats are unhealthy. They include trans fat and inflammatory vegetable oils. Unfortunately, these fats have increased in our diet as they make us more obese and contribute to inflammation, which plays a role in nearly every chronic disease on the planet.

Everyone benefits from more omega 3s.About 99 percent of Americans are deficient in these critical fats. Ideal ways to get them include eating wild or sustainably raised cold-water fish (at least two servings weekly), buying omega-3 rich eggs, taking an omega-3 supplement twice a day for breakfast and dinner that contains 500 – 1,000 milligrams of omega-3 fats (a ratio of roughly 300 EPA to 200 DHA is ideal). You’ll find several quality professional omega three supplements in my store.

Eating fat can make you lean. Healthy cell walls made from high-quality fats are better able to metabolize insulin, which keeps blood sugar better regulated. Without proper blood sugar control, the body socks away fat for a rainy day. The right fats also increase fat burning, cut your hunger, and reduce fat storage. Eating the right fats makes you lose weight while eating excess sugar and the WRONG types of fat make you fat.

Healthy fats can heal. I have many diabetic patients whose health improves when I get them on a diet that’s higher in fat. I had one patient with high cholesterol who could not lose weight, so I bumped up her healthy fat content to 70 percent. (I don’t recommend this for most patients; hers was an extreme case.) Her cholesterol plummeting from 300 to 190, her triglycerides dropped 200 points, and she lost 20 stubborn pounds that she couldn’t ever lose before!

Your brain is about 60 percent fat. Of that percentage, the biggest portion comes from the omega-3 fat called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Your brain needs DHA to spark communication between cells. Easy access to high-quality fat boosts cognition, happiness, learning, and memory. In contrast, studies link a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids to depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.
Your body gives you signs whether or not you are getting enough quality fat. The higher-quality the fat, the better your body will function. That’s because the body uses the fat you eat to build cell walls. You have more than 10 trillion cells in your body, and every single one of them needs high-quality fat. How do you know if your cells are getting the fats they need? Your body sends signals when it’s not getting enough healthy fats. Warning signs include:

• Dry, itchy, scaling, or flaking skin
• Soft, cracked, or brittle nails
• Hard earwax
• Tiny bumps on the backs of your arms or torso
• Achy, stiff joints

I eat fat with every meal, and I’ve never felt better. The right fats can improve your mood, skin, hair, and nails while protecting you against Type 2 diabetes, dementia, cancer, and much more.

Among my favorite sources of fat include:

• Avocados
• Nuts—walnuts, almonds, pecans, macadamia nuts, but not peanuts (one study showed a handful of nuts a day reduced death from all causes by 20 percent)
• Seeds—pumpkin, sesame, chia, hemp
• Fatty fish, including sardines, mackerel, herring, and wild salmon that are rich in omega-3 fats
• Extra virgin olive oil (a large study showed that those who consumed 1 liter a week reduced heart attacks by 30 percent)
• Grass-fed or sustainably raised animal products (I recommend the Environmental Working Group’s Meat Eater’s Guide to eating good quality animal products that are right for you and good for the planet).
• Extra virgin coconut butter, which is an excellent plant-based source of saturated fat that has many benefits. It fuels your mitochondria, is anti-inflammatory, and doesn’t cause problems with your cholesterol. In fact, it may help resolve them.

Want to learn more? Watch my Q&A video on Fat. Here are just some of the questions I answer in this video:

1. If it’s not fat, what is the real cause of heart disease, diabetes, and disease?
2. How can we differentiate between good and bad fats?
3. Is butter excellent for you?
4. And how did we get into this big, fat mess?

Go here to watch this video.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, M.D. (Guest Blogger)

Dr. Hyman is a practicing family physician, a nine-time New York Times bestselling author, and an internationally recognized leader, speaker, educator, and advocate in his field. He is the Director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine. He is also the founder and medical director of The UltraWellness Center, chairman of the board of the Institute for Functional Medicine, a medical editor of The Huffington Post, and has been a regular medical contributor on many television shows including CBS This Morning, the Today Show, CNN, The View, the Katie Couric show and The Dr. Oz Show. Join Dr. Hyman on his path to revolutionize the way we think about and take care of our health and our societies at www.drhyman.com, on Twitter and Instagram @markhymanmd, and on Facebook at facebook.com/drmarkhyman.

Lower Back Pain and B12 Deficiency

Sarah 44 had been suffering from lower back pain since her mid-twenties. The pain was usually worse after standing for long periods and physical activity such as gardening. The original onset of the pain was gradual, but Sarah could not recall any particular incident such as a fall or injury that was a trigger. Other significant symptoms included mild anxiety, fatigue, heartburn (for which she takes acid blocking medication), memory loss, vertigo, and bruising easily. During the six months leading up to the start of the pain, she had an unusually heavy workload including a lot of travel. Sarah was not on any currently prescribed medications but had been on birth control from 18 to 30. She slept well and went to yoga two times a week. Sarah had been a vegetarian since 21 years old. She had managed her back pain through regular chiropractic, massage, and yoga. When I asked why she had wanted to come and see me, she said that despite these treatments her back pain kept reoccurring and she wanted to find the root cause.
Like Sarah if you are suffering from chronic back pain you are not alone. According to research:

1. In a six-month period, 5 out of 10 Canadians will suffer from back pain. (1)
2. Up to 85% of Canadians can expect to suffer from lower back pain in their lifetime. (2)

There are many physical causes of lower back pain including:

Being overweight

Research shows that having a higher body mass index (BMI) increases the risk of suffering from lower back pain. (3) With rising rates of obesity, Canadians are increasing their odds of developing low back pain. (4)

Lack of exercise

In a study carried out by Norwegian researchers, the authors concluded that physical inactivity was associated with an increased risk of chronic pain in the low back and neck/shoulders in the general adult population. (5)

But I am not overweight and exercise regularly

If you are overweight and physically inactive, it would not be a surprise if you developed lower back pain but for Sarah, this was not the case. For her we needed to take a more holistic view of her problem. When looking at her case history, I suspected that Sarah may have a B12 deficiency. Typical symptoms of B12 deficiency include fatigue, memory loss, anxiety, vertigo and bruising easily. Another common but little-known cause of back pain is a B12 deficiency. (6)

When I asked her if she had been low in B12 in the past, she said not to her knowledge as her doctor had said that all her previous blood test results appeared normal. I asked her to bring me a copy of her last blood test showing B12. She had a level of 250 which is above the laboratory's minimum level however in my experience 500 is a much more optimal reading.

So why am I low in B12

To understand why Sarah is low in B12 we needed to look back into her medical history.

• At the age of 18, Sarah began taking the birth control pill. Research has shown that oral contraceptives lower levels of B12 in women. (7)
• At 21, she became a vegetarian. A 2013 review concluded that vegetarians develop B12 depletion or deficiency regardless of demographic characteristics, place of residency, age, or type of vegetarian diet. (8)
• Sarah currently takes an acid blocking medication. Long-term use of common heartburn and ulcer medications linked to vitamin B12 deficiency. (9)

How can you help me

To help Sarah's back pain I prescribed her B12 (Methylcobalamin) to bring her levels up to an optimal level. Once at an optimal level, I recommended a maintenance dose because, of her vegetarian diet. For better B12 absorption, I helped her come off her acid blocking medication by identifying foods that were causing her heartburn.

Disclaimer

This article in not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Exercise and Adrenal Fatigue

It is a well established and understood fact that exercise is a fundamental factor in health and wellbeing. Just like, emotional stress, food sensitivities and infections, however, exercise can be a stressor. The dose of exercise is important, and more does not always mean better. High-intensity exercise can cause the body to produce excessive amounts of cortisol. (1) Over a constant quantity of time, this can lead to adrenal dysregulation and fatigue. The healthier you are, the more exercise you will be able to tolerate.
If you are considering incorporating more exercise into your life here are some general recommendations to follow:

• Play-like activity with a friend while in nature may be best.
• Exercise to the point of breaking a sweat, 2-3 times per week. 15-30 minutes is ideal.
• After a week if you think you are feeling worse, scale back because you are likely over-training. If you are feeling better, you can ramp up a bit.

You are likely over-training if any of these things are true:

• Exhausted after workouts
• Fatigued in general
• Not sleeping adequately
• Sore a lot

If you are feeling depressed, unwell or, just want to get fitter then exercise should be part of your plan of action but remember moderation is the key. Doing too much for too long could only make things worse not better.

Disclaimer

This article in not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Weight loss and your gut bacteria

Can you alter your gut bacteria (microbiota) to lose weight? Is there a link between the microbiota and weight gain? Let’s take a glance at what the scientific research really shows.
The best scientific evidence to date shows there is no consistent correlation between weight gain and the microbiota. (1) (2) (3)
High-level evidence also suggests the microbiota does not cause weight gain. (4) One review paper even suggested – that in humans the alterations in gut microbiota are an association with rather than the cause of weight gain. (5) These findings indicate that microbiota testing has little benefit in treating weight gain.
This is confirmed by the research showing poor results when manipulating the microbiota in attempts to treat weight gain:

• Prebiotics: The best results achieved was 2.3 pounds of weight loss. (6)
• Probiotics: Studies achieved 2.2 lbs. with Lactobacillus gasseri and 3.7 lbs. with Lactobacillus rhamnosus. (7) (8)
• Fibre: The best results have been with the fiber glucomannan (7g/day) showing 8.36 pounds more weight loss than a low-calorie diet alone. (9) One review showed fiber’s average weight loss effect was 4.2 lbs. (10)
• Fecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT): A study was performed where the feces of lean men was transplanted into recipients who were overweight and had high blood sugar levels. (11) Unfortunately, there was no change in weight or body fat.

Most of the confusion about the microbiota in weight gain comes from:

1. Misinterpreting human data. For example, thinking those in the US should have the same microbiota as Africans; the microbiota that helps African’s may make those in the US constipated and fat. (12)
2. Over-extrapolation of data from animal studies. (13)
3. Examining only one side of the data.
4. The small intestine is not tested in current microbiota testing. The small intestine is responsible for 90% of caloric absorption and represents over 56% of the digestive tract. (14) The small intestine is also more prone to leaky gut and likely has the largest impact on your immune system.

Disclaimer

This article in not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.