October 22, 2024 4 min read
Anyone who works out, runs, bikes or does any type of intense exercise, knows about DOMS — Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.
This is the soreness you feel not right after a workout or exercise, but 24-48 hours later.
At one point it was thought this was caused by lactic acid build up, but this isn’t the case.
(Lactic acid is an acid that starts to build up just before we reach our VO2 Max and can’t go any further in our exercise or workout.) But lactic acid actually helps you. Your body can metabolize it (burn it and use it as fuel).
So what really causes DOMS? And how can we prevent it or lessen it?
Let’s see.
October 15, 2024 6 min read
Today, approximately one in three Americans experience skin issues of various sorts: clogged pores, breakouts, redness, and irritation of different kinds.
And while this number has been growing for the last few decades, it’s sped up in recent years.
Even more, accelerated aging of the skin: fine lines, wrinkles, dryness or flakiness, and skin sagging is occurring earlier than normal, with many in their twenties now experiencing it.
While there are several factors involved, and some include the skin care products being used today, there is a much larger factor bringing this on: the health of our gut.
When we have harmful bacteria or candida in our body, or toxins and even gluten coming in, our immune system produces what’s called an inflammatory response.
And this, when it gets to our skin, can cause all sorts of trouble.
It can cause breakouts by increasing oil production and clogging pores.
It breaks down collagen and elastin, the proteins responsible for keeping our skin firm and smooth.
Then, as these proteins degrade, the skin begins to sag, and wrinkles or fine lines appear.
It also causes skin to lose its ability to retain moisture effectively, leading to dryness, flakiness, and irritation.
But, as much of this is caused by the health of our gut, no amount of skin creams, oils or regimens will be able to fix it as they’re addressing the end result, not the cause.
And the cause, if not itself addressed, will just continue the problem.
If we want healthy, radiant skin that stays clear, soft and firm for the longest amount of time, then we need to address our gut.
So let’s dive in.
October 13, 2024 8 min read
We’ve all heard of candida, also known as a yeast overgrowth or thrush.
It’s a fungus that lives in the mouth, vagina, stomach and skin, and is usually harmless and kept in check with a healthy diet.
But when it becomes unbalanced, it can multiply uncontrollably, affecting many areas of the body and causing:
Stomach bloating, especially right after eating. This can feel like food is swishing around in our stomach instead of moving through.
It can occur in the mouth, causing creamy white patches or sores in the mouth or throat, redness, painful cracks at the corners of the mouth, loss of taste, or pain when eating or swallowing.
It can cause itching, soreness or burning in the vagina, white or yellow discharge, and stinging or burning when urinating.
It can affect our skin, causing a red rash with small, raised bumps (pustules), intense itching, a burning sensation, or a rash in skin folds.
And it can also spread to our heart, brain, eyes, bones, or joints, affecting us in various ways, noticeably in our energy levels or inflammatory response.
In short, it causes us real problems, both now, and even more in the long term. And they can be quite uncomfortable.
And, because of the currently available foods in the US, which are almost tailor-made to feed it, most of us have candida to one degree or another today, often without knowing it and without realizing that certain conditions are caused by it.
So let’s dive in and see what's happening here.
October 08, 2024 5 min read
In the last article we covered what the microbiome is, a colony of trillions of bacteria in our colon, and how it affects every aspect of our health, our hormones, our longevity and the ability to build muscle and stay fit.
These bacteria also produce or help to produce neurotransmitters in our body, such as Serotonin and GABA, which calm and relax us, de-stress us and allow us to fall asleep.
In this article we’re going to cover how the number of toxins coming into our body, which increases every year, affects these bacteria.
October 03, 2024 8 min read
We’ve all heard of gluten.
We’ve heard that it can be bad for us, not bad for us, mildly bad for us, etc.
But what is it really and what does it actually do?
Gluten is a mixture of proteins found in many grains, processed foods and commercial drinks that contain two specific proteins called gliadin and glutenin.
And for anyone sensitive, whether they know it or not, these can cause specific inflammatory responses throughout their body, most of which they never connect to the gluten they consumed.
It can cause stomach aches and IBS.
It can create a constant swelling of the stomach that we may confuse with excess body fat. So we try to exercise it off, but without any results as it isn’t body fat, it’s swelling caused by an inflammatory response.
When it gets into our blood stream it can affect any part of our body where it lands, or our whole body, as it will create an inflammatory response wherever it goes.
It can create aches we don’t understand, tiredness or lethargy, an overstimulated immune system, and even (by landing on healthy cells) lead to our immune system mistaking our own cells for harmful bacteria and so attacking them.
It can cause skin issues: redness, dryness, skin patches and more.
And it can cause a redness and/or puffiness in our face that we can’t seem to get rid of, and even spots of hyperpigmentation or pimples on our chin.
With all of this, it’s important to understand what it is, how and if it is affecting us, why, and what we can do about it.
So let’s dive in and see.
October 01, 2024 10 min read
As of today, about 42% of Americans are considered clinically obese. This is a large rise from the 1970’s when only about 10% were.
To combat this, recently, many have turned to the medication, Ozempic. This is a medication originally approved for the treatment of diabetes, but which has shown results in lowering appetite and blood sugar levels, and so allowing for loss of body fat.
However, it works by bypassing the body’s natural systems and in some cases lowering the body’s ability to naturally perform these actions as the body gets used to receiving it.
And, for some, it can come with severe side effects to one degree or another: increased risk of heart attack, bowel obstruction, gallstones, thyroid cancer, vision loss, muscle loss and weak or brittle bones especially for those in their 40’s, 50’s and 60’s, and severe stomach paralysis.
Not to mention the possible permanent lowering of digestive ability once off of Ozempic, along the return of the body fat lost, if the situation that originally brought about the obesity has not been addressed.
So understanding this medication, how it works inside our body, what it can and can’t do, its long term side-effects, and what to do if you intend to take it or already are is quite important.
September 29, 2024 7 min read
Aging is a natural process.
Over time, as the stem cells we're born with become used up, our body is less and less able to regenerate itself.
But then there is premature aging, where this process happens years or decades before it should. And while this is definitely not natural, unfortunately, it’s becoming more and more common.
In this article we're going to cover exactly what is happening to our cells, what is doing this, how this affects aging and what we can do to prevent it.
There is something that accelerates aging by destroying our cells so that our stem cells are needed to produce new cells more often than they should, thus accelerating our biological aging process and making us “old” before our time.
And Leaky Gut is one of the largest causes behind it.
September 24, 2024 9 min read
We’ve touched on how toxins affect our digestive tract and microbiome, and also how they lead to Leaky Gut and to our immune system mistaking healthy cells for harmful microbes that must be destroyed.
They cause an inflammatory response, both in our digestive tract and throughout our body over time.
They affect our hormones, energy levels, and mental focus. They make losing body fat and building muscle much harder due to increased cortisol levels.
And they speed the aging process, both internally and in our skin and overall appearance.
But now we’re going to dive deeper. And to give a real idea of how this works we're going to look at how one toxin, Glyphosate, affects us.
Glyphosate is the key ingredient in the herbicide Roundup, which is used on most major crops today.
This is a real problem, because it's one of the most toxic substances there is.
And due to its widespread use, it’s in almost all processed foods and non-organic meats.
And it plays a very large roll in the destruction of our digestive tract, microbiome and overall health, leading to Leaky Gut and some of the worst physical conditions there are.
So let’s dive in and see how this actually affects us and what we can do.
September 23, 2024 6 min read
In another article we covered what SIBO is, how it comes about, what feeds it, and how it creates cravings for sugar and other junk foods, preventing fat loss and causing low energy levels.
But there is another aspect to SIBO which has more destructive and far-reaching effects.
There is something called Leaky Gut, where there are actual microscopic perforations in the intestinal lining that is meant to protect our internal organs from the harmful bacteria, parasites and toxins coming in through our digestive tract.
And it's behind a significant number of physical conditions common today, from hormonal imbalances, stress and poor sleep, to liver and kidney trouble, heart trouble, skin issues and even premature aging.
So let's see what it is and what SIBO has to do with it.
September 19, 2024 7 min read
The Gut Health Protocol & 30-Day Challenge starts today!
On this protocol we address Acid Reflux, GERD, IBS, Candida, H. Pylori, C. Diff, Leaky Gut, SIBO, Gluten Reactions & Much More.
We address hormone and energy levels, mood, the ability to burn body fat and increase muscle gains.
We address sleep, stress levels and overall mood.
We address cravings for sugar that derail our diets or fat loss attempts.
We address bloating and a protruding stomach.
And we improve overall health and longevity.
This is probably the most important protocol we have released, because it truly affects every aspect of our overall health.
Our gut is the chief entrance to our body.
And its ability to break down foods into nutrients our cells need to function, to balance our hormones, to provide key neurotransmitters for our brain and nervous system, and to prevent harmful toxins and microorganisms from making it into our bloodstream is more important than any other aspect of our body to ensure our overall health, energy levels, and longevity.
But let’s go a little deeper.
September 17, 2024 8 min read
It hasn’t been understood by most people just how vital our gut health is to our heart health.
But in truth, it’s key. If our gut health is good, and our digestive tract working properly, the risk of poor heart health is much lower.
If our gut is in poor condition, however (heart burn or acid reflux often, bloating, pains, regular diarrhea, or worse), then this will, over time, lead to poor heart health.
But gut health among Americans has diminished drastically in recent times, worsening every year mainly due to our processed foods and sugars, and the 50x increase in toxins in our environment in the last 7 decades.
Now, younger and younger people every year are experiencing more and more gut issues which were rare even in older individuals in earlier generations.
And along with them, they're experiencing more cardiovascular issues.
This is something we need to address now, for each of us, to ensure a long and healthy life.
September 15, 2024 8 min read
There is an idea that if we have GERD, Heartburn or Acid Reflux, this means we have too much stomach acid.
Due to this, many people take stomach acid neutralizers or acid blockers, known as PPIs, to make their stomach less acidic and calm it down.
However, these only give a temporary solution, and in the long term actually make the problem worse.
This is because it’s not high levels of stomach acid that cause acid reflux and GERD, but the exact opposite — too little stomach acid.
This is an example of only addressing the symptom instead of the cause, allowing the cause to continue on, slowly worsening over time.
This lessened stomach acid leads to foods, especially proteins, not being fully broken down into a form our bodies can use. So we don’t get the nutrients we need, no matter how much we eat.
And, harmful bacteria are allowed to take root in our stomach and intestines, raising cortisol levels, lowering energy levels, stealing nutrients needed by the cells, preventing muscle gain, causing sugar cravings and more.
And, of course, we get GERD, Acid Reflux, Gas and Bloating.
So lets see what’s happening here.
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