The adrenal glands are composed of two entirely separate sections, the cortex and the medulla. Like the pituitary gland, the two sections of the adrenals evolved from two entirely different types of tissue.
Adrenal Medulla
The adrenal medulla evolved from the nervous system. The adrenal medulla works with the autonomic nervous system (the unconscious processes like breathing and digestion). The inner adrenal medulla has a direct connection to the brain.
Adrenal Medulla Hormones
The adrenal glands produce adrenaline (80%) and noradrenaline (20%), more commonly known among the medical establishment as epinephrine and norepinephrine. These hormones together are known as catecholamines.
The medullary hormones are not essential for life, but life without them would be difficult. Without stress, these hormones wouldn’t be necessary, but there are varying degrees of stress. The adrenal medulla hormones compensate when we stress our bodies with a simple act like standing up from a reclining or sitting position. Without these hormones, your blood pressure would drop when you stand because gravity causes your blood to pool at the feet and legs.
Adrenaline
Epinephrine, more commonly called adrenaline, can increase heart rate, contract blood vessels, dilate air passages, and get the nervous system ready for a fight or flight response. Epinephrine acts on almost every part of the body.
Noradrenaline
Norepinephrine, also known as noradrenaline, works with epinephrine and adds its own stimulus to the brain. Like adrenaline, noradrenaline responds to the fight-or-flight stimulus. Noradrenaline increases our heart rate, triggering the release of glucose from the body’s energy stores, and increasing blood flow to our muscles. Noradrenaline also affects the parts of the brain where attention and response actions are carried out. Noradrenaline is also an anti-inflammatory agent for the brain.
Adrenal Medulla Disorders
When the medulla is in trouble, so is the nervous system. Pathology of the adrenal medulla is primarily caused by neoplasm (tumors) or otherwise poor nervous system functionality, but there are many other issues that can cause too much or not enough of the two hormones. The nervous system will compensate for a lack of adrenal hormones for some time, but healing the thyroid, healing the entire adrenal gland, and if need be, healing the endocrine system as a whole, is the only way to ensure returned health to the adrenal medulla.
Adrenal Cortex
The adrenal cortex is divided into three zones and produces three main types of steroid hormones.
In medical school, one way we learned to remember these three layers is: ‘Salt, sugar, sex… the deeper it goes, the sweeter it gets.’ Not important, but catchy.” – Precision Nutrition
Zona Glomerulosa & Mineralocorticoids
Mineralocorticoids (such as aldosterone, which makes up about 96% of the hormones in this mineralocorticoid group) produced in the zona glomerulosa help regulate blood pressure and electrolyte balance. Aldosterone controls water and electrolyte (sodium and potassium) concentration.
The mineralocorticoids act upon the kidneys, which under the direction of these hormones excrete sodium or potassium as required to maintain optimal balance. Adrenal adenomas (benign, actively secreting growths in the cortex) cause hyper-production of aldosterone, which may account for as much as 25% of patients with high blood pressure.
Zona Fasciculata & Glucocorticoids
Cortisol (also called hydrocortisone) makes up 95% of the glucocorticoids hormones produced, but there’s also corticosterone and cortisone.
What does cortisol do:
Depresses the immune system.
Anti-inflammatory by reducing immune system response.
Retards allergic overreactions, but this may slow wound healing.
Promotes the breakdown of protein (catabolism).
Promotes the conversion of triglycerides to stored fatty acids.
Promotes glucose formation (gluconeogenesis).
Promotes resistance to stress which results in higher blood pressure.
Two well-known diseases of the adrenals are Addison’s disease and Cushing’s syndrome. Addison’s disease results from acute adrenocortical insufficiency. Cushing’s syndrome is caused by excessive adrenal cortical function.
John F. Kennedy may be history’s most famous Addison’s disease patient and required regular cortisone injections to deal with stress. Since one of the side effects of cortisol injections is a “tanning” of the skin, JFK looked his best (tanned and relaxed) during times of stress — immediately after injections.” – John Barron
Full blown Addison’s disease is rare, but adrenal fatigue is extremely common. Cushing’s syndrome is rare, too.
Zona Reticularis & Androgens
Testosterone is the most well-known androgen. Androgens are masculinizing hormones. In adult males, not many of these hormones are produced in the adrenal gland. Men produce most of their androgens in the testes while women produce their androgens in the adrenal glands.
Adrenal Fatigue
Health care professionals estimate that 80% or more American adults suffer from some level of adrenal fatigue. With our addiction to caffeine, nicotine, and other stimulants and our tendency to bathe in Wi-Fi and cellular radiation, it seems likely.
Get the diet right. No stimulants like coffee, caffeinated teas, energy drinks, tobacco, etc. In fact, no drugs period. Eat more fresh raw vegetables than anything else, and eliminate refined and processed foods like white rice, HFCS, and even that bag of organic, super healthy, ancient grain, non-GMO quinoa chips. If you didn’t make it, don’t eat it.
Make sure the body is working right in other areas that affect adrenals. The endocrine system as a whole, and especially the thyroid, kidneys, and hypothalamus, must be in decent working order to heal the adrenals all the way. If necessary, kill Candida and balance the gut. (it’s likely very necessary if you have adrenal fatigue with our toxic, sugar-laden, antibacterial crazed society, which is often the underlining cause of endocrine disorders).
Start grounding regularly, at least 15 minutes a day (more is better). Do some sun gazing while you’re at it (but do not look directly at the sun). Get out in nature a little every day or as often as possible (again, more is better). Avoid or compensate for Wi-Fi, cellular, and other EMFs (salt lamps help, grounding probably does, too). Learn to breathe properly by breathing in deeply in a manner that causes your stomach to expand when you breathe in.
If your symptoms don’t improve quickly, glandular supplementation can help (if you’re not vegan) and a few adaptation herbs can help as well.
(Dr. Mercola) According to the World Health Organization, depression is now the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide,1,2 affecting an estimated 322 million people globally, including more than 16 million Americans, 6 million of which are seniors.3 Statistics also reveal we’re not being particularly effective when it comes to prevention and treatment. Worldwide, rates of depression increased by 18 percent between 2005 and 2015.4
If you or someone you love is struggling with depression or some other mental health problem, remember that your diet is a foundational aspect that must not be overlooked. As noted in a 2015 study5 published in the medical journal Lancet:
“Although the determinants of mental health are complex, the emerging and compelling evidence for nutrition as a crucial factor in the high prevalence and incidence of mental disorders, suggests that diet is as important to psychiatry as it is to cardiology, endocrinology and gastroenterology.”
Recent research6,7,8 looking at the effects of the antihypertensive DASH diet on mental health concluded this kind of dietary pattern, which is low in sugar and high in fresh fruits and vegetables, can help reduce the risk of depression in seniors. Overall, people who followed the DASH diet were 11 percent less likely to develop depression over the following six years, whereas those following a standard Western diet, high in red meat and low in fruits and vegetables, had the highest rates of depression.
It’s worth noting that while many conventional experts recommend the DASH diet, it is not necessarily ideal for optimal health, as it also promotes whole grains and low-fat foods, including low-fat dairy. Healthy fats, including saturated animal and plant fats and animal-based omega-3, are quite crucial for optimal brain health. I believe the reason the DASH diet produces many beneficial results is because it is low in sugar and high in unprocessed foods — not because it’s low in fat.
Other studies have shown that unprocessed foods, especially fermented foods, help optimize your gut microbiome, thereby supporting optimal mental health,9,10 whereas sugar, wheat (gluten) and processed foods have been linked to a greater risk for depression, anxietyand even suicide. The primary information highway between your gut and your brain is your vagus nerve, which connects the two organs.11
Your gut also communicates to your brain via the endocrine system in the stress pathway (the hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal axis), and by producing mood-boosting neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine and gamma-aminobutyric acid or GABA. These communication links help explain why your gut health has such a significant impact on your mental health.
The Strong Link Between Sugar and Depression
A number of food ingredients can cause or aggravate depression, but one of the most significant is sugar, particularly refined sugar and processed fructose.12 For example, in one study, men consuming more than 67 grams of sugar per day were 23 percent more likely to develop anxiety or depression over the course of five years compared to those whose sugar consumption was less than 40 grams per day (which is still far higher than the 25 grams per day recommended for optimal health).13
This held true even after accounting for other contributing factors, such as socioeconomic status, exercise, alcohol use, smoking, other eating habits, body weight and general physical health. Lead author Anika Knüppel,14 a research student in the department of epidemiology and public health at University College London, commented on the findings, saying:15
“Sweet food has been found to induce positive feelings in the short-term. People experiencing low mood may eat sugary foods in the hope of alleviating negative feelings. Our study suggests a high intake of sugary foods is more likely to have the opposite effect on mental health in the long-term.”
Research16 published in 2002, which correlated per capita consumption of sugar with prevalence of major depression in six countries, also found “a highly significant correlation between sugar consumption and the annual rate of depression.” A Spanish study17 published in 2011 linked depression specifically to consumption of baked goods.
Those who ate the most baked goods had a 38 percent higher risk of depression than those who ate the least. This makes sense when you consider baked goods contain both processed grains and added sugars.
How Sugar Wreaks Havoc on Your Mood and Mental Health
Sugar has been shown to trigger depression and other mental health problems through a number of different mechanisms, including the following:
Feeding pathogens in your gut, allowing them to overtake more beneficial bacteria.
Suppressing activity of a key growth hormone in your brain called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). BDNF levels are critically low in both depression and schizophrenia, and animal models suggest this may actually be a causative factor.
Triggering a cascade of chemical reactions in your body that promote chronic inflammation, which over the long term disrupts the normal functioning of your immune system and wreaks havoc on your brain.
Contributing to insulin and leptin resistance, which also plays a significant role in your mental health.
Affecting dopamine,a neurotransmitter that fuels your brain’s reward system18 (hence sugar’s addictive potential19,20,21) and is known to play a role in mood disorders.22
Damaging your mitochondria, which can have bodywide effects. Your mitochondria generate the vast majority of the energy (adenosine triphosphate or ATP) in your body.
When sugar is your primary fuel, excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) and secondary free radicals are created, which damage cellular mitochondrial membranes and DNA. As your mitochondria are damaged, the energy currency in your body declines and your brain will struggle to work properly.
Healthy dietary fats, on the other hand, create far fewer ROS and free radicals. Fats are also critical for the health of cellular membranes and many other biological functions, including and especially the functioning of your brain.
Among the most important fats for brain function and mental health are the long-chained animal-based omega-3 fatsDHA and EPA. Not only are they anti-inflammatory, but DHA is actually a component in every cell of your body, and 90 percent of the omega-3 fat found in brain tissue is DHA.
Eating Real Food Is Key
A paper23 published in Nutritional Neuroscience last year looked at evidence from laboratory, population research and clinical trials to create “a set of practical dietary recommendations for the prevention of depression, based on the best available current evidence.” According to this paper, the published evidence reveals five key dietary recommendations for the prevention of depression:
Following a “traditional” dietary pattern such as the Mediterranean, Norwegian or Japanese diet
Increasing consumption of antioxidant-rich fruits, vegetables, legumes, wholegrain cereals, nuts and seeds (note that autoimmune diseases are rampant and whole grains and legumes are loaded with lectins and best avoided. See my interview with Dr. Steven Gundry for more details)
Eating plenty of omega-3-rich foods
Replacing unhealthy processed foods with real, wholesome nutritious foods
Avoiding processed foods, fast food, commercial baked goods and sweets
Processed Foods Are Problematic in More Ways Than One
Three brain- and mood-wrecking culprits you’ll automatically avoid when avoiding processed foods are added sugars, artificial sweeteners24 and processed vegetable oils — harmful fats known to clog your arteries and cause mitochondrial dysfunction. Gluten also appears to be particularly problematic for many. If you’re struggling with depression or anxiety, you’d be well-advised to experiment with a gluten-free diet.
Certain types of lectins, especially wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), are also known for their psychiatric side effects. WGA can cross your blood brain barrier25 through a process called “adsorptive endocytosis,” pulling other substances with it. WGA may attach to your myelin sheath26 and is capable of inhibiting nerve growth factor,27 which is important for the growth, maintenance and survival of certain target neurons.
Processed foods are also a significant source of genetically engineered (GE) ingredients and toxic herbicides like Roundup. In addition to being toxic and potentially carcinogenic, glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, has been shown to preferentially decimate beneficial gut microbes. Many grains need to dry in the field before being harvested, and to speed that process, the fields are doused with glyphosate a couple of weeks before harvest.
As a result of this practice, called desiccation, grain-based products tend to contain rather substantial amounts of glyphosate. This reason alone is enough to warrant a grain-free diet, but if you do choose to eat whole grain products, make sure it’s organic to avoid glyphosate contamination.
Your beverage choices may also need an overhaul, as most people drink very little pure water, relying on sugary beverages like sodas, fruit juices, sports drinks, energy drinks and flavored water for their hydration needs. None of those alternatives will do your mental health any favors.
Anti-Inflammatory Diet Protects and Supports Good Mental Health
As mentioned above, one of the mechanisms by which good nutrition bolsters mental health is by cutting down inflammation in your body, and a high-sugar diet is exceptionally inflammatory. A number of studies have linked depression with chronic inflammation.28,29
For example, a study30 published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry in 2016 concluded that depressed patients had 46 percent higher levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein in their blood. Interestingly, they also had 16 percent lower levels of low fractional exhaled nitric oxide, which adds further support for doing exercises that boost nitric oxide cycling, such as the Nitric Oxide Dump exercise. As explained in the study:
“Nitric oxide (NO), in addition to being an inflammatory mediator, is also a neurotransmitter at the neuron synapses. It modulates norepinephrine, serotonin, dopamine and glutamate and thus is speculated to play a role in the pathogenesis of depression. Nitric oxide is also currently seen as a marker of airway inflammation and can be measured during exhalation.
Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) may represent both constitutive and inducible NO. Small studies suggest that subjects with depressed mood have low levels of FeNO … Subjects with depression also have low levels of plasma and platelet NO. The low systemic levels of NO have been postulated to be responsible for the increased risk of cardiovascular events observed in subjects with depression, as NO produces vasodilatation …
In summary, this large population-based study found that depression is associated with high levels of CRP and low levels of FeNO. These findings corroborate the premise that inflammation could play a role in the pathophysiology of major depression and that major depression may be seen as a psychoneuroimmunological disorder.”
In addition to transitioning from a diet of processed fare to real food, consider:
•Implementing a cyclical ketogenic diet, high in healthy fats, low in net carbs with moderate amounts of protein. This kind of diet will optimize your mitochondrial function, which has significant implications for mental health. In fact, one noticeable effect of nutritional ketosis is mental clarity and a sense of calm. The reason for this welcome side effect has to do with the fact that when your body is able to burn fat for fuel, ketones are created, which is the preferred fuel for your brain.
•Intermittent fasting will also help optimize your brain function and prevent neurological problems by activating your body’s fat-burning mode, preventing insulin resistance and reducing oxidative stress and inflammation, the latter of which has been identified as a causative factor in depression.31,32
While you may achieve some of the benefits from intermittent fasting simply by respecting the time boundaries, regardless of the foods you consume, it is far better if you consume high-quality unprocessed food.
Since you’ll be eating less, it’s vitally important that you get proper nutrition. Healthy fats are essential because intermittent fasting pushes your body to switch over to fat-burning mode. Particularly if you begin to feel tired and sluggish, it may be a sign that you need to increase the amount of healthy fat in your diet.
•Water fasting. Once you’re starting to burn fat for fuel, gradually increase the length of your daily intermittent fasting to 20 hours per day. After a month of 20-hour daily fasting, you’re likely in good metabolic shape and able to burn fat as fuel. At that point, you can try a four or five-day water-only fast.
I now do a quarterly five-day fast, as I believe this is one of the most powerful metabolic health interventions out there. A five-day fast will effectively clean out senescent cells that have stopped duplicating due to aging or oxidative damage, which would otherwise clog up your optimal biologic function by causing and increasing inflammation.
•Exercise and get regular movement throughout your day. Exercise is one of the most effective antidepressant strategies out there, beating most medical interventions for depression.
Electromagnetic Field Exposures Could Be Wreaking Havoc With Your Mental Health
Another foundational strategy to prevent or treat depression and anxiety is to limit exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMFs). Studies have linked excessive EMF exposure to an increased risk of both depression and suicide.33 Addiction to or “high engagement” with mobile devices can also trigger depression and anxiety, according to recent research from the University of Illinois.34
Research35 by Martin Pall, Ph.D., reveals a previously unknown mechanism of biological harm from microwaves emitted by cellphones and other wireless technologies, which helps explain why these technologies can have such a potent impact on your mental health. Embedded in your cell membranes are voltage gated calcium channels (VGCCs), which are activated by microwaves. When activated, a cascade of biochemical effects occurs that result in the creation of extremely destructive hydroxyl free radicals.
Hydroxyl free radicals decimate mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, their membranes and proteins. The end result is mitochondrial dysfunction, which we now know is at the heart of most chronic disease. The tissues with the highest density of VGCCs are your brain, the pacemaker in your heart and male testes. Hence, health problems such as Alzheimer’s, anxiety, depression, autism, cardiac arrhythmias and infertility can be directly linked to excessive microwave exposure.
So, if you struggle with anxiety or depression, be sure to limit your exposure to wireless technologies, in addition to addressing your diet and exercise. Simple measures include turning your Wi-Fi off at night, not carrying your cellphone on your body and not keeping portable phones, cellphones and other electric devices in your bedroom. The electric wiring inside your bedroom walls is probably the most important source to address.
Your best bet here is to turn off the power to your bedroom at night. This will work if there are no adjacent rooms. If there are, you may need to shut those rooms off also. The only way to know would be to measure the electric fields. For additional lifestyle guidelines that can help prevent and/or treat depression, see the nondrug solutions section at the end of this previous article on depression.
(Dr. Mercola) Besides giving Indian curries their rich golden color, turmeric contains a polyphenol called curcumin, which has been shown to possess many health benefits, including being a malignancy-fighting powerhouse. Curcumin’s health-boosting properties are well-documented and this single compound exhibits more than 150 potentially therapeutic actions.
With thousands of studies performed,1 researchers have shown curcumin has antibacterial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antimalarial, antioxidant, antiparasitic, antiproliferative, pro-apoptotic and wound healing properties.
Animal studies have suggested curcumin may be useful in the treatment of a wide range of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, neurologic conditions, obesity and psychiatric disorders, as well as chronic illnesses affecting your cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems, eyes, kidneys, liver and lungs.2
While turmeric is widely available in powdered form, it contains a very small amount of curcumin, which is known to be poorly absorbed through your gastrointestinal tract. For these reasons, you’ll receive more health benefits from a curcumin extract. A typical anticancer dose is up to 3 grams (just under 1 teaspoon) of high-quality bioavailable curcumin extract, taken three to four times a day.
Because it’s a lipophilic (fat-loving) molecule, many curcumin preparations include some sort of oil or fat to improve its absorbability and bioavailability.
The Many Benefits of Curcumin
As the active ingredient in turmeric powder, curcumin is well-known for its broad range of curative properties. It has been used for thousands of years as a spice and beauty aid, and in both Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine to treat a wide range of maladies — from cancer to indigestion and heart disease to neurodegenerative conditions. Given its many antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, below are a few of the conditions responsive to curcumin:3,4
•Cancer prevention and treatment: Taking a curcumin supplement regularly may help prevent and treat cancer based on the fact it appears to block the blood supply to cancerous tumors, thereby suppressing the growth and replication of malignant cells.
•Heart health: Animal studies have shown curcumin can help regulate blood pressure and prevent heart disease. It may be particularly beneficial to reduce the incidence of atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries. In other studies, curcumin has been found to lower LDL and total cholesterol and prevent your blood from clotting.5
•Intestinal and bowel issues: Because curcumin stimulates your gallbladder to produce bile, it may help improve your digestion, reduce bloating and gas and soothe digestive disorders. When combined with conventional treatments, curcumin may help promote the remission of ulcerative colitis.6
Scientists investigating curcumin’s biological activities had this to say about the extent to which it plays a vital role in supporting your health:9“Modern science has shown that curcumin modulates various signaling molecules, including inflammatory molecules, transcription factors, enzymes, protein kinases, protein reductases, carrier proteins, cell survival proteins, drug resistance proteins, adhesion molecules, growth factors, receptors, cell-cycle regulatory proteins, chemokines, DNA, RNA and metal ions.”
Curcumin Is a Powerful Weapon Against Malignancy
In animal-based lab research during the past 20 years, curcumin has been shown to have both cancer-prevention and cancer-treatment properties. Its usefulness in the treatment of colon cancer is particularly well established.10,11,12 One group of scientists investigating curcumin’s ability to suppress the proliferation of colon cancer cells by targeting a major cell-cycle protein, said:13
“Curcumin … is one of the most popular phytochemicals for cancer prevention. Numerous reports have demonstrated modulation of multiple cellular signaling pathways by curcumin and its molecular targets in various cancer cell lines. Cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2), a major cell-cycle protein, was identified as a potential molecular target of curcumin. Indeed, in vitro and ex vivo kinase assay data revealed a dramatic suppressive effect of curcumin on CDK2 kinase activity.”
Other cancers in which curcumin has shown protective effects in rodent models include breast, bladder, brain, esophageal, kidney, liver, lung, pancreas, prostate and stomach, to name a few.14 As noted by Dr. William LaValley — one of the leading clinical researchers and medical practitioners in the field of integrative cancer treatment, whom I’ve previously interviewed on this topic — curcumin appears to be universally beneficial for nearly every type of cancer treatment.
This is unusual considering cancer’s many varied molecular pathologies. One reason for this universal anticancer proclivity is curcumin’s ability to affect multiple molecular targets, via multiple pathways.
Once it gets into a cell, curcumin affects more than 100 different molecular pathways. And, as explained by LaValley, whether the curcumin molecule causes an increase in activity of a particular molecular target, or a decrease or inhibition of activity, studies repeatedly underscore its potent anticancer activity.
Notably, curcumin is nontoxic, and does not adversely affect healthy cells, suggesting it selectively targets cancer cells. In cases in which certain chemotherapy drugs are used, curcumin has been shown to work synergistically with the drugs to enhance the elimination of cancer cells.
Woman Beat Myeloma Using Therapeutic Daily Dose of Curcumin
In terms of real-life success stories with this potent cancer-fighter, the British Medical Journal15,16 presented a case study on Dieneke Ferguson, age 57, who successfully treated blood cancer using curcumin. After complaining of high blood pressure, Ferguson was diagnosed with myeloma in 2007. Myeloma is a cancer that begins in plasma cells within your bone marrow, causing your plasma cells to become abnormal, multiply uncontrollably and release only one type of antibody that has no useful function.
Within 15 months, Ferguson’s myeloma advanced to stage 3 and she underwent several rounds of chemotherapy. In 2009, she had a stem cell transplant. None of the treatments were effective in beating the cancer. After stem cell therapy failed again, in 2011, Ferguson began taking daily doses of curcumin extract with bioperine (a black pepper extract) to aid absorption. She took 8 grams (a little over 2 teaspoons) every night on an empty stomach. The cancer stabilized.
A few months later, she began weekly hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which involves breathing pure oxygen in an enclosed chamber. Over the past five years, which incidentally is the average survival rate for myeloma, Ferguson’s cancer has remained stable and her blood counts are in the normal range. By all accounts, she enjoys a good quality of life. Ferguson continues to take her daily dose of curcumin and receive hyperbaric oxygen therapy once a week.
Ferguson’s doctors, who practice medicine at London’s Barts Health NHS Trust, believe she may be the first recorded case of curcumin being more effective than conventional treatments to beat cancer. They said:17
“A small but significant number of myeloma patients consume dietary supplements in conjunction with conventional treatment, primarily to help cope with the side effects of treatment, manage symptoms and enhance general well-being. Few, if any, use dietary supplementation as an alternative to standard antimyeloma therapy.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in which curcumin has demonstrated an objective response in progressive disease in the absence of conventional treatment. The fact that our patient, who had advanced stage disease and was effectively salvaged while exclusively on curcumin, suggests a potential antimyeloma effect of curcumin.”
About her experience, Ferguson said,18“I hope my story will lead to more people finding out about the amazing health benefits of curcumin. I also hope that as a result of the publicity, more research will be undertaken so curcumin may become freely available on the national health service and can help others.”
Suggestions for Using Curcumin Therapeutically
While turmeric is readily available in the spice section of nearly every grocery store, it’s important to realize if you want clinical results, it’s not enough to simply use turmeric as a spice in your cooking. The turmeric root itself contains only about a 3 percent curcumin concentration. To complicate matters further, curcumin is poorly absorbed by your body. According to LaValley:
“There is truly a broad array of disease that curcumin has significant potential for benefit. The challenge is how to get enough of it into the bloodstream to make a difference. That’s where the bioavailability of the product comes into play. There’s now a range of products on the market that allow substantial amounts of curcumin and metabolites of curcumin that are therapeutic … people now have much better options than what was available even five years ago.”
While I usually suggest raw foods, curcumin is an exception. When taking it in its raw form, from the turmeric root, you’d only be absorbing about 1 percent of the available amount. Even in supplement form it’s unlikely to provide the type of results reflected in scientific studies. That said, if you want to use curcumin therapeutically, you can try one of the following three alternatives:
1.Locate a high-quality turmeric extract. Look for an extract containing 100 percent certified organic ingredients, with at least 95 percent curcuminoids. The formula should be free of additives, excipients (substances added as a processing or stability aid) and fillers. Typical anticancer doses are up to 3 grams of good bioavailable curcumin extract, taken three to four times a day.
2.Make a microemulsion. Combine 1 tablespoon of raw curcumin powder with one or two egg yolks and 1 to 2 teaspoons of melted coconut oil. Use a high-speed hand blender to emulsify it. Keep in mind curcumin contains a strong yellow pigment that can permanently discolor clothing, kitchen tools and surfaces, so take care when using it in powder form.
3.Boil curcumin powder. Another strategy that can help increase absorption is to put 1 tablespoon of raw curcumin powder into 1 quart of boiling water. (The water must be boiling when you add the powder — it will not work well if you add the curcumin first and then heat the water.)
After boiling the mixture for 10 minutes you will have created a woody-tasting 12 percent solution that you can drink once cooled. With this method, the curcumin will gradually fall out of the solution over time, so be sure to drink it within four hours to achieve the best results.
Other Ways to Help Your Body Fight Malignant Disease
If you have cancer and are overweight, or have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and/or diabetes, then insulin and leptin resistance are very likely affecting your body’s ability to fight the disease.
From my perspective, a ketogenic diet — with or without intermittent fasting — would be a prudent treatment strategy to resolve that underlying problem and give your body a better chance of responding to cancer treatment. Once you’ve normalized your insulin and leptin, you don’t necessarily need to maintain a ketogenic diet, especially if you find it too restrictive. About this approach, LaValley states:
“I agree that a ketogenic diet is really appropriate in many cases, probably the significant majority of cases. It’s been known for probably 80 years or longer that solid tumors, and some of the blood cancers, are sugar-loving. I use a PET scan to demonstrate to patients … objective proof that the tumors they have in their body are sugar-avid. They’re taking up sugar at a rate much higher than the other regular healthy cells.
I want to drive home that message, so people are motivated to alter their diet to have a low [starchy] carb intake, causing their body to generate additional nutrient supply molecules called ketones … What that means is we’re trying to provide an anticancer, antagonistic pressure on the cancer cells by reducing the amount of sugar that’s readily available for uptake.
We do so by reducing the easily available sugar in the diet and compensating for the nutrient and sugar reduction by increasing healthy fats.”
In addition to cutting out sugar, it would also be prudent to assess your protein intake. Many Americans eat far more protein than required for optimal health. Importantly, excess protein stimulates your mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway which, while useful for building muscles, can be detrimental when treating cancer. This is the case because mTOR is a pathway that increases cellular proliferation, which you don’t want when it comes to cancer cells.
The formula I recommend for calculating protein intake calls for 1 gram per kilogram of lean body mass or 0.5 grams per pound of lean body weight. To determine your lean mass, first determine your fat mass. As an example, if your body fat mass is 20 percent, your lean mass is 80 percent of your total body weight. If you weigh 150 pounds, your lean mass would then be 120 pounds (150 X 0.8), and your protein requirement would be about 60 grams (120 X 0.5).
If you are doing vigorous exercise or are pregnant, you can add up to 25 percent more protein. If you need some encouragement with respect to those who are beating various forms of cancer by treating it as a metabolic disease, check out my previous article “Promoting Advances in Managing Cancer as a Metabolic Disease.”
Need a Doctor Familiar With Curcumin and Other Alternative Treatments?
LaValley is available to consult with you or your physician on a wide variety of health challenges, including cancer.19 He’s licensed to practice medicine in the U.S. and Canada. His medical clinic is located in Chester, Nova Scotia, where he sees patients, and he also spends time in Austin, Texas, where he conducts research.
When there, he’s available to consult with other physicians and their patients. Says LaValley, “For instance, if a patient has pancreatic cancer and the physician wants to implement one of the protocols I provide, I will do a consultation … and then make recommendations to the physician for implementation.”
LaValley acknowledges the many challenges he faces with respect to working within the medical establishment, mainly because there’s so much information that’s not readily known or understood by traditional doctors. In the U.S. and Canada, when a physician wants to administer one or more natural products like curcumin or some off-label pharmaceuticals for anticancer use, they very often fear recrimination or disciplinary action. He said:
“That is, I think, very unfortunate, because the evidence base does exist for [natural approaches] … I think the most important movement that needs to occur is for patients to recognize their own value in the decision-making process and to demand they have access to [alternative] therapeutic choices. They’re available, they’re supported in the evidence base, and [you] have the right to ask for them rather than just accept whatever the physician is offering in the conventional realm.”
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 30 percent of Americans have high blood pressure, also called hypertension, and only half of them have their blood pressure under control.1 However, under controversial new guidelines released in November 2017, which advised that high blood pressure should be treated at 130/80 rather than 140/90, nearly 50 percent of Americans would technically be suffering from high blood pressure.2
When your blood pressure is not controlled it may lead to other health conditions, such as cognitive decline, heart disease, stroke and kidney disease. On a global scale, more than 1 billion people suffer from hypertension3 and that number has nearly doubled in the past four decades.4 Nearly 13 percent of all deaths worldwide are attributed to high blood pressure.
The rising numbers of people suffering from hypertension was not lost on the pharmaceutical industry. An increasing number of drugs have been developed in the past decade to control blood pressure, but they come with a laundry list of side effects and negative health problems of their own.
Instead, consider a significant number of natural options, including eliminating lifestyle choices that trigger hypertension and choosing alternative treatments that reduce your blood pressure. One of the easiest and best smelling is using essential oils.
Blood Pressure and What It Means
To fully understand why your choices increase or decrease your blood pressure, it’s helpful to understand how your blood pressure is measured and how it affects your body.
The traditional method of measuring your blood pressure was developed in 1881 and refined in 1905 when Russian surgeon Dr. Nikolai Korotkoff discovered the difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure measurements.5 Today, sphygmomanometers measure the difference between the appearance and disappearance of sounds in your arteries, called Korotkoff sounds.
The appearance of the sound, your systolic number, represents the highest pressure through which your blood is pumped, while the disappearance of the sound, your diastolic number, is the lowest pressure needed by your heart to push blood through your arteries. In many instances, your blood pressure measurement may not be accurate, based on your body position, cuff size, activity level and consumption of caffeine, nicotine or alcohol.
Hypertension is called the “silent killer” as it may cause few or no symptoms and can quietly damage your blood vessels and organs for years without your knowledge. The added pressure needed by your heart to push blood through your vessels increases your risk of congestive heart failure.6 Coronary artery disease and an enlarged heart are two other heart conditions that may result from chronic hypertension.
High blood pressure also damages the cells lining your arteries, which may result in narrowed and less elastic arterial walls. This change raises your blood pressure further and reduces blood flow to your organs, increasing your risk of damage to your eyes, kidneys and brain. Reduced blood flow to your brain may lead to transient ischemic attacks (mini-stroke), stroke, cognitive impairment or dementia.
What Triggers High Blood Pressure?
There is no one lifestyle choice that triggers all hypertension. A combination of a number of reversible choices you make may put you at risk. Hypertension that isn’t obviously associated with a cause, such as a medical condition or medication, is referred to as essential or primary hypertension.
It’s estimated that as much as 95 percent of hypertension is essential hypertension. However, just because a known medical condition or medication is not responsible does not mean there isn’t a known cause for the condition. A number of contributing factors have been identified for high blood pressure, including but not limited to:
Insulin and leptin resistance causes your blood pressure to increase7
Elevated uric acid levels are associated with rising blood pressure; any program you adopt to address your hypertension needs to normalize your uric acid levels as well8,9
Poor nutrition in childhood has been shown to raise the risk of high blood pressure in adulthood;10 consuming an excess of sugaris also linked to high blood pressure11
Lead exposure has been associated with cardiovascular disease and hypertension12
Air and noise pollution affects blood pressure; air pollution triggers an inflammatory response while noise pollution has an adverse effect on your nervous and hormonal systems.
By using natural options to address hypertension and any underlying medical condition you may realistically be able to reduce your dependence on medication. Lifestyle choices that are known to increase your blood pressure include smoking and alcohol use. Obesitymay also play a role.13
However, while many believe that your blood pressure will increase with age related to a decrease in arterial elasticity that is concurrent with advancing age, the truth is that this reduction in elasticity is often associated with insulin resistance, rising blood sugar and inflammation. Each of these conditions is associated with eating a diet high in net carbohydrates and refined sugars.
Medication Isn’t the Answer
It is highly likely that if your blood pressure is elevated your physician will recommend medications. While the allure of “just taking a pill” to address hypertension has millions under its spell, using medication comes without a laundry list of potential side effects and warnings. The Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure in 2014 emphasized the importance of weight control and regular exercise,14 but I don’t believe they went far enough.
It has been my experience that even stage 1 and 2 hypertension can be addressed with lifestyle interventions, making medications unnecessary. If you are currently taking medication for hypertension, do not stop. Instead, talk with your physician about your plan to incorporate lifestyle changes while monitoring your blood pressure. Then you and your physician can slowly reduce your medications while keeping your blood pressure under control. Problems associated with antihypertension medications include:15,16
An essential oil is plant oil that is highly concentrated, often through distillation.17 Some oils are produced from the entire plant while others are made using specific parts, such as the leaves, bark or roots. These oils have been used in aromatherapy around the world to help reduce stress and improve health. Researchers have also been interested in the effect essential oils may have on reducing your blood pressure, on cardiovascular health and on secretion of cortisol.
In a study from the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology,18 scientists found that exposure to essential oil for one hour effectively reduced stress as measured by a reduction in the participants’ heart rate and blood pressure. However, after exposure for longer periods, both heart rate and blood pressure were elevated.
In a similar study inhalation of a blend of essential oil was associated with a reduction in blood pressure and in cortisol secretion, often elevated during stress.19 Researchers used a blend of lavender, ylang-ylang, neroli and marjoram. There are several essential oils20that have an effect on blood pressure and help reduce your stress. Since these oils trigger an effect in your body, use an inhalation method for no longer than one hour to reduce the potential for any negative effects from overexposure.
Bergamot
This refreshing oil is often used in cosmetics for the scent, but research finds it also helps reduce your blood pressure and may reduce your anxiety and improve your mood.21
Clary Sage
This oil has been shown to reduce both systolic and diastolic measurements, reduce your respiratory rate and decrease symptoms of stress and depression.22
Rose
The scent of red rose has a calming effect on your brain and has demonstrated an antianxiety and antidepressant effect,23 both of which affect your blood pressure.
Frankincense
Since ancient Egypt, frankincense has been used medicinally to reduce stress and promote peace of mind.
Rosemary
This oil retards hardening of the arteries, which raises blood pressure.24 The oil also helps regulate the cardiovascular system.
Ylang-Ylang
This oil comes from a small tree, known for use in trauma and shock to reduce breathing and heart rate.25 It is antidepressive, relieves anxiety and helps control blood pressure.
Lemon Balm
Low doses of the extract may reduce ischemic injury to the heart but higher doses increased the risk in an animal model.26 Further research is needed to determine a protective effect in a cardiac event. However, inhalation may protect against palpitations and heart attack and may reduce blood pressure.
Lavender
Lavender may be effective in treatment of neurological disorders, including anxiety, and acts as a mood stabilizer and sedative, all of which have a positive effect on your blood pressure.27
The Nitric Oxide Dump May Be Exactly What You’re Looking For
Exercise is another important strategy that may help normalize your blood pressure. In this video I demonstrate an exercise I do daily that takes just three to four minutes and should ideally be completed two to three times during a day. When you do the nitric oxide dump allow at least two hours between each session to get the most benefit from the exercise.
I am convinced that, although this gentler strategy has not been compared to other HIIT protocols discussed in previous articles, it is a far healthier way to experience the benefits of HIIT. This type of exercise will stimulate the release of nitric oxide stored in your endothelial cells of your blood vessels that effectively:
Relaxes and dilates your blood vessels, lowering blood pressure
Stimulates your immune system
Reduces the “stickiness” of your blood, reducing platelet aggregation and the potential for stroke and heart attack
Provides a powerful anabolic stimulus to increase lean body mass
(Dr. Mercola) More attention than ever is being put on your gut health, and understandably so because 70 to 80 percent of your immune function resides within your gastrointestinal tract. As such, optimizing your gut microbiome is a worthwhile pursuit that will have far-reaching effects on your physical health and emotional well-being.
A first important step toward balancing your gut flora is to eliminate sugar from your diet, especially sugars found in processed foods. Then, you will want to begin eating fermented foods — some examples are kefir, kimchi, natto, sauerkraut and raw grass fed yogurt. A healthy diet, including the consumption of prebiotic foods, influences your health because it helps create an optimal environment for beneficial gut bacteria, while decreasing pathogenic or disease-causing bacteria, fungi and yeast.
Taking a probiotic or sporebiotic supplement can also be beneficial, especially during and following antibiotic treatment, to restore and promote a healthy microbiome. Many don’t realize your gut bacteria can influence your behavior and gene expression. Gut bacteria have also been shown to play a role with respect to autism, diabetes and obesity.
Mounting scientific evidence continues to suggest a large component of nutrition centers on nourishing the health-promoting bacteria in your body. In doing so, you can keep harmful microbes in check, manage your weight and protect against chronic disease. Given its importance to your overall health, now is the time to “go with your gut!”
What Is Your Gut Microbiome and What Does It Affect?
Research has determined about 100 trillion bacteria comprise your body’s microbiome. However, it is far greater than that as for every bacterium there are at least 10 viruses and fungi living on or inside your body, helping with life-sustaining functions that would not be possible without them. Your microbiome takes shape very early in life.
In fact, if you were delivered via a vaginal birth, you were coated with your mother’s microbes as you passed through the birth canal. More microbes were passed along during breastfeeding, as breast milk contains many gut-nurturing properties.
During the early years, your family, dietary and environmental exposures contributed to your microbiome in ways that have and will continue to influence your lifelong health. Your microbiome is made up of several distinct areas, including your eyes, genitals, mouth and skin, as well as your intestines, which comprise your gut microbiome. Everyday activities such as brushing your teeth, eating, kissing someone or handling a family pet affect your microbiome. Notably, your gut microbiome has been shown to play a role in:
•Autism: Establishment of normal gut flora in the first few weeks of life is vital to your baby’s immune system. Babies with abnormal gut flora have compromised immune systems and are particularly at risk for developing ADHD, autism and learning disabilities, particularly if they are vaccinated while their gut flora is imbalanced.
•Behavior: A study published in Neurogastroenterology and Motility1 found mice lacking in gut bacteria behave differently from normal mice. Their altered behavior was construed as “high-risk” and was accompanied by neurochemical changes in the brain. It is widely known that your gut serves as your second brain, producing more of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is known to have a positive influence on your mood, than your brain does.
•Diabetes: According to a Danish study,2 the bacterial population in diabetic guts differs from those of nondiabetics. According to researchers, Type 2 diabetes in humans is linked to compositional changes in intestinal microbiota, highlighting the link between metabolic diseases and bacterial populations in the gut.
•Gene expression: Your gut health has been shown to be a very powerful variable of epigenetics, a cutting-edge field of medicine highlighting the role your lifestyle plays with respect to genetic expression. As noted in ScienceDaily:3
“New research is helping to tease out the mechanics of how the gut microbiome communicates with the cells of its host to switch genes on and off. … the study4 … reveals how the metabolites produced by the bacteria in the stomach chemically communicate with cells, including cells far beyond the colon, to dictate gene expression and health in its host.”
•Obesity: Because probiotics may help fight obesity, optimizing your gut flora is an important consideration if you’re struggling to lose weight.
The Importance of Fermented Foods
I often mention the value of fermented foods in helping to “heal and seal” your gut as a means of boosting your health and/or reversing disease. As demonstrated in the video above, culturing vegetables is easy and inexpensive. You can also make your own homemade yogurt. Other examples of fermented foods include kefir, kimchi, natto and sauerkraut. These foods are not only packed with good bacteria, but also are associated with the following health benefits:
•Nutrient rich: Some fermented foods are outstanding sources of essential nutrients such as vitamin K2, which helps prevent osteoporosis and atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries. Cheese curd is an excellent source of both probiotics and vitamin K2, as are certain fermented foods like natto or vegetables fermented at home using a starter culture of vitamin K2-producing bacteria. Fermented foods also produce many B vitamins.
•Immune system booster: Because up to 80 percent of your immune system is located in your gut, probiotics play a crucial role in keeping your digestive tract operating smoothly. A healthy gut is your first defense against disease and a major factor in helping you maintain optimal health and well-being.
•Powerful detoxifier: Fermented foods are some of the best chelators available. The beneficial bacteria in these foods are highly potent detoxifiers, capable of drawing out a range of toxins and heavy metals from your bloodstream, which are then eliminated through your kidneys.
•Cost-effective: Adding a small amount of fermented food to each meal is cost-effective because it contains 100 times the probiotics of the average supplement. Given that a high-quality probiotic is expensive, you can culture vegetables for a fraction of the cost.
•Natural variety of microflora: If you vary the types of fermented and cultured foods you eat, you’ll benefit from a much wider variety of beneficial bacteria than you could ever receive in supplement form.
Eating Prebiotic Foods Can Help Nourish Your Gut
You can positively impact your friendly gut bacteria by providing them with the nutrients they need to flourish in the form of prebiotics. Prebiotics are found primarily in fiber-rich foods, which is perfect because your good gut bacteria thrive on indigestible fiber. Inulin is one type of water-soluble fiber found in asparagus, garlic, leeks and onions that helps nourish your beneficial gut bacteria.
In lab research5 involving young rats, dietary prebiotics were found to have a significant effect on rapid eye movement (REM) and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep cycles, which may positively affect your sleep quality. Researchers studying the effect of prebiotics on gut health and REM sleep gave the test animals a diet rich in prebiotics beginning at 3 weeks old, and found:
Rats eating prebiotics had an increase in beneficial gut bacteria as compared to the control group6
As friendly bacteria metabolize prebiotic fiber, they not only grow and multiply, but also excrete a metabolite beneficial to brain health7
The group eating a prebiotic-rich diet spent more time in restful and restorative NREM sleep than those eating the control diet
Rats eating prebiotic foods spent more time in REM sleep after being stressed, which is important for promoting recovery8
The study authors said:9“Given that sufficient NREM sleep and proper nutrition can impact brain development and function, and that sleep problems are common in early life, it is possible that a diet rich in prebiotics started in early life could help improve sleep, support the gut microbiota and promote optimal brain/psychological health.” The following whole foods help add prebiotic fiber to your diet and improve the health of your microbiome, thus improving your overall health:10,11,12
While I highly recommend you obtain most of your nutrients from real food, probiotic supplements can be helpful, especially if you are unable to eat fermented foods. That said, for probiotics to do their job, you need to optimize the conditions where these “good” bacteria will flourish.
The first step is to nourish your microbiome with real food. If you continue to eat a highly processed diet and foods containing added sugars, you’ll only be feeding the potentially pathogenic bacteria in your gut. Pathogenic disease-causing microbes simply love sugar!
On the other hand, these microbes will not thrive in the presence of fiber-rich foods or those containing complex carbohydrates, healthy fats and proteins. When you focus on eating whole, natural foods, you’re supporting the growth of your beneficial gut bacteria. Research suggests the benefits of probiotics aren’t limited to your gut, but also affect your brain.
This is the case because your gut is connected to your brain via what’s called the gut-brain axis, which means whatever affects your gastrointestinal tract affects your brain, and vice versa.
As such, when your gut microbiome is unbalanced, it can affect your immune system, mental health, mood and even your brain function. Probiotics have even been shown to help reduce the symptoms of depression. Factors to look for when trying to identify a high-quality probiotic supplement include:
Make sure it’s a reputable, non-GMO brand, manufactured according to current Good Manufacturing Practices
Look for a potency count (colony forming units or CFUs) of 50 billion or higher
Check the shelf life of the CFUs and avoid capsules only declaring CFUs at the “time of manufacture”
Choose a product containing multiple species of bacteria; products containing species of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria are generally recommended
Spore-based probiotics, or sporebiotics, are an excellent complement to regular probiotics. They are part of a group of derivatives of the microbe called bacillus. This genus has hundreds of subspecies, the most important of which is bacillus subtilis. Essentially, sporebiotics consist of the cell wall of bacillus spores, and they are a primary tool to boost your immune tolerance.
Because sporebiotics do not contain any live bacillus strains, only its spores — the protective shell around the DNA and the working mechanism of that DNA — they are unaffected by antibiotics.
Antibiotics, as you may know, indiscriminately kill your gut bacteria, both good and bad. This is why secondary infections and lowered immune function are common side effects of taking antibiotics. Chronic low-dose exposure to antibiotics through your food also takes a toll on your gut microbiome, which can result in chronic ill health and increased risk of drug resistance.
If you are wondering how antibiotics get into your food, you may not realize about 80 percent of the antibiotics sold in the U.S. are used in food production, including antibiotics given to farm animals living in concentrated animal feeding operations. Sporebiotics can more effectively help reestablish your gut microbiome since they’re not being destroyed by antibiotics.
If you are not sure sporebiotics could benefit you, be advised many acidophilus products have the drawback of not being able to survive the passage through your stomach acid, especially when taken on an empty stomach.
Poor-quality probiotics may not even be alive by the time you take them, which means you’ll receive little to no benefit. Spores, on the other hand, once established in your gut, help improve your intestinal barrier function. Your gut’s mucosal barrier determines which nutrients are absorbed and which are to be excreted.
The intestinal barrier also influences your immune function, and spores increase your immune tolerance, which means they help repair damage in your intestinal barrier, such as that caused by leaky gut. My longtime mentor Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, who also holds a Ph.D., and founder of the Klinghardt Academy in Washington (state), has used sporebiotics for the successful treatment of food intolerances for those suffering from ALS, autism, Lyme disease, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.
Whatever approach you take — eliminating sugars, adding prebiotic foods, eating fermented foods, taking probiotics or sporebiotics, or all of the above — I encourage you to begin optimizing your gut. A healthy gut will boost your immunity, help your body resist disease and positively affect your health and well-being. Now is the time to “go with your gut!”
