Embracing My Health

On the Embracing My Health Facebook fanpage, I shared that I had chia cereal for breakfast. In reply, I got this comment: “Tell us more about chia cereal, and why you think it’s good.” So here you go, in a information dense, “cliff-notes” fasion — here’s what’s so good about chia:

Chia seeds are 21 percent easily digested protein which is greater than other grains such as oats (15.3%), amaranth (14.8%), wheat and corn (both at 14%), barley (9.2%) and rice (8.5%). Chia seeds are the only grain with 18 of the 20 amino acids, including the 8 essentials for humans. *Other plant sources that include the 8 essential amino acids, and therefore considered complete proteins, are quinoa (16.2%), buckwheat (12%), hempseed (23%), and amaranth (15%).

Chia seeds are a rich source of B vitamins, calcium, phosphorous, potassium, iron, magnesium, zinc and copper. One serving of chia seeds (2 tablespoons) gives a large amount of the recommended daily allowance of fiber, molybdenum, chromium, selenium and biotin. Chia is gluten free, high in fiber, supports low blood pressure while improving blood sugar control.

Chia is high in omega-3 essential fatty acids.

A few of the things I use chia for:

• a cereal, as well as adding it into other raw cereals
• adding to smoothies (as chia gel)
• as a fat and egg replacer

There are many, many other healthy ways to add it into your diet. I’ll share some of these for another post.

Follow-up post coming shortly – chia versus flax, is one better for you than the other?

So, the l-lysine eliminated or at a minimum kept my abscesses from increasing or getting worse. I had no further pain after taking the lysine from the infection, all the way up to my surgery last Wednesday. I can’t tell you what a life-saver it was. My testimonial: when amoxicillan and clindamycin didn’t help reduce the abscess infections and with it the extreme pain I was experiencing… taking 10,000 mg of l-lysine daily did.

My regimen:  Zinc intake above 150 mg a day begins to be associated with zinc toxicity. Because of this, I took 5,000 mg of Solaray L-Lysine with Vitamin C, B-6 and Zinc. The remaining 5,000 mg a day came from pure Now Foods L-Lysine.

Here’s the skinny on l-lysine. It’s an essential amino acid that our bodies have to have but cannot make. It strengthens our immune systems , increases the body’s ability to manufacture antibodies and has anti-viral properties. (This is my guess as to why and how I personally found relief.)

L-lysine doesn’t stop there. It’s popular for treating and preventing cold sores, is critical for collagen formation (think less wrinkles!), provides energy and more. If you have a deficiency in lysine, these are some of the symptoms you are likely to have:

• bloodshot eyes
• fatigue
• moodiness
• anemia
• problems concentrating
• reproductive issues
• weakened skeletal, circulatory and immune systems
• kidney stones
• inability to breakdown and utilize dietary fat properly
• accelerated aging
• elongated healing processes

Typically, raw, vegan, vegetarians and extreme athletes are most at risk for lysine deficiency. But without a balanced and attentive diet, anyone can become low or deficient. For optimal lysine levels, add lysine in your diet by eating (in no particular order):

• meat
• wheat germ (but not wheat)
• cheese (Parmesan is best)
• eggs
• fish, particularly cod and sardines
• limas
• nuts
• spirulina
• fermented foods like miso and yogurt

If you aren’t getting enough of these in your diet – daily dosage recommendations are 12-30 mg per each 2 lbs of body weight. To treat symptoms: 3,000-9,0000 mg per day divided into doses.

Note: if you have cardiovascular diseases, elevated cholesterol and/or triglyceride levels – work with your naturopath. There is controversy for and against Linus Pauling’s therapy for cardiovascular disease consisting of megadoses of Vit C and Lysine. (Sources to begin your research: http://www.vitamincfoundation.org/vitcheart.htm, http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/vitaminC/)

Embrace Love and Life. Embrace Your Health!

If you follow my personal blog, you know that I’m about to undergo oral surgery to have 7 teeth removed (my wisdom teeth, plus three more).  I have a chronic mouth infection caused by the caries bacteria.  All decay is caused by the caries bacteria, but in some people, an infection can take hold.  The four things that cause a chronic oral infection are:

1. Teeth. Well, duh, right? But it turns out that the condition of your teeth (sometimes determined by genetics) to begin with can and will either encourage or discourage bacterial growth
2. Presence of the caries-causing bacteria, which by the way, is communicable… mother to child, husband to wife, and so on
3. Fermentable carbohydrates
4. Time

So to recap: A chronic infection of acid-producing bacteria is caused when an individual has a long-term acidic oral environment caused by a predisposition, lack of saliva, a diet heavy in sugary and/or acidic foods.

In my mouth, I had the perfect storm.  Problems with tooth enamel is in my genetic background.  I didn’t know this until very recently.  So, #1… genetic predisposition.  Check.  #2. Presence of caries-causing bacteria, check.  I could have gotten it from my mom, from a boyfriend, who knows.  But I got it.  #3. Fermentable carbohydrates.  Check.   Up until 4 years ago, I ate the traditional SAD (standard American diet)… filled with sugary sweets, lots of starchy breads and pastas, and so all.  I also drank, for years, more diet Coke than you can imagine (incredibly acidic!!).  All of these were turned into lactic acid by the bacteria in my mouth and immediately set to work on my teeth.  And finally, time.  Check.  Up until last year, I hadn’t been into a dentist for around 20 years.  The bacteria had 15-20 odd years to do it’s damage.  And do damage, it did!!

When I finally made it into the dentist last year, it was because of extreme pain tooth pain.  The dentist took one look at it and told me that it was abscessed.  The infection had punched a hole through my upper jawbone and was threatening to cause a systemic infection (which worse case scenario can be life-threatening).  The only choice was to pull the tooth.  Immediately.

When we could afford to, I went back into the dentist for a full comprehensive exam. It confirmed the chronic bacterial infection and the profound damage it had done to my teeth.  I had two more abscessed teeth, and a third tooth that was broken and beyond repair.  All three must come out.  My wisdom teeth are also in bad condition and given my infection, it’s best to have those pulled now too.

I’ve had my surgery scheduled for a while now.  July 22nd.  And, up until, two weeks ago, I had no pain. Then, suddenly, I did. And it was horrible. I’ve never had pain like that.  My dentist immediately put me on antibiotics (amoxicillian) and a pain killer (Vicoden).  Vicoden helped a little, although I hated how it made me feel.   A few days later, the pain returned, despite the antiobiotics and narcotics.  My dentist swapped out my antibiotic, putting me on Clindamycin.  He at the same time switched me off of Vicoden (because of the recent concerns with acetametaphin sited by FDA reports) and put me on Vicoprofen.  I seemed to do better on the new combination, but still *hated* how I felt on the narcotic.  And again, 2-3 days later, the intense pain returned.   One last time, the dentist switched my painkillers, this time to ketorolac.  The pain remained severe and I had to continue using the ketorolac at full dosages for 3 days.

Then… and this is a big THEN… I heard a health podcast by David Wolfe.  In passing, he mentioned that l-lysine, an amino acid, can help remove any kind of infection at a 10,000 mg dose.  Given the pain I continued to be in, and the fact that my surgery was still nearly 2 weeks away, I figured I had nothing to lose.

And presto. Within 24 hours, I was off my pain pill.  Now, as an acknowledgement, it’s possible that the antibiotic finally kicked in and made all the difference.  But, the standard rule of thumb is that antibiotics will kick in 24-48 hours after you start taking them.  I had been on them for 2 1/2 weeks with no improvement.  I started the l-lysine and within 24 hours, I was without pain and off pain killers completely.

I have 4 days left until my surgery.   I’m continuing the l-lysine at 10,000 mg a day.  I’ll let you know if the infection returns to the point of pain between now an then.  But, right now, I’m feeling confident that I will continue to stay ahead of the infection and have no pain.

Next post – so what exactly is l-lysine?

My question for you today: What surprise or little-known cure or health aid works for you?

Embrace Love and Life. Embrace Your Health!

Goji berries, also known as Lycium barbarum, wolfberry, gou qi zi, and ructus lycii, are a unique dried fruit.  If you haven’t tried one, it’s unlike anything you’ve had before.  Packed with healthy nutrition, this is a fruit worth adding into your menu. Here’s why:

• Goji berries contain 18 Amino acids (six times higher than bee pollen), more Beta Carotene than carrots, more Iron than spinach, and 21 Trace Minerals
• Goji berries contain Vitamin B1, B2, B6, and Vitamin E (rarely found in fruits)
• Goji berries contain more protein than whole wheat. They are 13% protein and are a complete protein.
• They contain many complex compounds, phytonutrients, and antioxidants.

Some ideas on how to add these nutritional powerhouses into your menu…

• sprinkle on your cold or hot cereal like you would raisins.
• add into bread or muffin batters
• chop and add to your homemade vinaigrette
• top your salads with a handful
• add into a trail mix or granola recipe
• add 8-10 berries into your hot tea, they will lightly flavor your tea and you can eat the flavorful berries once they’ve plumped up from the soaking in the hot tea
• soak a handful of berries in water first and then add into a smoothie recipe

My question for you: Do you eat Goji berries? If so, what’s your favorite way?

Embrace Love, Embrace Life, Embrace Your Health!