I"ve had to remove all of a toddler"s teeth. It"s time for a war on sugar

It is the end of an afternoon in theatre and I have extracted more than 100 teeth from my operating list of eight patients, the youngest a two-year-old who needed all 20 baby teeth removing because they were so decayed. I watch in silence as a child younger than my own is transferred from the operating table and I wonder how we reached this point as a society where I don’t believe we truly value oral health, nor realise the implications of failing to do so.

Nearly 20 years after observing my first general anaesthetic as a student it doesn’t get any easier. I regularly see parents overcome by guilt and emotion as they watch their child being put to sleep, or recovering dazed and confused in the recovery suite. Sometimes after a busy afternoon I sit in the theatre and wonder if there is more I can do, sometimes I have nothing left to give.

Responsibility for oral health promotion has been devolved to cash-strapped local authorities

As an NHS consultant in paediatric dentistry, it sadly comes as no surprise to me that removal of decayed teeth remains the most common reason for a child aged five to nine years to be admitted to a hospital in England. In these straitened times, it seems so wrong that every year we spend around £35m on operations to treat a disease that is almost always preventable.

The frustration is that the solutions are already out there. Ten years ago, the Scottish government agreed to invest in a programme of oral health prevention called Childsmile. Now every child in Scotland has access to free daily supervised toothbrushing in nursery and free dental packs to support toothbrushing at home. Dental registration is encouraged and those communities and individuals who are higher risk have more support. The result? Scotland is reducing the millions of pounds it spends on general anaesthetics and turning around the oral health of its children, for the princely sum of £17 per child per year.

Wales has a similar Designed to Smile programme but in England, responsibility for oral health promotion has been devolved to cash-strapped local authorities. This means that it is a postcode lottery with some excellent programmes, such as Teeth Team in Hull, while in other areas existing services are being decommissioned.

England needs urgent investment in oral health prevention. It is actually more cost effective to prevent, rather than treat, dental disease but more importantly we could be preventing tens of thousands of young children, and their families, from potentially experiencing pain, swelling and sleepless nights and time away from school or work.

Every child has a right to good oral health yet still we see one in eight three-year-old children with obvious signs of decay. We need a more radical approach to reduce the persistent inequalities in oral health, which are immoral in this day and age. We need more compassion, an accelerated programme of product reformation so that the sugar content is reduced, and a war on marketing of high sugar products aimed at children.

Two years ago after a particularly frustrating consultation with a parent whose child’s diet was limited to Ribena and biscuits, I decided to begin writing a blog as a way of delivering practical information. I have reached many more families than I would in my day job, but I still feel as though I am wading in a sea of untreated decay. Education is important but it forms only part of the solution. It is too simplistic, and frankly unhelpful, to apportion all blame to the parents. Yes, as parents we have responsibilities and a vital role to play – but we could all be more proactive when it comes to children’s oral health.

I am delighted at the growing number of organisations that are now beginning to collaborate with myself and colleagues via the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry. Health visitors can and are encouraging a dental check before a baby’s first birthday; sports and education settings can lead by example, adopting low-sugar menus and refusing to place sugary drinks in their vending machines; and communities should campaign for water fluoridation. Above all, we need strong, visible leadership by local and national government that says, “This is not acceptable and we are going to do something about it”. Children’s oral health should be everyone’s business.

If you would like to write a blogpost for Views from the NHS frontline, read our guidelines and get in touch by emailing sarah.johnson@theguardian.com.

Join the Healthcare Professionals Network to read more pieces like this. And follow us on Twitter (@GdnHealthcare) to keep up with the latest healthcare news and views.

I"ve had to remove all of a toddler"s teeth. It"s time for a war on sugar

How To Alkalize Your pH and Remove Acid Build-Up

How To Alkalize Your pH and Remove Acid Build-Up

Nestlé to remove 10% of sugar from all snacks in UK and Ireland by 2018

Nestlé, one of the world’s biggest chocolate manufacturers, will take 10% of the sugar out of its confectionery in the UK and Ireland by 2018.

The corporation says the cut is from the levels existing in its sugary products in 2015 and will amount to about 7,500 tonnes. It makes several well-known brands, including Aero, Dairy Box, Drifter, KitKat, Lion, Milkybar, Munchies, Polo, Quality Street, Rolo, Smarties, Toffee Crisp, Walnut Whip and Yorkie.

The announcement follows public concern over the quantity of sugar in the country’s diet and its contribution to rising obesity levels. The threat of a sugar levy on soft drinks has encouraged the reformulation of Irn Bru and Lucozade, which will escape the tax, although there have been no such moves by PepsiCo or Coca-Cola. There is no proposed tax on sugar in food, but the government has hinted it might come if the country’s sugar intake is not reduced.

Nestlé says it will not use artificial sweeteners in its confectionery. Instead it plans to replace sugar with higher quantities of existing ingredients or other, non-artificial ingredients and ensuring products are below a certain amount of calories.

Reduced sizes are likely to be one of the options, and it is possible that a certain amount of sugar can be taken out without affecting the taste much.

“The 10% reduction is not a case of a straight swap of sugar for another ingredient – it will be achieved in a number of different ways so that we can make sure that the taste is as good or better from product to product,” a spokesperson said.

“We are not announcing specific changes to brands at this stage but over the coming months and years we will introduce revised products that make incremental reductions on sugar in different ways that, when added up, make a big difference overall to the nation’s diet while still maintaining taste.”

In November, Nestlé announced it had made a key breakthrough in food science that would allow it to reduce sugar by up to 40%. It claimed its scientists had found a way to “structure sugar differently”.

In the latest announcement, Fiona Kendrick chair and chief executive of Nestlé UK and Ireland, suggested this technological shift would be part of the answer.

“These innovations will help us to reduce sugar in confectionery when they are combined with other, more common methods like reformulating recipes and swapping sugar for other non-artificial ingredients,” she said.

Public Health England, which is charged with encouraging companies to reformulate their products, welcomed the announcement.

“Nestlé is the latest household name to commit to making everyday products healthier and we’re delighted this is just the start of its efforts,” said Duncan Selbie, PHE’s chief executive.

“This sends a clear message that reducing sugar in food is possible, even in products that are typically harder to reformulate.”

Nestlé to remove 10% of sugar from all snacks in UK and Ireland by 2018

How to Remove Mucus, Bacteria, and Toxins From Your Lungs Using Himalayan Pink Salt

How to Remove Mucus, Bacteria, and Toxins From Your Lungs Using Himalayan Pink Salt

Remove Those Toxins: 5 Unique Ways to Purify Your Body

A buildup of toxins in your body manifests in different ways. Whether you have eaten something that is giving you flatulence or food poisoning or you are trying to rid your body of the toxins that have built up from environmental pollutants, medication and food waste over the years, detoxifying your body is one of the most important health steps you can take. The main organs that play a role are the lungs, lymph system, kidneys, liver and colon. Though these organs are always working to remove impurities, they often need support. Follow these easily achievable tips for purifying your body and removing toxins more powerfully.

1. Activate your lungs
It is important to exercise until you sweat at least a few times a week. Opt for low-intensity aerobic exercises such as running, walking, rebounding or bicycling that increase your heart rate and get your lungs and blood pumping. The more you activate your lungs and lymph nodes through exercise, the more circulation occurs in the body and the more detoxification occurs. When you sweat a lot and drink water during your exercise routine, the kidneys are also in an ideal position to do what they do best – eliminate toxins.

2. Sauna
The skin is your body’s largest eliminative organ, yet it is often inactive. Sitting in a sauna can speed the detoxification process because the toxins are best released through perspiration. When you spend time in the sauna, circulation and metabolism increase and your body’s tissues are oxygenated.

3. Coffee Enemas
Coffee enemas have been used for decades to aid the liver in its natural detoxification process and capacity. Over time, toxins build up along the walls of the intestinal tract which cannot be released during the body’s normal process. Your liver needs the aid of an enema to rid the body of built up toxins or a new sudden influx of toxins that have been released into the bloodstream.

4. Activated charcoal
Activated charcoal to assist your detoxification process. It is the world’s oldest detoxification remedy. This very fine, light charcoal powder made from coconut shell absorbs large quantities of toxins in your intestinal tract and works very quickly. Just a small spoonful taken daily greatly helps you remain vibrant and healthy in a normal environment filled with toxins.

5. Ginger
Ginger is a potent detoxification agent that catalyzes your metabolism and helps your body to release toxins. Simply eating raw slices of fresh, raw ginger regularly or drinking fresh ginger tea with lemon and honey regularly removes impurities and prevents them from accumulating in your gut.

Though the human body is actually designed to detoxify naturally, supporting the process with these powerful methods will restore your vitality, resilience and prevent many health problems in the future.

About the Author: Lizzie Weakley is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio. She went to college at The Ohio State University where she studied communications. In her free time, she enjoys the outdoors and long walks in the park with her 3-year-old husky Snowball. The information in this article is credited to Buy Activated Charcoal.

Remove Those Toxins: 5 Unique Ways to Purify Your Body

Like many older women, I have an eating disorder. Time to remove the stigma | Gillian Harvey

As the cookie crumbles in my mouth, delivering a shot of much-needed sugar, a sudden urge flashes across my mind. I am tempted to grab another, and another, before dashing to the loo to purge. Stilling myself, I engage rationally with my feelings and manage to move on without giving in.

I’m not always so successful.

As a mother of five, and at 38 years of age, I’m under no illusions: I know I’m never going to be strutting down the catwalk; time has taken its toll on my once toned body and I’ve been through four stressful pregnancies. I want to be healthy, not excessively thin. But my anorexic and bulimic urges have always been more about control than any misguided notions of vanity.

That’s why I was unsurprised to read that recent research by UCL revealed that around 3% of women in their 40s and 50s have suffered from an eating problem in recent years. The number, which equates to tens of thousands, is probably just the tip of the iceberg – many sufferers, like myself, do not seek help when they experience problems. Instead, I have learned over the years, that I have to forgive myself when I slip up, pick myself up and focus on something else until the feeling passes.

My first foray into extreme dieting came at the age of 15 when, over the period of a few months, my weight plummeted from a healthy 55kg (8st 7lb), to just under 38kg (6st). What started as a vague wish to compete with my skinnier friend became an obsession that led to me skipping breakfast and lunch, and throwing most of my dinner into the bin.

I have come to believe that eating disorders, like a virus, lie dormant in our system, waiting to strike

Although I was initially motivated by the desire to be thin, looking back I can see that there was more to my illness than simple vanity. A combination of GCSEs, financial worries and feelings of inadequacy led me to focus on the one thing I felt I could control. And once on that path, the feeling of triumph I experienced every time the scales revealed weight loss was addictive in itself.

Despite the fact that I believed I’d beaten my anorexia back in the 1990s, it has resurfaced in various guises throughout my life: at university in my early 20s as an obsession with exercise; as bulimia in my mid-20s when I struggled with the stress of my first teaching post; even in my 30s, when adjusting to the demands of motherhood, I had to fight against the desire to make myself sick.

Since my original bout of anorexia, I’ve never weighed less than 44kg (7st). Something – my long-suffering husband, the thought of my children, or the realisation that I am hurting myself – always drags me back from the brink. The thought of passing on any tendencies to my children also plays on my mind, and I make sure I eat a healthy diet and encourage them to do the same.

But I’ve come to believe that eating disorders can never truly be cured; instead, like a virus, they lie dormant in our system, waiting for the right moment to strike. For me, the urge to diet excessively or – more commonly now – to binge and purge, comes when I’m moving house, am overworked or stressed. The disease is not a silly childhood blip that I can grow out of, but something that I will struggle to keep at bay throughout my life. Like an alcoholic, I am “on the wagon”, never free.

For women like me, the perception that anorexia is a disease of the young and is linked to narcissism is damaging. It’s embarrassing to admit, when teetering on the brink of your fourth decade, that you’ve just gorged on chocolate and found yourself hunched over the toilet bowl. But it shouldn’t be. Eating disorders are a mental illness; and while they may start with a wish to have the perfect body, the pattern of damaging behaviour that emerges is akin to a drug addiction.

The knowledge that disorders can flare up repeatedly throughout life, or even appear for the first time at middle age, should not lead us to despair, but give us greater understanding of what drives the anorexic brain and how sufferers can be helped. Eating disorders are often hidden, only noticed when a sufferer displays obvious physical signs; this is something acknowledged by the report’s lead author, Dr Nadia Micali, who noted that many of the women questioned told her that this was the first time they had ever spoken about their eating difficulties.

But bringing them out into the light, admitting that we have suffered or are suffering, is one of the keys to addressing the problem. Removing the stigma and challenging the assumptions that persist about eating disorders is the route to greater understanding and better health for those of us who struggle.

Like many older women, I have an eating disorder. Time to remove the stigma | Gillian Harvey

Improve Digestion, Remove Toxins, and Reduce Bloating With Activated Charcoal

Improve Digestion, Remove Toxins, and Reduce Bloating With Activated Charcoal

How To Remove Uric Acid Crystallization in Joints

How To Remove Uric Acid Crystallization in Joints

How To Remove Sun Tan With Natural Face Packs

You often wear short shades and dresses to enjoy the summer sun at the beach or the park with friends and family. Despite all the fun and happiness, most of us are left with unattractive and ugly sun tan on hands or face at the final of the day. Sun tan generally occurs on body areas that are exposed to the sun such as, neck, face, arms, and legs as well. Sun tan leads to various skin issues such as pimples, skin burn, wrinkles, dark spots, fine lines or hyperpigmentation. There are a ton of chemical laden cosmetic products that are available in the market to solve this problem. But, these products may show side-effects for many. Instead, you can use some certain face packs to remove sun tan and get a smooth and clear skin naturally. These face packs use natural ingredients and are easy to make at home. Try them right now!

1. Face Pack For Sun Tan Removal With Papaya And Honey

This face pack is very effective at removing sun tan due to the presence of papaya. Papaya contains the enzyme papain that comes with potent skin-lightening properties. These properties help to remove sun tan and decrease the visibility of blemishes and scars. Plus, the other enzymes present in this fruit are known for skin exfoliation, renewal, and restoration. Another great ingredient in this pack is honey. Honey helps to moisturize and soften the skin. To make this face pack, you mash ripe papaya pulp (½ cup) and to it, add honey (1 tablespoon). Then, mix well and apply the pack on the clean face. Let it dry for 30 minutes and finally, rinse off with water.

2. Cucumber, Lemon Juice And Rose Water Pack

Bothe lemon and cucumber are two perfect natural bleaching properties that make this pack an ideal remedy for sun tan treatment. As we know, lemon juice is filled with citric acid and vitamin C, both of which help to lighten skin tone and is also the natural remedy solution to the question about how to get clear skin. Plus, vitamin C is a great antioxidant that helps to neutralize the damage caused due to free radicals and helps to lighten tan, dark spots and age spots. The rose water and cucumber juice in this pack work as cooling agents that help to soothe the blemished skin. To make this face pack, you need to take 1 tbsp each of lemon juice, cucumber juice, and rose water and later mix them in a bowl. Then, apply on tanned areas with cotton. Keep it on for ten minutes and wash off using cold water. This pack needs to be applied every day for best results.

Note: Remember to use sunscreen when applying a lemon remedy because its acidic nature can make your skin sensitive to the sun’s UV rays.

3. Face Pack Using Tomato, Lemon Juice And Yogurt

Generally speaking, this face pack combines the powerful bleaching agents of lemon, yogurt and tomato and is also a great pack for the skin tone improvement naturally. It also works wonders in eliminating pigmentation and dark spots from sun tanned skin. Besides, yogurt helps to moisturize and nourish the skin while tomato juice acts as a natural toner that helps to shrink open pores and lower oiliness of the skin. Make this pack by mixing tomato pulp (2 tablespoons), lemon juice (1 tablespoon) and yogurt (1 tablespoon) in a bowl and applying on face. Leave it to dry for thirty minutes and wash with cold water at the last step.

4. Orange Peel And Milk Pack For Sun Tan Removal

This pack contains milk which is useful for making skin moisturized and supple. Plus, the orange peel has citrus acid and vitamin C which help this pack to reduce tanning and lighten the skin tone as well. To make this pack, you take a spoonful of orange peel powder in 1 bowl. Later add raw milk (a teaspoon) to it and form it into a paste. Once done with this paste, apply it on the face. Leave it to dry and thereafter, wash off with water.

5. Lemon Juice And Potato Face Pack

Potatoes also have huge benefits for skin because they are loaded with minerals, vitamins, protein and fibers that are needed for skin care. Potatoes are also one of the age old methods for sun tan because the vitamin C in it lightens skin tone and adds a healthy glow to the skin. In addition, potato juice helps to treat skin aging, inflammation and blemishes. Moreover, it soothes and calms the skin. The combination of lemon juice and potato is the best way to get rid of dark circles. To make this face pack, take a potato and extract its juice with the help of a grinder. Then, mix lemon juice (a tablespoon) with it and apply the mixture on face together with other affected areas. After a gap of 30 and 40 minutes, wash off using cold water.

6. Honey And Pineapple Face Pack

Pineapple is also a good remedy for sun tan removal. This tropical fruit has the enzymes that help to remove dead cells from burnt and tanned areas. In addition, they are full of antioxidants and vitamin C that neutralizes the free radical damage and oxidative stress. They also postpone the appearance of the aging signs such as fine lines, wrinkles and freckles and help to lighten age spots, sun tan and pigmentation. All you need to do is mix pineapple pulp (2 tablespoons) with honey (1 tablespoon) to make a pack. Later apply the pack on face and wait for four minutes. Finally, wash thoroughly with water.

7. Face Pack With Sugar, Glycerin And Lemon

This face pack helps you to remove tan while slightly moisturizing your skin with the glycerin. Lemon, on the other hand, is a great bleaching property that helps to make the skin tone lighter. Firstly, to make this wonderful pack, you need to prepare 1 tbsp of sugar, 1 tbsp of lemon juice and ½ tsp of glycerin. Later take the lemon juice (one tablespoon) in a bowl. Later add glycerin and sugar to it. After that, apply this solution on your affected areas. Apply it as a scrub and use an upward massaging motion gently as you rub the skin. Repeat this scrubbing for around ten minutes and rinse off the pack using water afterwards. Continue using this face pack one time a week till the satisfied desired results are reached.

8. Besan And Turmeric Face Pack For Sun Tan Removal

Turmeric is known for its amazing medicinal agents and for its amazing effects on our skin as well. Especially, turmeric aids in adding a healthy glow to our skin and helps to reduce tan and pigmentation. Bengal gram acts as a natural scrub for removing dead cells and exfoliating the skin. In order to make the face pack, you combine besan (2 tablespoons), a pinch of turmeric, milk (1 tablespoon), and crushed orange peel (1 tablespoon) in a bowl with some cold rose water. Later apply the pack on the clean face and allow it to dry for 20 minutes. Sprinkle water on the dried areas to moist it. Scrub gently in an anti-clockwise and clockwise direction slowly to remove the pack. Apply this pack one time in two days for beneficial exfoliation and tan removal.

9. Aloe Vera, Tomato And Red Lentil Face Pack For Removing Sun Tan

This is one of the best treatments for sun tan that uses the exfoliant quality of red lentil and the hydrating advantages of aloe vera. Red lentil helps to clear the extreme of tanning while the plant steroids in aloe vera gel help to soothe inflammation and burning of the skin and aid in healing suntan and sunburn. Tomatoes in the pack rejuvenate our skin and help to revitalize it from within. You need to make a rough paste by soaking read lentil (1 tablespoon) in water for twenty minutes. Mix the paste with 1 tablespoon of tomato pulp and some fresh aloe vera gel and massage on the face and neck. After 20 minutes, rinse off by using water.

10. Milk Cream And Strawberry Face Pack

The best face packs for sun tan removal must include this pack. These bright red berries contain skin lightening agents that help to improve skin complexion and decrease dark spots, freckles and pigmentation. Milk cream, on the other hand, provides deep nourishment to our skin and moisturizes it as well. To make this powerful sun tan remover, you just need to crush 4 strawberries and later mix with milk cream (2 tablespoons). Later apply the pack on the face and rinse off with water after 30 minutes.

All the above-mentioned face packs for sun tan removal are natural. You should use one of them often to remove the sun tan. Apply regularly for a couple of weeks to notice the desired results. Don’t forget to share your experiences with me.

Guest Post by Mai Cao

Author Bio:

This guest post is by Mai Cao, a blogger with over many years of experience on searching the most effective remedies for beauty and health issues.

How To Remove Sun Tan With Natural Face Packs

9 Cancer Causers You Should Remove From Your Home

9 Cancer Causers You Should Remove From Your Home

Study Shows THC Could Remove Alzheimer’s Plaques From The Brain

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder that leads to memory loss and can seriously impair a person’s ability to carry out daily tasks. Salk Institute scientists have found evidence that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) compounds found in marijuana can promote the cellular removal of amyloid beta protein in the brain — the brain plaques which are linked with the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

What Study Shows?

Alzheimer’s affects more than five million Americans according to the National Institutes of Health, and is a leading cause of death. It is also the most common cause of dementia and its incidence is expected to triple during the next 50 years. It is strongly associated with the build-up of amyloid-beta proteins in the brain, forming plaques that are thought to somehow damage neurons and cause their demise. As a result, key brain regions like the hippocampus can decrease in volume, leading to severe learning and memory defects.

How it Works?

The compound works by passing from the lungs to the bloodstream, where it attaches to two types of receptors, cannabinoid receptor (CB) 1 and 2, which are found on cell surfaces all over the body.

Receptors in the brain can be activated by endocannabinoids, which are a class of molecules made in the body that signal between brain cells. THC works similarly to endocannabinoids by activating the same receptors in the brain, which produces the drug’s psychoactive effects.

“Inflammation within the brain is a major component of the damage associated with Alzheimer’s disease, but it has always been assumed that this response was coming from immune-like cells in the brain, not the nerve cells themselves,” first author Antonio Currais, a postdoc researcher in Schubert’s laboratory, said in the release.

The researchers found that high levels of amyloid beta were associated with cellular inflammation and higher rates of neuron death. They demonstrated that exposing the cells to THC reduced amyloid beta protein levels and eliminated the inflammatory response from the nerve cells caused by the protein, thereby allowing the nerve cells to survive.

What they found was that not only did the THC cause a breakdown of the protein buildup, but a reduction in inflammation in the cells. Inflammation is bad because it makes it harder for your neurons to communicate with one another correctly.

Sources:

-http://www.popsci.com/marijuana-compound-removes-alzheimers-plaque-from-brain-cells-study

-https://www.salk.edu/news-release/cannabinoids-remove-plaque-forming-alzheimers-proteins-from-brain-cells/

-http://www.iflscience.com/brain/thc-may-weapon-against-alzheimer-s/

-http://www.sciencealert.com/marijuana-compound-removes-toxic-alzheimer-s-protein-from-the-brain?0_8852473623119295=

Study Shows THC Could Remove Alzheimer’s Plaques From The Brain

Fructose. What happens when you remove it from your diet?

Is Sugar Really that Bad?

Fructose: What happens when you remove it from your diet?

 

By now most of you know to avoid and minimize your sugar intake. But do you really know why it is so important and what type of sugar should you be removing from your diet?

Fructose: Reasons why you should Avoid Processed Sugar

• There is a link between a processed food diet and disease-most processed foods are high in refined carbs, void of nutrients, and these carbs convert rapidly into sugar in your blood stream


• Sugar is the underlying factor in diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and obesity, not saturated fats like you led to believe


• Healthy weight-some people think that because they are not overweight it is okay to eat as much sugar as they want.  Even if you don’t gain weight, sugar will raise triglyceride levels, total cholesterol, and increase blood pressure


• Fructose-this is the worst kind of sugar because it has to be metabolized in your liver instead of in your intestines like glucose.

o   Your liver turns fructose into liver fat which causes metabolic problems.

o   Excess fructose shuts down the part of your brain that tells you when you are full; thus making overeating likely. Your Liver can only handle small quantities of fructose at any given time so excess fructose is stored as body fat instead of being burned as energy.

o   When you consume fructose in liquid form such as a soda, the effects not only speed up but are also magnified.

o   Fructose is not the preferred energy source for muscles or the brain

• It is more fat producing than glucose: basically fructose will pack on the pounds!


• Elevated insulin levels (caused by consuming too much processed sugar) give cancer tumors a boost by directing cancer cells to consume glucose.


• Some cancers actually contain insulin receptors, harnessing glucose to grow and spread.  For these cancers, eating sugar is like putting fuel on the fire.


• If you have cancer it is wise to remove all excess sugar from your diet: do your homework on this subject as hospitals will still give cancer patients foods loaded with sugar.  Yes, Ensure ( a common product given to cancer patients)  is filled with “crap” ingredients including sugar.  Read labels!


• Sugar is related to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease

o   There is still some debate however among neurologists and other medical professionals but research shows that sugar and other high refined carb type foods in excess age the brain and can increase the risk of dementia.

o   When you consume sugar in excess, it forms toxic compounds called advanced glycations end products (AGES)   Yes, sugar ages you!

o   Too much of the fast releasing glucose (which happens when you eat the refined carbs and sugary processed foods) overloads the brain cells which are less capable of handling this overload than the muscle cells.  (A high sugar, processed food diet can cause or contribute to depression)

o   So the more sugar and refined carbs you eat, the higher your insulin levels will be and then more peaks in your blood sugar levels.

o   These swings from high to low in your blood sugar will leave you tired, unable to concentrate and eventually over time it can lead to fading memory.

• Over time your body will become less responsive to its own insulin and will develop insulin resistant which is the precursor to diabetes


• And many are calling Alzheimer’s “type 3” diabetes.

Natural Alternatives

• If trying to eliminate sugar from your diet rather try to reduce your processed sugar intake. If you eliminate sugar completely from your diet you will also be eliminating very healthy choices such as some vegetables and fruits.  These are the foods that you do want in your diet!  You do need some sugar in your diet to fuel your muscles and keep your brain active.  So choose whole foods for your sugar source!  Beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, berries, apples and bananas are a few examples.

 

• Fruit is still the better option than processed food because it contains fiber and other vital nutrients needed for our health. Because of the fiber and additional nutrients, it does not cause the immediate spike in blood sugar that say a donut would that is void of additional nutrients.  However it is easy to go overboard on the fruit-2 servings per day only unless you are a very active person!

• Stevia Leaf to use as a sweetener. Not Truvia or PureVia which are processed products and not stevia in its pure form.

• Small amounts of raw honey and pure grade B Maple syrup.  Again, small amounts.  But these do contain some nutrients.  Use these in meals and snacks that are not cooked or cooked below 115 degrees as the heat will destroy the beneficial nutrients in these products.

Benefits of a Sugar Free Lifestyle

• Just read the “effects of sugar” to know the benefits of a processed sugar free lifestyle


• decreased cancer risk


• improved triglyceride levels


• manage weight/lose weight


• reduce diabetes risk


• healthy brain function


• reduce heart disease risk


• have more energy


• clearer more vibrant skin

Want to know more about how to stop those sugar cravings? Stay tuned for an article on  herbs and supplements to help when those cravings hit.

Sources

Bauman, E. & Friedlander, J. (2014) Therapeutic Nutrition.  Pengrove, CA: Bauman College

Ellison, S. (Set/Oct. 2015) Sugar.  Why it sabotages our health.  Onfitnessmagazine.com, vol. 16, no. 2.

Sboros, M.  (10/1/15)Love Sugar? You May Hate What It does to your Brain!

http://www.bznews.com/health/2015/10/01/love-sugar-remember-it-is-ageing-your-brain/

 

Karen Brennan, MSW, CNC, owner of Tru Foods Nutrition LLC and author of the Tru Foods Depression Free Nutrition Guide E book believes in getting to the root of your health issues instead of symptom management. For more information, visit her site at www.trufoodsnutrition.com

Fructose. What happens when you remove it from your diet?

Leading 15 Food items to Remove Anxiety

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If you&rsquore like most of us, coffee is much more than just a beverage, it&rsquos a way of lifestyle. There is rather significantly no difficulty that can&rsquot be solved with coffee…till now. Grabbing a cup of coffee a number of occasions a day might assist you go through the motions more simply, but [...]

Leading 15 Food items to Remove Anxiety

South African stories: "My hope is that we can remove our largest enemy"

On Christmas Eve 2010 my outlook on daily life changed significantly when I was diagnosed with multi drug-resistant tuberculosis (MD-R TB).

I was admitted to hospital, isolated and started on 7 diverse very toxic drugs. I in no way realised the troubles drug-resistant TB patients face when they have to comply with therapy. I in no way recognized the terrible side results of the medicines, such as irreversible side results like hearing reduction, that I however experienced. I couldn’t work as a physician anymore and with my hearing broken, I wondered if I would ever be in a position to choose up my stethoscope yet again.

I was incredibly lucky in gaining compassionate accessibility to the first new TB drug in in excess of 40 years. I managed to maintain the rest of my hearing and comprehensive treatment method right after 18 months. I was then capable to start off operating yet again as a medical doctor, but at this time I also began to dedicate time to TB advocacy. I co-founded an advocacy group referred to as TB Proof and grew to become a vocal advocate for others suffering from TB.

At the end of 2012 a prominent TB researcher heard my story and imagined it would be worth telling at the yearly International TB Conference. I did not have funding to go on the journey, even so thankfully the advocacy organisation Therapy Action Group made the decision to sponsor my trip. That presentation changed my daily life. I met international leaders in the discipline of TB and was invited to share my story on international platforms.

Back house in South Africa I also became mindful of the incredible threat healthcare employees face operating in our hospitals on a daily basis. Collectively with other occupational TB survivors and TB activist medical students we commenced an advocacy group with the aim to TB Proof our wellness care employees (similar to bulletproof vests for policeman). Our perform rapidly grew we commenced getting invitations to share these sessions with hospital and clinic staff all above the Cape Town area.

We saw that our TB Evidence sessions began to alter people’s attitudes and behaviours in direction of TB. Sharing our very own stories broke down the stigma, and encouraged an ever-rising quantity of wellness care workers and students to share their very own experiences of TB. This was exceptionally inspiring, and a vital 1st stage in acknowledging the extent of the problem and offering necessary care and help for TB sufferers.

It is critical to remember that TB is a social illness, preying on the disadvantaged and the marginalised. Till we deal with inequality, poverty and discrimination we will not achieve TB elimination, so these continue to be broader focal factors for our nation.

My biggest hope for South Africa is that we can get rid of our greatest enemy, the biggest killer in our country, and certainly in the background of mankind, mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Go through much more like this:

• 6 months following the death of Mandela: spotlight on South Africa’s rising stars

• South African stories: ‘I hope a lot more youthful changemakers rise up’

• South African stories: ‘I hope to one particular day see a unified nation’

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South African stories: "My hope is that we can remove our largest enemy"

Re-Engineering Healthcare To Remove Preventable Deaths

Joe Kiani is a hectic man.  As the founder, Chairman, and CEO of Masimo Corporation, a worldwide medical device manufacturer, Kiani has been a leader in patient safety and healthcare innovation for much more than twenty many years.  Under his leadership, Masimo has grown from a “garage start off-up” into a productive, publicly traded firm employing much more than 3,000 men and women around the world.

Kiani is also the founder of the non-revenue Patient Safety Movement Basis, with a mission to significantly minimize the much more than 200,000 preventable patient deaths that arise in U.S. hospitals every year from medical mistakes and hospital acquired infections (HAI).

With an engineering schooling, Kiani brings a slightly various, and refreshing, viewpoint to the complicated challenges facing the healthcare business.  This diverse viewpoint is what offers him hope that a lot of the essential adjust is achievable and can leverage what has presently been achieved by other industries.  Below are the highlights of my interview with Mr. Kiani.

Joe Kiani, Masimo CEO and Founder of the Patient Safety Motion Foundation (Image Supply: Masimo)

Szczerba:  The lack of interoperability of medical products in clinical environments has been blamed (both rightly or wrongly) for each increased fees and decreased good quality of care.  What do you feel the major impediments to interoperability have been? 

Kiani:  Any time you are dealing with a complex socio-technical system such as health information technological innovation (IT), you’re going to have substantial obstacles to accurate interoperability.

In healthcare, some of the roadblocks contain the sheer range of products, units, and technologies in the patient care method.  From patient diagnostic and monitoring gear, to administrative and electronic overall health record techniques, there are so numerous components that go into the patient care continuum that it is daunting to get so many varied factors to interoperate.

Likewise, varied clinical environments pose a challenge to interoperability.  The demands of a physician’s workplace, an emergency division, a health-related-surgical floor, and house health care are diverse.  Nevertheless, the identical patient may possibly knowledge all of individuals environments for the duration of the program of care.

Nevertheless, some of these issues can be conquer if the healthcare engineering businesses would be ready to share the information that their products collect.  That’s why the Patient Security Motion Basis has called on healthcare technological innovation firms to signal public pledges that they will share their data and make it the patient’s information, which will support develop a “Patient Information Super Highway” for every single patient.

If we can bring the monitors, therapeutic gadgets, and IT all together with intelligent, predictive algorithms in this Patient Data Super Highway, then doctors, along with sufferers and their households, can be informed of dangerous trends lives can be saved and the method of care can be improved substantially, even more lowering cost.

Szczerba:  The classic “blame game” for gadget interoperability issues has companies blaming gadget producers and gadget makers blaming regulatory agencies.  Do you really feel that companies bear some of the accountability with this issue?  If so, what role do you truly feel they need to play going forward?

Kiani:  The regulators are not the difficulty.  And, while I feel suppliers could workout their acquiring electrical power to dictate interoperability, in the long run the health care engineering organizations want to come with each other and supply interoperability answers.  Some healthcare technology organizations and suppliers pursue purchasing practices that create walled gardens, which block information sharing among their goods and distinct techniques.

We’ve been suggesting that Congress must grant the Workplace of the Nationwide Coordinator for Health Info Technologies (ONC) the authority to investigate and decertify merchandise that pursue information-blocking practices.  Whilst respectful of patient privacy laws beneath HIPAA, we should not give incentives or reimbursement to suppliers for purchasing products that do not openly share data with hospitals, sufferers, and all parties that can use the information to enhance patient security.

Technological innovation solutions need to openly share info, specifically when patients’ lives are dependent on it.

Szczerba:  What does the term “integrated clinical system” suggest to you?  Do you think the healthcare sector has a common understanding of what an integrated clinical system is, a lot much less how to develop and validate it?

Kiani:  An integrated clinical method is one particular that accomplishes sets of duties with each other, and offers choice help to all stakeholders.   In a healthcare setting, health care gadgets would report to every other so that the central electronic overall health record and relevant data would be offered to clinicians for the advantage of sufferers.

Re-Engineering Healthcare To Remove Preventable Deaths