ASKDOCTORANCA

If you think you are having a heart attack, immediately call 911. Read the rest of this entry »

Summer is a great time to be outside and enjoy the weather. But summer activities bring additional risks to your health. Be sure to be safe this summer by knowing these top 10 summer health risks. A little bit of prevention can keep your summer safe. Read the rest of this entry »

“Cool it!”

That’s the advice going out Wednesday night from the  Health Department, especially to the elderly, and parents of infants and toddlers. Read the rest of this entry »

New York City and Toronto both broke a record at 1:00 p.m., and the temperature just kept rising on the hottest day of the summer so far. Read the rest of this entry »

To cool down, don’t reach for that beer. Try a slushie instead. Read the rest of this entry »

You could say that mosquitoes and other annoying insects are the price we pay for warm summer breezes and sunny skies. Read the rest of this entry »

COMPLEXITIES OF VITAMIN D

Vitamin D3, also known as cholecalciferol, is a secosteroid structurally similar to steroids, such as, testosterone, cholesterol and cortisone. Read the rest of this entry »

Now that the warm weather is here most of us will be spending more time outdoors, playing, working or just hanging around. All of this outdoor activity is not without its perils. Read the rest of this entry »

One of my favorite springtime foods is a large salad. While some might consider this rabbit food, I would beg to differ since certain salads have enough substance to be considered a full- on meal. This recipe combines pungent celeriac, dark dandelion greens, and the sweet note of blood oranges and beets to make a lovely medley of flavors. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine theory, beets aid in clearing a congested or stagnated liver. This also makes sense from a Western standpoint since beets help to thin out bile, thereby allowing for the smooth flow of qi.

Liver Lovin’ Springtime Salad

1 organic celeriac peeled

3 organic golden beets cubed

3 small organic blood oranges

¼ pound of organic baby arugula

¼ pound of organic dandelion

1 organic garlic bulb, roasted

¼ cup organic chives diced

Preheat oven to 400F.

Peel away the outer layer of the garlic keeping the bulb intact. Chop ¼ off the top of the bulb, exposing the inner cloves of the bulb. Place on a sheet of parchment paper and drizzle olive oil over the garlic. Wrap the entire clove with parchment paper, wrapping under garlic to secure it. Place in oven and bake for 30-35 minutes as you prepare the rest of the salad.

Place cubed beets  in a steamer and steam for about 15 minutes until soft. Set aside in a bowl. In the meantime, peel celeriac’s skin and discard. Continue to peel away at the celeriac to get long strips – don’t worry if some of them are short. Place in a bowl along with arugula, dandelion and beets. Chop chives and add to bowl.

Peel blood oranges and remove white pith. Cut into ¼ inch slices and add to bowl.

By this point the garlic should be ready to remove from oven. Allow to cool, and begin to make salad dressing (see below). With a small knife, cut around each garlic clove and remove with fingers or a cocktail fork. Add to salad.

Dijon Honey salad dressing

¼ cup olive oil

1 Tbsp organic Dijon mustard

1 tsp honey (or to taste)

Juice from one organic lemon

For salad dressing combine all ingredients into a small jar, close and shake vigorously. Pour over salad and eat immediately.

By eating according to the spring season we can discard the old and allow new energy to flow in. So eat your greens, breathe deeply, and welcome in the new change with seasonal foods under your belt.

Spring is a time of detoxing and inner cleansing. If you are considering a detox this spring, be sure to add probiotics (good bacteria) to your routine. There are three main steps to detoxing: 1) clean 2) capture 3) sweep. In step one, your body’s detoxing organs (for example, your skin, lymph, blood, liver and kidneys) work to clean out toxins hiding within your body. They send these toxins to your liver. In step two, the liver adds these toxins to bile and sends them into your intestines. Fibre in your intestines traps the toxins so you will not re-absorb them. Step three involves the colon. Sweeping or moving the toxin-filled fibre out of your body is very important. If left too long in your colon, the toxins can cause damage to the tissues. Cascara sagrada and magnesium hydroxide are two supplements commonly used to help sweep out waste from the colon. 

This sweeping is the step in which probiotics fit into cleansing. How? Certain species of beneficial bacteria help sweep out the colon and it can be used to promote colon health during a cleanse. However, your colon is not the only part of your intestines affected by a cleanse. The increased amount of toxins in your intestines during a cleanse can cause damage to your probiotic populations. Therefore, it may also be beneficial to replenish your probiotic populations after cleanse.

Replenish your probiotics

Rapidly replenishing the intestinal tract with probiotics after a cleanse can help ensure the intestines do not become a host to infections. Your intestines are like a parking lot. If there are spaces in your intestinal parking lot left empty after it experiences the high toxic load of a cleanse, bad microbes (for example, salmonella) take over. Make sure that these empty parking spaces, which are filled on a first-come first-served basis, are filled by probiotics not bad bacteria. Include a high-dosage probiotic  to your cleansing program to keep your intestines healthy and happy.

Health effects of probiotics

• Boost immunity
• Prevent diarrhea/constipation
• Improve vitamin synthesis (use by the body)
• Help with lactose digestion
• Prevent yeast infections and urinary tract infections
• Promote health of heart and bones

Making a good choice

When selecting the probiotic to add in your cleansing program, choose one that includes both lactobacilli and bifidobacteria species. These  probiotics live in your small and large intestine respectively. Using this type of probiotic product will help ensure that your entire intestinal tract is replenished, not just one part. Look for a product that contains a variety of probiotic species. Your intestinal tract contains over 40 different species of probiotics, so using a product with many species is beneficial because it mimics your natural, healthy probiotic environment. Select a probiotic product that contains prebiotics. Prebiotics encourage probiotics to grow and flourish in your intestines. Adding prebiotics to your probiotic supplement offers additional help because prebiotics promote the health of your existing probiotics populations.

Make bifidobacteria your friend

The health of your colon is important. The colon is not just a holding tank for waste; it is also the site of vitamin synthesis (usage by the body). Probiotics called bifidobacteria live in your colon and help synthesize B vitamins, which you need to feel energized. Bifidobacteria also help convert vitamin K in foods to vitamin K2, the form your bones need to stay strong and healthy, as well as play a role in boosting your immunity. Bifidobacteria help to detox, too! When your colon contains bifidobacteria, it has lower amounts of putrefactive substances (harmful toxins caused by “putrefying” or rotting food). This means that your colon tissue is less likely to be damaged. A product that contains Bifidobacteria longum, a particular strain of probiotics, has been shown in clinical trials to help increase fecal movement and improve the health of the colon. Not sure if you have a healthy colon? Frequently illness and diarrhea or constipation are signs that your colon is unhealthy. Cleaning up this spring? If you are detoxing or inner cleansing, add probiotics to your program. Then you can enjoy health from the inside out.