May

Ever drank out of a plastic water bottle? 
Ever heated your food in a plastic container? 

It is not breaking news that plastic has become an environmental hazard.  Plastics are filling our oceans, rivers, backing up landfill areas and contaminating wildlife. It is no secret that plastics have become ever present in modern times.  It is more than obvious that plastics pose a monumental threat to our environment from land, air to sea.  Not to get even more depressing, but to be honest they are also impacting YOU!

However, this is not your fault.  We were not warned when the plastic craze came about:  First with storing our food, then body products, then with the plastic bottled water craze to avoid chemicals in our tap water.  It is a sad affair how detrimental plastics have become to our environment and the continued excessive dependence on plastic.  However, less obvious has been the impact of plastics on human health.  In the last few years research has been emerging and is gaining momentum.  It is undeniable that phthalates have a detrimental impact on human health.

What are phthalates

Phthalates are in plastic. Phthalates are a chemical that help to make plastic pliable, bendable.  Ever squeezed in a water bottle and felt it give and take.  Well, phthalates are making that possible. 

Phthalates are also hidden in body products (makeup, moisturizers, hair products, etc.) and most things with a scent (perfumes, Glade Plug Ins).  They are what the scent binds to for staying power.

Unfortanately, phthalates don’t just stay  put.  They seep into the water you are drinking from plastic bottles, leach into food when even slightly heated, get absorbed into your skin, and respiratory system.  The result?  They end up in you and stay in you!

Why the worry?

1. Well, phthalates don’t just go into your body and then leave.  They are “lipid soluble”.  That means they love fat.  So they hang around for waaay too long – in your fat.  While they are hanging around for lord knows how many years they trigger your body to make more fat.  They can degrade something called your insulin receptors, this can lead to insulin resistance.  Insulin resistance is marked by abdominal weight and is a precursor to prediabetes, cardiovascular disease and various cancers.
2. They create “oxidative stress” in your cell’s mitochondria.  Oxidative stress is toxic so your body has to use it’s own antioxidants the fight the oxidative stress.  The mitochondria is where we produce energy.  The mitochondria is then unable to produce adequate energy.  The result, your energy cycle is decreased.
   
3. Our brain is one of the most mitochondria intense environments in our body.  When our brain’s mitochondria are fighting oxidative stress, the mitchondria get very tired, lose their vitality and can die. 
   
4. They are xenoestrogens.  This means that they replicate the action of estrogen and can trigger excess weight gain and estrogen sensitive breast cancers.
5. Phthalates get passed on with reproduction.  Babies are being born with high phthalates from their parents exposure preconception.  This is setting their stage for endocrine and obesity issues. Scary.  What a wake up call for preconception.  
6. Additionally, they decrease testosterone, steroids and impact the production of your happy hormone, serotonin.
   

So, that is just a snapshot of how phthalates could be making you feel fat, foggy and fatigued.  Have no fear, there IS something you can do about it.

Tips for Phthalate Reduction in your life

1. Don't let phthalates seep into what you eat!  Store food in glass containers NOT plastic.  Check out this site for durable glassware for storing food.  http://www.anchorhocking.com
2. Avoid plastic water bottles.  Get a Klean Kantine or glass bottle to store your filtered water. http://www.kleankanteen.com
3. Don't lather yourself in phthalates. Check your body products to make sure they don’t contain phthalates and other harmful chemicals.   http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com
   

Find out if you are Phthalate toxic

If you are concerned that phthalates could be making you feel fat, foggy and fatigued don’t be alarmed.  You can do something about it.   You can get tested.  In my practice I run the gold standard test for assessing phthalates.   It is a very simple urine test that you do at home.  It will show you if you have high phthalates, and how you are detoxifying them and how those phthalates are impacting your ability to burn fat and create energy.  In my practice I  create a detoxification and nutrition program tailored to your unique test results and needs to help you get rid of the toxins and repair your metabolism. If you would like to learn more about this, please write me at www.getnourished.tv to set up a consult time. 


May you be well and thrive!
Sarah

Ever wonder what makes your body age?  Or what makes your body create disease?  Well, once again science has pointed at the same implicating factor of aging. This most resent research follows the discovery of three different genes which all significantly increase the chances of living past 100.   These genes indicate the implicating factor of aging is the sensitivity of our cells to "insulin".

The human body and brain require a steady amount of glucose throughout the day.  Glucose comes from the foods we eat. Insulin is a powerful hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates the level of glucose (sugar). Here is how it works:

• Insulin opens the door to your cells for sugar to get in. So, basically, insulin keeps our blood sugar under control.
• When blood glucose levels are high, insulin stimulates cells in the liver, muscles, and fat. These cells combine glucose into something called glycogen, which essentially stores energy for later use.
• BUT, if someone has too much sugar and carbohydrate intake over a long period of time insulin WILL get very tired of hearing the message over and over to store MORE sugar into the cells and it won’t be able to store the sugar anymore in the cells to be used for energy.
• The result is Insulin Resistance.  
• Insulin Resistance is when insulin can not open the door of your cells for the sugar to be burned.  Too much sugar begins to damage the tissues of the body and is also stored as fat and Triglycerides.  Insulin is a fat storage hormone.  It is also one of the most potent growth hormones that can generate cancers.
• Excess Insulin also wears down our “telomeres”.  Telomeres are like socks at the end of our DNA that prevent our DNA from degrading.  Too much insulin over a long period of time degrades (and ages) your DNA.
  

 

Insulin Resistance is a very serious matter and growing rampant in this country and around the world.  It has been shown to increase systemic inflammation, degrade collagen (increase wrinkles), cause mismanagement of lipids (increase bad cholesterol & Triglycerides), increase risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and neuro-degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.  In other words, insulin (unmanaged) causes aging.

 

So, how do you prevent this?  Well, it's easy.  You eat a glycemically balanced diet and exercise regularly. This means you eat an ideal proportion of clean lean proteins, healthy fats, low starch carbs, minimal high starch carbs and super foods. Watch out for the high starch, sugary foods since they turn into sugar quickly in the blood stream.  Remember, this requires excess insulin to be released.  Bottom line, too much insulin being released over a long period of time will lead to insulin resistance...this will lead to a decreased sensitivity to insulin and therefore higher insulin levels and sugar levels in your blood stream.  Not good.

 

If you are confused and tired of trying to figure out “when what and how" to eat, contact me at www.getnourished.tv for a free 30 minute strategy session where I will share with you the latest in nutritional science, that will help you balance your blood sugar and prevent insulin spikes, all the while eating yummy, satiating meals.  Through my simple diet and lifestyle strategies you can discover effortless weight loss, increased energy and focus, regulated blood sugar and less aches and allergies too.  Healthy lifestyle habits and eating nutrient dense, glycemically balanced meals (and snacks!) are the foundation to preventing chronic disease and premature aging.

 

In the meantime, here are a few tips to incorporate into your life TODAY.

1. Sleep - Get AT LEAST 7-8 hours of solid sleep per night.  Recent research shows that just ONE night of LESS than 7 hours of sleep, increases your risk of insulin resistance.  Yep, sleepless nights increases insulin AND lowers your growth hormone which keeps you young.
   
2. Stress - Manage your stress.  Research shows that high stress increases insulin.  Try deep breathing exercises when feeling overwhelmed.  Breath in for a count of 8 and out for a count of eight. 
   
3. Exercise - And I don't mean for long arduous hours of aerobic exercise.  I mean exercise EFFECTIVELY with "burst" exercise. Short burst of about 30 seconds of all out effort (running, biking or walking) followed by a recovery for twice as long, ie. one minute.  This decreases insulin.  Long arduous aerobic actually raises our stress hormones thus raising insulin.  Result = you gain fat.
4. Glycemically balanced meals - Simple as this - 

• clean, lean protein
  
• lots of low starch veggies
  
• limited starchy carbs
  
• Healthy fats (ie, olive oil, hemp oil, avocado, nuts and seeds) 
• Super Foods - green powders,  nuts and seeds, sea veggies (nori, dulse, etc)
  

 For a quick overview of glycemically balanced meals, sign up for my 5-Day Free Video Report Series on my home page. 

Here's to you and your success to Get Nourished, be well and thrive!

 Sarah

www.getnourished.tv