| Dr. Cutler's True Health Blog | November 12, 2008 |
Controlling Acid Reflux—So It Doesn’t Control You
Is acid reflux taking over your life? Acid reflux is a backflow of acid from the stomach into the swallowing tube, or esophagus. By the time you reach 50, the small ring of muscle—a “valve” called the esophageal sphincter—at the bottom of the esophagus can weaken and allow stomach acid and food to escape back up into the esophagus.
The most common symptoms of acid reflux are chest pain and heartburn. It may also result in stomach acid and contents rising in the back into your throat, and ejecting through your mouth, or regurgitation. It may be followed by a bitter taste in your mouth and a burning pain in your throat.
Since these symptoms often rear their heads at night—lack of sleep, exhaustion and low energy levels are common problems that result from the condition.
And over time, the digestive acids can begin to eat away at the lining of your esophagus, possibly leading to esophageal cancer—a disease that kills about 13,000 Americans each year.
What you need is a proper balance of stomach acid levels. You need your stomach to produce acid during meals… not between meals. And the “good” stomach acid you need is called hydrochloric acid (HCl). In fact, you need about two grams of HCl to digest a simple meal—but by age 50, many of us are lacking about 85 percent of the HCl that we need!
And scientists have also discovered that the prescription and over-the-counter drugs intended to neutralize and kill the bad acids in your stomach are also destroying the necessary good levels of HCl.
Another possible cause of your acid reflux could be a lack of critical digestive enzymes—they break down the foods you eat so they can get absorbed into your body. Unfortunately, as you get older, you produce fewer digestive enzymes, which can cause acid reflux.
So what is the solution? Many suggestions have been offered—don’t smoke… don’t overeat… avoid alcohol and high fat meals—all very sensible advice for overall health.
But you may have been told to avoid your favorite foods and beverages… sit upright for an hour after eating… or prop up the head of your bed to help you sleep. What a pain!
I suggest you take an all-natural supplement to give you the needed levels of good HCl during meals, and to help stop too much “bad” acid production between meals. And for this, I highly recommend my True Health™ Ultimate Digestion Formula™.
Posted in Acid/Alkaline Balance, Acidity, General Health.
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| Dr. Cutler's True Health Blog |
Satisfaction With Your Beliefs Affects Your Happiness!
Did you know that your satisfaction with your beliefs dramatically affects your happiness with your life? Consider your beliefs in the following areas:
- Your body, weight, size or shape—Do your beliefs about your body bring hurt or depression… or do you see it as a great gift that allows you to experience life and learn from it?
- Your beliefs about your family relationships—Decide which relationship needs improving. List five reasons why this person is wonderful and five reasons why you love him/her. Give the list to the person before the day ends.
Consider your answers to these questions, and your willingness to complete the exercise. Your beliefs of how life should look may be holding you back without you even knowing it!
Posted in General Health, Stress.
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| Dr. Cutler's True Health Blog |
Dr. Cutler’s Whole Food Recipes…
Here’s a perfect soup for you and your family to enjoy on a cool
fall day…
Spinach Salmon Soup
2-3 veggie/herb bouillon cubes
6-8 cups water
6-8 green onions, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2-3 medium zucchini, finely chopped
2-3 salmon fillets (fresh or frozen)
1 cup honey mustard dressing
2 cups cooked brown rice (Takes 15 minutes in a rice cooker)
4 cups fresh large, or baby, leaf spinach
Feta cheese, crumbled (use to taste)
Sea salt (season to taste)
Cook brown rice— if not already prepared. In the meantime, boil bouillon cubes, water, green onions, yellow onion, garlic and zucchini for 10 minutes. Turn down to medium heat. In a separate pan, broil salmon fillets in about 1 cup honey-mustard dressing. Chop salmon into bite-size pieces and put into soup broth. Add 2 cups cooked brown rice. Just before serving, add 4 cups of fresh spinach. Add crumbled feta cheese as desired. Season with sea salt to taste.
Posted in General Health, Healthy Living, Weight Loss, Weight Management, Whole Food Nutrition.
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| Dr. Cutler's True Health Blog | November 5, 2008 |
Discover Whole Foods to Lower Your Bad Cholesterol Levels!
Cholesterol is a vital natural substance needed for overall health and essential brain function, but when your “bad” LDL levels are too high, some cholesterol clings to the walls of your blood vessels. This causes your blood vessels to narrow and blood flow to decrease, leaving you open to experience a life-threatening heart disaster.
Did you know that more than 102 million Americans have these unhealthy cholesterol levels? And more than 20 million Americans are taking popular cholesterol-lowering statin drugs like Lipitor® —the most commonly prescribed drug available in the United States.
But new research shows statin drugs—including Lipitor® —are not providing the “heart attack protection” for women that they are claiming. And new studies in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) are showing staggering health problems caused by these drugs—fatigue… memory loss… heart damage… blood sugar problems… and serious decreases of the nutrient CoEnzyme Q10.
So, is there a natural and safe way to lower your bad LDL cholesterol and increase your good HDL cholesterol? You bet!
Increase your intake of soluble dietary fiber. To do this, I recommend six servings of vegetables and three servings of fruit, beans and grains daily. Here are some examples of these cholesterol-lowering whole foods:
- One vegetable serving equals either 1 cup raw veggies, 1⁄2 cup cooked veggies, one potato or 1⁄2 cup cooked rice.
- One fruit serving equals either 1 cup raw fruits or 1⁄2 cup cooked fruits, or a medium-sized piece such as an apple, orange or banana.
- One serving of beans equals either 1 cup lima, kidney or pinto beans. These count as one vegetable serving.
- One serving of grain equals either 2 slices of whole-grain bread, 1⁄2 cup cooked corn, oats or wheat. High fiber cereal is also a great source of whole grain.
We need about 75 grams of fiber daily to prevent disease. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) report by the government places average consumption of fiber at 12 grams—less than one-sixth of what we really need!
So eating plenty of whole foods that are high in soluble fiber is the answer to controlling your cholesterol levels—the safe and natural way! And your heart will thank you for it!
Posted in General Health, Healthy Living.
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| Dr. Cutler's True Health Blog |
It’s Not Fat—It’s Z Trim!
Have you heard about the fat replacement ingredient called Z Trim®? This calorie-free fat substitute is a pretty good way to prepare healthier foods in your own home. Z Trim® can give food the fat taste without truly being fat-filled. It comes in a gel or powder form. And here is some more info about the product:
- Z Trim® has zero calories, so it lowers calories by replacing fats and sugars; it can replace as much as half the fat without altering the taste or texture of the food.
- It’s made from grains grown in nature, although it’s not a “whole food.”
- Z Trim® claims to supplement your food with dietary fiber, even though it’s processed.
- Study results from the Edward Heart Hospital in Naperville, Illinois, and Eastern Illinois University showed that Z Trim® doesn’t cause diarrhea, stomach cramps or anal leakage like some other fat substitutes.
- Z Trim® is gluten-free, odorless and taste-free.
Its smooth texture gives it many applications; baked goods made with it are moist and have a good texture with no aftertaste.
Z Trim® was developed in 1998 by a scientist at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It’s a gel consisting of 96 percent water and 4 percent fiber. The fiber is made from hulls of oats, soybeans, peas, rice or corn, and wheat bran. These ingredients are processed into microscopic fragments that are dried and milled into a powder. The fragments swell to make a fat-quenching food product when added to water. Applications for Z Trim® include:
- Baked Goods: Bread, cake, muffins, pizza crust, tortilla, pancakes and other batters.
- Dairy Products: Cream cheese, ice cream, yogurt, frozen novelties, cream, margarine, coffee, whitener and cheese powder.
- High Fat Foods: Gravies, dips, salad dressings and peanut butter.
- Meats: Sausages, frankfurters, burger patties, meatballs and marinades.
- Beverages: Supplement to juice, and noncarbonated beverages and drink powders.
- Confections: Coated products and candies.
- Condiments, seasonings, soups, snacks, cereals and medical foods.
The makers of Z Trim® report the product to be side effect-free, and the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has reported Z Trim® to have no safety concerns.
In the fall of 2007, Consumer Reports magazine voiced approval for the product. They named flatulence as a possible side effect, which could be the result of the increased intake of fiber.
But the main drawbacks they reported were the availability and price of Z Trim®. It can be hard to find—except online—and it’s expensive.
Consumer Reports indicated the following: “We paid $5 for a 1.18-pound bottle, plus shipping ($8.95 for one bottle; slightly more for extras). Per tablespoon, that totals as much as 40 cents, far more than butter (about 15 cents in our area), mayonnaise (about 6 to 10 cents), and vegetable oil (about 5 cents).”
Since Z Trim® has been shown to safely reduce calories and fat, I think I’ll give it a whirl in my kitchen! I believe it will fit in with my 90 Days to True Health™ program…
Posted in General Health, Healthy Living, Weight Loss, Weight Management, Whole Food Nutrition.
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