General stuff: With the constantly increasing cost of energy I will periodically comment on my efforts to reduce my impact on the environment. One of the easiest ways to cut your costs is to switch out your incandescent bulbs for CFLs (compact fluorescent). I did this at home all at once. Prior to switching out, my electrical bills have never been under $200 a month even during non-AC months. Since I have light switch challenged members in my family, I switched all of my lights to CFLs one weekend. I have had 3 successive months of electrical bills under $100 and last month it was $49.50. It was a little expensive doing them all at once (over $200), but I paid for the extra cost in 2 months of use. I am looking for ways to do this at the office as well since my summer electrical bills are over $600/month. Other things one can do to minimize electrical usage is to turn off electrical strips to TVs, VCRs, etc. when they are not being used. Motion sensors in rooms is also another trick if you have light switched challenged family.
Just as a point of interest: a 150 watt equivalent CFL is the same as a 40 watt incandescent, a 90 watt CFL is 23 watts. As you can see that's a big difference in wattage.
Nutrition/Health News:
NSAIDs-Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories. These include things like ibuprofen, ketoprofen, Orudis, aspirin, Aleve, Celebrex, mobic, Advil, Naprosen, Indomethacin, etc.
- NSAIDs can lead to gastrointestinal bleeding in the form of ulcers by eroding the protective lining of the stomach and GI tract. This can cause acute gastritis.
- Rebound pain can result from prolonged use of NSAIDs.
- Nutritional approaches to controlling pain and inflammation and alternative can be used. Tylenol with nutritional anti-inflammatories (dietary-avoid red meat and high carb diets, eat more cold-water fish or take Fish Oil Supplements, use nutritional anti-inflammatories such as curcumin, boswellic acids, etc.).
- NSAIDs only treat the symptoms. Yes, they are quick fixes.
- I for one cannot use NSAIDs due to causing a erosive gastritis (pre-ulcer) by avoiding knee surgery by popping aspirin. I reaggravated that later with ibuprofen.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) notes that up to half of chronic NSAID users experience stomach and GI erosions and ulcers.
- Risks increase with poor health, getting older, taking corticosteroids and anti-coagulants, smoking, and long term use.
- NSAIDs should never be taken on an empty stomach.
Nutritional Highlights:
- Polyphenols: especially cocoa polyphenols, reduces insulin resistance and blood pressure in humans. It also improves arterial damage and may reduce overall mortality. It improves blood flow via vasodilation (opening vessels) reducing blood pressure, increasing circulating nitric oxide and lower vascular cell adhesion; reduces sticky platelets (modest) and has an additive effect with 81 mg aspirin; improves insulin sensitivity; increases blood flow to the brain improving cognitive performance; and serves as a source of anti-oxidants. How do you get cocoa polyphenols-dark chocolate is one source but it is rife with sugar and fat and inconsistent levels of polyphenols. Life Extension Foundation is one source of nutritional supplements with cocoa polyphenols.
- CoQ10 (ubiquinol is preferred)- this substance should be taken by those taking statin drugs (lipitor, zocor, etc.) due to statins reducing CoQ1o in the body. CoQ10 is important for cardiac function and benefits other organs such as the brain and kidneys that require high level energy metabolism.
- Atherosclerosis-SOD (superoxide dismutase) and pommegranate juice extract helps prevent and may reverse deadly atherosclerotic plaque (clogged arteries).
- Stress and Anxiety Relief without Tranquilizers: natural botanical extracts are available, one of which is as effective as the leading prescription drug to relieve anxiety and stress. Stress and anxiety lead to insomnia and impaired concentration. Medications generally produce unwanted side effects from sedation to memory problems. Theanine (derived from green tea) supports relaxation while allowing clear thinking. It may also supports healthy blood pressure, healthy weight management, and may provide support for some cancer therapies. Theanine dosages range from 100-400 mg/day with no know adverse reactions. Lemon balm extract is effective in relieving anxiousness and insomnia and helps boost cognitive performance and improves learning and retention. Dosages of lemon balm extract are 300 mg 1-2 times a day. There are no know contraindications.
- FISH OIL: Omega 3 fatty acids is the only dietary supplement the American Heart Association recommends people consider taking. EPA and DHA in fish oils are the key ingredients. A recent study found that the risk of unstable angina or heart attack was reduced by 62% for every 1.24% increase in whole blood EPA/DHA. In a 2002 NEJM study lower levels of EPA/DHA were found in people dying suddenly of a heart attack.
- Vitamin D: Numerous studies show greater vitamin D levels could reduce cancers of the breast, prostate, colon, esophagus, pancreas, ovary, rectum, bladder, kidney, lung and uterus as well as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and multiple myeloma. Additional research on vitamin D shows reduction in Type 1 diabetes with children, type 2 diabetes with calcium, decreased falls in elderly, decreased multiple sclerosis in women taking 400 IU/day. Government recommendations are: 200 IU/day for children, 400 IU/day 51-70 years of age, and 600 IU/day over 70 are considered out of date. Blood levels should be in the area of 30-50 ng/mL which ideal intake may be in the area of 1000 to 4000 IU/day depending on what your baseline level is already. Toxicity occurs above 150 ng/mL in the blood.
- Joint Support- in addition to glucosamine and chondroitan sulfate, joint support may be helped with newly developed compounds from keratin, Hyaluronic acid and Korean Angelica. Angelica has anti-inflammatory characteristics as well as beneficial affects for the brain and Alzheimer's, potent pain relief and may help in treating some cancers. Decursinol-50 is the specialized extract. Angelica acts on the central nervous system to suppress inflammation. Oral hyaluronic acid helps with joint pain from arthritis and may improve joint lubrication and alleviate inflammation. Keratin acts as a powerful anti-oxidant and supports production of a protective anti-oxidant enzyme. It is a source of sulfur essential for joint resilience.
