That’s because not only is it challenging to treat, but also the fact that chemotherapy and targeted therapies can often only be used to control symptoms and slow the cancer progression, rather than cure it.

Unfortunately, rates of liver and bile duct cancer have skyrocketed in recent years, with one in 125 men and women expected to be diagnosed with hepatocellular cancer over the course of their lives.

Luckily, researchers at the University of Delaware may have just made a breakthrough in liver cancer care, using a molecule found in a tropical fruit that could provide a low-cost, powerful treatment.

Here are the details…

Pioneering new cancer treatment pathways

Guava may be tropical, but chances are you can find it in a local grocery store. It’s sweet or tangy, depending on ripeness, and even the seeds are edible.

But its real claim to fame is its anticancer potential…

In 2010 and 2013, studies found that guava extracts helped reduce tumor size in prostate cancer. In 2022, a study identified guava leaf extract as a potential candidate for liver cancer therapy.

But extracting enough of guava’s cancer-fighting molecules to mass-produce a treatment is no easy task.

“The majority of clinically approved medicines are either made from a natural product or are based on one,” explains associate professor William Chain, associate professor in the University of Delaware’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. “But there aren’t enough natural resources to make enough treatments.”

So, he and his team found a workaround that opens the door to more effective — and cheaper — treatments for liver cancer.

Using a process called natural product total synthesis, they have developed a pathway that utilizes widely available chemicals to synthesize the cancer-fighting molecules found in guava.

“Now chemists will be able to take our manuscripts and basically follow our ‘recipe’ and they can make it themselves,” Chain said.

And now, not only can guava molecules be synthesized to improve liver cancer treatment, the team is also working with the National Cancer Institute to pit the molecule against other types of cancers.

Guava’s secret: Powerful nutrition

When a food comes to the forefront in the fight against cancer, you can delve into its nutritional content and uncover chemopreventive clues as to why…

The leaves of the guava fruit contain potent polyphenols that exhibit strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The seed, fruit and leaves are also rich in vitamins, folic acid, fiber, carotenoids and fatty acids.

Known cancer-fighting nutrients found in guava include:

• Vitamin C — a potent antioxidant that acts upon free radicals and helps in body detoxification.
• Apigenin — reported to inhibit the cell proliferation of various cancer lines.
• Lycopene — a free radical scavenger, it also acts as an anti-proliferative, anti-metastatic and apoptotic agent. Guava contains more lycopene than watermelon.
• And Kaempferol, which possesses potential anti-carcinogenic and anti-proliferative properties.

Guava has been used medicinally in countries such as India, Malaysia and China. In those countries, it’s not uncommon to boil the leaves to create a liquid extract, also called a decoction. However, it may cause stomach upset and temporary pain and shouldn’t be taken in large quantities.

Eating a guava a day, even a few slices in yogurt or a smoothie, may be more enjoyable.

Sources:

Guava’s secret molecule could fight liver cancer – ScienceDaily

Antitumor effect of guava leaves extract on Ehrlich Ascites carcinoma in mice in vitro and in vivo — Biochemistry Letters

Guava: A potent anticancer fruit—ADMAC Oncology

Liver Cancer – Cleveland Clinic

The post Guava’s secret liver cancer-fighting molecule appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

In other words, the average level of testosterone for a 45, 55 or 65-year-old man is lower than that of a man of the same age in 2010 — which was lower than that of a man of the same age in 2000!

The question is — why are testosterone levels declining so dramatically? And is there anything you can do to support your testosterone levels?

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Why men’s testosterone levels have dropped

While T levels decline with age, maintaining hormonal balance is more complex. Problems in one area of your health can sneak up and lead to problems in the endocrine system (headquarters for hormonal health).

Three health problems, in particular, have risen to almost epidemic proportions in the U.S. in the past several years, and they all have one thing in common — they can tank testosterone levels…

#1 – Type 2 diabetes

Testosterone is required to help all of the tissues in your body take up blood sugar in response to insulin. It’s no wonder then that men with low T levels are far more likely to have insulin resistance, meaning their bodies have to churn out more insulin to to keep their blood sugar in the normal range.

According to the American Diabetes Association, “If you have Type 2 diabetes, you are twice as likely to suffer from low testosterone as a man without diabetes.”

#2 – Liver problems

Studies show that men with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD (a condition where there is an excess buildup of triglycerides in the liver), have reduced total testosterone.

Untreated, NAFLD can progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and after that, possibly cirrhosis. 75 percent to 90 percent of men with these conditions experience extremely low T.

#3 – Obesity

Obesity is also a driving force behind the low T epidemic. One study showed that 30 percent of overweight men had low T, versus just six percent of those with weight in the normal range

Estrogen dominance can cause abdominal weight gain. That’s because elevated estrogen levels signal the body to reduce testosterone production and store more fat.

Estrogen dominance is a condition that occurs when fake estrogens disrupt hormonal balance and surprisingly can cause health problems for both men and women. In men, low T can impact stamina, muscle tone and prostate health as well as weight gain.

How to fight testosterone theft

While men’s testosterone levels have been under assault for quite a while now, you’re not powerless to do something about it…

First and foremost is to ensure you don’t fall victim to any of the three health conditions that make you a target for low T and declining health.

Many of the steps you can take to improve your health can also improve your testosterone levels, including:

High-intensity interval training and resistance training seem to be especially effective at boosting testosterone.

Eating a high-quality diet of protein, fruits and vegetables and healthy fats is also important (a keto diet has shown real benefits for Low T).

Stress management reduces the stress hormone cortisol which can cause weight gain and lower testosterone.

But you also need to face up to fake estrogens which are almost inescapable in our environment. Luckily, there’s a way to flush them out of your body…

The secret is a compound called Di-Indole Methane, or DIM for short, which is found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage.

DIM can reduce estrogen levels in the body by stimulating the breakdown of estrogen into beneficial metabolites.

But it takes far more of this little compound than what you can get by sitting down to a dinner packed with veggies.

In fact, it would take a minimum of three pounds of broccoli every day to grab all of DIM’s hormone-supporting benefits. Fortunately, the nutrient is available in supplement form.

Sources:

Why Are Testosterone Levels Decreasing? – Cleveland Clinic

Low Testosterone – American Diabetes Association

8 Major Factors That Cause Low Testosterone Levels – Men’s Health

Low Testosterone (Male Hypogonadism) – Cleveland Clinic

Testosterone in men with advanced liver disease: Abnormalities and implications – Wiley Online Library

Low Testosterone in Males May Warrant Liver Health Assessment and Intervention – NIH

Relevance of low testosterone to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease – NIH

Low Testosterone and Your Health – WebMD

Responses of sex steroid hormones to different intensities of exercise in endurance athletes – The Physiological Society

Endocrinological Roles for Testosterone in Resistance Exercise Responses and Adaptations – NIH

Testosterone-Associated Dietary Pattern Predicts Low Testosterone Levels and Hypogonadism – MDPI

Manipulation of Dietary Intake on Changes in Circulating Testosterone Concentrations – MDPI

Low-fat diets and testosterone in men: Systematic review and meta-analysis of intervention studies – Science Direct

Stress, cortisol, and other appetite-related hormones: Prospective prediction of 6-month changes in food cravings and weight – Wiley Online Journal

The post 3 health conditions that steal your testosterone appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Now, there are some organs we can continue on without. But the liver is not one of them.

The liver performs hundreds of vital functions, including regulating blood sugar and controlling blood clotting, metabolizing nutrients, and, of course, removing toxins and waste from the bloodstream.

We know that alcohol’s harm to the liver is a direct punch. However, new research has revealed that it’s actually a one-two punch…

What I mean is that, while alcohol is directly attacking the liver, it’s also opening the door to invaders that also play an active role in wreaking havoc on the liver.

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Alcohol lets bacteria into the liver

Let’s start with a primer on what alcohol does to the liver…

• Alcohol harms the liver by triggering inflammation and the buildup of fat, kickstarting fatty liver disease (not to be confused with NAFLD or MAFLD).
• The chemical acetaldehyde, which is produced when the liver metabolizes alcohol, accelerates this harmful process. It’s also considered a carcinogen.
• Continued drinking can lead to alcoholic hepatitis, characterized by inflamed and damaged liver cells.
• The most severe stage, irreversible cirrhosis, involves the formation of scar tissue that disrupts liver function and can end in liver failure. 

However, a study at UC San Diego has uncovered a previously unobserved series of events that causes even more damage to the liver…  

When scientists examined human liver biopsies, they found that chronic alcohol use impaired the production of a cellular signaling protein in the small intestine known as mAChR4.

When levels of this protein are lower, it interferes with the formation of cells known as goblet cell-associated antigen passages, or GAPs. These GAPs play a key role in teaching the immune system to respond to microbes that escape the gut.

Without this layer of protection, gut bacteria escape and enter vital organs, including the liver, where they compound the damage already being done by alcohol.

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Added protection for your liver

So when it comes to the liver, the best thing to do it avoid alcohol. But the researchers know that advice is not always easy for everyone.

They hope that by developing drugs that boost levels of mACHR, it may be possible to reverse the series of events that do so much harm to the liver and afford some level of protection.

But ultimately, alcohol is a toxin that directly damages the cells responsible for the tight junctures in the lining of the gut. Alcohol-induced inflammation makes the damage to the lining worse — increasing permeability.

Together, that creates a condition known as leaky gut, which allows bacteria of all sorts to not only reach the liver but also other organs.

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggest limiting alcohol to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men.

But it’s important to note that even low amounts are still associated with serious health risks, and for some individuals, especially those over 65, the recommended limit should be even lower. 

Sources:

Vicious Cycle Revealed: How Alcohol Helps Gut Bacteria Attack Your Liver — Science Alert

Alcohol Opens the Floodgates for Bad Bacteria — UC San Diego

The post Alcohol’s hidden partner in the attack on your liver appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Chemicals and toxins we’re exposed to daily — through personal care products, pesticides in foods, furniture, household items and plastic — disrupt the endocrine system and affect the liver’s normal functions, including its ability to detoxify the bloodstream.

Overwhelmed by chemicals, it becomes less able to break down fats and waste and these poisons get stored in the liver and other parts of the body.

According to doctors at Harvard, it’s an issue that affects 20 percent to 40 percent of the US population.

The reason for the wide variance in estimates is what makes fatty liver so dangerous.

You see, like heart disease, the condition can be a “silent killer” since many people never notice they have an issue until serious — or even irreversible — damage has occurred.

That’s because signs that your liver is struggling can be subtle. However, they can be spotted if you know what to look for.

And even better, catching the symptoms of liver issues early can give you the ability to stop the damage and let your liver heal.

Here are the early symptoms of liver problems to watch out for:

#1 – Swollen ankles

Puffy or bloated ankles could be a sign that your liver is shutting down.

You see, your liver is responsible for making a protein known as albumin. Albumin is what your blood vessels use to prevent fluid from leaking into the surrounding tissue.

However, if your liver is packed with fat and inflamed, it simply can’t function.

Levels of albumin go down and fluid starts seeping from those blood vessels and pooling in your legs, ankles, and abdomen.

#2 – Fatigue

According to a 2019 study, published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology, “The liver is central in the pathogenesis of fatigue because it uniquely regulates much of the storage, release and production of substrate for energy generation.”

In other words, if you’re liver isn’t up to par, your body can’t make the energy it needs to get through the day. And you start feeling drug out, drained, and just plain exhausted.

#3 – Irregular sleep

Liver damage can alter your sleep-wake cycle causing you to fall asleep and stay asleep. And even if you can turn off your mind and slip into dreamland, you might not feel refreshed when you wake up.

Additionally, people with liver issues often have health problems such as diabetes that raise their chances of suffering from insomnia even more.

#4 – More pronounced impact of caffeine

Your liver is the primary organ responsible for metabolizing caffeine.

And studies have found that liver disease can slow caffeine clearance from your body, allowing the effects of that coffee you just drank to linger.

So if you’re a regular coffee drinker and suddenly notice it’s ramping you up much more than usual, pay attention.

#5 – Flushing rising from trunk to head

If your liver is dysfunctional, it can cause your body to overheat.

This happens when your liver is overworked or under pressure, it heats up. This may cause a feeling similar to the hot flashes associated with menopause. And it can even lead to excessive sweating.

#6 – Severe side effects/reactions from medications

Just like with caffeine, your liver has to break down any medications you take.

And according to the Merck Manual (the handbook doctors everywhere turn to when they have a question), “Sometimes alterations (damage to the liver) increase levels of bioavailable drug, causing normal drug doses to have toxic effects.”

In other words, small changes in your liver health can cause normal doses of everyday medications to become toxic.

Lifestyle changes to care for your liver

If you notice these early signs talk to a trusted health professional. If, knock on wood, everything’s fine, is there anything you can do to avoid it and support your liver?

The answer is yes!

Doctors recommend a combination of lifestyle changes that can do wonders for a fatty liver, including:

• Losing weight – According to Wynne Armand, MD, writing for Harvard, losing just five percent of your body weight could reduce the level of fat in your liver.
• Getting your exercise – Aerobic exercise is acknowledged to be one of the best ways to decrease the fat level in your liver. And if you add in a high-intensity workout, it could also reduce inflammation in the organ.
• Adding in resistance training – Studies have found that resistance training helps reduce both liver fat and unhealthy liver enzyme levels.
• Eating more protein – Adding more protein to your diet has been shown to help boost both weight loss and fat loss in the liver.

Finally, be sure to give your liver the nutrients it needs to get back on track. Some of the best nutrients to keep your liver health in line include:

1. N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC) – To help support gentle detoxification and guard against future damage.
2. Milk Thistle – A liver booster that promotes the elimination of heavy metal build-up, medication residue, environmental pollutants and alcohol.
3. Turmeric – A powerful antioxidant to promote healthy liver function and the health of liver cells.
4. Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) – A potent antioxidant to help keep fats from accumulating in the liver.
5. Selenium – To help promote detoxification and rid the body of toxic mercury buildup.
6. Schisandra – Helps activate enzymes in the liver cells that produce glutathione – the master antioxidant that detoxifies the body and recycles vitamins C and E, so they can protect cells from free radicals.

Fatty liver is on the rise. Be aware of the sneaky signs that your liver could be in trouble and start taking steps now to keep it trim and healthy.

Sources:

12 causes of swollen ankles — Medical News Today

Fatty liver disease: What it is and what to do about it — Harvard Health Publishing

Recognizing The Early Symptoms Of Liver Disease – Alcoholic And Non-Alcoholic — Family First Intervention

Importance of fatigue and its measurement in chronic liver disease — NCBI

Insomnia and Liver Disease — Liver Directory

Sleep disturbances in patients with liver cirrhosis: prevalence, impact, and management challenges — NCBI

Caffeine and metabolism — Coffee & Health

Case Study: What does a fatty liver have to do with hot flashes? — Liver Doctor

Effects of Liver Disease on Drug Metabolism — Merck Manual

The post 6 strange signs of liver trouble appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

There are “good” and “bad” bacteria, and most of the time, the good bacteria are able to keep the bad ones in line.

But you may be surprised to know just how easily that perfect balance can go out the window…

You’re probably well aware that antibiotics can cause dysbiosis, but so can many common prescriptions.

Even if you have indigestion on occasion or eat contaminated food (hey, it happens) or suffer from inflammation (it’s way more common than you think) — you could be at risk of serious infection from harmful bacteria, including E.coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Both E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae are known culprits in a variety of infections, including urinary tract infections, bloodstream infections and pneumonia. 

E. coli is also a common cause of gastrointestinal infections like diarrhea, while Klebsiella can lead to more severe infections like meningitis and liver abscesses.

These two nasty bacterial strains are usually present in the gut in low numbers, and as long as they stay that way, all is well. But you can see how easily things can go south.

If you’d like a little “insurance” to ensure that doesn’t happen, we’ve some encouraging news for you…

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How fiber can reduce your risk of infection

An international group of medical researchers has shown that dietary fiber plays a crucial role in preventing the overgrowth of harmful gut bacteria.

The researchers analyzed gut microbiome data from over 12,000 people across 45 countries, trying to identify patterns that predict the gut’s susceptibility to being overrun by harmful Enterobacteriaceae bacteria, including E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae.

The good news is that 135 microbial species commonly found in healthy guts seem to protect against “bad” bacteria.

One of these species, known as Faecalibacterium, stood out for its ability to protect the gut by producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that play a critical role in making the gut inhospitable to harmful bacteria.

And how exactly do they produce SCFAs? By breaking down dietary fiber.

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Lots of doctors recommend probiotics to manage “bad” gut bacteria, but these researchers challenge that notion.

Their study revealed that 172 microbial species coexist with these pathogens, competing for the same nutrients.

“Taking probiotics that compete for the same nutrients with the bad bacteria to try and starve them out isn’t going to work,” explained Dr. Alexandre Almeida, senior author of the study.

Instead, he says that altering the gut environment through dietary adjustments offers a more effective strategy.

This is why getting a good amount of fiber in your daily diet is crucial. It’s not just to keep your bowels regular; it’s so that your gut can stay in balance and not be susceptible to E. coli and other bacteria that cause infection, inflammation and disease.

Too little fiber also can lead to a deadly case of sepsis. Sepsis occurs when your immune system releases chemicals into the bloodstream to fight an infection somewhere in your body, such as those mentioned above. However, the immune system goes into overdrive, triggering body-wide inflammation and a significant risk of organ failure and death.

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Fiber: No longer just for regularity

A diet rich in plant-based foods and fiber is crucial for supporting the gut bacteria that produce these beneficial SCFAs. But even if you eat well, the vast majority of Americans get woefully insufficient amounts of dietary fiber.

Here’s some research on how fiber fights heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, along with a comprehensive list of foods and amounts to add to your diet, gradually, so that you’re getting your ideal amount of fiber.

Inulin fiber is especially known for producing SCFAs. You can find a list of foods that provide inulin here.

And if you want to follow a well-rounded diet to up your fiber intake, there’s nothing better than the Mediterranean diet. Here’s the quick and easy version of why this diet is so good for your gut, and how to get started.

Believe me, your taste buds and your gut will thank me!

Sources:

Feeding Good Gut Bacteria Through Diet May Help Prevent Infections — Integrative Practitioner

Ecological dynamics of Enterobacteriaceae in the human gut microbiome across global populations — Nature Microbiology

The post From UTIs to sepsis: Eat this to reduce infection risk appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

If you have type 2 diabetes, your risk for heart disease, kidney disease, and nerve damage is higher.

So is the risk of liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer.

And a recent study demonstrates that obesity skyrockets that risk.

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How obesity makes a vicious cycle even worse

Type 2 diabetes involves insulin resistance, a condition where cells become less responsive to insulin. Insulin resistance can lead to a buildup of fat in the liver.

That’s why people with type 2 diabetes are at an increased risk of developing metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MASLD, formerly called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or NAFLD).

Insulin resistance can worsen fatty liver disease, and fatty liver disease can, in turn, exacerbate insulin resistance, creating a vicious cycle

But a study at Sweden’s Linköping University Hospital has found that being obese will skyrocket the chances of someone with type 2 diabetes moving quickly from MASLD to cirrhosis or liver cancer.

Of the more than 300 people with type 2 diabetes who participated in the study, close to 59 percent had metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease, according to their MRI scans.

The researchers also used an ultrasound to measure liver stiffness, an indication of early-stage cirrhosis. These measurements showed that about 7 per cent of the participants had changes suggesting early-stage cirrhosis of the liver

But among those who had both type 2 diabetes and obesity, that number went up to13 percent as compared with only two percent in people who were not obese.

The finding is important for determining whether patients with type 2 diabetes should be screened for liver disease.

“People with both type 2 diabetes and obesity are a group at particular risk that healthcare should prioritise in future efforts,” says Dr. Wile Balkhed, a resident physician at Linköping University Hospital.

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Prevent insulin resistance and support your liver

Make no mistake: insulin resistance is a sign that your metabolism is seriously out of whack. It means your pancreas, the organ that produces insulin, is exhausted, and the sooner you start an all-out effort to get your metabolism back in line, the better:

Lose a few pounds. Excess weight, especially belly fat, tops the list of causes of insulin resistance.

Exercise more. Many studies have also found that resistance training can increase insulin sensitivity among men and women with or without diabetes.

If you need help finding the energy to exercise, enlist the help of the antioxidant, PQQ, found to go after visceral fat (belly fat) while delivering the energy the body needs for exercise.

Eat healthy foods.  Add more soluble fiber and colorful fruits like berries and vegetables to your diet. The more colorful the better, as these contain antioxidants that have been shown to help with weight loss and curb insulin resistance. Cut back on high glycemic foods like carbs (which stimulate excess insulin production), sugars and processed starches. Also, eat much less red meat.

Keep your vitamin D levels healthy. Several studies have connected low vitamin D levels to insulin sensitivity.

Boost CoQ10 levels. Research has also shown that low CoQ10 levels correlate to insulin resistance.

Get more sleep. Give up night owl habits. Getting more sleep can help reverse the effects of insulin resistance. Melatonin can be helpful in more ways than one.

Sources:

Fatty liver – but not liver damage – common in type 2 diabetes — Eureka Alert

Evaluating the prevalence and severity of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in primary care  — Journal of Internal Medicine

Diabetes and obesity can damage the liver to the point of failure — UMass Chan Medical School

The post Diabetes + obesity = a recipe for serious liver damage appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a treatable condition brought on by long-term liver damage. But it’s hard to diagnose…

That’s because HE is usually preceded by cirrhosis, where the liver is damaged and scarred. Cirrhosis is considered a silent disease and is usually not detected until its later stages — making the resulting disease, HE, even harder to diagnose.

Hopefully, healthcare providers and patients can work together at diagnosing these conditions — now that we’re learning as much as 13 percent of people diagnosed with dementia may instead have an underlying silent liver disease causing or contributing to their symptoms…

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Hepatic encephalopathy: A life-changing misdiagnosis

Researchers examined medical records of 175,000 former patients treated by the Veterans Health Administration over ten years — specifically choosing those who had been diagnosed with dementia on at least two separate occasions.

Using clinical data, they calculated a FIB-4 score (a score based on liver blood results and age that can be used to predict liver damage). Ten percent had a FIB-4 score higher than 3.25 (the cut-off for diagnosing liver scarring).

High scores were more common in patients with risk factors for liver disease, like viral hepatitis and heavy drinking — and less common in patients with risk factors commonly associated with dementia, like diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease.

Next, the researchers confirmed their findings by looking at a separate group of people assessed for dementia at their hospital. They found similar results, with 9 percent having a high FIB-4 score and potential cirrhosis.

This suggested that around 10 percent of people diagnosed with dementia may instead have underlying silent liver disease with HE causing or contributing to the symptoms.

But that number keeps going up…

In a recent follow-up study, Virginia Commonwealth University researchers repeated this review with 68,807 medical records of patients from a national database who weren’t veterans.

They were surprised to find that even more patients with high FIB-4 scores were found in this population — almost 13 percent.

“This important link between dementia and liver health emphasizes the importance of screening patients for potentially treatable contributors to cognitive decline,” concluded Virginia Commonwealth University hepatologist Jasmohan Bajaj.

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HE symptoms and similarities to dementia

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is becoming increasingly common and is an early-stage liver disease. But left untreated, it can progress to hepatic encephalopathy.

Initial symptoms of HE can be subtle and seemingly harmless, including changes in sleep patterns or irritability.

But as the condition worsens, symptoms become more apparent: forgetfulness, disorientation or confusion.

It’s easy to see how these symptoms can be mistaken for the cognitive decline that leads to dementia — though the damage caused to the brain has a different origin…

In HE, when a liver scarred by cirrhosis can no longer detoxify the blood, then toxins (mainly ammonia) build up and enter the brain, interfering with brain function.

Dementia, on the other hand, is caused by long-term damage to brain function, usually due to damage to the small blood vessels that supply blood to the brain. Diabetes and vascular dementia are two ways that this can happen.

If a loved one is showing signs of dementia and you have any reason to think they might have a damaged liver, get your physician to check. Ultimately, HE can lead to coma and death in its most severe form.

But diagnosed early enough, HE can be treated, first with laxatives that help to remove ammonia and other toxins that accumulate in the gut. This is followed by treatment with an antibiotic (rifaximin) that kills some of the harmful ammonia-producing bacteria in the gut.

By getting your doctor to run a few tests, you could help a loved one escape a double-whammy: the slow decline into dementia, and a painful death from liver disease.

Sources:

Many Dementia Cases Could Actually Be a Hidden Form of Liver Disease — Science Alert

Up to 13% of Dementia Cases May Be a Misdiagnosed Treatable Condition — Science Alert

Undiagnosed Cirrhosis and Hepatic Encephalopathy in a National Cohort of Veterans With Dementia — JAMA Network

The post When dementia starts with your liver appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

It’s a trend, they say, that cannot be explained by genetics alone.

So, what’s to blame?

Could it be due to higher rates of obesity? Maybe it’s lack of exercise?

Or is it something more sinister, such as the chemicals our government allows manufacturers to add to products that come into contact with the food we eat?

Recent research points to the latter…

Potential to cause breast cancer and beyond

As far back as 2007, an organization called Silent Spring published a list of 216 chemicals that can cause breast cancer in rodents.

Of course, if there’s anything the U.S. Food and Drug Administration doesn’t do when it comes to protecting the public, it’s to act quickly.

So, researchers, writing in the journal Frontiers in Toxicology, set out to compare the Silent Springs list with another database known as Food Contact Chemicals Monitored in Humans, or FCChumon, which is a list of food contact chemicals detected in human breast milk, blood, urine, and tissues.

They found that nearly 200 chemicals connected to breast cancer are used in the making of food packaging and plastic tableware, and dozens of those carcinogens can migrate into the human body.

Among them were 642 endocrine-disrupting chemicals that may stimulate estrogen or progesterone production, another known risk factor for breast cancer.

While the study focused on breast cancer-causing toxins, the team found the dangers of the products we use every day to store and eat our food span the cancer universe.

“There is strong evidence that 76 known or potential breast carcinogens from food contact materials recently purchased all over the world can be found in people,” said study coauthor Jane Muncke.

After analyzing different forms of food packaging and tableware, researchers discovered chemicals including:

• Benzene – A known carcinogen linked to breast cancer development
• 4,4’-Methylenebis-(2-Chloroaniline) – Classified as a probable carcinogen that may cause bladder cancer
• 2,4-Toluenediamine – A toxin known to cause breast and other types of cancers in animal studies
•  3,3′-Dimethylbenzidine and o-Toluidine – Dyes used to color plastic and paper, which, according to the EPA, have the potential to metabolize to carcinogenic amines both in and on the human body.
• Forever chemicals – Bisphenols, phthalates or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, are linked to high cholesterol, cancer and various chronic diseases.

And while researchers determined that most exposure to carcinogens comes from plastics used in food packaging, a whopping 89 suspected carcinogens were found in paper and cardboard containers.

“Paper has additives such as emulsifiers and adhesives, say if papers are glued together, or there’s a plastic layer glued to the paper,” Muncke points out.

Protect yourself from lurking carcinogens

All of those plastic storage bags, containers, and dinnerware, as well as paper plates, that we use because they are so convenient, present a real and present danger to our health.

So, what can you do to combat this danger?

First, banish the plastic from your kitchen. This includes discarding plastic containers and opting for glass containers to store your food.

Also, be sure always to use a glass dish when putting food in the microwave instead of plastic.

Next, replace any plastic water bottles with glass or stainless steel.

For added protection, toss your non-stick pans, which are coated in cancer-causing forever chemicals.

Most importantly, support your body’s natural detoxification processes, which involve your colon and liver.

The liver, of course, is the body’s primary detox organ. But considering this onslaught of toxins, it’s often overworked, especially if you are overweight. Read here about 8+ ways to relieve your liver’s detox load.

Next, check your transit time. That’s the amount of time your colon processes waste to leave the body. If it takes longer than 24 hours, you’re allowing chemicals to sit in your colon up against the intestinal endothelium, where they can leach into your bloodstream.

Sources:

Chemicals linked to breast cancer leach into our foods, study finds — CNN

Risk Management for Benzidine Dyes — EPA

The post The chemical exposure behind early onset breast cancer appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

From food to books and everything in between, you can learn a lot about your family, friends and even yourself by their answers.

It’s why just the other day, I asked myself that same question when it came to supplements. I take several, so if I could only choose one, the answer, for me, is really quite simple…

If I were stuck on a desert island, the supplement I could not do without would be an omega-3. Preferably krill oil (fish oil gives me fish burps), but I digress…

If you’re down to just one choice, you want the nutrient science has consistently demonstrated can fight all inflammatory and metabolic disorders.

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#1 – Inflammation

Doctors now consider inflammation to be “the root of disease.” The good news is that we already have omega-3s to yank out that root and preserve our health.

That’s because studies have shown that the unsaturated fatty acids in these omegas act to directly resolve inflammation. In addition to this direct action, they provide the additional bonus of competing with omega-6s (the kind found in refined oils) in your diet. This action inhibits the synthesis of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins and shifts the balance toward a more anti-inflammatory state.

#2 – Obesity

Obesity, while usually seen through the lens of weight alone, is actually an inflammatory condition that kicks off a multitude of other dangerous diseases. But omega-3s can once again come to the rescue with their potent anti- inflammatory and adipogenic effects that occur right inside the fat tissue itself.

It’s no wonder, then, that studies have found that even mice fed an obesogenic (obesity-inducing) diet benefit from reduced fat mass accumulation when taking omega-3s. To top it off, researchers also discovered that a higher proportion of omega-3s in red blood cell (RBC) membranes has been associated with a lowered fat mass index.

#3 – Heart Health

As with their effects on obesity, larger amounts of omega-3s in RBC membranes support heart health by reducing inflammatory markers and lowering triglycerides.

Numerous prospective and meta-analytic studies have concluded that supplementing with omega-3s in your daily diet substantially reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease by 15 to 25%.

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#4 – Blood Sugar

In addition to their anti-inflammatory properties, omega-3’s also have potent abilities in the fight against metabolic dysfunction, including blood sugar issues. In fact, research has revealed that these fatty acids improve insulin sensitivity by increasing adiponectin secretion, enhance glucose uptake through an increase in GLUT-4 content, and support pancreatic β-cell function, enhancing their insulin secretion capacities.

#5 – Liver Health

Fatty liver disease may also be no match for omega-3s. These fatty acids work to guard liver health by:

• Inhibiting the NF-κB pathway, leading to decreased transcription of pro-inflammatory cytokines and reduced liver inflammation
• Reducing neutrophil infiltration and enhancing the clearance of apoptotic cells to resolve liver inflammation
• Blocking NLRP3 inflammasome activation and the inflammation that comes with it and preventing the progression from simple steatosis (fat buildup) to steatohepatitis (with associated inflammation and liver damage)
• Inducing mitophagy of damaged liver mitochondria and reducing oxidative stress

A comprehensive cohort study even found that taking omega-3s regularly resulted in a 28% reduced risk of liver inflammatory disease, including alcoholic or non-alcoholic liver disease and liver failure.

#6 – Kidney Health

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is another downstream effect of obesity-mediated inflammation. Luckily, supplementation with omega-3s has been shown to increase the production of pro-resolving mediators, like RvE1 and RvD5, that result in an improvement in inflammatory markers and renal function.

Omega-3s also help improve renal hemodynamics and significantly reduce proteinuria in patients with CKD.

#7 – Autoimmunity

• Inflammatory bowel diseases – Omega-3s have been shown to reduce colitis-associated disease severity, colonic mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines and macrophage infiltration of the tissue.
• Psoriasis – In psoriatic skin, omega-3s work to reduce inflammatory cell infiltration and skin thickening, with improvements in redness, scaling and itching.
• Rheumatic diseases – Omega-3s also provide powerful joint support by inhibiting IL-1β, one of the most active cytokines that leads to cartilage destruction and loss of collagen.
• Multiple sclerosis – Because omega-3s can cross the blood–brain barrier, they have been shown to directly impair neuroinflammatory processes. Research also shows they may decrease the activity and production of matrix metalloproteinase-9, which is implicated in blood–brain barrier breakdown in MS, while upregulating the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) to enhance neuronal survival and synaptic plasticity.

Research has even shown that supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids alone can reduce autoimmune disease rate by 15%.

Putting omega-3s to work for your health

Clearly, whether you end up marooned on a desert island or just want to stay healthy and keep inflammatory and metabolic disease at bay, omega-3s are a must-have in your diet.

So, what’s the best way to ensure you’re getting enough?

One solution is to adopt the Mediterranean diet. Not only is this diet packed with polyphenol-rich fruits, vegetables, and olive oil, but it is also rich in seafood, providing you with those essential omega-3s.

However, if you’re not able to reach the recommended two to three servings of fatty fish weekly, go easy on yourself and reach for a safe, sustainably sourced omega-3 supplement.

Sources:

Beneficial Effects of Omega-3 Fatty Acids on Obesity and Related Metabolic and Chronic Inflammatory Diseases — MDPI

How do Omega-3 and Vitamin D Play a Role in Autoimmune Disease? — Omegaquant

The post The ONE nutrient to fight inflammatory and metabolic disorders appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Coronary artery disease, also called coronary heart disease, is the most common type of heart disease.

There are many ways to protect your heart. The foods you eat (and don’t eat), the amount of exercise you do, and whether you smoke, all have a very real effect on your chances of becoming a heart disease statistic.

Recently, research has uncovered an intimate connection between heart health and the health of another organ, one that performs at least one hundred vital functions throughout the body.

It turns out that protecting your liver may also significantly impact your risk of coronary artery disease.

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Research connects the liver to coronary artery disease

Researchers at the University of Eastern Finland are investigating the relationships between genetic factors that influence heart and liver disease.

For example, they’ve found that a significant portion of the genetic activity regulating cholesterol and glucose takes place in the liver.

“High cholesterol and dysregulation of the liver metabolism, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, confer an increased risk of CAD,” write the investigators.

“Overall, our findings expand the list of genes and regulatory mechanisms acting in the liver and governing the risk of CAD (coronary artery disease) development,” says Associate Professor Kaikkonen-Määttä.

There’s not a lot that you and I can do about the genes we’re born with. However, research has indicated that lifestyle choices can influence the expression of genetic factors.

This research certainly gives us reason to pay attention to the fact that, in the United States, 4.5 million of us are being diagnosed with liver disease each year. In 2018, there were nearly 3 million liver-related deaths. Roughly half were due to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a disease caused by eating excess calories and causing fat to build up in the liver.

It also serves as a wake-up call to adopt lifestyle habits that will protect both the heart and the liver. Here’s how to get started…

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7+ things that will protect your liver AND your heart

Maintain a healthy weight. At least half of those with obesity go on to develop NAFLD. So this is the first place you should start.

But DON’T fall for fad diets. Stay away from diets that boost fat intake, like the ketogenic diet. According to studies done with mice, the keto diet can lead to NAFLD.

Go Mediterranean. Dr. Hugo Rosen, a liver disease specialist and chair of medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, recommends eating a well-balanced diet that includes high-fiber foods, vegetables, fruits, fish, lean meats, nuts, eggs, seeds and unrefined oils.

Get moving. Studies have shown that regular aerobic exercise can improve liver health, whether you’ve already developed NAFLD or are looking to prevent it.

Eat more berries. Eating a cup of blueberries per day could lower your risk of heart disease by up to fifteen percent. Additionally, one study found that incorporating blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and cranberries into your diet can lower levels of ALT, an enzyme associated with liver damage.

Try tomatoes. Tomatoes contain the antioxidant lycopene — known to reduce the risk of CAD — and potassium, essential for heart health. Tomatoes also contain chlorine and sulfur, which help detoxify the liver.

Support your liver. Silymarin, more commonly known as milk thistle, has been used to support and detoxify the liver since ancient Greek times. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is derived from an amino acid in the body and is a powerful detoxifier. It may also prevent the routine metabolic declines associated with aging.

Sources:

Many genes associated with the risk of coronary artery disease act through the liver — Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News

Fad diets could contribute to liver disease known as a ‘silent killer’ — HSC News (University of Southern California)

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and NASH — National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Good for your heart, good for your liver, too — Joseph Galati, M.D.

The post The liver link to coronary artery disease appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

That’s because every time you swipe on deodorant, spritz on body spray or sweep product through your hair, you’re layering on a vast trove of dangerous chemicals.

Here’s how many chemicals scientists at Rutgers University say you could be exposed to from your personal care routine — and the most effective ways to reduce that exposure to lower your risks…

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A danger that stacks up fast

According to the researchers, the current regulatory environment in the U.S. is to blame for the chemical burdens our personal care products inflict on our bodies daily.

They say that while the U.S. only bans about a dozen chemicals in our products, the European Union restricts thousands due to a lack of safety data.

Because of this, the researchers set out to determine the burden of chemical accumulation in our bodies.

To do so, the team examined nearly 9,350 specific products used by 593 study participants, rating them for safety based on the chemicals lurking inside and determining exposure levels individually.

Overall, they determined that participants used an average of 14.5 personal care products daily. They ranged from basic items like soap and toothpaste to cosmetics, fragrances and hair styling products.

According to their calculations, the average consumer is exposed to more than one hundred chemicals daily through personal care products (PCPs) alone!

This exposure led to potential health hazards across 17 categories, including cancer risk, developmental toxicity, allergies and endocrine disruption.

Based on product hazard scores, the researchers could also key in on the worst chemical offenders. These included:

• Perfumes and colognes:  The study showed that these personal care basics consistently ranked as the most hazardous products thanks to endocrine-disrupting chemicals called phthalates that all too often lurk within.
• Hair products: The products you use for your hair can also be worrisome. That’s because hair products, particularly those containing endocrine-disrupting ingredients, have been linked to reproductive cancers.
• Skin care products: Products you use on your skin may contain phenols and parabens that have raised concerns about reproductive health issues.

Luckily, there was some good news despite all the bad…

The researchers also determined that some products were better than others. Even within the same product category, formulations varied dramatically, with some products offering somewhat safer havens from the chemical burden.

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Make safer choices part of your personal care routine

“Average exposure was high, but there was a silver lining,” said Emily Barrett, lead author of the study. “We saw signs that people who tried to limit exposure succeeded in doing so, so it’s certainly possible for others as well.”

The researchers even noted that simply by making better choices, you could drop the chemical levels in your body within a matter of days.

Practical steps recommended by the researchers included:

• Using fewer products by cutting out non-essentials,
• Swapping out products for cleaner alternatives as you finish them,
• Using an app or website like Skin Deep to make choosing safer alternatives easy.

There are also three personal care products you might be better off making yourself to keep your risk as low as possible.

Another reason to reduce exposure is to lessen the burden on your liver — the body’s primary detox organ. When the liver gets overwhelmed trying to process the toxins and chemicals it can, it’s not able to keep up with fat and cholesterol metabolism, bile production and fat-to-energy conversion.

While it might be impossible to avoid all chemical dangers, making efforts to reduce your exposure counts when striving to live a longer, healthier life.

Sources:

Hidden in plain sight: the chemical burden of personal care products – EurekAlert!

The post What’s the chemical burden of your personal care routine? appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

By 2040, just 16 years from now, health experts predict that percentage will rise to 55%.

People with MASLD suffer damage from inflammation and tissue scarring, caused by abnormal accumulation of fat.

That leads to heightened risks for diabetes, cancer (both liver and elsewhere), chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease.

Oddly enough, there seems to be a strong connection between sleep quality and higher risk for MASLD — yet another reason to pay attention to your sleep habits.

Here’s what you need to know…

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What’s sleep got to do with your liver?

Previous research using data based on sleep questionnaires has linked liver disease with poor sleep quality.

However, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that more objective measures than sleep questionnaires be used to prove the existence of a link between sleep disruption and MASLD.

So, when researchers at the University of Basel and Basel’s University Center for Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases set out to learn more about the poor sleep-MASLD connection, they used 24/7 actigraphy.

Between 2019 and 2021, they tracked 46 adults who had either MASLD, MASH (a more severe form of MASLD) or cirrhosis of the liver. Sixteen healthy people served as the control group.

Each wore a sensor on the wrist to track gross motor activity, including light exposure, physical activity and body temperature. They also underwent clinical investigation, interviews, follow-ups and kept a sleep diary.

While there was no difference in the length of sleep between the groups, the actigraph data showed that the people with MASLD woke 55% more often at night. And, they lay awake 113% longer after first falling asleep than the healthy control group.

“We concluded from our data that sleep fragmentation plays a role in the pathogenesis of human MASLD,” says corresponding author Dr. Sofia Schaeffer.

But a question remained…

“Whether MASLD cause sleep disorders or vice versa remains unknown,” she added.

“The underlying mechanism presumably involves genetics, environmental factors, and the activation of immune responses — ultimately driven by obesity and metabolic syndrome.”

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The metabolic dysfunction in MSLD linked to poor sleep

Even though the researchers are still not sure whether sleep disruption leads to liver disease, or vice versa, I have a theory about the driving force…

Of the 46 participants in the study, 80% of those with MSLD had hallmark symptoms of metabolic syndrome (MetS), including:

• Higher levels of triglycerides
• High fasting glucose
• High blood insulin levels
• And lower levels of HDL (“good”) cholesterol.

Additionally, they were all obese. A large waist circumference, often part of obesity, is the 5^th symptom associated with MetS.

And guess what has been linked to increasing the risk of MetS? Irregular or variable sleep patterns.

A larger study funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute found that people with greater variations in their bedtimes and hours they slept had a much higher risk of metabolic conditions — specifically, each of the symptoms for MetS.

That makes the sleep link even stronger and makes is clear that if you don’t have MASH or cirrhosis, start now to avoid MASLD by staying clear of the symptoms of MetS and improving sleep quality.

Start with a good diet you can stick to, but add these five easy hacks to keep MetS at bay.

To sleep like a baby, try implementing the bedtime routine of a toddler. And, if you haven’t tried melatonin, consider it. It can help you sleep and support immune function, one of the factors mentioned by Dr. Schaeffer above.

Sources:

Broken sleep a hallmark sign of living with the most common liver disease, scientists find — Eureka Alert

Significant nocturnal wakefulness after sleep onset in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease — Frontiers in Network Physiology

The post Trouble sleeping? It could lead to liver disease appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Metabolic dysfunction, such as that caused by type 2 diabetes or obesity, could increase your odds of developing MASLD. Also, MASLD can lead to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), which can cause cirrhosis or severe liver fibrosis, a condition characterized by bands of scar tissue in your liver.

If you’re not careful, MASLD can set off a chain reaction that results in severe liver dysfunction or liver cancer, not to mention a higher risk of death from a host of causes — some not even liver-related…

Fatty liver and mortality risk

Researchers at the Karolinska Institutet identified 13,099 patients diagnosed with MASLD in Sweden between 2002 and 2020 and analyzed their risk of death from different causes compared to the general population.

Their findings were sobering. Overall, people with MASLD had almost twice the mortality rate of the general population!

The risk was elevated for almost all causes of death studied — but it was a whopping 27 times higher for liver disease and 35 times higher for liver cancer.

Interestingly, those weren’t the most prevalent causes of death…

The most common causes of death for these patients were cardiovascular disease, at a 54% higher mortality risk, and non-liver cancer, at a 47% higher mortality risk.

“Many people are not aware that they have fatty liver disease because it rarely causes any symptoms in the earlier stages,” says study lead Axel Wester, assistant professor at the Karolinska Institutet and physician at Karolinska University Hospital. “Our study shows that people diagnosed with MASLD have an increased risk of dying from many different diseases, not just liver disease.”

The study also found people with MASLD had an increased risk of dying from infections, gastrointestinal diseases, respiratory diseases, endocrine diseases or external causes.

“It is important that we do not only focus on the liver when treating patients with fatty liver disease,” says study lead Hannes Hagström, a professor at the Karolinska Institutet and senior physician at Karolinska University Hospital. “A holistic approach and early intervention involving different medical specialties can be crucial to improve the prognosis for these patients.”

Slimming down the liver

The estimates are that 35% of American have MSLD. How do you know if you’re one of them.

Unfortunately, symptoms of MASLD often don’t show up until the damage to the liver is already well underway. But if you have any of the following conditions, it’s safe to assume you may be developing MASLD as well:

• High cholesterol: especially triglycerides and LDL, and low HDL
• Obesity: a condition in which your body mass index (BMI) is 30 or higher (people who carry extra weight in their belly have a higher risk of MASLD)
• Insulin resistance: a condition in which cells in your muscles, fat and liver don’t respond to insulin the way they should
• Type 2 diabetes: a chronic condition that happens when you have perpetually high blood sugar

You may notice the symptoms above add up to metabolic syndrome. It fuels the disease.

If you do think you may be on the path to MASLD, there are a few steps you can take:

• Lose weight. Working to shed excess fat will have the same effect on your liver as the rest of your body. When you’re obese, doctors usually recommend shooting for at least a 10% weight loss, but even losing 3 to 5% of your body weight can make a difference.
• Exercise. An exercise regimen has benefits to the liver unrelated to weight loss. For starters, it enhances the protective capacity of Kupffer cells, which help maintain liver function.
• Manage your blood sugar. Try to avoid added sugar as much as possible, particularly sugary drinks like soda and sweet treats like candy and baked goods.
• Take care of your liver health. If you smoke or drink alcohol, stop. Both these behaviors put a great deal of stress on your liver.

There are also foods you can eat that support the liver:

• Coffee, which lowers abnormal liver enzymes.
• Tofu, which may reduce fat buildup in the liver.
• Fish rich in omega-3s, such as salmon, sardines, tuna and trout, can improve liver fat levels and reduce inflammation.
• Avocados, which contain chemicals that may slow liver damage.
• Low-fat milk and dairy products, which contain whey protein that may protect liver damage from advancing.
• Green tea, which may help shed liver fat.

Sources:

Fatty liver linked to increased risk of death from several diseases — EurekAlert!

Cause-specific mortality in 13,099 patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease in Sweden — Journal of Hepatology

Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) — Cleveland Clinic

The post The surprising reason fatty liver can double your death risk appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

In fact, when you consider what women have to go through, from fatigue and bloating to mood changes, night sweats and more, it’s a wonder we get through it at all.

One minute, you’re rolling through your day just fine, and the next, you’re a hot, sweaty puddle!

It’s no wonder, then, that we’re willing to pop a prescription pill just to survive.

But if survival is the goal, one particular menopause medication might be the wrong choice.

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Non-hormonal medication linked to liver injury

Veozah (fezolinetant) is a non-hormonal treatment for hot flashes. Unlike hormone replacement therapy (HRT), it does not include estrogen or progesterone and was designed as an option for women with a history of breast cancer.

First approved in 2023, close to 29,000 patients have now picked up prescriptions of the drug in the United States alone.

But the FDA is now warning about the rare occurrence of serious liver injury with use of Veozah.

In September 2024, the FDA issued its first warning that liver problems from the medications were possible. Now, though, they have added a boxed warning to the drug since a woman was found to have blood markers of liver injury after taking the drug for just 40 days.

The good news is that after she stopped taking the medication, her symptoms gradually improved, and her liver levels got back to normal.

The FDA now says that if you’re taking Veozah for hot flashes, you should take blood tests for liver markers every month for the first three months after starting the medication and repeat the test at months six and nine.

If you experience symptoms such as unusual itching, nausea, vomiting, or are more tired than usual, stop taking the medication and talk to your doctor. Other symptoms to watch out for include light-colored stools, dark urine, yellow skin or eyes, swelling of your abdomen, or pain in your upper right side, all of which are signs of liver injury.

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Other options for the dreaded hot flashes

For women who don’t feel safe with HRT, the news about Veozah is disappointing. But if you discuss the liver health risk with your doctor and keep up with the suggested liver screenings, it may be a risk you’re willing to take.

But in the long run, it may not be what it is hyped up to be. In the drug trial, some participants experienced headaches and fatigue. And the drug only reduced the frequency and severity of hot flashes.

So, what are your options if you’re not keen on HRT or Veozah?

• Acupuncture can relieve many of the most common (and most annoying) menopause symptoms. In a small group of 70 menopausal women, 80% said that acupuncture relieved their menopause symptoms.
• If needles aren’t your thing, supplement formulations that help relieve hot flashes and night sweats have gotten more sophisticated. Look for those that have been clinically tested. They will cost more, but should be able to give you an idea of how much relief to expect.
• Incorporate soy-based foods like tofu and edamame, as well as flaxseeds, which contain phytoestrogens that may help balance hormone levels. 

One important note: Menopause is more than “the change,” signaling a woman’s transformation from her reproductive years. Women also undergo a “cardiovascular change.” Unfortunately, hot flashes and night sweats are associated with worse heart disease risk levels.

In addition to staying on top of your heart health with yearly checkups, a healthy diet and exercise, Dr. Jocelyn Delgado Spicuzza, who specializes in integrative and biomedical physiology, suggests that “Women may need to consume beetroot juice daily — or even more often — to experience all of the potential cardiovascular benefits.”

Her research shows that beetroot juice can be very useful in protecting blood vessel health of mid-life women during this period of accelerating heart disease risk.

Drinking nitrate-rich beetroot juice each day improved blood flow in a group of menopausal and postmenopausal women. Dr. Spicuzza surmised that this level of improved blood-vessel function — if maintained over the postmenopausal years — could significantly reduce the risk of heart disease.

Decades ago, Nobel Prize-winning scientists discovered that nitric oxide (NO), a signaling molecule found in the endothelial cells of artery walls, was a potent vasodilator and an essential regulator of the cardiovascular system. After menopause, women no longer produce estrogen, which helps maintain nitric oxide in the body. Thankfully, beetroot juice helps the body produce NO, with or without estrogen.

Sources:

FDA adds warning about rare occurrence of serious liver injury with use of Veozah (fezolinetant) for hot flashes due to menopause — U.S. Food & Drug Administration

FDA places its most serious warning on menopause drug due to risk of liver injury — CNN

The post Don’t trade hot flashes for liver damage appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

From nutrition to skin care, this “ancestral fat” is definitely having its moment.

So, should you just jump on the bandwagon?

What Is Beef Tallow and How Is It Made?

Beef tallow is created by taking the fat that surrounds the internal organs of a cow, cooking that fat down, and straining out the impurities. It’s a way for beef processors to use every part of the animal in order to make useable products — and turn a bigger profit. 

Beef tallow is stable both at room temperature and high heat and, until relatively recently, was the go-to fat for frying and baking. It’s also been used to make candles and soap.

When concerns around the health effects of saturated fats emerged in the 20th century, vegetable oils and margarines largely replaced beef tallow in industrial food production. Around the same time, rates of chronic disease and obesity rose, providing ammunition for beef tallow evangelists — especially within the keto, paleo and carnivore communities.

But as we learned from the seed oils blog series and my post on lectins, one data point does NOT an open and shut case make.

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Beef Tallow Nutrition Facts: Saturated Fat, Calories, and Vitamins

Beef tallow is made up of about 55% saturated fatty acids (SFAs), 40% monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and 5% polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). 

By comparison, canola oil is made up of about 5% SFAs, 65% MUFAs and 30% PUFAs.  Tallow also contains fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K2), though in relatively small amounts.  

With such a high percentage of SFAs, beef tallow is classified as a saturated fat and falls in the same nutritional category as butter, cheese, cream, lard and coconut oil.

Does Beef Tallow Raise Cholesterol and Heart Disease Risk?

Saturated fat can be a strong down-regulator of LDL receptors. If you’ve read some of my previous blogs, you already know that LDL receptor function is important for clearance of LDL from the bloodstream. In other words, if LDL receptor function is diminished, LDL levels go up. Sometimes way up. I have seen patients that go on a keto diet and end up with LDLs in ranges typically reserved for those with Familial Hypercholesterolemia!

But please don’t be fooled by claims that the high LDL you get by eating saturated fat is OK because LDL is now all “big” particles! A high LDL reading means that there are still lots of LDL particles circulating in your bloodstream, and particle size does not rescue you in that setting. Most importantly, if your LDL receptors are downregulated such that you’re not using the LDL for other functions, the only place that cholesterol can go is into artery walls. 

And make sure you also ignore the rhetoric that some of the saturated fat in beef tallow is stearic acid and that makes it better. Stearic acid is a saturated fat found in high amounts in cocoa beans and chocolate and does NOT raise LDL cholesterol. However, beef tallow contains much less stearic acid compared to chocolate — and the rest of the saturated fatty acids in beef tallow DO raise LDL.  

Beef Tallow, Fatty Liver, and Insulin Resistance: What’s the Link?

Like all fats, beef tallow is calorie dense, delivering 9 calories per gram. So overdoing it even modestly but consistently can get you into trouble… fast. Turns out saturated fat is especially good at accumulating in the liver — much more so than unsaturated fat.  

Liver fat accumulation sets off a vicious cycle of metabolic changes that leads to insulin resistance, which can lead to prediabetes and, eventually, type 2 diabetes. Liver fat accumulation can also damage the liver itself, causing fatty liver disease, a condition as serious as liver disease caused by chronic excess alcohol consumption.  

Can Beef Tallow Cause Inflammation?

Although seed oils have been maligned for being pro-inflammatory, saturated fats — including beef tallow — also influence inflammatory pathways.

Saturated fats have been found to “short circuit” immune cells, upregulate pro-inflammatory cytokines, and negatively affect the microbiome, all leading to a higher inflammatory load. 

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Beef Tallow and Chronic Disease: Why Context Matters in Nutrition

Advocates of beef tallow and other saturated fats point to the relative absence of chronic disease in traditional societies with high animal fat consumption. However, these societies also:

• Engaged in high levels of physical activity
• Ate minimal processed food
• Had overall balanced calorie intake 
• Ate a greater variety of foods in general, including various plants, leading to a more diverse microbiome 

In other words, as I’ve noted before, we can never look at one nutrient or ingredient in isolation. We are complex organisms living in complex environments while consuming a complex mixture of foods. It’s not the beef tallow or the seed oils that is the problem. It’s the “with what” and “instead of what” that is the bigger concern. 

Should You Eat Beef Tallow? The Bottom Line

Beef tallow is a real food, derived from natural sources. As such, it is not inherently toxic. However, it is NOT a “health food” nor the answer to all our ills. Context matters.

Occasional beef tallow consumption may be benign as part of a nutrient-rich, calorie-controlled, plant-inclusive diet. (Need I say it? Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. Honestly, never gets old.)  However, regular use in the setting of a nutrient-poor or calorie-excess diet poses real long-term health risks. 

So much so that individuals favoring high beef tallow (or other saturated fat) consumption, should be regularly monitored with lab tests, including cholesterol, blood sugar, and liver function parameters.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, has declared that beef tallow is healthier than seed oils and is encouraging food companies to use it preferentially. Restaurants like Steak ‘n Shake and Sweetgreen have already made the switch.   

And as far as his opinion, it’s just an opinion. Made by an individual who is not a healthcare provider or nutrition expert. Although I applaud his stance on food additives and ultra-processed foods, as someone who takes care of patients and witnesses what happens with various dietary approaches, I can say without hesitation that he doesn’t get everything right.

Oh — and in case you’re wondering whether you should put this stuff on your face, beef tallow acts like an occlusive barrier rather than a moisturizer. So, it won’t eliminate wrinkles outright although it might aid in the absorption of what you put underneath — like vitamin C serum or retinoic acid. But I suspect you won’t much enjoy the scent! And if you are prone to acne, you might truly regret it.

The post Beef tallow: Benefits, risks and truths behind the trend appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But other organs, like the liver, don’t seem to worry us as much.

However, it’s the liver that filters our blood and detoxifies the body. It processes and gets rid of toxic substances that enter your body through your lungs, skin or mouth. These include:

• Food additives
• Household chemicals
• Environmental pollutants
• Medications
• Alcohol and drugs

The liver also produces bile, a fluid that helps digest fats and carry away waste — a job that can overwhelm it. That’s one reason that obesity and diabetes are key triggers of fatty liver disease (FLD).

Perhaps it’s the prevalence of the disease, and the fact many people with FLD live a fairly normal life, that’s lulled us into a false sense of security.

But the scary thing is that almost a third of people with the condition go on to develop an advanced form of the disease, known as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) — which can lead to cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease or liver cancer. NASH also ramps up the risk of heart disease.

Unfortunately, NASH is predicted to become the leading cause of liver disease in the next decade. And that’s got researchers wondering…

Why can some people lead a relatively healthy life with FLD, while others go on to develop severe liver disease?

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NOX4: both good guy and bad guy

NOX4 is a protein that circulates in the body and has various functions. One big one is to control genes that cause certain changes in our organs. For example, its presence or absence affects the cardiovascular system.

Well, recently an Australian study has shown that falling levels of NOX4 are the trigger that makes fatty liver disease move on to become a series of far more deadly diseases.

When the liver first starts to accumulate fat, NOX4 levels rise, triggering a protective mechanism that safeguards the liver.

But as the disease progresses, NOX4 levels fall. The protective mechanism is interrupted, and FLD moves on to become NASH. That puts the possibilities of cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer on the table.

Pumping up NOX4 for liver protection

As with so many illnesses, the power to prevent this downward spiral from FLD to NASH is in our hands.

Professor Tony Tiganis of Monash University’s Biomedicine Discovery Institute was the lead investigator in this study. His previous research has proven that NOX4 levels rise in skeletal and heart muscle after exercise — and that this protects against the metabolic decline, including diabetes, associated with FLD.

He’s not alone either. Other studies have also proven that aerobic exercise can prevent or slow the progress of FLD by preventing metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that increase your risk of heart disease, diabetes and FLD.

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Then, there’s our diet — particularly foods that can jumpstart NOX4…

“Compounds that bolster the activity of NOX4, or the adaptive program that NOX4 instigates, may be highly beneficial, countering not only the development of NASH, but also improving skeletal and cardiac function, as well as metabolic health,” says Prof. Tiganis.

Luckily for us, NOX4-boosting compounds are found naturally in disease-fighting superfoods, like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale and others that fall into the category of cruciferous vegetables.

My favorite is broccoli. Previous research has found it’s like a diabetes drug on your dinner plate, significantly lowering fasting blood sugar levels. That means eating more of these vegetables could help you avoid the key instigator of FLD and NASH — diabetes. Just one more reason to fall in love with veggies!

Sources:

Key to fatty liver disease and its consequences for billions of people —  Eureka Alert

Mitochondrial- and NOX4-dependent antioxidant defence mitigates progression to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in obesity —  Journal of Clinical Investigation

Improvement in histological endpoints of MAFLD following a 12-week aerobic exercise intervention —  Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics

The post The cruciferous compound that keeps fatty liver from advancing appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

I’ve read article after article talking about the connection between the health of my mouth and the health of other parts of my body. As weird as it may seem, fending off gum disease can have a direct impact on your heart, lungs and brain — and that’s just the start.

Now it looks like we can add another organ to that ever-growing list…

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The road from your mouth to your liver

Gum disease, also known as periodontitis, is a widespread chronic inflammatory condition caused by bacterial infections in the gum tissue of the mouth. Its severity tends to increase with age, smoking, alcohol use and poor dental care.

Not only can it wreck your dental health, leading to bleeding gums, bad breath and tooth loss — but it’s also linked to several other severe conditions, like heart disease, diabetes, dementia and maybe even cancer.

People with liver disease are already at higher risk for these dangerous conditions. So, for them, getting gum disease compounds those threats. But it gets worse…

An international team of researchers discovered multiple ways that periodontitis may directly aggravate liver disease — starting with the “oral-gut-liver axis”…

The bacteria that cause periodontitis can be swallowed or enter the bloodstream during activities like chewing or brushing and make their way to the gut. Once there, they can cause dysbiosis, an imbalance between good and bad microbes, and leaky gut, a condition that makes the gut lining permeable. Endotoxins — byproducts produced by bacteria — can then easily make their way to the liver, triggering inflammation and causing the type of damage that leads to liver fibrosis.

Previous studies have shown that bacteria such as the one that causes bad breath and gingivitis can exacerbate inflammation and a buildup of fat in the livers of mice with pre-existing metabolic diseases. These microbes or their byproducts have even been found in liver tissue, suggesting that movement from the mouth to the liver is not uncommon.

Next, the immune system gets involved: Chronic periodontal inflammation leads to the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as TNF-alpha and IL-6, which have been long associated with the progression of liver disease. In addition, the review highlights Th17 cells, a type of immune cell activated by oral pathogens that may travel to the liver and worsen metabolic dysfunction.

The bottom line: These pathways form a terrible merry-go-round of liver disease-impairing oral health and inflammation that drives liver damage.

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Human studies reinforce the connection

Data from human studies support this association. Patients with cirrhosis consistently demonstrate worse oral health than the general population, with higher rates of gingival overgrowth, tooth loss and bone loss. In fact, the prevalence of periodontitis among patients awaiting liver transplants can be as high as 72 percent!

Other studies have found links between severe periodontal disease and increased death risk in cirrhosis patients — and that people with advanced periodontitis are much more likely to have metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most common form of chronic liver disease. This was true even after adjusting for risk factors like obesity and diabetes.

One small trial showed that periodontal treatment led to a short-term improvement in liver enzyme levels, indicating that oral health interventions may influence liver function.

The review authors caution that this research is still in the early days. However, the review calls for better collaboration between specialists who manage liver disease and dental professionals who manage oral healthcare.

In the meantime, it’s clear that oral hygiene is paramount, especially for those with chronic liver conditions, as well as twice-yearly dental visits. Take note of any changes to alert your dentist to — like persistent bad breath and red, swollen, tender or bleeding gums.

A dental probiotic can boost the oral microbiome. You’ll want the dental probiotic to be in a form that allows it to stay in the mouth for enough time to be absorbed by the microbiome. Some good delivery forms are lozenges, drinks, mouth rinses or chewable tablets.

If you have liver trouble, ask your doctor about supplements. Omega-3s have been shown to support liver health and guard against gum disease.

Sources:

Bad breath, bad news: how gum disease could worsen liver conditions — EurekAlert!

Periodontal disease and cirrhosis: current concepts and future prospects — eGastroenterology

The post Why bad breath is a red flag for liver trouble appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But many people aren’t aware that the liver, the body’s largest solid organ, is just as crucial to life and health.

So it’s scary to think that over 100 million Americans have fatty liver disease, which makes the liver less and less able to perform its vital functions — more than 500 of them!

Being without a functioning liver is as life-threatening as being without a functioning heart. But even if your liver function is slowed or impaired, you can face a cascade of dysfunction that can steal your good health.

That’s why I was very excited to read a new study showing how a simple fruit extract can prevent fatty liver disease…

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Why is the liver so important?

It’s the liver that detoxifies the body. It gets rid of unwanted substances that enter your body through your lungs, skin or mouth, such as food additives, household chemicals and environmental pollutants.

But chemicals and excess fatty deposits can overwhelm and slow liver function. As a result, your liver function worsens and you gain excess weight.

That’s why being overweight is a symptom of a toxic liver. The fat accumulating in your body is also accumulating in your liver.

A burdened liver has trouble producing the bile needed to break down all the vitamins and nutrients you take in through food and supplements, making them useless to the body.

Your liver is also responsible for blood clotting. All this makes it clear that without a healthy, functioning liver, your health and, indeed, your life would be in danger.

The dangers of a fatty liver

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a condition that occurs when fat accumulates in the liver.

Left untreated, NAFLD can progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which in turn can lead to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. At this point, a liver transplant may be the only way to save a life.

But unlike so many other conditions, NAFLD is reversible.

Obesity has always been considered a risk factor for NAFLD, so weight loss has been a primary prevention strategy, along with exercise to reduce excess belly fat.

However, a recent study shows that taking a simple fruit extract could be the easiest way to reduce fat in the liver.

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Camu-camu, the exotic fruit cure for fatty liver

Researchers found that the polyphenols in camu-camu fruit reduce levels of fat in the liver.

Camu-camu is a sour berry, similar to a cherry, that’s native to the Amazon rain forest. It’s high in vitamin C and has been shown to lower blood pressure and reduce blood sugar.

This exotic fruit is readily available as a supplement in capsule form.

Over 12 weeks, thirty participants took either camu-camu extract or a placebo at different times in this randomized clinical trial.

When the researchers used MRIs to observe fat levels in the liver, they saw a 7.43% reduction in liver lipids when study participants took camu-camu extract. With the placebo, they noted an 8.42% increase in liver fat.  

Why does camu-camu work?

The team identified two possible ways that camu-camu extract helps prevent fatty liver.

It could reduce lipogenesis, the formation of lipid droplets in the liver. It’s also possible that polyphenols are causing oxidation that stimulates the breakdown of lipids.

“A combination of the two mechanisms probably explains the high efficacy of the extract, as we’re playing on both sides of the coin,” says Prof. Andre Marette of the Universite Laval in Quebec City.

What this means for you

If you already have NAFLD, or if your doctor has told you that you’re in danger of developing it, you can start taking camu-camu capsules. They’re easy to order online.

As always, I’d recommend checking with your doctor before starting any new vitamin regimen.

Prof. Marette stresses the need to check products for their polyphenol content and compare a few before ordering one, as not all products are the same.

Sources:

Hepatic disease: a camu-camu fruit extract to reduce liver fat — Eureka Alert

Camu-camu decreases hepatic steatosis and liver injury markers in overweight, hypertriglyceridemic individuals: A randomized crossover trial — Cell Reports Medicine

7 Evidence-Based Health Benefits of Camu Camu — Healthline

The post The exotic fruit that could prevent fatty liver appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

The severity of this condition varies across age groups, but when it’s persistent, it’s a precursor to a host of serious health issues…

These include obesity, physical inactivity, a heightened risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death.

The longer a person is lonely, the more likely they are to experience some of these effects.

Now, investigators believe there’s another ailment to add to that long list….

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NAFLD, loneliness and social isolation

Loneliness and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) share a common thread. Both are increasingly prevalent, and researchers are beginning to uncover a potential link between the two.

NAFLD is a chronic liver disease that affects roughly 30 percent of the global population, driven by rising rates of obesity, diabetes and aging.

An international team of researchers analyzed data from over 400,000 participants in the UK Biobank to determine whether there is a link between loneliness and social isolation and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

They characterized loneliness as “a distressing emotion arising from a discrepancy between desired and actual levels of social interaction” and social isolation as “having infrequent social connections.”

When reviewing detailed assessments of participants’ social connections and emotional well-being, they found loneliness increased the risk of developing NAFLD by 22 percent. In comparison, social isolation raised the risk by 13 percent. This was independent of traditional risk factors like obesity, diabetes and lifestyle behaviors.

Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors, depression and inflammatory responses partly explained these associations. Up to 30 percent of the observed risk linked to loneliness was due to lifestyle factors like obesity, smoking and irregular physical activity, while depression contributed an additional 33 percent.

“Our findings provide robust evidence that loneliness and social isolation are not just mental health issues but also critical factors in the development of metabolic diseases like NAFLD,” says Jiaqi Huang, a professor at Central South University in China. “Interventions that target these social determinants, alongside promoting healthier lifestyles, could be transformative for public health.”

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Step up social connections and reduce NAFLD risks

In the meantime, if you feel lonely or socially isolated on a persistent basis, it might be a good idea to take some steps to engage with others regularly. Here are some suggestions for how to do that:

• Meet with friends and/or family in person at least once a week. Face-to-face contact is vitally important to staving off loneliness and isolation.
• Seek out community service activities that help people while fostering contact with others.
• Try a new hobby. Look for groups at your local library, YMCA or church that match your interests.
• Start or join a book group. If you love to read, this is a good way to meet other people and share your perspectives.

And don’t forget to lessen other risk factors for NAFLD. Exercise is one of the best ways. But if physical reasons prohibit that, NAFLD is largely influenced by diet.

Diet patterns that could reduce NAFLD risk include the Mediterranean, DASH, and plant-based diets. Be sure to get plenty of resistance starches, which have been shown to lower liver fat by 40%. And last but not least, reach for your liver’s strongest ally, NAC.

Sources:

Loneliness and social isolation linked to increased risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, study finds — EurekAlert!

Loneliness and Social Isolation with Risk of Incident Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, UK Biobank 2006 to 2022 — Health Data Science

Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation — Department of Health and Human Services

What is Causing Our Epidemic of Loneliness and How Can We Fix It? — Harvard Graduate School of Education

The post A ‘persistent’ feeling linked to fatty liver disease appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But just like on the football field, you have your MVPs — and you have those players that, if they spent the entirety of the game on the sidelines, the season would go on.

Your appendix might be a bench sitter. Even your spleen and gallbladder could sit the game out. And it’s even possible to continue without a stomach, a kidney or a colon. It’s certainly not optimal by any means, but it’s possible.

Your liver, though, is no bench-sitter.

It’s responsible for performing hundreds of functions… from breaking down fat for energy and metabolizing nutrients and medications so your body can use them — to creating and regulating several hormones… as well as enzymes and proteins necessary for digestion and even blood clotting.

But your liver is also your body’s main detoxifying organ. To say the least, that’s a lot of pressure.

Under a constant assault by chemicals, toxins and a diet heavy in processed foods — a tired, overworked liver can struggle to do it all.  It will switch to “life support mode” and put housekeeping on the back burner.

The toxins and fat begin to build, and your liver is no longer playing like an MVP. The result? Up to 100 million Americans with undiagnosed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, for starters.

Luckily, your liver has a teammate whose main goal is making sure it’s up to sacking those inescapable threats…

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Your liver’s best friend

N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is derived from an amino acid in the body that is essential for producing antioxidants. Without NAC, you’d have difficulty refilling your stores of glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant.

NAC activates glutathione, which “primes” the function of T cells and natural killer cells, making them better able to deal with viruses and bacteria. A big deal, right? But that’s not all…

NAC is a powerful detoxifier. In fact, if you are ever rushed to the ER for an acetaminophen (Tylenol) overdose, doctors will immediately administer an I.V. dose of N-acetylcysteine.

Acute threats aside though, with NAC, your liver gains a powerful ally, capable of tackling multiple health threats, including those that come with age.

Previous research has shown that because NAC can help the body maintain adequate glutathione levels, it may help prevent the routine metabolic decline associated with aging.

According to the author of that study, “I’m optimistic there could be a role for this compound in preventing the increased toxicity we face with aging, as our abilities to deal with toxins decline. We might be able to improve the metabolic resilience that we’re naturally losing with age.”

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Getting NAC on your team

NAC is a free agent. In other words, providing your body with NAC is as simple as finding the right supplement.

That’s because NAC isn’t found in any food sources. However, eating high-protein foods provides your body with cysteine, which is a precursor to NAC.

For that reason, some health practitioners will tell you it’s not necessary to supplement NAC. However, the study I referenced above found that in mice experiencing toxic stress, the cells of older mice were depleted of glutathione, and they died twice as fast as younger mice.

NAC has also been around for a long time and has been used as a medication, so it’s considered quite safe. But always choose supplements from a reputable manufacturer and never take more than is recommended.

If you bleed easily, have cystinuria (a condition that causes kidney stones) or take nitroglycerine, don’t supplement NAC without talking to your doctor first.

The post NAC: The liver’s ally for healthy aging appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But, despite the damage it can do, alcohol has never carried any such warning, other than those urging drinkers not to drive and not to drink while pregnant.

The present surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, wants to see this change. His 17-page advisory, titled “Alcohol and Cancer Risk,” outlines the evidence for a strong link between alcohol consumption and at least seven types of cancer.

What is a Surgeon General’s advisory?

A Surgeon General’s Advisory is a public statement that calls the American people’s attention to an urgent public health issue and provides recommendations for how it should be addressed.

Advisories are reserved for significant public health challenges that require the nation’s immediate awareness and action.

Health issues that have prompted a surgeon general’s advisory in the past include cigarettes, AIDS, and obesity.

In the late 1980s, Surgeon General Dr Everett Koop issued an advisory on deaths due to drunk driving in the United States. This advisory resulted in tougher blood-alcohol level standards and higher taxes on alcoholic beverages.

But this is the first time an advisory has warned us about the direct health consequences of drinking alcohol.

What the advisory says about alcohol and cancer

“Many people out there assume that as long as they’re drinking at the limits or below the limits of current guidelines of one a day for women and two for men, that there is no risk to their health or well-being,” Dr. Murthy said in an interview. “The data does not bear that out for cancer risk.”

Here are the main points of Dr. Murthy’s advisory:

1. Consuming alcohol increases the risk of developing at least seven types of cancer:
   • Mouth
   • Throat
   • Esophagus (esophageal cancer has doubled in adults under 65)
   • Voice box (also known as laryngeal cancer)
   • Breast
   • Liver
   • Colon and rectum
2. Alcohol causes cancer in four ways:
   • Alcohol breaks down into acetaldehyde, which damages DNA in multiple ways, resulting in an increased risk of cancer.
   • Alcohol induces oxidative stress, which increases cancer risk by damaging cells and increasing inflammation.
   • Alcohol affects estrogen levels which can increase breast cancer risk.
   • Alcohol leads to greater absorption of carcinogens.

How much is too much?

Dr. Murthy says it’s important to know that our cancer risk rises as we consume more alcohol.

At the same time, each person’s risk is particular to their family history, genetic makeup and exposure to environmental toxins.

“I wish we had a magic cutoff we could tell people is safe,” Dr. Murthy says. “What we do know is that less is better when it comes to reducing your cancer risk.”

“If an individual drinks occasionally for special events, or if you’re drinking a drink or two a week, your risk is likely to be significantly less than if you’re drinking every day.”

Three years ago, a Chinese study confirmed that alcohol causes cancer. But we still haven’t caught up with this news.

Dr. Murthy hopes that warning labels will convince us to avoid alcohol as much as possible.

Hopefully, his warning will make you rethink the amount of alcohol you consume. Just another way to buy yourself more years of a healthy life.

Sources:

Alcohol labels should carry cancer risk warning, U.S. surgeon general urges — NBC News

Surgeon general calls for cancer warnings on alcohol — NY Times

Alcohol and cancer risk — Office of the Surgeon General

New genetic study confirms that alcohol is a direct cause of cancer — Oxford Population Health

Alcohol metabolism genes and risks of site-specific cancers in Chinese adults: An 11-year prospective study — International Journal of Cancer

The post 7 cancers that may lead to warning on alcohol labels appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Why?

Because, as its name implies, the incidence of fatty liver is directly correlated to the incidence of obesity, which has skyrocketed in the U.S. over the past decades.

But it’s also a sneaky condition. Fatty liver is a hidden factor increasing heart disease in lean people.

You could be living with fatty liver disease right now and not even know it. That’s because fatty liver often comes with no signs or symptoms and is only discovered if your doctor decides to run specific blood tests to look at your liver enzymes.

This can allow the disease to continue to progress silently until it’s too late.

Yet, in all of the bad, there is good news…

Since the most common cause of fatty liver is being overweight, it’s also very preventable. Maintaining a healthy body weight helps keep liver fat down. Of course, that’s not so simple for most of us.

But here’s something that is…

Researchers have discovered a simple and inexpensive way to help your liver slim down, a gut-healthy prebiotic that can be purchased online or at your local health food store.

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Feeding the good bacteria in your gut

But before we get into the name of the prebiotic and how it works, we’ve got to go back just a bit.

You see, the team’s research started with an earlier study.

They theorized that increasing the levels of a specific gut microbe, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, which has known anti-inflammatory properties, would help prevent and even reverse fatty liver disease.

And they were right!

But while the news was good, there was a snag…

Faecalibacterium prausnitzii isn’t a supplement that you can pick up at the store or even get a prescription for at the pharmacy. And the researchers wanted people everywhere to be able to use their findings to improve the health of their livers.

So, they continued with a second study to see if, instead of directly supplementing with Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, they could provide a prebiotic known for fueling its growth and get the same results.

Prebiotics are fiber sources that can’t be digested in your gut, but serve as food for your good gut microbes — microbes like Faecalibacterium prausnitzii.

Significantly decreased liver fat

The team first induced fatty liver disease in a group of rats and then set out to reverse it by feeding them the prebiotic Xylo-oligosaccharides.

And once again, their research paid off — big!

They discovered that not only did Xylo-oligosaccharides (or XOS for short) increase the growth of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, but adding them to the diet “significantly decreased the liver fat content of the rats.”

As a bonus, the team notes that XOS also improved glucose metabolism — essentially, blood sugar regulation.

And if you’re wondering if the results the team observed in the rats with fatty livers can be translated to humans, the news is good: They’ve already conducted their first study of the effects of XOS on the liver in people and say that their results are promising.

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XOS can be found naturally in fruits, vegetables, milk, honey and bamboo shoots. You can also find XOS as a prebiotic supplement. And a big plus here…

Unlike with some other prebiotics, XOS is effective at lower doses. That means experiencing less bloating or abdominal pain, which many people experience when they start taking high-dose prebiotics. In fact, XOS produces no gassy end-products.

Another significant benefit is that XOS helps boost the probiotic Bifidobacterium, which is associated with reduced blood levels of lipopolysaccharides (LPS). LPS are linked to inflammatory metabolic conditions, and any time we can avoid inflammation is beneficial.

Sources:

The skinny on fatty liver disease — Harvard Health

Dietary supplement may help in the treatment of fatty liver — EurekAlert!

Xylooligosaccharides, a New Kind of Prebiotic — Designs for Health

The post The ‘no-bloat, no-gas’ prebiotic that reduces liver fat and inflammation appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

After all, our moms tell us not to talk about it. Society says it’s completely off-limits.

And the older we get, we also realize there’s absolutely nothing funny about poop. Still, many of us are hesitant to discuss problems with regularity with anyone, even a doctor.

But the truth is, your regularity, or how often you “go” can offer an important window into your overall health.

In fact, scientists have even discovered a so-called “Goldilocks Zone” when it comes to weekly poop schedules — and if you can stay within the zone, it will help you keep your health at its best.

Here’s what you need to know about how often you should be pooping and what happens if you’re not in the Goldilocks zone…

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The good, the bad and the ugly poop schedule

To find this Goldilocks Zone, researchers collected clinical, lifestyle, and biological data – including blood chemistry, gut microbiome, genetics and more — from over 1,400 healthy adult volunteers.

They then classified each participant’s bowel movement frequencies into four groups: constipation (one or two bowel movements per week), low-normal (three to six per week), high-normal (one to three per day) or diarrhea.

And after comparing frequency to overall health, it became very clear that pooping regularly, but not too often, is vital. In fact, if you’re not, it can lead to serious health problems…

• The team found that in people who are constipated, where stools linger too long in the gut, microbes exhaust all the available fiber and begin to ferment dangerous toxins that can damage the kidneys.
• On the other end of the spectrum, diarrhea causes the body to excrete excessive bile acid, which the liver would otherwise recycle to dissolve and absorb dietary fats.
• This can lead to disease-causing inflammation and liver damage.

On the other hand, fiber-fermenting gut bacteria associated with good health thrived in the Goldilocks Zone of one or two poops a day.

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Getting your poop schedule on track

So who do researchers say are most likely to land in this Goldilocks Zone?

People who eat more fruits and vegetables!

Other secrets include drinking plenty of water, getting regular physical activity and eating a more plant-dominant diet.

But if regularity is your problem, steer towards natural remedies to promote predictable, regular and comfortable bowel movements. I can recommend 7 little helpers that can help you “go” the way nature intended — stress and strain-free — including:

• Ancient aloe – Microbiome-friendly aloe lubricates the lining of the colon and stimulates colon muscles for transit without uncomfortable cramping.
• Inulin – A potent prebiotic, this special plant fiber helps friendly bacteria thrive in the gut.
• Cascara sagrada bark – Rich in natural anthraquinones, this bowel mover helps promote the urge to “go”.
• Senna leaf extract – This FDA-approved over-the-counter, nonprescription natural laxative, signals the muscles of the colon to relax and contract while pushing stool through the colon.
• Potassium – A vital mineral, potassium helps keep stool hydrated for comfortable elimination.
• Slippery elm – A natural soluble fiber, it helps coat the inner-lining of the colon to ease discomfort.
• Black walnut hull – Its active compounds — juglone, tannins and natural iodine — support healthy digestion and regularity.

Sources:

Your Poop Schedule Says a Lot About Your Overall Health, Study Suggests  — ScienceAlert

The post How your poop schedule impacts your liver and kidneys appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But those non-nutritive low-calorie and no-calorie substitutes have some major drawbacks too. Does that mean we’re doomed to a life of “bland”?

Not if you switch to this truly natural sweetener that not only satisfies your sweet tooth — but also reduces four significant risk factors for cardiometabolic disease…

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Maple syrup: more than just sugar

Cardiometabolic diseases are all too common, often very preventable and can come together to do major harm resulting in heart attack, stroke, vascular disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Because inflammation is a driving factor in cardiometabolic disease, Dr. Andre Marette, PhD., had an idea…

“We know from decades of research that maple syrup is more than just sugar. It contains over 100 natural compounds, including polyphenols, that are known to prevent disease in part through their anti-inflammatory effects.”

So he and a team of scientists at Laval University conducted the first and only placebo-controlled clinical trial of the health effects of maple syrup.

In all, 42 participants consumed either two tablespoons of Canadian maple syrup or artificially-flavored refined sugar syrup each day for eight weeks, and then switched for another 8 weeks.

Tests were run to measure glucose tolerance, blood lipid profile, blood pressure body fat composition and changes in gut microbiota — and the outcomes were more than the researchers expected…

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Maple syrup took down 4 cardiometabolic risk factors

According to Dr. Marette, “I did not expect to see so many improvements of risk factors within a relatively short treatment period… Both individually and collectively, the study findings are quite significant.”

Specifically, they saw…

#1 – Lower blood sugar

The results showed that using maple syrup daily helped participants better manage their blood sugar levels after eating, thanks to improved glucose tolerance.

#2 – Better blood pressure

Switching to maple syrup also led to improved blood pressure. In fact, during the weeks that participants used maple syrup, their systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading that indicates the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats and pumps) decreased significantly by an average of -2.72 mm Hg. On the other hand, when the same participants used regular refined sugar, their systolic pressure went up by approximately +0.87 mm Hg.

#3 – Less abdominal fat

Visceral fat is the dangerous deep belly fat that wraps around your organs and raises your risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Yet, it seems it’s no match for maple syrup. As with blood pressure, maple syrup dramatically reduced visceral abdominal fat, while consuming refined sugar caused it to increase.

This finding adds more significance to a prior study, which found that the everyday sugar we eat actually blocks the bacteria that keep us lean and healthy.

#4 – Improved gut health

Considering the key role gut health plays in your overall health and longevity, possibly the most significant finding was the fact that switching to maple syrup also improved levels of potentially beneficial gut bacteria while decreasing those that harm.

The researchers found that when participants consumed maple syrup, their gut microbiome had fewer Klebsiella and Bacteroides pectinophilus, species, linked to inflammation and metabolic disorders.

Conversely, maple syrup caused an increase in the growth of beneficial bacteria like Lactocaseibacillus casei, which helps your body break down the food you eat and absorb valuable nutrients. It also boosted Clostridium beijerinckii, which supports fermentation in the gut to help break down complex carbohydrates, like fiber and resistance starches, that act as prebiotics.

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Small changes for powerful prevention

Dr. Marette and his team have shown that committing to lifestyle changes, even small dietary changes, can be a powerful tool in preventing future diseases.

Diving into the nutritional benefits of maple syrup, there’s no mystery about its powerful effects. Just two tablespoons of maple syrup provides:

• 35% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of manganese. Insufficient amounts of this trace mineral can lead to impaired glucose tolerance or prediabetes.
• 15% of the RDA for riboflavin, which helps convert carbs to energy and metabolizes fats.
• 8% of the RDA of copper, necessary for breaking down fat cells for energy.
• 2% of the RDA of potassium, needed to avoid hardening of arteries and support heart health.

Sources:

Why substitute sugar with maple syrup? – EurekAlert!

Lacticaseibacillus Casei – Uses, Side Effects, and More – WebMD

The post 4 heart health reasons to ditch sugar for maple syrup appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

And obesity is really a form of premature aging.

Being overweight ages us from the inside out, affecting our telomeres, harming our energy-producing mitochondria, and weakening our immune system.

And as if that weren’t enough, it makes our brain get old a lot faster than it normally would, making us more vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease.

But according to ongoing research, there’s a simple way to change your diet that will stop the obesity train in its tracks and keep your brain from aging prematurely.

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The brain power of the Green Mediterranean diet

The DIRECT PLUS study (Dietary Intervention Randomized Controlled Trial Polyphenols Unprocessed Study) conducted by Israeli scientists in 2017-18 was the first to introduce the concept of the green Mediterranean, high polyphenols diet and its potential for weight loss in older adults.

In this trial, 284 people were divided into three groups. The first ate a healthy diet. The second adhered to a traditional Mediterranean diet, including 28g of polyphenol-rich walnuts.

The third group ate a “green Mediterranean diet.” On top of walnuts, they added three to four cups of green tea daily, as well as a green shake made with Mankai duckweed as a substitute for dinner. They ate almost no red meat.

At the end of the 18-month trial, brain MRIs on all participants showed a significant slowing in brain atrophy (shrinking) in those who ate a Mediterranean diet.

The change was even more noticeable in participants over age 50 who went “green.”

Follow-up study shows even better benefits

Scientists at Ben Gurion University recently conducted a sub-study of the DIRECT PLUS trial to examine the effects of weight loss on brain age and other factors affecting brain health.

The researchers chose 102 individuals who met the criteria for obesity.

Each received a brain scan both before and after the study to examine how weight loss through diet affected their “brain age.”

They found that a one percent reduction in body weight led to brain age being almost nine months younger than expected for a person of that chronological age.

And, as a bonus, these “younger” brains were also associated with a decrease in liver fat and liver enzymes that have been shown to negatively affect the brain of people with Alzheimer’s disease.

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How to go green for a big brain (and slimmer waist and liver)

Now, you may remember we wrote last year about how the green Mediterranean diet doubles fat loss.

That means the green Mediterranean diet is the one diet we could all get on board with, from weight loss to brain health — not to mention the liver benefits.

If you’re not already following a Mediterranean diet, take a look at this guide to getting started.

Then, start to tweak things gradually. Eliminate one portion of meat and substitute fish or a plant-based protein like nuts, seeds or legumes. As you go along your goal should be a diet that includes very little if no meat at all.

Fruits and veggies should make up the bulk of your diet. Don’t forget, whenever possible, raw is better for you.

Pile on whole grains (rich in heart-protective betaines) like brown rice, barley and buckwheat.

Dairy is allowed but in moderation. And don’t forget those healthy fats: olive oil, avocados, walnuts and almonds.

Drink plenty of green tea (though black tea has some impressive benefits of its own!).

Last, but not least, if you must eat processed foods, keep them to a minimum—especially foods with added sugars and refined grains.

Sources:

Could a better diet make your brain younger? — Eureka Alert

The effect of weight loss following 18 months of lifestyle intervention on brain age assessed with resting-state functional connectivity — Epidemiology and Global Health

The effect of a high-polyphenol Mediterranean diet (Green-MED) combined with physical activity on age-related brain atrophy: the Dietary Intervention Randomized Controlled Trial Polyphenols Unprocessed Study (DIRECT PLUS) — The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

The effect of high-polyphenol Mediterranean diet on visceral adiposity: the DIRECT PLUS randomized controlled trial — BMC Medicine

The post The diet that sheds pounds and keeps your brain from shrinking appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

The question of whether or not enjoying an alcoholic beverage provides health benefits seems to have sparked never-ending debate in the medical community.

It may have started with the French Paradox, a longevity theory that’s associated with drinking antioxidant-rich red wine with countering the effects of a French diet, high in artery-clogging saturated fats.

Over the years several other studies have linked moderate drinking with reduced risk for diabetes and reduced brain inflammation which could be protective against dementia.

But, at the same time, evidence has mounted demonstrating that drinking and a disease-free life simply don’t mix, especially if you want to live cancer-free.

That’s because alcohol has been found to be a direct cause of cancer — not just a supporting actor.

Now, experts have weighed in on exactly which types of cancers are fueled by alcohol and are nailing down how much drinking is too much if you want to keep that disease risk at bay.

Cancer directly linked to alcohol consumption

According to the American Association for Cancer Research drinking excessive levels of alcohol dramatically increases your risk for six different types of cancer.

These include:

• Breast cancer
• Colorectal cancer
• Liver cancer
• Stomach cancer
• Certain types of head and neck cancer
• Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

A report by researchers for the association found that “in the U.S., 5.4% of cancers were attributed to alcohol consumption in 2019, the most recent year for which data are available.”

How much is too much?

So if “excessive” drinking causes these cancers, how much does it take to put you at risk?

According to Dr. Céline Gounder, a medical contributor for CBS News, it equates to about three or more drinks per day for women and four or more drinks per day for men.

A standard drink would be 12 ounces of beer, five ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces (a shot) of 80-proof distilled spirits or liquor.

However, it’s important to note that some studies have shown that there really is no safe level of drinking and that even for moderate alcohol consumption, the risk of cancer far outweighs any possible benefits.

How alcohol sparks cancer

According to Dr. Gounder, “Some of this (cancer development) is happening through chronic inflammation. We also know that alcohol changes the microbiome, so those are the bacteria that live in your gut, and that can also increase the risk.”

Both of those issues can not only fuel cancer development, but they can also increase risks for other chronic diseases, like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.

So if you want to disease or cancer-proof your body, it looks like the less you drink, the better. Some experts will tell you there is no safe amount.

But if you’re a beer fan and want to enjoy the taste and feel of a good brew, you’re in luck. Non-alcoholic beers were put to the test and found to have benefits that could improve cardiovascular health and sleep.

Choices for non-alcoholic beers have also greatly improved over the last few years. You can find a range of award-winning microbrew and craft non-alcoholic varieties.

Sources:

Alcohol can increase your cancer risk. What experts say about how much is too much — CBS News

Cancer deaths in U.S. fell by 33% in 30 years, but alcohol remains a lesser-known risk factor — CBS News

There’s “no safe level of alcohol,” major new study concludes — CBS News

Study seems to settle the connection between cancer and alcohol — Easy Health Options

8+ ways an ingredient in beer can boost your health and fight cancer — Easy Health Options

The post 6 cancers associated with ‘too much’ alcohol appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

While you can minimize your exposure to these toxic microscopic particles, there’s little you can do any more to avoid them completely.

Microplastics have been found in our blood, liver, kidneys, muscles, heart, artery plaque and blood clots.

And as if this weren’t scary enough, we’re now learning for the first time that they have also invaded our brains…

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Microplastic brains: first mice, now humans

In May of 2023, I reported that researchers saw that polystyrene nanoparticles (commonly found in Styrofoam) were able to breach the protective blood-brain barrier of mice in just two hours after ingestion.

Now, researchers from the University of New Mexico and Oklahoma State University who looked at concentrations of microplastics in 51 liver, kidney and brain samples from routine autopsies, have found them in the human brain.

Since microplastic particles are often difficult to see, even with a high-powered microscope, the researchers chose instead to identify them in the samples by their chemical composition.

To their surprise, they found up to 30 times more microplastic in brain samples than in either liver or kidney samples. The reason?

The researchers believe the liver and kidneys, as detox organs, may be better equipped to deal with external toxins. The brain, however, does not undergo cell renewal to the extent that other organs do. For that reason, microplastics may collect and linger there longer.

The microplastic most commonly found in the samples was polyethylene. It’s the most common plastic and is used for plastic bags, films, and plastic bottles, as well as water pipes, flooring and packaging.

But the problem entails more than the tiny plastic particles. Microplastics can contain, carry and leach forever chemicals, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, heavy metals and pharmaceuticals.

These are all known to impact various areas of human health including including cancers, metabolic disorders, attention-deficits and hyperactivity disorder and fertility issues.

But what can we expect from microplastics, particularly in our brains? In mice, previous research saw cognitive decline and neurotoxicity through impairments in oxidative and inflammatory balance.

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How to minimize exposure to microplastics

We typically ingest microplastics through food or water. We can also breathe in small microplastics that take the same path as oxygen to enter the bloodstream, eventually reaching organs.

In the gut, they disrupt the microbiome. This compromises the gut-brain axis — a two-way system of communication. Microplastics weathered by environmental and digestive processes travel this pathway to eventually cross the blood-brain barrier, the intricate layer of cells that are supposed to keep things in the blood from entering our brain.

Your best protection at this time is to avoid or lessen your plastic exposure altogether. Here are a few ways…

• Don’t drink bottled water. According to a study reported in Smithsonian Magazine, if you drink only from plastic water bottles, you may ingest 90,000 microplastic particles each year, compared to 4,000 if you stick to tap water.
• Avoid plastic dishes. High heat can cause them to release microplastics. This means that you should keep them out of the microwave, and wash them by hand, rather than in the dishwasher.
• Cut down on salt and sugar. Per CNN, a 2023 study found coarse Himalayan pink salt mined from the ground had the most microplastics, followed by black salt and marine (sea) salt. Sugar is also “an important route of human exposure to these micropollutants,” according to a 2022 study.
• Use a reverse osmosis filter to remove some particles from tap water.
• Try this technique to decrease microplastics in tap water without special equipment.
• Eat cruciferous vegetables. Two or more servings daily of cruciferous vegetables may bind to chemicals from plastics and remove them from the body in a process called chelation. These foods include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, arugula and dark leafy greens like kale.

Sources:

Microplastics Detected Infiltrating Human Brains For The First Time — Science Alert

Bioaccumulation of Microplastics in Decedent Human Brains Assessed by Pyrolysis Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry — National Institutes of Health

Americans May Be Ingesting Thousands of Microplastics Every Year — Smithsonian Magazine

The post Microplastics have breached human brains: What are the implications? appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Rather than being caused by alcohol consumption, it’s thought that NAFLD is caused by metabolic syndrome, and thus is associated with obesity and diabetes.

NAFLD can deteriorate quickly to an irreversible and often fatal stage known as NASH or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.

NASH cannot be reversed. But a new study holds out hope for a possible treatment, one that’s as close as your vitamin cabinet.

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The amino acid that keeps fat from being processed

An international team of researchers recently confirmed an already known mechanism behind NASH.

But even more importantly, they’ve shown that a common vitamin might be the key to short-circuiting that mechanism.

It was already known that the amino acid homocysteine played a role in the progression of NASH.

Now we know exactly what that role is.

As homocysteine levels increase in the diseased liver, this amino acid attaches to a protein called syntaxin 17.

Syntaxin 17’s job is to perform autophagy, or the transporting and digesting of fats. Homocysteine prevents syntaxin 17 from performing this function, which contributes to the development and progression of NASH.

In pre-clinical trials (studies conducted with animals, not humans), the research team found that vitamin B-12 supplements could increase levels of syntaxin 17, restore its ability to perform autophagy, and reverse some of the liver inflammation caused by NASH.

“Our findings are both exciting and important because they suggest that a relatively inexpensive therapy, vitamin B12 and folic acid, could be used to prevent and/or delay the progression of NASH,” says Dr. Brijesh Singh of Duke-NUS Medical School, co-author of the study.

Detecting and treating NAFLD just got easier

The importance of this research doesn’t stop with the possibility of treating and preventing NASH.

In addition, it could provide a way to detect what is now often an “invisible” disease.

When symptoms are present, someone with NAFLD will experience abdominal swelling and jaundice. But just as often, there are no telltale symptoms at all, and the disease progresses silently until it becomes NASH.

But now, Dr. Singh notes, a simple test for levels of homocysteine in the blood and the liver could serve as a biomarker for the presence and/or severity of NASH.

And until a treatment is readily available, this simple act of detection can save lives.

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How to care for your liver

For now, NAFLD is preventable. And the way to prevent it is to avoid metabolic syndrome.

In addition to keeping your vitamin B12 levels up (which can be an issue for seniors), take a hard look at what and how you eat so that you can maintain a healthy weight and blood sugar range.

Research has confirmed that a regular exercise program is of direct benefit to your liver, over and above its effect on your weight.

Time-restricted eating, which lets you change when you eat instead of what you eat, has also been proven to work.

However, it’s important to note that even lean people can experience a health-destroying buildup of fat in their livers.

To provide your liver a little extra TLC, consider supplements that support your body’s largest and most hardworking organ, like N-Acetyl Cysteine, milk thistle, turmeric and Alpha Lipoic Acid.

Taking these steps to prevent metabolic syndrome will have benefits beyond protecting your liver. It will help you live a longer, more vigorous and healthy life.

Sources:

B vitamins can potentially be used to treat advanced non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Duke-NUS — Eureka Alert

Vitamin B12 and folate decrease inflammation and fibrosis in NASH by preventing Syntaxin 17 homocysteinylation — Journal of Hepatology

Definition & Facts of NAFLD & NASH — National Institutes of Health

The post A key vitamin for digesting fat and avoiding liver disease appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Recently, researchers from Japan found that a traditional liquor made from buckwheat could even be used medicinally.

Chinese buckwheat liquor, a traditional drink that contains various herbal medicine extracts, can induce autophagy, a process that cells use to clean up proteins that are damaged or no longer needed. In fact, it may hold promise for diseases associated with protein aggregation, like Alzheimer’s and alcoholic liver disease.

Taking out the trash

Numerous diseases start with a buildup of bad proteins — ones that have suffered some sort of insult.

For example, in Alzheimer’s disease dangerous proteins known as amyloid-beta and tau build up in the brain.  Over time, these proteins destroy the ability to remember, think and even live independently.

In liver disease, protein aggregates build-up, keeping the organ from functioning properly and backing up toxins into the body.

So what could a liquor do to help?

Well, according to a study published in Antioxidants, Chinese buckwheat liquor and one of its components could be the secret to cleaning out these damaged proteins to keep everything working like clockwork.

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The research team from Osaka University found that tartary buckwheat extract has the power to induce a process known as autophagy that cells use to clean up proteins that harm your body.

Think of it as taking out the trash.

The researchers made this incredible discovery by treating skin and liver cells with tartary buckwheat extract and looking at how different fluorescent markers of autophagy responded.

The results?

“We found that treating cells with the extract stimulated the formation of autophagasomes, specialized cellular structures that carry out autophagy, and altered the location of proteins involved in regulating autophagy,” said Takeshi Noda, senior author of the study.

When the researchers looked more closely at specific components of tartary buckwheat extract, they found that one component, quercetin, had the same effects as the extract.

These results suggest that quercetin could be a useful treatment not only for alcoholic liver disease but also for Alzheimer’s — one of the least treatable diseases of our time!

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Seed snacking to keep your body on track

So get on the seed bandwagon to better health!

Add buckwheat to your diet (or go the easy route and take a quercetin supplement to take out the cellular trash that causes disease).

And make other seeds with proven health potential part of your daily diet, like:

• Black cumin – This tiny seed is researched-backed to care for your health in seven miraculous ways!
• Pumpkin – From a stronger immune system to better blood sugar, pumpkin seeds pack a punch in six areas of your health.
• Chia – Want to feel full longer, while reducing blood sugar spikes? Chia seeds could help you do both and make weight loss easier to boot.
• Sesame – These seeds with a yummy, nutty flavor should be on your must-eat list thanks to the Parkinson’s protection they deliver.

So add a little seed power to your diet and your health!

Sprinkle them on salads, add them to yogurt and smoothies, use them to bake bread and muffins, or toss them in your morning oatmeal. Just be sure to look for unsalted options and store your seeds in air-tight containers to keep them from becoming rancid.

Editor’s note: Would you like to know more about the simple seeds that can help you lose weight, breathe better, reduce anxiety, boost energy and more? Read our free report, 12 Super Seeds of Health. Click here to receive it today!

Sources:

 What Causes Alzheimer’s Disease? – NIH

The good herb: Buckwheat liquor helps cells clean house – ScienceDaily

The post The seed that takes out disease-causing cells appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Scientists estimate that people are ingesting an average of five grams of microplastic particles a week. That’s the equivalent of eating a credit card!

And it’s building up in our bodies…

Research shows microplastics can enter the bloodstream and cross the blood-brain barrier. In the human brain, researchers warn this could potentially increase the risk of inflammation, neurological disorders or even neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.

Microplastics have even been found in the plaques that can clog our arteries.

Now, researchers at the University of New Mexico (UNM) have discovered that microplastics could make their way from your gut into the tissues of other organs like your kidneys, liver and brain.

Here’s what that could mean…

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Microplastics migrate from the gut

The UNM researchers exposed mice to microplastics in their drinking water over a four-week period. They added an amount of microplastics equivalent to the quantity humans are believed to ingest each week.

Results showed that not only had the microplastics changed the microbiota in the gut, but they also migrated out of the gut into the tissues of the liver, kidneys and brain.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the microplastics also changed metabolic pathways in tissues they travelled to.

Dr. Eliseo Castillo, a UNM professor leading the charge on microplastics research, says “That tells us it can cross the intestinal barrier and infiltrate into other tissues.”

We’ve known for a while now that contaminants can permeate the gut lining. It’s what’s known as leaky gut and is already considered an open door to disease.

“These mice were exposed for four weeks,” he says. “Now, think about how that equates to humans if we’re exposed from birth to old age.”

Previously, Castillo and his team found that microplastics changed the function of macrophages — immune cells that are protective against foreign particles — causing them to release proinflammatory molecules.

“During intestinal inflammation — states of chronic illness such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, which are both forms of inflammatory bowel disease — these macrophages become more inflammatory and they’re more abundant in the gut.”

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Dodging the microplastic menace

Castillo says he hopes his continuing research will help spark changes in how society produces and filtrates plastics.

But knowing the potential health impacts, is there any way to avoid microplastics? Unfortunately, the answer is “not completely.” But you can take these steps to minimize your exposure.

However, you may have even more control over keeping your gut from becoming an open door for microplastics to sneak into your body.

Research indicates you can eliminate some of the microplastics you consume in your urine, bile, feces and other bodily fluids and wastes. Just be sure your gut isn’t working against you…

The condition known as leaky gut has been around long before the threat of plastics. It’s an “open door” through which harmful microbes and toxins enter your bloodstream, causing illnesses including celiac disease, allergies, asthma, multiple sclerosis and a host of autoimmune diseases.

The “open door” that provides easy entry results from intestinal permeability — loose junctures or gaps in the lining of the intestines — that may develop from numerous factors, including poor gut health, particularly constipation, as well as aging epithelial cells (cells that line the intestine) that are unable to repair themselves.

If constipation is a problem, improve your transit time. The shorter the time stool sits in your colon, the less time microplastics have to damage and infiltrate your gut lining to jump into your bloodstream.

Don’t forget to work up a sweat either. Because chemicals like BPA have been found in sweat, exercise may be another way to help rid your body of these contaminants.

Sources:

Microplastics make their way from the gut to other organs, UNM researchers find — EurekAlert!

In Vivo Tissue Distribution of Polystyrene or Mixed Polymer Microspheres and Metabolomic Analysis after Oral Exposure in Mice — Environmental Health Perspectives

The post Microplastics: From your gut to your kidneys, liver and brain appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

I’m not a big meat eater, but I know I’d find it hard to walk away from yogurt, eggs and cheese.

But if I could do it for a few months and add a few years to my life on the other end? Now THAT’S something I’d consider.

A recent study tells me that this is entirely possible, with just a few changes to my diet for a short period of time…

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A vegan diet reduced biological age

Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have been able to show just how quickly a change of diet can slow aging… and who doesn’t want that?

They worked with 21 pairs of identical twins, assigning one twin in each pair to a vegan diet, while the other ate an omnivore diet — which includes both plant and animal-based foods.

Over just eight weeks, the twins on the vegan diet showed improvements in epigenetic markers associated with aging.

Think of these markers like clocks hidden in your genes: you might be forty years old (your chronological age), but the way your body “reads” your genes can affect your health risks and make your body younger than its years.

In fact, less biological aging was observed in the heart and liver, as well as in tissues making up the hormonal, inflammatory and metabolic systems.

That means these twins, if they encounter heart trouble, blood sugar problems, liver or metabolic disorders — it should be at a much later age than the twins who followed a regular diet.

The researchers concluded that “a short-term vegan diet is positively associated with epigenetic age benefits and reduced calorie intake”, and suggest it has potential for personalized nutrition strategies for healthy aging.

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Worth it for 8 weeks

A study I reported on last year only confirms these results…

In that study, which involved twins as well, the twins who followed the vegan diet ended up with significantly lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, insulin and body weight — all of which are associated with improved cardiovascular health.

That being said, some downsides have been reported that can be typical of long-term vegan dieting including…

• Trouble gaining lean muscle
• Low intake of protein and vitamin B12
• Risks for other deficiencies include: Vitamin D, zinc, choline, and omega-3 fatty acids
• And lower satisfaction with diet choice

That makes the idea of an 8-week vegan diet all that much easier to handle…

U.S. News and World Report, which rates diets every year, offers a complete beginner’s guide to the vegan diet.

Of course, the easiest place to start is simply avoiding anything that comes from an animal — which includes dairy and eggs.

You should be filling up mainly on fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Some of the best choices are:

• Brown rice
• Oatmeal
• Sweet potatoes and potatoes
• Corn
• Whole wheat pasta
• Dried apricots, prunes and figs
• Berries
• Pears
• Apples
• Cauliflower
• Kale
• Spinach
• Brussels sprouts
• Zucchini

There are lots of dairy-substitute options available as well, including:

• Soy milk
• Almond milk
• Coconut milk
• Yogurt made with one of the above

A word of caution: many processed vegan foods are just as unhealthy as regular ultra-processed foods, so that’s a pitfall to be avoided.

After an 8-week stint on the vegan diet if you’d like to add back the animal products but continue on a healthier path, eschewing red and processed meats for fish and chicken and keeping dairy down to a couple of servings a day, while eating more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, will get you closer to the Mediterranean diet — a diet that can take down weight, blood pressure and blood sugar but rates much higher on the satisfaction scale.

Sources:

Making One Diet Change For 8 Weeks Could Turn Back The Clock on Aging — Science Alert

Unveiling the epigenetic impact of vegan vs. omnivorous diets on aging: insights from the Twins Nutrition Study (TwiNS) — BMC Medicine

DNA Methylation: Can Your Diet Reduce Your Risk of Disease? — Healthline

Vegan Diet Can Improve Heart Health in Just 8 Weeks, Study Reveals — Science Alert

Cardiometabolic Effects of Omnivorous vs Vegan Diets in Identical TwinsA Randomized Clinical Trial — JAMA Network Open

This Daily Meal Plan Could Help Us Sustain 10 Billion People by Mid-Century — Science Alert

Vegan Food List: Over 100 Healthy Options For Your Next Grocery Haul — Trifecta

The post The 8-week diet proven to slow aging appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Yet, for many of us, the idea of cutting these foods out of our diets completely and eating healthy seven days a week is just too big of a challenge to tackle.

But, what if you could enjoy them on occasion and still remain healthy, stave off liver disease and even avoid diabetes?

Well according to scientists, there’s a way…

And, it all starts with a simple cooking oil you probably already have in your kitchen pantry right now…

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Ancient oil protects against fatty foods

You see, the problem with those high-fat foods stems from their tendency to cause your liver to accumulate more fat cells, including triglycerides (the same thing your doctor is looking at when he checks your cholesterol), and pump more of them into your bloodstream.

When these triglycerides build up bad things happen, and you can end up with what’s known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD, a build-up of extra fat in your liver cells that’s not caused by alcohol.

And, while it’s normal for your liver to contain some fat, if more than 5 percent to 10 percent of your liver’s weight is fat, then you have a fatty liver.

NAFLD tends to develop in people who are overweight or obese or have diabetes or high cholesterol. Even rapid weight loss and poor eating habits can cause NAFLD.

However, some people develop NAFLD even if they don’t have any risk factors. In fact, the disease affects up to 25 percent of people in the U.S.

Symptoms of a fatty liver include fatigue, weakness, weight loss, loss of appetite, nausea, abdominal pain, spider-like blood vessels, yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice), itching, fluid build-up and swelling of the legs and stomach and confusion.

You may even have fatty liver disease and not know it, since some people never have symptoms. But, once you have it, NAFLD can cause your liver to swell and lead to scarring, called cirrhosis.

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The Mediterranean answer to a fatty liver

You don’t have to end up with a swollen, sluggish liver just because you occasionally enjoy high-fat foods — as long as you incorporate olive oil into your daily diet.

You see, scientists decided to test the power of extra-virgin olive oil to combat or even reverse the effects of a high-fat diet, and the results were impressive.

The researchers found that hydroxytyrosol, a polyphenol found in extra-virgin olive oil, which is known to have antioxidant properties, actually protects your liver.

Adding hydroxytyrosol to a high-fat diet, reversed the effects of poor eating, and reduced the signs of fatty liver disease, as well as the negative effects seen in other organs, like the heart and brain.

And as a bonus, the hydroxytyrosol even prevented insulin resistance, the first step toward diabetes.

This could be the reason why research has shown that the traditional Mediterranean diet, including olive oil, reduces the risk of heart disease and the “bad” cholesterol that can build up deposits in your arteries.

In fact, a meta-analysis of more than 1.5 million healthy adults demonstrated that following a Mediterranean diet was associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular mortality, as well as overall mortality.

Now, this doesn’t mean you should give up eating healthy. If you occasionally crave those high-fat foods that you know aren’t good for you, make sure you’re getting a regular daily dose of extra-virgin olive oil — at least one to three tablespoons — to combat the effects of a high-fat diet the Mediterranean way.

Editor’s Note: You’re invited to join a tiny handful of Americans who enjoy rare, fresh-pressed olive oil all year long. Take my word for it, there’s a difference in taste, quality and benefit! Click here to learn more…

Sources:

NAFLD Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease — American Liver Foundation
Olive oil consumption and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease — World Journal of Gastroenterology
Diet could REVERSE negative effects of high-fat food — and CURE liver disease — Daily Express
Mediterranean diet: A heart-healthy eating plan — Mayo Clinic

The post Olive oil: The easy antidote for a high-fat diet appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But what most people don’t know is that it’s also associated with cardiovascular disease. Hep C can dramatically increase the odds of coronary artery disease, heart attack and even stroke.

It’s turning out, though, that there’s one thing common among people infected with Hep C that can tamp down that heightened risk of heart trouble…

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Hepatitis C: a quick overview

Hepatitis C is a viral disease that causes chronic liver inflammation and long-term liver damage.

And, unlike hepatitis A and B, there is no vaccine for Hep C. So, unless it clears on its own, which happens in less than 25 percent of cases, Hep C is typically chronic.

Baby Boomers — those born between 1945 and 1965 — are five times more likely to have hepatitis C.

That’s because boomers were born before tests that screened blood and medical equipment for infection were commonplace. Additionally, testing for Hep C infection was not available until 1990.

But what if you’re feeling healthy… should you still get tested?  Absolutely.

Many people living with the virus are asymptomatic — meaning they don’t exhibit obvious symptoms. But that doesn’t mean their health isn’t affected in other ways…

Anti-viral treatment reduces risk of heart disease

An international team of researchers looked at the results of multiple studies where cardiovascular disease accompanied Hep C, and in particular, outcomes such as stroke, heart attack, peripheral artery disease (PAD) and all-cause mortality.

Many of the subjects in these studies had received anti-viral treatment for Hep C, while more than twice as many had not.

The researchers found that anti-viral treatment was linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. In particular, the risk of PAD and heart attacks was lower in the antiviral group, but the risk for stroke and heart failure was nearly the same in both groups.

However, the rate of death from any cause was much lower in the anti-viral treated group.

The researchers noted a few reasons Hep C carries an enhanced risk for heart trouble, including:

• Endothelial dysfunction, which is when cells that line blood vessels don’t function as they should.
• Metabolic problems,which can include diabetes, hypertension, abnormal cholesterol and weight.
• Oxidative stress
• Vascular injury
• and inflammation

Unfortunately, Hep C isn’t the only liver-related condition that’s worse on the heart.

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The importance of getting tested

The Centers for Disease Control now recommends that all adults be screened for hepatitis C. Even though the risk is greater for mature adults, Hep C can strike anyone.

If you do test positive for a chronic Hep C infection, your doctor will want to assess the extent of liver damage you may have suffered with further tests or procedures, including a liver biopsy.

All this may sound scary. But there are nearly 4 million people in the United States with Hep C, many of whom don’t know it. Finding out saves lives.

Symptoms of Hep C include fever, fatigue, body aches and loss of appetite, or they may resemble the symptoms of acute liver failure, including jaundice, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting and dark-colored urine.

But Hep C can also go undetected for decades, leading to a constantly inflamed and swollen liver. The disease usually becomes known when the symptoms of cirrhosis show up.

These include swelling with fluid in the arms, legs, and abdomen, itchy skin, and easy bruising, as well as difficulty thinking, mood swings and motor problems (known as hepatic encephalopathy).

Treatment can decrease the elevated odds of heart disease from a Hep C infection and increase the odds for a healthier, longer life.

Sources:

Hepatitis C Treatment Lowers Heart Disease Risk — Hep

Cardioprotective effect of antiviral therapy among hepatitis C infected patients: A meta-analysis — IJC Heart & Vasculature

Too Few People Treated for Hepatitis C — CDC Vital Signs

Hepatitis C — Cleveland Clinic

The post The viral heart risk that’s greatest for boomers appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But roughly 80 percent of people who lose a significant amount of weight won’t maintain that weight loss for a year. And one study found on average, dieters regain more than half of the weight they lose within two years.

That’s probably a sign the “lose weight fast and easy” gimmicks are just that. Real, lasting weight loss takes time and commitment to a healthy lifestyle.

But weight loss can also be associated with serious health problems… unintentional weight loss, especially if it occurs in a short amount of time warrants a checkup…

Possible root cause of unintentional weight loss

Dana Farber researchers recently assessed 40 years of data gathered from 157,474 participants in two large studies — the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up study — which ran from 1976 to 2016 collecting, among other things, weight, exercise and diet habits of participants.

“We wanted to differentiate healthy weight loss from unhealthy weight loss,” says Dr. Qiaoli Wang, a research fellow at Dana-Farber and the manuscript’s first author.

Results showed that weight loss of greater than 10 percent of body weight during the previous two years was linked with an increased rate of cancer during the next year compared with those who hadn’t lost weight in that time frame.

When breaking down by specific type, the researchers found recent weight loss was associated with significantly higher risk of these cancers:

• Upper gastrointestinal tract (including esophageal, stomach, liver, biliary tract and pancreatic)
• Hematological (including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and leukemia)
• Colorectal
• Lung

By contrast, it was not connected with increased risk for other types of cancer like melanoma or breast, genitourinary or brain cancers.

“Healthy weight loss can come from dietary changes or increased exercise,” Wang says. “But unhealthy weight loss that occurs unexpectedly can be due to an underlying cancer.”

Patients with advanced cancer often lose weight unintentionally. But in the past, weight loss wasn’t linked with early-stage disease. This study, however, found similar levels of weight loss happened before diagnosis of both early and late-stage cancer.

This means that unintentional weight loss could be a sign of a developing cancer, and that could help diagnose the cancer earlier when treatment could be more effective.

The study confirms findings from past research that linked unexpected weight loss with increased cancer risk. In fact, the American Cancer Society says an unexplained weight loss of 10 pounds or more may be one of the first signs of cancer.

See your doctor immediately

If you experience unintended weight loss over a short period of time, you should definitely consult your doctor. The quicker you do, the better the odds that whatever is going on inside your body can be caught before too much damage is done.

“Sometimes weight loss is due to more exercise or a healthier diet, and this can be beneficial to people’s health,” says lead investigator Dr. Brian Wolpin, director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and director of the Hale Family Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research.

“However, when a patient experiences unintentional weight loss not due to healthier behaviors, seeing your primary care doctor is appropriate, so they can determine whether additional evaluation is necessary for other causes of weight loss, including cancer.”

Cancer prevention can be part of healthy lifestyle habits, some of which also help maintain a healthy weight…

The Mediterranean diet is a great anti-cancer diet and a clear winner for healthy weight loss. It encourages eating more vegetables (like broccoli, the cancer-slayer), fruit (like these cancer-fighting ones) and fish — and doesn’t include ultra-processed foods which have been linked to cancers including  liver cancer and colon cancer.

And don’t forget that quite a few nutritional supplements are backed up by research that attests to their cancer-prevention benefits, too…

• Vitamin D
• Resistant starch
• Aspirin (but check with your doctor to be sure the potential benefits outweigh any risks especially if you have existing conditions.)

Sources:

Study suggests that unintentional weight loss is a signal to see a doctor — ScienceDaily

Cancer Diagnoses After Recent Weight Loss — JAMA

[Latest] Global Weight Loss and Weight Management Market Size/Share Worth USD 405.4 Billion by 2030 at a 6.84% CAGR: Growing obesity rate to propel market growth — Facts & Factors (Industry Trends, Revenue, Statistics, Segmentation, Report)

Unexpected Clues Emerge About Why Diets Fail — Scientific American

The post When weight loss is a sign to get checked for these cancers appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Maybe you don’t even know what it is. Where it comes from… where it lives in your body… or why it’s even important?

So just in case you’re in the dark, I’d like to offer you a “primer.” Then I’ll tell you about some new research on bile production and how you can help this fluid work harder to keep you healthy.

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What is bile and what’s its job?

It’s an olive green or brownish-yellow fluid that’s produced by your liver and stored in your gall bladder. Its job is to help absorb fats and fat-soluble nutrients, such as Vitamins A, D, E and K.

When you eat fatty foods, your gall bladder releases bile into the small intestine through a series of tubes, or ducts, where it mixes with partially digested food. Bile salts and other substances break down fat globules into smaller droplets. These droplets are easier for the digestive enzymes in your intestines to break down and absorb.

Sounds simple, right? But your body needs just the right amount of bile to accomplish this task healthfully — not too little and not too much.

When there’s too much: Bile acid malabsorption

Bile acid malabsorption (BAM) occurs when the colon can’t reabsorb unused bile after digestion takes place.

In some cases, there’s no clear explanation for why the colon doesn’t fully reabsorb bile acids. When this happens, it’s called primary BAM.

But BAM can also be a symptom of another condition. This is referred to as secondary BAM.

Conditions where BAM is a secondary symptom include irritable bowel disease, Crohn’s disease and celiac disease.

The main symptoms of BAM are bloating and diarrhea.

How your liver can poison itself

Bile is crucial for proper absorption and digestion of fats and vitamins necessary for maintaining health.

But too much can be toxic for the liver.

Three scientists from the University of Oklahoma have been working to better understand how its overproduction can poison the liver.

Their evidence suggests that bile acid imbalances may contribute to the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is dangerous not only because it can lead to total liver failure if it progresses, but because it is a risk factor for coronary artery disease.

Overproduction of bile can also contribute to a condition known as cholestasis, the slowing or stalling of bile flow through your liver, gall bladder, and bile ducts. Bile that can’t flow leaks into your bloodstream and backs up into your organs, causing inflammation.

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6 simple ways to support healthy bile flow

Here are six simple things you can do to keep your bile flowing smoothly.

1. Stay hydrated. Water ensures it stays thin enough to flow easily; electrolytes are required for the opening and closing of valves that allow bile flow. Especially in summer, make sure you’re drinking 2-3 liters 8-12 cups of water or sugar-free electrolyte drinks per day.

2. Eat bitters. Bitter foods like beets, artichokes, dandelion greens, and arugula stimulate bile flow by increasing cholecystokinin, a hormone that triggers gall bladder contraction.

3. Glycine and taurine. Glycine and taurine are amino acids essential for the production of bile. They can be taken as supplements, but are also found in bone broth, fish, shellfish, seaweed and poultry and eggs.

4. Eat fats but choose wisely. Eating fats is essential for triggering bile release. Stick to healthy fat sources like olive oil, cold-water fish, avocados, almonds, walnuts, and seeds.

5. Identify trigger foods and stop eating them. Avoid fast and processed foods and sugars, which all increase liver inflammation. Food allergies and sensitivities can also cause gallbladder issues. Identifying these foods and removing them from your diet can support healthy bile flow.

6. Support your liver. Your liver is responsible for over 500 vital functions, and it gets bogged down doing its main job, removing toxins from your bloodstream. Detoxing helps take some of that load off the liver and can help improve its functionality.

Sources:

Balancing act between digestion and liver health through bile acids — Eureka Alert

Bile acids regulation of cellular stress responses in liver physiology and diseases — eGastroenterology

Understanding Bile Acid Malabsorption — Healthline

The post For a happy liver and digestion, balance your bile appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But it can be dangerous to think of the skin as impervious. After all, things like ultraviolet rays from the sun can penetrate skin with ease if it’s not protected with sunblock or clothing. And of course, small cuts and scrapes can leave an opening for invaders to slip into the body.

Now there’s more evidence that even when intact, the skin isn’t impenetrable when it comes to a phenomenon that permeates our modern world…

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The skin can absorb PFAS

By now, you have probably heard of “forever chemicals.” These chemicals are called that because they don’t break down in nature. They hang around in our food, water, soil, and air, just waiting for us to come along and ingest them.

These nasty little substances include chemicals like PFAS (perfluoroalkyl substances), which are used widely in industry and consumer products from clothing to furniture to personal care products because they repel water and stains. Some of these substances have been banned by the government, but others are still widely used.

While the toxic effects of PFAS have yet to be fully studied, investigators have found links between these chemicals and adverse health effects like celiac disease, a lowered immune response, impaired liver function, decreased fertility, and decreased birth weight. Not to mention PFAS can raise your risk of high blood pressure,  diabetes, obesity, asthma and thyroid disease.

We know PFAS can enter the body by being breathed in or ingested via food or drinking water. But until now, it wasn’t clear if they could enter through the skin as well.

Researchers at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom studied 17 different PFAS that are among the most widely used and widely investigated for their toxic effects.

Of the 17 PFAS tested, 15 proved to be substantially absorbed by the lab-grown dermal models used, meaning at least 5 percent of the exposure dose was absorbed. Absorption into the bloodstream of PFOA, for instance, was 13.5 percent, with a further 38 percent of the applied dose retained within the skin, where it could be absorbed into the bloodstream over the longer term.

“The ability of these chemicals to be absorbed through skin has previously been dismissed because the molecules are ionized,” says lead author Dr. Oddný Ragnarsdóttir. “The electrical charge that gives them the ability to repel water and stains was thought to also make them incapable of crossing the skin membrane.”

Unfortunately, Ragnarsdóttir adds, “this theory does not always hold true” and “in fact, uptake through the skin could be a significant source of exposure to these harmful chemicals.”

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Short-chain PFAS more absorbable

As if this finding wasn’t sobering enough, the researchers discovered substances with longer carbon chains showed lower levels of absorption than compounds with shorter carbon chains. These shorter carbon chain molecules have been introduced to replace longer chain PFAS like PFOA, which is among the most regulated of the PFAS. For example, at 59 percent, absorption of perfluoro pentanoic acid was four times that of PFOA.

What that means is our skin may actually be absorbing far more of these short-chain PFAS, flooding our bodies with these forever chemicals.

“This study helps us to understand how important exposure to these chemicals via the skin might be and also which chemical structures might be most easily absorbed,” says study co-author Stuart Harrad, a professor at the University of Birmingham. “This is important because we see a shift in industry towards chemicals with shorter chain lengths because these are believed to be less toxic — however the trade-off might be that we absorb more of them, so we need to know more about the risks involved.”

There is really no way to completely dodge these forever chemicals. Even if all PFAS were banned tomorrow, our environment would still be filled with them, making it all but impossible to avoid them. But there are some steps you can take to minimize your exposure:

• Invest in a high-quality reverse osmosis water filter. Drinking water is one of the main sources of PFAS exposure.
• Wash new clothes before wearing them. Washing your clothes will at least lower the amount of PFAS exposure risk.
• Look for products that are free of PFAS. Products commonly made with PFAS include water-resistant clothing, nonstick cookware and cosmetic products. If you can’t avoid buying these products, check to see if they have ingredients with “perfluoro” or “fluoro” in their names.
• Skip fast food, takeout and microwave popcorn. Consumption of these foods has been linked with higher levels of PFAS contamination. If you must get takeout, transfer the food from its packaging to your own dishes as quickly as possible to minimize PFAS exposure.

A detox cleanse is considered a way to help rid your body of toxins, but unfortunately, PFAS are difficult to detoxify. What the body can remove is handled by the liver. So in the case of PFAS, I’d recommend supporting your liver so it’s not overwhelmed and can do it’s best job.

Sources:

New study confirms forever chemicals are absorbed through human skin — EurekAlert!

Dermal bioavailability of perfluoroalkyl substances using in vitro 3D human skin equivalent models — Environment International

What Are PFAS + What Products Contain Toxic Levels? — ConsumerNotice.org

The post The alarming truth about ‘forever chemicals’ and your skin appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

But if a headache hits or your tennis elbow is acting up, you probably pop a Tylenol when it’s needed.

After all, medicine has the same effect in your body 24 hours a day, right?

Not according to researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who warn that your body’s circadian rhythm has a big influence on the breakdown of medications…

And that taking them at the wrong time of the day could lead to toxin buildup.

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Enzymes matter

It’s estimated that about 50 percent of human genes follow a circadian cycle, and many of these genes are active in the liver.

Using tiny, engineered livers derived from cells from human donors, the researchers found that these circadian variations can affect how much of a drug is available to your body at any given time — and how effectively the body can break it down.

That’s because the enzymes that break down both over-the-counter and prescription drugs are more abundant at certain times of day. This is important because if your body can’t break down the medication you take, levels of toxins can build up.

Let’s take a look at Tylenol specifically…

According to the researchers, when Tylenol is broken down in the liver, a small fraction of the drug is converted into a toxic byproduct known as NAPQI.

Yet, the study showed that the amount of NAPQI produced can vary by up to 50 percent, depending on what time of day you take the medicine.

And it wasn’t just Tylenol…

They also found that atorvastatin (prescribed for high cholesterol) generates higher toxicity at certain times of the day. (If, by the new guidelines, you find atorvastatin won’t be necessary, try CoQ10 to raise HDL and support your liver!)

What these two drugs have in common is that both are metabolized in part by an enzyme called CYP3A4, which has a circadian cycle.

And because CYP3A4 is involved in processing about 50 percent of all drugs, you can just imagine how many medications could put a heavy load on liver health.

Guarding your liver health

Unfortunately, it will take more research before they can tell us the optimal and safest time of the day to take drugs that are affected by circadian rhythm.

But in the meantime, what you can do is support your liver’s efforts to detox your body by helping the process along naturally…

Some of the most powerful detoxing agents and liver supporters can be supplemented…

No doubt you’ve heard of milk thistle, a purple flower and an ancient liver-booster, milk thistle has been found to help support the elimination of heavy metal buildup, medication residue, environmental pollutants and alcohol that can accumulate in and damage your liver. But there are more…

• N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC) — NAC is a little-known amino acid that has been shown to help support the gentle detoxification of your liver, to rid it of tobacco and other types of carbon monoxide-rich smoke, alcohol and the air pollutants you’re exposed to daily.
• Turmeric — This 4,000-year-old Indian herb helps balance inflammation and protect your liver from oxidative stress while promoting healthy liver function.
• Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) — ALA is a potent antioxidant that helps keep fats from accumulating in your liver.
• Selenium — is a trace mineral that helps promote detoxification. One study has shown that selenium helps detox mercury buildup and reduce its effects. Never take OTC pain relievers if you’re low on selenium!
• Schisandra — An ancient Chinese herb that promotes healthy liver function, it helps activate enzymes in the liver cells that produce glutathione — the master antioxidant that detoxifies the body.

Also, it might be a good time to go over current medications with your physician to see if dosages can change or if less toxic medications are available. Remember, never stop taking a prescribed medication without discussing it with your doctor.

The post Medicating against your circadian rhythm can be toxic appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Not only can it compromise your liver function, it can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

And if that goes untreated, you’re looking at a progression that can include liver inflammation due to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) and even liver cirrhosis.

Luckily, scientists at the German Cancer Research Institute have taken a deep dive into the link between metabolic disorder and fatty liver, discovering a dietary trick that not only defeats liver fat, but conquers inflammation and reduces serious risk.

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Lowering liver inflammation is a must

The researchers had seen that different types of intermittent fasting lowered liver inflammation. So they decided to focus efforts on the 5:2 FAST specifically to gain an understanding of the mechanisms at work.

They pitted mice who had unlimited access to high-fat/high-sugar foods against mice who were given full access to those same foods but for only five days a week — and received nothing the other two days of the week.

And frankly, it wasn’t even a contest…

Despite the high-calorie diet, mice on the intermittent fasting plan showed fewer signs of liver disease and had lower levels of biomarkers that indicate liver damage.

This resistance to the development of a fatty liver occurred even though the fasting mice ate just as many calories weekly as those who didn’t fast since they immediately ate more at the end of their fasting periods.

According to the researchers, this benefit was due to the fact that fasting increased two molecular players —  the transcription factor PPARα and the enzyme PCK1 0 which work together to increase the breakdown of fatty acids and gluconeogenesis and block the build-up of fats.

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Major improvements across the board

And if that weren’t enough, there’s even more good news…

The scientists then decided to test the diet in mice that were already living with chronic liver inflammation due to a poor diet.

Again, eating the 5:2 way was a recipe for success. After four months of 5:2 intermittent fasting, the mice had:

• Better blood values
• Less fatty liver
• Reduced liver inflammation
• Developed less liver cancer and had fewer cancer foci (microscopic cells) in the liver

“This shows us that 5:2 intermittent fasting has great potential — both in the prevention of MASH and liver cancer, as well as in the treatment of established chronic liver inflammation,” said principal investigator, Mathias Heikenwälder.

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Give your liver some love

So if you want to reduce your chances of fatty liver disease, liver inflammation and possibly even liver cancer, embracing the benefits of intermittent fasting could be the answer.

There are different versions, but the 5:2 diet typically involves eating a normal, healthy diet for five days and ‘fasting’ on the remaining two days. If not eating for two days is a little too challenging, some experts recommend simply restricting intake on those two fasting days to 500-600 calories.

This can make the diet easier to stick to over the long run.

Additional tips for supporting your liver include:

• More protein – Studies have shown that adding more protein to your diet can help reduce liver fat.
• Resistant starch –Participants who took a resistant starch supplement saw a 40 percent reduction in their liver triglyceride levels compared to those in the control group. They also experienced lower liver enzymes and inflammatory factors associated with NAFLD.
• Enjoy some cocoa or coffee – In one study, mice treated with cocoa had 28 percent less fat in their livers at the end of the study than the control mice. In another study, people who drank at least three cups of coffee per day, including those who drank only decaf, had lower levels of liver enzymes—an indication of better overall liver health. Coffee also lowered liver cancer risk.
• Eat broccoli – It contains a compound that boosts levels of a protein important for keeping NAFLD from advancing.

Liver trouble can sneak up on you. Keep an eye out for these strange signs.

Sources:

Intermittent fasting protects against liver inflammation and liver cancer – EurekAlert!

The post What works to keep fatty liver inflammation from progressing appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Supposedly, there’s evidence backing each one of these plans. And for some diets, like the Mediterranean diet, that’s true. However, for others (like carnivore), a lot of that “evidence” is anecdotal at best.

In the case of one illness, however, it looks like hard science may be coming down on the side of plants. For the first time ever, there’s proof that plant-based diets, like veganism and vegetarian diets, can improve two key markers of health for people looking to avoid metabolic diseases, like diabetes — but there’s one caveat…

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Why plant-based eating works — except when it doesn’t

It’s estimated that at least 75 percent of type 2 diabetes cases could be avoided by adopting a better diet. A team of international researchers decided to explore the benefits of a plant-based diet in lowering diabetes risk using data from the UK Biobank, a cohort study of participants who were ages 40 to 69 at the start of the study.

Of the 113,097 study participants 2,628 developed type 2 diabetes over 12 years of follow-up. After analyzing associations between healthy and unhealthy plant-based diets and type 2 diabetes risk, they investigated which cardiometabolic risk factors explained the connections.

The results were impressive. Participants eating the healthiest plant-based diet — one with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and whole-grain products — reduced their risk of diabetes by 24 percent. That risk reduction even held for those with a genetic predisposition and other risk factors such as obesity, advanced age or a lack of physical activity that can really stack the odds.

However, there’s one big caveat…

Those who ate an unhealthy plant-based diet that included sweets, refined grains and sugary drinks had a 37 percent higher increased risk of diabetes — proving that you can’t just shun meat and dairy and call it healthy.

This isn’t the first study to indicate that a healthy plant-based diet, done right, can reduce diabetes risk. But it is the first to note that the antidiabetic effect of a healthy plant-based diet go well beyond lower body fat and waist circumference to key biomarkers of metabolic processes…

• It confirmed that normal values for triglycerides, blood sugar, inflammatory parameters and insulin-like growth factor are linked with a reduced risk of diabetes ;
• And also that it benefits the health of two key organs: the liver and kidneys.

The liver and kidneys play an important role in diabetes prevention. “Our research has now shown that a healthy plant-based diet can improve liver and kidney function and thus reduce the risk of diabetes,” says Tilman Kühn, a professor at MedUni Vienna and the University of Vienna, who led the study in close collaboration with researchers from Queen’s University Belfast.

He added, “Our study is the first to identify biomarkers of central metabolic processes and organ functions as mediators of the health effects of a plant-based diet.”

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The right way to go plant-based

One thing that’s clear from this study: A truly healthy plant-based only develops its protective effects if ultra-processed and highly sugary foods are reduced.

This backs up previous research that eating more healthy plant-based foods is the ticket. The researchers specifically named high consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, tea and coffee as being the best at reducing diabetes risk and improving kidney and liver function.

Purple produce, especially, has a reputation for pushing back at blood sugar problems. Fruits and vegetables with these color pigments contain anthocyanins, a group of polyphenol antioxidants that have been found to reduce the risk of diabetes by affecting energy metabolism.

Berries are my favorite way to get a burst of purple. One reason is that researchers have shown munching on berries can help you consume significantly less food throughout the day.

Don’t forget the risk of developing a B12 deficiency on a vegetarian diet. Be sure to supplement.

Sources:

1. Healthy plant-based diet reduces diabetes risk by 24 per cent — EurekAlert!

2. A healthful plant-based diet is associated with lower type 2 diabetes risk via improved metabolic state and organ function: A prospective cohort study — Diabetes & Metabolism

The post The diet that takes diabetes down, except when it doesn’t appeared first on Easy Health Options®.

Did you know, for example, that a medium-sized sweet potato gives you over 400 percent of your daily vitamin A? Sweet potatoes also give you a healthy dose of:

• Vitamin C
• Manganese
• Copper
• Pantothenic acid
• Vitamins B1, B2, B3 and B6
• Vitamin A (to nourish your skin)
• Biotin
• Potassium (to support normal blood pressure)
• Phosphorus
• Fiber
• Beta-carotene (a double whammy against cholesterol and inflammation)

But if you’re planning on preparing sweet potatoes for the holidays or any time after, there’s something else you should know: if you boil them instead of baking them (which you may want to do from now on) — they release a peptide that could lower your cholesterol and…

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Help you lose weight!

Researchers from the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization in Japan found that mice who ate this sweet potato peptide lost weight even when they were overindulging in fatty foods — like we often do during the holidays.

But that’s not all. Mice who were fed the sweet potato peptide also had:

• Healthier livers (vital to processing body fat)
• Lower cholesterol
• Lower triglycerides
• Higher levels of leptin (natural appetite-suppressing hormone) and adiponectin  (lipid-controlling hormone)

Researchers believe sweet potato peptide is beneficial to your waistline and your health because it helps your body digest fat more efficiently and suppresses your appetite (both of which are useful during the holidays when tempting treats are around every corner).

So next time you boil a batch of sweet potatoes, make sure you save the water — because drinking the water the potatoes were boiled in is the best way to get those super slimming peptides.

If you’re not picky about taste, you can wait for it to cool down and sip it plain. Just think of it as a cheap and natural weight-loss drink.

Of course, a more palatable option would be to put it in a storage container in the fridge and use it in smoothies, for soups and sauces, to cook rice in, or for any other recipe you can think of. But whatever you do, make sure you use your slimming sweet potato water within a few days because those valuable nutrients won’t last. And most importantly, make sure you buy organic sweet potatoes, so you don’t end up drinking a cup full of pesticide residue.

Just give the skins a good wash and dice them up a bit before boiling. for tips on making mashed sweet potatoes, check out this recipe.

Sources:

1. Ishiguro, et al. “Effects of a sweet potato protein digest on lipid metabolism in mice administered a high-fat diet.” Heliyon, 2016; 2 (12).

2. “Sweet Potatoes: Health Benefits, Nutritional Information.” Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com. Retrieved December 13, 2016.

3. “Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes.” Organic Facts. https://www.organicfacts.net. Retrieved December 13, 2016.

The post Do you know the sweet potato weight loss secret? appeared first on Easy Health Options®.