Foods to reduce anxiety

Vitamin B3 or Niacin is known to reduce anxiety and Depression

Let us enumerate foods that are rich in vitamin B3 or Niacin

Pumpkin seeds

Swiss chard

Mushrooms

Avocados

Broccoli

Tomatoes

Dates

Carrots

Sweet potatoes

Almonds

Spinach

Asparagus

Niacin also helps reduce cholesterol

Cucumber kimchi

These days the gut microbiome has become very popular and eating fermented vegetables is one more reason to have healthy gut bacteria.

But please do not overdo on these.

I wanted to share an easy recipe to make cucumber kimchi that I wanted to share.the ingredients needed ,

Cucumbers.  2 small

Salt   Itsf

Garlic 2 cloves finely chopped

Scallions. Two scallions white part finely chopped

Ginger.  1/4 inch piece finely grated

Rice vinegar.  2 tablespoonful

Korean chile powder

Sugar 2 tsf

Cut cucumber lengthwise in half and then crosswise into 1/8 inch thick pieces.

Put them in a bowl and mix with salt and let it sit 30 minutes?

Next in a stainless steel bowl,combine garlic,scallions,ginger vinegar,chile powder,sugar.

Next, drain the cucumbers.stir cucumber into vinegar mixture.cover and refrigerate for 12 to. 24 hours.

Other good herbs

Thyme

Fresh or dried thyme is powerful herb.

Use it in soups or stews

(Thymus vulgaris)

Sage

Common culinary herb 

It is used for drying sinuses.

You can make a sage tea and and gargle throat or sip on sage tea.

(Salvia officinalis)

Licorice

It is very popular herb,even as a candy.

Watch for low potassium it can cause if used repeatedly or excessively in any form. 

DGL or deglcyrrhizinated form does not cause problems with potassium.

Other herbs are slippery elm.Yin Chiao,elder flower.

Slippery elm is ulmus rubra.

My favorite Ginger Tea

Ginger is versatile.

It can be used as fresh ginger root,dried ginger root,candied ginger root that I mix it my trail mix,

Powdered dry ginger,ginger ale,ginger beer,ginger candy,ginger lemonade and so on.

I prefer fresh ginger root.

Take 1 inch or 2 inch ginger root and wash thoroughly ans scrape skin off gently.

Take a small I quart pot and 2 to 3 cups of water,shred the piece of ginger completely.

Add half of a lime or lemon juice and 1 to 2 tsf of honey.

Local honey is good.I like Manuka honey with 15+ .

Let this boil for minute and strain and sip on it.

You can never overdo on ginger teas.

Freshly grated ginger added to lemonade with a pinch of salt and black pepper makes tasty lemonade.

A mix of dry ginger and Amla( highest in a Vitamin C ) is available for pele with allergies,recurrent fought and colds.

We were traveling and during my travels came across a mix of orange juice,pineapple juice, crushed ginger,cantaloupe or honeydew melon.They blended it to make a smoothie and seved it as immune shots.

Winter wellness

Now,for those who eat non vegetarians,

Oysters are high in protein,calcium,iron and Zinc.

Grains,fortified cereals,cashews,beans,crabs are high in Zinc.

Now, what about HERBS that help immune function in Winter.

These herbs can be taken as tinctures or as herbal teas.

My favorite is Ginger tea,recipe follows

Echinacea ( echinacea purpurea)

Elderberry, we carry elderberry syrups in office which is good for fighting coughs and colds.

(Sambucus nigra)

Astragalus has been used in Chinese medicine for a long tome.

(Astragalus membranaceus)

Eucalyptus

Adding leaves to warm water and inhaling vapors reduces congestion.

Do not drink the water or the eucalyptus oil.

Eucalyptus comes as an essential oil that can be added to water and then inhaled.

(Eucalyptus globules)

Eleuthero also known as Siberian ginseng.

It is available in tincture form.

Tea can be made with using a pinch of Eulethero,cardamom,ginger,cinnamon.simmer for 15 to 20 minutes,strain and sip on it.

( Euletherococcus senticosus)

Mullein ( mulethi sticks, as I knew it.

Make a tea with mullein leaves or dry sticks,add honey and lemon to curb bitterness.

(Verbascum Thapsus)

TULSI I have lot of experience,personal using some of these herbs.

Now tulsi tea bags are available and can be obtained from my office.

(Ocimum sanctum )

Ginger

Ginger is versatile,my favorite

Ginger is good gor coughs,colds,stomach problems,nausea,and as antiinflammatory .

(Zingibar officinale)

Wellness in Winter

Remembering the days we were growing up in cold winters of Delhi,and how my Mom would give us special foods to eat specially we would be doing camp fires in our backyard and eat peanuts, dates, pop corn,almonds.We would bake psweet potatoes.Eating cooked Mustard greens mixed with other greens and butter and garlic was favorite.Even ,these days all restaurants serve cooked mustard,popularly called( Sarso ka Saag).It is traditionally served with  tortillas or Roti made with maize flour( Makki ki Roti).

So,now in USA, I researched and found some vegetarian and other not so vegetarian foods which would give you more bang for your buck.

NUTS

Almonds,peanuts,wheat germ,sunflower seeds,hazelnuts.

Brazil Nuts are very very high in Selenium about 95 micro gms in in one nut.Vitamin E from sunflower seeds and selenium from Brazil nuts helps produce T cells that fight infection.

Brazil nuts may have a role to play in the gut microbiome.

As good as they sound do not overdo on nuts.

Sweet Potatoes

It is very high in Betacarotene which is then converted to vitamin A.

Carrots,spinach,Kale,Brussel sprouts,pumpkins,Apricots,papaya,Mango also provide Beta carotene.

SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS

Chinese have used mushrooms as food and medicine for long time.They boost immunity because of Beta glucans,a carbohydrate.

These beta Glucans boost body's immune response.They make your immune system work like a harmful substance is present and let immune system get all geared up to fight.

Well, what other foods give us these Beta glucans?

These are, Maitake Mushrooms,Barley,Oat Bran,nutritional yeast.

Vitamin C

Oranges ,papaya,Leafy greens,cantaloupe,Peppers,Broccoli,Strawberries,other citrus.

Vitamin C is damaged by heat and Water so eat raw or barely steamed.

Garlic

Garlic and onion both have health benefits.

However In INDIA,the Jains And SWAMINARAYAN followers do not eat for various reasons.Allicin in garlic blocks enzymes that spread viruses.

Wellness menu in Airlines

Vow!

In our recent travels on Turkish Airline,the menu had Wellness Tea selections.

1. A combination of Melissa,camomile,sour cherry ,lavender tea used for stress relief,sleep promoting,

And anti jet lag.Date syrup can be added to make it a cold tea.

2.fennel,Anise,caraway promoting healthy digestion.

3.Mate,sage,Ginger which is refreshing.

4.Green Tea,cherry stalk,corn stalk,clove which resolves oedema,reduces swelling.

5. Linden,ginger,echinacea,clove,cinnamon which supports immune system,good for coughs and colds and flu.

6.a homemade cold tea with mint,fennel,lemon,date syrup for stomach relief.

The above was prepared under guidance from ENDER SARAC who is a famous Turkish Doctor for his works on anti aging and healthy living.

Pl do not consume more than two cups of the tea in a day.

Dry skin care ( herbal alternatives)

EXFOLIATE WELL

Exfoliate once a week with aface scrub.

Mix a pinch of poppy seeds with 1 tsf of honey.Massage your face with a mixture for two minutes and wash off to reveal smooth skin.

ANTISEPTIC  PACK

Add few leaves of Neem and Basil to one cup of water and boil it for 10 to 15 minutes.allow it to cool down and strain it .Add some Aloe Vera gel and honey to serum and apply to face using cotton pads.

SILK and SHINE

For  flaky brows apply a few drops of baby oil or olive oil on area of arcs before going to bed every nite.

The nature of medicine and the medicine of nature

I practice integrative medicine.At any time, the correct treament for a patients illness is what a treatment or a group of treatment measures gets a patient well.Ofcourse, no harm comes first.

Over time, the nature of medicine has changed. There is ever less time with patients. There is ever more reliance on technology and drugs. These can offer powerful benefits, but at times there are kinder, gentler modalities to get the same job done. The best treatment for any given patient is that blend of what works best, what is safest, and what conforms best to that patients preference.

Iam following in footsteps of my peer physicians,Dr.David Katz M.D,Dr.Mark Hyman M.D,Dr.Dean Ornish, M.D

I feel ahead of others when I practice integrative medicine as I am able to offer lot more options for treatment.

Egg replaces

My children  and friends were spending long weekend in Estes park,Colorado and they called me about egg replacers as a few of them were strict vegetarians.

I subscribe to the vegetarian  Journal and guess what I found the answer which I will share with you.

1/4 cup( 2 ounces) of

Blended silken tofu

Applesauce

Soy yogurt

Puréed peaches

Prune purée( great with chocolate)

Or

Mix with water until frothy

1/4 cup xanthan gum

2 tablespoons cornstarch

:2 tablespoons arrowroot starch

EnerG egg replacer

The Vegg( egg yolk replacer)

Bobs Red Mill egg replacer

Or

1/2 cup puréed or mashed banana

Or

2 tablespoonful water+1 tablespoon oil+ 2 teaspoons bakingowder

Or

1 tablespoonful ground flaxseeds+3 tablespoons water( let it sit in fridge atleast 5 minutes

Or

1 tablespoonful chia seeds+ 3 tablespoons water( let it sit in refrigerator for 5 minutes.)

Fatty liver

Fatty liver or non alcoholic fatty liver disease is much more common problem.

What simple measures can be taken to help liver heal?

Ofcourse you must take medications as advised by your doctor,but you can do some simple things to help liver heal naturally.

Adding Tahini or sesame seed paste to your diet.

Milk thistle

Pumpkin seeds.

I will be giving scientific information later to substantiate use of these substances.

Tahini makes a very good salad dressing.

It can be mixed with water ,salt,lemon juice and used as dressing or it can be mixed with buttermilk or plain yogurt as dressing or a tsf can be added to a smoothie to make it richer nutritionally.

More quotes

Let food thy be medicine and medicine be thy food.

You are what you eat.

Hippocrates quotes on food as medicine

"Leave your drugs in the chemist's pot if you can cure the patient with food. Our medicine should be food and food should be our medicine." — Hippocrates, 420 B.C.

Red meat and heart disease

Processed red meat linked to higher risk of heart failure, death in men

American Heart Association Rapid Access Journal Report

June 12, 2014 Categories: Heart News

Study Highlights

• Men who regularly eat moderate amounts of processed red meat such as cold cuts (ham/salami) and sausage may have an increased risk of heart failure incidence and a greater risk of death from heart failure.
• Researchers recommend avoiding processed red meat and limiting the amount of unprocessed red meat to one to two servings a week or less.

Embargoed until 3 p.m. CT/4 p.m. ET THURSDAY, JUNE 12, 2014

DALLAS, June 12, 2014 — Men who eat moderate amounts of processed red meat may have an increased risk of incidence and death from heart failure, according to a study in Circulation:Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal.

Processed meats are preserved by smoking, curing, salting or adding preservatives. Examples include cold cuts (ham, salami), sausage, bacon and hot dogs.

“Processed red meat commonly contains sodium, nitrates, phosphates and other food additives, and smoked and grilled meats also contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, all of which may contribute to the increased heart failure risk,” said Alicja Wolk, D.M.Sc., senior author of the study and professor in the Division of Nutritional Epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden. “Unprocessed meat is free from food additives and usually has a lower amount of sodium.”

The Cohort of Swedish Men study — the first to examine the effects of processed red meat separately from unprocessed red meat — included 37,035 men 45-79 years old with no history of heart failure, ischemic heart disease or cancer. Participants completed a questionnaire on food intake and other lifestyle factors and researchers followed them from 1998 to the date of heart failure diagnosis, death or the end of the study in 2010.

After almost 12 years of follow-up, researchers found:

• Heart failure was diagnosed in 2,891 men and 266 died from heart failure.
• Men who ate the most processed red meat (75 grams per day or more) had a 28 percent higher risk of heart failure compared to men who ate the least (25 grams per day or less) after adjusting for multiple lifestyle variables.
• Men who ate the most processed red meat had more than a 2-fold increased risk of death from heart failure compared to men in the lowest category.
• For each 50 gram (e.g. 1-2 slices of ham) increase in daily consumption of processed meat, the risk of heart failure incidence increased by 8 percent and the risk of death from heart failure by 38 percent.
• The risk of heart failure or death among those who ate unprocessed red meat didn’t increase.

At the beginning of the study, participants completed a 96-item questionnaire about their diet. Processed meat questions focused on consumption of sausages, cold cuts (ham/salami), blood pudding/sausages and liver pate over the last year. Unprocessed meat questions covered pork and beef/veal, including hamburger or ground-minced meat.

Results of the study for total red meat consumption are consistent with findings from the Physicians’ Health Study, in which men who ate the most total red meat had a 24 percent higher risk of heart failure incidence compared to those who ate the least.

“To reduce your risk of heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases, we suggest avoiding processed red meat in your diet, and limiting the amount of unprocessed red meat to one to two servings per week or less,” said Joanna Kaluza, Ph.D., study lead author and assistant professor in the Department of Human Nutrition at Warsaw University of Life Sciences in Poland. “Instead, eat a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grain products, nuts and increase your servings of fish.”

Researchers said they expect to find similar associations in a current study conducted with women.

Almost 6 million Americans have heart failure and about 50 percent die within five years of diagnosis. The healthcare costs and loss of productivity due to heart failure are an estimated $34 billion each year, researchers said.

The American Heart Association recommends that people eat a dietary pattern that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, poultry, fish, and nuts while limiting red meat and sugary foods and beverages. For people who eat meat, choose lean meats and poultry without skin and eat fish at least twice a week – preferably fish high in omega-3 fatty acids such as salmon, trout, and herring.

The other co-author is Agneta Akesson, Ph.D. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.

The Swedish Research Council/Medicine and the Swedish Research Council/Infrastructure funded the study.

Additional Resources:

• The American Heart Association's Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations
• Eat More Chicken, Fish and Beans than Red Meat
• Photos and video are available on the right column of this news release linkhttp://newsroom.heart.org/news/processed-red-meat-linked-to-higher-risk-of-heart-failure-death-in-men?preview=b52559e2c48a3e66665ad8e1e65f33

SAUSAGE,BACON,HOTDOGS,HAM,SALAMi are culprits in causing heart failure.

Asian Diabetes prevention Initiative

Did you know Asia has 60% of worlds Diabetic population?

Did you know some Indian cities have 20% diabetic populations.

Asians have more fat for same BMI than Americans with similar BMI?

So what should Asians do?

Try to stick to eating fruits and vegetables,lentils ,beans, legumes, brown Rice and Exercise.

Do not smoke or drink excessive amounts of alcohol.

I am going to share with you an abstract from Lancet that talks about reducing incidence of Diabetes mellitus.Lancet is a prestigious Medical journal.This was published in June 2014

Prevention and management of type 2 diabetes: dietary components and nutritional strategies

Sylvia H Ley PhD a, Osama Hamdy MD c, Viswanathan Mohan MD d, Prof Frank B Hu MD a b 

Summary

In the past couple of decades, evidence from prospective observational studies and clinical trials has converged to support the importance of individual nutrients, foods, and dietary patterns in the prevention and management of type 2 diabetes. The quality of dietary fats and carbohydrates consumed is more crucial than is the quantity of these macronutrients. Diets rich in wholegrains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts; moderate in alcohol consumption; and lower in refined grains, red or processed meats, and sugar-sweetened beverages have been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes and improve glycaemic control and blood lipids in patients with diabetes. With an emphasis on overall diet quality, several dietary patterns such as Mediterranean, low glycaemic index, moderately low carbohydrate, and vegetarian diets can be tailored to personal and cultural food preferences and appropriate calorie needs for weight control and diabetes prevention and management. Although much progress has been made in development and implementation of evidence-based nutrition recommendations in developed countries, concerted worldwide efforts and policies are warranted to alleviate regional disparities.

Instant Noodles And Heart Risk

It is all over the media.

A research was published from dietary patterns of women from Korea and their meat and instant noodle consumption.

Everyday instant noodle consumption was associated with increased risk of heart problems.

However Dr.Frank Hu of Harvard school of public health states once or twice a month consumption of Instant noodles is o.k

Fresh fruits and Vegetables are the best .Fill most of your plate with fruits and veggies .

Do not eat processed foods like hot dogs,hamburgers,cold cuts.

Eat fried foods in limits.

I am going to show you in next blog how you can make homemade fries of not just potatoes but sweet potatoes,carrots,Jicama,rutabaga,turnip.

My Plate as per USDA, see the difference between Harvard recommendations and USDA

This is the my plate version of USDA.As you can see ,it advises you a lot more to eat than the Harvard school of public health.

Healthy eating plate by Harvard school of public health

Healthy Eating Plate & Healthy Eating Pyramid

The Healthy Eating Plate, created by nutrition experts at Harvard School of Public Health and editors at Harvard Health Publications, was designed to address deficiencies in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s MyPlate. The Healthy Eating Plate provides detailed guidance, in a simple format, to help people make the best eating choices.

Use The Healthy Eating Plate as a guide for creating healthy, balanced meals—whether served on a plate or packed in a lunch box. Put a copy on the refrigerator as a daily reminder to create healthy, balanced meals!

Spices

I don't know why but today I am reminded of my trip to Morroco.

The Spice market in Morocco was a sight. I am reminded of Dates stuffed with almonds and a particular spice mix called Ras El Hanout.

Spices used are cinnamon,ginger,black pepper and nutmeg. Add a few threads of saffron and the spice mix is ready,

A popular recipe of this spice mix calls for m

 Few saffron threads

Salt

1tsf ground ginger

1 tsf ground turmeric

1/2 tsf ground allspice

1/2 tsf ground nutmeg

1/2 tsf ground cinnamon

1/2 tsf fresh grounds ground black pepper.

Morroco reminds me of chickpeas, and Tagine a special cooking utensil so attractive I had to buy one as a souvenir.

Rose oil

I was fortunate to visit first hand the original roseoil factory in Bulgaria.My nephew married a beautiful Bulgarian girl and we were invited to the wedding.

We reached Sophia, first and then took a taxi ride to Kazanluc,Bulgaria.itis about 2 to 3 hours car ride from Sophia.The scenery from Sophia to Kazanluk is  just beautiful.

Our hosts had planned a trip for us to see the original Bulgarian rose oil factory.

Yes, we had to purchase gifts from Rosa damascena.

I will tell you in details benefits of rose oil but most immediately that comes to mind that smelling the rose essentil oil can reduce anxiety and performance anxiety prior to sexual relation in regards to performance or stress.

Eat more fruits and veggies

I am always partial to being vegetarian and always looking for ways to convince my patients to increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Well, just today I came across two articles,

The most recent one in British Medical journal which stated increased consumption of fruits and vegetables keep blues away.This study was done at the Warwick medical school and hospital.

Another study published recently by Jacksonville Florida hospital and community health clinic reveals

Eating plant based diets helps in reducing obesity and cardiovascular risk factors.

I am reminded of a song put out specially to encourage children to eat healthy at the initiative of Michelle Obama.

"You are what you eat from your head down to your feet so keep it fresh and clean and eat your broccoli."

The whole song easily downloadable on youtube.

Brown bag lunches

I remember making a brown bag peanut butter and jelly sandwich for my son all the time. He would ask me to make double or triple sandwiches so he could share with his classmates homemade lunch.I would always add a fruit like banana, apple or Grapes and he would buy milk from school.

It is called Brown Bag Bragging.

It is interesting that I was talking to a patient of mine to start brown bagging for their children and grandchildren when I came across article from another medical colleague,Dr.Ingrid Kohlstadt MD,MPH.

In medicine,we have used brown bags for calming a hyperventilating patient. Re-breathing can normalize a blood chemistry.Without planning for a lunch people find themselves eating junk or skipping lunch.

Dr.Kohlstadt has produced a field guide for Brown paper bag refueling rescue.

It is called PickNic2014 and access at www.ingridients.com/ publications

PickNic stands for Pick Nutritious Ingredients Cost effectively.

It is a list of 100 best Brown Bag lunch ideas.

More to come on this topic

The patient is the boss

Hello everybody,

In medicine we are always learning from our peer physicians.

I have been following Dr.David Katz M.D who studied Internal medicine and Preventive medicine and then headed a residency program that combined both and trained further residents.

He says:

No matter how many prescriptions you write or what advice you give to patient unless he is convinced that "he wants to make a change and be healthy", everything stays in the book, just like excellent medical records from all specialties that "examine every system and create a 10 page EMR note.

To reduce cost of medicine we now hire PAs and NPs and scribes and computer savvy staff so that we satisfy the appropriate authorities to make the book of medial record superb "5 star" rated medical records.

Coming to the point, in 1993, state of the art article was published in JAMA,that the incidence of chronic disease is reduced if we eat well, exercise and don't smoke.The article talked about the real causes of death in USA. People need skill power and willpower to achieve .

Dr.Katz states it's like sandbagging a levee if the patient is convicted that sugar is present in pretzel, tomato sauce, pizza sauce, breads and that they will read the label before buying.

They will reduce frequency of eating out and eat fresh home cooked meal.This is adding another sand bag to the levee.

I feel eat the smaller salad plate for dinner and fill it with 3/4th vegetable and or salad and rest 1/4th with lentils, beans or a protein .

It should help reduce BMI and reduce incidence of heart disease.

His site is www.DrKatz.com

Mango pudding

We loved eating at a Buddhist vegetarian resturant in Houston,Texas on westheimer.It was more of a Vegan place.I loved the Mango pudding and I stumbled upon the recipe.

The mango can be interchanged with any other fruit.

Well it's easy,
Use packet of soft tofu,with its water still to be drained over for about 20 to 30 minutes? Add  two cut up mangoes,tsf of agave syrup and blend.use some Marie biscuits that absorb and swell up when put in.and make layers of blended mango tofu and cookies and leave in refrigerator for a while and it's ready for desert.
Now,as the mango season is almost over, you can still use strawberries, or nectarines,peaches or any fruit to make this.
Enjoy!

Basic tomato sauce recipe

This is what I sent my kids to try,home made and delicious marinara sauce.

I know my kids love pasta and the Dave's are culinary chefs in the making so I am sharing a interesting home made recipe for tomato sauce.
As I learnt from my research on veggie wisdom highest lycopene is present in canned tomatoes and cooking tomatoes increases lycopene content.
So, you can take a big can of tomatoes and add to it about 2 tablespoonful of tomato paste and then add fresh basil ,salt and pepper to taste.
Adding some Extravirgin olive oil ,garlic or caramel zed onions increase the taste.
Basically in a big stainless steel pot you can cook these ingredients over 20 minutes on low heat or in a slow cooker on hi heat over3 hours.
Caramelization of onions is done separately in warmed up olive oil adding chopped onions till they become glistening,and then add to the tomato sauce.
This is our marinara sauce.
Luv,mom

Oils

Vow!we all love fried foods.

Talk about French fries,or onion rings or donuts or chips or stirfries.

Do you think everybody uses good healthy oils for this cooking?

Did you know if you deep fried some foods and there was oil left in your fry pan ,you should discard it.

Never reuse heated oil again and again in cooking.

The question comes as to which oil is good?

When I am in grocery store I have so many choices and so many brands and so many sizes, my tendency would be to buy the biggest bottle with the least price.After all oil is oil.

Well, I am wrong.It does matter what oil you use in cooking.

Let us see which are the best oils,

Extra virgin olive oil tops the list if you don't have to do extreme high temperature cooking.

My research shows that this Extravirgin olive oil is best quality if it has a sediment and greenish in appearance and is unfiltered.

Coconut oil has been used in India for a long time and health benefits are just surfacing now.It has the healthy medium chain triglycerides,MCT.

Red palm oil is healthy.

Ghee or clarified butter is healthy.

Avocado oil is healthy.

Sesame oil is healthy.

Certain oils are outright not good for you,specially unsafe for any heat exposure.

These are,

Corn oil

Soybean oil

Sunflower oil 

Safflower oil

Flax oil

Pumpkin seed oil.

Remember trans fats got so popular as they increased shelf life of products ,till their effects on heart health were uncovered.Remember those Twinkies or powdered donuts that could stay in our hand bags for days and still look and taste fresh.a These Transfats are banned now.

Remember there was a time when we were told,margarines were good for health.Margarines and Crisco shortening are hydrogenated and not healthy.

Grab and Go Braekfast Smoothie

It is a very easy recipe.

In your blender add one banana, yogurt, muesli, honey, flax meal and ice..

Blend it away.

If it is too thick, add some cold water.

Try Parfait with granola, topped with yogurt and topped with blueberries or raspberries.

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Prevotella Copri Bacteria

This note was published in Huffington post and is very interesting that new diagnosed patients with Rheumatoid arthritis had increased amounts of  Prevotella Copri bacteria in stools compared to patients who are being treated already with medications.

For the new study, published in the journal eLife, researchers obtained 44 fecal DNA samples from people newly diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis who had not yet received immune-suppressive treatments, in addition to 26 fecal DNA samples from people with treated rheumatoid arthritis. They also collected 16 fecal DNA samples from people with psoriatic arthritis and 28 fecal DNA sample from healthy people. They conducted gene sequencing on the 16S gene of these samples.

P. copri bacteria was found in the most fecal samples from the newly diagnosed patients, with 75 percent of the samples carrying the bacteria. Meanwhile, 21.4 percent of the samples from the healthy people carried the bacteria, 11.5 percent of samples from the people with treated rheumatoid arthritis carried it, and 37.5 percent of samples from people with psoriatic arthritis carried it.

As to why people with chronic, treated rheumatoid arthritis experienced lower levels of this bacteria in their stool samples, "it could be that certain treatments help stabilize the balance of bacteria in the gut," study researcher Jose U. Scher, M.D., director of the Microbiome Center for Rheumatology and Autoimmunity at NYU Langone Medical Center's Hospital for Joint Diseases, said in the statement. "Or it could be that certain gut bacteria favor inflammation."

Fermented foods

Have you seen in your grocery store shopping foods like Miso,Kimchi,Sauerkraut,yogurt,kombucha,kefir.

These contain good bacteria called probiotics.

Eating these foods increase diversity of gut microbes which is health promoting.

Gut bacteria produce hundreds of different neurotransmitters and may be a big source of serotonin.

Our gut is the second Brain as the great Vagus nerve is the major communication highway that stretches from brain to various points along intestinal lining.

 Have you heard of bacteria called Prevotella Copri?there may be association of this bacteria in the gut and Rheumatoid arthritis.Dr.Dan Littman M.D of NYU did some special studies to come to this conclusion.

"Cancer Cutting" Curcurmin Chili

I am still not done about Curcumin.

There is so much information.

I have great patient feedback too with improvement using these supplements.I am now going to tell about Curcumin and cancer prevention.

According to their mode of action, chemopreventive agents (chemicals that prevent damage to our cells) are classified into different subgroups: anti-proliferatives, antioxidants, or carcinogen-blockers. Curcumin belongs to all three, given its multiple mechanisms of action.

Other spices that have anti-inflammatory response are cloves, ginger and rosemary.

Remember these spices even if consumed in regular forms like 1/4 tsf of cloves or daily garlic in foods or a pinch of Rosemary can have these therapeutic effects.

Now talking about some simple ways to incorporate spices in diet specially Curcumin.

Chili is a favorite American food. How about a vegetarian version?

Recipe:

Components to use and throw them together and it turns out tone a good meal.

A can of crushed tomatoes

A can of black beans or red kidney beans

Vegetables to include are,

A cup of cooked corn,

Cup of chopped celery

Cup of chopped green or/and red or orange bell peppers

1/8 cup of olives green or black

1 cup of chopped onion

2 or 3 small garlic cloves

1/4 cup plain low fat yogurt1/4 cup chopped chives

1/4 cup of cleaned and chopped cilantro

1/4 cup or 1/2 pf avocado

Celtic sea salt

1 tsf of turmeric

1 tsf of black pepper

In a stainless steel 3 quart cooking pot or soup pot mix canned tomato,onion garlic beans bell peppers salt, turmeric,black pepper and let it cook till mixture is boiling.

Add corn avocado, olives garnish with plain yogurt and chives and cilantro.

Now some may say is it really chili? Without the ground beef?

We'll textures soy protein granules make the best substitute.Shredded cheddar cheese on chili is a good garnish

I read somewhere a modified recipe which uses canned tomatoes, canned beans ,

Onion, garlic and top it with cut up greens like spinach and kale and cover the pot while cooking .the tender greens get cooked fast and are delicious.

Nalini Dave

Meat consumption and dementia

I am a member of PCRM i.e Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

As per Dr. Neal Barnard,a study revealed that people who ate meat as their main source of protein were 3 times as likely to develop dementia as their vegetarian counterparts.

A subsequent survey of the medical literature on diet and Alzheimer's was titled LOSING YOUR MIND for the sake of a burger.

We know of the strong correlation between meat consumption and Heart Disease,and Meat consumption and colon cancer and meat consumption and premature death.

So what are some healthy brain foods?

Walnuts

Pecans

Almonds

Sunflower seeds 

Sesame seeds

Green leafy vegetables,foliage from where this name comes from.

Beans

Bananas

Blueberries

Don't blame Fat

I was reading Time magazine and the cover page of June 23 rd 2014 issue talks about "eat Butter".

It reads "for decades it has been the most vilified nutrient in the American diet, but now new science reveals fat isn't what's hurting our health. There was a time when eating Margarine was healthy,

Nonfat ranch dressings were popular.

Thank twice before eating Margarine!!!

Do not eat these foods

Copper comes from liver,shellfish,lobster,crab,shrimp,copper piped and Multivitamins.

IF you read on the label copper  as an added ingredient of this multivitamin ,or iron added as the multivitamin,then skip that particular multivitamin.

New ways to detect cancer

I am very interested in genetics.as you all know,we are already doing specialized testing for neurotransmitters and cyp450 enzyme activity in office to know how you metabolize medications,

I wanted to share something very interesting!

Imagine a bra that you (or ladies you know) could purchase over the counter and wear for one day to screen for breast cancer. This bra would be lined with temperature sensors that monitor variants indicative of cancer. It would not emit radiation or squish sensitive parts like a mammogram. Even women with dense breast tissue could count on reliable results.

This exact invention by First Warning Systems is slated for clinical testing to determine its efficacy. “It’s a very novel, very promising technology,” says Joshua Ellenhorn, an expert in surgical oncology and a clinical professor of surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Ellenhorn is leading the trial.

For the trial, women who have an abnormal mammogram will wear the bra prior to receiving the traditional course of diagnosis and treatment, starting with a biopsy. The sensors inside the bra will collect temperature data, which will be transmitted either wirelessly or manually to a computer or device. The digital database diagnosis will then be compared with the diagnosis from the mammogram and biopsy. Only 20 percent of women with abnormal mammograms are diagnosed with malignant tumors, and this study will test the device’s accuracy at pinpointing that 20 percent.

“This is entirely new technology. There really isn’t anything like it,” Ellenhorn says. He and the company’s leaders are waiting for FDA approval to begin the trial, which they hope to complete by next summer.

“The idea that a woman could get her own home study to determine whether there’s a breast abnormality is a major advance. … Anything that makes it easier to screen for cancer, and for the particular cancers that we know that we can help, is going to be a major advance,” Ellenhorn says.

If the trial determines that this is indeed a breakthrough device, it could have implications for other forms of cancer, especially those that occur near the skin’s surface.

The development of devices like this mark a turn toward more personalized medicine. While routine home visits are a thing of the past, and while paperwork and clunky policies make it impossible to drop in for a doctor to quickly examine a symptom, mobile devices are ushering healthcare into a more patient-focused era.

Nalini Dave

Brain health

Reducing risk for dementia/ Alzeimers

Age is a main risk factor

Genetics is another main risk factor.

Heart health and general wellness have been linked to dementia too.

So to reduce risk, it is suggested that

Watch your blood pressure.

Watch your cholesterol.

Maintain healthy weight.

Avoid tobacco and excess alcohol

Exercise your brain as well as your body.

Very berry smoothie

Berry smoothie

1 1/2 cup almond milk or rice milk

1 1/2 cup of mixed berries

1 tablespoonful of protein powder

1 tablespoonful of almond butter

2 tsf of ground flax seeds.

Adding honey specially Manuka honey makes it more delicious.

Curcumin

The other day I had somebody come to the office and said ,vow it is that office that treats u as a whole person and not just prescriptions.I said, that was just right as I right prescriptions judiciously and use foods and nutrition to help body heal.

Our first aim is "do no harm".The Latin is Primum non nocere.

I want to share some information on Curcumin.

Curcumin is the active ingredient extracted out of turmeric,the yellow spice used in Indian cooking.

I have been used to cooking vegetables and lentils and even rice with turmeric for a long time since isaw my mom and my grandmothers and my aunts all cook foods using turmeric.

In fact they knew antiinflammatoryeffects of turmeric.

If we came with sore throat or cough we all were supposed to drnk a cup of warm milk to which is added 1 tsf of turmeric,1/4 tsf of salt and a tsf of clarefied butter or ghee.

Most of the times we got better with these dimple measures.

I remember my grandmother make a poultice of turmeric powder and some leaves of some cactuses and use over inflamed osteoarthritic joints.

Recently scientists came up with research that adding black pepper to Curcumin increases bioavailability of Curcumin by 20 fold.

I also learnt that adding black pepper to tahini which is ground up white sesame seeds increases absorption of tahini 6 fold minimum.

In the past 20 years, there have been around 26,700 articles mentioning curcumin and cancer (18,600 in the past 5 years, 12,900 in the last year). Most research has been benchtop or animal studies, but there have been at least 66 clinical trials, 21 involving cancer. Some phytopharmaceutical companies participate with enhanced bioavailability formulations like Meriva. As you might imagine, researchers from India are well represented, most notably Bharat Aggarwal of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Instutute in Houston.

 • Back in 2001, in a last ditch attempt to save the lives of 15 patients with advanced colorectal cancer that didn't respond to any of the standard chemotherapy agents or radiation, they started them on a turmeric extract. It appeared to help stall the disease in a third of the patients, 5 out of 15, suggesting turmeric extract may cause clinical benefit in at least some patients with advanced refractory colorectal cancer.

To see if they could prevent colon cancer, five years later, researchers at Cleveland Clinic and Hopkins tested two phytochemicals, curcumin (from turmeric) and quercitin, (found in red onions and red wine) in people with familial adenomatous polyposis. Colon cancer forms from polyps, and there's this disease that runs in families in which you develop hundreds of polyps, which will eventually turn into cancer unless you have your colon prophylactically removed. So they took five such patients who already had their colons removed, but still either had their rectum, or a little intestinal pouch, which were still packed with polyps. This is where they started out, between 5 and 45 polyps each, and this is where they ended up after six months of curcumin and quercitin supplements. On average, they ended up with fewer than half the polyps, and the ones they had left, shrunk in half. Here's a representative endoscopic photograph before-and-after. Now you see them now you don't. But what about patient one? Got rid of all their polyps by month three, but then they seemed to come back. So they asked them what's what, and it turned out the patient stopped taking the supplements. Darn it. So they put 'em back on the phytonutrient supplements for another three months, and the polyps, came back down, all with virtually no adverse events and no blood test abnormalities.

By studying people at high risk for colon cancer there were able to show noticeable effects within just months. But polyposis is a rare disease; they were only able to recruit five people for the study. Thankfully smokers are a dime a dozen. Another five years later, researchers put 44 smokers on turmeric curcumin supplements alone, for a month and measured changes in their colorectal aberrant crypt foci, which may act like the precursors to polyps, which are the precursors to cancer. And we can see just one month there was a significant drop in the number of these abnormal crypt foci in the high dose supplement group but no change in the low dose group, with no dose-limiting side effects, although the stools in the participants did turn yellow.thanks to my mentor Dr.Mike Greger whom I follow regularly about his videos " nutrition facts.org".

Curcumin

There is so much to talk about Curcumin.

Topical Curcumin i.e Curcumin used as a paste and applied to oral ulcers,oral lichen planus,

Accessible cancers like skin mouth and vulva show response to topical Curcumin ointment.

Some of the cancers that produce fungating lesions and are ulcerated and have foul odor respond by reducing the smell and reducing the size of fungation.

It seems like in this day and age who would have that kind of cancer lesion?

Well, I have seen it multiple times.

They can stink itch and ooze.

Now there is always a question of who should not use Curcumin?

The first thing that comes to my mind is Pregnancy.

I would like to point out that turmeric as a spice can be used in pregnancy as it is used in cooking.

I myself used it in cooking during my 2 pregnancies and have watched my female family members use it too without restriction.

I am talking about Curcumin supplements use during pregnancy.

Next, Curcumin can cause stimulation and contraction of bile ducts and hence if somebody has gallbladder full of stones, it may not be healthy.As such Curcumin and turmeric are good for Liver.Studies using Curcumin in Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease has been found to be beneficial.

The other relative contraindication is  kidney stones as turmeric has oxalates.

Using very large amounts can increase risk of kidney stones.

Foods and cancer prevention

foods that may protect DNA include kiwifruit (Kiwifruit and DNA Repair), cruciferous vegetables (DNA Protection from Broccoli), leafy vegetables (Eating Green to Prevent Cancer), garlic (Cancer, Interrupted: Garlic & Flavonoids), green tea (Cancer, Interrupted: Green Tea (but which is better? Antimutagenic Activity of Green Versus White Tea), and plants in general (Repairing DNA Damage).

Curcumin comes no.1 

I also researched and read that black raspberry from Oregon has cancer protection potential.

I researched and found from pub med some good information.

Cancer Lett. 2008 Oct 8;269(2):281-90. doi: 10.1016/j.canlet.2008.05.020. Epub 2008 Jun 20.

Anthocyanins and their role in cancer prevention.

Wang LS1, Stoner GD.

Author information

Abstract

Anthocyanins are the most abundant flavonoid constituents of fruits and vegetables. The conjugated bonds in their structures, which absorb light at about 500 nm, are the basis for the bright red, blue and purple colors of fruits and vegetables, as well as the autumn foliage of deciduous trees. The daily intake of anthocyanins in residents of the United States is estimated to be about 200 mg or about 9-fold higher than that of other dietary flavonoids. In this review, we summarize the latest developments on the anti-carcinogenic activities of anthocyanins and anthocyanin-rich extracts in cell culture models and in animal model tumor systems, and discuss their molecular mechanisms of action. We also suggest reasons for the apparent lack of correlation between the effectiveness of anthocyanins in laboratory model systems and in humans as evidenced by epidemiological studies. Future studies aimed at enhancing the absorption of anthocyanins and/or their metabolites are likely to be necessary for their ultimate use for chemoprevention of human cancer.

PMID: 18571839 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] PMCID: PMC2582525 Free PMC Article

Images from this publication.See all images (2)Free text

The anthocyanins come from purple and blue fruits and vegetables like black raspberries,

Blackberries,blueberries,purple cabbage,purple potatoes

Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2009 Mar;2(3):187-94. doi: 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-08-0226. Epub 2009 Mar 3.

Foodstuffs for preventing cancer: the preclinical and clinical development of berries.

Stoner GD.

Author information

Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University, Innovation Centre, 2001 Polaris Parkway, Columbus, Ohio 43240, USA. gary.stoner@osumc.edu

Abstract

Laboratory research involving berries is a promising example of food-based cancer prevention. Berries contain many known chemopreventive agents such as anthocyanins and ellagitannins that can be greatly concentrated in freeze-dried berry powders. Based on our program of berry research, this commentary presents the first reported stepwise scheme for the preclinical and clinical development of foodstuffs for cancer prevention. Our preclinical work within this scheme includes promising approaches for assessing the chemopreventive potential of berry powder and berry extracts in preclinical model systems, for determining the mechanisms of action of these agents, and for identifying the active constituents in berries. The commentary also presents preliminary results of clinical trials in the oral cavity, esophagus, and colon using various formulations of freeze-dried berries. The relative merits of berry powders, extracts, or individual constituents (anthocyanins) for cancer prevention are also discussed.

PMID: 19258544 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] PMCID: PMC2769015 Free PMC Article

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J Agric Food Chem. 2005 May 18;53(10):3909-15. 

Black raspberry extract and fractions contain angiogenesis inhibitors.

Liu Z1, Schwimer J, Liu D, Greenway FL, Anthony CT, Woltering EA.

Author information

Abstract

Targeted therapies, such as agents that inhibit angiogenesis, offer hope as complementary agents in cancer therapy. Angiogenesis-inhibiting agents have the potential for inhibiting tumor growth and limiting the dissemination of metastasis, thus keeping cancers in a static growth state for prolonged periods. Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) extract was discovered to be antiangiogenic (0.1% w/v) in a novel human tissue-based in vitro fibrin clot angiogenesis assay. Assay-guided fractionation of a crude black raspberry extract resulted in a highly potent antiangiogenic fraction that accounted for only 1% of the fresh weight of whole black raspberries. At 0.075% (w/v), the active fraction completely inhibited angiogenic initiation and angiogenic vessel growth. Further subfractionation of this active fraction revealed the coexistence of multiple antiangiogenic compounds, one of which has been identified as gallic acid. However, the individual subfractions did not outperform the active whole fraction. These findings suggest that an active black raspberry fraction may be a promising complementary cancer therapy. It is natural and potent enough for manageable dosing regimens. These extracts contain multiple active ingredients that may be additive or synergistic in their antiangiogenic effects. These observations warrant further investigations in animals and human trials.

PMID: 15884816 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

I experimented today in my blog some authentic info and scientific information,research based.  

Belly soother smoothie

1 cup skim or flaxseed milk

1 cup frozen unsweetened organic blueberries

1 Tbsp cold-pressed organic flaxseed oil (in a pinch, 2 Tbsp ground flaxseeds will do)

ice, to taste for consistency

DIRECTIONS

Place in a powerful blender until desired consistency is reached. If using the flaxseed oil, blend all ingredients without the oil, and slowly stir in oil after transferring to glass.

BERRY-RICH SKIN SAVER SMOOTHIE

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup pitted cherries

3-5 strawberries, depending on size and freshness

1/2 avocado, peeled and pitted

1 scoop chocolate protein powder of your choice 

2 tsp ground flaxseed

1 tsp chia seeds

water or ice to thin, as needed (if using frozen fruit, ice may be unnecessary)

DIRECTIONS:

Place all ingredients in a powerful blender and blend to desired consistency. Enjoy!

 

AICR continued

Tropical Fruits (Recipes)

This article appears in the July 3, 2014 issue of AICR's eNews.

Fruit is an important part of a cancer-protective diet. Research suggests that fruit may reduce risk of cancers of the lung, esophagus, mouth, pharynx, larynx and stomach.

Whether you’re planning an exciting getaway or a relaxing “stay-cation”, these fruity recipes will make you feel like you’ve taken a trip to the tropics.

Kiwifruit

A medium kiwifruit has only 42 calories and serves up almost a day’s supply of vitamin C. One fruit provides 2 grams of fiber and a healthy dose of the mineral potassium. Kiwifruit also contains lutein, a cancer-fighting antioxidant and a relati of beta-carotene that appears to help protect against eye disease.

Honeydew Kiwi Smoothie

2 cups cubed honeydew melon, frozen or well chilled

1 ripe kiwi, peeled and slice

2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

1 Tbsp. honey

2 mint sprigs, optional, for garnish

In blender, whirl melon, kiwi, lime juice and honey until smoothly blended. If using frozen melon, divide smoothie between 2 tall, narrow glasses. If using chilled melon, pour the smoothie into glasses filled with ice cubes. Garnish each glass with mint sprig, if desired, and serve immediately.

AICR

You may wonder how I wrte so many posts in one day. To clarify blogger was not working so had to jot the thoughts on notes ,then to transfer to blogger.

sprig, if desired, and serve immediately.

Mango

This sweet fruit provides beta-carotene and other carotenoids. Foods that contain carotenoids probably protect against cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus and lung. Mangos are a rich source of vitamin C and folate. They also provide phenols, a class of phytochemicals studied for their cancer-prevention benefits.

Rice Salad with Mango and Black Beans

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained

3/4 cup diced mango, 1/4-inch cubes

1/2 cup chopped and seeded plum tomato

1/3 cup chopped green onion, white and green parts

Dressing

1/3 cup orange juice

1-2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

1 serrano chile pepper, or jalapeño pepper, coarsely chopped

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 Tbsp. canola oil

Salt and ground black pepper

2-3 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Combine rice, beans, mango, tomatoes and green onion in mixing bowl. This step may be done up to 2 hours before serving with salad covered and refrigerated.

For dressing, in blender or bowl of mini-food processor, whirl orange and lime juice, chile pepper, cumin and oregano until chile is ground up. Add oil and whirl to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. This may be done up to 2 hours before serving, and dressing refrigerated.

Just before serving, pour dressing over salad and toss with fork to combine (if salad has been refrigerated, let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before dressing). Spoon salad into wide, shallow serving bowl, and sprinkle on cilantro. Serve immediately.

Makes about 4 1¼ cup per servings.

Per serving: 284 calories, 5 g total fat (< 1 g saturated fat), 51 g carbohydrate, 

10 g protein, 10 g dietary fiber, 201 mg sodium.

Papaya

Larger than mangos and easy to cut, melon-textured papayas provide a host of vitamins and minerals including vitamin C, folate and potassium as well as beta-carotene and lycopene. Foods containing lycopene seem to protect against prostate cancer.

Papaya Salsa with Jicama "Chips"

2 cups diced papaya

2/3 cup plum tomato, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup chopped seedless European cucumber, peeled

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

1 serrano or jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped

2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. sea salt

Ground black pepper, to taste

1 medium jicama

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

 

In mixing bowl, combine papaya, tomato, cucumber, onion and chile pepper, tossing gently with fork. In small bowl, whisk lime juice and cumin with sea salt and 3-4 grinds pepper until salt dissolves. Pour over salsa and toss to combine. Set aside for up to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, use paring knife to peel brown skin from jicama and cut away fibrous layer beneath it. Cut a thin slice off bottom and stand jicama on work surface. Using large knife, cut jicama vertically into 1/8- to 1/4-inch slices. Stack oval slices, including uneven ones, and halve vertically. Cut slices longer than 4 inches into thirds. Sliced jicama can be stored in bowl of water in refrigerator for up to 8 hours if not serving immediately. Drain and pat dry before using.

Just before serving, mix cilantro into salsa. Spoon salsa into serving bowl in center of serving plate. Arrange sliced jicama around it to use as dippers.

Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 105 calories, < 1 g total fat (0 g saturated fat, 25 g carbohydrate, 2 g protein, 10 g dietary fiber, 304 mg sodium.

Natural cures for H.Pylori

Did you know that a bacteria called H.pylori causes ulcers in stomach.

Now the traditional medical treatment uses heavy dose of antibiotics for 7 to 10 days minimum leaving person with possible unwanted side effects.

Moving over to food farmaceuticals,

Manuka honey atleast 1 tsf per day can help get rid of H. Pylori.  

2. Candied ginger or honey ginger combination

3. Eating plantain bananas causes increased mucus production of stomach lining ,thus preventing ulcers.

4. A tsf of aloe juice after food is good remedy

5. Cabbage is a good source of glut amine and hence healing ulcers.

Cabbage juice is good but cabbage soup is easy to handle.

6 a warm tea adding a tsf of cayenne pepper to a cup of warm water and sipping on it can help heal ulcers.

7. Nutmeg oil. Has many active ingredients that help heal ulcers.

8. Chewing on mastic gum has been shown to help heal ulcers.

9. Garlic eating atleast 9 cloves a day has shown benefit.

10. Pineapple has benefits in healing ulcers.

11. Rhubarb stalks show benefit. Do not eat rhubarb leaves as they are poisonous.

Black Raspberries

Black raspberries

Vow? This is month of July and for 3 weeks,in Oregon one should be able to get fresh black raspberries.this is not blackberries or red raspberries, these are black raspberries.

It seems research has been done on black raspberries in form of paste,extract and or freeze dried powders and it's super benefits for oral cancers,colon cancers and rectal cancers.

I carry on my office black raspberry extract in alcohol from a reputed company that participated in trials in patients with oral and colon cancers.

I also have used these berries with success in patients with lichen planus of mouth.

I have excellant clinical experience with special different berries like Aroniaberry.

I have a pure Aroniaberry juice available in office which is very popular with our patients.

Instead of drinking a soda or a sonic flavored drink with HFCS,just put few squirts of Aroniaberry juice in water and drink.The anthocyanins in the dark blue berry juices is very healthy,even to keep cancers at bay.Prevention is better .

Migrain headaches

I see a lot of patients with migraines and hate to give long term medications because of side effects, cost, and formulary preferences by insurance companies.

I did research and according to one of my preceptors Dr. Alan Gaby,

Foods that can increase or cause headaches are, HFCS, MSG, eggs, soy, artificial sweeteners, corn, wheat( gluten), casein and caffeine. Gluten in wheat can trigger migraines. Some patients benefit by avoiding oranges. - try to eliminate these foods one by one for 30 days and see if headaches improve.

Avoid tyramine containing foods like wines and aged cheese.

A combination of  riboflavin, a B vitamin called B2 even in a low dose of 25 micrograms, plus magnesium and feverfew herb can reduce recurrences.

CoQ10 works in patients who have been on "triptans" e.g Immitrax, Maxalt et. for long without benefit.

Dr. Nalini Dave

Tocotrienols

Toco- tropical smoothie

This smoothie adds Tocotrienols for an amazing boost of vitamins B1, B3, B6, and E, as well as potassium, iron and magnesium. The fresh fruit adds juicy, natural flavor, perfect to cool you off on a hot summer day!

2 Cups Almond Milk

1 Cup Organic Pineapple

1 Cup Organic Strawberries

1 Small Banana

2 Tbsp Tocotrienols

1 Tbsp Lucuma Powder

Combine all ingredients in a blender, add ice for a chilled experience, and blend until smooth!

Cherry chocolate

Cherry chocklate milk is very delicious.

You can buy promised land chocolate milk and to 12 oz of milk add a small bag of frozen,pit removed cherries and blend.

This can help improve sleep too.

Or, you can take any nut milk like almond milk,add cocoa, cherries,banana and blend.

Be sure cherries don't have the pit otherwise you may damage the blender.

Cherries

Cherries. Eat Bing to Remove Sting.

This is the cherry season. Come September and the cherries are gone.

We were in Kazanluk,Bulgaria for my nephews wedding.

It is a beautiful town.

Several of the streets were lined with sour cherries and come a shower of rain ,hundreds of cherries were on the floor.

We had breakfast ,lunch and dinner everyday at Snezana Ivanovas parents house.

It was a wonderful time bonding with the new Bulgarian family for us.

I could open the kitchen window and have access to picking the cherries from cherry tree and which I did.

Snezanas mom made cherry juice every day for all of us to sip on all day.

It was very delicious and healthy drink.

I will share an easy cherry milk shake recipe.

Get a good quality chocolate milk from grocery store and add 20 or more frozen pitted 

i.e pits removed frozen cherries to this 12 oz of chocolate milk and blend.

Tasty cherry chocolate milkshake is ready.

Now,if we really want it healthy, use 1/2% milk!add 2 to 3 tsf of cacao nibs, tsf of honey,

25 or more frozen cherries and blend.much healthier version of cherry chocklate shake is ready.

Cherries are good in gout.

Cherries have melatonin which helps induce sleep,specially tart cherries.

Cherries are antiinflammatory with cox2 inhibitor like action.

Cherry juice reduces muscle soreness.

Blend some frozen red cherries with water and add juice of one lemon,and add some fresh greens,spinach or arugula and blend.You got red juice with green foam on top.

It is said 2 bowls of cherries for 28 days may relieve your arthritic pain for good.

If any of the above shake recipe is not sweet,use a pitted date in blender to add sweetness.

Cool cucumber lassi

Cool cucumber lassi

To relieve some hot summer heat you can blend some readymade buttermilk with 1/2 to 1 cucumber, and 1/4 of a bunch of cilantro leaves and add salt, crushed cumin powder( roasted).a tiny piece of mild green pepper or a very tiny piece of jalapeño can add zing to this drink.

This drink can be diluted with as much water as you like it to make it more watery.

It can serve as good lunchtime drink.

Alternately remove skin of cucumber and shred the cucumber and add it to a bowl of plain yogurt with salt, black pepper and mix and garnish with cilantro leaves.

Health benefits of this are probiotics from yogurt and health benefits of cucumber.

First ever smoothie

It is said that the first ever smoothie was created in Himalayas mixing yogurt and mango called Lassi.

The green smoothies are trending these days.

My favorite is water,pineapple,mango and Swiss chard and ice.

I am going to demonstrate this at the BAPS Dallas health fair on 13 th September 2014.

Brain health ( continued)

One of the best integrative neurologists,Dr.David Perlmutter suggests the following 7 supplements for brain health and prevention of Alzeimers.

DHA

Resveratrol

Turmeric

Coconut oil

Probiotics

Alfa lipoic acid

Vitamin D3

New Amazonian smoothie

I love green smoothies. I like fresh ingredients ,however if I am pressed for time in the morning I use " greens powder which has 20 plus greens,and enzymes and probiotics.

I use 2 tsf of greens,1/2tsf of camucamu berry powder,add 1/2tsf of lucuma powder and 1tsf of maca powder.

To the vitamix blender first add 16 oz of water, 6 cubes of ice ,1 banana,and all the above mentioned powders and blend. We have a creamy great like the amazing Amazonian smoothie.

What is camucamu berry? They say it has the highest amount of  vitamin C.

Lucuma is also a fruit with ice creamy taste

 Nutrient rich super fruit offering vitamins & minerals 

An exotic, slightly sweet subtropical fruit grown in South America, lucuma fruit (Pouteria lucuma) is green and oval with a bright yellow-orange flesh. The taste of lucuma is incredibly unique, with rich flavors of maple, custard and caramel. Lucuma was honored as a sacred tree and fruit by cultures such as the Inca and Moche, who often portrayed it in their art. In some places, lucuma is also known as eggfruit, mamey sapote, and zapotillo

Certified Organic Camu Camu Powder
An amazing superfruit, camu camu berries are an excellent source of vitamin C, which may act as an antioxidant to contribute to healthy immunity. Traditionally used by indigenous Amazonian people, camu camu also has vitamin B3 and potassium. These tiny berries pack a big punch to help aid in the body’s overall health & vitality

Certified Organic Maca Powder
Maca is a root vegetable grown in the Peruvian Andes. It was sacred to the Incas and has been used as a food and medicine in South America for centuries. It is well known for its ability to help enhance strength and endurance. In fact, Incan warriors would often consume maca before long journeys and battles. Today’s athletes are confirming what history has to say about this incredible superfood.

Modified citrus pectin MCP

I wanted to share some important info about MCP.

Pectin is a natural substance found in cell walls of most plants and specially concentrated in peels and pulp of citrus foods like lemons,limes,oranges,grape fruits,plums,apples.i have gathered my info from several reliable sources like life extension.org,dreliaz.org and so on.

People have known about gelling properties of some fruits as they are used in making jams,jellies.

It acts as a beneficial soluble fiber.

Researches have tried to alter pectin to create a food substance that would let body benefit of its good properties.pH and temperature modifications have been used to break down long chain polysaccharides into shorter unbranched lengths of soluble molecules that easily dissolve in water.

This MCPmis rich in galactose resodues and easily processed by digestive system and absorbed.

MCP had been useful in prevention and treatment of metastatic cancer like melanoma,breast cancer and metastatic prostate cancer?

It inhibits angiogenesis and metastasis.

Galactose binding lectins or galectins .galectins have been thought to be involved in spread of cancer.

MCP acts as galectin3 antagonist.

MCP stabilizes disease progression and lengthens psa doubling times.

It is also a safe nontoxic way of removing toxic or cheating toxic materials

It increased urinary excretion  of mercury arsenic and lead.

Brain health

One of my peer physicians, Dr Neal Barnard participated in International conference on nutrition and brain. He gave 7 tips to improve brain health.

Minimize intake of saturated fats and trans fats, donuts, pastries that have trans fats and are labeled as partially hydrogenated oils.

2 vegetables, legumes I.ebrans, lentils, peas, fruits and whole grains should be staple of diet.

3 a small handful of nuts is good source of vit E

4 a reliable source of.  Vit B12 such as fortified food or supplement.

5 choose a multivitamin without iron and copper.

6avoid use of cookware,antacids,baking powder that contribute dietary aluminum.

7 include aerobic exercise in the routine  equivalent to brisk walking 40 minutes  three times a weak.

Nutrients and lifestyle behaviors affect brain disorders like Alzheimer's,Parkinson's,migraines.

We carry excellant quality of B vitamins for purchase.

We also provide B12 injections both cyanocobalamin and hydroxycobalamin and vitamin B plex given intramuscularly.

I have had good success with Glutathione injections given IV in patients with Parkinson's and patients with fibromyalgia and fatigue.

Dr David Perlmutter M.D was my mentor teaching use of glutathione injection for different conditions.

Honey

Honey is food of Gods.I use honey for medicinal purposes.In my office we use Royal Jelly,A grade for fatigue,fibromyalgia,improving fertility,or to improve vitality.

I use Manuka honey which has 12 to 15 antibacterial components.I have used Manuka honey lozenges for sore throat and cough.

All these are available at my office at all times.

There was an article in Science Daily recently which suggests that bioactiveconstituents of honey may provide alternate modes of antibacterial action.honey has ability to fight infection on multiple levels making it more difficult for bacteria to develop resistance.honey uses, hydrogen peroxide,acidity,osmotic effect,high sugar concentrations,polyphenols,to fight infection.

Osmotic effect draws water from bacteria and dehydrates them,killing them.

The various polyphenols in honey are,phenolic acids,caffeic acids,p- coumarin acid and ellagic acid.

Honey had antioxidant ,antibacterial,anti virulence properties.

Honey can be used to treat chronic wound infections,catheter infections,chronic sinusitis,burn wounds.

Honey needs to be sterilized by gamma radiation.honey can boost immune system and can replace table sugar  when fighting common cold.

Grain education

I am teaching you basics of grains today so you all don't shy out from using them.

Easy to cook.

Lot of health benefits.

Whole grains have,Bran,the germ,and endosperm.

They stabilize blood sugar,help control B.P

The grains are,

amaranth

Barley

Brown rice

Buckwheat

Bulgur

Farro

Freekeh

Millet

Quinoa

Rye berries

Rye flakes

Wild rice

Spelt berries

Teff

Wheat berries

Amaranth is a complete protein as it has amino acid lysine.

2 cups of liquid to I cup of amaranth and cooking time 15 to 20 minutes

Barley is 2 types,

Hulled barley or barley groats

Pearled barley it takes long to cook,45 minutes or more.

Soaking it for few hours prior to cooking may reduce cooking time.

Brown Rice has hull removed but bran and germ remain.

2 and a half cup of liquid,1 cup of water.

Buckwheat is not a wheat but a fruit related to Rhubarb.

It has Rutin which can support capillaries.

2 cups water and 1 cup of buckwheat?

More on next blog post

VitamainD and mood disorders

Hi friends,

 I have been telling all my patients to take  vitaminD daily and I chech their 25 oh vitD3 levels atleast once.To my surprise,almost 90% of the results come as low or low normal.

Most of the times we thought of vitamin D deficiency as causing rickets.

I read an article recently by Dr.Bruce Ames and Dr.Patrick of February 2014 presented at the federation of society of experimental biology.

As per this research ,suboptimal levels of vit.D are associated wit neurological issues as we see in autistic spectrum disorders.Alteration of neurochemicalz because of vit D deficiency can cause affective disorders.

There is a relationship between. Vitamin D activity and expression of tryptophan hydrolase.

This enzyme is involved in downstream metabolism of tryptophan into serotonin.

Vit D deficiency causes dysphoria which is an early stage of depression.vit D regulates expression of hormones that are associated with mood such as serotonin,oxytocin,vasopressin.Dr.BenBrown,N.D suggests,

1. L tryptophan supplementation which may increase brain serotonin and reduce social anxiety without negative side effects.

2.avoid 5 htp as AI may convert to serotonin in the gut and increase GI inflammation while limiting tryptophan in the brain.

3. Administer L tryptophan with vitD as it will enhance serotonin synthesis in brain and limit its production in gut.

4. VitD will improve oxytocin function.

5. Avoid SSRIs

6.consider vitamin B6, folate,iron,omega3 fatty acids

New wave coffee/Tea

If you are bored of drinking coffee or tea ,same taser everyday, you can bring some excitement to your taste buds.

Make black coffee.

Add cacao nibs and cacao powder 1 tsf to a cup of coffee or tea.add a pinch of cayenne pepper.

Add some whole milk or heavy cream.

Add blue agave to sweeten

Same recipe for tea also

Citrus dressing

I hear citrus fights cellulite.

I will use all citrus to make the best homemade dressing.

Peel grapefruit but make sure the white pith is still on.

Take 1/4 of grapefruit.

Next peel an orange, again,the white pith should still be on the fruit.

Take 1/2 of orange.

Skin a lime or lemon ,with the white pith still attached.

Take1/4 of lemon.

Take 4 to 5 pieces of cut up pineapple and add to blender or nutribullet.

Add pinch of sea salt.

Add pinch of cayenne pepper.

Add 1 tablespoonful of honey.

Blend

Add water to make it more watery.

Blemish free glowing face

Make a green salad using all different kind of greens,eg Lacinato kale,arugula,watercress.

Add avocado in form of cubes.

Add celery chopped in small pieces.

Dressing is very important.

Make your own.

1/2 small tomato

1/4 of cucumber

3 green olives

1 tsf of liquid from the olive bottle

1 clove of garlic

1 tablespoonful of olive oil

Pinch of Celtic salt

Can add 2 small leaves of mint or cilantro

Blend

Beauty sald is ready

Swiss chard

Friends!

I am getting ready for two charity health fairs.

One is in the Hindu temple in Navasota, their 2 nd one on the 12 th April 2014 .

The 2 nd is the 14 th year for the BAPS health fair.

Both places in the public education lectures I am making a presentation.

I cannot much emphasize the importance of Greens for good health.

Last year I demonstrated my call of the Kale smoothie.

Feedback from friends and patients tell me several people have changed breakfast habits to drinking the green smoothie.

I am using this year Swiss chard,banana,pineapple,lemon,water and ice for the green smoothie.

I have named the Swiss charm smoothie.

To make vitamix jar full, 

3 cups water

1 1/2

banana

3 cups pineapple cut up or frozen

4 big chard leaves.

Do not add ice if frozen pineapple is used.

Honey can be added to make it sweeter.

Add 1 to 2 tsf of flax meal?

 Enjoy.

1 cup of mango can be added to make it more tropical

I have to tell you all about health benefits of chard.

Scientific name is Beta vulgaris.

Used in Mediterranean cooking

Belongs to Chenopodiaceae family.

It is in the same species as beet root.

The other names of chard are,Swiss chard,silver beets,perpetual spinach,spinach beets crab beet.

In South Africa,chard is called spinach.

The Chard got its name from another Mediterranean vegetable called cardoon,which is a celery like plant with thick stalks and the French got confused and called them both "carde".

The different varieties of chard are Rhubarb chard with red stalks and green leaves.

Ruby chard has red leaves and stalks of crimson intensity of a cut beet root.

Rainbow chard comes with colored stems of yellow,orange,pink,red.

PHYTONUTRIENTS in Chard

Chard leaves contain atleast 13 different polyphenol antioxidants including Kaemferol which is also found in kale,broccoli,strawberries.

One of the primary flavonoid found in chard is SYRINGIC ACID.

It has blood sugar regulating properties.

It inhibits activity of enzymes called alphaglucosidase.

When this alphaglucosidase is inhibited fewer carbohydrates are broken down into simple sugars and blood sugar is more steady.

Like beet,it is a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains which have reddish purple and yellow pigments.

These pigments have antioxidant,antiinflammatoryeffects and provide detox support at phase 2 involving glutathione.swiss chard has oxalates.

When they get too concentrated in body fluids they can crystallize and form stones.

Boiling leaves for just 3 minutes reduces  the concentration of oxalic acid.

Chard has good supply of calcium, magnesium and vitamin K to provide bone support.

USDA National Nutrient Database

Miso

Miso

Sounds Japanese.it is a fermented paste.

It is said fermented foods add good bacteria to the gut.

So, what does Miso have?

Cooked soybeans,barley or rice,seasalt,koji.

Koji is a bacteria starter.

Fermentation is done for 6 months to 2 years.

Miso is a live food  improving immune system and gut health.

Miso is a source of Umami, the fifth taste.do not overheat miso as it is a live food.

Miso is of three colors,red,yellow,white.red has the saltiest flavor.

Which is the best form of oats to eat?

I have heard of three varieties of oats,steel cut oats, rolled oats, instant oatmeal.

Now are all of them same nutritionally?

Let us see ,we have tendency to eat instant that does not take much time specially for breakfast.

FYI, instant oats have the lowest nutritional value as they are precooked and dehydrated to make them ready to eat when you add hot water.

Rolled oats are steamed and squeezed during processing making them easier to cook,but does lose some nutritional value.

Steel cut oats are whole oat groats that have been cut into thirds.

They are dense and take a long time to cook.

I usually soak steel cut oats at night in skimmed milk or water and cook it next morning and then it really does not take enough time to cook.

Now, we have little science, oats scientific name Avena sativa is a hardy cereal grain that can grow in poor soil too .

Oats are roasted after harvesting and cleaning.they are hulled but the bran  and germ stay in.tact to keep nutrients and fiber.

Gluten sensitivity and oats

People with celiac disease or more common gluten sensitivity  cannot eat gluten present in 

WHEAT,RYE,BARLEY,OATS.

Oats,oat bran,oatmeal have a fiber called Beta Glucan which is known to lower cholesterol levels.

Avenanthramides are antioxidants unique to oats help prevent free radicals from damaging LDL cholesterol, making it heart healthy.

Oats stabilize blood sugar.Ats are rich in Magnesium, a mineral which is a cofactors for more than 300 enzymes.

Oats are also available as oat bran which is outer layer of the grain that is under the hull.

It is found in rolled oats and steel cut oats.

Oat flour is used in baking.Oat groats are available as cereal.

Oats have Manganese and molybdenum,magnesium,phosphorus,copper,biotin,fiber.

They also have purines which can breakdown to Uric acid and cause gout.

So with severe gout patients it is a caution.However it is found that meat and fish purines increase risk of gout while purines from plant foods fail to change the risk.

Varicose vein s treatment continued

Baths

Warm baths can help reduction of the varicose veins.

Soak in Bath of 1 cup of raw apple cider vinegar and 1 tablespoonful of powdered  Ginger for 15 minutes to half an hour,then rinse with cold water.

Father Sebastian Kneipp of Germany used cold water leg baths

NUTRITION

Foods that strengthen tissues in body are bioflavonoids and Silicon.

Foods like ,

Cabbages of all kinds,blackberries,cherries,pineapple,garlic,pineapple,onions,

White pulp of organic grapefruits and oranges.

Ginger,cayenne and Teas improve circulation

Oat straw tea is high in silicon

Herb called Butchers Broom may be taken as tea or as capsules.

Bioflavonoids plus vitamin C,

Quercetin C

Vitamin E is beneficial in helping blood flow .

Applying vitamin E oil helps soften dry skin.

Avoid alcohol and smoking.

You can see small red blood vessels that are weakened  on faces of people who smoke and drink

Rutin is the strongest bioflavonoid for stengthening tissues.

Of course now surgery is available to treat varicose veins.