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Mitochondria: The Key To Good Health

We all know that we take vitamins because they are good for us and give us the nutrients that we need. A better question to ask is why we need a daily supplement and what does our body do with all of these nutrients? If you can remember back to you high school biology class, the job of divvying up nutrients belongs to a specific part of our cells called mitochondria. If you think it is a lot of work for just one part of a cell, then you can rest at ease since you have 1000-2500 mitochondria in each one of your cells!

If you are wondering why this is so important, then imagine if USPS, UPS and FedEx just decided to stop delivering mail tomorrow. Things would begin to pile up, nothing would get where it needs to and we honestly might go into a state of economical collapse since so much depends on E-commerce and the methods that deliver them. Think of your mitochondria as the mailman for your cell. If your mitochondria decided to stop delivering, then the rest of your cell would begin to starve and eventually die!

This is why recent research all points towards mitochondrial health to be a major factor of our own personal health. The mitochondria needs enough supplies to hand out to the rest of the cells components and it also needs enough for itself to keep functioning at a high rate of efficiency. This is a serious issue in the health world today since so many people are nutrient deficient as well as mineral deficient.

Nutrients are easy enough to find and replace, you just need to remember that nutritional supplements can only last in your body for a maximum of 12 hours, so it doesn’t matter if you take a pill, drops, or even a patch, so long as you are getting your nutrients once every 12 hours, you are likely to have happy and healthy mitochondria. Minerals could be a bit harder to come by though.

More and more doctors are seeing patients that have plenty of minerals and metals in their blood stream from the foods they are eating and the supplements they are taking, but the cell isn’t absorbing them. That is probably due to the fact that the only way we can properly digest and absorb minerals is through plants that have already done the hard work for us. Unfortunately it isn’t as simple as eating some more broccoli to correct this issue

The soils have been depleted for quite some time in the United States and many other countries that use aggressive farming methods that don’t use proper crop rotation and ultimately drain the soils of all their useful minerals. There is hope though! A line of supplementation called Oligo exists and they use a patented process to bind plant proteins and sugars to the minerals so that our body can actually digest them. Since it is patented, that means they are the only brand out there that is doing this process making it the best option for absorption!

Armed with this knowledge we hope you go forward and share with your friends the importance of nutritional balance and supplementation and how it is key to their mitochondrial health and overall longevity.

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How do Multi-Vitamins Effect Your Mood?

We all know how hard it is to get all you daily nutrition in just from the foods that you eat, and while we have discussed how the fields are stripped of nutrients and minerals before, we have yet to discuss newer studies that show a massive correlation between proper nutrients and minerals and their effects on your mood as well as other major brain functions.

The study was done by the Journal of Nutrition and Intermediary Metabolism and followed 58 individuals were gathered and were offered a multi-vitamin for the course of the study to see how it would effect people. The study was double blind and had controlled placebos in the test to make sure their results were as accurate as possible.

The results are nothing short of amazing as subjects who were on the multi-vitamin were not just healthier physically, but in just four weeks their depression score had been decreased on their tests. To validate this, subjects who had improved mood and brain function had higher level of vitamin b and lower counts of homocysteine.

Here are a list of ingredients you should be on the lookout for when it comes to supplements! Follow this list and research shows that it could be the difference maker in many individual’s lives that are struggling to take control of their mood:

 

  • Folic acid — Studies have shown that folic acid (a B-vitamin) can relieve certain symptoms of depression, particularly women suffering from the post-partum variety.
  • S-adenosyl-L-methionine — Known as SAMe, the substance helps regulate mood by allowing for the steady production of several neurotransmitters involved in mental stability.
  • Gingko biloba — The herbal supplement has been shown to improve symptoms of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. It has also been shown to be useful in alleviating antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction.
  • Valerian — Unlike benzodiazepines, the herb can relieve anxiety and sleep problems without the associated side effects.
  • Omega-3 fatty acids — Data prove the positive interaction between the fatty acid and mental health. Omega-3 fatty acids are especially useful for the elderly and people with multiple medical conditions. This is because the supplement is potent while having limited interaction with other medicines.
  • St. John’s Wort — One of the more popular alternative remedies for depression, St. John’s Wort has been shown to help people with mild or moderate symptoms of the mental disorder. It is not recommended for those with severe forms of the disease, however.
  • Melatonin — The supplement can improve the sleep quality in people with schizophrenia, major depression, and those with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). (Johansson, 2018)

 To read more on the study, simply go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352385915001747 to become further educated on the subject!

Johansson, R. (2018, May 4). Taking a multivitamin has beneficial effects for your brain function, mood. Retrieved May 30, 2018, from https://www.science.news/2018-04-05-taking-a-multivitamin-has-beneficial-effects-for-your-brain-function-mood.html

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Vitamin and Mineral Delivery: Are You Absorbing What You Need?

We all know that we need to take our vitamins. Our parents told us so when we were kids and so do doctors. In fact, since 2002, we have been told that even if we eat our daily servings of vegetables and fruits, we STILL MAY NOT be getting the proper nutrition we need. Most people see this as an excellent reason to get a daily supplement incorporated in their diet, and this is certainly a good way to combat any nutrient deficiency people may have due to the deficiency in the soils we use to grow our food.

With that being said, what method should we use to take the supplements we know we need? Plenty of people take a one a day supplement, but the truth is that vitamins only last in your system for a maximum of 12 hours, so even if you doubled the dosage, it would still pass through your system in 12 hours. Some claim the sublingual vitamins and other extracts work more effectively because they are 98% absorbed into the blood stream this way. The truth is that most vitamins are 98% absorbed, regardless of how you administer them. The question that you should be asking is whether or not it is worth it to pay exorbitant prices for a product that you will absorb the same regardless of how you administer it. Minerals are a much more tricky subject however.

It is impossible for a person to take calcium out of the ground and smash it into a small concentrate and expect the body to be able to absorb the substance. Our stomach is strong enough to dissolve minerals, but they will quickly solidify in your intestines where the majority of mineral absorption will take place. So why are we able to get those minerals when we eat certain plants/vegetables? We can process minerals inside plants because they have already done the work of converting minerals into an absorbable substance. This is also why we get minerals from animals, but think of that at as second-hand minerals. It is better to go straight to the source, and since the source is completely depleted, you will need to have a supplement that can take it’s place and actually give you BOTH the VITAMINS and the MINERALS that you need to be healthy! One amazing brand that does this is Oligo as it has the highest absorption of minerals of any supplement IN THE WORLD! That is according to both the Sterling Study and the Freiburg Study which are both independent studies!

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Flavored Water: What’s In Your Beverage?

Do you find the taste of water to be bland and gross? Are you guilty of using flavored water enhancers in order to keep yourself hydrated throughout the day? If you are you’ll want to keep reading to see what you’ve been really putting in your body.

Now for those who are unfamiliar with water enhancers, they are usually found as liquids or powders that can be added to water, most commonly water bottles, to change the flavor. Common ingredients in this product are sugar, various flavorings and even artificial flavors. Even though these are approved by the FDA does that consider them as safe? While a lot of those ingredients seem common in most foods you eat there are still other ingredients involved in this process that are most certainly NOT common.

A couple of things that can be found in water enhancers are Propylene glycol, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, and artificial colors. Propylene glycol serves as a solvent in items with added colors and flavors. It’s also used in some paints and plastics, which raises some eyebrows about its safety. Sucralose is an artificial sweetener 600 times sweeter than table sugar. Some watchdog groups say “not so fast!” because of reports of negative effects in rodents (leukemia and effects on the thymus gland). Although lots of evidence says sucralose is safe for humans, these animal studies may lead some to prefer to shy away from it. Acesulfame potassium (a.k.a., “Ace-K”), an artificial sweetener that’s 200 times sweeter than sugar, was also approved as safe by the FDA after a review of nearly 100 studies. But, some food safety advocates have pointed out that a lot of those studies were done back in the ‘70s and had some serious design flaws. Artificial colors are used in a huge variety of foods and beverages, and each one ranks differently in terms of safety. A few key points: Blue-1 and Yellow-5 can cause allergic reactions in some people and it’s suspected that some dyes may cause hyperactivity in some children; more research on the safety of the dyes is needed, as they are so commonly used.

A few drops of water enhancer is UNLIKELY to expose you to enough of these harmful ingredients listed above, however why take the chance when there are safer alternatives out there that don’t run this risk! Making a decision about a water enhancer may come down to weighing the pros and cons of what matters most to you. Our health matters greatly to us and that is why we use Sustain® from Melaleuca to make our water taste delicious! What Makes It Different? Sustain® Sport is the only performance drink with four electrolytes and just 10 calories per serving to help you rehydrate, rebound, and recover. Why Is That Important? Electrolytes are crucial minerals that are lost when you sweat, and water alone can’t put them back. Electrolytes perform three key functions: help maintain proper muscle function, help ensure proper communication between the muscles and brain, and also supports energy and water absorption into the body.

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Supplementation: Is it Healthy or Harmful?

More and more people are using supplements to improve their health. This is a massive move with the global supplement market expected to reach $60 billion by 2020. This is a doubling from 2010.

According to the National Institutes of Health, the most commonly reported reasons for using supplements were to “improve” or “maintain” overall health. For instance, over one-third of women use calcium for bolstering bone health.

Suggested reasons for this increase are greater health awareness, rising medical costs and the increase in chronic conditions. Geographic issues are a part of the picture, too. In the U.S., rising medical costs are a major factor. In Asia, there is a growing geriatric population and Europe is experiencing an increase in chronic disease.

Other interesting statistics show that there is increased usage based upon education; the more educated the greater the use. Also, the greater the income, the higher the use of supplements.

50% of Americans take vitamins regularly. Some of this is blind belief, for there is evidence that many vitamin supplements are not properly absorbed by the body, so the value of the supplement is reduced or lost.

Your goal should be to make sure your supplements provide the nutritional value you are paying for. This is not an easy question to answer, for all supplements are not created equal. The mere ingestion of vitamins and minerals is not enough. The body must recognize and absorb the nutrients.

One American company has developed a patented process that allows the supplements to mimic nutrients found in nature. For instance, when plants absorb nutrients from soil, the vitamins and minerals are naturally integrated into the plant. This allows your body to naturally absorb the ingredients. Without this, many ‘pills’ are not absorbed and, in fact, create a build-up of unabsorbed material in the intestinal tract.

In the final analysis, supplement usage is increasing, and everyone should consider it as food supplies are processed and altered – no longer delivering the nutrition they once did. But, make sure your supplements are working to give you the benefit you need and not just passing through your body, not being properly absorbed.

Seek supplements that are proven to be effective and body-friendly.

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3 Natural Ways To Combat The Side-Effects Of Menopause 

Many women hear about Menopause through the hearsay of a “friend of a friend”. Perhaps you’ve heard an older Aunt (or worse, an Uncle) sarcastically remark to another woman that appears hot, “Are you having a hot flash or something?” Expecting the side effects of menopausal symptoms to be akin to someone’s snide remarks, or a relative’s running joke isn’t going to give you a very accurate picture. The truth can be much more severe. The flip-side of this coin is that there are also ways to naturally combat the side-effects of menopause.

Instead of natural ways to treat symptoms of menopause, most MDs point to pills or prescription creams. Progesterone steroids are what most doctors will prescribe. If they worked well most women would throw caution to the wind at this point, and welcome the well-known drawbacks from using steroids. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case: the steroidal creams often only provide minimal relief and do more harm than good.

With the onset of “The Information Age”, knowledge of “natural cures” and “safe, natural treatments” for menopause have become much more commonplace. Real people find forums where they can share their experiences, good and bad, and people can hear from people other than a doctor that may or may not have a “pharmaceutical bias”. This isn’t to say that you should ditch your doctor and simply self-diagnose on WebMD all day. Simply, that you can get a clearer picture of the truth when you can weigh all the facts for yourself.

So what are we dealing with here?

According to the Mayo Clinic:

Common Side Effects of Menopause (in reality) can include:

• vaginal dryness to the point of raw, roughened, rashy skin

• osteoporosis

• insomnia

• hair loss

• night sweats

• hot flashes, up to 2-3 times an hour; sometimes causing fainting

• irritability; anxiety

• Aches. pains

• pain during intercourse

• severely diminished sex drive (obviously)

There’s several Products with proprietary formulas that have been proven to help women Ages 50 and up. The first two are more preventative measures. They’re what you want to take prior to the onset of menopause, or just after it’s begun. And you can take one or the other, depending on how much protection or revitalization you’re looking for. The third is what you’d want to add in once you’ve started to experience the (un)natural symptoms of menopause.

Peak Performance Longevity

Targets:

• Heart Health

• Cellular Health

• Metabolic Health

This pack helps to increase energy and overall well-being. It also in muscle and joint recovery, improves calorie burning, and supports normal insulin response–among other internal boosts and body system cleansings. All of these benefits can help your body push back the internal clock. Why not go on the offensive early against menopause?

Peak Performance Total Health for Women

Everything from the Peak Performance Longevity, but it adds in:

• Joint cushioning and replenishing

• Enhanced night vision and helps maintain visual acuity

• Boosted immunity

• Organ, bone, and brain-function health

• and many other full-body enhancements

EstrAval

Specifically designed to be a naturally formulated aid for the symptoms of menopause, this product can make a mar difference. One woman reported that, after she was having several hot flashes an hour, she started taking EstrAval–and within weeks–went down to just one hot flash a day.

This isn’t to say that everyone will experience such dramatic results, but with all of these products offered with a 100% risk-free guarantee, it couldn’t hurt to try.

Now, armed with the information that’s available today to us, what are you going to do with it?

There is a way to try and naturally fend off the onset of Menopause, as well as its side-effects.