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One Way to Treat Asthma and Autoimmune Diseases with Diet

Cutting two teaspoons of salt’s worth of sodium from one’s daily diet can significantly improve lung function in asthmatics In the 1960s and 1970s, a mystery was emerging . Why were childhood asthma rates between 2 to 5 percent in the developed world but as low as 0.007 percent in the developing world? For example, in the developing world, instead of 1 in 20 kids affected, or even 1 in 50 kids, it could be more like 1 in 10,000 kids—extremely rare. And, when kids moved from a low-risk area to a high-risk area, their risk went up. What was going on? Were they exposed to something new? Did they leave some protective factor behind? As I discuss in my video How to Treat Asthma with a Low-Salt Diet , all the way back in 1938, scientists showed they could stop asthma attacks by lowering children’s sodium levels. That was done with a diuretic drug, but subsequent dietary experiments showed that diets high in salt seemed to increase asthmatic symptoms, while “lowering the salt decreased th...

A Half Teaspoon of Dried Rosemary May Improve Cognitive Function

In Hamlet , Act 4, Scene 5, Ophelia notes that rosemary is for remembrance, an idea that goes back at least a few thousand years to the ancient Greeks, who claimed that rosemary “comforts the brain…sharpens understanding, restores lost memory, awakens the mind…” After all, “plants can be considered as chemical factories that manufacture  all sorts of compounds that could have neuroprotective benefits”. So, let’s cut down on processed foods and eat a lot of phytonutrient-rich whole plant foods, including, perhaps, a variety of herbs. Even the smell of certain herbs may affect how our brain works. Unfortunately, as I discuss in my video Benefits of Rosemary for Brain Function , I’ve found much of the aromatherapy literature scientifically unsatisfying. There are studies offering subjective impressions, for example, but while sniffing an herbal sachet is indeed “easy, inexpensive, and safe,” is it effective? The researchers didn’t even compare test scores. However, even when there...

How to Foster a Healthy Gut Flora

What’s more important: probiotics or prebiotics? And where can we best get them? “Virtually every day we are all confronted with the activity of our intestine, and it is no surprise that at least some of us have developed a fascination for our intestinal condition and its relation to health and disease.” “Over the last years the intestinal microbiota [our gut flora] has been identified as a fascinating ‘new organ’” with all sorts of functions. Well, if the bacteria in our gut make up an entire, separate organ inside our body, what about doing an organ transplant? I discuss this in my video How to Become a Fecal Transplant Super Donor . What would happen if you transferred intestinal bacteria from lean donors into obese subjects? Researchers figured that rebalancing the obesity-causing bacteria with an infusion of gut bacteria from a lean donor might help. They had wanted the study to be placebo-controlled, which, for drugs is easy, because the control subjects can just be given ...

Available for Pre-Order: “Lose Weight Like Crazy, Even If You Have A Crazy Life!”

Since the launch of 21 Day Fix revolutionized healthy eating and fitness over six years ago, Autumn Calabrese has helped hundreds of thousands of people lose weight and keep it off with her simple yet crazy-effective approach to portion control. And now Autumn has written a deeply personal book that shares even more insight into her breakthrough nutrition program — along with the “a-ha” moments that shaped her journey and philosophy. “ Lose Weight Like Crazy, Even If You Have A Crazy Life! ” is an unfiltered look into Autumn’s life, career, and the challenges she’s had to overcome to rise to the top of the fitness industry. What Is “Lose Weight Like Crazy, Even If You Have A Crazy Life!” About? For the first time, Autumn shares stories of injuries, emotional trauma, and her sheer determination to find a way back to health through nutrition and fitness. She proves that no matter where you came from, you can always be in charge of where you’re going. As a personal trainer worki...