Cranberry Juice and Urinary Tract Disease: An Energy Science View
Both the matter and energy science disciplines agree on the conclusions so this informational evidence has strong, sound grounding And I'm a urologist having studied nonbacterial inflammatory changes in the urinary tract and the use of an energy science approach in these conditions
Nutritional Myths
As we have discussed earlier myths die a slow death Myths are beliefs or sets of beliefs often unproven or false that accrue around a system. The reason that they captivate us is they potentially hold the secret of health. And we all want to be healthy.
This is no more true than for myths around nutrition It's all nutritional guess work from a matter science view that is attempting to make sense of nutrition and its relationship to disease The study of food molecules is not going to tell us how the food interacts with YOUR physiology All we know is a lot about the molecules of the food The nutritional answers lie at the biologic energy level
The same holds true for Grandma's time honored cure for urinary tract infections, cranberry juice(CJ)
Urinary Tract Infections
Many times observations by us can be true true unrelated That is, we make an observation, the CJ helped me and yes I got better but there may be no causal relationship In addition more than 50% of UTI's are nonbacterial, ie, not associated with bacteria Matter(molecular) science nutritional arguments abound but the bottom line is there is no good evidence that CJ helps(as above)
What gives then? From an energy science view the symptoms are related to a nonbacterial inflammatory change in the bladder(interstital cystitis), that is a Pitta aggravated condition CJ will aggravate an already inflammatory condition from an energy science nutritional view In general PV(Pitta Vata) should not use cranberry at all and PK(Pitta Kapha) 1-2x per week The latter observation is probably why some can get better
You see, again, it's who's taking the CJ!
Urinary Tract Stones
What about renal stone formation? This again is a Pitta aggravated condition and there have been two studies, the one cited above and a second which showed actually an increase in stone formation in those taking concentrated cranberry tablets
Of course again the consumers weigh in with their observations and myths start flying about how the stones were dissolved by CJ
And this makes total sense to those who are selling or manufacturing CJ so the more the merrier! Buyer beware!
There is not much good advice from the matter science physicians about prevention but the energy science has a lot to say about prevention advocating a nutritional format that is good for one's body makeup
No Scientific Support
So for those not yet mesmerized by the myth and personal experience of CJ the fruit has some redeeming qualities in the use of Kapha imbalance but in general both from a matter and energy science views it's not the panacea that it;s cracked up to be
But nutritional myths do die hard And we so much want to believe them
Until next time Ciao To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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The Breakie King: Understanding Kapha Energy Pattern
Because one of the most pleasurable events of a weekend for me was breakfast, it prompted my wife to crown me the "Breakie King" I enjoyed it all The before meal juice, oatmeal with raisins, flapjacks with syrup, eggs over easy with bacon or ham on the side Maybe some yogurt with fruit
As all patterns of behavior I think it's worthwhile to question them particularly in light of beneficial energy science guidance
The Energy Science Paradigm: Understanding Kapha
Between 6 and 10a is a Kapha period of time The body's metabolism is heavy, slow, cold, cloudy, and static Doesn't sound like a particularly favorable time of the day for a big meal, does it?
Add another layer of understanding If one's mindbody energy makeup is Kapha then there is a double whammy that comes into play Not only is the time of day not right for a large meal but if the one consuming that meal has the same qualities of heavy, slow, cold, cloudy, and static, the food will not be digested well
Add another layer Foods(dairy, eggs, syrup, pancakes, oatmeal) that are associated with breakfast often over time can aggravate the Kapha energy pattern due to the qualities of heavy, slow, cold, cloudy, and static
Childhood Obesity
Add another layer Childhood is a Kapha period of life Strongly predisposed children(those who will be Kapha as adults) are at risk for childhood obesity
And it starts early on setting up lifestyle behavior patterns that are not conducive to good health
Understandably for growing school age children food in the morning may help with attention span and improve school behavior patterns But as parents who are setting the stage for potential problems down the line, I think it's important to follow PK nutritional guidelines as outlined at foodsheal.com
But for adults the question is whether it is such an important meal
One Universal Recommendation Does NOT Fit All
Blanket health recommendations from the matter science nutritional view is very misleading for us, the public For example this directive from an authoritative organization can lead to confusion because as we started out the consumer "feels" intuitively that breakfast shouldn't be the main meal personally but then these kind of statements are made
According to the American Dietetic Association(ADA), the breakfast is the most essential meal of the day Many have already spoken about the importance of breakfast. It acts as a fuel to the body to carry out the various tasks of the day. It is said that a healthy breakfast should provide 1/3 of the day’s total calorie intake. Still, it is the most neglected part of the day. Most of the people skip breakfast as they are in a hurry, don’t feel like eating or want to lose weight
Yikes! With such misguided matter science nutritional advice no wonder we have a rampaging problem with obesity The ADA needs help!!
The Breakie King Rethinks the Universal Recommendation
It's funny what happens over the years Knowledge begets wisdom particularly armed with energy science nutritional guidance
If it's necessary to have have breakfast make it light particularly if PK and follow the nutritional guidelines
Watch out for poor food combining
Consider not eating at all or perhaps juice only Remember baby steps
If in a rush DON'T eat Better to not eat at all since rushing effects digestive fire
Have breakfast at noon when the digestive fire is richest making the biggest meal at noon!!
Until next time Ciao To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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“I look at food and gain weight”: A Common Refrain
Every time I lose weight, it finds me again
attribution to James Dines
Looking at food and gaining weight seems like an impossiblity
But from an energy science view such an experience is totally plausible
Nutrition: A Total Experience
The body as an energy field not only imbibes calories(a matter science measurement of foods) but also the totality of the sensory experience
So from an energy science point of view the body takes in the qualities of the experience For example, sweet, sour and salty tastes deliver the qualities that produce congestion, namely the qualities of heavy, slow/dull, cold, oily, smooth, dense, soft , gross and cloudy
These qualities are not just delivered by our tongue when we eat an ice cream cone We get these qualities from our senses of hearing, feeling, smelling And what we see!! So the common refrain "I look at food and gain weight" makes complete sense from an energy science view
At first this seems very bizarre That sensory experiences other than taste can deliver weight gain But let's examine this more closely
The Inducement
Sight in and of itself does not lead to excess calories to the physiology but it does produce the desire for particular foods Some people are very much drawn to experience the smell and taste of food Unconsciously, most of the time
Who are those people most likely affected by such sensory desire? The biologic energy pattern of Kapha and those who are Kapha dominant people since they have very robust sensory channels of smelling and tasting They love to experience these senses in abundance And because of this, Kapha as a biologic energy pattern tends to evolve abundant bodies exhibiting the overweight condition An inducement, if you will, to an experience that produces physiologic congestion
So seeing foods that bring about congesting imbalance leads to the overweight issue due to the inducement of wanting to smell and taste the foods
For example foods that lead to the congestion in Kapha dominant bodes are animal foods(eg beef, duck, lamb, pork, and seafood) as well as nuts both of which carry the sour(fatty acids) and salty tastes Dairy delivers the sweet taste which also leads to congestion
Shifting Gears: The Biologic Energy Field
You see, it's a new way of viewing the body We are taught throughout our lives that we are matter(molecular) fields that have somehow learned how to think
But there is a richer way of understanding our physiologies and that's from an energy science model That is, our bodies are simultaneously both matter and energy fields
So there is a realm of knowledge that we aren't experiencing that can help us understand that even seeing foods can lead to weight gain directly or indirectly
What would life be like without being ruled by the scales - having to get on the scales everyday to see if we've gained or not?
Until next time To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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5 Ways to Improve Gut Health: Disease Prevention
Well pro- means for and -biotic means a substance that supports life Sounds llke that's something we would want to have Actually probiotics are materials that you can buy at your local grocery store that's a collection of bacteria that improve bowel or gut function
But actually probiotics are one of many ways to improve bowel function which is the sine qua non to health
Why Support Gut Function?
The energy science tradtions such as Ayurveda from the yoga tradition and the traditional Oriental medical tradtion from which we get accupuncture both speak of the importance of strong healthy gut function
In the matter science medical tradition of our currently practiced medical system the gut is a mechanical tube that is not more important than the rest of the body's systems, unless of course you happen to be a gastroenterogist and make your living evaluating and treating problems of the GI tract
But in the energy science the gut is more than a mechanical tube it is the source of all diseases in the body Wow! Now that's an important tube
The GI tract: The Source of All Bodily Disease
The GI tract is body's interface where we take in the outside world It is at this interface where that piece of broccoli from the outside world begins to become your inside world, that is the molecules that become you
So food selection becomes critical for health because if the foods lead to imbalances in the body(too much of the hot quality from too much salsa) then over time this hot quality if taken in too much will lead to unarguable disease such as inflammatory diseases such as cancer, heart disease, acid indigestion/GERD, obesity, and even dementia Now that's a mouthful
Burning Off Mistakes
OK, so how do we help our gut not produce disease? That''s a good question
There are basically two ways
1 Make good nutritional chioices that are best for us
2 Burn off the mistakes that are not good for us by enhancing digestion strength
It is this latter means of gut health that is important for us and that we're talking about today There are essentially 5 simple ways to improve bowel health and digestive strength
Reducing Our Risk for Disease
Let's face it, there will be times when our GI tract is going to receive foods that have the potential of producing minor problems And there are always times when we want to enhance the bowel health(often termed detox in the broad sense)
At times we know that something isn't right because our gut is misbehaving or our appetite is too hot or not strong enough So there is room for doing things that can help to enhance bowel health and hence prevent disease
5 ways to improve gut health
Nutrition based on body's makeup
Avoiding poor food combinations
Use of supporting agent such as algae(Chlorella)
Use of probiotic(kefir, yogurt, pr supplement form)
Here's to helping prevent disease Until next time To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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Calming Influence of Nutritional Monotony
Sound too good to be true? Then read on
Personal Experience
Over the years I've experienced different forms of the same food day in and day Some people call it fasting, some would just label it a monodiet
It can be done with juices, fruit, or just a simple vegetable dish that we've written about in the past And it can be done over a few days or weeks or even longer
The point is that it's the same Maybe a different type of fruit or juice based on my mindbody makeup, but it's still fruit or juice maybe the same vegetable dish but a different types of vegetables
Now my personal observation that I've had with this type of fasting or monodiet is that it's not monotonous
Monotony is a Product of the Mind
From an energy science medical view the Vata energy pattern is that of movement Anything that has to do with movement in the physiology is Vata energy and primarily expressed in the nervous system So a turbulent mind is a Vata aggravated mind Too many thoughts to process, too many emotions to deal with, too little time to accomplish everything
To say that always having the same foods all the time is boring is simply an agitated mind
And one of the simplest ways to calm the Vata aggravated mind is monotony Samo samo
Think about it How hectic would life become if you had to look for your toothbrush, purse or wallet, and carkeys everyday? Life would become quickly frenetic and inefficient
Furthermore the mindbody loves habitual living It's comfortable, less stressful And in the end I believe we often eat this way anyway People have their favorite dishes and the routine of eating the same "comfort foods"
Research Supported Nutritional Monotony
Now in the August 2011 American Journal of Nutrition, matter science researchers report on a study where people subjected to the same diets over and over again were observed to consume less calories
And as a opposite to this was a study showing recently that with increased variety at buffets can lead to increased caloric intake!
A matter science observation (measurement of reduced caloric intake) has been made but from an energy science nutritional view the explanation is that this form of monodiet(loosely called fasting here) is Vata pacifying, that is, it creates more physiologic calming which in turns less food intake
Not because it's boring but because the monodiet is calming
Until next time To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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Protein Supplementation Is Out: But Milk Is In
Is this a Wannabe Mustache?
Two matter science nutritional articles have recently come out busting some nutritional myths that if taken seriously would change the athletic food supplementation industry
First, The Bad News ;(
Nutritional researchers at the University of Bath have debunked the notion that protein supplementation is helpful in recovery after workouts What?
How can that be? Protein is important in building muscle and of course and the workout is intended to do just that! Of course the placebo effect for weight lifters to triathletes will probably reign in such a study and call foul but, hey, we just work here
The truth of the matter is that protein supplementation is far overdone and from an energy science view corroborates this matter science nutritional finding I just love it when that happens because it means that this finding is totally meaningful
From an energy science nutritional standpoint using protein supplementation leads to provoking Pitta which is already provoked in this clinical setting
Are You Ready? The Good News 
Kinda
OK, this is going to be hard to hear from athletic circles perhaps but jocks and jockesses would do well to take in some chocolate milk after their workouts
But for me the question is, "What's with the chocolate in the milk?" You know, why spoil Nature's perfect food with chocolate?
Although it's not surprising that milk is a great drink after a physical workout, what doesn't make sense is the addition of the chocolate from an energy science nutritional view
Now here, there is a conflict between the matter and energy science nutritional information and the relevance here is "delete the chocolate" since chocolate isn't good for anyone(sorry chocoholics)
"Yea, but it tastes better that way Besides we get some refined sugar that way"
Besides Milk Isn't Good For YOU?
While we're on the topic, a few comments about milk are in order
One of the rampages we hear these days is that the food that supported us in the first six months of life isn't good for us anymore Mother's or otherwise
Hey, come on Let's quit blaming the foods for why we don't feel well(classic Pitta way of dealing with life) When all else fails blame something or someone
The problem is US and our digestive systems The way we consume milk and our poor digestive fire
Cold milk out of the fridge is not a good idea(ice cubes at Starbucks even worse)
Warming, better yet, steaming the milk to break down the large casein molecules is a good idea
Using spices to aid in the digestion is great idea(chai anyone?)
Drinking milk alone is better than drinking it with cookies(another myth even though tastes better)
Wanna Make A Bet?
Since there's a lot of money on this whole case of protein supplementation be prepared in the next year to see some studies refuting the above
Ah, the American science way!
Ciao, until next time To health as a Skill Love DrBill
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