In my extensive studies of holistic and alternative healing I have run across many techniques that are, well, simply weird. But when studied, sometimes the weird stuff is not only true, but it can also be incredibly useful. I have realized that reality is often quite different from what we know from our limited experience.
Grounding falls into the category of “weird” for sure. But, read the following well-researched article to have your mind completely changed!
Understand that grounding is not some phenomenal healing power that will end your chronic health problems. Instead, grounding is one of many de-stressors that can assist you to regain your health.
Read the article. See if you do not agree with me that grounding should be taken seriously and that, just perhaps, you should spend a bit of time barefoot in the sand!
Read: SMASH: The Potent Recipe for Increasing Omega 3
Grounding— A Simple, Pleasurable Way to Reduce Inflammation and Chronic Disease
Dr. Joe Mercola
Story at-a-glance
Grounding or earthing is defined as placing one’s bare feet on the ground, whether it be dirt, grass, sand or unsealed, unpainted concrete (especially when humid or wet)
When you ground to the electron-enriched Earth, an improved balance of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system occurs
Being grounded cuts inflammation by thinning your blood and infusing your body with negatively charged ions
To take advantage of grounding indoors, your best bet is to use a grounding pad to sleep, stand barefoot or sit on
Grounding may be one of the most important overlooked factors in public health. When grounding is restored, many people report significant improvement in a wide range of ailments
Did you know the energy from the Earth can help you live a healthier life? The concept is known as earthing or grounding, which is no more complicated
than walking barefoot.
In “Down to Earth”1 — which received the IndieFEST Award of Excellence for a documentary short in January 2017 — I speak alongside other experts to shed light on this super simple yet commonly overlooked way to protect and improve human health. As cardiologist Dr. Stephen Sinatra, author of “Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever?” explains in the film:
“[G]rounding is literally putting your bare feet on the ground. When you do that, you’re in contact with the Earth, and mother Earth is endowed with electrons, and these electrons are literally absorbed through your feet. It’s like taking handfuls of antioxidants, but you’re getting it through your feet.”
Your Body Needs Grounding
Research suggests a general lack of grounding, also referred to as “electron deficiency syndrome,” has a lot to do with the rise of modern diseases.
It’s not unusual for Americans to spend entire days without being grounded. But though it has become the norm, it’s completely unnatural and didn’t really become widespread until the advent of shoes with artificial soles that prevent grounding. When you’re grounded, free electrons from the Earth are transferred into your body, and these free electrons are among the most potent antioxidants known to man.
As electrons are negatively charged, and free radicals are positively charged, any free radicals encountered in your tissues are electrically neutralized or canceled out by these free electrons. This is why grounding is so effective against chronic inflammation. Dr. Laura Koniver, who discovered grounding quite by accident after it seemed to soothe her crying infant, says in the film, “Grounding … supports the body as a whole, but it specifically supports organ systems down to the tissues and the cellular function of the entire body.”
Also, while you may not think of your body as a generator of electricity, you are very much an electrical being, and this is in large part why it’s so important to use grounding to harness the electrical charge of the Earth. In the film, Gaetan Chevalier, Ph.D., an engineer/physicist who has studied grounding, explains:
“Unbeknownst to us, we live inside a battery. The surface of the Earth is charged negatively, and the ionosphere, a layer of the atmosphere about 60 miles up, is ionized by the sun. The sun’s rays are so strong that they split the molecules in two, a positive charge and a negative charge.
The negative charges are transferred to the Earth’s surface through lightening mainly, and the positive charges stay 60 miles up. The problem arises when we don’t have a negative charge. We need grounding just as we need air and we need sunshine.”2
Grounding Reduces Electric Field Induction
There’s even evidence that grounding reduces the voltage induced on your body from electricity in your environment — a factor that has become increasingly important in the modern world. As noted in the 2012 review:3
“Applewhite, an electrical engineer and expert in the design of electrostatic discharge systems in the electronic industry, was both subject and author of the study.4 Measurements were taken while ungrounded and then grounded using a conductive patch and conductive bed pad … Each method (patch and sheet) immediately reduced the common alternating current (AC) 60 Hz ambient voltage induced on the body by a highly significant factor of about 70 on average.
The study showed that when the body is grounded, its electrical potential becomes equalized with the Earth’s electrical potential. This, in turn, prevents the 60 Hz mode from producing an AC electric potential at the surface of the body and from producing perturbations of the electric charges of the molecules inside the body.
The study confirms the ‘umbrella’ effect of earthing the body explained by Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman in his lectures on electromagnetism. Feynman said that when the body potential is the same as the Earth’s electric potential (and thus grounded), it becomes an extension of the Earth’s gigantic electric system. The Earth’s potential thus becomes the ‘working agent that cancels, reduces, or pushes away electric fields from the body.'”
Benefits of Grounding
While it may sound “too easy,” the simple pleasure of walking barefoot can be a powerful health-promoting activity. A scientific review published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health in 2012 found that grounding can help:5
Improve quality of sleep and feelings of restfulness upon waking.
Reduce muscle stiffness and soreness.6
Reduce chronic pain.
Normalize secretion of the stress hormone cortisol so that it adheres to a typical cycle of peaking in the morning and dipping lowest at midnight. This in turn helps promote more restful sleep and improve blood sugar regulation and weight control.
Reduce stress and balance your autonomic nervous system by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system (which rules the “rest and digest” functions of the body) and quieting the sympathetic nervous system (which cues the “fight or flight” response).
Reduce the severity of the inflammatory response after intense workouts.
Raise your heart rate variability (your heart’s ability to respond to stimuli).
Speed up wound healing.
Improve mood. In one study,7 grounding for one hour significantly improved mood among adults.
Reduce inflammation.8 In the film, grounding pioneer Clint Ober explains how grounding quenches inflammation: “Inflammation is produced by neutrophils, which are white blood cells. [When] you have an injury … a damaged cell … these white blood cells come over and encapsulate the damaged cell and … release reactive oxygen species, which rip electrons from the damaged cell and that destroys the damaged cell.If there’s not enough free electrons there to reduce the remaining radicals, they’re going to steal an electron from a healthy cell and, in the process, damage it. Then the message goes out to the immune system, and another neutrophil does the same thing and eliminates that cell, and then you have a chain reaction.”
Thin your blood, making it less viscous, by strengthening the negative electrical surface charge on your red blood cells. This improves their ability to repel each other and allows them to flow more easily through tiny capillaries, and is incredibly valuable as cardiovascular disease is correlated with thicker, slow-moving blood. It can also help protect against blood clots.In fact, this blood-thinning effect is so profound that if you are taking a blood thinner such as Coumadin, you should consult your doctor before you start grounding regularly. You may need to lower your dosage to avoid overdosing on your medication.Research9 published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine revealed that two hours of grounding increased the surface charge of red blood cells, thereby reducing blood viscosity and clumping. According to the authors, “Grounding appears to be one of the simplest and yet most profound interventions for helping reduce cardiovascular risk and cardiovascular events.”
Increase the structure of the water in your cells. Water is in every cell in your body, and this water is highly ordered (structured) and charged. If you don’t have properly structured water in your cells, it can impact the functioning of the much larger protein molecules (and others) that interface with the cell. The water inside the cell also interfaces with water outside the cell, which has the opposite charge, creating a battery effect.Your body’s ability to generate electricity is actually a key part of your achieving health. Electrical charges delivered from cell to cell allows for nearly instantaneous communication within your body, and the messages conducted via these electrical signals are responsible for controlling the rhythm of your heartbeat, the movement of blood around your body and much more.In fact, most of your biological processes are electrical. The water in your cells achieves its ordered structure from energy obtained from the environment, typically in the form of electromagnetic radiation, including sunlight and infrared heat.
But grounding may also play an important role. Just as water increases in structure when a negative charge is introduced by an electrode, the negatively charged electrons you receive when grounded help increase the structure of the water in your cells. By restructuring the water, you promote more efficient tissue healing. So, when you ground, you are charging every single cell in your body with energy your body can use for self-healing.
How and Where to Ground
While connecting just about any part of your skin to the Earth is beneficial, one area that is particularly potent is the center of the ball of your foot, a point known to acupuncturists as Kidney 1 (K1). It’s a well-known acupuncture point that conductively connects to all of the acupuncture meridians in your body. Exercising barefoot outdoors is a great way to incorporate earthing into your daily life and will also help speed up tissue repair and ease muscle pain associated with strenuous exercise.
The ideal location for walking barefoot is the beach, close to or in the water, as salt water is a great conductor. (Your body is also somewhat conductive because it contains a large number of charged ions, called electrolytes, dissolved in water. Your blood and other body fluids are, therefore, good conductors.)
A close second would be a grassy area, especially if it’s covered with dew and /or bare soil. Ceramic tiles and concrete are good conductors as long as they’ve not been sealed; painted concrete does not allow electrons to pass through very well. Materials like asphalt, wood, and typical insulators like rubber or plastic will not allow electrons to pass through and are not suitable for barefoot grounding.
While any amount of grounding is better than none, research has demonstrated it takes about 80 minutes for the free electrons from the Earth to reach your bloodstream and transform your blood, which is when you reap the greatest benefits. So, ideally, aim for 80 to 120 minutes of grounding each day.
How to Ground Indoors
Just as walking barefoot was once widespread, so too was sleeping on the ground. In the modern world, sleeping indoors serves to further insulate you from the Earth. There’s also the issue of elevation. When you are grounded, your body cannot carry a charge, which is good. The greater the distance between your body and the Earth, the greater charge your body carries. In fact, this has been precisely calculated. For every meter (3.28 feet) you are above the ground, 300 volts of charge will build up in your body.10
So, if you are in a second-story bedroom, your charge would be 1,000 volts, on average, and this increased charge may increase your risk of health problems. For example, one 2009 study11 found a 40 percent increase in stroke risk among people living in multistory homes. Flying can also make you severely ungrounded. When indoors and/or at elevation, you can ground by:
Using a grounding pad or grounding sheet to ground your mattress while sleeping.
Keeping your bare feet on a grounding mat while working. Grounding mats work well provided you have a grounded electrical outlet and can be particularly beneficial if you live in a high-rise. A grounded outlet is generally identifiable by the fact it’s a 3-prong outlet with a ground port (bottom outlet). Most modern homes built after 1970 will have a grounded electrical system. When using an earthing mat, make sure your bare skin is in contact with it. There should not be a layer of clothing between you and the mat.
Using a grounded yoga mat when exercising indoors. Research12 has shown doing yoga indoors on a grounded yoga mat helps reduce blood viscosity and exercise-induced inflammation, the same effects you’d expect from walking barefoot outdoors.
Touching the faucet with one hand while shaving or brushing your teeth with the other.
Taking off your shoes and placing your feet (bare or with socks) on the steel struts of the chair in front of you when flying in an airplane.
Grounding May Be Essential for Life and Health
It’s important to understand that grounding is not a “treatment” or “cure” for any disease or disorder. Rather, it is one of the key mechanisms by which your body maintains equilibrium and health. The human body evolved in constant contact with the Earth, and your body needs this continuous interchange of energy to function properly.
Free radical stress from exposure to pollution, cigarettes, pesticides, processed foods and electromagnetic radiation, just to name a few, continually depletes your body of electrons. The Earth, however, is always electron-rich and can serve as a powerful and abundant supply of antioxidant free radical-busting electrons, provided you make an effort to stay grounded.
Without a proper supply of antioxidants, the free radicals can overwhelm your system leading to oxidative stress, inflammation, and accelerated aging. “We now know that oxidative stress causes disease. It causes inflammation,” Sinatra says. “[But] we have this Earth — Mother Earth — that’s going to give us all these free electrons.”
Again, exercising barefoot outdoors is a wonderful way to incorporate grounding into your daily routine. Alternatively, simply take off your shoes as much as you can when you’re outdoors to take advantage of the Earth’s natural healing potential.
In “Down to Earth”1 — which received the IndieFEST Award of Excellence for a documentary short in January 2017 — I speak alongside other experts to shed light on this super simple yet commonly overlooked way to protect and improve human health. As cardiologist Dr. Stephen Sinatra, author of “Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever?” explains in the film:
“[G]rounding is literally putting your bare feet on the ground. When you do that, you’re in contact with the Earth, and mother Earth is endowed with electrons, and these electrons are literally absorbed through your feet. It’s like taking handfuls of antioxidants, but you’re getting it through your feet.”
Your Body Needs Grounding
Research suggests a general lack of grounding, also referred to as “electron deficiency syndrome,” has a lot to do with the rise of modern diseases.
It’s not unusual for Americans to spend entire days without being grounded. But though it has become the norm, it’s completely unnatural and didn’t really become widespread until the advent of shoes with artificial soles that prevent grounding. When you’re grounded, free electrons from the Earth are transferred into your body, and these free electrons are among the most potent antioxidants known to man.
As electrons are negatively charged, and free radicals are positively charged, any free radicals encountered in your tissues are electrically neutralized or canceled out by these free electrons. This is why grounding is so effective against chronic inflammation. Dr. Laura Koniver, who discovered grounding quite by accident after it seemed to soothe her crying infant, says in the film, “Grounding … supports the body as a whole, but it specifically supports organ systems down to the tissues and the cellular function of the entire body.”
Also, while you may not think of your body as a generator of electricity, you are very much an electrical being, and this is in large part why it’s so important to use grounding to harness the electrical charge of the Earth. In the film, Gaetan Chevalier, Ph.D., an engineer/physicist who has studied grounding, explains:
“Unbeknownst to us, we live inside a battery. The surface of the Earth is charged negatively, and the ionosphere, a layer of the atmosphere about 60 miles up, is ionized by the sun. The sun’s rays are so strong that they split the molecules in two, a positive charge and a negative charge.
The negative charges are transferred to the Earth’s surface through lightening mainly, and the positive charges stay 60 miles up. The problem arises when we don’t have a negative charge. We need grounding just as we need air and we need sunshine.”2
Grounding Reduces Electric Field Induction
There’s even evidence that grounding reduces the voltage induced on your body from electricity in your environment — a factor that has become increasingly important in the modern world. As noted in the 2012 review:3
“Applewhite, an electrical engineer and expert in the design of electrostatic discharge systems in the electronic industry, was both subject and author of the study.4 Measurements were taken while ungrounded and then grounded using a conductive patch and conductive bed pad … Each method (patch and sheet) immediately reduced the common alternating current (AC) 60 Hz ambient voltage induced on the body by a highly significant factor of about 70 on average.
The study showed that when the body is grounded, its electrical potential becomes equalized with the Earth’s electrical potential. This, in turn, prevents the 60 Hz mode from producing an AC electric potential at the surface of the body and from producing perturbations of the electric charges of the molecules inside the body.
The study confirms the ‘umbrella’ effect of earthing the body explained by Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman in his lectures on electromagnetism. Feynman said that when the body potential is the same as the Earth’s electric potential (and thus grounded), it becomes an extension of the Earth’s gigantic electric system. The Earth’s potential thus becomes the ‘working agent that cancels, reduces, or pushes away electric fields from the body.'”
Benefits of Grounding
While it may sound “too easy,” the simple pleasure of walking barefoot can be a powerful health-promoting activity. A scientific review published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health in 2012 found that grounding can help:5
Improve quality of sleep and feelings of restfulness upon waking.
Reduce muscle stiffness and soreness.6
Reduce chronic pain.
Normalize secretion of the stress hormone cortisol so that it adheres to a typical cycle of peaking in the morning and dipping lowest at midnight. This in turn helps promote more restful sleep and improve blood sugar regulation and weight control.
Reduce stress and balance your autonomic nervous system by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system (which rules the “rest and digest” functions of the body) and quieting the sympathetic nervous system (which cues the “fight or flight” response).
Reduce the severity of the inflammatory response after intense workouts.
Raise your heart rate variability (your heart’s ability to respond to stimuli).
Speed up wound healing.
Improve mood. In one study,7 grounding for one hour significantly improved mood among adults.
Reduce inflammation.8 In the film, grounding pioneer Clint Ober explains how grounding quenches inflammation: “Inflammation is produced by neutrophils, which are white blood cells. [When] you have an injury … a damaged cell … these white blood cells come over and encapsulate the damaged cell and … release reactive oxygen species, which rip electrons from the damaged cell and that destroys the damaged cell.If there’s not enough free electrons there to reduce the remaining radicals, they’re going to steal an electron from a healthy cell and, in the process, damage it. Then the message goes out to the immune system, and another neutrophil does the same thing and eliminates that cell, and then you have a chain reaction.”
Thin your blood, making it less viscous, by strengthening the negative electrical surface charge on your red blood cells. This improves their ability to repel each other and allows them to flow more easily through tiny capillaries, and is incredibly valuable as cardiovascular disease is correlated with thicker, slow-moving blood. It can also help protect against blood clots.In fact, this blood-thinning effect is so profound that if you are taking a blood thinner such as Coumadin, you should consult your doctor before you start grounding regularly. You may need to lower your dosage to avoid overdosing on your medication.Research9 published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine revealed that two hours of grounding increased the surface charge of red blood cells, thereby reducing blood viscosity and clumping. According to the authors, “Grounding appears to be one of the simplest and yet most profound interventions for helping reduce cardiovascular risk and cardiovascular events.”
Increase the structure of the water in your cells. Water is in every cell in your body, and this water is highly ordered (structured) and charged. If you don’t have properly structured water in your cells, it can impact the functioning of the much larger protein molecules (and others) that interface with the cell. The water inside the cell also interfaces with water outside the cell, which has the opposite charge, creating a battery effect.Your body’s ability to generate electricity is actually a key part of your achieving health. Electrical charges delivered from cell to cell allows for nearly instantaneous communication within your body, and the messages conducted via these electrical signals are responsible for controlling the rhythm of your heartbeat, the movement of blood around your body and much more.In fact, most of your biological processes are electrical. The water in your cells achieves its ordered structure from energy obtained from the environment, typically in the form of electromagnetic radiation, including sunlight and infrared heat.But grounding may also play an important role. Just as water increases in structure when a negative charge is introduced by an electrode, the negatively charged electrons you receive when grounded help increase the structure of the water in your cells. By restructuring the water, you promote more efficient tissue healing. So, when you ground, you are charging every single cell in your body with energy your body can use for self-healing.
How and Where to Ground
While connecting just about any part of your skin to the Earth is beneficial, one area that is particularly potent is the center of the ball of your foot, a point known to acupuncturists as Kidney 1 (K1). It’s a well-known acupuncture point that conductively connects to all of the acupuncture meridians in your body. Exercising barefoot outdoors is a great way to incorporate earthing into your daily life and will also help speed up tissue repair and ease muscle pain associated with strenuous exercise.
The ideal location for walking barefoot is the beach, close to or in the water, as salt water is a great conductor. (Your body is also somewhat conductive because it contains a large number of charged ions, called electrolytes, dissolved in water. Your blood and other body fluids are, therefore, good conductors.)
A close second would be a grassy area, especially if it’s covered with dew and /or bare soil. Ceramic tiles and concrete are good conductors as long as they’ve not been sealed; painted concrete does not allow electrons to pass through very well. Materials like asphalt, wood, and typical insulators like rubber or plastic will not allow electrons to pass through and are not suitable for barefoot grounding.
While any amount of grounding is better than none, research has demonstrated it takes about 80 minutes for the free electrons from the Earth to reach your bloodstream and transform your blood, which is when you reap the greatest benefits. So, ideally, aim for 80 to 120 minutes of grounding each day.
How to Ground Indoors
Just as walking barefoot was once widespread, so too was sleeping on the ground. In the modern world, sleeping indoors serves to further insulate you from the Earth. There’s also the issue of elevation. When you are grounded, your body cannot carry a charge, which is good. The greater the distance between your body and the Earth, the greater charge your body carries. In fact, this has been precisely calculated. For every meter (3.28 feet) you are above the ground, 300 volts of charge will build up in your body.10
So, if you are in a second-story bedroom, your charge would be 1,000 volts, on average, and this increased charge may increase your risk of health problems. For example, one 2009 study11 found a 40 percent increase in stroke risk among people living in multistory homes. Flying can also make you severely ungrounded. When indoors and/or at elevation, you can ground by:
Using a grounding pad or grounding sheet to ground your mattress while sleeping.
Keeping your bare feet on a grounding mat while working. Grounding mats work well provided you have a grounded electrical outlet and can be particularly beneficial if you live in a high-rise. A grounded outlet is generally identifiable by the fact it’s a 3-prong outlet with a ground port (bottom outlet). Most modern homes built after 1970 will have a grounded electrical system. When using an earthing mat, make sure your bare skin is in contact with it. There should not be a layer of clothing between you and the mat.
Using a grounded yoga mat when exercising indoors. Research12 has shown doing yoga indoors on a grounded yoga mat helps reduce blood viscosity and exercise-induced inflammation, the same effects you’d expect from walking barefoot outdoors.
Touching the faucet with one hand while shaving or brushing your teeth with the other.
Taking off your shoes and placing your feet (bare or with socks) on the steel struts of the chair in front of you when flying in an airplane.
Grounding May Be Essential for Life and Health
It’s important to understand that grounding is not a “treatment” or “cure” for any disease or disorder. Rather, it is one of the key mechanisms by which your body maintains equilibrium and health. The human body evolved in constant contact with the Earth, and your body needs this continuous interchange of energy to function properly.
Free radical stress from exposure to pollution, cigarettes, pesticides, processed foods and electromagnetic radiation, just to name a few, continually depletes your body of electrons. The Earth, however, is always electron-rich and can serve as a powerful and abundant supply of antioxidant free radical-busting electrons, provided you make an effort to stay grounded.
Without a proper supply of antioxidants, the free radicals can overwhelm your system leading to oxidative stress, inflammation, and accelerated aging. “We now know that oxidative stress causes disease. It causes inflammation,” Sinatra says. “[But] we have this Earth — Mother Earth — that’s going to give us all these free electrons.”
Again, exercising barefoot outdoors is a wonderful way to incorporate grounding into your daily routine. Alternatively, simply take off your shoes as much as you can when you’re outdoors to take advantage of the Earth’s natural healing potential.
Most people have a desire to live life to the fullest with a combination of quantity and quality.
There are many parameters that may determine how long you live, however,this short article presents the findings of five researchers who identified three simple tests you can do at home to measure your ability to add years to your life.
The medical paper published in the British Medical Journal in 2014 revealed a 13 year study where they took 1,355 men and 1,411 women in 1999 when they were 53 years old and then checked to see who was alive and well 13 years later in 2012.
The following are the three tests that were evaluated:
Standing on one leg with your eyes closed for 10 seconds or longer
Having a strong grip
Being able to stand up and sit back down in a chair many times in a minute.
According to the researchers of this paper, these tests clearly represented tell-tale signs of longevity.
Perform well in all three tests at age 53 or so and you should be healthy and vibrant 13 years later, when you are 66.
Researchers from University College London estimate that a 53 year old who can complete these tests successfully is up to 5 times more likely to be alive and well at 66 than someone who couldn’t complete the tests or who did them poorly.
There were far higher death rates among those who failed to complete the tasks.
Officially the tests are called:
The Chair Test (Standing up and sitting down in a chair 39 times in a minute for a man, and 36 times for a woman)
The balance test (standing on one leg for 10 seconds or longer with eyes closed)
The grip test (ability to apply a pressure of up to 54.5 kg or 120 pounds)
Reference:
Cooper R1, Strand BH, Hardy R, Patel KV, Kuh D.Physical capability in mid-life and survival over 13 years of follow-up: British birth cohort study. BMJ. 2014 Apr 29;348:g2219
There are products galore to improve energy and motivation. There are energy drinks, exercise programs, self-help books, therapy, drugs, even coffee!
Here are two practical actions you can take to boost your energy, motivation, and general mood. Neither one will cost you any money, and they don’t take much time.
1. Smooth out your blood sugar:
Your blood sugar is the primary source of energy for your body, including your nervous system. If you eat in a way that creates low blood sugar, you may experience:
Waking in the night and nightmares
Brain fog and concentration problems
Heart palpitations and anxiety
Hunger, or the reverse: a feeling of aversion to food, even if you should be hungry
Mood swings and nervousness
Headaches
Blurry vision
Jittery, shaky feelings
Lightheadedness, dizziness, and loss of balance and coordination
You can have low blood sugar from… eating sugar!
Eating sugar or refined carbohydrates (bread, chips, pasta, cakes, cookies) can put too much sugar into your bloodstream. Your body reacts to prevent high-sugar damage by flooding the bloodstream with a hormone (insulin) to bring the sugar levels down. The high sugar emergency caused too much insulin hormone to be released, and now the sugar drops way too low. You feel terrible and crave sweets, bread, chips—anything that will bring up the low blood sugar. But you overeat the carbs and sugar, and now your blood sugar goes too high. Your body has another sugar emergency, over-produces insulin again, and the whole cycle repeats. “Roller-coaster” blood sugar is a very common scenario and can cause chronic symptoms from low blood sugar. Solution:
Avoid eating sugar (cake candy, cookies, ice cream, soda, beer, wine) and limit your carbs intake (bread, pasta, rice, and white potatoes).
Eat protein (meat, eggs, cheese, nuts) with every meal and every snack.
If you feel jittery, like you have low blood sugar, eat protein and vegetables instead of chips, bread, and sugar. Keep eating protein and veggies (for example, no-sugar peanut butter on celery) until you feel better.
Another way you can have low blood sugar is not eating regularly enough:
Your body runs out of stored blood sugar about four hours after a meal. So if you skip lunch, by dinner time, your body can have to break down protein from the muscles to make blood sugar. This problem is worse if you have fatigued adrenal glands. Your adrenal glands prevent your body from being damaged by stress, so if you’ve been surviving through the stress of the past few years, maybe they’re not in wonderful condition. Solution: Eat frequently enough to prevent running out of blood sugar.
Eat within an hour of waking in the morning (you are running out of blood sugar from not eating since the night before).
Eat again four hours after a meal.
A snack will give you one to two hours to bridge two meals to avoid running out of blood sugar.
My patients often report remarkable improvements from eating this way. They can think more clearly, sleep better, and have more energy.
2. Stop feeling overwhelmed, and be more motivated! Do this simple exercise:
If you have too many jobs, responsibilities, deadlines, and things you are behind on—you may feel overwhelmed. It’s hard to be motivated to do more when you feel like you can’t keep up with what you’re already supposed to be doing. The problem: You are using up too many of your available “attention units.” You can feel irritable and at the end of your rope, or you may just feel tired and unmotivated.
The exercise:
Take pen and paper and write out a list of the things you have your attention on. List the things you haven’t finished yet, or need to do. The list can be any length, but try to make it complete.
EXAMPLES:
Grocery shopping for this week
Finish next phase of a major project at work
Take the car in for maintenance
Catch up on laundry
Call and visit with a family member
Buy a birthday gift for a friend
Get the exterior of the house painted
(Etc.)
Circle the items on the list that you could complete (finish all the way) in the next hour.
Get busy and do these tasks right now.
Notice any difference in how overwhelmed you feel—do you feel better now?
You can continue to work on your list. In general, do the tasks you can complete (finished all the way) first.
The reason that this exercise works: Every item on your list is using up some of your available attention units. If you free some attention units (regardless of the importance of the task), you will have more available for other tasks, plus you won’t be as overwhelmed.
If you have allergies, you are usually doing your best to live with them. You are trying to avoid the foods and environmental substances that trigger your reactions (in many cases, you might not know what they all are). Even after avoiding the allergens, many people often have reactions anyway.
Many allergies are challenging or impossible to avoid (like Georgia pollen in the Spring!).
Allergies Often cause other Health Problems
Many common health conditions are either caused by or prolonged because of allergies.
If you have hormone problems, migraines, skin conditions, depression, anxiety, brain fog, ADHD, thyroid problems, digestive problems (and many more conditions), they might be caused by allergies. What is common for allergy-caused health problems is that they don’t go away or keep coming back.Your body can’t heal because of continued stress from allergy exposure.
You might think, “But that’s not what is causing my health problems because I don’t have allergies.”
It is very common to have allergies and sensitivities, but not know this. Food sensitivities can be delayed up to three days, so you’d never connect the reaction to a food. You can react to invisible environmental substances that you would never suspect, like dust mites and roach droppings.
The health problems you suffer from could be caused by stress to your body and immune system from allergic reactions.
Here’s a list of allergy information and facts that you’d want to know:
People can develop new allergies to foods and environmental items (pollen, dust, animal fur) at any time in their lives.
An allergy is an over-response of the immune system to a substance. Your body decides that a harmless substance is a threat and mounts a defensive response to it.
Many food sensitivities are delayed reactions (called IgG sensitivities) and can cause reactions up to three days after you eat the offending food. These reactions are often not recognized as allergic reactions and can be almost anything (headaches, itchy skin, constipation, gas and bloating, blurred vision, etc.).
Often, people with environmental allergies have no clue that they could also have food allergies or sensitivities.
Most IgG (delayed) food sensitivities can be identified with a blood lab and eliminated simply by avoiding the food for three months or so, then adding it back into your diet on a rotating basis. Many health problems can be improved this way even though you never suspected that you had sensitivities.
Often, we can permanently eliminate sensitivity reactions with acupressure treatments (acupressure in our clinic is acupuncture technology using lasers instead of needles). Sensitivity symptoms can be reduced or even eliminated with specific acupressure therapies.
Correctly identifying patients who are allergy cases and discovering what they are allergic to is the first step. Remember: You may have no idea that your problems are from allergies.
Next is developing a treatment program to eliminate or reduce sensitivities and help the body to recover from the damage caused by that stress.
Note that this is very different from the usual medical solution of taking drugs to suppress allergy symptoms. If allergies cause your health problems, suppressing the allergic symptoms will not help you heal. Your body would have to stop reacting to the allergens to recover.
Many sensitivities can be permanently eliminated using acupressure treatments.(Acupressure is acupuncture technology using lasers to stimulate the acupuncture points.)
Here’s a video explaining this:
Help for Allergies?
Correctly identifying patients who are allergy cases and discovering what they are allergic to is the first step. Remember: You may have no idea that your problems are from allergies.
Next is developing a treatment program to eliminate or reduce sensitivities and help the body to recover from the damage caused by that stress.
Note that this is very different from the usual medical solution of taking drugs to suppress allergy symptoms. If allergies cause your health problems, suppressing the allergic symptoms will not help you heal. Your body would have to stop reacting to the allergens to recover.
Many sensitivities can be permanently eliminated using acupressure treatments.(Acupressure is acupuncture technology using lasers to stimulate the acupuncture points.)
Here’s a video explaining this:
I have targeted programs to help many different kinds of sensitivity patients:
Sometimes, all that’s needed is a short course of acupressure treatments and some supporting supplements.
Other patients with long-term chronic health problems need more detailed analysis, labs, and help over a more extended period to fully recover their health.
If you’d like to find out quickly if I could help you and what you would have to do:
Would you please take five minutes to fill out a health assessment survey and send it to me? I’ll review your information, then have my assistant call you for any additional information. Then, I’ll let you know if your case might be a good fit for my clinic. This assessment is complimentary, with no strings attached. Either I can help you–or point you in the right direction to get help.
Don’t give up! You can recover your health if you persist.
I have had horrible cat allergies for most of my life. So bad that it has even sent me to the hospital. My throat starts to close up, I start to have shortness of breath, and my eyes start to water. Then after a while, I start to have a full-blown asthma attack.
This past weekend, I had Easter dinner with my husband’s side of the family, who are hoarders with loads of cats. Normally, I can’t spend more than an hour there without having a reaction and a migraine that lasts for days after.
This weekend, we spent about 3 ½ hours there, and I had little to no problems.
In the world of weight-loss diets, high-protein and low-carb have ruled for a decade. South Beach, Paleo, and Atkins diets are often considered “ketogenic” or “keto” diets.
True keto diets differ from the most popular high-protein diets because a keto diet is based on fat instead of protein. Fat supplies up to 90% of the calories in a “true” keto diet.
How Does It Work?
A keto diet is designed to force your body into burning a fuel that the liver produces from stored fat instead of using the normal sugars it derives from carbs.
This fuel from your liver is called “ketone bodies.”
To force your body to use this fuel, you must eat fewer than 50 grams of carbs per DAY. (One slice of bread, for example, contains 15 grams of carbs). After a few days, your body may reach a state of “ketosis,” where it is creating and burning ketone bodies. However, too much protein can also interfere with the process (usually limited to 75 grams per day).
A typical person on a keto diet will eat 170 grams of fat, 50 grams of carbs, and 75 grams of protein. And yes, that is a LOT of fat! Your fruits are restricted to a few berries, and your vegetables are very limited.
This can lead to heart disease risks and nutritional deficiencies. Other potential problems are stress on your liver and kidneys, constipation, and brain fog from the low-carb diet.
I send many of my patients to a local keto bakery. This is not because I want them to go on a keto diet, but because I want them to stop eating sugar.
Keto cookies, cakes, and sweet rolls have almost NO sugar OR carbs! It’s like a miracle! Not everyone likes them, but most people can find some great substitutes to be able to eat a cookie when they want to without messing up their immune system. (See “Sugar and Your Immune System)
The Problem with Keto (And Other Weight-Loss Diets)
Everyone’s body is different. A diet that works for someone else may fail for you, or even damage your health.
Many patients who come to me for weight loss don’t need a diet. Their weight is coming from hormones, digestive problems, or allergies.
My Advice:
Stop trying to lose weight or improve your health based on trial and error. Stop reading about some “great, new thing” on the internet and thinking, “Hey, I should try this out and see if it works!”
Honestly, what are the chances that any given product or diet would work on your particular body? Also, what does “work” mean? If you lose 10 pounds and then gain it back but now will have much more difficulty losing weight in the future, was this a “success?”
Printout from Heart Rate Variability Testing, shows nervous system function
Testing, An (Apparently) New Idea
I can’t think of any single food, supplement, or treatment that would be appropriate for every patient I’ve had in the past year except for maybe clean water. Every person is unique in many ways and needs different solutions.
You might ask, “But, how can you tell specifically what I should do?”
In health care today, the concept of TESTING is almost foreign. Most treatments, supplements, and drugs are recommended on a “try it and see if it works” basis.
But if you could accurately test someone to determine what foods, supplements, diets, and treatments would be effective and safe for them—why would anyone make any decisions without testing first?
My Universal Answer
I always have the same answer when asked about diets, supplements, or treatments:
“Why don’t you come in and let me test you to find out?”
After all, the only other option would be to GUESS.
Submit your Questionnaire, and you’ll receive a complimentary consultation to get more information and your individual health questions answered.
The Gene That Makes the Ketogenic Diet Dangerous
Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP
With all the craze about the ketogenic diet it would behoove one to know if they are a candidate for this type of diet.
First for those not familiar with the ketogenic diet here is a short summary:
The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carbohydrate diet that in medicine is used mainly to treat hard-to-control epilepsy in children. Here are 8 additional benefits:
Triglycerides Tend to Drop Drastically
Increased Levels of ‘Good’ HDL Cholesterol
Reduced Blood Sugar and Insulin Levels
May Lower Blood Pressure
Effective Against Metabolic Syndrome
A Greater Proportion of Fat Loss Comes From Your Abdominal Cavity
Improved ‘Bad’ LDL Cholesterol Levels
Therapeutic for Several Brain Disorders (Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease)
Now with all of these benefits the scientific literature has investigated if indeed this type of diet is beneficial for all people.
Well it may ultimately come down to your genes. Most specifically, your APOE genotype.
The three different types of APOE genes are as follows:
APOE2 – Best suited to a High Fat / Low Carb Diet (saturated fats are good) APOE3 – Suitable For Both APOE4 – Best Suited For A High Monounsaturated Fat / Low Carb Diet (Avoid Saturated Fats)
Research studies have shown that APOE4 carriers are most effected by high cholesterol, and benefit more from a low saturated fat diet, instead using monounsaturated fats, low carb diet, whereas APOE 2 carriers suit a high fat low carb diet, regardless of the saturated fats.
So what should you do?
Ask your doctor to order the APOE genotype blood test and see if you are in fact a carrier of the APOE4 gene.
If you are a carrier of the APOE4 gene, I recommend decreasing your consumption of saturated fats and focus more on monounsaturated fats.
“I believe humans get a lot done, not because we’re smart, but because we have thumbs so we can make coffee.”– Flash Rosenberg
Yes, I truly love coffee.
Yes, coffee contains caffeine, which is a drug.
Starbucks says that its espresso shots contain 75mg of caffeine, and 8 ounces of Pike Place medium roast contains 155 mg (of course, Starbucks doesn’t sell Pike in less than a 12-ounce size. Does anyone drink from 8-ounce cups anymore?).
So two espresso shots = the caffeine in one small cup of drip coffee.
Let’s be reasonable
I have had many patients who are caffeine abusers. They stimulate themselves awake in the mornings, drink more coffee to stay alert all day, and stay up late to work or play by consuming even more caffeine. Especially if your adrenal glands are stressed (this is probably most of us after the pandemic), this much caffeine is not healthy.
But, assuming that you have no allergies to coffee or caffeine, you can probably drink a 12-ounce cup in the morning and an occasional second 8-ounce cup later in the day without damaging your health.
Be observant: if drinking coffee past a certain time in the afternoon keeps you awake, listen to your body! If you feel jittery or anxious soon after drinking coffee, that’s your clue to cut back. Caffeine can have adverse effects on the adrenal glands, breast tissue, and other organs and health conditions.
Many of us go to a lot of trouble to become healthy and stay that way to enjoy our lives. Know your body and enjoy this beverage in moderation. Coffee, like so many things, is wonderful when not consumed in excess.
Read: Does Milk Really Make a Body Good? The Other Side of the Story
Coffee-The Pros and Cons
onald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP
Coffee is considered one of the most beloved beverages in the world.
Coffee specialty shops are everywhere.
People love coffee, and most people can’t start their day without their cup (or more) of coffee.
Yes, there are pros well documented showing the benefits of drinking coffee.
Here are just a few:
1: Can Improve Energy Levels 2: Can Help You Burn Fat 3: May Lower Your Risk of Type 2 Diabetes 4: May Protect You From Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia 5: May Lower Your Risk of Parkinson’s 6: May Protect Your Liver 7: Can Fight Depression 8: May Lower Risk of Certain Types of Cancer 9: May Help You Live Longer
With all of these benefits, is there a downside?
The answer is YES!
Coffee is made from roasted seeds and contains a chemical called acrylamide. Acrylamide is classified as a group 2A carcinogen and extremely hazardous. Acrylamide has been shown to cause multiple types of cancers, including renal, endometrial, and ovarian cancers.
Coffee crops are also sprayed with pesticides like glyphosate and 2-4-D. These two chemicals are associated with different cancers and disrupt human biochemistry.
If you drink a lot of coffee, I suggest asking your physician to order a glyphosate test. If your levels are high, it may be wise to re-consider that daily cup of coffee.
One important option to minimize some of these downsides to coffee consumption is to drink only organic and non-roasted coffee.
