What do the numbers 3,4, 8, and 9 have to do with your health and wellness?

Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP

Do you know those little stickers on fruits and veggies? They’re called price look-up (PLU) codes, and they contain numbers that cashiers use to ring you up. But you can also use them to make sure you’re getting what you paid for. If you are interested in staying healthy, here’s what to look for:

• A five-digit number that starts with a 9  means the item is organic.Eating organically grown produce is paramount. This can be identified at the grocery store by a five-digit bar code starting with the number “9,” or purchased from your local organic grower.
• A four-digit code beginning with a 3 or a 4 means the produce is probably conventionally grown. For example, regular small lemons sold in the U.S. are labeled 4033, large are 4053; small organic lemons are coded 94033, large are 94053. We cannot emphasize enough the importance of food quality when it comes to the prevention of disease. Sure, a conventionally grown bell pepper (identified by a sticker with a four-digit bar code starting with the number “4”) will contain the healthy compound beta-cryptoxanthin, but it will also come with a whole host of cancer-causing chemicals on it.
• A five-digit code that starts with an 8 means the item is genetically modified (it has genes from other organisms). You won’t see many of those because only genetically modified versions of corn, soybeans, canola, cotton, papaya, and squash are now widely sold. And because PLU codes aren’t mandatory, companies can label those items as conventional.

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Introduction

There’s a children’s song, “Dry Bones” with lyrics that connect the bones of the skeleton:

The toe bone’s connected to the foot bone,
The foot bone’s connected to the ankle bone,
The ankle bone’s connected to the leg bone,
Now shake them skeleton bones!

Similarly, many other parts of the body are connected, some in surprising ways.

For example, did you know that the teeth are connected to the heart? Actually, your teeth (and gums) are connected to your overall systemic health.

The article below, “Periodontal Disease and C-Reactive Protein (CRP)” shows recent research linking gum disease to other inflammatory conditions.

“It is now evident that cardiac disorders are worsened by periodontitis*, both experimentally and in humans.”

Periodontitis: A common but preventable gum infection, usually caused by poor oral hygiene.

The good news? You can prevent and often improve gum disease yourself, just by brushing, flossing, and improving your diet.

Better news? Periodontitis (gum disease) leads to costly and uncomfortable dental work. You can improve your systemic health and avoid a $10,000 dental program all at the same time!

Signs You Need to Take Action:

• Swollen or puffy gums
• Bright red, dusky red, or purplish gums
• Gums that feel tender when touched
• Gums that bleed easily
• Pink-tinged toothbrush after brushing
• Spitting out blood when brushing or flossing your teeth
• Bad breath
• Pus between your teeth and gums
• Loose teeth or loss of teeth
• Painful chewing
• New spaces developing between your teeth
• Gums that pull away from your teeth (recede), making your teeth look longer than normal
• A change in the way your teeth fit together when you bite

Get Started Right Now

1: Throw away your toothbrush. Go get an inexpensive electric model that vibrates. Get several replacement brushes, and replace whenever you can see the brush is starting to “mush” a little.

2: Get a package of flossers. If you haven’t used these, you’ll be amazed at how fast and easy flossing is compared to the old “wrap around your fingers” technique.

3: Stop eating refined sugar, or reduce it in your diet as much as possible. This isn’t so much to save your teeth as to reduce inflammation and improve your immune response so your gums can heal. Read Sugar and Your Immune System to get a complete understanding.

4: Go to your dentist! The cheapest thing you can do for your dental health is getting your teeth professionally cleaned on a regular basis (your dentist will tell you how often you need to do it). Your dentist will also be able to tell you about your gum health and anything else you might need to do to get it under control.

Gum Disease can be a Symptom of Other Health Problems

Often I’ll talk to a patient who takes excellent care of their dental health but still has gum disease. Even more common are patients with gum disease that won’t improve no matter how much dental care they receive.

In this case, I could likely to help improve your health and ability to heal. This has often resulted in improved overall health and associated improvement in gum health.

Patient Stories:

When I went for my last appointment, the hygienist could not believe what she was seeing. She stopped cleaning and asked what in the world had I been doing to get my gums to do so well. No more deep pockets, and the gums were healthy enough to form new healthy tissue around the teeth. I just smiled and began telling her about Alternative Health Atlanta and the program. She again said, ‘I’ve never seen such improvement!’ –J.G.

After just a few weeks at Alternative Health Atlanta on an alternative health program, my next visit to the dentist was amazing. To the dentist’s surprise, the 6 probe measurement was now a 3! She asked me what I was doing, and I told her of my alternative health program. She stated that was good and that I should keep it up. And I didn’t need surgery. — W.G.

Find Out About Improving Your Health (and Dental Health)

Would you please take five minutes to fill out a health assessment survey and send it to me? I’ll call you for a phone consult and discuss what could be done about your health. It’s complimentary, 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.

Periodontal Disease and C-Reactive Protein (CRP)

Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP

Periodontal (gum) disease is an infection of the tissues that hold your teeth in place. It’s typically caused by poor brushing and flossing habits that allow plaque—a sticky film of bacteria—to build up on the teeth and harden.

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease initiated by a bacterial biofilm called dental plaque, affecting both the periodontal ligaments and bone surrounding the teeth.

Signs and symptoms of periodontitis can include:

• Swollen or puffy gums
• Bright red, dusky red, or purplish gums
• Gums that feel tender when touched
• Gums that bleed easily
• Pink-tinged toothbrush after brushing
• Spitting out blood when brushing or flossing your teeth
• Bad breath
• Pus between your teeth and gums
• Loose teeth or loss of teeth
• Painful chewing
• New spaces developing between your teeth
• Gums that pull away from your teeth (recede), making your teeth look longer than normal
• A change in the way your teeth fit together when you bite

Relationship between periodontitis and C-Reactive Protein*

C-Reactive Protein (CRP): CRP increases in your blood when there’s inflammation in your body. It can be tested with a simple blood test. CRP shows if you have an infection and your risk of heart disease.

Many studies are showing an increase in CRP and periodontitis.

C-reactive protein (CRP) elevation is a part of the acute phase response to acute and chronic inflammation. Many clinical studies have shown that serum CRP levels were elevated in patients with chronic periodontitis. CRP levels increase to hundreds of μg/ml within hours following infection.

CRP and Increased Risk For Heart Disease (CVD) and Diabetes

In the last decades, several lines of evidence have supported the existence of a relationship between periodontitis and systemic health.

For instance, periodontitis acts within the same chronic inflammatory model seen in cardiovascular disease (CVD), or other disorders, such as diabetes.

It is now evident that cardiac disorders are worsened by periodontitis, both experimentally and in humans. For all these reasons, it is very plausible that preventing periodontitis impacts the onset or progression of CVD and diabetes.

It is recommended to be checked for periodontitis in the event you have an elevated CRP.

If you find you have periodontitis, it is necessary to see your dentist for immediate treatment.

The best way to prevent periodontitis is to follow a program of good oral hygiene.

• Good oral hygiene. That means brushing your teeth for two minutes at least twice daily — in the morning and before going to bed — and flossing at least once a day. Flossing before you brush allows you to clean away the loosened food particles and bacteria.
• Regular dental visits. See your dentist or dental hygienist regularly for cleanings, usually every six to 12 months.

Summary

If you have an elevated C-Reactive Protein, I recommend getting your teeth checked for periodontal (gum) disease.

6 Safe Grilling Tips– What You Need to Know

Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP

A popular pastime is the backyard grilling of our favorite meats.

Although millions enjoy grilling, this article will present some downsides and recommended action steps to ensure a good grilling experience.

The Downside of Grilling

Regularly eating grilled meats carries potential cancer risks.

Grilling causes meat to form carcinogenic compounds known as heterocyclic amines or HCAs. These are associated with increased cancer risk. The longer you cook the meat, the more HCAs are produced. Charred meat is a sign that a fair amount of HCAs has developed.

Grilling Strategies that can Reduce Your Cancer Risk

1: Cut meat into smaller portions, so they cook more quickly and have a shorter exposure to high cooking temperatures

2: Grilling leaner meats with less fat reduces the flames and smoke containing harmful hydrocarbons

3: Flip frequently. Fewer HCAs are formed if you turn the meat over frequently while grilling

4: Marinate! Marinating meat, poultry, or fish for at least 30 minutes before grilling can decrease the formation of HCAs by creating a barrier between the meat and the flames and smoke.

5: Control the temperature. To avoid cooking meats at high temperatures, light the outside burner(s) and leave the center burner off. Cook the food in the center of the grill.

6: If you’re cooking on charcoal, select hardwoods instead of softwoods. Types of wood can influence HCA formation. Hardwoods, such as hickory and maple, burn at lower temperatures than softwoods, such as pine. Cooking with wood that burns at a lower temperature is desirable.

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It often comes as a surprise to people, but these common oils (they seem to be in EVERYTHING!) can cause severe inflammation.

Inflammation is the fundamental cause of heart disease, digestive diseases, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, mental health issues, joint pain, arthritis and much more.

If you want to know why these diseases are rampant in our society, just visit your local grocery. Every inch of grocery store shelving has incredible value to the store and the suppliers of the products sold on that shelf. If you see 20 bottles of corn oil in a row, that tells you that this product flies off the shelves.

Side note: A solution to out-of-control health care costs in the US: Brick up both ends of the oils and cereal asiles in every grocery store in America. Health care costs would tank!

What Do I Use Instead?

Saturated fats are best to cook with: Butter, coconut, and palm oils. For lower temperature cooking and dressings, use extra virgin olive oil and avocado oil.

Be aware that restaurants usually use toxic seed oils and that the reheating of the oil that happens in fryers creates many toxic substances that become part of your meal. Moral: avoid deep-fried foods in restaurants.

See the article below for detailed information on Toxic Seed Oils

8 Toxic Seed Oils– What to Know

Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP

The eight industrial toxic seed oils are Canola, Corn, Cottonseed, Soy, Sunflower, Safflower, Grapeseed, and Rice bran.

Industrial seed oils are the highly processed oils extracted from soybeans, corn, rapeseed (canola), cottonseed and sunflower, and safflower seeds. After the seeds are gathered, they are heated to extremely high temperatures to oxidize the fatty acids. This process creates byproducts that are harmful to your health.

Omega-6s are found in corn, safflower, sunflower, soy, and vegetable oils and products made with those oils. Excess consumption of omega-6s can trigger the body to produce pro-inflammatory chemicals.

What’s wrong with industrial seed oils?

There are six main problems with industrial seed oils, all of which play a significant role in chronic inflammatory diseases.

The consumption of industrial seed oils represents an evolutionary mismatch.

Eating industrial seed oils raises our omega-6-to-omega-3 fatty acid ratios, with significant consequences for our health.

Industrial seed oils are unstable and oxidize easily.

They contain harmful additives.

They’re derived from genetically modified crops.

When industrial seed oils are repeatedly heated (as restaurants do in fryers), even more toxic byproducts are created.

How are industrial seed oils making us sick?

Industrial seed oils are far from the “healthy” label they carry. They have been linked to a number of chronic health problems such as:

• Asthma
• Autoimmune disease
• Cognitive and mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, cognitive decline, dementia, and even Alzheimer’s disease.
• Diabetes and obesity
• Heart disease (they are far from being heart-healthy!)
• Gut health issues such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBD) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBS)
• Inflammation
• Infertility
• Macular degeneration
• Osteoarthritis

The best thing you can do for your own health and your family’s health is to get rid of all vegetable oils and margarine from your home.  Simply throw them out. Replace them with saturated fats for cooking and extra virgin olive and avocado oil for dressing.

Summary:

At this point, it should be clear that we want to avoid omega-6 fats in our cooking oil. The following is a good graphic to represent what to avoid.

Oils from tropical plants such as cacao, coconut, and palm are lowest in omega-6, while oils from cold-weather plants such as sunflower and soybean are highest in omega-6 and best avoided.

Dr. Melodie Billiot

Anxiety and Depression-Brain On Fire?

Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP

Depression, Anxiety, and other mental disorders have reached epidemic proportions. 

In the US, the national rate of anxiety in 2019 tripled from 8.1% to 25.5%, and depression almost quadrupled from 6.5% to 24.3%.

What is going on?

The present paradigm of treating these mental disorders lies in balancing the neurotransmitters through pharmaceutical agents like SSRIs (Zoloft, Lexapro, Prozac, etc.) and Benzodiazepines (Ativan, Xanax, Valium, and Klonopin.

Unfortunately, it may just be possible that the neurotransmitter paradigm is antiquated and does not address the underlying root cause(s) of these mental disorders.

After reading and researching, and doing a deep dive into these mental disorders’ possible root causes, I found something amazing and life-changing!

What I discovered was while nutrient deficiencies do play a role, the major eye-opener was the fact that depression, anxiety, and other mental disorders are largely inflammatory in nature.

In the brains of people suffering from depression, anxiety, and many other mental health challenges, the immune system is activated with evidence for elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin 6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha.

Like rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease represent inflammation in the joints and gut, psychiatric disorders are linked to inflammation in the brain.

If we hope to gain any control over these mental issues, we must address quenching the brain’s inflammation.

Now here is what I found quite shocking.

Benzodiazepines and SSRIs have another mechanism of function most people are not aware of.

Guess what it is?

They both have anti-inflammatory properties.

Yes that is correct.

Is it possible that these psychiatric medications have little to do with balancing neurotransmitters and more to do with reducing the inflammation in the brain?

The medical literature tends to support this theory.

Now to control this inflammation, one need not look any further than the gut.

Once the gut inflammation takes hold, cytokines circulate throughout the body, including into the brain.

The secret to reducing gastrointestinal inflammation is to identify food irritants, bacterial pathogens and improve optimal microbial flora. Some studies have found that the probiotic, Lactobacillus (L.) rhamnosus has some promise in reducing anxiety and improving microbial flora.

Overall, a picture of the gut microbiome playing a facilitating role between stress response, inflammation, and depression and anxiety is emerging and should be considered with anyone suffering from anxiety, depression, and in that case, any mental disorder.

This new and emerging treatment for anxiety, depression, and other psychiatric disorders is complex but promising!

Although a 180-degree approach to the neurotransmitter deficiency theory, it is worth considering and even embracing.

Do you have severe, long-term, or frustrating health problems?

• Are you exhausted, depressed, anxious, or unable to sleep?
• Do you feel anxious, depressed or overwhelmed?
• Do you have digestive disturbances, joint pain, headaches, hair loss and weight gain?

Do you wonder how you got here? One day you woke up in a complete mess, but can’t for the life of you figure out how it happened?

It’s not your fault, but you CAN fix it.

Here is a way you can start to get your life back—with energy and vitality no matter the stage of your life.

Dr. Melodie Billiot is a doctor who has lived through her own exhaustion and illness, and discovered the answers to her own health.

As a result, she has helped thousands of people just like you to regain their health.

Get Started: Do a complimentary Health Analysis and Consultation