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How To Deal With A Lack Of Sunlight

By Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

The amount of time we are exposed to light has a profound influence over our physical and mental health. Light is a fundamental external cue and all living organisms have been exposed to it for eternity. It’s no wonder that every part of our biology is linked directly or indirectly with the light of the day and night. 

In flowers for example, light signals them to open their petals to soak up sun for photosynthesis and the occasional pollination from a bee. At night, they protectively close their petals. In experiments when they are put in a greenhouse and are exposed to erratic light schedules (while still receiving the same amount of total light exposure as with natural light exposure), they wither away and die. In humans, phototherapy, or light as medicine, is being used to enhance health and well-being.

Why is that? What is light exactly, and how does it impact our health? And what do I do when the sun is behind the clouds for so many days?

In the most basic sense, light is a wave. We all know light is a spectrum (think Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon album) made up of various colours. Each colour, and those we cannot see like infrared and UV, have various lengths of waves. Infrared and red lights are long and drawn out. They can pass through our skin, penetrate into our organs, and even enter on a cellular level impacting our DNA or mitochondria!

Blue light, or UV light, are very short wavelengths and influence our health at the level of our skin and eyes. This has an indirect influence on our health. 

It is this full spectrum of light that has an ability to impact our health at every level. As we learn more about light’s affect on our health, we realize it’s like a sharp, precise scalpel. It’s no wonder the power of light continues to be such a highly investigated topic! Current research shows the following influences from light:

Lighting up your day: UVB / Blue light benefits (think daylight/ sunlight!)

  • Activates our immune system.
    • This helps explain why during the spring and summer months we get fewer colds and flus. It’s not that we’re exposed to less germs (germs are everywhere, always), it’s just that our immune system is better at deploying immune cells and combating bacteria and viruses.
  • Triggers regeneration in our skin, hair, and nails.
    • Ever wonder if it’s just a coincidence that hair thins during the winter months, or that hair and nails grow more quickly in the summer? This is linked to the mechanism that UVB light triggers, stimulating an increased turn over of stem cells that help produce more new and healthy cells. So, our skin, hair and nails often look more youthful and healthier during the sunnier seasons!
  • Improves mood!
    • One of the big struggles for us during the long winter months is that we can start to feel more down. Studies show that daylight exposure early in the day can effectively improve mood and help reduce symptoms of depression. 

But with winter weather, we have less overall sunlight to enjoy, and we tend to really restrict our time outdoors due to the temperature and conditions.

Fear not. There is something you can do. Here are three tips to incorporate some daylight therapy into your daily routine:

  1. Open your blinds right when you wake up!
  2. Enjoy your breakfast/ coffee beside a window, or even better, outside in the sunlight.
  3. Go outdoors soon after waking. Enjoy a walk to get your coffee/ or with your coffee, walk to work, or exercise outdoors for 30-60 minutes.

When the above options don’t work, there are alternate solutions such as indoor sunlight lamps. Studies show that 10,000 lux for 30 minutes first thing in the morning can improve mood. Examples of lamps are here and here.

Timing is key. Blue light delivers its benefits to us when used in the daytime coinciding with our body’s evolution with the sun cycle. On the flip side, blue light at night can impair us.

UVB/ Blue light at night impairments

  • Inversely affects mood, so being exposed to this kind of lighting, via artificial lights at night, can increase depression and mood disruption.
  • Increased heart rate, meaning that our stress state stays overly active and impairs our ability to relax.
  • It reduces our heart rate variability (lower HRV means we have lower resilience to stress and poorer cardiovascular fitness; we want to aim for a higher HRV!).
  • Impairs our metabolism.
  • Makes us wake up with insulin resistance meaning we start the day with impaired, less than ideal blood sugar levels, making weight loss goals more difficult to achieve.
  • Dissipates melatonin.

Melatonin is our hormone of darkness. Darkness is its cue to be released into our system. It is what orchestrates the components needed to initiate and sustain quality sleep. But when we are exposed to blue light, our melatonin levels can drop to near zero which is not ideal. 

Our bodies have adapted to the times of the year when there is less sunlight. We naturally have more melatonin during these months. Yes, our bodies have evolved to benefit from seasonal changes of light as well which is pretty cool! Our bodies are way smarter than we often give them credit for. With more melatonin we feel sleepy more often and spend more time in bed, which is not necessarily a bad thing! Sleep is the ultimate underlying foundation for good health and all health goals such as those described with light exposure, immune function, healthier organs, and proper function of all physical and mental elements improve with better quality and quantity of sleep. Melatonin is also a potent antioxidant and anti-cancer molecule, so those longer cozy, dimmer evenings can be a powerful way to protect our health as well.

Your big takeaway to using light therapy in your evenings is to avoid blue light at night. Specifically, studies show that ideally refraining from blue light between 10pm-4am is ideal. If you must have your laptop on to do work or use a screen consider these tools to minimize the damage:

  • Instal f.lux
  • Use your night shift mode on your phone
  • Put on blue light blocking glasses (never wear blue light blocking glasses during the day, as this prevents you from reaping the benefits of daytime light exposure described above)

By understanding and appreciating how light and darkness impact our health we can utilize this powerful cue from our environment to support us. Our biology is wired to work in sync with these light and dark cycles that are all around us. If you are feeling out of sync, that’s OK! Our modern environment is not conducive to this natural rhythm. Pick just one action to practice and integrate into either your morning or evening routine. Choose the path of least resistance, and one that seems enjoyable to you, and then build from there!

References:

Panda, S. (2018). The circadian code: lose weight, supercharge your energy, and transform your health from morning to midnight. Rodale Books.

 Winter, C. W. (2017). The sleep solution: why your sleep is broken and how to fix it. Penguin Random House LLC.

Huberman, A. (2022). Using light (sunlight, blue light & red light) to optimize health. Retreived from https://hubermanlab.com/using-light-sunlight-blue-light-and-red-light-to-opt

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Set Meaningful Goals For True And Lasting Change

By: Grace Lindsey, BA, Certified Life Coach

January: A time of year where everybody tries to become a new version of themselves, repeating the same strategies that haven’t worked. ‘But really…it will work this time’. Sound familiar?

Why do we find it so hard to implement new habits, behaviours or lifestyle choices?

First thing we need to stop doing is “shoulding” ourselves. How many times have you said I should eat less junk food? I should workout more. I should try and be more social. Etc. Why “should” you do those things? Because society says so? Because your parents say so? Because you think you might be more loveable if you do? Instead of shoulding ourselves, I propose we get clarity on a compelling future or vision where we are working towards something that is meaningful and attainable.

‘Should’ pushes us nowhere, meaning combined with action pulls us forward.

When it comes to setting goals and implementing change, we must first look at our motivation. Knowing why a goal is important to us along with what benefits the achievement will bring is what will keep us going when we want to quit. It is within those moments that we keep going where our growth becomes limitless.

Once we are clear on the deeper meaning behind our goals, exploring the feeling attached to  desired outcomes is important. For example, if your goal is to lose 10lbs, ask yourself: What will I feel like when I have lost this weight? Is it confident? Is it free? Will you feel more energized to play with your kids on the weekend? When it comes to wanting something, we are usually seeking the feeling of achieving the goal vs the goal itself.

Lastly, we must have a daily practice in place where we are reminding ourselves of all the things mentioned above. For example:

  • five minutes of writing them down at the beginning of our day
  • meditating on them
  • reading them before we go to sleep every night
  • saying them out loud on the way to work
  • mentally rehearsing living our lives as this new version of us – what choices do you make? What habits do you have? How do you live?

This part is crucial for profound and lasting results. Unfortunately, living in hope that we will achieve the goals we set on January 1st, is just not enough to see it through. It is vital we remind ourselves as regularly as possible where we are heading, why it is important to us, what the feeling we are trying to achieve is and who we are becoming.

Another key ingredient is finding joy in the process. No journey is ever linear and if we are living in “I’ll be happy when I achieve this or change that” we will never truly be happy because our success, fulfilment and worthiness will be determined by our outcome. Plus, by the time we have achieved it, our goal post will probably have moved, and we will want something else anyways.

Here are 6 powerful questions to set meaningful goals and make lasting change:

  1. What do I want to achieve/what is my goal?
  1. What makes achieving this goal important to me?
  1. What benefits will achieving this goal bring to me?
  1. How will achieving this goal make me feel?
  1. How could I cultivate that feeling right now/every day?
  1. What daily practice can I put in place to remind myself of all these things?

It is now, we can take the first action step towards our compelling future.

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3 Ways to Improve the Quantity & Quality of Sleep: Your Evening Anchors

By: Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

Sleep is a foundational human function that takes a big hit when our routines get disrupted. Fortunately, the holidays can be an opportunity to dial in and experiment with a new routine before we get caught up with the rat race of busy work and school schedules again.

Dim the lights down

Let your environment cue your body and mind for sleep. Melatonin is our mighty sleep hormone and it becomes activated by dimming light and darkness. For those who have dimmable lighting and can schedule it, set your lights to dim 2 hours before bed.
Candlelight is another way to signal melatonin release. One of my favourite ways to signal sleep is to brush my teeth and shower in candlelight. You may need a couple candles depending on your preference, but the feeling and tone it sets for the rest of your night makes harsh blue light screens feel like an unwelcome intruder!

Cool down your core

Experts like Matthew Walker have been studying the exact physiological requirements to initiate and sustain quality sleep. They have tracked the optimal temperature our bodies and brain needs for sleep. Our core temperature needs to drop about 1-2°F to get good sleep.
A hot shower or bath really works! When we heat up the surface of our bodies, our blood vessels dilate and release heat from our core body. Another lovely routine is to try saunas. Saunas are like a forced break or a little haven from our business and electronics which has the double benefit of helping our minds wind down!
Keep your sleeping space cooler, aiming for 18°C by cracking a window open or setting your thermostat on a schedule to this temperature 1-2 hours before bed.

Winding down anchors

Just because you are resting doesn’t mean it’s a passive process. Just like everything else you achieve, it takes intentional action. We don’t achieve anything meaningful by being passive about it. Winding down and sleeping is the same. Many of us use the TV or scrolling on our phones to wind down because we can passively sit on the couch and simply do nothing, and sometimes it’s SO nice to do nothing. But this also does nothing to initiate quality sleep either.
Give your mind a break from jittery, scattered attention, and let it rest quietly on one thing. Maybe your thing is reading, stretching, breathing practice, journaling, sauna-ing, taking a bath, doing your skincare routine to candlelight… whichever one thing sounds good, and feels good, go for it!

For those struggling with sleep, remember that these are experiments to try. Earnestly try a new routine continuously for a week to see if it works for you. If not, adjust it and be patient as you find the sequence of rituals that works best for you. Aim to incorporate each evening anchor to be something that you actually enjoy and look forward to.

For a deeper dive on why we sleep and how to improve it, read our previous article here.

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Reduce Stress And Enjoy The Holidays Like Never Before

By: Grace Lindsey, BA, Certified Life Coach

As magical as the holiday season can be, it can also be stress inducing, triggering and overwhelming. We often have high expectations of what it “should” be like and put pressure on ourselves to make it so. From buying everyone meaningful gifts, to the family member with the same questions every year, to feeling lonely in a room full of people, the holiday season is uniquely complex for many.

How can we ‘de-stress’ our approach this year and bring more joy?

First, let’s start with letting go of whatever image and expectation you have of the holidays. Suffering and internal conflict occur when reality differs from our original blueprint. Try letting go of any and all expectations, radically accept an element of chaos, and see how you show up to this year’s holiday event. Acceptance is a surprisingly powerful tool when it comes to stress and our emotions.

Secondly, adopt an approach of gratitude and appreciation. Did you know that being in a state of gratitude on a regular basis starts to re-wire our brains by producing the feel-good chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin? It literally brings calm to our entire nervous system. We may not be able to control what is going on around us, but we can control how we choose to respond. Cultivating a state of gratitude is almost guaranteed to shift your focus and bring you peace in what could be a potentially stressful situation. 

“Yeah, but all of these things are easier said than done.” I hear you say. You are correct. Here are a couple of tips to get you started.

  1. One simple way to change and challenge a feeling or emotion is to interrupt it by asking yourself a question. When you feel stressed or overwhelmed, ask yourself this: “Is this something that is within my control?” And if it’s not, I propose you let it go by redirecting your focus onto one small thing you can control. Make a cup of tea, go for a walk, pet the dog, pour a glass of wine, control something else that brings you closer to a calmer and more peaceful state.
  2. Another great question to ask yourself as a negative emotion emerges is, “What could I be grateful for in this moment?” Your answer can be as simple as the coffee you are sipping, to the smile on children’s faces while playing with their new toys. 

In summary, here are my 5 steps to go from overwhelm to joy this holiday season, or any time for that matter…

  1. Get rid of your blueprint – it isn’t serving you anymore.
  2. Radically accept an element of chaos.
  3. Let go of all expectations you have of yourself and the occasion, and have a gratitude mindset.
  4. Take a deep breath, focus on something you can control.
  5. Ask yourself, “what can I be grateful for in this moment?”

And don’t forget to go easy on yourself this year. You deserve it.

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5 ways to build your health protection buffer during the holidays

By: Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

Let’s be real. We will probably enjoy more processed foods and some alcohol these holidays… and that’s OK! Studies show that when we spend time with others, we increase our longevity by 50%!

The emotional feel-good effects of social times are great, but there is a tangible, physical change that occurs when we connect with others. Loneliness increases inflammation while a sense of belonging and connection decreases it. This reduces the risk of headaches, joint pain, digestive issues, and skin conditions like acne or psoriasis.

Some holiday indulgences are expected, however, and here are five ways to build up a buffer of protection so your health doesn’t have to take such a big hit.

Antioxidants – Load up on these before and after your event. One way I protect myself is having 1 tsp of matcha powder the morning of and the morning after (especially ones that are blended with a mushroom for a boost of antioxidants and gut health). Check out antioxidant rich foods here.

Fiber – A fun study showed that even if we were to have a meal that’s high in refined sugars, like frosted flake cereal, adding fiber such like a cup of delicious blueberries, we can blunt the amount of sugar we absorb into our bloodstream (despite the natural sugars in the fruit!) This is shown to reduce the blood sugar spike and keep us from becoming insulin resistant.

Drink alternatives – There is a whole new demand when it comes to fun drinks that are alcohol free! Daydream is one of our favourites without any added sugars and the bonus of adaptogenic herbs (aka “stress soothers & mood balancers”). Go ahead and enjoy an alcohol-free bevy if you don’t feel like drinking. Have it a nice glass, and none would be the wiser!

Intermittent Fasting – This is a skill I love to teach. Please speak with your healthcare provider or friendly neighbourhood naturopath to adapt your intermittent fasting program to your specific health needs. We are meant to balance periods of feasting with fasting so we can use that extra energy instead of having it sit stored as fat around our organs. If you enjoyed a big festive dinner, maybe you can wait a little later the next day to have your first meal.

Sleep – This is our ultimate recovery and superpower. No easy feat when our routines get jostled around but worth being mindful of. A good night’s sleep is the only time for every part of our body and mind to heal.

The holidays are fun times and a welcome break from our regular routines. Enjoy shaking it up and use one or two of these tips to help make sure you bounce back more quickly, or better yet, to protect yourself from getting hit too hard in the first place!

Reference:

Blacker BC, Snyder SM, Eggett DL, Parker TL. Consumption of blueberries with a high-carbohydrate, low-fat breakfast decreases postprandial serum markers of oxidation. Br J Nutr. 2013 May;109(9):1670-7. doi: 10.1017/S0007114512003650. Epub 2012 Aug 31. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22935321/

Curtis PJ, Berends L, van der Velpen V, Jennings A, Haag L, Chandra P, Kay CD, Rimm EB, Cassidy A. Blueberry anthocyanin intake attenuates the postprandial cardiometabolic effect of an energy-dense food challenge: Results from a double blind, randomized controlled trial in metabolic syndrome participants. Clin Nutr. 2022 Jan;41(1):165-176. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2021.11.030. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34883305/

Holt-Lunstad J, Smith TB, Layton JB (2010) Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLOS Medicine 7(7): e1000316. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316

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Score Yourself On These Four Pillars Of Clean Living: Part 2

By Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

In part 1 of our Four Pillars Of Clean Living, we covered Real Food (Pillar 1) and Antioxidants (Pillar 2). These benefits are critical for both physical and psychological well-being, as well as overall performance regardless of what you are doing.

We asked you to score yourself on the first two pillars, now it’s time to determine your overall score with the remaining two pillars.

Pillar #3: Find your level of movement 

Parallel to your circulatory system is another system called your lymphatic system. It’s a series of tubes just like blood vessels interspersed with lymph nodes. This is your superhighway for immune cells to travel between sites of infection, and also where most of your immune cells become activated to help protect you. The lymphatic system is also our big sewage system in a sense. It’s where our tissues deposit their waste and end products to be flushed out of our body and eliminated once and for all. 

Unlike our hearts however, the lymphatic system does not have an organ to pump the fluid around. Instead, it uses our movement, the contraction of our muscles, and the bending of joints to move things along. When we stay stagnant, guess what? Our body can’t launch an immune response as quickly, and we get a build up of waste which starts to impair the function of our body and mind.

Movement doesn’t have to be intense to produce the benefits, but if you love hard and intense exercise, that is also great to incorporate especially when guided by experts such as an accredited trainer, physio or chiropractor to keep you safe as you build up. Simple exercises include walking, swimming, yoga, pilates, and tai chi. 

For others movement can be as simple as flexing, stretching any joint area because this also helps squish and pump fluid around. Examples include:

  • Rolling your neck side to side or down and around – lots of lymph nodes in your  neck
  • Circling and then flexing your arms – lymph nodes in your armpits and elbows
  • Body weight squats – lymph nodes in your groin and knees
  • Deep belly breathing – lots of lymph nodes in your abdomen 

Pick a level of movement that is most enjoyable for you to incorporate on a regular basis.

Score yourself out of 10 (1 low, 10 high) on how well you move. ______________

Pillar #4: Create a sleep sanctuary 

While we sleep, your body is not latent. The amount of healing and cleaning up your body and mind undergo while sleeping is tremendous and is the ONLY time for full repair and taking out the garbage. Specifically, deep sleep is when our brains get a deep clean. 

Our brains have a system that becomes active while we sleep called the glymphatic system, a continuation of the lymphatic system. When we sleep, cavernous bins of the glymphatic system open up by 60% and are where the brain tissues can dump all the waste that accumulated throughout the day. 

If we shortchange sleep, we see an accumulation of waste products and toxic proteins in our brains which are associated with cognitive decline, memory impairment and an increased incidence of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimers’s. 

One powerful way to protect your sleep is to create a sleep sanctuary in your bedroom. This means the moment you walk into your room, it feels cozy, welcoming and is device free. This is how we can use your environment to trigger better quality of sleep and quicker onset with less interruptions.

A sleep sanctuary is one of the easiest ways to help your sleep, but there are many others. Pick one to practice at a time and as you get stronger with one, and it becomes second nature, layer on the next. Make it enjoyable – do it with others, do it to music, or make a game or checklist so you can satisfyingly check it off daily. 

Score yourself out of 10 (1 low, 10 high) on how well you move. ______________

Now let’s find out how you did overall. Add all of your scores to get a total.

Total Clean Living Score: ____________________

If your total is 30 or above, you are doing well. 20-30 you are average. Below 20 you have an opportunity to make a big difference in the quality of your health. It’s the compounding of these life enhancing routines that truly has the power to alter the trajectory of your health now and for your future!

Reference:

How not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Dr. Michael Greger

Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams  by Matthew Walker

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/are-toxins-flushed-out-of-the-brain-during-sleep

Zhang N, Jiao S, Jing P. Red Cabbage Rather Than Green Cabbage Increases Stress Resistance and Extends the Lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans. Antioxidants (Basel). 2021 Jun 8;10(6):930. doi: 10.3390/antiox10060930. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8228718/

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Score Yourself On These Four Pillars Of Clean Living: Part 1

By Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

Imagine a clean, smoothly functioning city. The roads are cleared, traffic is flowing, and people are getting to where they need to complete their errands and goals, contributing to a healthier society.

When we talk about clean living we mean cultivating health most of the time so that our systems can thrive and we can perform in life with the mental clarity and energy we need.

We’d like to share four tenants for helping to clear the debris and chaos in our bodies and minds. Too often the mess results from a society and food system that inflames us and distracts us from lifestyle routines that are integral for building good health. 

Before diving into the four steps, we first must understand one of the major root causes for this chronic mess in our bodies. For most of us this comes down to chronic inflammation. We’ve explored this topic in detail in a previous article. We often picture inflammation as an external, visible symptom like when we sprain an ankle or scrape our knee. There is swelling, pain, redness, and loss of function. This kind of momentary inflammation is helpful as it’s a sign that your body is healing and getting extra support. 

There is another kind of inflammation, however, that is not visible from the outside. This is a hidden inflammation which affects a much larger percentage of the population who may look totally fine and healthy on the outside. It’s this hidden inflammation that triggers the messy fires and damaged cities within our bodies.

Now that we know what causes so many of our problems, let’s see how we are doing to prevent it from happening to us.

Pillar  #1: Enjoy more real food more often! 

Real foods are the ones that won’t trigger inflammation and in fact offer an abundance of healing, anti-inflammatory properties. These are foods that don’t come in a package. No package, no problem, enjoy as much as you want. These foods are literally the best products in grocery stores, and they are humble about it to boot. No bragging necessary, no fancy packages or flashy marketing taglines. When you’re the best, it’s up to the informed ones to find them and reap the benefits. Carrots, bananas, celery, oranges, star fruit, asparagus, and many, many more.

Score yourself out of 10 (1 low, 10 high) on how well you eat an abundance of fruit and vegetables. ______________

Pillar # 2: Antioxidant boosters daily

Antioxidant rich foods can be found by following the richest, deepest, most vibrant colours. Berries, green leafy vegetables and your herbs and spices are amongst the heaviest hitters when it comes to putting out the fires 

Berries are second only to herbs & spices as the most powerful antioxidant food category. They offer ten times more firefighting power than other fruits & vegetables (and 50x’s more than animal-based foods). They taste great and may help you live longer?! Therefore we want to move your sweet tooth to fruit where it should be more often. 

  • Greens = most anti-inflammatory vegetables
  • Berries = most anti-inflammatory fruits (amla is the highest berry, blackberry is the highest common berry) 
  • Red vs. white onion? Red has more antioxidants than white, yellow is inbetween
  • Purple cabbage or green? Purple 8 x’s more antioxidants

Pink grapefruit vs. regular , granny smith or red delicious, iceberg vs. romaine, red grapes or green, yellow corn vs. white?  White eggplant vs. purple? Same if you peel off the skin, but if you keep the skin then it’s purple! Never peel the skin off apples, eggplants, etc. Just make sure you scrub them well.  

You can make the best choices all on your own now that you know to follow the colours. If you want more ideas, check out the different options in this ranking.

Score yourself out of 10 (1 low, 10 high) on how well you boost antioxidants. ______________

Total the two scores to give you an idea of how you are doing at the halfway point of our clean living pillars. We’ll cover the other two pillars in the next article.

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Can Your Fitness Handle These Baselines?

By Tim Irvine

There are many ways to be ‘fit’, but general fitness is important for ‘moving as young as possible’ for as long as possible. And it’s not just about moving well when you are over 40. Think about a toddler in a full, deep squat and then that same child as a 10-year-old. They have already lost their ability to squat optimally, and that negative adaptation continues over time.

Dr. Peter Attia is a world-renowned expert on longevity. His research has further proven how important movement and exercise are to many health factors.

When he works with clients, he has several baseline physical tests that he uses to establish objective metrics for a person’s current state is. These measures are all based in science and translate to how healthy someone is. To learn a bit more about how these translate to health, you can watch this video.


So how do you stack up?

Below are some of the assessments that he uses. These should not be looked at as things to go out and try today unless you already have a lot of experience with them. As described, they are meant for a 40-year-old other than the VO2 max. Performing any exercise to a max effort has injury risk, and the last thing I’m trying to suggest here is to go out and push yourself past your tissue limits. It’s all about establishing your baseline. I suggest stopping any of these when you get to the point of ‘wow, this is really hard’. Dead hang and Farmer carry especially.

  • Dead Hang – two minutes
  • 90 degrees at the knee static squat – 2 minutes
  • VO2 max is in the 75th percentile
    • Use this link to determine a submaximal measure of this and then input it into this percentile ranking tool. Farmer carry your body weight for two minutes (75% body weight for women)
  • Farmer carry for two minutes
    • Men – 100% of body weight
    • Women – 75% of body weight

You can incorporate a few others into the mix: vertical jump and deadlifting your body weight ten times. I think it’s safe to say you want to be in the 75th percentile or higher for vertical. Age-related norms for vertical can be seen here, but they are reported in centimetres.

Enjoy the challenge these tests provide but do so safely.

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Holy Shiitake: Can Mushrooms Actually Be Medicinal?

Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

Mushrooms are currently one of the most sought-after functional foods. We see them in every form, from teas, tinctures, chunks, and capsules, in some protein and greens powders. 

Over 270 different mushroom species have been identified to show anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial (think penicillin), and immune support. These benefits are attributed to some of their vitamin and mineral content, but most of their benefit is derived from their fibre content! 

One such fibre found in high quantities in mushrooms is 𝛽-glucan (beta-glucan) which is known for lowering blood pressure and blood sugar and for its anti-tumoral and antioxidant properties. 

On top of all that, as we’ve discussed in our previous articles on the benefits of a healthy microbiome, the fibres in mushrooms help take care of our gut bacteria too! And to learn about all the good health our microbiome generates for us, read our article here

No wonder the interest in studying these functional foods has taken off. Studies done in humans are growing, but most have been done on mice. However, the human studies we have so far show some promising outcomes. Here are a few to date:

Shiitake Mushrooms:

  • Daily intake of about 5-10 shiitake mushrooms over four weeks 
  • Increased number of white blood cells (gamma delta = first-line defence, NK = kill cancer cells)
  • Lowered markers of chronic inflammation (C-Reactive Protein)
  • Can indicate improved immune function and anti-cancer potential

Reishi Mushrooms

  • Reishi supplementation and chemo & radiation showed a positive response in improving the quality of life but not on survival rates.
  • Improved tumour response rates when used with chemo & radiation therapy
  • No decrease in tumour size when used alone
  • Can indicate reishi as a safe and effective adjunct to conventional cancer therapy

White Button Mushrooms 

  • Done for recurrent prostate cancer at about 1 cup of mushrooms daily
  • Decreased PSA (an indicator of prostate cancer progression) levels and kept in remission 1 in 18 participants 
  • Of 36 participants, four saw a drop of over 50% in their PSA levels
  • Two had a complete reduction in PSA levels,  measuring at 0 (undetectable levels) even after 40 months
  • Can indicate a one in nine chance you can reduce PSA levels by at least 50%
  • Can indicate a one in 18 chance that someone can achieve sustained remission without any side effects or toxicity

Due to all the antioxidant healing properties that start in the gut when we eat mushrooms, or a diet rich in fibre, studies are also finding a correlation between mushrooms and colon cancer prevention. 

So, our takeaway, mushrooms can be a medicinal food – not to mention they are delicious. Whether you enjoy mushrooms in soups, chilis, sautéed or puréed, go ahead and incorporate them into your regular rotation. 

It’s best to cook your mushrooms for two reasons. One to break down their tough cell walls and access the valuable nutrients inside. Two, some raw mushrooms can be toxic, but the heat will destroy these toxins, making them safe to eat. 

For those strapped for time in the kitchen or who don’t like the taste of mushrooms, creative products like powders & capsules come in handy, so you don’t miss out on all their healing, health-promoting benefits!

References:

Dai X, Stanilka JM, Rowe CA, et al. Consuming Lentinula edodes (Shiitake) Mushrooms Daily Improves Human Immunity: A Randomized Dietary Intervention in Healthy Young Adults. J Am Coll Nutr. 2015;34(6):478-87.

Jin X, Ruiz Beguerie J, Sze DM, Chan GC. Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi mushroom) for cancer treatment. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012;(6):CD007731.

Popović V, Živković J, Davidović S, Stevanović M, Stojković D. Mycotherapy of cancer: An update on cytotoxic and antitumor activities of mushrooms, bioactive principles and molecular mechanisms of their action. Curr Top Med Chem. 2013;13(21):2791-806.

Roupas P, Keogh J, Noakes M, Margetts C, Taylor P. Mushrooms and agaritine: a mini-review. J Funct Foods 2010;2:91-8.

Tanaka A, Nishimura M, Sato Y, Sato H, Nishihira J. Enhancement of the Th1-phenotype immune system by the intake of oyster mushroom (Tamogitake) extract in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. J Tradit Complement Med. 2015;6(4):424-30.

Twardowski P, Kanaya N, Frankel P, et al. A phase I trial of mushroom powder in patients with biochemically recurrent prostate cancer: Roles of cytokines and myeloid-derived suppressor cells for Agaricus bisporus-induced prostate-specific antigen responses. Cancer. 2015;121(17):2942-50.

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All For your Info Recommendations Success Story

Two Unique Ways We Can Help Ourselves Thrive

Dr. Tamara Kung, ND

We spend a lot of time thinking about and putting into place actions to support our health. We focus on nutrition and sleep to try and give ourselves the best odds to function well both mentally and physically. These factors alone are important influences that alter the trajectory for health, but we may be missing something here, as mental health and obesity continue to rise. 

There is growing scientific research showing that there is in fact something we can do to help build emotional resilience again. Something that hasn’t been a big topic of discussion or practice.

Step 1:

Science is pointing to the powerful benefits eating together! 

Gathering around the table may seem like a nostalgic concept, reserved for a simpler life with less busyness. But what COVID has taught families, even if it was a fleeting moment, was that we can muster and rouse ourselves from the vortex of life to spare 15-20 minutes to eat with each other. 

Teens who have dinner with family have lower rates of drug and alcohol use, compared to those who have fewer meals together. They also exhibit fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression, better nutrition, and lower rates of obesity. The evidence points towards the same results for adults

So just what exactly is the number of meals needed to get these benefits? It’s difficult enough to organize various schedules, and it’s almost impossible to eat together for every single meal. Thankfully, studies show that it doesn’t have to be every single day or every single meal to see positive outcomes. Just 2-3 family meals together a week lowers rates of obesity, and there are better mental health outcomes compared to those who only get one or no meals as a family. Teens who eat meals together 3-5 times per week show an even more significant improvement in physical and mental health. 

The second way we can build resilience and create an inclusive, more positive environment for us is a more hypothetical thought experiment from yours truly. 

Step 2:

Expand the curiosity and experience of other cultures. 

Exposing ourselves to variety helps to open perspectives. With an increased awareness of life’s diversity, we begin to develop more empathy for lives that are not like our own. 

So when we combine step one and step two, I suspect we can create an engaging way to reconstruct meaningful connections that will offer more protection for us. Gathering for a few meals together and introducing a theme weekly or monthly about another country is a great example. Whether that’s simply listening to music, bringing forth an interesting piece of knowledge, or making and enjoying a cultural dish together can take meal gatherings to the next level. 

Enjoying meaningful meals together may just be a missing link in helping us thrive. 

Reference:

https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0331-youth-mental-health-covid-19.html

Eisenberg. M. E., et al. (2004). Correlations between family meals and psychosocial well-being among adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 158(8), 792-796.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/485781

Berg. M. J., et al ( 2021). Are there protective associations between family/ shared meal routines during COVID-19 and dietary health and emotional well-being in diverse young adults? Preventive Medicine Reports. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8487301/