Legumes: natural cholesterol fighter

A new study has found that a serving of legumes a day may keep bad cholesterol at bay.

Researchers in the United States and Canada have found that daily consumption of non-oil-seed legumes such as chickpeas, lentils or peas can significantly reduce "bad cholesterol" and cut the risk of heart disease.

People who ate one three-quarter-cup serving of legumes daily had a 5 percent reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels – a decrease that suggests a 5 to 6 percent reduced risk of major vascular events such as heart attack and stroke.

Nutritionists and preventive cardiologists not involved in the research said the new findings were noteworthy. Dr. Mehmet Oz recently touted the importance of legumes in our diet and eats them to fight his own cholesterol.

It is a well-known fact that high-soluble, fiber-rich foods, like legumes, produce significant effects on LDL numbers and actually add to the cholesterol-lowering effects of statins. Studies show that for every 1 percent fall in cholesterol, there is a 1-to-2 percent fall in cardiovascular risk.

Legumes have long been a favorite among nutrition researchers and health experts because of their proven benefits in lowering the risk of many killer chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Now, according to this study, a legume-loaded diet can lower high cholesterol levels, as well.


That's not to say, of course, that a handful of beans a day can necessarily replace cholesterol-lowering statins for the 43.2 million U.S. adults who currently take them. Rather, it seems that adding a daily serving of tasty legumes like peas, beans, chickpeas and lentils in your diet will serve as a companion to this important prescription drug.

Few know the health benefits more than Swarna Moldanado, Ph.D. She grew up in India where legumes were not considered the super foods they are now – they were just part of her regular Indian diet. They could be found at any meal, breakfast included. But all that changed when she moved to America and began eating whatever they served in the school cafeteria, which was mostly meats and meat products. It was only when she started cooking for herself that she realized what had been missing in her American diet—legumes. Soon she was again adding dry beans, peas, lentils, and other legumes to her daily diet and feeling better for doing so.

As an educator, Moldanado was curious to learn why legumes were so overlooked in the United States. Her subsequent research turned up a number of misconceptions and inaccuracies as reasons for the prevailing lack of interest in them. This, in turn, let her to research legume-based diets in other parts of the world to ascertain what, if any, impact they had on health and disease in those locales. The information she accumulated was very enlightening—across the board it showed there were major advantages to be gained by adding legumes to the diet.

From here it was a short step to sharing her discoveries and doing this to help improve people’s health became the initial reason for her decision to write Legumes: The Super Foods that Should be Regulars on Your Plate. Any reader interested in optimizing or simply maintaining their health would do themselves a favor by adding this important book to their must-read list.

To learn more about the importance of adding legumes to your diet, check out the book at http://basichealthpub.com/products/legumes-the-super-foods-that-should-regulars-on-your-plate

or at www.amazon.com 

Menopause and exercise: lose the weight and cut your risk of breast cancer

Menopause is the one life phase that most women will all experience. Despite horror stories of night sweats and insomnia, it doesn't have to be that way, and fitness plays a big role during this life transition.Whether you've exercised faithfully for years or you haven't been active, physical activity during and after menopause offers many benefits.

For starters, it can prevent weight gain. Women tend to lose muscle mass and gain abdominal fat around menopause. Even slight increases in physical activity can help prevent weight gain.

Exercise can also reduce the risk of breast cancer. Whether it's a walk around the block on your lunch break or swimming a couple of laps at the gym, getting at least 15 minutes of exercise daily could reap serious rewards for your health – not just your waistline. And that's especially true for women.

According to the American Cancer Society, around one in eight women in the United States will develop breast cancer at some point in their life. A new study from Oxford University researchers highlights the importance of physical activity for post-menopausal women looking to lower their risk.

Researchers looked at over 125,000 postmenopausal women, studying their body fat composition and also their self-reported physical activity. Over 1,100 subjects developed breast cancer during the nearly three-year follow up. Further analysis concluded that women with higher body fat (average 45.4 percent) were at nearly a 50 percent greater risk for breast cancer than women with lower body fat (average 27.6 percent).

But even without considering body fat, just having 15-35 minutes of vigorous exercise every day was enough to cut the risk of breast cancer by a fifth. By maintaining a healthy weight, you can lower the risk of fractures and osteoporosis.

The research list goes on to show how activity reduces many other diseases. Menopause weight gain can have serious implications for your health. Excess weight increases the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Regular physical activity can counter these risks.

We all know that hormone changes can wreak havoc on your mental state too. Physical activity can improve your psychological health at any stage of life.

The bottom line – physical activity during and after menopause can relieve stress and improve quality of life. So whether you're nearing menopause or are experiencing it now, get your walking shoes on!

For more tips on how to not only feel physically and mentally better, check out The Hot Guide to a Cool Sexy Menopause by Nurse Barb Dehn, America's most trusted nurse practitioner, at www.basichealthpub.com and www.amazon.com

Learn the 100 perks of having cancer

This concludes our three-part blog series on breast cancer in honor of October awareness month...

How often do you hear the words “healthy”, “happy” and “cancer” mentioned in the same sentence? That is precisely what gives 100 Perks of Having Cancer (Plus 100 Health Tips for Surviving It) its unique character. Its authors not only “talk the talk” of living a healthy lifestyle with a positive attitude on the cancer journey, they also continue to “walk the walk”.

Author Florence Strang's perks, which are a combination of inspirational and humorous anecdotes, have made her audiences laugh and cry. Susan Gonzalez's tips are sought after because of their educational content with a witty twist. Together they provide a valuable resource which will inspire and motivate their readers, while keeping them smiling.

So why two authors for this book? Six months after being diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer, Strang found herself faced with a life altering choice.  With just over a 50 percent prognosis of survival, she realized that she had a difficult journey ahead.  She could choose to face this journey by focusing on the harsh, ugly realities of cancer, or she could choose to confront it with a positive attitude.

As a psychologist, she was acutely aware of the mind-body connection and the health promoting benefits of a positive attitude.  Although under attack from a difficult chemotherapy treatment, she convinced herself that cancer was not that bad.  In fact, it even had its perks.   She then issued herself a challenge to find 100 perks of having cancer, and to honor this commitment, she decided to blog her efforts (www.perksofcancer.com).  Little did she know at that time the thousands of people her blog would help in the months that followed.

While she was well educated on the psychological aspects of cancer, she found herself overwhelmed by the amount of information out there regarding the health aspects of it.  She soon discovered  fellow Stage 3 breast cancer survivor and registered nurse, Gonzalez, who truly lived up to her blog persona of The Savvy Sister.  Gonzalez seemed to know all the latest do’s and don’ts regarding cancer, and could assimilate and summarize large amounts of information into articles that were not only immensely educational, but also entertaining.  While Strang found herself tuning in to Gonzalez's blog for healthy living tips on exercise, nutrition, medication and supplements, Gonzalez would visit Strang’s blog for its humour and inspiration. As Strang neared the end of her perks challenge, she invited Gonzales to join her in writing a book, which would address the needs of body, mind and spirit.

Together they share a vision of promoting the message that cancer does not have to be viewed as a death sentence.  Whatever the diagnosis or prognosis, it is possible to live a happy and healthy lifestyle following a cancer diagnosis. Whether you are a cancer warrior who is actively battling the disease, a cancer survivor, or a cancer avoider, this book has something for you.

To learn more about their remarkable journey, check out the book at http://basichealthpub.com/search?q=100+perks+of+having+cancer or at www.amazon.com

Eat your way to better breast health

This is the second installment of the three-part series on breast cancer during October awareness month...

When it comes to reducing breast cancer risk, you can’t change your family history. But you can change your nutritional habits and that could go a long way in decreasing your risk.

To help lower your risk, here are the five foods to eat and five you should avoid that the Johns Hopkins Breast Center suggests...

Extra virgin olive oil
The benefits:  Olive oil isn’t only loaded with risk-reducing antioxidants and phytonutrients -- including squalene which inhibits tumor growth -- it also has a higher monounsaturated fat content than other oils. Monounsaturated fats don’t oxidize in the body. Oxidation, a process that produces chemicals called free radicals, increases cancer risk.
Reap the rewards:  Add at least two tablespoons of olive oil a day to your diet, perhaps even tossing vegetables in oil, which will make veggies tastier and encourage you to eat more. Use one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil for every cup of veggies. Although it can be high in calories – about 120 calories per tablespoon – studies have found that the more extra virgin olive oil in your diet, the lower your risk.  

Cruciferous vegetables
The benefits: Cruciferous veggies contain phytonutrients that stop the spread of cancer and halt cancer cells from forming. These phytonutrients also shift estrogen metabolism so your body produces a form of estrogen that doesn’t drive breast cancer.
Reap the rewards: Load your diet with broccoli, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage and kale. To get a bigger cancer-busting bang, cook them in oil, preferably extra virgin olive oil, which will help your body absorb more nutrients.

Dark green leafy vegetables
The benefits:  Leafy veggies are loaded with folate, a B vitamin that strengthens your DNA. Low levels of folate have been linked to increased cancer risk.
Reap the rewards:  Choose spinach and kale, as the darker the leaves, the better.


Fatty fish
The benefits: Women who consumed fish oil supplements had a 32 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer after six years compared to non-users, according to a study from the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Fatty fish contains omega-3 fatty acids, which may decrease inflammation in the body. Researchers believe chronic inflammation may encourage breast cancer development.
Reap the rewards: Although women in the above study took supplements, researchers recommend getting omega-3s directly from fish. Chomp at least two 3.5-ounce servings of fatty fish like salmon, tuna and mackerel each week.

Tomatoes
The benefits: Tomatoes are packed with lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that not only gives tomatoes their redness but also protects against breast cancer by stopping cancer cell growth.
Reap the rewards: Your body absorbs lycopene best when tomatoes are cooked, concentrated or processed. Top sources include canned tomatoes, tomato sauces and tomato paste so you no longer have to feel guilty about indulging in pasta and pizza (as long as it’s veggie).


Reduce these foods: 

Red meat
Why it’s bad: Grilling red meat creates compounds called heterocyclic amines (HCA), which drive cancers. Red meat also contains amino acids that stimulate the production of insulin and increase oxidation in the body, both of which boost cancer risk. In one study, women who ate well-done meat three times a week increased breast cancer risk by over 400 percent. You don’t have to give up your meat-eating ways and turn vegetarian, but do limit red meat consumption, eating no more than six ounces a month.  

Grapefruit
Why it’s bad: Grapefruit may elevate levels of estrogen, which is associated with increased breast cancer risk. In a study from the British Journal of Cancer, women who ate a quarter grapefruit or more a day had a 30 percent increased risk of breast cancer. If you’re a grapefruit junkie, switch to other citrus fruits until more research is done, especially if you’ve had estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer.

Vegetable oils
Why they’re bad: Vegetable oils, including soybean, safflower, sunflower and corn, are high in polyunsaturated fats, which increase cancer-promoting oxidation in the body. Replace vegetable oils with extra virgin olive oil or canola oil. Unfortunately, you should also eliminate mayonnaise (unless it’s made with olive or canola oil and contains no partially hydrogenated fats), margarine and foods that contain partially hydrogenated oil (i.e. peanut butter, cookies and muffins), as all of these foods contain vegetable oils. The upshot? You now have permission to eat butter again.

Donuts
Why they're bad: Women who reported consuming the most sweets, including desserts, sweetened beverages and added sugars, had a 27 percent greater risk of breast cancer than women who consumed less, according to the journal Cancer Causes and Control. A diet high in refined carbohydrates like those found in sweets is associated with higher levels of blood glucose, forcing the body to release insulin. That insulin encourages cancer cells to grow and could result in higher levels of estrogen, which may promote the development of breast cancer. Keep that sweet tooth in check. Although you don’t have to go cold turkey, view sweets as an occasional treat, not a daily indulgence.

Processed meat
Why it’s bad: Researchers suspect that compounds used as preservatives in processed meat like deli meats, bacon, ham and hot dogs morph into cancer-causing compounds in the body. Cut all processed meat from your diet. If you must indulge, do so only during special occasion.

For more information on how to protect yourself from many diseases, check out the many proactive health books at www.basichealthpub.com 

Next up: So you or someone you love has cancer. Learn the 100 Perks of Having Cancer – that's right, perks. 

Breast cancer has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. Once a relatively rare disease, it now affects 2 to 3 million American women. What can we do to protect ourselves? This blog kicks off a three-part proactive approach to fighting this disease and how your attitude and diet can help save your life. First up: Christine Horner, M.D., has the prescription: Eat healthy foods, add a good dose of certain supplements, get the rest and exercise we need, and avoid things that are bad for our bodies. 

We all know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, so what better time to introduce you to a pioneer who pushed through federal and state legislation ensuring that breast reconstruction after a mastectomy would be paid for by insurance companies. Dr. Christine Horner lost her own mother to breast cancer. She decided then that her mother's death would not be in vain.

Using the metaphor of the Warrior Goddess, Horner wrote a bestselling book that is now in its third edition. In Waking the Warrior Goddess, she explains what Ayurveda, an ancient system of healing, describes as our "inner healing intelligence." She also explores the various foods and supplements that enable women to prevent and successfully fight breast cancer, as they claim the healthy body that should be theirs.

In "The Spiritual Journey of Breast Cancer," Horner describes why cancer is a wake-up call, a time-out in which women can turn inward to evaluate their lives with the intent to restore good health and learn how to receive, allow, trust, and surrender as they cultivate their relationship with their intuition and a higher power.

The final part of Waking the Warrior Goddess presents Horner's 30-Step Program for reclaiming health and defeating breast cancer. In addition, this book includes an extensive, newly updated resources section for obtaining the particular nutrients and products that our bodies need to become and stay strong and healthy. We each have a Warrior Goddess in us, and it's time to set her free.

For more information about Waking the Warrior Goddess and to find out how you can be more proactive with your own health, go to www.basichealthpub.com or www.amazon.com

Next: We'll look at what foods you can add to your diet that will help lower your risk of breast cancer. 

Fight off cancer with safe, integrative treatments

You likely know that being overweight increases your risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. But did you know it also increases your risk for cancer?

If you didn't, you're not alone. While around 90% of Americans know that smoking is linked to higher rates of cancer, the inverse is true for obesity and cancer – less than 10% of us realize how fat is related to this chronic disease.

In fact, as many as 84,000 cancer diagnoses each year are linked to obesity, according to the National Cancer Institute. Excess fat also affects how cancer treatments work and may increase a cancer patient's risk of death, either from cancer or from other related causes.

The key word here is preventable. While we can't change the fact that we're all getting older (incidence rates for most cancers increase as patients age), we can change our weight through diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management.

In Surviving the Unsurvivable, Dr. Pavel Yutsis offers an original breakthrough theory he has developed about cancer. His theory maintains that cancer is a well-connected whole-body disease linked to lifestyle, diet, age, and how the different body systems function.

Yutsis has identified 10 specific factors, including genetics, sugar, obesity, stress, and toxins, that make it easier for cancer to get a foothold. He calls these elements cancer connections because they create an environment in the body that allows cancer to become more aggressive and tougher to combat. How each of these ten cancer connections is counterbalanced by the doctor’s highly effective brand of integrative medicine is discussed in detail.

Yutsis talks about the conventional trio of treatments—surgery, chemo, and radiation, accompanied by nutritional/supplement strategies that help reduce their side effects—and he concludes that these treatments are both useful and useless. He then addresses what he firmly believes are far better options for anyone struggling with cancer—the powerful, safe, integrative treatments combining conventional and alternative methods that he uses in his complementary practice, methods he first encountered when training in his native Russia where whatever helped was considered appropriate treatment.

This was not the case when he came to the United States because American medicine was then primarily focused on new drugs and high-tech diagnostic and surgical techniques. Although these methods can often be critically important, he found they did little to improve the overall survival rate from cancer, while his growing field of integrative/complementary medicine that combines conventional treatments with alternative approachehas delivered positive results in combating cancer. The doctor emphasizes that he and his colleagues in this field constitute a new breed of doctors you can turn to for affective help.

Yutsis wrote this book, he says, to make people with cancer more aware of how the benefits of this complementary route can help them survive the seemingly unsurvivable disease of cancer. Anyone searching for answers with questionable outcomes will be smart to investigate the methods reviewed in this important new book by a proven master in his field.

To learn more about Surviving the Unsurvivable, check out the book at http://basichealthpub.com/products/surviving-the-unsurvivable-natural-therapies-for-cancer-a-revolutionary-integrative-approach or at http://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Unsurvivable-Therapies-Revolutionary-Integrative/dp/1591203023/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412722778&sr=8-1&keywords=surviving+the+unsurvivable

Can choosing to cheat actually be healthy?

Diet six days a week and then on the seventh eat absolutely anything. What's not to love about that? Apparently, a lot. The idea of a "cheat day" or choosing to take a day off from strict dieting, stirs up some serious debate in the health world. So that begs the question – can choosing to cheat actually be healthy?

One of the pro-cheating claims is that cheat days boost metabolism by upping leptin production, helping the body burn more calories after overeating. Some studies do support this claim, but others suggest overfeeding or "cheating" only ups metabolism between three and 10 percent for no more than 24 hours, making the little boost not worth the hundreds or thousands of extra calories

But the diet-rejuvenating effect of a cheat day may amount to more than just burning a few extra calories. Restricting calories, as most people do when dieting, can cause leptin, a hormone responsible for maintaining our energy balance and causing weight loss, to dwindle. But temporarily upping calorie intake can re-up leptin production by nearly 30 percent for up to 24 hours. It's that quick leptin buzz that's responsible for boosting metabolism after overeating. And in addition to regulating hunger and metabolism, this hormone may contribute to increased motivation, libido, and dopamine— so after a cheat day, dieters might actually be happier and more motivated.

It's the combined benefits of leptin that lead some experts to advocate "cheat days" filled with foods scientifically shown to increase the hormone, as opposed to anything and everything they want. For example, one study found overeating on a high protein diet increased resting metabolism, while overeating on a low protein diet did not. In another study, resting metabolism was only increased by carb bingeing— not from eating lots of fatty foods, such a pizza and ice cream.

And while cheat days often involve binge drinking in addition to binge eating, alcohol actually has the opposite effect on leptin. Fortunately, one study did find red wine was an exception to the rule — but only in women.

So for anyone keeping score at home, that's a high-protein, high-carb, low-fat, and alcohol-free (unless you're a woman— then you can have red wine only) cheat day. Sounding less and less like a carefree free-for-all, isn't it?

It's also especially important for anyone with a health condition, such as diabetes, high cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. to plan carefully, as even small indulgences can have more larger effects on health. Consider the overall balance of macronutrients in a dietary splurge— sweets may be fine, but look for those also high in essential nutrients like protein and fiber.

No matter which direction you choose to take, it all comes down to one's metabolism and finding what works best for you. But for most people, these single solutions don't work. The truth is, most chronic health problems, including stubborn weight gain, unbeatable fatigue, intestinal distress, high blood pressure, creeping cholesterol, and high blood sugar, are not found in simply one organ, but in several parts of the body (often times in twos and threes).

This is the result of years of slow, subtle challenges to your metabolism, which is as unique as you are. Your lifestyle habits, stress level, prescription drug use, and relationships, as well as the genes you inherit and the environment in which you live-in effect, the sum total of your life expierence up to this day-determine your personal metabolism and, in turn, your current state of health.

Using a step-by-step, easy-to-implement system of diet, lifestyle strategies, and state-of-the-art nutrients and supplements, Dr. James LaValle can help you create an indiviudalized program for reclaiming your metabolism and health in his book, Cracking the Metabolic Code. 

To learn more about how to crack your personal code, check out the book at http://basichealthpub.com/products/cracking-the-metabolic-code or http://www.amazon.com/Cracking-Metabolic-Code-James-LaValle/dp/1591200113/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412359956&sr=8-1&keywords=cracking+the+metabolic+code