Acai The Gift Of The Jungle

Acai is another nutrient that we recommend. It is available as either a juice by itself or blended with other fruits such as blueberry, pomegranate, mangosteen and goji. Acai is one of our top choices for nutrient honors, yet it is a substance that many of you may never have heard of. In 2004 the New York Times stated "Rich in Antioxidants and amino acids acai is thought to be one of the most nutritional fruits of the Amazon Basin." In 2005 Oprah named acai the #1 super food.

What are the possible health benefits of acai? Advocates claim that acai:

• helps maintain the healthy function of the body's systems
• increases energy, libido and stamina supports the immune system
• is a powerful anti-inflammatory reduces pain and soreness

Are all of these claims valid? We honestly do not know, but we believe that there is credibility in the story line about acai. We have pointed out the difficulty of finding valid clinical data  not only on acai but on  almost all food supplements. We take acai ourselves. Read on to learn why.

The Acai is a palm tree native to tropical Central and South America.  Studies of the traditional Cabocio native populations of the Amazon revealed that acai is a major component of their diet.  Incidentally these native tribes are incredibly health.

How potent is the acai berry? It has 10 times the antioxidant power of red grapes and twice that of blueberries. Tests have been developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to measure the potency of an antioxidant to neutralize a free radical. The most reliable test is the ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity} The higher the ORAC rating the more potent the antioxidant. The current recommendation of the USDA is that we consume 3,000 to 5,000 ORAC units daily. Unfortunately it has been determined that about 80% of the American population is consuming less than 1,000 ORAC units a day. These people will lose the battle against aging unless they change their eating habits.

Fruits and vegetables have the highest ORAC values. Per 100 grams apples score 218, bananas 221, blueberries 2,400. Fresh acai has an ORAC score of 5,500!

More about acai in our next post!

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Olive Oil The Mediterranean Miracle

One of our favorite nutrients is olive oil. We have a ranch in northern California situated at 1800 feet near Yosemite Park.  The ranch is not a cattle ranch or a sheep ranch. Instead we have groves of Tuscan olive trees and we produce an extra virgin olive oil. We each take a tablespoon of the olive oil every morning, and it is not because we are the producer. It is good for you.

Homer called olive oil "liquid gold" and it has remained important to the Mediterranean people during the ensuing centuries where it remains as the corner stone of the Mediterranean diet. Olive oil is rich in monosaturated fats, especially oleic acid.  It has been demonstrated  that a higher proportion of monosaturated fat in te diet is linked to a reduction in the risk of coronary heart disease. The Food and Drug Administration reviewed extensive clinical data on olive oil and made a decision in November 2004 allowing the producers of olive oil to place a statement on the label of the bottle saying that eating 2 tablespoons on olive oil daily may reduce the risk of coronary artery disease.

This health benefit is thought to primarily be due to the oleic acid (monosaturated fat) in the oil.  However, extra virgin olive oil is also rich in polyphenols that are potent antioxidants and have heart health benefits.

There are other health benefits of olive oil.

1. Olive oil reduces the level of omega 6 fatty acids in the blood. The significance of omega 6 fatty acids was discussed in a previous blog.
2. Olive oil lowers total cholesterol and LDL levels in the blood
3. Olive oil lowers blood sugar levels
4. Olive oil helps to lower blood pressure
5. The antioxidants in olive oil reduce oxidative damage to DNA and RNA

For these reasons it is difficult to find a tablespoon of any medicine that would have as many health benefits as a tablespoon of olive oil.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Do You Need To Take Supplements? Part 2

In the first blog on this very important subject we  discussed why it it might be important to take supplements.  The first reason is that most Americans do not eat a balanced diet that includes all of the necessary food groups.  The second is that even you if you are a person who eats a balanced diet, you can not be certain that the food that you are eating is not nutritionally deprived. For these reasons we propose that everyone needs to do some supplementation.

We have found evidence to support the claim that many Americans are on the verge of serious vitamin deficiencies.

For example Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D Professor of Nutrition at Tufts University, summarized the percentage of older adults whose dietary intakes fall below the RDA. Remember that the RDA is the bare minimum of that vitamin necessary to prevent specific diseases. Here are some examples.

Vitamin A 41-65%; Vitamin D 63-74%; Vitamin E 69-80%; Vitamin B6 50-90%; Niacin 10-53%

An article published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition came to similar conclusions stating that about 30% of all Americans are in general borderline deficient in essential nutrients.

We believe that it is our responsibility as physicians to present unbiased facts. Evaluate all of the evidence for and against taking supplements and make a decision about what is best for you. In the next posts we will begin the discussion of specific nutrients.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Do You Need To Take Supplements?

One of the most important questions in nutrition and certainly the most controversial is whether you need to take supplements. Almost weekly on the newscasts, in magazines and in newspapers you will find expert commentary for and against the need to take supplements. Those opposed state with conviction that there is absolutely no need to take any supplement or vitamin. They make the case that there is no evidence that you need more of those things then you can get from the food that you eat.

Those who are advocates for the need to supplement make a very strong case with two key points. The first is that most of us do not eat a balanced diet with adequate amounts of fruits, vegetables and good protein. For example in order to get an adequate amount of omega-3 fatty acids it is necessary to consume three servings of cold water fish a week. How many of us follow this advice? The American Dietetic Association estimates that only one in ten people eat the recommended number of fruits and vegetables.  Most of us eat the SAD (Standard American Diet) This diet is skewed toward a lot of white flour, sugar, high fructose corn syrup and unhealthy fats. 59 per cent of the calories come from nutrient poor food sources.  In fact the food is so nutritionally depleted that many Americans are on the verge of serious vitamin deficiencies.

The second key point is that even if you follow the food pyramid and consume adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables, there is no assurance that the produce you eat was grown in soil that has not been depleted in nutrients by years of farming. We will present more evidence to prove this point in future blogs.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

What Are The Guidelines For Sugar Consumption?

The American Heart Association has proposed specific guidelines for sugar consumption.  Most women should consume no more than 25 grams (about 6 teaspoons) of added sugar a day;  most men no more than 37.5 grams (about 9 teaspoons) a day.  This translates to no more than 100 calories of added sugar for women and no more than 150 calories for men.

Think about this. That is precious little sugar and it is so easy to exceed these limits. Most Americans do exceed them, frequently by alot.  For example a 16 ounce bottle of soda has about 44 grams (11 teaspoons) of added sugar. How many sodas do you drink a day? Even foods like yogurt and baked beans may be loaded with extra sugar, beyond the sugar naturally in them.

If you are serious about reducing your sugar intake you need to act like a detective and examine the labels on the foods that you eat.  Here are a some examples of added sugar in beverages and foods.

Beverages (8 oz)                                                 Added Sugar (G)
Cola                                                                                   22
Tea, instant, sugar sweetened                                            21
Cranberry juice cocktail                                                    20
Soy milk, chocolate                                                          10

Food
Candies, caramel, 2.5 oz package                                    36
Milk chocolate candy bar                                                 19
Vanilla pudding 4 oz                                                        19
Canned baked beans 1 cup                                               15
Glazed doughnut 1.4 oz                                                   14

If it feels to you as though you are in sugar trouble no matter what, you are not alone. If you are really serious about wanting to improve your health, lose weight or just plain feel better you must pay attention to the sugar trail. In the next blog we will discuss common sense actions that will give you a jump start toward defeating the sugar siren.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Sugar The Siren "Killing Us Softly With Its Song" Part 2

We all love sugar.  It is yummy and  tastes so good, but it is not good for us. Sugar is a major health risk.  Somehow sugar has stayed out of the limelight while the blame for obesity, high blood cholesterol, high triglycerides, heart attacks and strokes has been laid primarily on too much saturated fat in our diets.  As a result fat makes up a smaller portion of the American diet than it did a generation ago but the numbers of obese Americans continues to grow. As does the incidence of diabetes.

Sugar is responsible for two health problems. The first is obesity. Sugar is a source of easy calories.  There are four calories to every gram of carbohydrate and sugar is a carbohydrate. The sugar calories found in every bite of sweets, pastry, white bread, snack foods and in every sip of soda add up quickly.  Take in more calories than are necessary to sustain all of your body's functions and the excess are converted to fat. More calories means more fat.

The other health problem caused by sugar is a bit more complicated. Sucrose or table sugar is a disaccharide comprised of equal parts of glucose and fructose. Glucose is the fuel that makes the body run. Fructose is the kind of sugar that is found naturally in fruit. Glucose is metabolized by all of the cells in the body. Fructose, on the other hand only metabolized primarily by the liver.

Possibly you have heard or read of the health problems caused by ingesting too much high fructose corn syrup {HFCS} HFCS is also a disaccharide mixture of glucose and fructose.  The impact on health of sucrose and HFCS is similar. If you eat too much fructose your liver metabolizes the fructose and produces fats called triglycerides. Some of this fat stays in the liver and over a period of time your liver may become dysfunctional. Most of the trigycerides are pushed into your circulation. Over time your tissues become more resistant to insulin. Eventually a condition known as the metabolic syndrome can develop.  It is characterized by obesity, high blood pressure and other metabolic changes.  It can also lead to the development of type 2 diabetes.

The American Heart Association has issues warning about limiting the amount of sugar in the diet.  The rational for that warning is that sugar provides calories with no nutritional benefit. We call this kind of calories empty calories. According to numerous experts this warning is necessary, but it misses the most important point. Excessive sugar in not just empty calories.  It is toxic.  Sugar by itself is a poison when consumed at high doses.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

How Much Fish Oil Do you Need? Part 3

We have discussed the benefits of Omega-3 fatty acids and the importance of maintaining a healthy ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fatty acids.  Omega-6 fatty acids are found in almost all snack foods, baked goods, cereals, eggs nuts, poultry and most vegetable oils such as palm, canola, soy, sunflower and corn oil. This list includes so many of the foods that we eat daily.  You can understand why most of us are have such high levels of Omega-6l fatty acids and why our society is plagued by heart disease and inflammatory conditions.

On the other hand the sources of Omega-3 fatty acids is limited. The best source is fatty fish.  High on the list are anchovies, bluefish, carp, catfish, halibut, herring, lake trout, mackerel, pompano, salmon, striped sea bass, white tuna and whitefish.  Krill is also high in Omega-3 fatty acids.

There are some vegetable sources of the Omega-3 ALA. The most popular of these is flaxseed  The ALA  in flaxseed is converted in the body to the Omega-3 EHA; however, the process of conversion is inefficient and only 7 to 15% of the ALA  can be converted.

The problem is very clear and very simple.  Omega-6s are almost ubiquitous and we get  way too much in our daily life. There are few sources of Omega-3s and most of us do not eat two to three serving of fish a week. The answer is to take fish oil supplements.

When taking supplements or when eating fish we need to be aware of the possibility of ingesting too much mercury.  It is a contaminant in some fish especially bottom feeders. The same potential problem exists in fish oil supplements.  We recommend that you research carefully before buying.

There is no universal agreement on the amount of EHA and EPA to take. Most authorities recommend that you do not exceed 3 grams a day because higher doses increase the risk of bleeding. Remember that Omega-3 fatty acids reduce blood clotting. You should also consult your physician if you are on an aspirin regime or if you are taking other blood thinners. The other heath precaution that you should take is to decrease your intake of Omega-6 fatty acids.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net