Drinking Olive Oil for Dessert

Drinking Olive Oil for Dessert

Sometimes I recommend drinking a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil with a squeeze of lemon juice after dinner to help the liver detox the daily toxins that built up in the system.  The liver does the majority of its detox work at 11pm-1am.  With the olive oil in your body at that time it helps the liver move the toxins through the gallbladder duct to the large intestine to then be eliminated.

Combining olive oil with lemon helps maintain lubricant for digestive mucus so not only does it help in moving toxins but also helps rid the body of constipation.  The discomfort from the body being toxified can lead to discomfort, and there’s no better cure for that than taking a quick drink of olive oil after dinner. The body has subtle ways of signaling that it is in need of a detox. Signs of this include headaches, slower digestion, and dry mouth. 
Olive oil is another great tool for taking care of the skin and hair. Taking a small drink of olive oil is known to help boost hair growth. The vitamin D and vitamin E contents found in olive oil can help moisturize dry skin. While helping improve the skin cosmetically, it can also help prevent skin cancer. The antioxidant properties of olive oil counter the oxidation of rays from the sun. Studies show that in the Mediterranean region where drinking olive oil is common, only three in every 100,000 residents there get skin cancer.

The idea of consuming olive oil this way comes from the Mediterranean diet, which, despite its share of naysayers, has been found to be effective. Olive oil has an acid called oleic acid, which gives the feeling of fullness and promotes the feeling of satiety.

According to various studies, drinking extra virgin olive oil may prevent the formation of free radicals in the body, and reduce the incidence of colon cancer. This is because olive oil is full of antioxidants.
So now you know! All you need to do, to make the most of this amazing night tonic, is to take the juice of a ripe lemon and add it to a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and drink it up! The better the quality of olive oil, the more beneficial this "dessert" will be for you. 

5 Benefits of Collagen Powder

5 Benefits of Collagen Powder

Have you heard about collagen powder?  It seems like the next big hype but this time I actually feel the hype is warranted.  Collagen can now be found in just about everything — from creams and cosmetics, to powders and pills. As the most abundant protein in the body, collagen is found in your muscles, skin, blood, bones, cartilage, and ligaments. You may want to consider squeezing in an extra serving of this vital protein for several reasons, as collagen is a building block that:

• promotes skin elasticity
• holds together your bones and muscles
• protects your organs
• heals the gut

The good news is that your body produces collagen on a regular basis. But, it does slow down with age. It also slows down with smoking, sun exposure, and an unhealthy diet. If you don't have enough collagen in the body you may start to see wrinkles and sagging skin, or even experience joint pain.
Keep reading to discover five specific benefits you may experience if you take the time to up your collagen consumption.

1. Eases joint pain

As your cartilage weakens and deteriorates with age, you may start to feel stiff, achy joints. It’s possible that upping your collagen intake may help reduce joint pain and alleviate symptoms of arthritis.
In a 2009 study, participants took a collagen supplement for 90 days. Results showed that osteoarthritis symptoms decreased by 40% while the severity of symptoms dropped by an impressive 33%.
In an older study from 1993 with the same collagen supplement, participants with severe rheumatoid arthritis saw a reduced number of swollen and tender joints — 4 out of 60 participants also experienced complete remission. 

2. Reverses skin aging

One of the most well-known benefits of collagen is its ability to promote glowing, vibrant skin. This essential protein provides elasticity to the skin, helping it to appear more youthful and healthy. But as you get older and collagen production declines, fine lines, loose skin, and dryness can occur. 
A study published in 2014 randomly chose 46 of 69 women, ages 35-55 years old, to take a collagen hydrolysate supplement. The rest of the group took a placebo. The women who took the collagen showed an improvement in skin elasticity within four weeks.
The same manufacturer also conducted another study in 2014 with the same supplement, which significantly reduced wrinkles after just eight weeks.

3. Helps build muscle and burn fat

Collagen is a major component of muscle tissue, so it should come as no surprise that it can have a big impact when it comes to building muscle mass. Plus, collagen also contains a concentrated amount of glycine, an amino acid involved in the synthesis of creatine which provides muscles with the fuel needed to power through your workout. So what happens when you add collagen to your workout routine?
There’s not much research on collagen and exercise, but a study in 2015 looked at collagen supplements in 53 older males with sarcopenia, a condition where you lose muscle mass due to aging. After 12 weeks, those who took supplements along with resistance training saw an increase in fat loss and muscle strength more than the placebo group.

4. May reduce cellulite

Besides keeping your skin healthy and glowing, collagen may also help improve the appearance of stubborn cellulite. Cellulite is when the layer of fat under the skin pushes up against the connective tissue, creating a dimpled or lumpy appearance on the skin.
Another study was sponsored in 2015 by manufacturers to see what collagen would do for cellulite. They randomly assigned 105 women, ages 24-50, to take collagen for six months. Those who did demonstrated a clear improvement in skin texture.  Yet cellulite is incredibly common — an estimated 80 to 90% of women have it. It’s a natural part of aging and skin formation and not a cause for concern.

5. Improves digestive health

Collagen is in the gut’s connective tissue and can help support and strengthen the protective lining of your digestive tract. This is critically important because alterations in the barrier function of your intestine, also known as leaky gut syndrome, can allow particles to pass into the bloodstream. This may result in inflammation.
In fact, an older study from 2003 looked at 170 individuals with inflammatory bowel disease and found that they were more likely to have lower levels of serum collagen. So the current theory is that by increasing your intake of collagen, you could help build up the tissues that line your gastrointestinal tract and promote better gut health. 

Here are a few easy ways to kick up your collagen intake:

1. Experiment with bone broth

Bone broth is made by simmering bones to help extract the flavor and beneficial nutrients. Not only is it an excellent source of collagen, but it’s also tasty and easy to add to your diet by using it to make soups and stews, whole grains like rice and quinoa, and even to moisten leftovers. You can easily make bone broth at home, or save time by purchasing it in powder form. The brand I love for powdered bone broth and carry in the office for your convenience is Organixx.  

2. Try out powdered gelatin

Gelatin is essentially the cooked form of collagen, and powdered gelatin can be a quick and convenient way to bump up your collagen consumption. It can be mixed into any liquid, including soups, stews, and broths. You can also enjoy it to satisfy your sweet tooth by making homemade Jell-O or natural fruit snacks.

3. Supplement with collagen peptides

Collagen peptides are another easy option to get your fix of this important amino acid. Most brands sell hydrolyzed collagen peptides, which means that the amino acids in collagen have been broken down so that they’re more easily digested and absorbed.
Collagen powder can also be added to smoothies, hot beverages, or baked goods to pump some extra protein into your day. The collagen powder I recommend the most is also from Organixx which we also have in the office.  

There is also ways to get collagen in through your daily diet. If you want to consume collagen naturally, eat a well-balanced, high-protein diet that includes animal products. Collagen is in beef, chicken, fish, and egg whites.

But you don’t want to eat too much protein, either. Your body doesn’t tell the collagen where to go. Instead, it distributes the collagen like it would any other nutrient. So taking collagen supplements works much like exercise — it’s difficult to target a specific need, but increasing your intake could still have benefits.

Why Good Gut Health Is Important for a Good Mood

Why Good Gut Health Is Important for a Good Mood

New research is emerging every day regarding the role of the gut and how it effects the brain.  It is now known in the medical world as 'gut-brain axis'.  The good bacteria that is in your gut are responsible to create a healthy environment so the gut can make the right neurotransmitters for the brain. This healthy bacteria is known as a microbiome that line our digestive tracts. The digestive tract itself is a center point of the nervous system, hormonal system and immune system. It is responsible for the balance of our molecules of emotion called neurotransmitters and as a result has an effect on our mood. Good gut health is known not only to help the digestion, but are key factors in obesity, hormonal balance, healthy kidney function, and much more.

How Do Probiotics Help the Brain?
Medical research is uncovering the mechanism of probiotics in mood. Probiotics is the name of supplements that contain good bacteria.  These healthy germs boost mood in two important ways: they generate a particular neurotransmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and also enhance the brain receptors for GABA as well. Like a warm and gentle blanket for the brain, GABA is a calming amino acid, known to calm areas of the brain that are over active in anxiety and panic.

Animal studies working with mice showed those mice who ingested probiotics were, in general, more chilled out than the control mice.  The probiotic mice had lower levels of corticosterone in response to stress. Corticosterone is the mouse version of the human stress hormone cortisol. High levels of cortisol are common in anxiety as well as depression.  These mice were fed either the probiotic strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus or a broth without these. The lactobacillus-fed animals showed significantly fewer stress, anxiety and depression-related behaviors than those fed with just broth.

Human studies have also corroborated these mice findings. A French team learned via a double-blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized parallel group study that giving humans specific strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium for 30 days yielded beneficial psychological effects including lowered depression, less anger and hostility, anxiety, and better problem solving, compared with the placebo group. 

Yeast and the Microbiome
While a healthy microbiome will contribute to good mood, an unhealthy one full of Candida albicans (yeast), and all the toxins associated with it, may also contribute to mood disorder. Presence of yeast will alter the ability to absorb nutrients and push hypersensitivity reactions of toxin by-products which translates to inflammation in the body. Inflammation will greatly contribute to depression, anxiety and poor mental function.

What You Can Do To Keep Your Microbiome Healthy?
Steps you can take for a healthy microbiome and mood are:
1 – Avoid excess sugary foods: to avoid yeast build up. If you think you may have Candida it is best to follow a Candida diet or get foods muscle tested using Nutrition Response Testing to figure out what foods are feeding the Candida. 
2 – Good Quality Sleep: good sleep is key for the intestinal lining to repair and create a healthy microbiome.
3 – Meditation and Relaxation: Meditation and quality down time is important to keep the body in the ‘rest and digest’ mode instead of stress mode. Stress mode shuts circulation to the gut, which doesn’t allow a healthy microbiome. A good app to help you learn to meditate and relax is headspace.  
4 – Eat Foods with Fiber: Good fiber helps feed the good bacteria and keeps them healthy. Vegetables, fruits, psyllium, flax, inulin and other fibers also help keep good flora and proper balance of short chain fatty acids in the intestines. 
5 – Eat Probiotic Foods: While the French study mentioned above used a supplement, there are also many wonderful natural foods full of probiotics. These include natto (a traditional Japanese fermented food), kim chi (Korean style cabbage), sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, tempeh, fermented milk (like buttermilk), miso, and non-baked cheeses (like aged cheese). Homemade sauerkraut is better than store bought, for the store bought stuff is pasteurized, which kills some of the good probiotics. To read more on how  fermented food heals the gut, read here. 
6 – Get tested for a probiotic supplement: A good quality probiotic should contain at least Lactobacillus and Bifidus bacteria. There are a number of good ones on the market and some that are poorly made, so it is best to get muscle tested to figure out which one you specifically need.  I have about 6 different ones in the office to cover a variety of different types of situations.  Also make sure your probiotic doesn't have any binders, fillers, milk products, or corn.  Sometimes people feel worse after taking a probiotic because the body needs to detox or kill bad gut flora first and so adding healthy gut flora to the body is overwhelming.  If that has happened to you it is best to first do cleansing program with a healthcare practitioner.  We also test to see if a prebiotic is needed along with a probiotic.  A prebiotic helps the good bacteria grow so the gut can maintain the good bacteria on it's own which is what you want in the long run.  

To learn more on what to do to have better gut health read here.  

DIY Rose Water

I love roses not only for their beauty or their fragrance, but for their medicine. That’s right, the seemingly delicate rose is one of the most powerful herbs especially when it comes to the skin as some of you already know from my recommendation of using rose water spray.

Rose water is a great gentle toner for the skin. It can also be applied as a makeup remover or spray wherever there is dry skin. Apply around the eyes to help sooth and prevent or reduce eye puffiness. A swipe of rose vinegar can pull heat from sunburn; a smear of rose jam can bring a sense of well-being to anyone who eats it. Rose infused honey is a joy to add to teas and gluten-free pastries.

Rose is unique in that it’s great at what it does, no matter the application.

Used for thousands of years as a youthful skin tonic, rose water boasts some amazing benefits.

Rose water is good for:

• Tightening pores
• Smoothing fine lines and wrinkles
• Balancing the skin’s PH
• Slowing the aging process
• Freshens the complexion
• Calming the senses

It is very important to make sure you source high quality roses. I strictly get my dried rose petals from Mountainroseherbs.com as their quality is second to none. The fragrance is strong and the color pay off in beauty recipes is often a rich ruby hue. Their roses are not treated with chemicals and are harvested at just the right time for the highest potency.

Fresh petals are of course a delight when you can find them; just make sure they are not sprayed with pesticides. Harvest the fresh roses in the morning when they are most fragrant and make rose water as soon as you can for best results. I particularly love wild roses when I’m lucky enough to come across them or that one time a year when they grow in my garden.

Making rose water is super simple. It only takes minutes to make a beautiful tonic for the skin that can be used as much as you desire.

Here’s What You’ll Need:

• Distilled water
• Dried red rose petals
• A funnel
• A glass bowl
• A nut milk bag
• A spray bottle

Loving Preparation- How to Make Rose Water:

• In a small clean pot, bring the distilled water to a boil (I measured a little more water than would fit in my 4oz glass spray bottle)
• Next, add in a handful of dried rose petals (you can use fresh but make sure they are fragrant and not sprayed with chemicals)
• Cover the pot and gently simmer the rose petals until they lose their color
• Turn off the heat and let the rose water cool completely
• Once cool, strain the rose water in the nut milk bag in the glass bowl
• Pour the strained rose water into a spritzer bottle. A glass bottle is best.
• Use daily and often! Will keep for 7 days at room temperature or up to a month in the fridge.

The Art of Dry Brushing

After writing last weeks post on Detox Baths patients were asking more questions about dry brushing so here's my answer...in a nutshell, dry brushing is the process of brushing your skin, preferably before a shower or bath with a dry brush.
Why would we want to do that?

Right below your skin is a network of blood vessels, capillaries, fat, and lymph nodes. They are working hard to circulate through the body, but sometimes our lifestyles and the toxins we have stored in our body will hinder our bodies from doing a really good job of circulating those fluids.

Dry brushing will . . .
1) Help drain your lymphatic system
2) Re-Circulate old or stagnant blood
3) Move toxins out of fat cells to be eliminated by the body
4) Exfoliate dead skin

Starting at the feet and legs, use small brisk strokes always moving TOWARDS the heart. Concentrate on areas on the back of the legs and butt as well as areas where your lymphatic system is concentrated such as the groin area, armpits and the glands on the neck.  For video demonstration: https://youtu.be/PlgJVAtgJTI



This only takes a few minutes and feels refreshing and rejuvenating, especially in the morning.

You can purchase a dry brush at any drug store for about $20 dollars or you can purchase one online: https://healingartsnyc.com/shop/szwdohm7ql8022zpg5c5getwwdcxb0. Make sure you get one with medium bristles. Too soft won’t do anything and to hard of a bristle may be too harsh on your skin. Dry brushing is best done right before showering or bath, once a day but can be done any time of day. Make sure you wash your brush once a week with soap and let it dry thoroughly.