Hope you enjoyed the switch to a digest last time rather than lots of little separate posts – do let me know which you prefer – I write these for you, so I want it to be what you need/enjoy most.

Recipe of the Week

Ooh, this looks like a yummy, spicy version of a cottage pie. I’d make it even better by using cauliflower, carrot, turnip, swede and/or sweet potato with, or instead of the spuds, to make the mash, and leave out the cheese. If you want a cheesy taste, you could sprinkle a little nutritional yeast into it instead. Nom nom.

Corny Vitamin C Alternative

What do you do if you can’t tolerate corn-derived Vitamin C (as the vast majority is as it comes from the same factory in China!)? There are a few options in the Master list, but one of my faves, and one I seem to be doing well with, is this Rosehip Powder.

Most rosehip products contain extracts of rosehip so could use grain alcohol in the manufacture, so pure powder is the safest, I find. Extracts can be standardised so they are good if you are not TrulyGlutenFree (grain and dairy free), but for us TGFers, powder is better – as long as it hasn’t used maltodextrins or anything to keep the powder from clogging during bagging. Nightmare, isn’t it, the detail we have to go into to get a safe supplement? Anyway, I seem to be doing OK on this one – as are others – so check it out if you need more Vitamin C.

You can put a tsp or two in hot (not boiling) water to make a rosehip tea, or add some into a smoothie, or even make pink nut/seed/oat porridge! It’s not massively high in Vitamin C, but it’s a good source, easily metabolised and has natural bioflavonoids. For interest – and even more nutrition, I also add a couple of tsp of montmerency cherry, which is anti-inflammatory, choc-full of antioxidants and is great for sleep now that the menopause is messing with mine!

Lab Test Update

Check the Lab Tests out on the shop – I have made a load of changes as some of the labs did their usual January streamlining and price changes, so I have spent ages finding new test options for you – and hopefully many are cheaper or even better options than before. The new mobile phlebotomy service is going down well, too.

Why buy tests from me? Someone asked me that the other day, good question, I thought! Well, hopefully because you know I am ‘on it’ for you and list the best tests around that are going to give you practical information you can actually use to help yourself get better (ie. not just data). I don’t like testing for testing’s sake. I spend a LOT of time keeping us up to date with test innovations, although I confess I am a deliberate late-adopter of new stuff; I like to see it prove itself before I accept it – call me cynical!

Also, because you know I will send the results with all interpretation reports – I don’t hold anything back – and include my thoughts about what they mean and what to do next, plus I offer extra support options you only take up if you need to. Essentially, I’ve been doing this a loooong time, so hopefully you know I know my stuff 🙂

Are You Inflamed? Probably!

I have long realised that probably the number one thing I can do to help patients is to lower inflammation. In fact, I am starting to think that, just focusing on that one thing, could help the vast majority of people. Pretty much every acute and chronic illness – including heart disease, chronic fatigue, multiple sensitivity, cancer, dementia etc – has inflammation at its core. So, I was interested to see a piece reminding us of the top three triggers or causes that we could be working on:

Stress – The immune-inflammatory system is believed to be a key response mechanism involved in the bi-directional interaction between stress and illness. Stress, a common risk factor in 75%–90% of diseases, activates the inflammatory response in the brain as well as peripherally (Liu 2017). Factors in both chronic stress and systemic illness include depression, gastro-intestinal issues and insomnia. Practices such as meditation and mindfulness may dampen gene activity associated with inflammation (Buric et al 2017).

Chronic psychological stress may adversely affect nutritional choices as well, leading to increased risk of nutritional deficiencies from both under -eating or over-eating, which in turn, can create a vicious cycle of stress-eating promoting obesity.
[See my Mind Body Medicine recommendations here and here]

Obesity – Obesity increases the production of leptin (pro-inflammatory) and the reduction in adiponectin (anti-inflammatory) which seems to affect the immune system (Heredia et al 2012), this increase in inflammation partly explains the higher cases of illnesses such as cancers in obese patients.

[Check levels of those here]

Gut permeability – Another important trigger for low grade systemic inflammation is thought to be gut permeability to inflammatory bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS), an endotoxin found on the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli (Miller et al 2005). Gut microbiota play an important role in immune function by protecting against pathogens, promoting the development and maintenance of the mucosal immune system and maintaining GI tract barrier integrity. The combination of a lower level of biofidobacteria and a higher count of LPS-producing bacteria is found in the elderly, which is believed to promote increased gut permeability.

In recent research into Parkinson’s Disease, it is suggested that chronic intestinal inflammation may be a potent driver of the disease pathogenesis, adversely impacting the microbiota, increasing intestinal permeability, and inducing increased expression and aggregation of αSYN (Hauser et al 2017).

[See my leaky gut factsheet and testing here]

Higher Nature Blog

Most people turn to NSAIDs like ibuprofen, or much stronger types, including steroids. And those are sometimes needed, of course. I take a lot of ibuprofen to control my MCAS inflammation – a common MCAS med, who knew? – because I can’t tolerate supplements yet. I am currently trying to get turmeric in, and I eat a lot of polyphenol foods to help. And I’ve just started trialling my beloved complex homeopathic anti-inflammatory Traumeel as an injectable taken orally. I’m a work in progress and, of course, I’ll keep you posted as to what works.

Protect yourself from NSAIDs with DGL Licorice to avoid gastric damage (and always take with food), and from steroids with adrenal support.

The meds work by blocking some of the inflammatory pathways and key cytokines involved in this complex process. But so do some other, less damaging, anti-inflammatories. My favourite supplement mixes are KappArest and Inflammatone – synergistic mixes rather than, say, just curcumin, tend to work better – and the Inflammatone has proteolytic enzymes in it, which I think are very underrated.

Topically, eg. for joint or muscle pain, my faves are Traumeel cream (fabulous stuff and can be taken with any meds, not easy to get this, but I can get it sent to you, also comes in drops or vials) or Arthrosoothe. None of these is cheap – was it ever thus – but they work, so I consider them good value for cost: pain ratio!

You can see how you are doing inflammation-wise by asking your GP to do an ESR, CRP or hsCRP test. More advanced, you can use this test – it’s really a question of how the body is regulating inflammation – have you got the right balance of cytokines and TH cells?

Inlight Bath Soak

Finally, on a slightly lighter note, I am loving Inlight’s new Limited Edition Bath Soak.

It’s made from the botanicals left over from their Night Balm herbal pressings, which I think is an excellent idea. They press their own flowers and botanicals, after having soaked them in pure oils in sun and moonlight over several cycles to make the precious active oils for their balms. Seems such a shame to throw that out – hence the new bath soak idea. It’s an infusion of calendula flowers, rose buds, chamomile and lavender, pink himalayan salts and a little vitamin E-rich Jojoba oil. You can see the full ingredients list here.

Sprinkle a handful to your running bath, to bring an overall sense of wellbeing and calm to mind and body. It’s such a treat – try some. Don’t forget to use your PHC10 code for 10% off. You can see more on Inlight here as it is one of my recommended grain, corn and dairy free skincare ranges.