Fermented & Healthy

Environmental Research Center

December 10, 2021

Diet

We’ve talked in a previous article about the health benefits of probiotics and prebiotics. We know that staying healthy requires maintaining a healthy microbiome. We also know that you can get legitimate supplements to supply both but the best way is really through your balanced diet. One of the best sources of pre- and probiotics is fermented food. Anything like yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, or even beverages like kombucha or kefir will provide some level of probiotics! These are things that are regularly consumed around the world and now we are seeing the value beyond their unique flavors and umami filled tastes. In addition, it is also important to consume prebiotic foods! Some of these include garlic, honey, onions, chicory and resistant oligosaccharides.

The benefits of fermented foods therefore track pretty closely with the benefit of a healthy biome with both probiotic and prebiotic support. There is a boost to cardiovascular health and the mitigation of high blood pressure. Diabetes, obesity and really anything inflammation based chronic illness benefit from the inclusion of fermented foods in one’s diet. Additionally, mental health and bone health also improve as the microbiome is supported.

Check out this short video going over some easy to incorporate fermented foods!

Once You find a fermented food that you enjoy, getting the necessary pro-and prebiotics in you diet will be easy and natural and will be in a more absorbable form that simply taking a capsule.

RESOURCES:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8620815/

https://europepmc.org/article/MED/33838493

https://www.heartfoundation.org.nz/about-us/news/blogs/fermented-foods-the-latest-trend

Environmental Research Center

November 9, 2021

Diet

Chocolate, Health & Healthy Chocolate

Environmental Research Center

November 9, 2021

Diet

You’ve probably seen the jokes floating around that go something like, “I want a salad…but a salad that is mostly tomatoes and cheese, no lettuce, on a really, really big crouton. A pizza…I want a pizza.” Or, “chocolate comes from cocoa, which grows on trees so it’s basically a fruit. Chocolate is a fruit salad.” While these memes might stretch the truth a little bit, chocolate at least should not be relegated to the junk food pile just yet.

Chocolate or more specifically the cocoa chocolate is made from, is linked to a reduction in heart disease and lower blood pressure. It contains many bioactive components like vitamins, minerals, polyphenols and fatty acids. It is also supportive of mental health and has been documented to improve the mental state of expecting mothers. One article stated that because there is a high level of flavanols in chocolate, it has antiallergic, anti-viral, anti inflammatory and anticancer properties. It even reduces the chance of a woman developing type 2 diabetes by reducing their insulin resistance. It would seem that the benefit of chocolate is more significant for people assigned female at birth, possibly because of their hormonal makeup or maybe some other feature we don‘t totally understand yet.

Historically, chocolate was used in many cultures for its medicinal purposes and was even referred to as the “food of the gods”. With Nestle and the introduction of ingredients like condensed powdered milk and large amounts of sugar, chocolate’s common usage as a medicine started to see a significant decline.

Polyphenols could have a discussion all their own but the presence of their flavanols subset in chocolate pushes chocolate into an almost superfood tier when it comes to cognitive function. In fact, one study made their entire purpose to figure out if chocolate consumption in a country resulted in a higher cognitive function on average for that country! They did this by taking the chocolate consumption for the country and examining it with regard to how many Nobel laureates there were in each country. The results supported the hypothesis that chocolate consumption enhances intelligence.

As you might imagine, milk chocolate yields less of these beneficial characteristics and white chocolate isn’t really chocolate in the strictest sense. The addition of milk and sugar undercuts a lot of the benefits so if you are eating chocolate for your health as well as your enjoyment, dark chocolate, minimally processed, is the way to go.

Listen to this article:

Environmental Research Center

October 22, 2021

Diet

Got Milk...Problems?

Environmental Research Center

October 22, 2021

Diet

Got Milk…Problems?

Whether you are a 13-year-old pug taking the world by storm or a young, human athlete trying to build a solid physiological foundation for success, everyone wants strong bones. If you grew up in the 90s, milk was touted to be the best way to strengthen bones as it contained high amounts of calcium. The iconic “Got Milk?” commercials were in their prime, presenting a spectrum of unlikely events hinging on the need and lack of milk! Many probably remember the fateful commercial where a mom in her two kids witness their older neighbor who never drinks milk comically losing both arms while lifting a heavy wheelbarrow. It was “common knowledge” that milk supported bone health and was necessary for healthy kids! Even now there are a number of experts that still believe milk is the fastest way to get a spectrum of nutrients, including calcium, quickly and easily. When research came out discussing how milk leaches some calcium from your bones, the pro-milk group claimed that while milk leaches some calcium from the body, it also adds significantly more, having an overall positive impact. So, what does the research actually show about the consumption of milk?

Research shows that while excellent for baby cows, cow's milk is not particularly healthy or necessary for growing humans. It is, in fact, linked to vascular congestion and weight gain. Additionally, while human breast milk is an important part of human nutrition, cow’s milk is instead an integral part of the development of gastrointestinal issues. More than half of the global population is thought to have some level of lactose intolerance. It’s also been tied to several different types of acne and other types of dermatitis.

What about bone health? Well, for one notable group, older women, research shows that there is no real link between milk and protection against osteoporosis. Additionally, in another study, drinking milk increased the frequency of broken bones (brittleness) in men by 9%! The research as a whole seems to agree that limiting milk is best for bone health. Even if one cup a day doesn’t hurt your bones significantly, more is shown to be measurably detrimental. Besides that, higher dairy consumption has been linked to several forms of cancer, including ovarian cancer, and is thought to be a possible trigger for Type 1 diabetes. It’s also known to raise cholesterol and increase a population's risk of multiple sclerosis.

What about all that calcium? Not only does milk leach calcium from your bones but it isn’t the best form of calcium for the human body to absorb! There are many other better sources of calcium that don’t carry as many deleterious side effects. Leafy greens, tofu, plant-based milk or even a clean supplement might be a better source of the calcium you need. Additionally, as far as strong bones go, the research also found that more than taking calcium or drinking it, exercise is the best way to support strong bones! So maybe give that 2% a break and instead eat well and keep moving!