nutrition Archives - Epidemic Answers

What’s Making Our Children Sick?

We interviewed Michelle Perro MD, co-author of What’s Making Our Children Sick?: How Industrial Food Is Causing an Epidemic of Chronic Illness, and What Parents (and Doctors) Can Do About It. This book explores the links between genetically modified foods (GMOs), glyphosate, and gut health. What if toxicants in our foods are a major culprit, one that, if corrected, could lead to tangible results and increased health? In this webinar you will learn about: New medical insights about pathogenesis of chronic pediatric disorders Gut dysfunction The microbiome The politics of food science The link between higher-yield, cost-efficient foods and an explosion of childhood morbidity A toxic food supply Insight on the medical responses that are available, both to heal our kids and to reverse the compromised health of our food supply In the webinar, Dr. Perro provided interesting insight into how removing pesticides and genetically modified foods from the diet by eating organic foods has led to significant improvements in her patients’ health,…

Having Healthy Babies

We interviewed Kristy Rodriguez, Annalise Stack and Ania Dunlop, who educated us about having healthy babies and prenatal health. A mother’s health during pregnancy has an enormous impact on the health outcome of her baby. In this webinar you will learn about: Preparing the body for pregnancy Foods and nutrients that create a healthier pregnancy Healthy movement for mom during pregnancy Healthy mindset during pregnancy Preparing the home for baby How to green the home How to create a healthy sanctuary Please note that you will be asked to enter your email address at the 30-minute mark to finish viewing the video. About Our Panel Kristy Rodriguez Kristy Rodriguez is a mom, HypnoBirthing® childbirth educator, certified holistic health coach, and registered prenatal yoga instructor specializing in prenatal and postpartum wellness, advocacy and empowerment. With her accumulated years of experience in education and health, she brings extensive knowledge, personal experience and deep compassion to her students. She founded Pure Nurture, LLC…

Cultivating Resilience for Reversing Chronic Health Conditions

We interviewed Josie Nelson, founder of Integrative Health Strategies, program director of the Documenting Hope Project, and co-developer of the CHIRP™ study, about cultivating resilience for reversing chronic health conditions. Whether you’ve “been there, done that” with approaches to your child’s health condition or are just getting started, you won’t want to miss our conversation with Josie Nelson. We talked about: Removing obstacles to the healing process (and adding supports) What to do when expensive integrative care is out of reach Why we often overlook the fundamentals (and how to get back to them) Getting support from your child’s primary care provider (really) How to leverage other health practitioners (and when) Where to find the best clues (even when you’ve been there/done that) Taking a deeper dive into your child’s health history (and why that matters) Please note that you will be asked to enter your email address at the 30-minute mark to finish viewing the video. About Josie Nelson…

MTHFR and Other SNPs That Can Affect Health

We interviewed Kendra Becker-Mussante (the “genetic genius”) about MTHFR and other SNPs (genetic mutations) that can affect health. With the mapping of the human genome in recent years, a lot of research has gone into understanding how some genetic differences called SNPs (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms) play a role in the etiology of disease and chronic health conditions. Dr. Kendra Becker-Mussante joined us to educate us about some of the more commonly known mutations that can affect kids with autism, ADHD, SPD, autoimmune disorders, allergies and asthma. Some of the SNPs we discussed are: MTHFR CBS SUOX COMT GAD65 Dr. Becker discussed how “genetics loads the gun, but environment pulls the trigger“, meaning that just because you or your child has one or more of these mutations does not necessarily mean that a disease or chronic health condition will occur. Instead, Dr. Becker revealed how diet and lifestyle interventions can affect the expression of these genes and improve health outcomes. Please…

Everyday Immunity: Strategies for Prevention and Healing

We interviewed Lauren Lee Stone, PhD, MS, HHP, nutritionist, holistic health practitioner and board member of Epidemic Answers about everyday immunity. Boosting our natural, everyday immunity is one of the most expedient actions we can take to prevent against viral infections. A weak and dysfunctional immune system can cause an overreaction of the immune system, which can result in the body attacking itself in order to fight off a pathogenic invader. In this webinar, Lauren Lee Stone explains how our immune system becomes weakened through: A diet of too many processed carbohydrates A stressful lifestyle Lack of sunlight Nutritional deficiencies Gut dysbiosis Dehydration Low stomach acid Thyroid dysfunction Lauren discussed simple things you can do to improve your ability to fight off infections. Please note that you will be asked to enter your email address at the 30-minute mark to finish viewing the video. About Lauren Lee Stone, PhD, MS, HHP Lauren Lee Stone is a nutritionist and holistic health practitioner…

What Does Vitamin A Toxicity Look Like? with Garrett Smith NMD

We interviewed licensed naturopathic medical doctor Garrett Smith, the founder of Nutrition Restored about vitamin A toxicity. Vitamin A is sometimes given to help reduce a person’s viral load. However, it is well-known that vitamin A toxicity can happen in humans and animals because at some point, the liver can no longer quickly absorb and store vitamin A, so the excess is then stored in fat. Because chronic vitamin A toxicity is a slow build up over years and decades until parts of the body are near saturated, it can be difficult to pinpoint when levels have built up to harmful amounts. The basic premise of Dr. Smith’s work is that many autoimmune diseases are caused by being in a chronic state of elevated storage levels of retinol, retinoic acid and possibly the carotenoid vitamin A precursor. This build up appears to be happening in lockstep with the introduction of use of the pesticide, RoundUp, which contains the toxic…

School Lunch Programs: Feeding Mind, Body and Soul

Alyce Ortuzar fills us in on what’s in a school lunch, how it relates to your child’s health, how to improve it and how to get your kids involved in the process. It’s lunchtime at school. What are your kids eating? Here are some possibilities: Meat and dairy products with government-approved pesticides and endocrine- disrupting hormones U.S. Department of Agriculture-subsidized irradiated beef or chicken from sick and stressed animals raised under unsanitary and inhumane conditions Products loaded with chemicals and devoid of nutrients qualifying as food, such as artificial strawberry-flavored milkshakes containing such mystery ingredients as: Amyl acetate Anethol Anisyl formate Benzyl isobutyrate Dipropyl ketone Ethyl butyrate Phenethyl alcohol Rum ether Solvent What’s Wrong with Additives? Research shows that pesticides and hormone-disruptors are neurotoxic to growing brains. In the 1970s, pediatrician Benjamin Feingold linked food additives, dyes and other additives to hyperactive behavior and learning problems. Removing these poisons and putting children on diets of salycilate-free fresh fruits, vegetables, and…

MTHFR Mutation

A genetic mutation called MethyleneTetraHydroFolate Reductase, otherwise known as an MTHFR mutation or methylation defect, may be one reason why some children develop autism or other neurodevelopmental disorder. There are many contributing factors involved in this “perfect storm” situation which may accurately describe your child. The MTHFR mutation may explain why some children survive the overload of environmental toxicity whatever the triggers may be, whereas others, at some point during their early stages of neurological development, regress and remain somewhere on the vast spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders. MTHFR is a type of folate that crosses the blood brain barrier (folic acid, which is synthetic, does not) needed to make the brain methylate; put simply, methylation is a method of detoxification. Children with autism have been found to have “Cerebral Folate Deficiency” (CFD) which means an insufficiency of folate in the brain causing defects in the methylation process. What Is Methylation? Defects in the methylation process can affect: Speech Language Auditory…

Magnesium: The Super-Mineral

Magnesium can stop an asthma attack, pull toxins out of the body, increase circulation, remove age spots, decrease joint pain and relieve constipation. It is the eighth most plentiful element on the planet and the fourth most abundant mineral in the body. It is essential for a very wide gamut of critical body functions, affecting virtually every organ system. Why Is Magnesium Important in Developmental Delays? This mineral is directly responsible for over 300 biochemical bodily reactions, many of which have gone awry in individuals with autism, attention issues, Sensory Processing Disorder and other developmental delays. It is extremely important in the metabolism of fellow elements: cadmium, calcium, copper, iron, phosphorus, potassium, lead, sulfur and zinc. It is the single most important mineral for maintaining proper electrical balance and facilitating smooth metabolism in the cells. One of the major properties of it is that of stabilizing cell membranes. The health status of the digestive system and the kidneys significantly influence…

Vitamin D Deficiency

Increasing amounts of research (see References, below) point to a vitamin D deficiency as being linked to autism, as well as ADHD, allergies, asthma and autoimmune disorders. What Is Vitamin D and How Do We Get It? Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is produced naturally as D3 or cholecalciferol (pronounced koh·luh·kal·sif·uh·rawl) when sunlight hits the skin. Most people used to get sufficient vitamin D3 from sunlight. Today, vitamin D deficiency is rampant largely in part to increased use of sunscreen to prevent skin cancer, coupled with a move away from an agrarian society. A Perfect Storm for Vitamin D Deficiency With just 10-40 minutes of unprotected summer sun our bodies produce about 20,000 units of vitamin D. The body makes what it needs, accumulating and storing significant reserves in the tissues, liver, spleen, bones, and brain; it can be then be available during darker months. Vitamin D is fat soluble, requiring sufficient “good” fats in the diet for…