Health and Fitness Magazine                                                                                                   March 2009                                                                    

Start spring renewal with thorough cleansing of body                                                   Dennis Godby, MA, NMD

If the new season inspires you to spring-clean your home, you may want to add “spring cleaning” for your body as well!  Just as you wouldn’t spring clean your home without first taking out the garbage and clearing out the clutter, neither would I recommend you attempt to revitalize your body without taking out the trash - detoxifying (cleansing) your body from internally and externally produced toxins.

The majority of the chemicals that find their way into our body get stored in fat.  Unfortunately, they don’t stay there.  The stored toxicity eventually works its way into general circulation where it is a significant cause of disease and accelerated aging.

Toxicity affects the body as:

Functional changes manifesting as poor health with symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, mood swings, memory loss, muscle pain, apathy, weight problems and depression.

Pathological changes manifest as actual diseases such as: cancer, autoimmune diseases (i.e. rheumatoid arthritis, MS, and 65 or more others), atherosclerosis, chronic fatigue, learning disorders, eczema, infertility, fibromyalgia, panic attacks, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, tinnitus, arthritis and digestive problems, and many others.

The body has evolved an intricate system to deal with toxicity.  Unfortunately, it did not evolve to deal with the enormous burden that modern life has placed upon it. 

Toxic compounds that the body is unable to detoxify and eliminate build up in the body, especially in the extracellular matrix and fatty tissue.  Functional detoxification focuses on cleansing and supporting these tissues.

The major organs of detoxification the liver/gallbladder, lymphatic system, digestive tract, kidneys and skin.

The liver plays a number of different roles in detoxification:

Blood Filtration.  Every minute, approximately 60 fluid ounces of blood flows through the liver from the intestines to remove 99% of the bacteria and other toxic compounds in the blood before it is able to reach general circulation.  Liver damage will compromise blood filtration.

Bile Production and Secretion.  The liver produces about 30 fluid ounces of bile per day, which is a carrier for cholesterol and fat-soluble toxins.  Adequate dietary fiber absorbs bile in the intestines where it is eliminated.  A low fiber diet allows these unbound toxins to be reabsorbed. 

The biotransformation of toxic substances by a complex system of interrelated enzymes.  The process occurs in two phases.  Toxic compounds neutralized in these phases include: pesticides, herbicides, drugs, toxins from the gut, hormones and inflammatory chemicals.

If your health and vitality seems to be going downhill, consider your liver!

Our bodies must be able to detoxify, or neutralize, toxins in the environment (chemicals, plastics, heavy metals, etc.), as well as those produced within our own bodies.

This process takes place mostly in the liver, and consists of two phases.

Dr. Dicken Weatherby, ND, describes the process: In Phase 1 toxins are activated, which means they are changed in such a way that carrier molecules (Phase 2) are able to transport them out of the body.

Phase 1 is accomplished by a group of enzymes called “cytochrome P450,” and Phase 2 takes place via a number of important mechanisms which we are able to test and monitor.

A Phase 1 analogy is bagging the garbage in your home and bringing it to the street.  This is Phase 1.

Phase 2 is when the truck picks up the garbage and hauls it away. 

Both Phase 1 and Phase II detoxification must function adequately to neutralize toxins, and the two phases must be in balance with each other so that the activated compounds from Phase 1 cannot accumulate in the body and cause damage.

Visualize a single long tube with rushing water flowing through it.  This is Phase 1. There is a critical point when the water flowing down the single tube divided into 6 different tubes.  Each of the separate tubes has unique characteristics and qualities.

Now the remarkable thing about the human body and especially the liver is that toxins, chemicals, antigens (any molecule that stimulates an immune response) have been “assigned” a specific pathway.  Their name is written on the front door of these unique pathways.

At the point where they split up each has a specific door it has to enter.

There is a problem when one of the doors may only be partially opened, or worse, closed, causing the named toxin for the pathway to have to share a pathway with other toxins.  This overloads the co-factors needed to neutralize the toxic element, significantly reducing the body’s ability to clear these compounds from the body.

This can significantly reduce the body’s ability to clear compounds.

The good news is these blocked liver pathways are usually correctable by taking the following three steps:

  Testing to see if and where the problem is through detoxification profiles and ground-breaking genetic detoxification testing

  Doing a detoxification program that is well-balanced for phase 1 and 2 liver detoxification

  Consciously reducing toxic exposure

Even if you can’t do anything about a genetically-influenced tortoise-like metabolism, you can still burn fat more efficiently, add more muscle to your body, and get and stay fit.

Like most other Americans, the majority of my patients would like to “lose weight,” but often experience extreme difficulties doing so. Below is a partial list of critically important things to consider if you would like to improve your body composition – safely and surely.

1.         Focus on improving your physiology and revving up your metabolism instead of being obsessed with restricting calories, missing meals, and other unsafe eating strategies.

2.         The real health issue is not losing “weight,” but excess fat, especially at the waist. We all have different frames. Measure your success with percent body fat/lean tissue, not with weight.

3.         The goal is to increase muscle mass, so that you can more easily shed body FAT, feel stronger and have more energy. The more muscle you have, the more energy you will burn – 24 hours a day.

4.         Eating every three hours increases metabolism. On the contrary, eating 1-2 meals per day, like the sumo wrestler, will lead to weight gain. “Miss more than 12 hours without eating and your metabolic rate can go DOWN by as much as 40% !!” (Weatherby, ND, Grisant, DC, Bramos, ACE)

5.         A slow metabolism may also be caused by eating the wrong kind of foods, such as processed foods, especially those that contain trans fats and sugar, high fructose corn syrup may be the worst culprit. (Weatherby, ND, Grisanti, DC, Bramos, ACE).

6.         It is essential to eat breakfast. 80% of my overfat patients do not eat breakfast.

7.         “Eating protein can step up metabolism by 14%.” Dr. Weatherby recommends eating up to 1 gram for every pound of body weight.

8.         Eat 30-50 grams of fiber, especially the soluble kind, which lowers insulin levels, and fat storage.

9.         William Ferril, MD in, “The Body Heals,” says emphatically that "obesity can be cured only when hormones are optimal, and not until."  The key word is optimal. Please take hormones only after being tested, not doing so can be dangerous.

There are seven main hormones involved.

            Insulin is the biggest fat maker. A big clue to potentially having unhealthy insulin levels is storing fat abdominally leading to a vicious cycle of failed diet attempts and progressive fat gain.

Higher-than-optimal insulin levels, powerfully stimulates the appetite, leading to an obsessive desire for more carbohydrates, overeating, abdominal obesity, increasing triglycerides (fats) in the liver's blood supply, and, eventually, ineffective insulin receiving sites (keys to the locks don't work) leading to insulin resistance causing even more insulin to be produced.

            IGF-1 is the only dependable indicator of bio-available growth hormone in the human body.  In a healthy person, IGF-1 levels are 100 times insulin levels.  When there is ample supply of IGF-1, there is less need for insulin. 

In healthy individuals, insulin levels are very low between meals, on the contrary, unhealthy people will have high insulin levels because IGF-1 is low. Exercise has a powerful effect on increasing growth hormone, and therefore IGF-1 levels.

            Cortisol is secreted with perceived stress. 

            Today, however, most stress is mental; cortisol increases blood sugar, which raises insulin, thereby increasing fat storage. With middle age and obesity, DHEA drops, leading to lower IGF-1 levels, more insulin and more fat.

            Androgens (androstenedione, DHEA, testosterone, and possibly progesterone) are the anti-fat hormones.  They oppose cortisol and insulin.  When androgens are optimal, as in adolescence, the tendency to get fat is less likely. 

            Androgens, reaching their peaks in early adulthood for both males and females, decline slightly each year after 25.  Obesity is caused by increased body insulin and cortisol, with a fall in androgens.

            As a practitioner, I have especially witnessed the amazing benefit of DHEA in my patients with abdominal obesity.  

            Estrogen can contribute to obesity in some females when levels are too high in relation to progesterone, causing a condition known as “estrogen dominance,” which can raise insulin and lower androgens.  One example is the estrogen-induced weight gain from birth control pills.  When estrogen levels are high, however, IGF-1 release is inhibited.

            Thyroid optimal function is critical to metabolism.  Make sure that your thyroid is operating efficiently, or losing fat will be an uphill battle.  Because reference ranges of conventional laboratories are so wide, i.e. TSH is, for example, 0.5-4.5, instead of the naturopathic optimal 1.3-2.0, hypothyroidism is commonly underdiagnosed. Consider a doctor with ample thyroid experience.

            Epinephrine is necessary to activate cortisol and thyroid receptors to maintain normal metabolism.  Epinephrine deficiency may result from hypochlorhydria (insufficient stomach HCl), leading to poor disassembly of proteins, and a deficiency of available amino acids such as phenylalanine or tyrosine, necessary for production of epinephrine. 

            For more information, contact Dr. Dennis Godby, NMD at DrGodby@SacND.com or 916-446-2591.

What you don’t know about hidden/delayed food allergies can hurt you                  Dennis Godby, MA, NMD

Naturopathic medical doctors often see themselves as “medical detectives.” One of the six powerful principles of naturopathic medical doctors is to identify and treat the underlying causes of illness and to help patients remove the obstacles to cure, rather than merely treating symptoms.

Because we all have to eat, and nutritional therapy is one of the primary foundations for a healthy life, I often talk to patients about hidden and delayed IgG food allergies – especially because most people are unfamiliar with this form of allergy. Patients will often tell me: “I don’t have any food allergies” or “I have already been tested by my doctor.”  The knowledge in the popular culture and conventional medical system is of only one form of food allergy – the immediate reaction. An example of this is the well-publicized story several years ago of the teenage girl who died immediately after kissing her boyfriend - merely because he had eaten peanut butter before the fatal kiss.

This tragic story is an extreme example of a “hypersensitive” reaction, called IgE.  Fortunately, these fatal encounters with food are fairly uncommon, as our current medical system and much of the public are very aware of these types of allergies. IgE reactions are “immediate,” and potentially life-threatening.

However, the emphasis of this article is about the less obvious, hidden and delayed IgG food allergies/sensitivities that do not exhibit an immediate obvious reaction, but, nevertheless, are often very serious, and more chronic in nature, such as ulcerative colitis.

IgG reactions are often delayed for hours, days or even many weeks after the foods have been eaten which makes it difficult to track what foods are causing problems – especially if a person doesn’t know these type of allergies even exist.  Some experts estimate one-half or more of the American population may have multiple food allergies. Every child I have tested, with a chronic condition, with one exception, has had multiple food allergies.

In my own practice, I have witnessed approximately 50 people dramatically transform their health and vitality because of the identification of IgG food allergies. For example, one patient gave this testimonial:

        “To be free from suffering after 40 years of arthritic-caused severe lower back pain, simply from eliminating food allergens and gluten for only two weeks is absolutely wonderful! I am now planting gardens and have a new lease on life and attitude at age 80.”

What this patient didn’t say was that he was so impressed with how he felt after abstaining from the offending foods that he bought food allergy tests for all 13 of his family members.  

The popular saying of “let your food be your medicine and your medicine your food,” is sound advice, but often people, because they are not aware of IgG food allergies, will make food choices that, instead of leading to health, are derailing it - all without their awareness.

Hidden and delayed food/allergies contribute or cause hundreds of health conditions and symptoms, that tend to be chronic and recurrent, and affect multiple bodily systems, such as: Cardio/Respiratory (asthma, high blood pressure, nasal congestion, rhinitis, sinusitis); Digestive (bloating, constipation, cramping, Crohn’s, colic, diarrhea, IBS, nausea/vomiting); Immune System (autoimmune, chronic infections, recurrent ear infections); Musculoskeletal (arthritis, feeling “below par,” weakness, joint and muscle pain); Neurovascular (Meniere’s, migraines); Nervous system (ADHD, children’s mood and behavioral problems, depression, headache, learning difficulties, mood swings); Skin (acne, canker sores, eczema, hives, itching, psoriasis, rashes); and systemic symptoms and conditions (bed-wetting, chronic fatigue, insomnia, multiple chemical sensitivity, obesity, PMS, water retention, weight gain/loss) and many others symptoms and conditions are caused or worsened by delayed and hidden food allergies/sensitivities!

Allergies may promote inflammation and can significantly impact the quality of life! As Chris Meletis, ND, emphasizes, ‘basically, anywhere the blood flows, inflammation from food allergies follows, and symptoms may result.” 

One-half of all food allergies come from just 8 foods: peanuts, eggs, milk, wheat, soy, citrus, corn and shellfish, also chocolate and artificial colorings and preservative can be triggers. 

Most food allergies/sensitivities are acquired throughout life due to: a lack of variety in the diet (the average American eats only 19 foods on an ongoing basis), poor digestion and poor detoxification; genetics also plays a role.  Many people with multiple food allergies have “leaky gut syndrome,” which means that foods (especially proteins), are not being broken down effectively, and once absorbed, an increased immune reaction results.  Healing the gut lining is the priority.