Q & A: October 28, 2012

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1. Question: Why Should I Vote Yes on California’s Prop 37?

Hi, I was planning on voting yes on Prop 37, but received some info (click here to view the PDF) from a friend that says we should be voting no.

I would love your opinion on why we should vote yes…

Thanks!

Answer

First of all, I googled Laurie C. Dolan, Ph.D. who is the author of the PDF. She works for the Burdock Group, which is a consulting firm that helps companies in the process of getting the FDA to approve a new foods and dietary supplements.

You can find a link to Dolan’s CV here.

Take a look at some of the things she does for the Burdock Group:

• Help clients obtain regulatory clearance for new food and cosmetic ingredients, devices and dietary supplements.
• Prepare New Dietary Ingredient and GRAS Notifications for submission to FDA.
• Represent clients in presentations to FDA and stakeholders.

The Burdock Group website does not list their clients, I did a little searching and found a link to a 2007 safety evaluation on aspartame conducted by the Burdock Group. The evaluation was funded by Ajinomoto, the largest manufacturer of aspartame, which is a GMO food.

Gee, you think she might be a little biased?

There are many flaws in this PDF. Let’s walk through them, shall we?

According to Dolan:

“If passed, the law would take effect July, 2014. Adoption of the law would require the relabeling of tens of thousands of common grocery products if they contain any genetically engineered ingredients.”

This makes it sound like food producers would have to go to a lot of trouble to produce new labels. They redesign and print new labels all the time. And according to an Emory University study (download it here) that shows that labeling GMOs would cost consumers less than $1 per year per person.

Dolan argues: “A new economic study shows that Proposition 37 would increase the cost of a typical family’s grocery bill by an average of $350-$400 per year.”

She’s quoting a study that was paid for by the opposition (No on Prop 37), and was funded by Monsanto, Dow Chemical, Syngenta, and other chemical and big food corporations. This is debunked in the Emory University study I cited above (download it here).

Bottom line: You are being lied to.

These people are being paid lots and lots of money from the likes of Monsanto, Dow Chemical, Sygenta, et al.

Just because someone says something doesn’t make it true. Make them prove it. Ask for the evidence. And ask who’s lining their pockets.

2. Question: Problems with GAPS Diet

Hi! And thanks for this interesting series…

Here’s my question:

From birth until age 30, I was a lacto-ovo vegetarian –- a “healthy” vegetarian who ate tons of homemade food, whole grains, vegetables, etc. But my oldest son was sick and getting sicker, and by 2010 when he was six, he was incredibly anorexic and slipping into an autistic haze.

A modified GAPS protocol is absolutely and amazingly helping – -but although things are SO so so much better (it’s been 2.5 years), my son is so fragile that he still has months (like this past) when anything sweet/starchy/fibrous will precipitate diarrhea. My middle child, meanwhile, is constipated and having a terrible lip rash and REALLY wants to stop bedwetting. At the same time, my husband’s digestive system always feels inflamed, and his autoimmune symptoms are not really abating. Additionally, his face is inflamed and peeling, and he is so incredibly not-hungry, like it’s masked. This has been going on since before GAPS, and really never got better at all –- the result is almost anorexic, except he is dying to gain weight and tries to eat more, with no success.

I wonder if maybe my husband’s gut could handle more carbs at this point, and maybe needs them?? I’m curious about RRARFing. But WHY does it work?? This is what my tired brain can’t understand.

I still don’t get why it would somehow be GOOD to go back to a low-fat, high-carb, low-protein diet, which is what I was doing for my whole life and my husband was doing for the 14 years he was with me before GAPS. It does seem like we need to change up some things, though…

Can you shed light on this?

Regards,
Sarabeth

Answer

Here’s the real secret to GAPS: Probiotics.

Everyone gets hung up on the food restrictions but that’s not really what it’s about. It’s also not about low carb or high carb.

YES, it is helpful and even necessary to avoid foods you cannot digest — until you can digest them again. But the reason you cannot digest them is because you don’t have adequate good gut flora. So it’s not enough to just avoid foods. You have to build up the good bacteria in your gut. And if you are not doing that fast enough/aggressively enough, or if you are using probiotics that do not work, you won’t see results.

You’ve been on GAPS for 2.5 years. Which probiotic have you been taking? There are only 2 or 3 I know on the market that actually work at all. If you’re not taking any probiotic, or you’re not taking one of the ones that work, that’s most likely your problem.

Do you need to avoid some foods a la GAPS? Yes, if you cannot digest them. This is determined during the Introduction Diet (initial elimination diet, and subsequent trials with foods you avoided). But introducing the right probiotics and continually increasing them is the most important thing.

I myself only gave up grains for about a month on the elimination diet. After that I only avoided gluten and sugar for two years — those were the only things I could not digest. I still ate potatoes, honey, rice, etc. And I still cured my gluten intolerance, arthritis and chronic fatigue and constant sinus infections.

In short, do what works for you. Pay attention to your symptoms. And work with a GAPS practitioner if you need to. You should be seeing a steady elimination of symptoms and you should be making progress. If you’re not, something needs tweaking.

3. Question: Standard Process and Ovarian Cysts?

Dear Ann Marie,

I found your website while doing a google search for “mood swings after discontinuing Standard Process Products”. I plan to read it more thoroughly today.

To give you (somewhat short) background: I have been using Standard Process for the past 6 months to improve thyroid function, flush toxins from my liver, balance hormones, and improve allergies. I have felt great the past 6 months until my most recent menstrual cycle when ovarian cyst pain returned. I was out of commission for 36 hours due to extreme pain.

I have had this issue before and MD’s insisted I use birth control pills. I discontinued the birth control pills when I started the Standard Process. I prefer natural products and DO NOT like the idea of birth control pills & extra hormones.

I had hoped the Standard Process would take care of the ovarian cysts because it was balancing my hormones. When I started to research Standard Process I decided to discontinue using the products because I realized I was taking a lot of Bovine and it kind of grossed me out. The problem is that I have been having extreme mood swings (for me) the last two weeks and they seem to be more extreme as time goes by.

Obviously Standard Process was doing something for me even if it didn’t take care of the cyst pain.

How can using bovine hormones & liver be good for my body? I do not understand the science behind Standard Process even though I have searched the internet and asked my nutritionist.

Will you explain your understanding/nutritional philosophy using real foods to me? Do you understand how the bovine hormones affect our bodies? I would really appreciate it. I know I felt good and I know I do not want artificial hormones.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Amanda

Answer

First of all, as I always say, I’m not a doctor.

I don’t know what you are referring to when you say “bovine hormones”. Standard Process supplements contain real food and many of them contain bovine body parts (such as the liver or glands) — but not “bovine hormones”.

Eating the organs of animals helps us because the organs contain many nutrients. Organs like the liver and heart contain anywhere from 10-100 times the nutrients found in muscle meats.

You might look into iodine deficiency and cysts.

According to Dr. Jorges Flechas:

“Iodine deficiency may cause the ovaries to develop cysts nodules and scar tissue. At its worse this ovarian pathology is very similar to that of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). As of the writing of this article I have five PCOS patients. The patients have successfully been brought under control with the use of 50 mg of iodine per day. Control with these patients meaning cysts are gone, periods every 28 days and type 2 diabetes mellitus under control.” (Source)

Iodine is Vital for Good Health
Breast Cancer Choices
Orthoiodosupplementation in a Primary Care Practice

4. Question: Impacted Wisdom Tooth?

Hi, Ann Marie!

I am currently 17 years old and have followed a WAPF/Paleo blend diet for almost two years. I had lots of orthodontia as a child, but I’ve recently found out that one of my wisdom teeth is impacted. I supposed my eating nutrient dense food can’t correct generations of awful eating by my ancestors. My dentist advised me to just remove all my wisdom teeth, but all I could hear was your voice in my head saying, “Say NO to extractions!”

That’s exactly what I intend to do. I’ve been reading a lot of NCR as well as the Homeoblock device, and I’ve actually made an appointment with a holistic dentist that offers homeoblock. I’m thinking that if I can widen my palate, my wisdom teeth might be able to come in. I don’t want to exacerbate my narrow jawline by pulling my beloved wisdom teeth.

What are your thoughts about Homeoblock? Do you think it can help me? I think NCR will be more expensive and I think it is too radical for my parents to consider.

Julia

Answer

I would most definitely avoid extractions. I wish I had never had my wisdom teeth removed. When you extract teeth, the bones in the face collapse. It would be like if you pulled all the structural supports out from under a building. As a result, you can end up with all kinds of problems from worsening eyesight and hearing, premature aging and wrinkling (the bones in the face are there to keep the skin taut — when they collapse, your skin sags and wrinkles), sleep apnea, mental and behavioral problems (depression, anxiety, ADD, etc.).

I had a session with Dr. Dean Howell yesterday and I asked him your question.

He said the Homeoblock device works and you can even get it paid for with insurance. However, it’s important not to use it more than a few minutes a day. He says, for most people, the maximum amount of time to wear any dental appliance is somewhere around 5-7 minutes per day. He says that that most dentai/orthopedic appliances such as braces, head gear and palate expanders don’t work because people wear them for too long. If you put your body under stress, your body kicks into the sympathetic mode and builds scar tissue instead of bone. It can only build bone in the parasympathetic mode.

From Wikipedia:

“…the parasympathetic system is responsible for stimulation of “rest-and-digest” or “feed and breed” activities that occur when the body is at rest, including sexual arousal, salivation, lacrimation (tears), urination, digestion, and defecation. Its action is described as being complementary to that of one of the other main branches of the ANS, the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for stimulating activities associated with the fight-or-flight response”

So take that into consideration if you do get the Homeoblock.

That said, I asked Dr. Howell, “What is the difference between the Homeoblock vs. the combination of NCR and the helmet that you use?” (He designed a special helmet for his patients that they were for a few minutes per day to pull the bones in the face.)

He said that the Homeoblock does work, but that NCR and the helmet combo work much faster. And he said that the Homeblock only works on the head/face and does not address issues with the whole body. When you do NCR, they do bodywork and you actually have your whole body realigned, which is really important because the skull sits on the spinal column and it all needs to be adjusted together.

By the way, Dr. Howell’s son had a very narrow palate and was told by his orthodontist that he would be able to expand his palate 2 millimeters with surgery and braces. Dr. Howell did NCR on his son and they expanded his palate I think it was either 12 or 22 millimeters (I didn’t write it down so I can’t remember… I’ll ask again today). His son never had to have his wisdom teeth out as a result.

My obvious preference is for NCR. Based on my research and personal interactions with Dr. Howell and his son, I think it is the very best treatment available.

You can contact Dr. Howell on his website and ask his assistant if she can refer you to someone who can help you.

5. Question: Long-Fermented Sourdough Bread?

Hi,

I have searched your website, but have not found info on “allows the bread to ferment for several days up to a month.” To ferment bread for a month, is the dough kept in the refrigerator?

Thanks,

Tony

Answer

This is in reference to this post: Top 10 Reasons to Eat Real Sourdough Bread.

Jack Bezian is a baker in Los Angeles. He has a method for fermenting his sourdough bread for several days up to a month. I don’t know his exact method but yes, it is fermented in the fridge.

6. Question: Kefir Question for You!

Smoothies seem to be one of the most popular ways to use kefir. However, wouldn’t all of the exposure to a metal blade in your blender kill all of the cultured probiotics in the drink?

I don’t want to go to all of the work of making kefir and daily smoothies for my family if there is little to no remaining probiotic benefit! Confused by how this is OK, but it it is, I can’t wait to make me some smoothies.

Thanks,
Jennifer

Answer

Probiotic or “good” bacteria is microscopic, so no, it is not damaged in any way by a metal blade.

7. Question: High Cholesterol and Statin Drugs?

A friend of mine just had a check-up and her cholesterol was 323. Of course, the doctor immediately put her on a statin. Her HDL was 65 and her triglycerides were 195. What would you do in this case?

Linda Sue

Answer

I would never go on a statin drug.

See this article: Do You Really Need That Statin? This Expert Says No.

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