Animal Pharm

Adrenal Fatigue and Jimmy Moore's LLVLC Podcast

2011-12-05T21:20:00.001-08:00

Beautiful People
Courtesy Youtube.com

Jimmy's Moore's LLVLC Podcast!

I did Jimmy Moore's podcast! And joined the beautiful people... We initially had some technical (cough cough Chinese (?saturated broadband/censorship)) difficulties which required EIGHT ATTEMPTS, but it's complete. I think Jimmy let out a BIG gentlemanly sigh of relief. Jimmy talked also about his latest and pending labs, the idea for the next epic post on sustainable, local farming/livestock and his thoughts on heavy metal chelation, which I am really REALLY into.

I was/am Jimmy, hormonally. Like Jimmy I have been stubbornly challenged with regaining and relosing 10-20% of my body weight in the last few years after the initial epic loss of 50 lbs (Jimmy, ~180 lbs).(!!!!frustr-WTF-ating!!!!)

At the worst, my hormone signatures might resemble what Jimmy reported (if I actually measured):
-- high rT3, unstable cortisol, leptin resistance, insulin resistance
-- estrogen dominance
-- wacko FSH/LH (like a menopausal 'menopot')
-- testosterone/thyroid/adrenal deficiencies

Massive Endocrine Disruption (x3), Weight Re-Gains and Reversal

I wish that the Paleolithic Diet was enough. It's not. Paleo is emphatically not enough for decades of neolethal disease and accumulated damages on our biochemical pathways, adipose storage and mitochondrial health (modern toxins -- omega-6, seed oils, pharmaceuticals, dental amalgams, AMA sanctioned mercury laden vaccines, industrial solvents, new house and carpeting 'gas off', bromide antifungals on food, in California ubiquitous flame retardants, etc).

My problem was 5-10 lbs yo-yo wt gains and yo-yo losses over the last few years after the initial 50 lb loss, which I attribute to MASSIVE endocrine disruptions (three times). The first hormone dyscrasia involved the Mirena IUD (levonorgestrel, a potent fake/mimicker of progesterone), then followed by adrenal fatigue with the popular intermittent fasting and ketosis, and lastly gut dysbiosis with mercury and metal toxicity (tetanus shot, accumulation of annual flu shots/vaccines, and a drilled on titanium dental implant). What helped me after multiple episodes of adrenal fatigue including one after moving to Shanghai, China was a high carb (150-200 g/day) non-paleo 'adrenal reset' modeled by Diana Schwarzbein MD in her book 'The Schwarzbein Principle II'.

It worked.

My daily consumption of low and high GI foods went up (rice, meat/vegs, ice cream, chocolate) and carbs totalled 150-200 grams daily, most days. It worked; I gained 8-10 lbs of fat and my adrenals stabilized. More importantly the serum insulin ECLIPSED the serum cortisol which was high/inappropriate due to various factors (stress from transcontinental moving, circadian shifts from jet lag, gut dysbiosis, metal toxicity, etc). Similar plans are in the blogosphere (high carb Bulletproof, PHD, Masterjohn, Kresser, high carb MDA, high carb GAPS (fruit+honey), Ray Peat, high carb Archevore, 4-Hour Body Slow Carb, Matt Stone). Many individuals have kevlar adrenals and perfectly execute IF/ketosis whilst hiking twenty mountain tops sans food, fasting. NEARLY BAREFOOT. (Asclepius and J. Stanton) But the rest of us are mere mortals.

Successful ketosis requires adequately timed and sufficiently secreted (and appropriately down-regulated) cortisol and adrenaline (NE, EPI).

Someday... I'll re-grow my kevlar and bulletproof organs... *haa ahaaa!*

However after getting tired (and frustrated) with the 8-10 lbs of weight gain, I finished the Schwarzbein 'adrenal reset' and easily transitioned to a high carb Kruse 'leptin reset'. I did attempt the Kruse leptin reset with 100g/day (50 g carbs in the morning) but it didn't work the first few times until AFTER I had gained 8-10 lbs on the Schwarzbein 'reset'. I dunno why this was the case. Recently I returned to a stable LC (paleo) + rice + workouts (which worked for my initial 50 lbs fat loss; 50-100 grams carbs/day) and lost a few kilograms in the last month and half.

Adrenal Resets are Leptin Resets IMHO And Vice Versa

The beauty of the Kruse 'reset' is that imho it is also an 'adrenal reset' (and vice versa). Notwithstanding, I believe for many who are adrenally challenged and severely metabolically damaged (like in cases of metal toxicity, environmental toxicity or former vegetarians, yo-yo dieters, over-trainers, under-eaters, etc), the value of an extreme high carb reset (150-200 g/day) with (or without) fat gain may be inconceivable and controversial but UNQUESTIONABLY HIGH if all else fails... Per Schwarzbein, she reports for some extremely metabolically damaged folks two years on the program are mandatory. For me apparently 2 months was ok and sufficient. To safeguard, FYI I still avoid all ketosis, VLC (very low carb) and IF'ing (intermittent fasting). I continue to consume 1/4 to 1/2 tsp Real salt (Utah Redmonds) and maximally play/nap/laugh as much as I can. Adaptogens, liver/GI support, getting morning sunlight, slow BSS/burn, and 'oxygenizing' (employing slow-twitch muscles) without driving excessive cortisol squirts are unbelievably key to staying on track for me. Also my carbs are substantially higher on workout days (100-150 grams wholly based on glycolytic activity and stress) and the weight is still going down without triggering the adrenals.

Heavy Metal Toxicity and Chelation

Jimmy and I talked about chelation and our thoughts; my family and I are still chelating as it requires a minimum of 6-12 months time. I don't endorse many products but this is one I exceptionally fancy because I find it to be safe, gentle, and gradual; the product has been used for over 10 years in physician and practitioners' offices: ExtendedHealth's oral chelator.

More info on Adrenal 'Resets' and Hormones (T, E1 E2 E3, DHEA-S, Preg, P, Cortisol, Leptin, FT4 FT3 rT3):

Pretty in Primal: Adrenal Fatigue

Integrative hormone approach Case Study in insulin resistance and identifying inflammation causes By Dr. Alicia Stanton, Chief Medical Officer of BodyLogicMD

Another integrative medicine approach to thyroid and adrenal insufficiency (Paul Reller, L.Ac.) - he reports 80% of sluggish thyroids (hypometabolism) is co-related to adrenal insufficiency

Charles Poliquin (integrative practitioner, instructor, elite athlete trainer): Top 10 Rules for Carbohydrate Intake for OPTIMAL Body Composition (depends on glycolytic physicality and activity)

Jack Kruse MD: Leptin Reset and Post-Leptin Reset

The intrepid brainiacs at the Paleohacks.com on Adrenal Function: 'adrenal' tag

WAPF blogger, Wise Traditions presenter Kaayla Daniel PhD CCN with Galen Knight PhD 'How to avoid toxic metals and clear them from the body'

Robb's testosterone blogpost 'Paleo and Testosterone' biohacking

Chris Espinosa, blogger at robbwolf.com, xfitter and Poliquin-certified, Testosterone Part II and Estrogen Balance

Jack Kruse MD: Hormone Cascade 101 (Testosterone/E, Cortisol/Adrenal, Thyroid) , Gut and Hormones, and Adrenal/Adaptogens

The LLVLC Show (Episode 520): Jeff O’Connell’s ‘Sugar Nation’ And ‘Animal Pharm’ Blogger Dr. B G

The topics in our e-coffeetalk (from Jimmy's site)...

• The infectiousness of her e-mail writing style
• Her work in a plant biology lab that showed she hated research
• The love/hate relationship she has with the USDA
• The one-year residency she did working in geriatrics
• The certified diabetes education that she pursued
• Her hesitancy to start blogging with so many great bloggers
• Her contributions to the PaleoHacks.com web site
• The “chronic cardio” she believes is right for her
• The slow rate of weight loss she experienced (50 pounds in 5 years)
• How Keith Norris has a “Zen-like charm” about him
• What her experience was like at the Ancestral Health Symposium
• The important message of Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt in Sweden
• How Aaron Blaisdell and Brent Pottenger are changing the world
• Recollections of past interviews with Gary Taubes
• The positive contributions Taubes has made to the low-carb cause
• How the Dietary Guidelines are making Americans sicker
• The autoimmune issues she and her siblings dealt with growing up
• How even some grass-fed beef can taste a little “off”
• The “scary” nature of finding real food in China
• Whether America would have been successful without carbs
• Her take on the “safe starches” debate that’s happening right now
• The great admiration she has for Dr. Robert Su
• How there are plenty of Asians who get “sick” eating white rice
• How she “completely burned out my adrenals” on intermittent fasting
• Why some people have issues that make it more difficult to get healthy
• The high-carb adrenal resets that need to have for many people
• Why you have to have balance with all of your hormones
• Her weight gain from heavy metal toxicity
• What the future of her “Animal Pharm” concept is
• The book she is writing with her sister on gut health with recipes
• Why she wants to open up a gluten-free cafe to teach cooking
• Her desire for us to outsource the Low-Carb Cruise to China

Enchanted Places

2011-11-06T18:33:00.000-08:00

Full Sail By Ryan Farish
Courtesy Youtube.com

Stargirl: "You have to find your own way. Sometimes I try to erase myself. I imagine a big pink soft soap erase, and it's going back and forth, back and forth, and it starts down at my toes, back and forth, back and forth, and there they go -- POOF! -- my toes are gone. And then my feet. And then my ankles. But that's the easy part. The hard part is erasing my senses -- my eyes, my ears, my nose, my tongue. And last to go is MY BRAIN. My thoughts, memories, all the voices inside my head. That's the hardest, erasing my thoughts... And then, if I've done a good job, I'm erased. I'm gone. I'm nothing. And then the world is free to flow into me like water into an empty bowl."

Leo: "And?"

Stargirl: "And...I see. I hear. But not with eyes and ears. I'm not outside my world anymore,a nd I'm not really inside it either. The thing is, there's no difference anymore between me and the universe. The boundary is gone. I am it and it is me. I am a stone, a cactus thorn. I am rain..."

Leo: (...something did happen. A small thing. I was aware of stepping over a line, of taking one step into territory new to me. It was a territory of peace, of slience. I had never experienced such utter silence before, such stillness. The compmotion withint me went on, but at a lower volume, as if someone had turned down my dial. And an eerie thing happened. While I never did totally lose awareness of myself, I believe I did, so to speak, lose Cinnamon [Stargirl's pet rat he is cradling]. I no longer felt his pulse, his presence, in my hands. It seemed we were no longer separate, but were one.)

--From Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli (sequel:
Love (comma) Stargirl) which NYT reports
it is a 'poetic allegorical tale about the magnificence and rarity
of true nonconformity.' The books are
young adult fiction from my
kids (versus O-L-D-*-S-S adult...)

Dr. Michel de Lorgeril

The French physician who has busted Big Pharma myths synthesized regarding statins, dietary fat and cholesterol, Dr. Michel de Lorgeril has a new published article on the Okinawa ancestral lifestyle. He spent a few weeks living in Okinawa and observing this unique island culture known for one of the highest density of centenarians on earth.

The Okinawan diet: a modern view of an ancestral healthy lifestyle. One-page preview.
Salen P, de Lorgeril M.
World Rev Nutr Diet. 2011;102:114-23.

De Lorgeril is really cool. I discussed him earlier HERE (JUPITER=FAIL). Like Peter at Hyperlipid, he's been blogging about disease and health misconceptions for years (archives back to 2008). Also, recall Pedro Bastos, Loren Cordain et al, he wrote a critical re-appraisal for the benefits of dietary saturated fats for heart disease prevention. I added his English/French blog to the animal pharm blogroll (BLOG-ASM) along with several other highly noteworthy resources such as Healthy Guts (by the gorgeous Ms. Consuela Werner who blogs also at RobbWolf.com) and GAPS practitioners + guides.

Benefits of Compassion

Why does chill-axing bring perspective, calm and serenity? Are humans meant to attain higher levels of cerebral functioning for maximal health, longevity and community contributions?

What can be learned from the Okinawans and also our respective ancestors?

De Lorgeril and Salen report 'Besides the traditional diet, three important aspects of the Okinawan lifestyle are physical fitness, the social support network and the spirits of Okinawa. These are all interconnected since keeping physically fit is part of the spiritual belief system of Okinawa, and physical activity can be as simple as ‘kitchen gardening, where plants and herbs are considered imbued with spiritual energy’ [1]. However, physical activity may be a more structured activity such as ‘traditional dance which is meditative and celebrates myths of ancient times’ [1], or it may be an ‘invigorating martial art like karate which demands a harmonious blend of mind and body’ [1]." Emphasizing the strong ties to ancestors and the social network present in their community, Okinwans celebrate frequently with feasting and festivities and memorials for deceased ancestors. In the same spirit, 'Yuimaru is a typically Okinawan concept, and means that everyone must share and help each other' writes Salen and de Lorgeril.

I discussed traditional Okinawa lifestyles and diet HERE which was high saturated fat and high protein compared to mainland Japan. They are fishermen, farmers and pastoralists enjoying many fermented foods, bitter and sour greens and vegetables, raw goat sashimi, raw goat milk and other traditional pork-centered meals.

Oxytocin

This is somewhat unrelated but yet maybe. Watch this TED video by Paul Zak 'Trust, morality -- Oxytocin'.

Where do you get your hits of Oxytocin?

I love e-hugs and hugs from the people I hang with; I think it gives me hits of Oxy-T.

Our little kitten 'Angel' that we fostered for about ~1 month shot up my Oxytocin briefly whilst she tagged around me all day, letting me cuddle and love her and as I watched my daughters care deeply for her like their own baby. After I had to sent her back to the petstore for an opportunity for adoption, the Oxytocin drain out like a dead battery. [BTW she was quickly adopted within 10 days, and we're grateful.]

Oxytocin. Neat hormone.

I'm not sure I'd agree to call it a morality hormone like some scientists. Like a rage or hits of 'E', (not that I'd know) it appears to me to ellicit deep empathy and facilitate connections; imbibing concreteness to emotions which are typically positive (though not always, for instance when baby is crying/shrieking). Scoping and feeling out your family, friends, coworkers (or enemies), businessmen and connecting to what they're experiencing brings understanding that transcends differences no matter how epic. It promotes GAME. Got your game on?

Campbell and Garcia reported in an article Neuroanthropology: Evolution and Emotional Embodiment that 'For instance, among male Arrial pastoralists from northern Kenya, self-reported quality of life, which may be thought of as a measure of well-being, is predicted by the number of male supporters as well as amount of body fat (Campbell unpublished data).' I thought was weird but it makes sense... success in the hunt or herding is tied to cooperation, empathy with your co-patriots and co-herders and effective communication. Better GAME.

Evolution, Oxytocin, Sociality, and the Primate Brain

Researchers Campbell and Garcia also write:

The social brain hypothesis holds that it is the demands of complex social interactions in groups that have spurred the adaptive increase in brain size across the biological order Primates (Dunbar, 1998, 2009), a relationship not found in other mammalian orders (Shultz and Dunbar, 2007). The importance of bonding among primates would explain why affiliation through physical touch initiates a neurochemical cascade, involving oxytocin and opiates, that is positively reinforcing and fundamental to effective social cohesion (Dunbar, 2010). While such neuroendocrine mechanisms remain important in human social interaction, they do not appear sufficient to explain group cohesion among humans for whom language and technology form the foundation for greatly expanded spheres of social interaction.

Social, Complexity, Cortex, and The Behavioral Regulation of the Internal Milieu

Reading more on evolution, the brain and oxytocin, I'm blown away by Schulkin who wrote Social Allostasis: Anticipatory Regulation of the Internal Milieu. 'Most primates are highly social except for the solitary orangutan, with the exception, of course, of a long relationship between the mother and her offspring, present in all primates, including the orangutan (Robson and Wood, ; see Figure Figure22). Core features in the origins of the genus Homo consist of some of the following (Stringer and Andrews, ; Robson and Wood, ): longer gestational period, long life spans, forward locomotion with heel and hind limb dominance, dominance of stereoscopic vision and forward movement of the eyes, and expanding use of the hands... hysiological cognitive systems are oriented to the social milieu. Their evolution and expression underlie the diverse forms of complicated social assessments; group size, for instance, is correlated with cortical expansion (Dunbar and Shultz, ). Consider the complex social relationships of primates, the hierarchy, and the distribution of food resources, shelter protection, dominance, and comfort through co-alliances. Such systems are quite varied and all involve cephalic innervations and expression.' The side figure depict an 'endocast of the frontal region of a putative Homo around two million years ago and a representation of (a) chimpanzee, (b) orangutan, (c) gorilla, and (d) human frontal plane (Falk, ).' In Table 3 the EQ (encephalization quotient) of each hominid is estimated in evolutionary time. I am not sure how accurate the Homo Neanderthal EQ is presented here; I thought I had read that the cranial volume was larger than Hss but need to dig that out. Hormone pathways, infrastructure and neurons (Von Economo neurons (VENs)) supporting the fabric of hominid social interconnectedness (cortisol, CRH, oxytocin, vasopressin, etc) are located in the frontal cortex of great apes and humans.

Many of the prosocial behaviors and the evaluative processes in cephalic systems are anticipatory and not only reactive to events. Information molecules such as CRH (or oxytocin or vasopressin) underlie diverse forms of anticipatory behaviors. The concept of “allostasis” is in part to take account of anticipatory control (Sterling and Eyer, 1988) amidst diverse forms of adaptation underlying this regulatory adaptation that supports social contact and internal milieu (Schulkin, 2003). Importantly, feedforward and social regulation of neuropeptide expression is an important factor.Social contact is at the heart of ontogenetic development, a long noted piece of epistemological history differently expressed across diverse cultures. Family and group structure through meaningful contact is essential for our mental health. Supportive social contact is not an absolute prophylactic but a helpful ameliorative in combating disease and breakdown (Steptoe et al., 2002), along with predictive abilities (Miller, 1957, 1959); intermittent unpredictable aversive events are a long known production of pathology (e.g., gastric Weiss, 1970), increasing allostatic load (e.g., Schulkin et al., 1998; Tannenbaum et al., 2002).Unremitting social distress, high cortisol when cumulative, decreases social competence process (e.g., brain morphology and decreases in memory function (Sapolsky, 1992, 1995), and increases the allostatic load (McEwen and Stellar, 1993; Johnston-Brooks et al., 1998; McEwen, 1998; Seeman et al., 2001). Allostatic load is one predictive factor in aging (Karlamangla et al., 2002; Hellhammer et al., 2004); age, health, and economic disparities are all functionally related to allostatic overload (Crimmins et al., 2003; von Kanel et
al., 2003; Carlson and Chamberlain, 2005; Szanton et al., 2005).

What is really freaky is that Schulkin points out the epigenetic data on cortisol and oxytocin. 'Interestingly, oxytocin and CRH are also altered by maternal care across generations of offspring. Cross-fostering studies in rodents have shown that variation in maternal care is transmitted in both genomic and non-genomic mechanisms; individual differences in maternal behavior are transmitted from one generation to another (Francis et al., 1999; Meaney, 2001; Champagne, 2003).One example is the link between maternal licking and grooming (high or low) which is consistently transmitted to female offspring; moreover, decreased social comforting contact has long-term implications for most mammals studied (e.g., Levine, 1975; Meaney et al., 1996; Liu et al., 1997). There is wide variation in this phenomenon that has long-term implications on cephalic systems; those rat pups comforted by social contact have greater regulatory capacity as adults on diverse systems in the brain, including neuropeptide and neurotransmitter systems (dopamine, serotonin, CRH).' So yeah. Some people may be able to blame their mothers! Grandmothers! And Great-Grandmothers! The lack of licking, caring and grooming does affect perceptions and confidence. [reminds me... need to hug/s-mother my kids more]

Here is a diagram of cortisol release relative to brain structures. Cortisol is great for short term adaptation to situations. Detriment occurs with long-term cortisol disruption of proper signalling: (See Table 4)
• Disruption of immune response
• Protein loss
• Growth and reproductive disruption
• Bone loss
• Brain deterioration

In PTSD (post-tramautic stress syndrome), cortisol and CRH (cortisol releasing hormone) are dysregulated. Low production and inappropriate release of cortisol are common. Prozac deficiency? No. It is an evolutionary programming system with a major bug in it. Gold et al discusses some research done in military Special Forces in high stress circumstances with 2 intereresting findings. Positive correlation was been found between DHEA/Cortisol ratio and better performance. DHEA and Allopregenolone supplemention provided 'resilience to stress by helping terminate HPA activation and preventing harmful effect of glucocorticoids.'

Get ur GAME on... Keep cortisol in check... And don't forget oxytocin, it's not just for boobs (e.g. breastmilk-let downs).

Maybe this is the one of secrets of Okinawan and African Arrial pastoralists...

References:

Oxytocin may mediate the benefits of positive social interaction and emotions.
Uvnäs-Moberg K.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 1998 Nov;23(8):819-35. Review.
Short-Term Compassion Training Increases Prosocial Behavior in a Newly Developed Prosocial Game. Susanne Leiberg, Olga Klimecki, Tania SingerPLoS One. 2011; 6(3): e17798.

Integrated metabolic regulation during acute rest states [TCM-like states] in man, similarity to fasting: a biochemical hypothesis.
Jevning R.
Physiol Behav. 1988;43(6):735-7. Review.

Long-term endocrinologic changes in subjects practicing the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program.
Werner OR, Wallace RK, Charles B, Janssen G, Stryker T, Chalmers RA.
Psychosom Med. 1986 Jan-Feb;48(1-2):59-66.

Compassion: An Evolutionary Analysis and Empirical Review
Jennifer L. Goetz, Dacher Keltner, Emiliana Simon-Thomas
Psychol Bull. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2011 May 1.
Published in final edited form as: Psychol Bull. 2010 May; 136(3): 351–374.

Neuroanthropology: Evolution and Emotional Embodiment
Benjamin C. Campbell, Justin R. Garcia
Front Evol Neurosci. 2009; 1: 4. Prepublished online 2009 July 24.

Top-Down and Bottom-Up Mechanisms in Mind-Body Medicine: Development of an Integrative Framework for Psychophysiological Research
Ann Gill Taylor, Lisa E. Goehler, Daniel I. Galper, Kim E. Innes, Cheryl Bourguignon
Explore (NY) Author manuscript; available in PMC 2011 January 1.
Published in final edited form as: Explore (NY). 2010 January; 6(1): 29.

Social Allostasis: Anticipatory Regulation of the Internal Milieu
Jay Schulkin
Front Evol Neurosci. 2010; 2: 111.

The Neuroendocrine System and Stress, Emotions, Thoughts and Feelings
George E. Vaillant
Mens Sana Monogr. 2011 Jan-Dec; 9(1): 113–128.

Adrenocortical activity during meditation. [Testosterone -- same 3 groups, Cortisol --no change in controls, slightly lowered after 3-4 mos TCM practice, significantly lowered and for long time after by long-term TCM practitioners]
Jevning R, Wilson AF, Davidson JM.
Horm Behav. 1978 Feb;10(1):54-60.

Neuro-psychopharmacogenetics and Neurological Antecedents of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Unlocking the Mysteries of Resilience and Vulnerability
Abdalla Bowirrat, Thomas J.H. Chen, Kenneth Blum, Margaret Madigan, John A. Bailey, Amanda Lih Chuan Chen, B. William Downs, Eric R. Braverman, Shahien Radi, Roger L. Waite, Mallory Kerner, John Giordano, Siohban Morse, Marlene Oscar-Berman, Mark Gold
Curr Neuropharmacol. 2010 December; 8(4): 335–358.

Social vocalizations can release oxytocin in humans.
Seltzer LJ, Ziegler TE, Pollak SD.
Proc Biol Sci. 2010 Sep 7;277(1694):2661-6.

The Okinawan diet: a modern view of an ancestral healthy lifestyle.
Salen P, de Lorgeril M.
World Rev Nutr Diet. 2011;102:114-23.

The 'Middle Finger' Movement...Paleo? Yes.

2011-11-01T01:41:00.000-07:00

Courtesy Youtube.com
Chill Out Music- Mattina By V Dimension

Bloggers Are Disrupting the Fabric of Society, AGAIN *haa*

"I started Paleo because what I was doing (basically eating SAD, not thinking about diet, and never exercising any more) had turned me from a smokin’ hot, excellent athlete into a pumpkin-shaped bag of sand. There are some medical reasons as well, but those only amplified the problem.

Then one day I read a post somewhere in which Diana Hsieh mentioned
Paleo and FTA and MDA. So I came here (here first because you have the cooler blog title), read my first ever paleo article, and had that “middle finger” moment. (I’d had my “middle finger to religion” moment long before.) Apart from a detour where meds I had to be on fucked everything up for about 9 months (despite remaining Paleo), everything has been smooth sailing.

So Diana was the trigger, and you, Richard, are the smoking gun."

Quoted on Richard Nikoley's blog FTA by Michael P (@PizSez blog) on the pulsing, sublime post 'And why are you paleo?'.

'Middle Finger' Movement

It appears to me that amongst the most vocal individuals who have embraced Paleo/Ancestral/Primal lifestyles, there are a bunch middle-finger moments which may add up to h*ll of a lot of moments. Will it crescendo? Grow to be heard? Granted there are all different flavors and versions of 'paleo' so I have no idea which contortion will speak to mainstream. Personally I enjoy somewhere in the middle between the Lynda Frasetto version and Nora Gedgaudes translation. From my observations, 'middle finger' moments are not a common theme on every blog or every forum but the most ardent do not deny it. Following any version of 'paleo' wreaks havoc on people surrounding us who unquestioningly support and follow authorities with titles and engage in formalized associations (AMA, ADA, AHA, FDA, USDA, etc). Apparently it is sacrilege to omit an entire 'food group' (wheat/grains) and decline to engage in scavenging off by-products of grain subsidies (by eschewing grains/GMO/gluten, grain-fed livestock/pork/poultry, and processed junk food products) which put money from the pockets of tax-payers to the pockets government to subsidized farmers back to the deep pockets of Monsanto, pesticide producers and other parasites.

Zoo Keeper Selection Day FTA

Penis Enlargement: Lose Weight More classic FTA

What Was Your Wakeup Call? J. Stanton Gnolls.org, 70+ comments and paleo stories

Steve Cooksey's Blog: Diabetes Warrior [Taking the American Diabetes Association to task and how he reversed T2DM with paleo and HIIT]

Nutrition and Metabolism Society

Can't trust NPR... PH thread

Can't trust Dr.Oz... PH thread but we already knew that from Robb Wolf 'Framework Matters'

What has been the best unintended consequence of your paleo lifestyle? [One of my favorite threads of uncomparable paleo stories Paleohacks.com]

Defining moment on Paleo? [Another fave]

Litmus test...look in the mirror! No fancy modern med testing needed. PH thread, o-k-a-y it's penises again

The Future of Our Food, movie

I have a middle finger too. I exercise it. EVERYDAY. *ahaa ha!*

Next post:
Meditation (middle-finger meditation)

Prior posts:
Bloggers Have Destroyed Fabric of Society Blog-asm II: More Bloggers Disrupting Fabric of Society

Homo Purgare

2011-10-20T18:26:00.000-07:00

'Angel' Feral Kitten: Alloparenting

Here's Angel our feral kitten that we fostered for a couple of weeks until she could eat solids on her own. My kids brought her home one day from the pet store where she was apparently dropped off. My kids are in fact anaphylactically allergic to cats yet cannot seem to stay away from them (KITTYCR*CK). At ~ 4 weeks old she was the size of a teacup. I've been busy and we just gave her back this week to be adopted hopefully at the store. In the beginning she had to be handfed softened food every 2 hours and had diarrhea. My kids and I gave her fish oil, probiotics (Flora Balance) and vitamin D supplements as well and as a result the diarrhea ended and she apparently grew like the carnivore that she is! When she first arrived, she walked with a wobbly gait and hopped on her hind legs like a d*ng bunny, but now at 8 weeks old she strides fast and long, like a predator ...bites like one too... then disappears into thin air.

Lactation and Weaning

It is interesting how quickly carnivores are weaned from their mothers and adapt to solid and semi-solid foods compared to primates. Kennedy reports that 'Though humans have a longer period of infant dependency than other hominoids, human infants, in natural fertility societies, are weaned far earlier than any of the great apes: chimps and orangutans wean, on average, at about 5 and 7.7 years, respectively, while humans wean, on average, at about 2.5 years.' Why? Because we're predators, not bunnies.

Hunter

Angel acts like a predator, day and night. She practices hunting, capturing and stalking her prey. Only predators are playful in the animal kingdom. Here is a picture, she leaped 12-18 inches to grab the camera flash! Other targets including our face, our feet and plump fingers! I have dozens of microscropic puncture wounds from her lovely feral baby claws. After her nails were clipped, it wasn't so painful playing with her. Naturally she practices HIIT -- bursts of hyperactivity and playful brutality with our body parts or her toys, then long, extended naps. She's young and sleeps all day. Unfortunately the pet store feeds the S.A.D. version of cat-kibble, but with us she was given something similar to the below Canadian brand and real food (raw yolks, meat, bone broth).

Orijens: 'biologically appropriate' (grain-free) food for cats and dogs sourced from free-range meat or wild-caught seafood (80/20/0 = meat/vegfruit/grain).

Homo Purgare, Scavenger

Somewhere in our hominid timeline, humans have regressed and are de-evolving -- our guts, our brains, our skeletal system, our fertility/gonads... See top. Like captured predators, zoo humans eat pre-digested and refined, mass manufactured 'food'. Where's our playfulness? Our carnivory lifestyles? The RAW?? On forums and digital savannahs??? Recently we moved from the cement suburbia into the cement jungle of the big city of Shanghai... A lot of adjustments but in some ways neat adventures for us.

Purgare is Latin for 'to clean' (according to my handy dandy Latin dict) or to salvage or scavenge. [please correct me!] Are we as a species in the modern, tech age and interstate/intercountry commerce, more homo purgare than sapien sapien ('doubly wise')?

Milton states that 'As human evolution progressed, young children in particular, with their rapidly expanding large brain and high metabolic and nutritional demands relative to adults would have benefited from volumetrically concentrated, high quality foods such as meat [and fat, I say]. Today, many humans, particularly those in high income nations, have a variety of high quality, non-ASF [animal sourced food] dietary alternatives, but such foods were not generally available to paleolithic human ancestors nor to many people today in low income nations.' Yes. GMO soy products, formula, hydrized high-gluten wheat, GMO rice and refined packaged foods are not available in some third world countries but that is rapidly changing. Big Agra and Fast Food Nation have hit. India, China and Africa are besot with mass produced, manufactured foods now and it shows. Feedlot eggs, dairy, poultry and meat are commonplace as well. Fields of GMO rice and crops growing on vast landscapes (on industrial waste typically, like Pearl River). Obesity and T2DM are epidemic, especially in China where the rule is one child per family, leading to 3 sets of over-feeding influences (parents, 2 sets of grandparents).

Courtesy Youtube.com
ATB ft Tiff Lacey - Ecstasy (Chill In The Sunrise Mix)

Predator of Prized Brain Nutrients

Admittedly, Angel's never going to hunt except a few lost flies or mosquitoes, unless she escapes to the outdoors. We did let her scavenge at the dinner table with my kids alloparenting her with pre-chewed scraps (and human mouth flora!)... Going back to Kennedy... Competition with other carnivores (like Angel's predecessors like saber tooth tigers, leopards, etc) may have encouraged selection for earlier weaned humans and scaling the care-giving role from mother to extended family or pack members. What were the nutrients they were competing for? Kennedy argues that acquisition of protein (and thus fats) selected for brain survival and early weaning. Like carnivores, mother's milk wasn't enough to continue growing the predator brain. Like some carnivores, one, single mother alone wasn't enough and alloparenting evolved. Humans are mega-caregivers for long-lived offspring requiring intensive rearing, as well as mega-consumers of specific brain nutrients from protein sources: omega-3, minerals, amino acids, fats. It's a curious combination deeply forged in evolution. Eating tongue-to-testicle and muzzle-to-marrow are the only ways to source the required nutrients for optimal brain maturation and growth. For predators with big brains.

"Assuming that living great apes demonstrate the ancestral weaning pattern, modern humans display a derived pattern that requires explanation, particularly since earlier weaning may result in significant hazards for a child. Clearly, if selection had favored the survival of the child, humans would wean later like other hominoids; selection, then, favored some trait other than the child's survival. It is argued here that our unique pattern of prolonged, early brain growth--the neurological basis for human intellectual ability--cannot be sustained much beyond one year by a human mother's milk alone, and thus early weaning, when accompanied by supplementation with more nutritious adult foods, is vital to the ontogeny of our larger brain, despite the associated dangers. Therefore, the child's intellectual development, rather than its survival, is the primary focus of selection. Consumption of more nutritious foods--derived from animal protein--increased by ca. 2.6 myr ago when a group of early hominins displayed two important behavioral shifts relative to ancestral forms: the recognition that a carcass represented a new and valuable food source-potentially larger than the usual hunted prey-and the use of stone tools to improve access to that food source. The shift in the hominin "prey image" to the carcass and the use of tools for butchery increased the amount of protein and calories available, irrespective of the local landscape. However, this shift brought hominins into competition with carnivores, increasing mortality among young adults and necessitating a number of social responses, such as alloparenting. The increased acquisition of meat ca. 2.6 Ma had significant effects on the later course of human evolution and may have initiated the origin of the genus Homo."

References:

1. Boaz N. Eco Homo. 1997. Basic Books. [Chapter One, NYT]
2. Shlain L. Sex, Time and Power. 2003. Penguin, New York, NY.
3. Switek B. Written in Stone: Evolution, the Fossil Record and Our Place in Nature. 2010. Bellevue Literary Press, New York, NY.
4. Cunnane S. Survival of the Fattest: The Key to Human Brain Evolution. 2004. World Scientific.
5. From the ape's dilemma to the weanling's dilemma: early weaning and its evolutionary context. Kennedy GE. J Hum Evol. 2005 Feb;48(2):123-45.
6. Meat-adaptive genes and the evolution of slower aging in humans. Finch CE, Stanford CB. Q Rev Biol. 2004 Mar;79(1):3-50.
7. The critical role played by animal source foods in human (Homo) evolution. Milton K. J Nutr. 2003 Nov;133(11 Suppl 2):3886S-3892S.

Internet sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/opinion/sunday/is-junk-food-really-cheaper.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12721432/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/ancient-die-off-blamed-climate-not-humans/
http://www.beringia.com/centre_info/exhibit.html
http://www.onelife.com/evolve/index.html
http://www.beyondveg.com/nicholson-w/hb/hb-interview1c.shtml
http://www.thefutureoffood.com/resources.html
Alloparenting -- John Hawks
Neolithic Equids -- Why the Long Face? Jamie Scott, That Paleo Guy post http://www.bio.davidson.edu/people/vecase/behavior/Spring2009/Landfried/index.html
http://www.biology-online.org/articles/alloparenting-what.html

Rockstar Edition: THE AHS 2011

2011-08-13T20:18:00.000-07:00

Admission: I partied like a R O C K S T A R . *big wink /squeeze*

How about you???

Living (or re-living like me) vicariously through the Ancestral Health Symposium (AHS) roundups and reviews?

How it started: Brent Pottenger like his ancestors dared to dream a dream...

An angel named Mr. Jacobsen planted seed money, AHS was born and as they say the rest is history. Not unlike suffrage ending, for me it was powerful and freeing to attend an event where none of us needed to 'preach to the choir' or convince or persuade anyone that optimal health is within reach by embracing a few precepts modeled by our distant ancestors (more play, less grains, vary your life/n=1, more fighting, attend to gut symbionts, etc). For the initiated, we all had each other's vote for some time now, if not stark fan-following.

Everyone rocked my world!!!!!!!!! ...from fans of the blog (esp the pharmacy boys, keep up the good work and d*mn it publish something to rock the neolethal medical world), other bloggers, AHS presenters, volunteers and interviewers.

Here's my critical top ten for the peeps that attended and made this happen:

1. Prof Aaron Blaisdell ('Xavier' with lots hair), Brent Pottenger (legacy in the making), Mr. Jacobsen (king of angels and sun energy), Seth Roberts, and all the 50+ volunteers that made AHS smoothly operate and happen from behind the scenes to IN THE SCENES. Synergy in action. Awesome dream team!

2. Erwan Le Corre and Clifton Harski -- Thank you for not letting me leave my face or *ss on Muscle Beach/Venice Beach. MovNat is brilliant for all levels and all ages and my take is that it's probably more versatile and healing than crossfit or endurance workouts. I felt great afterwards. My sister noticed she had this kid-like bountiful energy she hadn't felt in years. I'd concur. My daughters were wondering why the h*ck sand was in the bed the next morning and I pleasantly remembered the funked out contortions and mobility combos we did on Sunday for the workshop including laying in the sand for some defensive/ground exercises. Honestly I am not the most coordinated therefore if I can do movenat moves than really anyone can. We swung up bars (mimicking tree branches), climbed up bars barehanded/footed, ran barefoot, jumped with a wavey-hand move, lifted gripless sandbags, and climbed on all fours in sand, on curbs and concrete. I couldn't deadlift much including my sister. Got snickered into deadlifting Erwan, but downgraded to do a functional move like dragging him ~ 4 meters [but had to stop from peeing in my pants from laughter... Do all French parkour experts smell/feel as good as Erwan? I dunno but I'd attend the seminar again to find out.] Clifton ROCKED as our torture master *scratch* I mean, instructor, and as others have mentioned he had the best agility, nimbleness and s*xxxy chest of AHS!!! [And it twitched when he got excited] I would concur with the other female elements of our group... ripping your shirts off did something. I dunno... Request: please do it earlier in the day. It's better than caffeine. Climb a tree? Tell me how high and how fast?? The quiet parts of the day were when Clifton and Erwan explained the philosophy of MovNat... we need to explore and be aware of our terrain. Prepare for the predictable but expect the unexpected. Stress? We all have stress and doing MovNat is one of the best de-stressors. To a question from Amy Holms, Erwan replied that the best way to decrease stress is being with friends and family, be in Nature as Nature is the best de-stressor, listen to reggae, move and do MovNat... We all may have stress (even Erwan). Don't know about you, but I'm taking the G-R-E-E-N P-I-L-L and that's the best thing I learned from AHS.

3. Rockstars -- there are seriously too many to list but at the top for me is Denise Minger. Not only is she a glam ROCKSTAR but she can also nail any crazy-rabid vegetarian straight to down to the ground with just a whoosh of her Louboutin heels and with blinding kindness and grace. My sister and I had the honor to meet and be one of the first to greet at Prof Blaisdell's house at the pre-party and she was far more interested in hearing where we came from than to introduce herself. When she told us of her ghetto motel story (woman screaming from next thin-walled room) you just want to protect and shield her from all idiots and danger. But as we know, she's TOUGH. Anyone who can fell the myth wearing the emperor's clothes (T. Colin Campbell, the statistics hoaxster who rivals Ancel Keys) deserves glorious kudos. Tucker Max accuses the primal/ancestral movement of deficiencies of violence??? Did he listen to Minger present?? She was VIOLENTLY HILARIOUS and VIOLENTLY EFFECTIVE. Period.

[BTW I think Tucker is right on. Even my peaceful futuristic explorers Spock and Captain Kirk fought effectively in hand-to-hand or weapon-assisted combat, when required. Tucker's talk was also a huge highlight]

4. Mat LaLonde -- he doesn't blog so under my radar. WTF. Where did he come from? He is the best brainiac warhead for the paleo/primal folks who don't want to lose credibility (like me) and who want to prevent smackdowns from core academic sciences (NOT fun, been there...). His command for plant derived chemicals and biochem belie his pretty, luminous skin and f*ckme gorgeous biceps+ quads. Is he a supergeek or strongman? Like most of AHS I think he's a renaissance guy and multitalented. Thank you for all the science language tips. It's helpful to not sound like a freak or moron, or worse both.

5. Richard Nikoley/Queen Bea, Robb Wolf, Mark Sisson, Seth Roberts, Gary Taubes, Keith Norris and Missus TTP, Mary and Mike Eades, Doug McGuff, Stephan Guyenet, Pedro Bastos-- These are my mainstay pillars of knowledge and wisdom and good to see them again in our AHS element (actually my VIRGIN TIME meeting Doug, the Eades, the Norrises, Pedro, having lunch w/Stephan). I refer tons of people to their blogs/books and websites (as well as the below). They cure, heal and free many of my favorite human animals, making my zoo world a better place. Thank God and Gaia for them.

6. Emily Deans and Jamie Scott -- Emily's a HARVARD-TRAINED PHYSICIAN and HARVARD CLINICAL INSTRUCTOR and SHE GETS IT. Also you'd think that with her sweet online presence she is this delicate, cerebral, tiny, white, lily flower but actually she is a *%$&@ TOTAL BAD*SS and hit the bars at MovNat with ferocity and persistence. Yes. And. She lifted sarcophilic Jamie Scott onto her BACK [he aint heavy, he's my brother]. Her presentation at AHS was the best physician talk IMHO that I heard; it reviewed the history of mental medicine and the recent relevant studies regarding psych on magnesium (which can reduce anxiety and important for adrenals), food toxins, gluten, and many other vital factors (no pharmaceuticals). Jamie Scott is as hunky, calm and sauve as you'd imagine and add the intoxicating NZ accent! Thanks for the tip too! I was having problems with running lately and developed hip pain and he hacked it right on. I stopped hyper-lifting my leg and pushed back more as he kindly suggested, which fixed it. I suspect MovNat was a jaunt in the Christchurch earthquake park for Jamie. It seemed effortless... From his talk, he discussed in length the implementation of the corporate primal/paleo program he is involved with. The world desparately needs more cutting edge programs like this. Can Jamie clone himself and apply these concepts at Google or Wall Street or Microsoft? Resilience? These two are the epitomy.

7. Craig Stanford. He and Caleb Finch have done amazing work in primates and studying behavior. He presented many insights from his research including a really interesting study on chimp meat-eating which occurred in a spastic frenzy for ~10 wks that coincided with the mense of the female chimps. Meaning? Who knows but similar to many things that I find fascinating about evolution is that it presents more questions than answers. This talk just geeked it out for me...

8. Melissa McEwen. For me, she is the rational voice for sustainability, evolutionary tracking and the gut microbiota. A recovering/recovered vegetarian like many who presented and attended, she speaks with authority and experience about the ancestral/primal backdrop that improved her health. Her talk exemplified 'hunting for hypotheses'. What does the literature say? Well. Not much about evolution in many circumstances. So many clues exist but without the proper context, what can we make of it? The last research she brought up in her wonderful talk was how H. pylori, a questionable pathogen, has co-evolved and migrated with humans since tens of thousands of years if not longer. Most of the world are colonized with H. pylori yet in industrial countries the carriage has diminished with sanitation and widespread antibiotic use. She brought up many potential ramifications of its extinction in industrial guts, including the increase in GI disorders and new epidemic levels of esophageal adenocarcinoma (one of the most lethal cancers in 50+ yr olds).

9. Paleo bloggers and Paleohackers. Melissa and Dallas from Whole9 are absolutely stunning, as is their awesome program. [did Melissa's gorgeous xfit gams come all the way up to my eyeballs...??] If anyone appears on Oprah or Oz, I do place my bets on the Whole9. Finally I met my Bay Area sustah from a different mutha: the stellar, hot, MiLFy Nom Nom Paleo 'M' and her ripped husband 'H' at FITBOMB, a blog cracks me the f*ck up a lot. Nom nom has a nutritional sci background and IS A PALEO PHARMAICST(I'm like HER!! and we both c*ss almost as bad as Richard and Bea! wtf). Nom nom is much cuter and does unspeakable things w/her Sous Vide and camera (see rated XXX food porn: HERE). My sister and I had an unforgettable, fresh and unlimited Korean BBQ buffet dinner with author/blogger/thinkr J. Stanton/Gnolls.org and Jolly, gifted photographer, both are experts at knowing how to groove and chill-lax to the ultimate. [Did i gain wt? Coz i ate as much as J. but no coz I did movnat 2 days later. All the upper body/chest/back work... I think my b**bs grew like Clifton's. No. I. Am. Not. Envious. *haa!*] Others in the house were my generous and neato co-speaker Dr. Tim Gerstmar, David Despain (I think we were separated at birth), and the incredible superstar Jaminets. FYI Stanton knows how to EAT WELL as a carnivore. Must be the mohawk contingency factor. The restaurant he chose had had a one-hour-wait and somehow he charmed US ALL IN < 10-15min. The clubbing music, fermented pickles, raw salad, and meat MEAT meaaatttt (!! pork belly, stomach, organs, beef, etc) were nothing short of orgasmically perfect. What an amazing way to finish Day 1. Did you see Jolly's mouthing-watering meat pictures?? Paul and Shou-Ching Jaminet are a beautiful and amazing couple. My sister and I loved every minute we had with them. We are big-time fans of their book, blog, generosity and knowledgable insights. I met some PH'ers, THEY ARE SO FUN! I've gotten PDFs and tons of (free, me-lurking) advice from them at Patrik's brilliant site. WCC Paul (dude thanxxx), Kamal (u r WAY way prettier in person), Aravind (watched you 'come out' *haa*), Gone2Croatan (love ur style, sorry didn't realize who you were (!!) next to the droll j/k Andrew/Evolvify) at Napa Grill, etc. Dinner on Day 2 was equally exciting but I was fading fast. I'm so glad to meet and hang out with my bud Christian Wernstedt from Modern Paleo.

10. Chris Masterjohn and Nora Gedgaudas tie for clinically relevant for my personal interests. Gedgaudas: Nora's talk really aligned the mental, nutritional and healing aspects of what I am into -- identifying neoLETHAL damage (mercury toxicity, gluten, EDCs, etc) and health recovery. I wish I had met her but I'm certain our paths will cross or I'll attend her seminar at some point. Masterjohn: My foray into blogging started with cardiology, so I was really appreciated Masterjohn's presentation regarding the 'molecular degeneration' in heart disease. He shredded the topic of atherosclerosis to unidentifiable pieces. HANDS DOWN. Personally out of all the videos that will go viral, I hope this ONE makes major waves. With cheer and acute sarcasm, he tackled, maimed, bled out and academically dismembered the 50+years-embedded cholesterol-heart hypothesis. He reviewed the curious history of the rabbit model for atherosclerosis (everything injected/given did not produce plaque until non-rabbit food, cholesterol, was fed) and additionally discussed the role of thyroid, omega-3 deficiency, plant/animal antioxidants and oxLDL. His charm and beguilingly, azure-blue eyes shield the courage, humor and sharp scientific scrutiny he focuses on any topic he engages in. I've asked him for help to look at stats and studies and until you meet someone in person, you really cannot appreciate the non-online PERSON. I think this is the aspect about AHS that I loved the most. Flesh. Blood. Pheromones. Yaa! Meeting friends who were online comrades over hotel or hallway hugs, hearing presentations that were aurally and visually stimulating experiences (say PHEROMONES), mutual admiration, meals, wine, sharing close company (OKAY... f*ndling primal biceps and brains) and PARTYING LIKE ANCESTRAL ROCKSTARS.

What a lovefest.

My theory is that like many others I'll be in withdrawal from the reward hits from the lovefest for some time...

Apo ε4: Less UV-Triggered Vitamin D Required... Evolutionary Adaptation

2011-07-09T12:16:00.000-07:00

** Hat tips to both Mr. Tyler Simmons of Evolutionary Health Systems Blog and a wise, flexible, strong mentor, Mr. Marc Simonson.

The 'Genetic Landscape': Apo E4 Gradient in Europe, China, India and Japan

Mr. Simonson's insights for the migration of pastoralists across Europe, originating from the fertile crescent first started my thinking (nutritional bricolage) for how the world populations have exhibited endless varieties of phenotypes and infinite genotypes (mtDNA, apo E, HFE, and thyroid/autoimmune disorders). He often says that no two people are alike unless they are IDENTICAL TWINS. Therefore, no two dietary prescriptions can be alike.

I'd strongly concur. The perfect human diet is perhaps the one suited to one's ancestral past, unique genomic profile, neolethal toxicity/damage status and metabolic goals.

The below quote comes from Lars Ulrik Gerdes work on Apo E4. He's a FANTASTIC APO*E freak! His thesis is mindblowing. I don't agree w/all of his thoughts but he has plucked through the data comprehensively and thoroughly. Regarding the ApoE4 gradient in Europe (which has also been observed in other countries and continents) 'there is a conspicuous south-to-north gradient of APOE*4 frequencies in Europe, with the proportion of APOE*4 carriers rising from only 10-15% in the south to 40-50% in the north. In contrast, the proportion of APOE*2 carriers is a little higher in Central Europe than in the south and the north. Many other genetic polymorphisms show similar south-to-north gradients in Europe, and this peculiarity of the 'genetic landscape' on our continent is presumably caused by the demic expansion of agriculture (i.e. migrations of farmers) from the Middle East that began about 10,000 years ago. The farmers first migrated westwards along the north coast of the Mediterranean sea, and later turned towards the north. Thus, the APOE*4 gradient could have arisen as an 'admixture gradient', if the apoE*4 frequency were low in the migrating populations of farmers but high in the original populations of hunters/gatherers in the north.'

Evolutionary Adaptation To Lower UV Radiation at Northern Latitudes?

Gerdes has hypothesized that apo E4 allele carriers have less of a need for UV radiation derived vitamin D due to internal adaptations to preserving vitamin blood levels and maximizing intestinal absorption from dietary sources. One of the earliest indications that this was the case was research from Willnow et al. With vitamin D binding protein and apo E protein binding sites being shared regions at the same receptor in the proximal tubule of the kidneys, Gerdes theorized that E4 may have escaped the normal urinary losses of vitamin D and its metabolites. E4 typically produce higher protein amounts of apolipoprotein E (high carb diets lower apo E protein concentrations). From Gerdes' thesis, I restated, see the below. Lard, other pastured animal fats, foraged grub, and organ meats contain substantial, rich sources of fat soluble vitamins including vitamin D. For the ancestral hunter-scavenger-forager 200,000 years ago, these fatty sources of vitamin D, K and A may have been crucial and critical for growth, maintenance and reproduction.

In migrating northward out of sun-drenched Africa, with smaller guts, less fruit/fiber/fish and subsequent lower fermentation of fiber that resulted in SCFA (short chain fatty acids like the potently anti-inflammatory butyrate), how in the world did ancestral HGs survive and have babies?

Upregulation of receptors in the gut for the fat soluble goodies from food and downregulation of the kidney's capacity to leak these fat soluble hormones, metabolites and low molecular weight proteins out...? SUPER HIGH FERTILITY, DIESEL BRAIN FUEL, AND LIPOPHILIC BULLETPROOF IMMUNITY...?

Apo E4, I believe, apparently have ALL of these amazing survivor traits.

Does APOE*4 protect against vitamin D deficiency? [p. 33 from Gerdes' thesis]

A putative association of APOE with bone metabolism has been ascribed to an impact of APOE polymorphism on the transport of vitamin K (see page 40), but it could also relate to vitamin D metabolism and embrace a very strong selection pressure. Hypovitaminosis D in childhood (rickets) causes bone deformations, which can reduce the probability of surviving to adulthood, and perhaps more importantly, can cause pelvic deformations in girls that later may cause their death during delivery under primitive conditions, and also the death of their offspring. Inadequate endogenous production of vitamin D3 can be due to insufficient dietary supplementation or reduced intestinal uptake of the vitamin, or to low exposure to sunlight (UVB-radiation). The latter can be a particular problem to people with dark skin, because melanin blocks for ultraviolet photons and thus limits the synthesis of previtamin D3 [Vogel and Motulsky, 1986].

Mourant and co-workers showed that the frequency of Gc-2-allele for the gene coding for vitamin-D-binding protein (DBP; previously known as the group-specific component, Gc, of the α2-globulins of human plasma) was high in populations living in areas with low levels of sunlight and vice versa (with some exceptions). They suggested that the distribution could be explained by means of natural selection if the encoded isoform were more efficient in binding vitamin, and so in protecting Gc-2 carriers from rickets [Mourant et al., 1976]. This may be true, although the concept has been weakened by an analysis including more detailed climatic data [Cavalli-Sforza et al., 1994].

Interestingly, a very consistent pattern appears if one correlates the frequency of APOE*4 in aboriginal peoples around the world to their skin pigmentation, while also considering the intensity of solar radiation in their habitats:

• The APOE*4 frequency is generally higher in dark-skinned humans than in humans with less melanin, and the frequency is particularly high (40-50%) for instance in Papuans, Pygmies and Khoisan, who are dark peoples and whose (recent) habitats are tropical forests where the intensity of sunlight is relatively low.

• High APOE*4 frequencies (20-30%) are also found in Saami and Inuit, who are moderately pigmented humans living in regions with low average solar radiation, and in peoples living in South American rain forests.

• Conversely, the lowest frequencies of APOE*4 (5-10%) is found among lightly or moderately pigmented humans living in areas of high insolation, i.e. around the Mediterranean Sea, in East Asia, in the southern parts of North America and in Central America.

• The APOE*4 gradient in Europe (and possible also in Japan) could be interpreted to indicate natural selection for this allele with decreasing solar radiation.

The putative advantage of APOE*4 could be related to better intestinal absorption of vitamin D (see page 30), but could also be related, somehow, to the fact that apoE and DBP both binds to megalin. This receptor plays a central
role in vitamin D metabolism, since it binds and internalizes DBP on the luminal surface in the renal proximal tubuli. The function prevents systemic loss of vitamin D through the urine and is also a step in the conversion of 25-hydroxy- vitamin D3 to the biologically active 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D3 [Willnow et al., 1999].

Study: Carriers of apo E4 have higher vitamin D (25OHD) blood levels compared to population controls

411 news flash...New research from last month in FASEB supports an earlier speculaton that carriers of the ApoE4 allele require less vitamin D. Willnow's research and Gerdes' theory have a line of evidence for confirmation. To prevent vitamin D deficiency and subsequent health risks (female pelvic dysplasia, fatal childbirths, growth, maturation, steroidogenesis, rickets, testosterone/progesterone production, etc), an evolutionary adaptation to recycling of vitamin D at the kidney level that raises serum vitamin D in apo E4 carriers may have occurred. The researchers state ' The novel link suggests ε4 as a modulator of vitamin D status.'

(Sorry didn't have time for tracking this PDF but if anyone can toss over would be horribly AWESOME *BIG WINK*)

FASEB J. 2011 Jun 9.
APOE {varepsilon}4 is associated with higher vitamin D levels in targeted replacement mice and humans.
Rimbach et al

Abstract
The allele ε4 of apolipoprotein E (APOE), which is a key regulator of lipid metabolism, represents a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and Alzheimer's disease. Despite its adverse effects, the allele is common and shows a nonrandom global distribution that is thought to be the result of evolutionary adaptation. One hypothesis proposes that the APOE ε4 allele protects against vitamin D deficiency. Here we present, for the first time, experimental and epidemiological evidence that the APOE ε4 allele is indeed associated with higher serum vitamin D [25(OH)D] levels. In APOE4 targeted replacement mice, significantly higher 25(OH)D levels were found compared with those in APOE2 and APOE3 mice (70.9 vs. 41.8 and 27.8 nM, P<0.05). Furthermore, multivariate adjusted models show a positive association of the APOE ε4 allele with 25(OH)D levels in a small collective of human subjects (n=93; P=0.072) and a general population sample (n=699; P=0.003). The novel link suggests ε4 as a modulator of vitamin D status. Although this result agrees well with evolutionary aspects, it appears contradictory with regard to chronic diseases, especially cardiovascular disease. Large prospective cohort studies are now needed to investigate the potential implications of this finding for chronic disease risks.

Vitamin D Dosing Revisited

For those supplementing vitamin D exogenously, care and caution for adverse effects should be monitored. Sunlight derived vitamin D can be shut off -- we have enzymes and systems that control blood/cellular levels, however for supplementation just as taking a birth control or exogenous hormone medication, what goes in, stays in. Previously I listed contraindications for vitamin d supplementation ((a) hypomagnesemia -- get mag up before supplementation because vitamin D will lower serum Mag; (b) sarcoidosis or other condition associated with elevated 25OHD or 1,25OHD3). Now I would add those with E4 should like monitor closely and avoid supratherapeutic levels which probably need to be addressed on an individual basis. With E4 there may be suggestions that intracellular 1,25OHD3 may be higher and this would not necessarily be reflected in serum levels (just like Mag levels are not, intracellular $$$$$ tests are required to accurately assess). Supratherapeutic needs to be individually defined...

So, what's an optimal, ancestral, nutrigenomically perfect serum vitamin D 25OHD and 1,25OHD3 level? I dunno. Who really knows?

Relevant Citations:

LU Gerdes Thesis HERE

The common polymorphism of apolipoprotein E: geographical aspects and new pathophysiological relations.
Gerdes LU.
Clin Chem Lab Med. 2003 May;41(5):628-31.

APOE {varepsilon}4 is associated with higher vitamin D levels in targeted replacement mice and humans.
Huebbe P, Nebel A, Siegert S, Moehring J, Boesch-Saadatmandi C, Most E, Pallauf J, Egert S, Müller MJ, Schreiber S, Nöthlings U, Rimbach G.
FASEB J. 2011 Jun 9.

Essential role of megalin in renal proximal tubule for vitamin homeostasis. Free PDF.
Christensen EI, Willnow TE.
J Am Soc Nephrol. 1999 Oct;10(10):2224-36.

Lipoprotein receptors: new roles for ancient proteins.
Willnow TE, Nykjaer A, Herz J.
Nat Cell Biol. 1999 Oct;1(6):E157-62.

Expression profiling confirms the role of endocytic receptor megalin in renal vitamin D3 metabolism.
Hilpert J, Wogensen L, Thykjaer T, Wellner M, Schlichting U, Orntoft TF, Bachmann S, Nykjaer A, Willnow TE.
Kidney Int. 2002 Nov;62(5):1672-81.

An endocytic pathway essential for renal uptake and activation of the steroid 25-(OH) vitamin D3.
Nykjaer A, Dragun D, Walther D, Vorum H, Jacobsen C, Herz J, Melsen F, Christensen EI, Willnow TE.
Cell. 1999 Feb 19;96(4):507-15.

The uptake of lipoprotein-borne phylloquinone (vitamin K1) by osteoblasts and osteoblast-like cells: role of heparan sulfate proteoglycans and apolipoprotein E. Free PDF.
Newman P, Bonello F, Wierzbicki AS, Lumb P, Savidge GF, Shearer MJ.
J Bone Miner Res. 2002 Mar;17(3):426-33.

Ancestral Allele ApoE4: Super Brain Power, Fertility, Lipophilic Immunity

2011-06-22T09:14:00.001-07:00

Ancestral Nutrition: The Imperfect Diet Cleaves Adaptive Genetic Polymorphisms

Hat tip to B. Pottenger for the latest science daily (HERE) on the importance of ancestral, customized nutrition for our health. Chilton et al found desaturase/FADS variants in African Americans which take medium chain n-6 PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids) and convert them into long chain n-6 PUFAs, like arachidonic acid which may increase systemic inflammation. They purport this may explain the inordinate increase in Western diseases observed in African Americans who display a certain FADS genotype variant for fatty acid disposal when they eat the high n-6 PUFA Western diet, including prostate cancer, diabetes, diabetic complication, heart attacks, obesity and dementia/Alzheimers. [I edited the last post -- continental Africans also have a high rate of apoE4 in addition to current hunter-gatherer groups in Africa.]

ApoE4, The Ancestral Allele = Carnivorous and Fatty Acid-Adaptive Allele

It is clear that our ancient hominid predecessors had something special that allowed them to leave Africa ~2 mya and navigate the terrain and uncertain food, energy and climate allotments. Like others I subscribe to the marine hypothesis (Cunnane SC) that certain brain nutrients are essential for IQ and brain function. Both Cunnane and Jonathon CK Wells writes about the 'fattiness' of the human brain and how this factored into our brain evolution and global domination of every potential ecological niche... not withstanding the moon and interplanetary travel as well. Wells' book 'The Evolutionary Biology of Human Body Fatness: Thrift and Control' details the fats that built our history and brains.

A couple evolutionary biologists also assert that the APOE4 allele is our 'meat-adaptive' gene. Well. This makes sense to a finite degree however no research that I could find illustrates apoE increasing proteins into the brain or digestion... On the other hand, the research is highly demonstrative of apoE4 increasing FATTY ACIDS into our brains, mitochondrial metabolism and enhancement of neural efficiency.

My view:
apoE4 -- Infiniti of cars (same Nissan engine), running on super premium fuel (ancestral allele)
apoE3 -- Nissan Maxima (wild type allele), runs both regular and premium fuels
apoE2 -- Nissan Sentra, on regular unleaded (agarian allele??)
apoE combos -- Prius hybrids (phenotype varying by degrees)

One change of the protein structure of apoE at the 61 spot from T to R/arginine may have set the stage for evolution of other nervous system and housekeeping genes that not only grew a superior engine in the brain but also the chassis/architecture of our hard drives. The ancestral apoE4 allels may be one among several genetic variations that sets us vastly apart from our not so distant primate past.

Super Brain Power + Super Brain Fuel

Though in the medical literature is rife with negative associations between apoE4 and a variety of conditions, my observations are that in those who exhibit high LDLs appear to display the most supreme levels of super-healing and extraordinary intelligence. See Hyperlipid (Peter D. for studies where high LDL associated with positive improvements and longevity, HERE J-LITT. Please also review the neurobio series on Alzheimer's by the wonderful Emily D. at Ev Psych and how low cholesterol is associated with lower cognition HERE.

As you can see from Mahley and Rall's 2000 publication, LDL sharply corresponds to apoE status. E4, the highest; E2, the lowest LDL. Do most cardiologists know this as they prescribe cookie-cutter NCEP/ATPIII-aligned statins? Please.

The density of the LDL determines its function. Small dense is damaging. For E4, dietary carbohydrates and dietary deficiencies of saturated fat dramatically shape and create small, dense, harmful LDL particles. The only rare cases of coronary calcification improvement on EBCT at a coronary heart website were the uncommon participant on a lower carb, HIGH SATURATED FAT intake. E4 appear exquisitely more sensitive to diet, exercise, fats/carbs and environmental toxicants.

Mondadori et al used new technology fMRIs to brain scan young chess-playing individuals and compared their the apoE status. The apoE4 showed increased memory, retrieval, neuropsychology and apparently neural efficiency. E4 indeed appear to run their brains on better fuel, e.g. fatty acids, the currency of nervous system cells.

Why is this not observed in E4 carriers in older age in the industrial populations? In the prior post, researchers discussed how the cysteine amino acid is lacking in E4, at the 112 site. E2 has 2 cysteine's per allele; E3, 1 cysteine; E4, N-O-N-E. This protein conformation apparently stupendously reduces the capacity for apoE to shuttle trace metals out of nervous system tissues. Many enzymes regulate and control metals in the brain however having the E4 allele is like a neuronal death sentence in a world that is contaminated by metals, not excluding one's own oral cavity. Sources of neolethal metal: dental amalgams (50% are mercury which gas off), stents, ortho/dental implants, well water, water purification at municipal plants (alum/Al), lead from leaded fuel/diesel, copper piping, fish intake (the EPA advises pregnant women limit fish, shouldn't we non-pregnant as well?), vaccines (Hep B, flu, whooping cough, Td, etc) and broken Hg thermometers.

Super Fertility = (Pre-Industrial) ApoE4 Populate the World

The literature abounds with cases of higher infertility in apoE4 women. FYI All literature needs to be viewed from an evolutionary perspective and in this context the great majority of these studies for me only demonstrate that the Western diet/lifestyle are particularly adverse to the hunter-gatherer types who carry the E4 allele. If a person carries the E4, then consuming an anti-HG diet (e.g. refined, non-ancestral), then the preponderance of small dense, oxidizable LDL and a hyperactive immune system which searches and scars, yes of course, will result in higher rates of infertility, fibroids, ovarian cysts, PCOS and less pregnancies, as countless PubMed articles report.

One study looked at HG super fertility... In African-Ecuadorians and a HG group, Capaya Indians, indeed the # of gestations and pregnancies were astoundingly higher in E4 carrier women. See citation below Corbo et al. They hypothesize that higher rates of sex hormone steroidogenesis can potentially occur with the E4 genotype.

My own family may also be a prime example. On low carb, mod-high sat fat, my LDLs are greater than 130s which is 'high' for the medical establishment, EVEN THOUGH THE HDL-CHOLESTEROL ECLIPSES THE S.A.D. HDL for women at 105 mg/dl. Both my father and stepmother's side each have 12 children (with 1-2 nonsurviving siblings). How is this humanly possible, as a mom, I used to WONDER OUT LOUD IN HORROR. I think Catholic families might relate... I could have a litter kids if I didn't have a brakestop. My parents and step mother are from an ancient nomadic group (Hakka, part of Han) and in all likelihood harbor the E4 allele somewhere, as my LDLs my appear to indicate. Each of my siblings and I (4 total) have had an autoimmune disorder and are somewhat sensitive to modern pollution and toxicants (gluten, dairy/casein, medications, and sulfa-, nickel-, metal-allergies).

Super Immunity

In a seminal article in PNAS, Caleb Finch's 'Evolution of the human lifespan and diseases of aging: Roles of infection, inflammation, and nutrition' talks about how humans evade infections and the role of apoE4. As a carnivorous creature, hominids had access to ingestion of better protein, trace minerals and fats. The apoE system shuttles cholesterol and the contents of LDL and HDL particles into nervous system tissues (iodine, zinc, tocopherols, ubiquinone, vit K2, etc).

By absorbing fats from the intestines quickly, this sequesters fat from parasites, bacteria and other pathogens. It is believed this might be one mechanism of super immunity which is observed in E4 carriers. Finch and Stanford (QJB, 2004) report 'In chronic infections by hepatitis C virus (HCV), apoE4 carriers had milder liver disease (Wozniak et al. 2002). The protection against HCV by apoE4 is consistent with the role of lipoproteins in transmission of HCV and other viruses (Wozniak et al. 2002), and fulfills hypotheses that apoE4 is a resistance factor for lipophilic parasites (Martin 1999) and that apoE4 confers advantages in early life (Charlesworth 1996). ApoE may also influence infections by other viruses and by prions, but the evidence is less clear (Table 3, Note 1d and Appendix).'

Human Migration: Evolution of Machinery to Convert Saturated Fat into Omega-3 PUFAs

How did humans go so far north, such high altitudes where seemingly harsh climate and terrains existed? Many SNP variants have apparently evolved which helped our ancestors thrive and live very full lives in certain microecological niches on earth. One thing that has baffled me to know end is the apparent n-3 pufa sources in northern Europe, Africa or northern China as hominids moved there 200,000 years ago. The FADS gene clusters of polymorphisms definitely explains a lot as to how the delta 5 and 6 desaturases control elongation of fatty acids to the ever important essential brain nutrient n-3 pufa.

Terrestrial Brain nutrient allocation and Adaptation from Sahara marine-sources (hypothesis):
EPA DHA n-3 pufa: ???! from where, ?megafauna and small animal predation
ALA n-3 pufa: wild greens
Iodine: ApoE4, possible iodine-oral cavity cellular conservative adaptations, polymorphs of MT1,2,3
Zinc: ApoE4
Magnesium: ApoE4
Taurine: Raw megafauna hunt successes, small animals, fish/seafood from local rivers/tributaries
UVB induced vitamin D: grubs, lighter eyes, lighter skin, melanin reduction, megafauna livers
Red wine: j/k

In a prospective human intervention trial, Dabadie et al gave myristic acid, a 14 carbon SATURATED FATTY ACID, to humans and showed an increase and significant enrichment of DHA, omega-3 pufa, in tissues. The authors later performed another study, increasing the myristic and giving ALA and found a J- or U-shaped curve where less DHA changes were seen at higher saturated fat intakes.

I think this is the first and only study that I could find where saturated fat can be under the influences of our desaturases to produce and synthesize a necessary and essential brain long-chain omega-3. Lard is 1% myristic, the head oil of sperm whale 15% and dairy fat 10%.

Citations

1. The impact of FADS genetic variants on ω6 polyunsaturated fatty acid metabolism in African Americans. Mathias RA, Sergeant S, Ruczinski I, Torgerson DG, Hugenschmidt CE, Kubala M, Vaidya D, Suktitipat B, Ziegler JT, Ivester P, Case D, Yanek LR, Freedman BI, Rudock ME, Barnes KC, Langefeld CD, Becker LC, Bowden DW, Becker DM, Chilton FH.
BMC Genet. 2011 May 20;12:50.

2. Genetic variants in the metabolism of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids: their role in the determination of nutritional requirements and chronic disease risk.
Simopoulos AP.
Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2010 Jul;235(7):785-95.

3. A 'desaturase hypothesis' for atherosclerosis: Janus-faced enzymes in omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid metabolism.
Martinelli N, Consoli L, Olivieri O.
J Nutrigenet Nutrigenomics. 2009;2(3):129-39.

4. Apolipoprotein E polymorphism and fertility: a study in pre-industrial populations.
Corbo RM, Ulizzi L, Scacchi R, Martínez-Labarga C, De Stefano GF. Free PDF.
Mol Hum Reprod. 2004 Aug;10(8):617-20.

5. n-3 Fatty acid erythrocyte membrane content, APOE varepsilon4, and cognitive variation: an observational follow-up study in late adulthood. Free PDF. [This will be discussed later (someday). N-3 is a surrogate for mercury toxicity via fish/seafood consumption esp in apoE4 who hoard/harbor trace metals.]
Whalley LJ, Deary IJ, Starr JM, Wahle KW, Rance KA, Bourne VJ, Fox HC.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Feb;87(2):449-54.

6. Moderate intake of myristic acid [MEDIUM CHAIN SATURATED FAT] in sn-2 position has beneficial lipidic effects and enhances DHA [OMEGA-3 PUFA] of cholesteryl esters in an interventional study [HUMAN].
Dabadie H, Peuchant E, Bernard M, LeRuyet P, Mendy F.
J Nutr Biochem. 2005 Jun;16(6):375-82.

7. Omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid increases SorLA/LR11, a sorting protein with reduced expression in sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD): relevance to AD prevention. Free PDF.
Ma QL, Teter B, Ubeda OJ, Morihara T, Dhoot D, Nyby MD, Tuck ML, Frautschy SA, Cole GM.
J Neurosci. 2007 Dec 26;27(52):14299-307.

8. Better memory and neural efficiency in young apolipoprotein E epsilon4 carriers. Free PDF.
Mondadori CR, de Quervain DJ, Buchmann A, Mustovic H, Wollmer MA, Schmidt CF, Boesiger P, Hock C, Nitsch RM, Papassotiropoulos A, Henke K.
Cereb Cortex. 2007 Aug;17(8):1934-47.

9. Superior performance [CHESS PLAYING/STRATEGIZING] and neural efficiency: the impact of intelligence and expertise.
Grabner RH, Neubauer AC, Stern E.
Brain Res Bull. 2006 Apr 28;69(4):422-39.

10. Evolution in health and medicine Sackler colloquium: Evolution of the human lifespan and diseases of aging: roles of infection, inflammation, and nutrition. Free PDF.
Finch CE.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jan 26;107 Suppl 1:1718-24.

11. Accelerated evolution of nervous system genes in the origin of Homo sapiens. Free PDF.
Dorus S, Vallender EJ, Evans PD, Anderson JR, Gilbert SL, Mahowald M, Wyckoff GJ, Malcom CM, Lahn BT.
Cell. 2004 Dec 29;119(7):1027-40.

12. Apolipoprotein E: far more than a lipid transport protein. Free PDF.
Mahley RW, Rall SC Jr.
Annu Rev Genomics Hum Genet. 2000;1:507-37.

13. Meat-adaptive [URRG fat adaptive] genes and the evolution of slower aging in humans. Free PDF.
Finch CE, Stanford CB.
Q Rev Biol. 2004 Mar;79(1):3-50. Review.

Human DNA Migration and How to Extract DNA From a Banana

2011-06-15T12:53:00.000-07:00

Courtesy: Youtube.com
Nelly Furtado Mash-Up

DNA Mash-Ups

Who do you look like?

Genotypically and phenotypically, which relative (or mailman) do you resemble? Like our DNA, we're mash-up expressions of our ancestral pasts... My Taiwanese relatives tell me I physically resemble my maternal grandmother, yet my youngest sister is an uncanny amalgamation of my paternal grandmother and my dad's older sisters.

Cetus Corp

In Advanced Bio in high school, our prof taught us how to extract DNA using high tech equipment from Cetus (bought out by Chiron, later bought out by Roche) and protocols from Cold Spring Harbor. Funny how technology merges or gets hijacked. My teacher was Mr. D and was the coolest because he gave us the key to the lab (and yes, we goofed around like all seniors).

Science can make indelible impressions, no?

How to Extract DNA 101

Here is a low tech home science project which is incrediblyfun and easy to do. DNA is the language of life -- 4 letters (A T G C) in a pair linked helix translate proteins to organs to life. Extract it from anything (bananas, beans, etc) with a little clear soap (EDTA -- an organic molecule which chelates and sequesters trace and heavy metals). The end step involves swirling the DNA 'snot' onto a glass rod or q-tip.

o Learn Genetics (Univ of Utah) How to Extract DNA From Anything Living
o PBS Nova Extract DNA From a BANANA Recipe (example HERE)
o Scientific American: Find DNA in a BANANA (see picture)

[Great U of Utah resources here: Evolution starts with DNA and Ingredients for evolution: variation, selection and time]

DNA Flow = Gene Flow (e.g. s*xxx)

In 99% of flora and fauna on earth, gene flow is carried forward via the confluence of events known as fertilization by the combination of an egg and sperm. Rare exceptions include slime molds, asexual fungi and 'immaculate conception'.

Researchers can now trace the ancestral carriage of certain genes by examining the frequence of polymorphisms in expressed proteins like ACE, APOE and APOB. APOE (apolipoprotein E) has been particularly interesting to me because of its role in immunity, neurobiology, and lipoprotein/fat/cholesterol metabolism. Modern medicine ignores the role of Apo E and its impact on lab metrics. Many in the paleosphere appear to *LOVE* calculating their LDL using the Iranian formula, however like Friedewald this metric is highly flawed. Not only is the premise for the LDL-heart hypothesis inherently incorrect, humans and other mammalian species do not conform to uniform cookie-cutter lipoprotein patterns.

See prior nephropal: Apo E4, Highest LDL Expression

Human DNA Migration (mtDNA)

Let's return briefly to Douglas Wallace, one of the originators of the mitochondrial medicine model (Wallace DC. Am J Hum Genet. 57:201-223, 1995. Free PDF). The above diagram traces the path of mtDNA following human migration since leaving Africa over 100,000 years ago. I think it will be quite neat later when they can include mtDNA data from the skeletal remains of neanderthals, H. heidelbergensis and H. erectus, our other ancestors.

Apo E4 = Ancestral Allele

(above diagram, see Luduc et al) Apo E4 not only is associated with higher Triglycerides (TG) and LDL cholesterol, but also aboriginal and ancestral hunter-gatherer societies. It is argued but widely accepted that apo E4 is the ancestral allele associated with the far past tightly evolved from our 200,000 YBP (years before present) to 4 million YBP hominid ancestors. Apo E3 showed up and evolved at least 300,000 year ago (found also in Neanderthals, Luduc et al), however apo E2 has only appeared recently according to scientific estimates. Rarely does any Amerindian culture exhibits apoE2 without obvious agrarian European gene flow.

Climate: Hot and Cold Extremes Selected ApoE4

The recipe for evolution and the excelling domination of a certain characteristic (phenotype/genotype) are: variation, time and selection. An increasing frequency of apoE4 has been witnessed along a south-to-north gradient in Europe (e.g.increasing with cold and fatty acid requirements for thermogenesis BAT). For equatorial cultures, on the other hand, a north-to-south contrasting pattern has been fully elucidated (increasing with heat and salt/mineral requirements with losses in sweat). Eisenberg et al (see below diagrams) hypothesizes that extreme climates which require higher cholesterol requirements and temperature regulation contributed to the higher apoE4 incidence. Agrarian practices appear to have initiated the latest allele appearance, apo E2, which is associated with less carbohydrate toxicity/sensitivities and an apparent buffer to modern SAD chronic conditions (mental, metabolic, autoimmunity).

Apo E4 Global Distribution

Carriers of apoE4 are 'survivors' since the dawn of time. In the medical literature, apo E4 has had a lot of attention because of its association with Alzheimer's, dementia, autoimmune disorders, Western SAD chronic conditions and obesity/metabolic syndrome/T2DM.

Highest allele frequency observed in:
--Africans
--northern Europe (e.g. my hypothesis, Neanderthal clades)
--northern China (Mongolia, ancestral Han)
--southern India (equatorial)
--Amerindians
--Aboriginal/hunter-gatherer subpopulations

Purpose and Role of ApoE4

Apo E has been associated with protection from infectious disease (diarrhea, viral, bacterial) and perhaps survival in select climate extremes (cold/harsh and hot/equatorial). E4 carriers (2/4, 3/4 or 4/4) exhibit heightened absorption of fat-soluble nutrients and cholesterol from the gut. Singh et al describes apoE4 'has also been proved to be a useful marker for evaluation of biological carriers are more responsive to dietary fats and this could be an advantage when food supplies are scarce or irregular. It is associated with better intestinal absorption of lipids including the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. This may be the reason that APOE E4 appears to be more common in hunters–gatherers than the long-established agricultural communities, e.g. southern Europe, Southeast Asia and Central America (Gerdes et al. 1996a; Corbo and Scacchi 1999) (Singh et al. Annals of Human Biology, 2006).' ApoE4 guards against cholesterol loss and maintains cholesterol homeostasis and cholinergic integrity in the central nervous system (e.g. brain).

In New Zealand, researchers found a correlation between apoE4, heavy metal toxicity and chronic diseases (chronic fatigue, western diseases, heart disease). After chelation of metals, chronic disease status improved. In the ApoE4 protein structure at position 112 (see Luduc diagram above), arginine occupies the site. In E3 and E2 however cysteine has evolved to occupy position 112. Cysteine has advantages in metal dominant environments.

Godfrey et al explain the variance on heavy metal accumulation by the influence of apoE4 v. E3 v. E2, below.

Isomer ε2 has two cysteine
amino-acids in its structure, ε3 has one cysteine and
one arginine, and ε 4 has two arginine amino-acids and
no cysteine [6]. Cysteine, with its sulphydryl (-SH)
bonds, is potentially able to bind to, and remove metals
(e.g., mercury and lead) from tissues, whereas arginine,
lacking the -SH bonds, would be unable to do this.
Apo-E genotyping therefore becomes relevant once it
is acknowledged that prolonged exposure to mercury
has been associated with neurotoxicity, including the
pathological histology unique to Alzheimer’s senile
dementia, namely, ﬁbrillary tangles, amyloid plaques and
increased phosphorylation of tau protein [12,27,28,32].

Conceivably, IMHO, the ancestral allele allowed hominids and mammals to evolve away from rich marine-mineral sources to northern latitudes and above-sea-level altitudes which were physical terrains and landscapes devoid of and lacking brain/body nutrients: minerals (iodine, mag/calcium, zinc), omega-3 and UVB radiation for skin-synthesized vitamin D3. Our DNA mash-ups and heterogeneity explain not only our current health status but can illuminate the path to physiological recovery of neolethal damage and full health optimization.

See prior nephropal: Survival of the PHAT-est

Citations

1. Influence of apolipoprotein E genotype on the reliability of the Friedewald formula in the estimation of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations.
Tremblay AJ, Bergeron J, Gagné JM, Gagné C, Couture P.
Metabolism. 2005 Aug;54(8):1014-9.

** Iranian (for apoE2, inherently low TGs) v. Friedwald (for wildtype apoE3). See resource. **

2. The apolipoprotein E polymorphism: a comparison of allele frequencies and effects in nine populations. Free PDF.
Hallman DM, Boerwinkle E, Saha N, Sandholzer C, Menzel HJ, Csázár A, Utermann G.
Am J Hum Genet. 1991 Aug;49(2):338-49.

3. The effect of apoE genotype and sex on ApoE plasma concentration is determined by dietary fat in healthy subjects. (Email me for PDF)
Moreno JA, Pérez-Jiménez F, Moreno-Luna R, Pérez-Martínez P, Fuentes-Jiménez F, Marín C, Portugal H, Lairon D, López-Miranda J.
Br J Nutr. 2009 Jun;101(12):1745-52.

4. Apolipoprotein E isoform phenotype and LDL subclass response to a reduced-fat diet. Free PDF. [Higher LDL-IVb 'death band' with 'low fat diet']
Dreon DM, Fernstrom HA, Miller B, Krauss RM.
Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 1995 Jan;15(1):105-11.

5. Carbohydrate intake, serum lipids and apolipoprotein E phenotype show association in children.
Ruottinen S, Rönnemaa T, Niinikoski H, Lagström H, Saarinen M, Pahkala K, Kaitosaari T, Viikari J, Simell O.
Acta Paediatr. 2009 Oct;98(10):1667-73.

6. Apolipoprotein E genotyping as a potential biomarker for mercury neurotoxicity. Free PDF.
Godfrey ME, Wojcik DP, Krone CA.
J Alzheimers Dis. 2003 Jun;5(3):189-95.

7. Function and Comorbidities of Apolipoprotein E in Alzheimer's Disease. Free PDF
Valérie Leduc, Dorothée Domenger, Louis De Beaumont, Daphnée Lalonde, Stéphanie Bélanger-Jasmin, and Judes Poirier
Int J Alzheimers Dis. 2011; 2011: 974361.

8. Worldwide allele frequencies of the human apolipoprotein E gene: climate, local adaptations, and evolutionary history. (Email me for PDF)
Eisenberg DT, Kuzawa CW, Hayes MG.
Am J Phys Anthropol. 2010 Sep;143(1):100-11.

Thor: BIG, Bulging, Strong... Cardio+Xfit

2011-05-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

Thor/Chris Hemsworth
(Picture at Celebitchy.com)

Today I'll be presenting deep thoughts.

Mhhhhmmm.... Mighty God of Thunder and weather... Thor (played by haaawwwt and humble aussie Chris Hemsworth) and his *haa ah!* mitochondria...

SUMMER FLICKS ARE HERE LADIES!

Watch 'em (and try to stop drooling). It was a toss up between Thor and the FF/XXX franchise (2 hotties) which was a t-o-u-g-h-i-e. [Celebitchy Thor and his mig hty abdominal muscles rule the box office was a factor.]

Mr.Hemsworth [and his mitochondria] talk about his workout H ERE. Bulking out excessively on heavy lifting made him 'blocky' and unable to move lithely, but provided the beef. However, switching it up to 'cardio and crossfit-style' workouts gave him the final movie form (listen at 1:33), fit that fancy Nordic warrior outfit and save Asgard and the world.

Eat My Biscuits. Sausage Biscuits wink

2011-05-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

My sister 'M' is a masterful mastermind in the hearth of her house, the kitchen. Her sweet goodies and salty savories are the kibble for my soul and sanctuary. (And sometimes growing adipose cells! )

Each ingredient in her recipe is a SUPER FOOD by all comparisons.

Coconut flour is awesome stuff. Apparently it has great minerals, medium chain fatty acids and fiber. Fiber is good especially when it is lectin and phytic acid free (unlike legumes, raw nuts/seeds and wholebodydiseasegrains).

Red VPO (virgin palm oil) is one of the most popular oils in the world -- rich in deep orange carotenoids, antioxidant tocotrienols, coenzyme Q10, stigmasterol/plant sterols (anti-rheumatic Wulzen factor) and both oleic acid and palmitic acid (yes you need both -- read Peter Hyperlipid THE HORROR NEVER ENDS).

Onions, low carb, high protein -- these food factors make for great health and snacking. Onions and green onions are rich in sulfur and quercetin (if you don't have SIBO and can tolerate FODMAPs) which aid glutathione proteins to detox and keep toxins at bay.

Excessive carbs glycosylate and sugar-coat organs -- the tomatoes are fantastic long-acting carbs without impacting BGs.

High protein -- sustains growth, repair and regeneration.

Sausage biscuits are one of the easiest to make vehicles for coconut flour and the other super foods. These keep for a while and are simply convenient to snack on and easily transportable (though somewhat crumbly if smashed). Coconut flour absorbs a lot of water from the air -- the eggs from the protein seal the moisture in but you may have to adjust the liquid in the recipe depending on your house humidity and other factors.

These make great paleo bisonburger 'buns' when split apart in half...

Sausage Biscuit Recipe
(modified, courtesy of my sister 'M' YOU ROCK GRRRL!!)

4 eggs
1/4 c. virgin palm oil (or lard or ghee or coconut oil)
1/4 tsp. Utah salt
1/4 tsp. onion powder or grated onion, opt.
1/8 - 1/4 c. minced scallions (or shallots or white onions)
1/2 c. coconut flour, sifted
1/4 tsp. baking soda (Aluminum free)
1/2 c. organic sundried tomatoes
4 to 8 oz. sausage or ground beef/bison sauteed with sundried tomatoes and some tomato or fave spaghetti sauce until semi-dry but mildly moist (I like Mario Batali's sauces)

Blend together eggs, oil, salt and onion. Combine coconut flour with baking soda and whisk into batter until there are no lumps. Fold in minced sundried tomatoes and sausage. Let the batter rest for 4-5 min to thicken. Drop batter by the spoonful onto greased cookie sheet (or use parchment paper), 2 in. apart. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 min.

Makes 8 biscuits.

Related References:

Stephan Guyenet PhD: Palm oil -- one study 69% reduction in oxLDL. Palm oil contains Coenzyme Q10, tocotrienols (family of vitamin E's).
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2010/07/tropical-plant-fats-palm-oil.html

Expert Researcher Barry Tan PhD on carotenoids and tocotrienols in palm oil, interview and research articles.
http://www.drpasswater.com/nutrition_library/tan_1.html
http://americanrivernutrition.com/research/research-articles

History of Palm Oil and production
http://www.cambridge.org/us/books/kiple/palmoil.htm

More history: Introduction: nutritional aspects of palm oil.
Cottrell RC.
Am J Clin Nutr. 1991 Apr;53(4 Suppl):989S-1009S. Review. (free PDF)

Vitamin E tocotrienols improve insulin sensitivity through activating peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors.
Fang F, Kang Z, Wong C.
Mol Nutr Food Res. 2010 Mar;54(3):345-52.
PMID: 19866471

Comparative effects of dietary corn oil, safflower oil, fish oil and palm oil on metabolism of ethanol and carnitine in the rat. [PO improves carnitine status]
Sachan DS, Yatim AM, Daily JW.
J Am Coll Nutr. 2002 Jun;21(3):233-8.
PMID: 12074250 (free PDF)

Heated palm oil [FIVE-TEN TIMES] causes rise in blood pressure and cardiac changes in heart muscle in experimental rats. [unheated palm oil was associated with wt loss compared with control rats]
Leong XF, Aishah A, Nor Aini U, Das S, Jaarin K.
Arch Med Res. 2008 Aug;39(6):567-72.

The effect of dietary red palm oil on the functional recovery of the ischaemic/reperfused isolated rat heart: the involvement of the PI3-kinase signaling pathway.
Engelbrecht AM, Odendaal L, Du Toit EF, Kupai K, Csont T, Ferdinandy P, van Rooyen J.
Lipids Health Dis. 2009 May 29;8:18.

Cardioprotection with palm oil tocotrienols: comparision of different isomers.
Das S, Lekli I, Das M, Szabo G, Varadi J, Juhasz B, Bak I, Nesaretam K, Tosaki A, Powell SR, Das DK.
Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2008 Feb;294(2):H970-8.
PMID: 18083895 (free pdf)

Dietary red palm oil supplementation reduces myocardial infarct size in an isolated perfused rat heart model.
Bester DJ, Kupai K, Csont T, Szucs G, Csonka C, Esterhuyse AJ, Ferdinandy P, Van Rooyen J.
Lipids Health Dis. 2010 Jun 18;9:64.
PMID: 20565865 (free pdf)

Replacement of dietary fat with palm oil: effect on human serum lipids, lipoproteins and apolipoproteins. [11% increase in human subjects of HDL2b, the cardio- and disease-protective HDL fraction with palm oil]
Sundram K, Hornstra G, von Houwelingen AC, Kester AD.
Br J Nutr. 1992 Nov;68(3):677-92.

Effect of dietary palm oil on lipoprotein lipases: lipoprotein levels and tissue lipids in rat. [higher HDL, lower TG compared with control diet arms]
Pereira TA, Sinniah R, Das NP.
Biochem Med Metab Biol. 1990 Dec;44(3):207-17.

Palm and partially hydrogenated soybean oils adversely alter lipoprotein profiles compared with soybean and canola oils in moderately hyperlipidemic subjects. [Palm Oil Increases in HDL, increases in apoA1 and both are disease/longevity-protective -- Table--in only 35 days, with palm oil, increased HDL, apoA1, and lowered TG, Lp(a) compared with canola, soy and hydrogenated soy; I ignored authors' conclusions]
Vega-López S, Ausman LM, Jalbert SM, Erkkilä AT, Lichtenstein AH.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Jul;84(1):54-62. (free PDF)

Palm oil and health: a case of manipulated perception and misuse of science.
McNamara DJ.
J Am Coll Nutr. 2010 Jun;29(3 Suppl):240S-244S.

Fermented Asian Food and Gut Dysbiosis 101

2011-04-23T11:42:00.000-07:00

Flexibility = Adaptability

This gentleman was kind enough to let me take his photo by the West Lake in Huangzhou. His pose lasted longer than the time we had to hang out! I especially loved his timeless smile and ageless grace.

Fermented Foods of China

Quest for Fermented Food

In our first leg of our vacation in China, my husband and I had dinner with fellow blogger and fermentation fan Seth Roberts at his choice, a Yunnan restaurant which specialized in regional dishes. Wasn't difficult to track down dishes with fermented condiments or fermented flavors. Most traditional ethnicities incorporate fermented foods in daily meals from dawn to twilight no matter where you are on planet earth. (everywhere except the land of McDonalds, Velveeta doesn't count!)

From top to bottom:
-- roasted duck with fermented bean paste (I think, I can't recall now!)
--deep fried insects (grub have microbiota which ferment but *ugggh* the veggie oils)
--fish with fermented black bean sauce
--yak milk yogurt, fermented sweeten rice wine dessert w/tapioca balls, tea with milk (tea leaves fermented)
--(not shown) B-E-E-R, fermented grains (it aint that bad, no?)

YUM!

Exploring the Benefits of Fermentation

Our gut microbiome is primarily responsible for fermenting our undigested food. Under pathologic circumstances, fermentation happens where it is not supposed to, e.g. the stomach, small bowel or in our blood stream.

Below Jiménez describes the benefits and distinct role our gut microbiome plays in our health, longevity and maintenance. Some experts even propose that our gut microbiome fucntions as an neuro-endocrine organ. I would strongly concur. It is transplantable like any other organ and is so indisposable that we cannot live without it. When it goes awry in function, like any other organ, a host of chronic illnesses and disorders ensue -- obesity, autoimmune diseases, cancer, mental conditions/crankiness, infertility, heart disease, etc.

Table IV Primary Functions of Intestinal Microflora (per Jiménez) (free PDF)

I. Planktonic microflora --> METABOLIC

(a) To ferment indigestible substrates (fiber, extruded cells and endogenous mucus)

(b) To favor the growth of beneficial intestinal microflora
----(i) Improves lactose digestion
----(ii) Modulates intsetinal gas production
----(iii) Increases genesis of short-chain fatty acids --> intraluminal acidication --> increases intestinal transit
----(iv) Increases the absorption of Ca, Fe, and Mg
----(v) Synthesizes vitamins: K, folic acid, biotin, B12

II. Mucosa-associated microbiota (MAM)

(a) Protective
----(i) Barrier effect + bacteriocin synthesis --> prevention of invasion by exogenous pathogens
----(ii) Maintenance of intestinal permeability --> prevents bacterial translocation and systemic infection (e.g. PREVENTION OF POOP IN THE BLOOD STREAM)

(b) Trophic
----(i) Controls epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation of intestinal mucosa
----(ii) Maintains new cell growth in intestinal epithelial crypts
----(iii) Of the intestinal immune system: cells and serum (immunoglobulins)

Sources

Rev Esp Enferm Dig. 2009 Aug;101(8):553-64.
Treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with probiotics. An etiopathogenic approach at last?
Bixquert Jiménez M.
Abstract
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common functional digestive disorder, and may affect 11-20% of the adult population in industrialized countries. In accordance with Rome III criteria (2006) IBS involves abdominal pain and bowel habit disturbance, which are not explained by structural or biochemical abnormalities. Several hypotheses attempt to account for the pathophysiology of IBS, but the etiology still remains uncertain or obscure, perhaps multifactorial. Abnormalities in colonic microflora have recently been suggested in such patients, as has abnormal small-intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), or in particular a significant reduction in the amount of intraluminal Bifidobacteria or Lactobacilli, with consequences like the production of colonic gas, and motility or sensitivity disturbances of the intestinal tract. The disorder is difficult to treat, and the wide spectrum of non-drug and drug treatments shows our ignorance about the cause of the condition. Newer drugs, both pro- and anti-serotonin, have failed to show long-term efficacy or have been withdrawn due to concerns about harmful effects. Recent research has provided increasing support for the idea that disturbances of intestinal microbiota occur in patients with IBS, and that such abnormalities may contribute to IBS symptoms. Studies in Scandinavian countries in the last ten years emphasize the role of probiotics in the modulation of intestinal microbiota, and as a consequence in the regulation of the motility and hypersensitivity of the digestive tract. Although results between studies are difficult to compare because of differences in study design, probiotic dose, strain, and duration of therapy, some studies show symptom improvement. Lactobacilli are found among the normal bacterial flora of the gastrointestinal tract, and Lactobacillus plantarum (Lp) is one of the species frequently isolated from the human mucosa, which is capable of surviving the low pH of the stomach and duodenum, resisting the effect of bile acids in the upper small intestine when ingested, and temporarily colonizing the gastrointestinal tract by binding to the intestinal and colonic mucosa. Concurrent with colonization by Lp there is a decrease in bacterial groups with gas-producing ability, such as Veillonella spp. and Clostridia spp. Evidence has now accumulated to suggest the efficacy of certain probiotics like Lp299v, which may be capable of bringing about a significant reduction in pain, abdominal distension and flatulence, while increasing health-related quality of life in IBS.

Int J Mol Sci. 2009 Aug 27;10(9):3755-75. Free PDF
The improvement of hypertension by probiotics: effects on cholesterol, diabetes, renin, and phytoestrogens.
Lye HS, Kuan CY, Ewe JA, Fung WY, Liong MT.
Abstract
Probiotics are live organisms that are primarily used to improve gastrointestinal disorders such as diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, lactose intolerance, and to inhibit the excessive proliferation of pathogenic intestinal bacteria. However, recent studies have suggested that probiotics could have beneficial effects beyond gastrointestinal health, as they were found to improve certain metabolic disorders such as hypertension. Hypertension is caused by various factors and the predominant causes include an increase in cholesterol levels, incidence of diabetes, inconsistent modulation of renin and imbalanced sexual hormones. This review discusses the antihypertensive roles of probiotics via the improvement and/or treatment of lipid profiles, modulation of insulin resistance and sensitivity, the modulation of renin levels and also the conversion of bioactive phytoestrogens as an alternative replacement of sexual hormones such as estrogen and progesterone.

Outs*de of the Main... R-evolutionary docs, Integrative Medicine, Mitochondrial Medicine/Chi

2011-03-12T18:16:00.000-08:00

'Western medicine is in crisis. Continually increasing resources are being expended to combat the age-related diseases that include diabetes and metabolic syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Yet the causes of these diseases remain a mystery, while their incidence and morbidity either remain constant or are increasing.'

Douglas C. Wallace, PhD
Center for Molecular and Mitochondrial Medicine and Genetics, Departments of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Biological Chemistry, and Pediatrics
University of California, Irvine, California
'Mitochondria as Chi'

Eric Turner and Tinie Tempah
'Written in the Stars'
Courtesy Youtube.com

Evolutionary Medicine

Dr. Tourgeman, Mr. Billy E (from Nephro-paleo) and many others subscribe to an evolutionary (revolutionary) approach for the delivery and science of medicine and reversal of neoLETHAL diseases. The failures of pharmaceutical treatments (ACCORD--diabetes treatment, STATINS S*CK AND DEBILITATE MITOCHONDRIA, etc), out of control incidence of dia-besity and exponential increases in autism, autoimmune disorders and cancer never cease to astound. Modern medicine illustrates too well where we are going wrong with a false foundation of non-functional exercise prescriptions (lack of intensity and weight bearing), high carb grain-based diets and ignorance for ancestrally cemented diurnal/circadian hormesis patterns.

Busy With Blog- and BOOKLUST *ha aaaaahh!*

I've been reading, reading, reading and absorbing... Yeah... it's awful... multitasking my reading b/c I cannot choose and they are all awfully EXCELLENT. Evolutionary medicine, horticulture/PHARMING, hormones and integrative medicine have the been the topics of keen interest the last few months.

Hofmekler--The Anti-Estrogenic Diet (of warrior diet fame)
Gedgaudas--Primal Body, Primal Mind (evolutionary integrative practitioner who understands our primordial past and neolithic strategies/testing to reverse neoLETHAL damage to the gut, mind and metabolism; 'paleo' is not enough)
Young--The pH Miracle
Hotze--Hormones, Health and Happiness (former ER doc and allergist turned anti-grain integrative physician)
Turner--The Hormone Diet (fixed her thyroid, hot ND hormone s*xxxxpert)
Somers--S*xxxy Forever (she's FINALLY addressing gluten and focusing on environmental toxins with consults from Crinnion and Blaylock; online resources: HERE incl integrative paleo Dr. LePine MD)
Kimball--The Dirty Life: On FARMING, Food and LOVE (NPR interview)
Peter Ballerstedt--Grass-based Health Blog (my fave post: LARD)
Rosensweet--Menopause and Natural Hormones
Stephenson--Awakening Athena (interview)
Werner--Why You Are Fat (gluten-free, hawwwt, hormone queen, trainer who fixed her low progesterone)
Taubes--Why We Get Fat (sublime, drool-inducing physicist)
Lepine--revolutionary integrative Dartmouth-trained physician and educator
Teta brothers--The ME Diet (Metabolic Edge) -- paleo ND physicians and trainers
Kurzweil--Transcend (paleo high-tech)
Fossel et al--The Immortality Edge (paleo, HIIT telomere science)
Sara Godfried--organic gynecologist blog (giggle-worthy, ginormously gifted Harvard-trained integrative physician)
Rich Stagliano MD--Blog, former ER doc now blog-astic integrative MD
[Pending, Energy and Life: The Promise of Evolutionary Medicine and the Vital Role of Mitochondria by Douglas C. Wallace, Robert Cooke]

Integrative Medicine

Lately I've had the pleasure and oportunity to meet many other integrative practitioners. For one, last year I have had more time after going part-time working 2/days per week at a new position at an integrative medicine/BHRT compounding pharmacy. With chances to talk to integrative practitioners and patients who are ahead of the curve happening all day long, knowledge gaps are being filled in. Sometimes tales do morph to reality. Integrative medicine is where the rubber meets the road -- an interface between high and low tech; between science and folklore. We know paleo works but does it meet modern metrics? Yes naturally of course. You knew that. Is an evolutionary diet and lifestyle enough? Why not, if not?

Wallace: Evolutionary Medicine

Below are a couple of abstracts from Wallace a scientist with a bend toward evolutionary medicine and special emphasis on mitochondrial medicine. Many of us including Tourgeman and I are enormous fans of mitochondria (read the seminal Nick Lane's Power, S*x, Suicide), our endocytosed bacteria what we host and cater to. Both plants and animals have mitochondria, yet only the ascent of man may be attributed to mitochondria and the efficient mitochondrial fatty oxidation of our adipose and ketones. The returns for optimal mitochondrial health are huge -- disease free longevity, happiness and efficient energy production to name just a few. The complexity of mitochondria involve physics, energy, systems biology, maternal genetics, epigenomes, membrane potentials, control of pollution (ROS), bioelectricity, ATP and the explosive, exothermic energy extraction of H2O synthesis.

Chi = Energy = Mitochondria

Wallace describes chi (ancient Chinese philosphy of energy and its flow) as mitochondria. For a Western conventionally-trained scientist, I find that to be mind-numbing and immense.

(Energetics, epigenetics, mitochondrial genetics. Wallace DC, Fan W. Mitochondrion. 2010 Jan;10(1):12-31.)

Our Uniqueness, Based on Bad*ss Factors like Mitochondrial Haplotypes and Migration

If we are all from Africa, then what separates us genetically? Why do some fail on 'paleo' or 'panu' or 'OD' or 'plant avoidance' or ketosis' or 'zone' or whatever? First of all, the dynamics of hormones, toxicity, and extent of neoLETHAL damage on endocrine/GI/brains cannot be overemphasized. Outside of these obvious factors, I conjecture the remainder of genetic variations that were selected for thriving and reproduction depended on our ancestors' local microenvironmental niches, climate changes and resultant food supply.

Omni-wh*res and Recent (3 - 16 kya) Evolution

Unlike guinea pigs or lions, humans are OMNI-WH*RES... *ha* We eat anything and everything edible... EVEN HYDROGENATED TWINKIES.

In Asians, once rice fermentation and alcoholic beverages evolved, so did the gene to process alcohol without toxicity (alcohol dehydrogenase, ADH1B). NY Times: Adventures in Very Recent Evolution.

Mitochondrial mtDNA Variants

Mitochondrial, Y Haplotypes and other DNA variants may indeed describe our bioenergetic differences on the most basic level. Mitochondria utilize for energy production and regulation of genes/growth/reproduction many co-factors: B-vitamins, coenzyme Q10, carnitine, lipoic acid, thyroid hormone (selenium, iodine, tyrosine), etc... Some inviduals have higher B vitamin and methylation requirements whereas others are fine with virtually none? Vitamin C requirements I hypothesize might actually vary by equatorial latitude perhaps in the same fashion perhaps as vitamin D and UV B photons. Where did your ancestors and mtDNA originate from?

Other references:

[edit] THANK YOU GENTLEREADER, TYLER (Blog at Evolutionary Health Systems)!!

Annu Rev Biochem. 2007;76:781-821.
Why do we still have a maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA? Insights from evolutionary medicine.

Abstract
The human cell is a symbiosis of two life forms, the nucleus-cytosol and the mitochondrion. The nucleus-cytosol emphasizes structure and its genes are Mendelian, whereas the mitochondrion specializes in energy and its mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genes are maternal. Mitochondria oxidize calories via oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to generate a mitochondrial inner membrane proton gradient (DeltaP). DeltaP then acts as a source of potential energy to produce ATP, generate heat, regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS), and control apoptosis, etc. Interspecific comparisons of mtDNAs have revealed that the mtDNA retains a core set of electron and proton carrier genes for the proton-translocating OXPHOS complexes I, III, IV, and V. Human mtDNA analysis has revealed these genes frequently contain region-specific adaptive polymorphisms. Therefore, the mtDNA with its energy controlling genes may have been retained to permit rapid adaptation to new environments.

Dev Disabil Res Rev. 2010 Jun;16(2):114-9.
Bioenergetics and the epigenome: interface between the environment and genes in common diseases.

Abstract
Extensive efforts have been directed at using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) to identify the genes responsible for common metabolic and degenerative diseases, cancer, and aging, but with limited success. While environmental factors have been evoked to explain this conundrum, the nature of these environmental factors remains unexplained. The availability of and demands for energy constitute one of the most important aspects of the environment. The flow of energy through the cell is primarily mediated by the mitochondrion, which oxidizes reducing equivalents from hydrocarbons via acetyl-CoA, NADH + H(+), and FADH(2) to generate ATP through oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). The mitochondrial genome encompasses hundreds of nuclear DNA (nDNA)-encoded genes plus 37 mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)-encoded genes. Although the mtDNA has a high mutation rate, only milder, potentially adaptive mutations are introduced into the population through female oocytes. In contrast, nDNA-encoded bioenergetic genes have a low mutation rate. However, their expression is modulated by histone phosphorylation and acetylation using mitochondrially-generated ATP and acetyl-CoA, which permits increased gene expression, growth, and reproduction when calories are abundant. Phosphorylation, acetylaton, and cellular redox state also regulate most signal transduction pathways and activities of multiple transcription factors. Thus, mtDNA mutations provide heritable and stable adaptation to regional differences while mitochondrially-mediated changes in the epigenome permit reversible modulation of gene expression in response to fluctuations in the energy environment. The most common genomic changes that interface with the environment and cause complex disease must, therefore, be mitochondrial and epigenomic in origin.

Annu Rev Pathol. 2010;5:297-348.
Mitochondrial energetics and therapeutics.

Abstract
Mitochondrial dysfunction has been linked to a wide range of degenerative and metabolic diseases, cancer, and aging. All these clinical manifestations arise from the central role of bioenergetics in cell biology. Although genetic therapies are maturing as the rules of bioenergetic genetics are clarified, metabolic therapies have been ineffectual. This failure results from our limited appreciation of the role of bioenergetics as the interface between the environment and the cell. A systems approach, which, ironically, was first successfully applied over 80 years ago with the introduction of the ketogenic diet, is required. Analysis of the many ways that a shift from carbohydrate glycolytic metabolism to fatty acid and ketone oxidative metabolism may modulate metabolism, signal transduction pathways, and the epigenome gives us an appreciation of the ketogenic diet and the potential for bioenergetic therapeutics.

movnat... eatnat... lovnat...

2011-01-29T15:07:00.000-08:00

PARKOUR [French] = PARK YOUR FACE ON THE GROUND [j/k]

George Hébert 'Being strong to be useful...'

Young Erwan Le Corre was inspired by George Hébert before taking his parkour urban skills and Ironman talents out to structured workshops focused on training and teaching others the lifestyle he put together. Approximately 100 years ago, Hébert's training manual Methode Naturelle was published and can be seen HERE (picture above courtesy Hawaii Parkour/Hébert; last photo credits to Diablo Crossfit my playground). A big fan of 'natural' movements by indigenous and African cultures, Hébert was one of the first advocates for obstacle-course form of physical training and embracing a melding of mind, spirit and body with nature.

Nick Heil of Outside magazine attended one of the Re-Awakening MovNat workshops (along with bloggers Melissa McEwen and David Csonka), survived, and wrote up the experience in a moving essay.

Richard Nikoley attended one of the advanced Expansion workshops which I very very briefly considered. Read FTA for highlights and vids HERE. Bummer. Should've gone *sigh regret*. Playing and hanging out with buff, half-nekkid, hot gals and guys for 5 days and nights... what was I thinking?? Who's going to Thailand?

Functional usefulness from Crossfit... YEAH BABY.

Recently I successfully climbed up and broke into a 2nd story apartment.

Had to be done. Accidentally we locked ourselves out and the 3 year old was cold and hungry. After doing a half-split on the outside stairway to reach the balcony, without clumsiness, I snookered up, scaled around the balcony where it was covered by a bamboo fence, then hoisted over with a light landing in front of the sliding door I'd left open earlier while I was sunning myself reading 'My Dirty Life: On Farming, Food and Love.' Multiple warnings were issued to the pre-teens (my kids and the older nieces) -- DO NOT DO THIS AT HOME. *haa ah* Naturally they'll ignore since I let them climb the toolshed at home. I think functional exercises are excellent because never know when you'll need them, and falling or breaking my leg would've been awfully horrible and traumatic for the children...

MovNat featured in Outside Magazine Jan 2011 article by Paleo-virgin Nick Heil

Click above for full article with pictures from the 5-day Re-Awakening Workshop and several extra features (collage pictures, demos -- kids please do this at home!)

Heil wrote about the final day's activities which included a gauntlet of physical challenges in the fasted stated, "Wearing only shorts and a dark-green bandanna, and streaked with mud as if someone had outlined his muscles with a black magic marker, he [Erwan Le Corre] looked downright feral. 'Adaptability is the holy grail of MovNat,' he told us. 'This is what we have done throughout human history. But we have lost touch with the world that created us.' "

Functionality=Flexibility=Strength

All the best athletes I have come across are extremely limber and flexible as felines. Personally my best athletic performances are when I am doing yoga and more endurance type challenges. If one notices in Methode Naturelle, many of the stretches are inherent to yoga. They translate to fluid and cat-like grace.

Strength benchmarks aren't my forte but I looked at Erwan's expectations and they were all do-able.

Benchmarks for Functional Fitness: Prequisites for the Expansion Workshop

Can you do the below?

Self-assessment criteria for this course:
o You are comfortable barefoot or with minimal shoes. --YES
o You can run 10 kilometers (a 10k) in under 50 minutes easily (an 8minute mile pace) --NO but d*mn good 9-10min mile easily
o You can easily perform 10 explosive pull-ups in a row --NO I SUCK.
o You have some powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting experience and can at least deadlift and squat your own bodyweight and clean and jerk half your body weight --YEEESSSSSSSS!!! 120-125lbs baby...
o You can hold a well-aligned plank pose for at least a minute, you can do 20 successive walking lunges while maintaining your stability, and you can at least vertical jump up to your knee-level and long jump half your height from a static posture then stabilize your body easily. --NOOO PROBLEMO
o You can comfortably swim freestyle and backstroke. --YES
o You can hold your breath at least one minute and 30 seconds. --OF COURSE
o You have no serious health issues that prevent you from performing optimally including injuries that you must work around. --CHOCOLATE, CAFFEINE AND ALCOHOL WITHDRAWAL SYNDROMES???! DTs?

#1 Male Model: Body Fat Loss and Muscle Mass (nsfw)

2011-01-11T16:35:00.000-08:00

Dear Gentle Female Readers (and my hawwt gay fans)... is your winter a bit icy or chilly?

THAW OUT!

David Gandy Interview
Jonathon Ross Show
April 2010

Getting Into Fighting/Dolce&Gabana Shape: Gandy's own words

1. Cut all carbs out (at 2:02 of interview)
2. Go to the gym everyday
3. Don't have any booze
4. I love a biscuit... all my food and everything... you just cut everything out...

Need I convey more?

[Images: courtesy celebitchy.com (hot guy friday series *haa ah*)]

About creamed my pants again when I saw the latest January 2011 Elle magazine...

Featured 3 remarkable things:

1) WHY WE GET FAT by Gary Taubes on the front cover 'What Makes You Fat: how to change your body for good' (see below copyright violation) He describes frustration with medical professionals and the lack of skeptism among them for science (e.g. bad science). 'All we're talking about is that carbohydrates are fattening. Some are more fattening than others...'

2) SJP and her tight, marvelous ballet body [and rack]

3) Pamela Salzman, petite nutrition guru to the celebrities, and her cookfest in the Elle Living Food section. For optimal health she is advocating unrefined, hormone-free foods and shunning gluten, sugar and vegetable oils. Starkly WOW. Beverly Hills is cashing in on the paleo movement without calling it P to the A to the L to the E to the O.

Pantry Swap tips from Salzman's:

Out: Harsh table salt
In: Moderate amounts of mineral-rich unrefined salts -- Celtic, Himalayan, or Maldon -- can be healing.

Out: Overprocessed oils such as corn, canola, and soybean
In: Cold-pressed olive, COCONUT, and sesame oils; they boost immunity

Out: Too much gluten-laden wheat, spelt, rye, and barley
In: Brown rice, quinoa, millet, amaranth, legumes, sweet potatoes, and corn

Out: Mass-produced, hormone-riddled animal meat
In: Happier animals raised in their natural environments; find sources at localharvest.org

Image courtesy of Elle

Walter Willett: Do 2 Wrongs Make a Right?

2010-12-27T16:19:00.000-08:00

Do 2 wrongs make a right?

Toast to the Scumbags
Kanye feat. Pusha T
Courtesy Youtube.com

It is often funny all the things that so-called brilliant Harvard chairpeople say... Dr. Willett MD **like me** studied 'conventional' food science as an undergrad (him, Michigan State; me, UC Berkeley). I would guess that both our studies taught us nothing except he didn't get the low-fat agenda because that was prior to 1977. At least I believe I learned how to read nutritional studies... or in other words learned how to read between the lines. Mmmhh... Willett?? I'm not certain he would recognize 'bad science' since he is a premier epidemiologist... Is epidemiology a lost field?

That Paleo Guy aka Jamie Scott at his (newer) blog recently talked about Dr. Willett's apparent reversal on carbs when he was quoted in the LA Times HERE. I like Jamie's points of contention.

On one hand Dr. Willett defends tropical (fruit) saturated fats like coconut oil recognizing that 'coconut oil has a powerful HDL-boosting effect' (see HERE Harvard letter response #3) yet in half of an instant later he proposes that we 'fatten up our diets' to 40% with [HDL-lowering] PUFAs and monounsaturated oils like soybean, corn and canola and VEHEMENTLY eschews saturated fats to no more than a threshold level of maximum 8% daily. He's a strong proponent of replacing 5% of carbs with more PUFAs like corn, sun, soy, safflower oils and trans-fat free M-A-R-G-A-R-I-N-E. Yes. Lowering carbs will raise HDL. PUFAs on the other hand raise inflammatory and blood thickening markers and LOWER HDL-cholesterol levels. Omega-6 veggie oils are associated with death, all-cause mortality, cancer, infertility, obesity and chronic disease in epidemiology studies (if you are into those).

Eh? OMG Margarine isn't food!!! Even my children can tell you that.

COG DISSONANCE?

Let's blow up his pyramid which he describes in both Harvard literature and in his book 'Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy.' The pyramid on the L-side is from GILLIAN, a paleo blogger; the R-side, Dr. Willett, his book and Harvard propaganda. See below.

[Edit: credits, fixed grudgepudge -- Thank you gilliebean and Sean]

What do you notice?

Things I did enjoy, admittedly, about the Willett The Healthy Eating Pyramid:
--inclusion of alcohol (yes, and not for everyone)
--inclusion of micronutrients and vitamin D supplementation
--daily play and exercise as the base and foundation of good health
--sparing use of sweets, candy, sugar
--mod to heavy use of fish, poultry, eggs (for CHOLESTEROL, CHOLESTEROL, CHOLESTEROL, taurine, omega-3, choline, B-vits, iodine, selenium, minerals, other vital nutrients)

What I vehemently disagree with and that the scientific evidence backs up:
--lack of saturated fats and the brain building block, cholesterol
--lack of saturated fat sources which contain CLA, vitamin A, carotenoids, vitamin D, stigmasterol, and vitamin K2 (e.g. organ meats, red meat, fermented dairy, palm oil, etc)
--lack of saturated fats which raise HDLs and support the nervous and immune systems
--lack of red meat which our carnivore-like hunter-gatherer forebears thrived on
--excessive use of industrial mono- and polyunsaturated fats ('X' WRONG) which are industrial, overheated, over-solvented, pesticide-ridden crop byproducts
--reliance on whole-disease-inducing, gut-dysbiosing, phytate-, lectin-toxic grains ('X' WRONG)

In an article titled Time to Fatten Up Our Diet (Sept 2007), Dr. Willett advocates a higher fat diet of 40% with a maximum 8% saturated, leaving the rest monoun- and poly- (therefore I'd guestimate ~16% and ~16% respectively). WTF 16% OMEGA-6 POLYUNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS?? I'd consider max 4-6%/day and mostly omega-3s ALA EPA DHA.

Other resources:

o Epidemiological studies (which I don't like but hey here they are here):

--Higher omega-6 associated with insulin resistance in ACS, omega-3 better HOMA (insulin resistance)

--Higher omega-6 associated with more mental retardation

--Rural Okayama women: in city girls higher omega-6 (lower omega-3) associated with lower HDLs compared with rural women

o Prospective human clinical trials (good studies -- macronutrients carbs and protein held generally constant unless noted):

--n=41 healthy men and women: higher dietary omega-6 oils lower HDLs dramatically, saturated fat raises HDLs (see table 3)

--n=10 septic shock patients in the ICU: n-6 lipid infusion impaired and worsened neutrophil function compared with n-3 lipid infusions. Not good in non-septic individuals either...

--n=26 healthy men: increasing omega-6 (linoleic acid, LA) increases CRP and IL-6 (inflammatory markers) though not statistically significant this time. Raising dietary omega-6 also lowers omega-3 RBC EPA levels (e.g. this is a BAD thing). The high n-6 diet produces the lowest protective HDL2 subfractions compared with n-3 and saturated fat. See table 3, 2nd column is I believe n-6 diet. HDL2 are the large, fluffy HDLs and most disease-protective 'good cholesterol' subfraction. Raising HDL2 is always good (unless it's a drug like the lethal torcetrapib and its cousins). The high saturated fat diet produced the lowest Lp(a) and von Willebrand factor (pro-inflammatory) levels. Omega-3 specifically raises HDL2.

--n=11 healthy men: @constant calories, low fat diet v. high fat raised VLDL and Triglycerides HERE. Low fat however did lowered omega-6 (LA) blood levels which may be the only perceived benefit if you discount the negative consequences (higher sdLDL and Trigs).

--n=58 healthy men and women: high n-6 diet (12.7% sunflower oil) produces the lowest HDL2 subfraction (p < 0.05). Wheras, baseline high saturated fat (19.3%) diet produces the best, highest HDLs. Isn't that a surprise. Authors conclusions [LOVE THIS] 'Both diets [15.1% mono-/rapeseed and 12.7% polyunsaturated/sunflower] lowered the level of HDL cholesterol in men but not in women.' *haa aha!* Sunflower oil will kill men faster than women! These authors are advanced. They also measured stigmasterol dietary content (see Table 2). Yes rapeseed contains stigmasterol. However. I'd prefer to obtain my stigmasterol pre-digested from grass-fed, pastured bovine, porcine and poultry sources (ghee, meat, egg yolks, etc), thankyouverymuchyoudietaryMORONS. See WAPF about stigmasterol=Wulzen Factor: the skinny on fats.

--n=15 Free living, college female students: both mutant soybean and commercial soybean oil diets significantly diminished HDLs compared with coconut oil in 3wk staggered feedings. 35% fat diet; did carbs go down? I dunno can't tell from the abstract. Trigs did so I suspect so. High fat usually translates to lower carbs (which should RAISE HDLs unless you are pounding soybean oil at 10% of dietary energy wtf).

o Good Calories, Bad Calories by G. Taubes -- description of Harvard, a playing field for the stalwarts of the low saturated fat dogma-drama that began with Ancel Keys (and his falsification/omission of critical data) and continuing with Harv-tard Dr. Frederick J. Stare MD, whose bed partners included all the big, refined, processed food industry leaders and lobbyists (Nabisco, Kellogg, etc).

o Interview by Taubes of Walter Willett for ScienceWatch

o Prior animal pharm in support of saturated fats from animals and tropical oils (hey our HDLs increased >> 100 mg/dl -- pharmaceuticals cannot compare) : Benefits of Sat Fats series

Advantages Going Paleo (No Grains): Improved Stool Quality (less wiping), Odorless Flatulence, More 'Spurty' and More SUPER S*X

2010-12-13T08:37:00.000-08:00

Xavier Naidoo:
Dieser Weg
[The Way...stony and hard]

Love love LOVE Paleohacks.com, Patrik's site and all the stunning and ridiculously incredible friends and threads there...

My favorite threads:
o Some Small and Quirky Changes Noticed Since Going Paleo
o Hemachromatosis (see Melissa's notes)
o Known Neolithic Adaptations to Food
o Paleo Sex Questions (naturally)

Is paleo easy? Well. Sometimes the way may be stony and hard but you may see the advantages are often worthwhile trying to pursue... *ha aha* Or. It's. Stony. And. Hard.
ALSO, yes. Night vision is cool.

Food P*rn: Hamburg, Germany

2010-12-10T05:42:00.000-08:00

Food P*orn in Hamburg

Staying off the harbor in Hamburg, Germany (with the big Disney cruise within sight from the restaurant) we had one of the best breakfast buffets I've ever had. Steak tartare appeared only once the 4 days we were there but it was F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S. I have to limit eating raw meat in front of my husband too frequently (it grosses him out (and I don't get laid)) ...but risking happiness is sometimes worth other joys in life! Generous lox and cream became a superb morning ritual. A bright chopped beet cream sauce and relish were awesome accompaniments. The coffee and espresso in Europe was like extra strong CRACK, I dunno why. Dig the yogurt (yeah with muesli -- yes it's grain -- kick me off paleo-island?). German yogurt ROCKS and about 8 varieties were available. It appeared full fat to me. No where could I translate 'low fat' at the buffet bar. Look at the deep, carotenoid-rich-pumpkin-orange egg yolks!

On Thanksgiving eve of all places at the hotel restaurant, we had a traditionally roasted German duck which is only available seasonally during the fall/winter. WOW. Succulent, rich and earthy. Duck is one of the birds of I love because it is ALL LOVELY DARK MEAT. Wish I had pictures but the ducky didn't make the cut *haa* (my kids deleted).

P.S.
BTW Very rare did I see anyone IN EUROPE APPEAR OVERWEIGHT, OBESE, OR MORBIDLY OBESE COMPARED TO THE UNITED STATES. Just an empirical, clinical observation.

Transcendance: Practicing Evolution (Bruce Lipton PhD)

2010-12-09T05:20:00.000-08:00

Agri-Dynamics: Jerry Brunetti

I have no idea who this is but I've researched topics lately and his name popped up numerous times. Melissa discussed briefly in her Wise Traditions Recap: HERE. Brunetti is doing some kind of wonderful work regarding meat sourcing and good pastured livestock.

Two excellent slide presentions I happened to flip across by Brunetti are below, which scintillate down why good gut flora maintenance is of the utmost importance and how DIET DIET DIET and nutraceuticals can cure/reverse/improve gut imbalances caused by drugs, antibiotics, bad-nonpastured-meat, modern living, S.A.D. high carb/high grain diets. The value of digestive, pancreatic enzymes are also discussed.

What I Liked About Brunetti's Slides

In the first slide these are the points I enjoyed the most below and in the second, the list of resources and books is fantastic.

--slide 22 and 23 are EXCELLENT
--slide 42 explains indicanuria -- intestinal toxemia on sophisticated diagnostic lab testing (neurologic, GI, skin, and every organ system with chronic conditions described)
--slide 61 treatment strategies incl pre- probiotics, betaine, digestive enzymes (previously I discussed the value and role enzymes under NEOLITHIC CHEATING)
--slide 63 Brent's relative Dr. Pottenger mentioned -- adding gelatin for glycine which is gut healing/improves glutathione/anti-inflammatory, etc

Role of Politics: Food Business

WAP-Pottenger are great -- I wish I had known about the value of traditional eating before I had my children and given them the epigenetic benefits of our Hakka and asian genes. Though I know it is not too late, what we all fight against as parents is indeed the government. This is a common theme to paleo parents I've had the opportunity to talk in depth with. We fight sanctioned USDA food choices in the school cafeteria and the all pervasive USDA grain-based-6-to-11-servings-daily food pyramid of TOXIC POISON which are then perverted and pimped by food processing companies and television commercials. Even well-intentioned family and friends try to push their CRACK on my children. Yes. Expected but yet annoying.

As a parent, hard to be challenged against all that... not to mention the frequent cake, pizza and juice/soda parties and social events. Yes my kids will say 'no' to illegal drugs but legalized P I Z Z A, which is more addictive than CRACK ??!

Government Solutions? Not Holding Breath

The permanence of the current food policies are cracking but will it happen soon enough? Even Andrew Weil is pushing a more grain-free diet approach that is lower in dangerous refined carbohydrates. Yes. See his July HuffPo post: "The saturated fat lauded in this menu [of an establishment in Arizona known as the *chuckle* Heart Attack Grill] won't kill you. It may even be the safest element of the meal... If you visit, I implore you to steer clear of the white-flour buns, the sugary sodas and the piles of "flatliner fries..."

Yes. Additionally in the HuffPo, Weil promotes and advocates Gary Taubes and the body of evidence in GCBC.

This is exciting because as far as I am aware Dr. Weil is involved with the only integrative medicine program in the medical academic training program. R U Considering med school and being indoctrinated in prescribing gluten CRACK?? Even Weil's program is mutating to reason and SANITY. *haa ah!*

Bruce Lipton and Steve Bhaerman: Transcendent Solutions, Practicing Evolution

In one of the last chapters in Bruce Lipton's recent seminal work, co-authored with Steve Bhaerman, called 'Spontaneous Evolution,' negotiations and problem solving become the core focus. He puts it succinctly 'A primary function of politics is to develop policies that preempt conflict. Conflict is a natural part of human lfe and social interactions and should not be confused with violence, which is the most dysfunctional way to handle conflict. Conflict derives from incompatabilities between two or mroe opinions, principoles or interests. Because conflict usually involves contradictory goals, resuoltuion can occur when something -- the goals or expectations regarding those goals -- is changed.' Obviously he states 'careful and respectful listening by all participants is required...' and how to arrive at ideal problem solving he consults negotiation experts like Norwegian Johan Galtung who seek 'the fifth way' or 'fivers'. Galtun was the mediator in the Peru-Ecuador border negotiations (solution: no borders). Galtung pushes that each conflict has 5 potential remedies:

1. I win. You lose
2. You win. I lose.
3. Negative Transcendence in which the problem is solved by avoiding it entirely
4. Compromise in which each wins by agreeing to lose a little
5. Transcendence, which produces a resolution above and beyond the problem.

Indiana Farmer and His Sheep

Lipton and Bhaerman tell wonderful, clever stories. They recount how an Indiana farmer found the neighbor's dogs killing all his herds of sheep. 'Too often the way of solving such problems involved confrontation, threats, lawsuits, barbed wire fences, and, potentially, shotguns. This particular farmer had a better idea. He gave his neighbor's children lambs as pets. This out-of-the-box solution established a win-win proposition: for the sake of the children's adorable pets, the neighbors voluntarily tied up their dogs, and the families became friends.'

Collectively We Face Exciting Times

Paleo people want change. Fat people want change (because they (and previously ME) eternally keep buying 'diet books'). Unhealthy people want change. Right? Maybe...

Something is changing (*haa ah* Dr.Oz with polyps is useless and Oprah has gained weight again) and hopefully we won't have to wait forever.

I've found paleo people to be extremely transcendant and clever... Thoughts... solutions?

Shawn Mullins and The Thorns:
No Blue Sky

Blog-asm II: More Bloggers Disrupting 'the Fabric of Society'

2010-12-06T13:18:00.000-08:00

Shawn Mullins
Can't Remember Summer

Yes.

YESSS...

YYYYYEEEES...!! [emphatically slam table moan] *haaa aha*

More BLOGGERS... including the masterful GARY TAUBES!

Please ck out new additions to the blogroll and booklist on R-side column...

Evolutionary Biologist Michael Rose and His Secret of Non-Aging/Immortality

Do you follow Ray Kurzweil? He's a G-E-N-I-U-S. Had a chronic condition and beat it.

A writer at Kurzweil's site recently posted on evolutionary biologist Michael Rose from UC Irvine (picture courtesy of KurzweilAI.net). Prof Rose believes aging is a byproduct of evolution however can be halted or plateaued.

I agree.

The paleo diet is a cornerstone to his evidence-based strategies.

How To Achieve 'Biolgical Immortality' Naturally: Michael Rose

He believes also Euroasians have a special buffer capacity to aging however still need to adhere to a hunter-gather diet and lifestyle for optimal non-aging after age 35 to 40. I thinks explains partly why some people do neoLETHAL diets and are still fine physiologically but others big failures. Our ancestral past determines much...

Rose’s Natural Recipe for Immortality: 4 Keys

“With this recipe, I feel, many of you could be alive, basically, indefinitely,” Rose said.

o Adopt a hunter-gatherer lifestyle after 35 to 40 if Eurasian, earlier if ancestry is less Eurasian. If younger than 30 and Eurasian, continue on a post-agricultural revolution diet (or Andrew Weil-style diet).

o Use the best modern medicine

o Use autologous (from your own cells) tissue repair as it becomes available in five or more years

o Use next-generation pharmaceuticals in the next 10 or more years

See prior animal pharm:

** MAGIC OF MELATONIN: Melatonin increases stem cells in Bone Marrow (stem cells are your own autologous repair machines)... now... not 5 yrs from now...
** Bone Marrow

Thank you to SWEET SWEET SWEENEY for the initial inspirations and understanding of melatonin...

'Candy Cigarettes' and Turkey Awesomeness

2010-12-01T07:27:00.001-08:00

Candy Cigarettes: Thanksgiving 2009

Had no idea last year 2009 was/maybe our last Thanksgiving feast but actually I don't miss this holiday when we were abroad (Hamburg, Amsterdam and Paris -- no we didn't bump into Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt or the brood).

What is Thanksgiving?? Were we celebrating the lost civilization of Native Americans in essence to some degree? Anyway. Ck out our candy cigarettes from last Thanksgiving -- my beautiful lil' sis 'M' and her ginger, cinnamon, raisin YUMMMICOUS GFCF cakelettes. The pharmacotemptress is holding the cakelettes, CANDY CIGARETTES. *ha*

Ming Tsai's Asian Spiced Turkey Recipe

Like every year, the turkey on the side was roasted by moi... Diesel, free range, fresh from WholeFoods and brined to a perfection with asian spices with Ming Tsai's recipe of PERFECT TURKEY AWESOMENESS. (Did add some cut orange/lemon slices to the cavity to maintain moisture and added strategically placed double folded foil according to Alton Brown to prevent charred, burning).

See recipe upper left.

New Paradigms

2010-12-01T05:57:00.000-08:00

Nouvelle Vague:
In a Manner of Speaking

Bruce Lipton PhD: SPONTANEOUS EVOLUTION

Been reading a lot of books lately... I'll share later but first and foremost is Dr. Bruce Lipton, PhD that friends and readers Brent, Todd and Nima linked to earlier or recommended. Sincere and kind thanks!

I was lucky enough to meet Dr. Lipton recently at a talk near his local town near Santa Cruz. Amazingly humble, brilliant and down to earth, Dr. Lipton connected the dots for me regarding linking biological sciences, environmental sciences and how the universe may just be a FRACTAL AMPLIFICATION of our trillions of cells (not including the other trillions of our symbiotic bacteria and biofilms), from his new book Spontaneous Evolution released last year with comedian Steve Bhaerman. Life is quantum, not strictly Newtonian. Darwin was mildly off, spontaneous and egalitarian evolution trumps survival of the fittest. Lipton energetically explains the new brave world.

New Paradigms

Principle One: Wealth is well-being
Principle Two: Ecology and economy are the same
Principle Three: Efficiency is the key to thrival
Principle Four: Currency must represent real wealth (ATP=wealth!! *haa ahaaa!*)

In Principle Two, wealth is actually explained in agricultural terms by weighing chloroplasts/photosynthesis (e.g. Calvin Cycle biochemistry) as the measurable metric. Yes. This makes sense. 'In the words of scientist-turned-economist Frederick Soddy, "Chlorophyll was the original capitalist." Chlorophyll molecules are responsible for photosynthesis, the process through which the sun's energy transforms water and carbon dioxide [e.g. AIR!!! see prior animal pharm posts] into nutritional sugar molecules. Plant cells harvest their solar-powered sugar molecules and use them for both metabolic building blocks and life-sustaining energy. The growth of a cornstalk, from a sprout to the eight of an elephant's eye is made possible by the accumlated nutritional wealth manufactured by the plant's chlorophyll. Almost all life on this planet, including our own, is dependent upon photosynthesis-create sugar molecules.'

True Farmers Almost Extinct?

A book I've ordered and can't wait to dig into is about a sassy, New York gal transformed into a small town, sustainable, HAWWWWWWWT, farmgrrrrrl named Kristin Kimball A Dirty Life. Where are the true farmers are are tied to the deep, moist, fertile soil, growing plants of diverse genetic variety and biodiversity and raising pastured, sun-drenched farm animals? Kimball and her husband are first generation farmers who raise produce and animals for 100 members ($2800 per member per year). They milk their own cows by hand and till the fields by horse-drawn equipment, no machinery. The milk and cream are 'taxicab yellow'. Kimball's writing is so fun to read (in the excerpt) and carries warm alacrity and urban sharpness. It's about as dirty as her herbicide-free, pesticide-free, compost rich soil on their rich, wealth-providing, nutrient-dense acreage.

Lipton discusses Charles Walters who has a book Unforgiven and a magazine called Acres which serves the almost extinct population of small farmers. Walters 'has seen in his lifetime, the virtual disappearance of family farms. In their place, more and more factory farms operate monoculturally outside the rhythms of Nature, producing de-natured food and toxic waste. Meanwhile, science and technology have given civilization the opportunity to wantonly mine Gaia's wealth in order to support the excesses of monetary economy.'

Ecosphere Wealth = Reflection of Our Collective Health

Lipton's argument is that 'our ignorance of the planet's fragile web of life has blinded us to the profound damage and havoc we wreak by pillaging the environment's resources and then, adding insult to injury, contaminating that environment with discarded waste.'

'The wealth of the ecosphere, like that of any living organism, is a direct reflection if its health. Decimated rain forests, festering open-pit mines, species harvested to exctinction, toxic smog, pharmaceutically poisoned waterways, discarded radioactive waste, and many other man-made catastrophes have compromised the environment's well-being and devalued its ability to produce health and wealth. Our misperceived efforts to dominate and control Nature have unwittingly disturbed the ecosphere's natural balance and exacerbated environmental crises that now threaten our survival.'

Jenni Vartiainen:
Missä muruseni on
(Toinen HERE)

Human Zoo and How to Cheat... Nudeln and Teigwaren sind Gift* für unsere Tiere

2010-11-25T11:41:00.000-08:00

Translation

'Pasta and pastries are poisonous to our animals.'

Feeding the animals are forbidden...
Human-animals...??!

* Gift [German] = toxin, venom, poison = LECTINS, PHYTATES, GLUTEN

Hagenbeck Zoo

We just finished visiting the aquarium and zoo at Hagenbeck in Hamburg, Germany, one of the few progressive, privately owned zoos in the world. Each cageless biotope enclosure displayed harmonious groups of animals, surrounded by watery moats. Curious combinations included orangatuans + sea otters; hairy cheeked rabbits, guinea pigs, sparrows; etc. Images, Chinese muntjacs which wandered around freely on the zoo campus, along with one peacock, many Australian cavies and free-ranging chickens. Muntjacs are extremely friendly allowing my daughters and I to pet them on their heads and neck like a dog. My daughter named a pair Otis and Otissa!

Hagenbeck, One of First Conservationists

Mr. Hagenbeck was one of the world's first naturalist and conservationist.

Interestingly, his zoo in 1897 was on of the first to hybridize a male lion and female tigress... LIGER cubs. In South Carolina earlier this month, a liger cub was again born at a wild animal preserve, see HERE. Ligers are gigantic, larger than both lion fathers and tigress mothers. Nutso!! Reminds of other hybrid births (e.g. Twilight... and Neanderthal+H.s.s.)

CHEATING... On GFCF Diets

Thank God for technology.

Biotechnology has matched our paleo, grain-free, dairy-free GFCF diets (gluten-free, casein-free).

GUT DYSBIOSIS: Passively Paleo, Neolithically Advanced

On this trip because we were eating out of the house daily, we relied on factory produced pancreatic enzymes to break down, degrade and render HARMLESS gluten from grains and casein from dairy. Enzymes are 'cutters' in biological systems. They 'cut' things into smaller pieces. DNA and RNA are broken down to nucleotides by DNAses and RNAses. Meat/protein degraded to amino acids by proteases, collagenases, elastases. Veggie fibers by cellulases... starches by amylases, glucoamylases, maltases, phytases, pectinases, beta glucanases, xylanases, etc. Lactose (milk), lactases, galactosidases. Gluten, DPP-IV. Fats to fatty acids, lipases. Etc.

Enzymes work the best under optimal situations which many of us damaged by the SAD and other environmental and epigenetic factors does not apply to: acidity/pH, temperature and cofactors. For every degree less than optimal 98.6F, approximately 20% less enzymatic activity occurs.

After food is broken down to constituent basic units, optimal digestion requires optimal ABSORPTION which requires acidity/pH, temperature, cofactors including good gut bacteria for conjugation of vitamins, nutrients and bile acids (cholesterol derived 'detergent' factors) from the gallbladder and enterohepatic circulation.

Who has these???! Few. Even children have suboptimal digestion these days.

Are you a hard-gainer?
Is your body temp less than 98.6 F?
Do you have a gallbladder?
What percent is your diet raw? 100% 75% 50% 25% None???!

Dr. Francis Pottenger (Brent's relative) in his Empire study with cats reported that in cats, apparently 50% of the diet as raw maintained fertility and health in the cats, obligate carnivores. In humans, marine carnivores (obligate?? I would argue, YES) require what percentage? For cats, 100% raw diet, thrived. Having a partially raw diet confers active, raw, and/or fermented components including enzymes which help nutrients to be digested. Pottenger cats: Price-Pottenger video.

Prior animal pharm: Marine-Based Carnivory in Early H.Sapiens

Cheating

My sister 'M' introduced us to the below products. SHE IS A GENIUS and constantly scans the spectrum/ASD boards, forums and networks.

Products we like to cheat with *wicked laugh!*: [ found at amazon.com, local health food store, iherb.com]
(1) Peptizyde = broad spectrum plus GLUTEN-enzymes and CASEIN-enzymes; available in chewables for children as well
(2) Trienza = GLUTEN-enzymes and CASEIN-enzymes
(3) Glutenease = GLUTEN-enzymes and CASEIN-enzymes
(4) Digest Gold = broad spectrum digestive enzymes, POWERFUL strength
(5) Now SUPER ENZYMES = broad spectrum digestive enzymes PLUS OX BILE for those without perfect gallbladders.

Shame? Hardly... we're passively paleo, neolithically sophisticated and advanced (because we have to be to SURVIVE)...

Our French Thanksgiving

Happy Turkey Day!

Menu:
Wine, wine, wine
Carpaccio
Salad with Gizzards and Pâté
Country Pâté
Lamb Chops with Herbs
Lemon Tart
Crème brûlée
Chocolate Mousse
Espresso with cream
PEPTIZYDE + GLUTENease

Alizee, French Pop Princess
SWEET, WICKED and hilarious
'I'M FED UP (!!)... with single-minded extremists...
Je me prelasse voici... relax... It's my aquatic state...
Content... everything's delicious...
mildly offensive...'
red HAAAWWT goldfish on her cute *ss...

Guys (and Gals) With B*lls: Deliberate Practice

2010-11-16T12:33:00.000-08:00

From the Art of Manliness... (why bloggers and critical thinkers ROCK)

The Secret of Great Men: Deliberate Practice

What Is Deliberate Practice?

In the book Talent is Overrated, Fortune Magazine editor, Geoff Colvin highlights recent studies that show that greatness can be developed by any man, in any field, through the process of deliberate practice. How does one practice deliberately? Colvin proposes five elements that allow a man to practice deliberately and thus achieve greatness.

1. Deliberate practice is an activity designed specifically to improve performance, often with a teacher’s help... Stay humble and hungry.

2. The practice activity can be regularly repeated... The “ten-year rule” cuts across disciplines, too. Top musicians, athletes, scientists, and authors don’t reach the top until after they’ve put in around ten years of work and practice. There are no short cuts to success. If you want to be the best man you can be, you’ll have to commit yourself to years of repeated practice.

3. The practice activity provides feedback on a continual basis... For activities like these it’s a good idea to get a third party’s opinion or a mentor’s input.

4. Deliberate practice is highly demanding mentally, whether it’s purely physical or mental.

5. Deliberate practice isn’t much fun.

'Bloggers Have Destroyed the Fabric of Society'

2010-11-16T08:29:00.000-08:00

Sean's acerbic, erected wit, hilarious comments at Free the Animal have always cr*cked me the f*ck up...

Here he goes again on his personal blog Prague Stepchild... 'Bloggers Have Destroyed the Fabric of Society'

Opus One -- Coprophagia (VeganAnimals Eat Poop For B12)

2010-11-04T13:41:00.001-07:00

Industrial, Mass-Produced,
Round-Up (pesticide)-laden-corn-fed Beef, Anyone?
'Opus One' By Madison Park

Crossfit Helped Me Wean-Off Cheap Costco Meat

So this is the song that actually got me off grocery store and Costco (American warehouse) beef, chicken, eggs, pork and turkey.

Grassfed, local, organic beef and pastured pork ROCKKKKS.

My Crossfit gym (diablocrossfit.com) was the first place I got our grassfed beef. Collectively a couple families shared one or two steers. About ~2 yrs ago I bought reasonably inexpensively a 1/4 steer (about 60 to 80 lbs) at ~4.99 to $5.50 per lb which included ALL cuts but no organ meats. The osso bucco cuts go fast! Really it's a fantastic deal and beats Trader Joe's in freshness. But TJ's still is fine.

In addition, we get our grassfed beef, organs, pork, bacon, and leaf lard from:
--Berkeley Bowl which includes Eel River (3 varieties of 100% grassfed)
--local farmer's markets: 100% grassfed Holden Ranch and Prather Ranch (grainhead-finished) which gave us a tour last Dec which was AWESOME at their Mt. Shasta ranch

FYI LARD MAKES THE BEST CANDY CIGARETTES (e.g. almond flour cookies)!

See prior animal pharm:
Grassfed Happy Cows

Only Animal Foods Contain Vitamin B12

Nutritional Fact: Humans require vitamin B12 for neural tissue growth, regeneration and maintenance. Without B12 temporary and permanent brain and peripheral nerve damage occurs. This is known as Wernicke's in alcoholics (who lose B1 and B12 via rapid alcohol damage, degradation and malnutrition) and in vegans who do not consume adequately from diverse broad spectrum microbial food sources including brewer's yeast and other fermented foods. Poop? Yes that is apparently a source widely utilized in the animal kingdom and small children w/ access to their diapers. Gut dysbiosis also predisposes all ages to B12 deficiency. An unhappy gut leads to an unhappy gut flora which are unable to conjugate and preserve optimal absorption of B vitamins, including B12.

Many drugs deplete B12 by affecting the gut flora and/or causing gut dysbiosis: oral contraceptives, synthetic hormones, stomach acid-blockers (Prilosec, Pepcid, etc), metformin, ANTIBIOTICS ANTIBIOTICS ANTIBIOTICS including those in mass-produced industrial beef/pork/chicken/turkey, et cetera.

Foods deplete B12 by causing gut dysbiosis and include: the biggest offender -- GLUTEN which is found in barley rye WHEAT WHEAT and especially high-gluten(baking)-wheat and the Monsanto wheat being shipped to drought-ridden Russia. Good, less wheat for S.A.D. Americans.

Coprophagia -- The Eating of 'Poop' Vitamin B12 Source

Thank you to Peter at Hyperlipid for below link and conversation started by my FAVORITE ANIMAL and PALEOKING, Richard Nikoley:
Watch this... *GROSS* Gorilla coprophagia...

Nikoley breaks down the SCIENCE for nutritionally-challenged, fat-phobe, meat-phobe Dr. Seale 'any vitamin B12 present in any animal foods is only from bacterial contamination' HERE.

Secrets... 'We’re not really attracted to each other, we’re attracted to each other’s microbes' nsfw

2010-11-04T13:00:00.000-07:00

OneRepublic Secrets
Courtesy Youtube.com

Great articles have recently come out on The Scientist regarding the gut microbiota and how we are really just hybrids of ~10% HUMAN + ~90% MICROBES/POOP. Ratio is probably dependent upon certain factors. I think some are more weighted toward the microbial content *ahaaa ah*.

Well you may or may not buy in but we are not only what we eat (poop, dirt, worm feces, probiotics, kim chee, sauerkraut), but we be attracted to others who eat WHAT WE EAT, research in fruit flies appears to suggest! Ergo, if we eat cr*p, we may also be attracted to those who eat cr*p. This may explain the contradictory patterns of hookups between the most unattractive elements with other unattractive peeps (AND YES I CAN SAY THIS [AND YOU CANNOT] BEING PREVIOUSLY IN THIS BOAT EMPIRICALLY SPEAKING). Do people settle? No, it may be the microbes talking and attracting!

wtf?

UBER COOL articles and links where animal s*xxx porn came from:

Does Oral Sex Confer an Evolutionary Advantage? Evidence from bats (picture from this link)
Holy Fell*tio Batman! Fruit bats use oral s*x to prolong actual s*x
Gut S*x (our gut may determine our mating choice? we KNOW synthetic hormones, e.g. oral contraceptives RUIN IT, Thorne et al; I suspect estrogenic MOOBIES do as well -- beware the perils of pesticides and plastics)
Same poop, different gut - The Scientist - Magazine of the Life Sciences
Rat dad's diet affects pups - The Scientist - Magazine of the Life Sciences
Gut bacteria are what we eat
Humans are Human-Bacteria Hybrids - Wire 10/11/2004

My Tool: Meditative Yoga, Better Than S*XXX

2010-10-12T19:13:00.000-07:00

OK... j/k... *haa*

David Lynch has a wonderful book called ‘Catching the Big Fish: Meditation, Consciousness, and Creativity.’ It’s an unexpected book from a genius of theatrical brilliance, who is known for masterpieces that challenge our perceptions like Eraserhead, Twin Peaks the movie and the TV series, and many others. Do you remember these??

The book is about meditation and how it changed his life and creativity.

One chapter is called ‘Identity’ and there is one line ‘The thing about meditation is: You become more and more you.’

Admittedly I don’t meditate but I do meditative kind of stuff like cleaning the house (which is admittedly rare, again, I trust professionals) and yoga practice while running/at home/at the gym. Yes, I’ve tried meditation and it is difficult to clear the mind. Lynch is very encouraging.

‘Fire’

Another chapter is called ‘Fire’ (which is 5 lines).

‘Sitting in front of a fire is mesmerizing. It’s magical. I feel the same way about electricity. And smoke. And flickering lights.'

Reminds me of Wrangtham's book 'Catching Fire' and how hominids may have captured fire for perhaps 1.4 - 1.9 million years. The exhibition of energy is attractive and mesmerizing, as well as useful.

‘Turn on the Light’

One of my favorite chapters is this one and it starts with a sutra ‘In the vicinity of Yoga -- unity -- hostile tendencies are eliminated.’

‘We’re like light bulbs. If bliss starts growing inside you, it’s like a light; it affects the environment.’

‘If you go into a room where someone’s been having a big argument, it’s not so pleasant. You can feel it. Even if the argument’s over, you can feel it. But if you go into a room where someone has just finished meditating, you can feel that bliss. It’s very nice to feel that.’

‘We all affect our environments. You enjoy that light inside, and if you ramp it up brighter and brighter, you enjoy more and more of it. And that light will extend out farther and farther.’

Science

There is science to all of this… It is energy fields.

‘A Tower Of Gold’ -- How Does Meditation Get Rid of Negativity?

Most ancient civilizations and modern civilizations treasure the inert metal, gold, no? From the Incas to Columbus to Indo-Asian royalty to Asia. Most of the jewelry I’ve received from my parents and relatives are 100% gold rings, necklaces and ear rings (though I let my holes grow in). Real gold is bendable so I never wear these trinkets. Gold is valued at record highs in this uncertain financial environment -- Because gold is timelessly invaluable. The Chinese character for our family name 'Zhong' is composed of 2 characters: 'heavy' and 'gold'. (Taiwanese, long hand)

Gold is discussed by Lynch….

‘How does meditation get rid of negativity?’

‘Picture it this way: You are the Empire State Building. You’ve got hundreds of rooms. And in those rooms, there’s a lot of JUNK [my emphasis]. And you put all that junk there. Now you take this elevator, which is going to be the dive within. And you go down below the building; you go to the Unified Field beneath the building [the Field will be mentioned in the next post on the science] -- pure consciousness. And it’s like electric gold. You experience that. And that electric gold activates these little cleaning robots. They start going, and they start cleaning the rooms. They put in GOLD where the dirt and junk and garbage were. These stresses that were in there like coils of barbed wire can unwind. They evaporate, they come out. You’re cleaning and infusing simultaneously. You’re on the road to a beautiful state of enlightenment…’

What's your mental tool?

Consciousness: The Great Leap Forward (Again?)

2010-09-23T18:25:00.000-07:00

'Bigger Than The World'
Justin Timberlake

Collective Consciousness

There has been more discussions recently about collective consciousness just recently as we remembered global events that increased our awareness of our world, including 9/11. Actually part of the reason why I blog is because of 9/11. During the aftermath of the terror, heartbreak, and trauma that occurred in NYC, Pennsylvania and the Pentagon on that unforgettable day, there was a palpable change in country I felt. I don't know if it was collective but we all changed. I don't know if we were all connected at some point mentally, spiritually or noetically but somehow our consciousness appeared altered and irrevocably affected. For many months following the siege, the offices of the Wall Street Journal were displaced and journalists were spread out in outposts dispatching daily stories of immense hope, heroicism and triumphs of human spirit. It was difficult not to cry nearly everyday reading what ordinary people were doing endearing unimaginable pain and surviving extraordinary circumstances. Their unique, individual voices could not be missed or forgotten.

Conciousness Emerged 40,000 Years Ago

Intelligence, consciousness, and sentience. AWARENESS... Mmmh... the Matrix (nsfw) expanded my mind and awareness.

Scifi author Robert J. Sawyer wrote an essay in the anthology 'Taking the Red Pill: Science, Philosophy and Religion in The Matrix' entitled 'Artificial Intelligence, Science Fiction, and THE MATRIX'. Regarding humans, 'Intelligence is an emergent property of complex systems. We know that because that's exactly how it happened in us.'

'Anatomically modern humans -- Homo sapien sapiens -- emerged a hundred thousand years ago. Judging by their skulls, these guys had brains identical in size and shape to our own. And yet, for 60,000 years, those brains went along doing only the things nature needed them to do: enabling these early humans to survive.'

'And then, suddenly, 40,000 years ago, it happened: intelligence -- and consciouness itself -- emerged. Anthropologists call it "the Great Leap Forward."'

'Modern-looking human beings had been around for six hundred centuries by that point, but they had created no art, they didn't adorn their bodies with jewelry, and they didn't bury their dead with grave goods. But starting simultaneously 40,000 years ago, suddenly humans were painting beautiful pictures on cave walls, humans were wearing necklaces and bracelets, and humans were interring their loved ones with food and tools and other valuable objects that could only have been of use in a presumed afterlife.'

'Art, fashion, and religion all appeared simultaneously; truly, a great leap forward. intelligence, consciouness, sentience: it came into being, of its own accord, running on hardward that had evolved for other purposes. If it happened once, it might well happen again.'

Will A Different Conciousness Emerge Again?

Could we have another renaissance of culture, arts and technology? A neolithic intelligence, consciousness and sentience...?? I think we are on that path. The mind is the new frontier. Its barriers and miracles of its strength and potential power are being unlocked as we discover more (or learn from our ancestral warriors and healers)... Return to Matrix... energy begets energy. No energy is wasted. Life is sustained (Neo, kiss; Trinity, energetic voltage to the heart like an automated external defibrillator (AED).

Photo credit: themandus.com

Neanderthal Extinction

Neanderthals were far more advanced, culturally and technologically, and appreciative of consciouness more than earlier realized. An updated from Science Daily from today: Neanderthals More Advanced Than Previously Thought: They Innovated, Adapted Like Modern Humans, Research Shows. In terms of adaptation and evolution, the authors note 'Thousands of years ago, southern Italy experienced a shift in climate, becoming increasingly open and arid, said Riel-Salvatore. Neanderthals living there faced a stark choice of adapting or dying out. The evidence suggests they began using darts or arrows to hunt smaller game to supplement the increasingly scarce larger mammals they traditionally hunted. The fact that Neanderthals could adapt to new conditions and innovate shows they are culturally similar to us," he said.

The same speculation is discussed regarding recent information that grasslands were massively decreased as temperatures cooled at the end of the last Ice Age, approximately coinciding with the last days of the Neanderthals. Read Science Daily (August 18, 2010): Dwindling Green Pastures, Not Hunting, May Have Killed Off the Mammoth. As drier tundras replaced productive grasslands, large herbivorous mega-mammals like wooly mammoths, wooly rhinos and giant deer decreased in number. 'These habitat changes made grazing much more difficult for large mammals and dramatically reduced the amount of food available for them. The changes in grassland quality and availability coincided with increases in the distribution and abundance of modern man, Homo sapiens, ensuring a time of wide-scale upheaval for herbivorous mammals and other mammals that preyed on them.' (Photo courtesy, Science Daily)

Where did this leave the Neanderthals, the terrestrial carnivores (see post: Meat Made Us Smart, But Marine-based BAD*SSED)? Well. With considerably lower intakes of brain-nurturing omega-3 sources. Hunting smaller animals and increasing broad spectrum utilization of plant sources as the larger mammals migrated north away from Italian/Mediterranean and Euroasian shoresides toward Slavic and Siberian geographies.

Ancient man on the other hand continued to and perhaps were propelled toward marine-sourced carnivory and less plant based outsourcing as the mega-fauna dwindled in number and size. As brains improved synaptically, the bigger the brain, the bigger the hunt and the bigger the fish/seafood? It appears so from the evidence thus far.

Electrically, electrochemically, what is omega-3?

It fills in and controls our lipid double-layer cell membranes, and membranes are the master controllers in many emerging ways.

It behaves like high-speed internet. Long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids are the strongest, longest 'cables' in nature and behave like the cables of Comcast and DSL for our brain/heart/GI hardware and connections.

Bigger Omega-3 --> Bigger Brain --> Bigger Consciousness --> Bigger Display/Capture --> Bigger S*XXX --> Bigger Progeny/DNA-push-forward

References:

Explaining longevity of different animals: is membrane fatty acid composition the missing link?
Hulbert AJ.
Age (Dordr). 2008 Sep;30(2-3):89-97. Epub 2008 May 31.

Membrane fatty acids as pacemakers of animal metabolism.
Hulbert AJ.
Lipids. 2007 Sep;42(9):811-9. Epub 2007 Apr 27. Review.

Membrane phospholipid composition may contribute to exceptional longevity of the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber): a comparative study using shotgun lipidomics.
Mitchell TW, Buffenstein R, Hulbert AJ.
Exp Gerontol. 2007 Nov;42(11):1053-62.

The exceptional longevity of an egg-laying mammal, the short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) is associated with peroxidation-resistant membrane composition.
Hulbert AJ, Beard LA, Grigg GC.
Exp Gerontol. 2008 Aug;43(8):729-33.

Pimping Robb: 'Keep Your POOP Where It Belongs'

2010-09-22T18:36:00.000-07:00

ANIMAL (Far East Movement)

Pimping The Wicked Animal

I love Robb (and his beautiful wife Nicki V.) and I love pimping Robb and everything he endorses.

My favorite chapter of the new book 'The Paleo Solution: The Original Human DIET' is naturally 'Grains and Leaky Gut or Keep Your Poop Where it Belongs'. In typically Robb-fashion he breaks down gut dysbiosis and how it is the central dogma for our S.A.D. health in Western civilizations at this time. If there were other s*xy chapters, I'd love them too but this is unfortunately not too heavy in the s*x departments (unlike the other recent book reports I discussed). The health professional version hopefully will cover more hormones...

Personal Story

What drew me in first to the whole paleo story is his blog and the generous sharing of stories which were re-enforced when I attended the nutri cert (for Crossfit) in Chico in 2008 where he recounted again more stories of health recovery, autoimmune disease reversal and tremendous body fat recompositioning. I've met Sarah twice the screaming hawwwt chick with 3 children and painful swollen legs which reversed on paleo and functional xfit exercises. Two stories at the nutri cert were the tale of 2 pharmacists (!!!hey man) which Robb appeared too delighted in telling knowing I was the lone pharmacist in the audience. Both had liver disease and one was already on the liver transplant list. They had NAFLD, fatty liver, a Metabolic Syndrome condition related to gluten and the fatty infiltration and calcifications related to high carbohydrates and a grain-heavy Western diet.

Paleo cured them. In 1-2 months both had reversed the liver enzyme tests to normal. Robb affected their health where modern medicine failed and actually wanted to take out and replace the worthless liver, the ultimate solution, no?

Robb's book is filled with these type of stories and the most compelling is his and his mother's. He reports thathis mother's quiet diagnosis of celiac (and 3 other autoimmune diseases -- Sjogren's, Rheumatoid and Lupus) at the time she was nearly dying on a heart/lung machine, saved his own life when he was suffering from severe debilitating inflammatory intestinal issues.

'Academia: Abandon All Hope Ye Who Study Here'

Totally I would second this notion...

All About Digestion and Why Paleo Works

Robb's a wicked animal when it comes to coaching and cajoling performance and outcomes out people... it comes through in the writing. He's there explaining in simple, easy-to-understand terms and encouraging in the same way.

He has seen it work not just for himself but COUNTLESS Crossfiters and non-Crossfiters.

Explaining the digestion, nutrition and hormones (insulin, growth hormone, leptin, cortisol) take up 1/3 of the book. The parts I enjoyed the most were:

'Digestion: From our Pie Hole to Your HOO-HA in 453 Easy Steps' ch4 [why do we always ending up talking about butts and poop???]
'Digestion: Where The Rubber Hits the Road' ch5
'Cholesterol... The small, dense, reactive LDLs are born from the VLDL that is the product of high-carbohydrate intake. Although the types of dietary fats we consume do influence these LDLs to a small degree, the main influence is the amount and types of dietary carbohydrate. In case you missed that, a high-carbohydrate diet, like the one your doctor, the government, and the pharmaceutical companies endorse, is the type of diet that makes smal, dense reactive LDL particles. Good to know these people are fightin for your health! Image if they were really trying to kill you.'
'Osteoporosis Link to Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)... The solution we are given for CVD is a high-carb, low-fat diet that keeps insulin levels high. The solution for osteoporosis is to take a calcium supplement. Little dose our doctor know that that calcium supplement is known to be a precipitating factor in blood clots that lead to stroke and heart attack. Oops! hey, it's just your life folks!'
'Grains and Leaky Gut or Keep Your Poop Where It Belongs (ch6)' Here several cases from a 5 year old to diverse ages reviewed excellently.
'Fat Confusion' We know Robb endorses BACON BACON BACON SATFAT SATFAT SAT! This reviews W-H-Y. 'The government high-carb, low-fat fantasy is turning out to be amazingly profitable for sectors of our medical and pharmaceutical establishment. unfortunately, it's not been kind to our friends, family, and coworkers.'
'Cortisol ...'Without being the least bit cynical, I could boil life down to food, sleep, and sex. On the food side of the equation, we have all that goes into getting it (brains to plan, brawn to procure and defend). Once we have that food, we eat it and either burn it or store it. This is all related to our short and long term energy management, body-fatness, fertility, etc. In sulin and glucagon are there to help regulate our storage and utilization of energy. However, Cortisol is also a player in this game, as it also has effects on energy storage and a host of other functions...' Like both Robb and Andy Deas (podcast co-conspirator), I've had adrenal fatigue yet we have neolithic ways to overcome this (this is where paleo alone aint enough).
'Beat That Dead Horse White Boy!' Sleep sleep sleep yet again...
'Sex Type Thing... Charlie has two new, but very annoying things happening. Low sex drive and a need to pee at night. As Charlie's body fat increases, the has a tendency to convert his meager testosterone into estrogen because of an enzyme called aromatase that hangs out in fat tissue. If your body fat increases, whether male or female, you tend to convert testosterone to estrogen. For Charlie, this set inmotion prostate growth (benign prostate hyperplasia -- BPH) at the ripe old age of thirty-five. if thes was not bad enough, his testosterone levels are low for two reasons. Cortisol and testosterone must go down. Then add the conversion of testosterone to estrogen due to increased body fat and we have a bad situation brewing for Charlie. The effects for women are similarly powerful with a tendency to produce PMS, PCOS, fibroids and infertility. Fun, no?'
'Growth hormone...IGF...BDNF... Now that we have looked at being strong and hormonally sound, let's take a look at your pump and pipes before looking at our exercise prescriptions.'
'What About Fiber? Won't I Forget How To Poop Without Grains?' THIS STUFF KILLLLLLS ME!!!!!!
'Robb, You Are Big Meanie? I Have No Idea Where to Start!'
'But Raaawwwwbb, How Will I Get My Vitamins? And How Will I Poop Without My Fiber?' [chuckle chuckle]
'Quick Paleo Pancakes' My kids made this on their VERY own last wkend! The HOUSE DID NOT BURN DOWN and was filled with the lovely aroma of sweet sweet laughter and cinnamon. My paleo-as-it's-gonna-get-kids ROCK indeed.
'Supplements' The standard stuff -- Robb's fish oil calculator, vitamin D, probiotics, digestive enzymes, lipoic acid (reduces insulin resistance and host of other benefits), carnitine (recovery, energy, etc), magnesium, and iodine. Again, totally standard fare.

Tim Ferriss also provides a wonderful endorsement and an excerpt from the book: How to Keep Feces Out Of Your Bloodstream (or How To Lose 10Pounds in 14 Days)

Previous animal pharm: Robb and paleo cure vampirism (porphyria cutaneous tarda)

Go Team Robb!!!! *winky!*

P.S.
Robb knows I'm gonna quibble on the LDL (goal stated in book 40-70 mg/dl which is clearly questionable)... but he recties by discussing thoroughly the QUALITY of LDL is FIRST and FOREMOST (pattern 'A') over quantity. If that were the only concession to the publishers in order for this SEMINAL piece of RIDICULOUSLY S*XXXXY GENIUSNESS to *finally* published then I...will... forgive... But. Dude you'll owe me a St. Peters beer dude. Or two. FR*CK. That will be hard to dig out of...

Zoopharmacognosy: Chimps Eat Medicinal Plants

2010-08-31T22:37:00.000-07:00

What do Aspilia, cocaine and kissing have in common?

Robert M. Sapolsky writes in his book of essays 'The Trouble With Testosterone and Other Essays on the Biology of the Human Predicament' (which I'd highly recommend -- Sapolsky is a FR**KIN genius) about the use of a leaf by chimps studied by Wrangham at Harvard at the Gombe National Park in Tanzania. He and the researchers observed the chimpanzees wadding up the leaves whole, then holding them under their tongue for a while, then swallowing without chewing. The leaves passed through the intestines undigested and intact in the stools. 'Off and on throughout the meal the chimpanzees would make faces: Aspilia apparently was no tasty treat' he wrote in the essay entitled Curious George's Pharmacy.

Sapolsky adds...'Intrigued, Wrangham sent samples of the plant for analysis to Eloy Rodriguez, a biochemist at the University of California in Irvine. Rodriquez discovered that the leaves contain thiarubrine-A, a reddish oil kown to be a potent toxin against fungi, bacteria, and parasite nematodes. Indeed, they noted that the youngest Aspilia leaves, much the preferred kind among the chimpanzees, are far richer in the oil than the older leaves are. And he thought it significant that the apes kept the drug under their tongues before gulping it down: the tongue is dense with minute blood vessels, and so a substance held there can bypass the digestive juices and head straight into the circulation.'

Mucosal Absorption of Biochemicals and Hormones

Philematology is the study and science of kissing... turns out many hormones are instantly generated and conveyed via... KISSING... (scientists found: oxytocin and testosterone go up... for bonding libido, but for grrrrls oxytocin goes down... to ?decrease protective defense modes). Hormones via mucosal absorption in the mouth can be transmitted much like the above chemicals in leaves of Aspilia, sublingually administrated cocaine or nitroglycerin. The lining of the mouth and under the tongue (buccal mucosa) are rich and full of a blood vessels which interface transparently almost with spit. Drugs and chemicals pass easily then enter the blood stream systemically with rapid speed.

Chimps Fix Gut Dysbiosis -- What About You?

'On the basis of his laboratory studies, plus Wrangham's observations, Rodriquez estimated that in each eccentric bout of Aspilia feeding, the chimpanzees consumed just enough thiarubrine-A to kill between 70 and 80 percent of the parasites in their digestive tracts, without harming other, useful intestinal bacteria. Wrangham and Rodriguez also noted that Tanzanian tribespeople have long chewed Aspilia leaves to health stomachaches and a variety of other ills. Hence the two coworkers speculated that the chimpanzee were using the plant as medicine.'

What is the surface area of our gut? Though smaller compared with primates, we traded a bigger, energy-guzzling brain for a smaller-gut, the surface area supported is still relatively SPACIOUS AND ENORMOUS.

The gut ecosystem (hat tip to Brent -- thank you for the term buddy!) is in delicate balance. Excessive negative factors can outweigh the positive factors thereby leading to chaos, entropy and dysbiosis... until re-balance is established. Broad spectrum antibiotics are extremely powerful in negatively throwing off this balance. Antibiotics are found in industrially mass produced beef, pork, chicken, seafood and dairy products and the stuff your physicians gives you for grain-induced acne, viral infections (which antibiotics don't work), and any sniffle/cough/bellyache. The main problem with antibiotics is that they wipe out the good bacteria, leaving behind armies of bad bacteria (Klebsiella, H. pylori, C. difficile, Group B Strep, etc), bad fungus (Candida, etc), and potentially bad microbes including parasites which thrive in the new imbalanced ecosystem. A great part of the immune system and neurologic system are centered in the gut. Below the belt?? Yes.

When the gut is j*cked up by grains, gluten, high carbs, nutritional depletion, antibiotics, metals, Candida overgrowth, liver flukes, parasites...et cetera, a HEEEEEYYYGE part of the human ecosystem, immunity and the brain can be seriously derailed.

Go antibiotic-free meat/dairy and G-R-A-S-S-F-E-D.

See prior posts: grassfed beef.

Medicinal leaves... aint no chimp change for belly dispositions.

Animal Nutritional Therapy

Describing plant chemicals, Sapolsky continues '...in the endless wars between plants and animals, many plants have evolved leaves laced with secondary plant compounds among which substances are cardiac toxins, hallucinogens, antifertility drugs, and growth inhibitors. Such chemicals have no effect on the plants, but they can be deadly poisonous to any animal foolish enough to eat them. Not to be outdone, animals have evolved counteroffensive patterns of behavior that enable them to eat the plants: they may follow up a poisonous meal by eating something that can detoxify the poison. Rats, for instance, often consume clay after eating highly toxic plants; the clay absorbs the poisons.'

'Animals also appear to correct their own dietary deficiencies. In his famous "cafeteria" studies a half century ago the psychobiologist Curt P. Richter broke up a balanced rat diet into its constituent parts, serving up eleven small trays of proteins, oils, fats, sugars, salt, yeast, water, adn so forth. Remarkably, the rats picked out an efficient diet that, with few calories, made them grow at a rate faster than that of the rats fed normal chow.'

Natural Wormicidal Plants

There are a few medicinal plants that have been used by ancient pharmacopractitioners and temptresses... *haa* Worms, flukes, helminths and other parasites occurred routinely in our evolutionary history up until the recent advent of potent synthetic antibiotics and anti-parasite medications. Have you watched Survivor? On the TV show, many lose weight not only from the semi-intermittent fasting but also from nutritional losses and deficiencies from parasite overgrowth. I've read that several contestants required months of treatment upon returning to civilization.

*** Japanese Apricot, Plum: 'Ume' (Prunus mume -- see Wiki)

Side (unripe ume) and below pictures are courtesy of Dave's Garden and SergetheCongriege. Top picture wiki, dried and preserved umeboshi.

One such plant is a fruit known in Korea, Japan and China as the Asian plum or apricot (Ume, Prunus mume). It can be fermented, dried, pickled and also used as a liquor or vinegar. In Korea, unriped ume is known as maesil and used for over a thousand years for digestion and improve blood alkalinity (here and here).

Several trials (see Refs) have shown the anti-worm and antibacterial properties of Prunus mume. One trial showed no improvement in H. pylori urea breath test results (but 11% were noted as eradication (2 cases of responders)), a frequently implicated microaerophilic bacteria in ulcer and gastritis formation, however another trial showed distinct and significant improvement in H. pylori related chronic gastritis with lower H. pylori bacterial load via endoscopic tissue biopsy and reduced active mucosal inflammation and neutrophil infiltration. Endoscopic data is more accurate than breath testing. Both evaluations were human animal studies (e.g. pharmacognosy). In screening activity of 223 species of Chinese medicines (plant, animal, mineral materials), 31 showed anti-wormicidal properties including Prunus mume as effective against the human liver fluke, known as Clonorchis sinensis (see Wiki).

Applying Food Science (MEAT SCIENCE)

Food science was part of my experience from undergrad in nutritional science that I enjoyed. Other plums (Prunus domestica L.) have been pureed and studied in beef patties and pork sausages as an 'extender' for both flavor and shelf life. Yes. Plums appear to display potent biological antioxidant effects. Plum puree was shown to decrease TBARS (measure of oxidative capacity, especially associated with polyunsaturated fatty acids which become rancid easily) compared with controls (J Food Sci 2008 HERE and my fave Meat Science 2010 HERE). My parents grew up in Taiwan eating a lot of tiny dried SOUR plums and developed quite a habit eating them which my sisters I never adopted... who knew the nutritive value may be as a gut flora enhancer? (Picture below wiki, commerical pickled plum (ume) from China; side picture, what my parents eat, courtesy alibaba.com)

References and Further Reading:

1. Dietary Supplementation with Probiotic Fermented Tetra-Herbal Combination Enhan ces Immune Activity in Broiler Chicks and Increases Survivability against Salmonella Gallinarum in Experimentally Infected Broiler Chicks.
Jung BG, Ko JH, Lee BJ.
J Vet Med Sci. 2010 Jul 28. [Epub ahead of print]

2. Inhibitory effects of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Siebold et Zucc.; Ume) on Helicobacter pylori-related chronic gastritis [IN HUMAN SUBJECTS].
Enomoto S, Yanaoka K, Utsunomiya H, Niwa T, Inada K, Deguchi H, Ueda K, Mukoubayashi C, Inoue I, Maekita T, Nakazawa K, Iguchi M, Arii K, Tamai H, Yoshimura N, Fujishiro M, Oka M, Ichinose M.
Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jul;64(7):714-9.

3. Immune-Enhancing Effect of Fermented Maesil (Prunus mume Siebold & Zucc.) with probiotics against Bordetella bronchiseptica in Mice.
Jung BG, Ko JH, Cho SJ, Koh HB, Yoon SR, Han DU, Lee BJ.
J Vet Med Sci. 2010 Apr 28. [Epub ahead of print]

4. Fruit-juice concentrate of Asian plum inhibits growth signals of vascular smooth muscle cells induced by angiotensin II.
Utsunomiya H, Takekoshi S, Gato N, Utatsu H, Motley ED, Eguchi K, Fitzgerald TG, Mifune M, Frank GD, Eguchi S.
Life Sci. 2002 Dec 27;72(6):659-67.

5. Screening of the wormicidal Chinese raw drugs on Clonorchis sinensis.
Rhee JK, Woo KJ, Baek BK, Ahn BJ.
Am J Chin Med. 1981 Winter;9(4):277-84.

Track My (Inner) B*tch Or Fertility Or Whatever

2010-08-26T21:34:00.000-07:00

Track My B*tch

Very cool gadgets out there! Found one for tracking my period for free (monthlyinfo.com) which provides text or email update alerts which can be set to x number days before/after a period or ovulation. Personally, I've had hormone issues after a terrible debacle with a Mirena IUD which released tons of artificial progestin into storage in my fat cells. They all apparently poured out when the IUD was extracted 2+ years ago and only recently abated for the most part. FYI Synthetic hormones S*CK. They are endocrine disruptors and scr*w the adrenals, cortisol, insulin, body fat, libido, bone density, gut/B12 absorption and thousands of other different pathways and biochemical cascades.

Programs like Track My B*tch and Code Red are discussed by Esquire's sex columnist, Ms. Stacey Grenrock Woods and her recent article in the August issue, How to Track Her Period. Digitally.

OMG HILARIOUS.

She is so goooood. I dig her archives.

MonthlyInfo.com

My friends know I'm awful with my calendar, and worse, knowing when I'm doing things... like ovulating... or about to have my period. Honestly 27-28 day cycles are hard to track.

Anyway. Ms. Woods reviewed the iPhone apps out there for the value of preventing a homicide from the consequences of PMS ('pack-my-suitcase') females syndromes and potential benefits. *haa* Men. Take note. $1.99 is little to pay to stay out of our way.

Track Fertility

For those trying to coordinate the fusion of a sperm and an egg... these are cool devices! I like the neat calendar, export features and data entry (I put in signs of high estrogen days, e.g. SKINNY days, and the estrogen withdrawal days, e.g. FAT-ATTEND-XFIT days).

Concealed Conception

I first read about this concept, concealed conception, in Sex at Dawn and The Red Queen, and realized, yes, humans are quite special. Other than certain bird species, we are one of the few animals with concealed conception where obvious signs of ovulation are hidden and extremely subtle. Yes. Grrrls don't even know. Vague scent and pheromones changes, hair/nail/skin slight luminosity, minuscule waist size declines, mood slightly chirpier, higher testosterone (better strength and performance) are insignificant indications of major hormone and mounting ovulatory action. Hormones. They can ROCK and RULE because they play an enormous role in human sexual evolution and survival. Female hormones vary daily. Or, some conjecture hourly *haa*. See top diagram. It's based on that egg-precursor. Men on the other hand hardly vary staying rock steady except when driving on the freeway and those rare moments of road rage.

G-Free Celebrities: Bill Clinton, Ryan Phillipe, Zooey Deschanel, 'Posh' Beckham, Rachel Weisz, Emmy Rossum...

2010-08-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

Fly Like a G6: Far East Movement

Ryan Phillipe: Wheat Allergy

On a recent Men's Health mag issue with SWEETIE Ryan Phillipe 'Break Out of the Box', he talked about having a wheat intolerance and giving up his favorite foods (including beer), after suffering from stomach issues since childhood. My sister read the feature and insisted I post on it... The article reports he prepares home-cooked meals for his kids and wakes up at 6am to make them breakfast. CUTE CUTE CUTE. [YES. How could I miss this? I did not read the article just the relevant... um... . OK anyway. I like male magazines b/c they are short, to the point and really relevant. And, nice articles *WINKY*]

Who recommended going wheat-free to Mr. Phillipe??!

Both my sister 'M' and I were surprised to read that it was HIS DOCTOR. I about fell OUT OF MY PLAIN CHAIR. So yes I am posting this and his shimmering, G-Free, beautiful abs of Mr. Phillipe deserve a spot today. His bod flies like a G6. See his MH fullbody workout. It's functional HIIT and xfit... Another revolution.

Bill Clinton: Wheat and Dairy Intolerant

Chelsea's wedding featured a gluten-free cake from La Tulipe Desserts. Read NYT: HERE.

USA Today HERE reported from the White House chef in 2007, 'Cooking for Clinton was often a challenge because he had allergies to chocolate, dairy and wheat flour... But Clinton could be voracious when it came to desserts.' Well. When you are low fat, low saturated fat, that is what happens. HUNGER.

'Posh' Beckham + other fem celebs: Wheat Intolerant

look who eats gluten free... Courtesy Vanilla Spoons Bakery
What do Oscar-winning actress Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener), former Spice Girl Victoria “Posh” Beckham and The View’s Elisabeth Hasselbeck have in common? You guessed it. They all enjoy the gluten free life! Not to mention so does the adorable Zooey Deschanel. (She played Will Ferrell’s romantic interest in the box-office hit Elf.) So whether you require a gluten free diet because of a specific medical condition (e.g. celiac disease) or have simply chosen the gluten free way (it offers some pretty amazing benefitswhich often include improvement to overall health and vitality), we invite all of you, celebs and regular folks alike, to send us your story about going gluten free. You may be featured right here alongside Rachel and Elisabeth!
New York Daily News "Elisabeth Hasselbeck"
Time Out NY "Zooey Deschanel"
Newsweek "Heidi Collins"
BBC News "Rachel Weisz"
The Sun "Victoria Beckham" **
The New York Times "Susie Essman"
IMDB "Emmy Rossum"
IMDB "Keith Olbermann"

**I've always liked David Beckham, soccerhusband of 'Posh', especially a few years he started endorsing a (overpriced) fish oil product... G-O3...

G-Free Definition: Problem Not Grain-Free and Full of Cr*p

Personally I believe gluten-free is not enough for an ultimately optimal lifespan and health. Gluten-free products often still are refined, vastly processed and full of high carbohydrates and problem oils (oxidized, pesticide-laden crops of omega-6 canola, safflower, cottonseed, etc) which spike and increase blood glucoses (BG) and promote silent inflammation. Chronic silent inflammation leads to cancer, obesity, fibromyalgia, mood disorders, arithritis, weight gain, osteoporosis, diabetes, heart attacks and strokes.

Gluten free however alone improves stomach and GI symptoms including bloating, constipation, bloody stools, iron deficiency anemia, chronic fatigue, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), and gut dysbiosis.

Oats are Heart-Healthy? Iron and Mineral Deficiencies

In 1950 Sharpe and Peacock et al reviewed the effects of phytate in oats (study funded by Quaker Oats) on radioactive iron. They found that oats reduced iron absorption by 2/3 effectively. Obviously this would not pass IRB these days! But their results are quite curious. It's a GEM.

Oats can lead to iron deficiency by chronic consumption via the effects of phytate binding and making minerals unavailable for absorption in the intestines; this trial shows the iron binding effects of oat grains (Free PDF. The effect of phytate and other food factors on iron absorption. J Nutr. 1950 Jul;41(3):433-46.). Below are the meals each containing relative same amounts of radioactive-iron and the resultant radioactive-iron retention over time -- the best retention was the water only + iron. Next was milk only + iron. Milk has calcium which may chelate iron and make bio-unavailable.

Prior post: Pica/hunger and Mineral Deficiencies -- Vast Zinc Deficiencies in U.S. and globally

Grain-free is far better and more evolutionary aligned with our DNA... No oatmeal, no oatbran, no millet, no wheat/barley/rye (GLUTEN), no rice, no maize or corn...

But.

G-Free is a G-OOD START and raises much needed AWARENESS.

G-OOD DAY!!

The Price of a Gallon of Gasoline

2010-08-20T07:49:00.001-07:00

'I didn't grow up in Louisiana, and I can imagine those who did are even more passionate about cleaning up this mess than the rest of us. I grew up in Canada, where we have a similar tragedy being carried out right now: the ancient boreal forest in Northern Alberta is being destroyed to collect dirty tar sands oil. Oil that generates three times the global warming pollution as regular crude. As a result, entire ecosystems and indigenous communities are being devastated.'

Ryan Reynolds, Activist, Actor (and ridiculously fine male specimen)
HuffPo blog

Prior post: Provoking Envy

Meat Made Us Smart But... Marine-based, BAD*SSED

2010-08-17T19:52:00.000-07:00

Meat Made Us Smart?

Making the evo/paleo blogs are the latest headlines... meat made us smart. NPR's article which is excellent: HERE. Love love LOVE NPR's new series. However. Meat. So what? I'm a carnivore and LUST4MEAT but my higher IQ is not attributed to meat. Figure from Richards et al PNAS 2000 and thank you to Stephan for the forward and rich insights HERE and HERE. Update: Richards et al later re-dated the Neanderthal bones to ~33-40 kya, not the stated ~28,500 yrs ago in the original article (Vindija 207 208 data).

Q: What Made Ancient Humans Rapidly DOMINATE the GLOBE?

A: Marine seafood (fauna and flora) including stems, leaves, tubers, berries, mollusks, crustaceans, fish, seals, dolphins, eels... and etc.

*** Summer Reading ***

Been doing some lightweight, softcore summer reading...
(a) MATT RIDLEY, 'Sex and the evolution of human nature: The Red Queen'
(b) 'Sex at dawn', authored by a psychologist and psychiatrist, C. Ryan and C. Jatha
(c) 'Carbs Can Kill!' by a pharmacist/physician, Dr. Robert Su MD, his personal account of complete health reversal (angina/CAD, skin issues, abdominal obesity, sleep apnea) from an MD point of view on a high saturated fat, carbohydrate-restricted (grain-free) diet. He is a fan of Feinman, Volek and the entire body of low-carb, high fat evidence, which he reviews in articulate and simple terms in his wonderful book. He interviews Sally Fallon author Nourishing Traditions (one of my favorite cookbooks) and WAPFer, HERE. Over 1100+ high sat fat, carb restricted cancer, disease and health references are listed conveniently on his site: HERE.

All 3 were extremely entertaining, enlightening and entirely edifying. Without really arguing the diet point, each of these scientific or sexual-psychosocial or medical/nutritional nonfiction are all for highly descriptive of a behavior or lifestyle written by evolution. (Thanks Dr. Dan for that motto!~) Unfortunately books #1 and #2 don't appear to understand the wild-human diet part... HHHhmmm.

Regarding Sex at dawn, like Melissa who reviewed it earlier HERE at hunt gather love, I agree the authors miss out on romantic love. Where is the LOVE??? Granted... lust does revolve the world around, but again, where's the *heart* sounds.

Also I believe in our human evolutionary history based on our close evo ties to ALL animals, including birds and fish... Ridley argues a better animalistic point that humans are somewhere in behavior (and the genetic studies appear to verify) between the birds and the bonobos/primates... Sexual dimorphism, behavior (mono- v. polygamous depending on fecundity of resources), courtship, songs, pair bonds + affairs, egalitarianism, child/egg rearing, paternity protection, etc. Elaborate shelter construction, prenatal and gestational nesting, omnivorous diet, etc-- Ridley forgot these factors, but I believe these are also common traits.

Biggest Organ

Surprisingly our largest organ which has made the most progressive advances over the last 25 million years... is the BRAIN. Cranial volume has tripled since primates branched off. Neanderthal brains were ~20% larger than current humans. Ancient human brains were also larger but by a smaller fraction, an estimated ~11% larger than currently. An MSNBC 2006 article discusses the microcephalin gene (D variant) which regulates brain size being found in both modern humans and Neanderthals, HERE. Does size matter? I believe so. Above diagram from Trinkaus Richards PNAS 2009, comparing isotope data between Neanderthals, ancient humans and related faunal assemblages.

Author Matt Ridley has tied together an eloquently argued subject that links sexual adaptation, success, survival with human intelligence.

[Smart? He is indeed smart. And funny as H*LL.]

Bigger brains lead to more food.

More food ---> More S*X

More S*X ---> More progeny and so on and so on

Food maybe a relative (Red Queen) euphemism...for any sustenance and nourishment (intellectual, emo, spiritual).

Obviously I've oversimplified and omitted the best thoughts.

Actually the beauty and clarity of Ridley's tight, dense, razor sharp scrutiny of all the lines of evidence and parallels drawn from the wealth of examples from the animal kingdom is how he scintillates the essence of human nature. 'Be different.'

Like a peacock's display, the brain's neurologic display (intelligence, humor, creativity, personality) is the point of attraction that he proposes was selected for over time. It's an interesting contention and makes insanely logical sense.

==>Recap: big brains-->big display-->big S*X-->big progeny

Ancient Humans: More Seafood (More S*X?)

Ridley discusses how bottle-nosed dolphins are perhaps the only other animal (mammal) with intelligence that rivals human intelligence and our complex language skills. However, dolphins brain:body ratios are only ~0.9% whereas humans are vastly higher ~2%. What do ancient humans have in common with our marine cousins, the social pack animal and s*xy/lusty predators, the dolphins?

Neanderthals were incredibly robust, hormonally superb specimens with excellent, dense, powerful bones, and complex communication for large mammal hunts and emerging culture 50-30,000 years ago. Shipman from PennState wrote in PNAS 2008 'Importantly, marine mammals, fish, and mollusks were systematically exploited by both Neanderthals and modern humans throughout the stratigraphic sequences at these caves.'

Above diagram, again, from Trinkaus Richards PNAS 2009. Obviously clear ancient humans were Marine Carnivores and Neanderthals were Herbivore Carnivores (?with possible broad spectrum sourcing including legumes and grasses).

Marine-sourced food is the most highest concentrated sources of omega-3 (marine veggies ALA, marine protein EPA DHA). Most fish or marine mammals don't produce it; THEY EAT IT. From sources concentrated up the food chain starting with algae and phytoplankton up the network, nitrogen and carbon atoms gradually change and can be measured a millenia later.

Omega-3 is BRAIN food.

We are what we eat: Stable 15N 13C Isotope Profiling

Right diagram, courtesy Prof White at Cornell for Geobiochemistry and s table isotopes in paleontology. Nitrogen concentrations up the food chain and marine food networks are laced with more complex hierarchy compared with terrestrial. Carbon is also concentrated up the food chain with again marine sources richer and with higher density carbon atoms compared with land-origin sources. Plants diversified and evolved during the early Miocene 25 mya from Calvin cycle only plants (C3) to more advanced plants that adapted to less water losses (via heat and/or via aridity) with an extra carbon altering step to malate (in the mesophyll vein) before entering the Calvin cycle (C4 plants). During cooling temps or droughts or fires that displaced lush forests and woodlands, grasslands, legumes and grains filled in then eventually flourished (C3 and C4 plants). See Left diagram.

As we can see from Prof White's diagram (right) that Neolithic Europeans who consumed less meat and seafood and more vegetables (C3, C4) had lower density 15N and 13C, compared with marine carnivores: (a) historic Eskimo hunter-gather-fishermen and (b) mesolithic Denmark people.

Go back and examine the 13C data (under 'Big Organ' or HERE) from Richards and Trinkaus PNAS 2009. C13 density is lower for Neanderthals compared with ancient humans yet about the same levels as other carnivores and omnivores (wolf, fox, respectively) and terrestrial small-large herbivores they were known to hunt and consume.

Data exists as early as 50,000 years ago, Neanderthals foraged small grain grasses, legumes and cereals in a small but non-neglible manner. See prior post.

Personally I think it is quite plausible that Neanderthals sourced their food in a very wide way that excluded much marine-based resouces, as indicated by the lack of density in the 15N and 13C isotope evidence.

Why?

I dunno.

Perhaps Neanderthals with their larger brains and early utilization of marine-based foods had a staggering boost in intelligence which translated to a more immense broad-spectrum resource utilization of legumes, small grains and cereals before ancient man got a clue (circa 12,000 years ago, neolithism).

Perhaps Neanderthals failed to figure out how to ferment and displace toxic legume and cereal-containing phytic acid? Ambient warm temperatures are required for fermentation. Perhaps this did not occur sufficiently (and/or by serendipity) until the last glacial maximum ended ~ 16 to 12,000 yrs ago as temperatures rose again finally.

Can a race over-innovate?

Can a race over-innovate to extinction? Esp when the other race is eating omega-3 fish oils by the ton having more s*x and more progeny?

BLOG-asm

2010-08-11T12:18:00.000-07:00

YES

YES yessss... [slam table emphatically]

I finally have a blogroll... Sorry it took so long!

Theme: healing our immunity, gut and hormones via paleo/evo, stress-reduction lifestyles and reversing neoLETHAL damage.

When I say 'paleo' it is like an all inclusive resort... I like all things 'paleo...' equal opportunity, no discrimination. Discriminating, yeah like an anal/ocd pharmacist.

Latin derivation of 'paleo' is 'old' and I mean ANY and ALL THINGS OLD back to our protobacterial origins and our fish ancestors. Older than your YOUTH SPIDERMAN UNDERPANTS.

Paleo to me is paleontological, paleontology, paleozoic era (540 mya), paleoscene epoch (65 mya, emergence of primates), paleolithic, paleobio, paleoecology, and so on.

Have to admit when I started this 'paleo' thang, there weren't clear defs. Still aren't.

Thank you Dr. Dan for the picture *BIG SMILEY*

Middle to Late Paleolithic: Neanderthals Consumed Grains and Legumes

2010-07-20T17:40:00.000-07:00

For 200,000 Years Neanderthals Dominated Euroasia

Homo neanderthalensis, Neanderthals, migrated out of Africa and completely separated genetic lineages an estimated 200 to 300,000 years ago or even longer. Recent genetic data has shown that as Neanderthals migrated northward, hypopigmentation and red hair (MC1R gene associated) characteristics may have been selected for. National Geographic presents a nice summary HERE.

The geographic range for Neanderthals was vast from Germany, France, Croatia, the steppes of Russia, the Mediterrean shores where they hunted seal and mussels to the Middle East and Israel. See wiki diagram. This area also included the 'fertile cresent', the origin of mass cultivation of cereal grains and domestication of herd animals that sprouted the new world economy, war, arts and advanced culture.

Modern Humans Slowly Entered Eurasia 100,000 Yrs Ago

Modern humans (aka Hss or Homo sapien sapien) started to arrive 90 to 100,000 years ago according to fossil evidence from a rock shelter in Qazfeh Israel. See diagram, courtesy National Geographic). Perhaps after separation from a common hominid ancestor 200 to 300,000 years earlier, modern homininds and Neanderthals crossed paths and recent genomic evidence suggest intermingling occurred... though probably rarely but appears to have resulted in introgression of 1-4% Neanderthal DNA in Euroasian gene stock. The Neanderthal clade consisted of an estimated sparse 15,000 individuals. Earth's population was probably only double or triple that? The last remains of Neanderthals are dated back 28,000 yrs ago at Gibraltar.

What happened? No one is sure...

Sexual and DNA Neanderthal + Modern Human Admixture

Trinkaus, a paleoanthropologist interviewed in the National Geographic piece, states "At the time of the biological transition, the basic behavior [of the two groups] is pretty much the same, and any differences are likely to have been subtle." Trinkaus believes they indeed may have mated occasionally. He sees evidence of admixture between Neanderthals and modern humans in certain fossils, such as a 24,500-year-old skeleton of a young child discovered at the Portuguese site of Lagar Velho, and a 32,000-year-old skull from a cave called Muierii in Romania. "There were very few people on the landscape, and you need to find a mate and reproduce," says Trinkaus. "Why not? Humans are not known to be choosy. Sex happens."

Euroasian Fauna and Flora Based on Fluctuating Temperature

See far top diagram, courtesy Wiki. Wild temperature fluctations occurred on earth during the time period that Neanderthals inhibited Euroasia. Mega and minor extinctions of flora and fauna would probably in a single lifespan of a Neanderthal's life. As the temperatures cooled, trees retreated and grasslands persisted and greatly expanded in their territorial ranges. As the Ice Age ended, the Neanderthal had already perished as a distinct genetic species. Around ~12,000 years ago when high temperatures occurred consistly, mass cereal cultivation and domestication of animals signaled what we recognize now as the Neolithic age. How early were the first small grained grasses foraged by our hunter-gatherer forebears?

Would this have affected Neanderthal gene expression?

Chronic disease afflictions?

Natural selection?

Evidence Middle Paleolithic Neanderthals Foraged Small Grained Grasses

Grasses are basically weeds and non-flowering. The seeds are dispersed off the grain-head by wind and animal/bird ingestion. As such, natural plant defenses support dispersal by keeping the seed intact and evolution of 'chemical warfare' involving phytic acid, lectins and gluten to ensure intact dispersal after animal/bird digestion. As early as 105,000 years ago, sorghum grains were found immediately near hearths in S. Africa highly suggestive of ancient man foraging and use stone mill tools (Science 2009). Could ancient Neanderthals have adopted similar tools and techniques, especially if cooling climatic changes, reduced animal resources to hunt and possible competition with modern humans for resources were all occurring?

Apparently this is the case. ~Approximately 50,000 yrs ago, definitely before the end of the middle paleolithic era, evidence for Neanderthals collecting phytic acid rich legumes and small-grain grasses exists.

Weiss et al published in a review of the use of cereals out pacing small-grained labor intensive grasses in utilization by early man (PNAS 2004). See above diagram. I extrapolated to where estimated Neanderthal extinction may have occurred and the potential for use of small-grained grasses by co-mingling modern humans. He discusses the evidence of grain/cereal foraging by Middle Paleolithic Neanderthals at 2 sites in the Middle East ('fertile cresent'):

48-60,000 yrs ago: Kebara Cave, Lev et al
55-70,000 yrs ago: Amud Cave, Madella et al

Middle Paleolithic: Prelude to the Broad Spectrum
In Middle Paleolithic Kebara Cave (~60,000–48,000 thermoluminescence years ago), Mount Carmel, Israel, Lev and associates (41, 44) found 3,956 charred seeds representing 52 taxa. On the basis of ethnographic observations and the fact that this plant assemblage was retrieved mainly from the immediate environment of the hearths, we assume that these seeds represent the Mousterian cave dwellers’ diet. Most of the seeds (3,300) were legumes but there were also acorns (Quercus sp.) and pistachio (Pistacia atlantica) nuts, as well as the seeds of giant golden-drop (Onosma gigantean), podonosma (Podonosma orientalis), Judean bugloss (Echium angustifolium judaeum), safflower (Carthamus sp.), and wild grape (Vitis vinifera). Only ten grass grains, including two of wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum), were recovered. In light of the generally good preservation of plant remains in the cave, Lev and colleagues concluded that cereal grains were an insignificant food source. It is notable, however, that they had made their way into human hands by this time, albeit in modest amounts.

Less compelling evidence of the Middle Paleolithic diet comes from Amud Cave (~70,000–55,000 thermoluminescence years ago) in the Upper Galilee, Israel. On the basis of phytolith assemblages, Madella et al. (42) concluded that the cave’s Neanderthals exploited herbaceous plants, ligneous parts of trees and shrubs, and mature grass panicles, and proposed that broad-spectrum exploitation of plants had started at least by the end of the Middle Paleolithic.

Legume and Grain-Consuming Neanderthals and Modern Humans

Did Neanderthals' diet affect the trajectory of their long existence to a final conclusion earlier than expected for such a strong, vital, muscular, close-proximity large-game hunting, cold-adapted, smart, larger-brained (20%), advanced hominid race who had already survived several large and small ice ages???

Why did their race slowly but abruptly fall short?
Lectins? Phytates? Vitamin D deficiency? Celiac disease?
How are both modern humans and extinct Neanderthal similar to Old and New World Primates in regards to pathophysiology of celiac and bone diseases?
See diagram below -- fossil sites of Neanderthal and modern man and the fertile cresent of grains/cereals/gluten. The vegetation is for 18,000 yrs ago, not 28,000 yrs ago when it was several magnitudes cooler reaching the lowest temperatures of the last Ice Age, more grass-lands and arid areas in the Mediterrean and northern European areas... The intense cooling from the Ice Ages did not initiate at polar caps but central continental bodies of water -- literally sucking out 200 to 300 ft of water as it cooled to freezing. Vegetation vastly altered... Grains...d*mn dirty grains...

Next post:
Evidence of Phytate-related Rachitic Damage in Late Neanderthals

Courtesy of owners at handprint.com

Meat Science: Meat and Omega-3 as ACE-Inhibitors

2010-07-19T06:32:00.000-07:00

T. Colin Campbell: No Longer Pied-Piper?

So... Again the data speaks volumes and the diminutive Ms. Mingers has put the final dagger in the vegetarian-low-sat-fat-fairy tale spun by so-called academic Campbell. The action is here: The China Study, My Response by Denise Minger.

You know if my teeth, eye color and health were ruined by a low saturated fat, low cholesterol, no meat, high soy, high grain vegetarian diet... I'd be mildly pissed.

And hungry...

For M-E-A-T . . . !

Meat Science

Added to NCBI PubMed in Feb, this newer journal features research and science in MEAT. I came across two articles here regarding protein from meat and beef which behave as ACE-inhibitors, one of the drugs deployed for hypertension, afterload reduction in heart failure and kidney protection in Type 1 (T1)and Type 2 diabetes (T2D) individuals. The mechanism of action of these drugs is blocking a pro-inflammatory-associated enzyme known as angiotension converting enzyme, ACE. Many peptides (proteins that are short sequences) are found in animal, seafood and plants that we consume that, in fact, have ACE-inhibitory action in mammalian systems. Even breastmilk contains lactoferrin which may inhibit ACE.

(1) A review of meat protein hydrolysates and hypertension.
Ahhmed AM, Muguruma M.
Meat Sci. 2010 Sep;86(1):110-8.

(2) Purification and identification of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitory peptides from beef hydrolysates
A. Jang and M. Lee
Meat Science, Volume 69, Issue 4, Pages 653-661.

Clinical M-E-A-T Series *haa*:
o Meat as Medicine: Grassfed v. Conventional
o Phytanic Acid in Grassfed Meat: Binds PPAR-α and RXR (potent anti-inflammatory controls)

Other related meat science and research:
o Antihypertensive Activities of Peptides Derived from Porcine Skeletal Muscle Myosin in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats
o Novel Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibitory Peptides Derived from Boneless Chicken Leg Meat
o Antihypertensive effects and endothelial progenitor cell activation by intake of chicken collagen hydrolysate in pre- and mild-hypertension. [Endothelial progenitor cells are required for cellular and organ regeneration -- prior animal pharm Chicken Soup, Bone Marrow, and EPCs for organ regeneration]

Complex Chronic Diseases and ACE/AII Activity

Diseases since the DAWN OF TIME typically involve stress (physical, mental), trauma, infection, hormone imbalances, omega-3/omega-6 imbalances and elevated insulin, are associated with elevated ACE and AII activity. ACE is a membrane-bound peptidyl dipeptidase known to act on a variety of protein substrates in the extracellular space. Known functions are the formation of angiotensin II and the degradation of bradykinin. ACE has an indispensable role in animal physiology: aids in maintaining homeostasis and preventing death during duress activated by mammalian 'fight or flight', our hard-wired mechanism for survival. A sharp cascade of neuroendocrine and circulatory chemicals are released in stressful/imbalanced situations, as the body is trying to keep blood flow to the brain, heart and vital organs, heart pumping activity and other vital processes (see below diagram). ACE catalyzes the conversion from (less active) Angiotensin I to (more active) Angiotensin II. Do we require ACE and Angiotensin II? Of course, this system required to clear damaged tissue, maintain perfusion of tissues and organs and activate the immune system for healing after trauma and infection. Tourgeman discusses the role of Angiotension II here: ' (a) increases pressure within the kidneys, (b) increases fibrosis (scarring), (c) increases the recruitment of pro-inflammatory white blood cells, (d), increases the production of inflammatory cytokines (chemicals), and (e) increases cell proliferation.'

Courtesy RE Klabunde PhD Cardiovascular Pharmacology

Controlling Insulin, ACE and AII

Epinephrine (adrenaline), norepinephrine, cortisol, renin, aldosterone and other adrenal gland secretions are prompted acutely on a short-term basis. Under high insulin and chronic conditions, these powerful adrenal hormones and chemicals are inappropriately turned on long-term.

Any studies?

Frassetto et al (EJCN, 2009) showed that pre-hypertension normalized after 10 days on a hunter-gather paleolithic diet (grain-free, legume-free) in overweight men and women aged 18+ yo. This study was superby in reducing HOMA, insulin resistance, and basal insulin secretion by ~70%.

Subsequently, the systolic blood pressure reduced by 2.6 mmgHg (NS) diastolic blood pressure dropped from 71 by 3.1 mmHg (p=0.006); this is of huge magnitudes greater than those produced in the VAST MAJORITY of clinical anti-hypertensive drugs.

In younger patients the diastolic BP is more difficult to modify and lower; flips as we get older and arteries stiffen up.

A broad Cochrane review found "We found 92 trials that randomly assigned participants to take either an ACE inhibitor or an inert substance (placebo). These trials evaluated the blood pressure lowering ability of 14 different ACE inhibitors in 12 954 participants. The trials followed participants for approximately 6 weeks (though people are typically expected to take anti-hypertension drugs for the rest of their lives). The blood pressure lowering effect was modest. There was an 8-point reduction in the upper number that signifies the systolic pressure and a 5-point reduction in the lower number that signifies the diastolic pressure."

Again in the hunter-gatherer paleolithic diet (granted they were not yet hypertensive, but on the road there), IN ONLY DAYS of diet modification achieved statistically significant blood pressure reduction.

On this evolutionary/paleo diet, treatment participants consumed eggs, M-E-A-T, or seafood at EVERY MEAL.

Harmful?

No.

Healing.

And frequently and highly observed in individuals who lower their insulin levels and adopt an anti-inflammatory evo/paleo diet (and if necessary take antioxidants like omega-3, zinc, magnesium, etc).

Pharmaceuticals Do Not Work

IMHO ACE-inhibitor and ARB pharmaceuticals hardly at all or only marginally improve chronic disease processes. Unlike food components, drugs are strong. Artificial substances foreign to mammalian systems (xenobiotics) are not metabolized and eliminated in the same fashion as food components thereby potently binding and staying around quite a long duration. Besides binding one single receptor, they may inevitably activate or inhibit a vast variety of other interrelated receptor/enzyme systems. That is how we are built. Everything is INTERRELATED. Approximately 17% of users of an ACE-inhibitor report a dry, non-productive cough as a result of bradykinins building up which cause inflammation in the lungs, consequently resulting in an asthma-related cough. Captopril is the least because it does not affect bradykinin expression as much.

Dry, high-bradykinin, annoying, lingering, inflammation-related cough in affected ACE-inhibitor drug-users? Good? Probably not despite purported 'benefits'.

Another adverse effect of ACE-inhibitors (and ARBs) is hypotension (low BP), kidney failure and elevated potassium. These drugs, like all drugs, can cause what they are purported to 'protect'...

Blocking the final angiotensin at the receptor level is not good either. Recently angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) are associated with a 20% relative increase in new cancer occurrence (7.2% v. 6.0%) compared with placebo in clinical trials (Sipahi et al, Lancet Oncology 2010). Lung cancer was the highest reported solid organ cancer incidence.

Food? Side effects? Generally not unless a food allergy exists to other food components or it promotes excessive insulin or blood glucoses or n-6/n-3 imbalances (e.g. starches, fruit, industrial farmed high n-6 meat/seafood).

Other Beneficial Foods Functioning as ACE-Inhibitors

Nutrigenomics is a new field that helps align our DNA expression to optimizing health via food, food components, and nutraceuticals (omega-3 fish oil supplements, vitamin D supplements, K2 supplements, magnesium, zinc, trace minerals, digestive enzymes, probiotics, etc). I discussed earlier: Nutrigenomics and Hypertension. The below list is adapted (I removed gluten #19).

Note: many of these are shore-based foods with high minerals (iodine, zinc, magnesium, selenium, manganese, chromium, etc).
1. Garlic
2. Seaweed
3. Tuna protein/muscle
4. Sardine protein/muscle (Anchovies too: Caeasar dressing)
5. Hawthorne berry
6. Bonito flakes (fish protein)
7. Pycnogenol (historical used flavonoid used as tea from pine bark)
8. Casein
9. Hydrolyzed Whey protein
10. Sour milk (fermented dairy)
11. Gelatin (protein)
12. Sake (fermented rice wine)
13. Omega-3 essential fatty acids -- even epigenetically reverses hypertension in bred rats
14. Chicken Egg Yolks
15. Zein (lysine and tryptophan-free protein from maize)
16. Dried Salted Fish
17. Fish sauce (fermented product)
18. Zinc
19. Rice bran (fatty acids, proteins)
20. Fermented cheeses
21. Tubers: potatoes, tumeric/curcumin, Japanese yams, Chinese yams,
22. Lactoferrin (human breastmilk, cow/goat/sheep dairy)
23. Cocoa storage protein
24. Pork protein/muscle
25. Chicken protein/muscle
26. Beef protein/muscle

Omega-3 Reverses Damage from Stressors (Insulin, Salt, Fructose, Cold Storage) and Epigenetically in Low-Protein-Mother and Stressed-Mother Rats

Omega-3 fish oil is just amazing stuff; it reduces ACE by more than one mechanism of action... It reverses all kinds of damage in rat studies and human studies caused by the S.A.D. and neolithic living. Unfortunately for the great majority of human trials, the research doses are often so low to be clinically inconsequential and inconclusive. For accurate results, I believe the dose needs to be calculated per person and based on (1) omega-3 deficiency and (2) accumulated omega-6 incorporation into cell membranes and adipose/fat stores. Current ratios in the U.S. of n-6/n-3 in blood or tissue membranes is 30:1 to (!!) 40+:1 and getting worse as we speak as many outspoken physicians, cardiologists and government agencies are trying to promote more high omega-6 canola oil and other oxidized refined vegetable oils to replace saturated fats.

Dietary n-3 PUFAs affect the blood pressure rise and cardiac impairments in a hyperinsulinemia rat model in vivo.
Rousseau D, Héliès-Toussaint C, Moreau D, Raederstorff D, Grynberg A.
Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2003 Sep;285(3):H1294-302.

Interrelationships between salt and fish oil in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rat.
Vaskonen T, Laakso J, Mervaala E, Sievi E, Karppanen H.
Blood Press. 1996 May;5(3):178-89.

Long-chain (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids prevent metabolic and vascular disorders in fructose-fed rats.
Robbez Masson V, Lucas A, Gueugneau AM, Macaire JP, Paul JL, Grynberg A, Rousseau D.
J Nutr. 2008 Oct;138(10):1915-22.

Beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acid treatment on the recovery of cardiac function after cold storage of hyperlipidemic rats.
Ku K, Oku H, Kaneda T, Onoe M, Zhang Z.
Metabolism. 1999 Oct;48(10):1203-9.

Epigenetic implications:
Adult cardiorenal benefits from postnatal fish oil supplement in rat offspring of low-protein pregnancies.
Catta-Preta M, Oliveira DA, Mandarim-de-Lacerda CA, Aguila MB.
Life Sci. 2006 Dec 23;80(3):219-29.

Maternal fish oil supplementation benefits programmed offspring from rat dams fed low-protein diet.
Gregório BM, Souza-Mello V, Mandarim-de-Lacerda CA, Aguila MB.
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2008 Jul;199(1):82.e1-7.

Developmental programming of renal glucocorticoid sensitivity and the renin-angiotensin system. [high omega-3 diet ameliorates high BP and high ACE activity in F1 generation born from rats given maternal-dexamethasone-dosing]
Wyrwoll CS, Mark PJ, Waddell BJ.
Hypertension. 2007 Sep;50(3):579-84. Free PDF.

The maternal diet during pregnancy programs altered expression of the glucocorticoid receptor and type 2 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase: potential molecular mechanisms underlying the programming of hypertension in utero.
Bertram C, Trowern AR, Copin N, Jackson AA, Whorwood CB.
Endocrinology. 2001 Jul;142(7):2841-53.

Human study:
Fish oil [1.8 g EPA+DHA] prevents the adrenal activation elicited by mental stress in healthy [lean, young] men.
Delarue J, Matzinger O, Binnert C, Schneiter P, Chioléro R, Tappy L.
Diabetes Metab. 2003 Jun;29(3):289-95. Free PDF.

Slaying of a Hypothesis

2010-07-09T20:44:00.000-07:00

"The great tragedy of Science – the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact.“

Thomas H. Huxley (1825 – 1895)

Biologist and father of Aldous Huxley, one of my favorite authors

Critical analyses by ridiculously spectacular science writer and RawFood SOS blogger Denise Minger have illuminated the ugly facts hidden by Colin Campbell's lies and ignorance for science and statistics.

Why can't p-e-o-p-l-e critically think...? COGNITIVE FAILURES when they don't...

I cannot tell you how many ex-vegetarians tried to shovel the Campbell cr*p toward me... *cough cough* who will remain nameless.

I am Chinese and I will tell you 60% of the Chinese I know over the age of 60 yo have Metabolic Syndrome whether they live rurally or in urban areas. Same stats as the U.S.

Chris H. as ALWAYS summarizes excellently...

Conditioning Research: NO JUSTIFICATION FOR [LOW CHOL/SATURATED FAT, GLUTEN/WHEAT] PLANT-ONLY DIET

Asclepius highlights exceptionally well what I would consider one of the most important findings on the benefits of a high saturated fat diet in the Tuoli province HERE by an earlier blogger Brad Marshall in a 2005 blog entry, 'In China, the main predictor of heart disease rates in a given population is how much wheat flour (and other grains except rice) that population eats. The consumption of vegetables or animal products doesn't play an obvious role in heart disease rates. Tuoli county, where they eat far more saturated fat than in the US, had far less heart attack deaths than the US and no more heart attack deaths than you would suspect based on the amount of wheat they consume compared to their Chinese Colleagues.'

Prior series, Benefits of a High Saturated (MEAT-BASED) Fat Diet:

Part I: Dr. Krauss -- Pattern 'A' Achieved By 46% High 18% Saturated Fat v. Low 6% Sat Fat

Part II: Ashkanazi Jewish Centenarians, CETP and a High Schmaltz Diet

Part III: My High Sat Fat Paleo Peeps with High HDLs [with Regression or ZERO CAC EBCT SCORE]

Part IV: Regression Only in High Sat Fat Heart Female Patients

Part V: Traditional HIGH Lard-n-PORK-Consuming Okinawans

Hans v. Luke (v. Princess Leia)

2010-07-09T01:16:00.000-07:00

Evolutionary psychology appears to be bigger than evolutionary medicine at this time...! Here is a post entry from their wonderful group, including Prof Steven Pletak -- crossfit gym owner and blogger who advocates evolutionary nutrition and fitness. The group also have an open access, peer-reviewed journal EvoS Journal: The Journal of the Evolutionary Studies Consortium.

Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and the Importance of Adaptation Implementation in Evolutionary Psychology
By Professor Glenn Geher at EvoStudies blog (see blogroll, side)

I’m not going to lie. If you follow my work at all, hopefully this isn’t a surprise – I try to stay honest – it’s a way to compensate for my deficits. Lots of folks I know – several of whom I consider good friends – report that they just can’t stand evolutionary psychology. Some seem to think it’s the devil – morally and scientifically irresponsible and reprehensible. I do my best to deal with things, but every now and then, honestly, I just shake my head. And sometimes I just have to write about it.

A few weeks ago, a really interesting discussion about the mating-relevant differences between Luke Skywalker and Han Solo emerged in my graduate course in social psychology. This was one of these moments when a thread of the fabric of American culture and the content of the course interfaced perfectly. Luke is prototyipically non-masculine – whiny and wimpy throughout three episodes. Han is just macho. He plays it cool, doesn’t need anyone’s help, and has classic masculine good looks.

What’s attractive about Luke? What’s attractive about Han? The conversation touched on several themes relevant to evolutionary psychology – mate choice, optimal features of long-term mates, optimal features of short-term mates, morphological features of sexually attractive males, the handicap principle applied to high levels of testosterone, inbreeding depression, and so forth. It was an exciting class discussion that put a face to many of the concepts from the readings of the week.
[Read more deep thoughts here]

From the journal, I love the thoughts on mitochondria which do nutrient and energy sensing... much like PPAR nutrient and energy sensing HERE:

Blackstone, N. W. (2009). Is evolutionary theory central to molecular cell biology? EvoS Journal: The Journal of the Evolutionary Studies Consortium, 1(1), 34-43.

'Mitochondrial signaling pathways may remain as vestiges
of ancient levels-of-selection conflicts... Because mitochondria were evolutionary units capable of heritable variation, levels-of-selection synergies and antagonisms no doubt ruled the emerging features of the eukaryotic cell... Electron transport chains are typically the locus of not just energy conversion, but environmental sensing as well... Mitochondria are descended from bacteria not unlike E. coli. Primitively, they are expected to have employed similar environmental sensing mechanisms.' (see electron transport chain, below)

Other references:
Redox control in development and evolution: evidence from colonial hydroids
Blackstone NW.
J Exp Biol. 1999 Dec;202 Pt 24:3541-53.

Redox control and the evolution of multicellularity.
Blackstone NW.
Bioessays. 2000 Oct;22(10):947-53. Review.

Mitochondria as integrators of information in an early-evolving animal: insights from a triterpenoid metabolite.
Blackstone NW, Kelly MM, Haridas V, Gutterman JU.
Proc Biol Sci. 2005 Mar 7;272(1562):527-31.

Multicellular redox regulation in an early-evolving animal treated with glutathione.
Doolen JF, Geddes GC, Blackstone NW.
Physiol Biochem Zool. 2007 May-Jun;80(3):317-25.

Plants Produce Carbs From Air: Calvin Cycle

2010-07-07T20:35:00.000-07:00

Homology Across 3 Phyla: Bacteria, Plants and Animals

Across 3 phyla, great homology (>90%) in our enzyme pathyways exist. The domains for energy production, synthesis and coordination are shared. See prior post: Animal Amour and Metabolic Networks

--Carbohydrate metabolism
--Energy metabolism
--Amino Acid metabolism
--Nucleotide metabolism
--Lipid metabolism

Plant Energy Conversion: Calvin Cycle

Plants produce energy for higher life forms to consume and spread seed. Flowering plants are only a recent blimp in the evolutionary timeline. Seeds in high-carbohydrate-containing fruit co-evolved with multi-cellular animals it appears.

From air (CO2) and light (sun UV energy) carbohydrates, fatty acids and proteins are biochemically produced. Magic?

Yes.

The CALVIN CYCLE.

Plant Bio 101: Fructose, Glucose, Sucrose Produced from Calvin Cycle

Courtesy of msu.edu and Pearson Education

How the Calvin Cycle Works Animation + Quiz (click)

Light is absolutely required. The Calvin Cycle cannot occur without UV energy, sunlight.

Fructose (monosaccharide) is first produced then interconverted to glucose (monosaccharide) with a one-carbon change, then sucrose is fused which can be transported throughout the plant. Sucrose (disaccharide) is fructose + glucose linked. Starch is complex carbohydrates linked together; digestion is the process of breaking down starch by our salivary amylases (enzymes = 'cutters'), our pancreatic enzymes and gut flora into glucose. Diagram courtesy of plant physiology Prof Ross Koning.

Table sugar = sucrose = fructose+glucose
Lactulose = galactose+fructose (see Dr. Ayers post)
Lactose = galactose+glucose (dairy)
Maltose = glucose+glucose

Starch = complex carbohydrate
High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup (HFCS) = fructose + contaminants (pesticides, GMO corn residues, LEAD)

Glucose is a 6-carbon chain Derivatized to Carbs, Protein, Fatty Acids

Outside of the Calvin Cycle, glucose can be made into other molecules for use into starches, cellulose, protein and fatty acids. Glucose is flexible. It can be made into so many useful things.

Plant products are ubiquitous and humans have figured out ingenious ways to use them for centuries outside of food and shelter:
--food (fruit, fats, lignans, roots/tubers, stems, leaves, etc)
--fatty acids (oils, biodiesel, fragrances)
--medicines (antioxidants, vitamins, herbals, rejuvenants, chemotx)
--musical instruments (wooden flutes, guitars, violins)
--shelter
--clothing (cotton, hemp, etc)
--compost (nitrogen renewal, etc)

Plants -- Calvin Cycle; Animals -- GNG + Fat Burning

From single carbons from carbon dioxide (air) and light, plants can produce a 6-carbon ring known as glucose for energy and storage of energy (starch, fatty acids, protein) via photosynthesis and a special energy pathway known as the Calvin Cycle. ATP is used up in the process and light energy is absolutely mandatory.

On the other hand, animals have an advantage with the evolution of an analogous special energy pathway for glucose production, known as gluconeogenesis (GNG), without requiring sunlight. Unlike plants, animals do not require sunlight for production of energy and glucose, and therefore the advantage of more mobility and movement.

Mitochondria are absent in all lifeforms except the eukaryotic branch. Bacteria (prokaryotes) ARE mitochondria *haa*. Plants and animals hijacked their technology...aka, endosymbiosis...

Fat energy release provides almost four-times more energy per molecule. On a carbon-per-carbon basis, 33% more energy is produced (when I compare Stearate 18:0 and Glucose 6-carbon by pure stoichiometry, which is wrong but oh well).

Carbs. Glucose is equivalent to only ~1 tsp (5 grams) in our blood. Glycogen is stored ~100-200 grams in muscles and ~400-500 grams in the liver. Less than one kilo of carbs is stored and running through our veins.

Fat. For 10-20% body fat (composition like most omnivores or carnivores), an average human carries 5 to 10 kilos of fat.

Super powered fuel may be utilized anytime for energy conversion whenever we are in the fat-burning mode.

By harnessing fatty acids for energy, in many ways this propelled organisms with mitochondria to the top of the food chain. Read more about mitochondria in Nick Lane's Power, Sex, Suicide and prior posts HERE.

The birth of PHAT hominid babies with enormous stores of super powered fatty acids produced the evolution of walking, hairless, bigger-brained hominids to the top-tiered creatures that we supposedly are now. Read Stephan Cunnane's Survival of the Fattest and prior posts HERE and HERE.

See prior post: Aerobic Glycolysis (~38 ATP; 6-carbon) v. Aerobic Fat Beta-Oxidation (~146 ATP; 18-carbon)

Courtesy N Engl J Med 2007;356:1140-51.

Mitochondria: Fat Burning Powerhouses + Source of All Chronic Diseases

Without mitochondria derived from bacterial origins of 3.8 billion years ago, animals would not have the ability to efficiently burn the most powerful energy source, fatty acids, and become the most successful predators on the planet.

Not only are mitochondria the nuclear powerhouse of energy, that produce ATP from powerful fats, they are also believed by many who study evolutionary medicine to be the source of all chronic ailments and conditions. Glucose energy is cheap fuel and kills mitochondria when excessive. Many drugs are mitochondrial poisons (e.g. statins). By affecting the thermostat of energy controllers (ratios of NAD/NADP and ADP/ATP) the imbalance affects SIRT-1, AMPK, PPAR and mTOR in a variety of tissues. Depending on the organ, these are known as chronic conditions -- autoimmunity disorders, heart failure, hypertension, adiposity, infertility, cancer, diabetes, et cetera.

Control Insulin, Control Cancer and Chronic Diseases

2010-07-07T07:02:00.000-07:00

Benefits/Risks of Insulin

Controlling insulin reaps many rewards. As the previous article suggests, insulin is an ancient hormone ubiquitous in all animals -- from worms to humans -- with classic/nonclassic responsibilities including (see Table 1). Some of these actions are beneficial like thermogenesis, however many of the others are detrimental in the great majority of situations:
--low potassium
--raised heart rate
--increased uric acid (ie, gout
--increased clotting
--CNS stimulation (ie, anxiety, epression, ADHD)
--prevention of fat from being liberalized for energetic uses

We require only tiny, neglible amounts of insulin for thermogenesis and shuttling of energy (glucose) into muscles and liver for storage.

Damage from Insulin Resistance

In fact, increased energy expenditure is exponentially increased when insulin resistance is kept at bay. What is insulin resistance (IR)? It is like being at a rock concert (or Hannah Montana venue with screaming little girls everywhere) where temporary hearing loss is induced by inclement noise pollution. As soon as the volume returns to a low level, hearing resumes. Shut insulin down by going grain-free, carb-restricted, intermittent fasting and exercising, then inflammatory responses and processes are cut off. The same research demonstrated that men and women have blunted energy expenditure when the 'volume of insulin' is dialed exceptionally high. And for us women, we may even have a 'negative' energy output (in other words 'storage') with energy expenditure during the presence of insulin resistance... Insulin-resistant gals may gain weight with exercise lower rates of energy expenditure... This actually is a common phenomenon and very discouraging for women trying to lose weight and fight an uphill battle as they eat per conventional medical advice 'low fat'/high-carbohydrate/insulin-inducing diets (USDA 'whole grain' pyramidal nonsense).

How To Reduce Insulin Resistance

Degrees of IR can also be effectively cranked down by (Isharwal S, et al. Dietary nutrients and insulin resistance in urban Asian Indian adolescents and young adults.Ann Nutr Metab. 2008;52(2):145-51.):
--normal BMI achievement
--reduction of pro-inflammatory omega-6 oils (nuts, beans, oils from corn soy peanut sunflower)
--increase of anti-inflammatory omega-3 EPA+DHA oils (ie, cod liver, fish oil, pasture-fed milk, meat, eggs, etc)

And of course...wheat avoidance, grain elimination, carb restriction, intermittent fasting and exercise.

Excessive insulin (ie, hyperinsulinemia) leads to the below changes (see below diagram):
--inflammation
--generation of TGs and small dense atherogenic LDL
--conversion from fatty streaks to plaque
--plaque growth
--increased adipose tissue mass (Obesity, Metablic Syndrome, PCOS)
--accumulation of Triglycerides in non-adipocytes
--nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (fatty liver/NAFLD)
--pancreatic beta-cell failure (fatty pancreas, insulin resistance)
--dilated cardiomyopathy (myocyte (heart cell) stiffening and diastolic dysfunction)
--arterial stiffening
--blood glucose spikes
--expansion of visceral fat (belly fat colonies)
--fatty liver, fatty pancreas, fatty gallbladder, fatty heart (lipotoxicity)
--Diabetes Type 2
--strokes, heart attacks
--cancer (see end)

Lipotoxicity from Excessive Grains and Carbohydrates

Whole human systemic organ functions may become dominated by hyperinsulinemia, leading to all sorts of dysfunction and energy dysregulation. Why rely on primitive petrol... when nuclear power exists? Mitochondria are the powerhouses of ATP, nuclear energy. Excessive carbohydrates shut mitochondria off... and lead to lipotoxicity.

Fig 1. Lipotoxicity in humans originates from excessive release of free fatty acids from hypertrophied adipocytes in obese persons. Organ exposure to high levels of free fatty acids causes lipid droplets to accumulate within the cytosol of nonadipose tissues in proximity to mitochondria (white arrows, bottom).By-products of cytosolic triglyceride accumulation and of lipid metabolism may lead to organ dysfunction and failure. McGavock JM, Victor RG, Unger RH, Szczepaniak LS. Adiposity of the heart, revisited. (Full PDF here.) Ann Intern Med. 2006 Apr 4;144(7):517-24. Review. PMID: 16585666

The inflammation associated with insulin is akin to the oxidative damage that occurs when soft materials like rubber or plastic is left outside exposed to the elements. Over time, the rubber hardens and becomes inelastic and rigid, easily breaking with any shear force. Sort of like running a high-powered hose made out of glass, right? With the elimination of inflammatory influences, human tissues can return to their original soft, elastic, pliable states. This includes endothelium, heart blood vessels, contractile tissues like our heart and skeletal muscles... even our oral gum tissues.

Reversal occurs when insulin is shut down.

The previous review of the research eloquently illustrates the special properties that dictate this ancient 'reactive' hormone. Insulin is one of the few hormones that is controlled by consumed 'substrates'.... What is in charge of turning insulin on and off? What are substrates of insulin?

C-A-R-B-O-H-Y-D-R-A-T-E-S.

Food composition directly lowers or raises insulin concentrations. Various other factors of course determine how quick and how sustained hyperinsulinemia occurs (exercise, weight loss, skeletal muscle dominance, size and location of visceral fat colonies (ie, 'belly' is 'bad') but in essence our food controls blood insulin levels.

If what we put in our mouth dictates are insulin levels, then equally powerful is what we don't... In other words, processes like starvation, skipping meals, random eating, intermittent fasting and going low-carb or restricted-carb are ways to reduce and control insulin. Consumption of adequate protein and fats and fiber control insulin release as well.

Consider the complete avoidance of all wheat and grains:

--wheat

--wheat products (incl cereal, pasta, noodles, bread, crackers, pita, tortilla)

--buckwheat

--bulgur (cracked wheat)

--barley

--rye

--oat (except oat bran)

--quinoa

--rice

--corn (incl popcorn, grits, cornmeal, tortilla, chips)

--couscous

--amaranth

--millet

--sorghum

--triticale

--et cetera

Consume most of the carbohydrates from non-starchy vegetables and raw nuts/seeds and low-GI fruit like berries.

Cancer and the Carbohydrate and Insulin Connection

Controlling insulin not only controls CAD but also controls cancer... Is 'whole grains' just promoting 'whole C-A-N-C-E-R'? As well as 'whole CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE'?
--breast cancer
--prostate cancer
--colon cancer
--pancreatic cancer
--brain cancer
--gallbladder cancer
--kidney cancer
--thyroid cancer
--lymphoma

Cancer and Carbs/Insulin References

Berstein LM. Endocrinology of the wild and mutant BRCA1 gene and types of hormonal carcinogenesis. Future Oncol. 2008 Feb;4(1):23-39. Review. PMID: 18240998
Hede K.Doctors seek to prevent breast cancer recurrence by lowering insulin levels.
J Natl Cancer Inst. 2008 Apr 16;100(8):530-2. PMID: 18398091
Barnard RJ.Prostate cancer prevention by nutritional means to alleviate metabolic syndrome. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Sep;86(3):s889-93. Review.PMID: 18265484
Park JH.Inhibition of colon cancer cell growth by dietary components: role of the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2008;17 Suppl 1:257-60. PMID: 18296350>
Tenenbaum A, et
al. Does the lipid-lowering peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors ligand bezafibrate prevent colon cancer in patients with coronary artery disease? Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2008 Jun 19;7(1):18. PMID: 18565233
Pisani P. Arch Physiol Biochem. 2008 Feb;114(1):63-70. Hyper-insulinaemia and cancer, meta-analyses of epidemiological studies.

Background: A substantial body of evidence links sex hormones, diet, excess body weight and physical activity to the risk of developing cancer at several sites common in affluent countries. The hypothesis that high circulating levels of insulin could be the underlying factor increasing cancer risk has been proposed. Epidemiological studies on markers of hyper-insulinaemia and cancer are reviewed and summarized.
Methods: Studies of cancers of the colon and rectum, pancreas, breast, and endometrium examining the association with blood levels of C-peptide, insulin, glucose, glycated haemoblobin (HbA1c) were searched in PubMed. Multivariate, adjusted relative risks (RR) and their 95% confidence intervals were abstracted and summarized by meta-analyses.
Results: Most of the studies identified were cohorts that relied on measurements obtained at baseline or assessed in blood stored at low temperature several years before the onset of cancer. The meta-analyses showed excess risks of colorectal and pancreatic cancers associated with higher levels of circulating C-peptide/insulin and with markers of glycaemia. Significant heterogeneity was found among four epidemiological studies of endometrial cancer and C-peptide giving a summary RR compatible with no association. Overall breast cancer risk was significantly higher in the upper categories of C-peptide/insulin, however, the excess derived entirely from retrospective studies.

Conclusion: Current evidence suggests that subjects who develop colorectal and pancreatic cancers have increased pre-diagnostic blood levels of insulin and glucose. PMID: 18465360

This is post is a reprise from two years ago... sadly holds true more than ever.

Evolutionary Medicine post:
Metformin, Insulin Resistance and Cancer

Animal Amour and Metabolic Networks

2010-07-05T15:16:00.000-07:00

Les Nubians: Amour à Mort [Love Unto Death]
Courtesy Youtube.com

Dogsitting

We're dogsitting this weekend, K, a 3-year old blond lab who has the most warm beautiful hazel eyes. My second daughter calls them 'copper hazelnut' eyes. She loves bossing him around... *haaa* Being the youngest, she finally has someone. He's a darling, patient and immensely playful.

My Animal Farm Growing Up

I grew up around animals but I look at them with different eyes knowing some science now. We lost our 12-14 year old 3 cats over the last 4 years to thyroid conditions -- 2 had Grave's and one had diabetes (and I think undiagnosed hypothyroidism). As a kid in Pennsylvania, we raised 2 rabbits and 3 turtles. My parents who grew up around pigs and animals for consumption really did not take to the idea of pets but we still had pets. After moving to Sacramento in 1979 my parents bought a farmhouse off of Florin Road which had geese, ducks, horse stable, rabbits and pigeons. We brought back 2 rabbits and 4 pigeons to our suburban home and raised them along with our 2 hamsters, 2 fox terriers Phillip and Fluffy, Tiger our red Irish setter, and a fresh-water aquarium. On and off we had 'pet' earth worms, praying mantis, dragon flies. tadpoles/frogs and other assorted backyard creatures. *haa* Pure happy mayhem may have been a good descriptor. Well we grew older, busy with school and tennis and had to find new homes for our furry, feathery and scaled friends.

Hiking

Taking K hiking through the wooded Sunol park today I forget how animalistic animals are. Yes we had feline pets before but they were entirely domesticated except for the birds or cute mice they'd bring back for us for show. Actually 2 of our 3 cats were good hunters and brought back quite a few kills. Lynx would attack dogs and when one dog-owner approached us to note that Lynx must be sick because he stopped attacking her dog. We took him to the vet afterwards to learn he had Grave's hyperthyroidism.

Our temporarily adopted dog K tried to mark/impart his SCENT on every snag of vegetation, garbage can and tree during our hiking excursion. How can dogs urinate all day long?? Is it just 1-2 Tbs at a time?? He apparently was not interested in any of the raccoon or horse scat, but only other canine remains. Is it so hard-wired to be aware of other canines in the vicinity? What purpose? Territorial and reproductive instincts alone??

Most feline and canine eat only once a day. They are quite suited to intermittently fast routinely. Humans, are we so different? I don't think so.

Cunnane and Domesticated Fox

Cunnane writes in his epic book 'Survival of the Fattest' an interesting anecdote about the adrenal glands of a line of fox which are domesticated. He notes that the size of the adrenals shrink with domestication. Perhaps the constant necessity for testosterone, cortisol, progesterone and estrogen are no longer mandatory when food and survival are not ubiquitious requirements?

Is this what happened to humans with the advent of agriculture and animal husbandry?

Animal Husbandry?

WTF. Why such a name??? *haaa*

Human's Best Friend

Khyber is a great jogging partner. I took him on a couple trail hike/runs at Sunol and he did wonderfully -- matching my pace despite an annoying leash to his harness, leading me while not smelling every f*cking mark left from previous dogs, and somewhat providing protection. If a rattlesnake or mountain lion intersected our path, I do believe Khyber would have kicked into predator mode without a doubt and kicked some *ss. When we were in Mt. Shasta last week, we came upon rattlesnakes not only directly on our horse ride through the hills (to a SECRET cave *FUN!!!*) but also when we went to the waterside, we were cautioned that a young rattlesnake was found the night very close to the camps. Apparently it is unusual for rattles this time of year and the region -- the rain and recent change in weather plays a part apparently.

Metabolic Networks

When we were in Shanghai earlier this year, we met up with researchers who do research on Metabolic Networks which requires a strong background in physics, genomics, evolutionary biology, systems biology, bioinformatics, mathematics, biochemistry and a variety of other disciplines.

[Thank you LePine for your insights]

What I realize that is that we share so much homology with all living organisms, and this may go back to the first archebacteria 4 BILLION years ago (bya). Our mitochondria are the remnants of bacteria that have been push forwarded into mammalian cells. We can track the DNA signatures of the first life forms on earth to our mitochondria DNA which comprise of a humble set of 37 genes. Without mitochondria for energy systems, we would not have evolved.

Homology v. Complexity of Higher Life Forms

I think this diagram says it all (it actually crashed my computer twice). See citation #6. Homology exists between all life forms. Complexity however increases with increased skills of predation, IMHO. Humans are apparently at the apex of predation -- have taken over the earth and colonized every imaginable niche. (sometimes I think the bacteria have us by the GUT, pun intended *HAA*) Unfortunately our life form is also damaging earth in every imaginable niche as well -- terrestial, aquatic, and atmospheric...

'Red' Hotspots for Conservation of Individual Metabolic Pathways Between Archebacteria and all other Life Forms: Carb, Energy, Amino Acid, Nucleotide, and Lipid Metabolism

The 'red' color indicates greater than 90% of enzymes with significant DNA and protein sequence similarity. To appreciate our evolutionary past to 4 billion years ago, it is hard to escape our bacterial foundations that interact with our biology on every level: our metabolism, our gut, our pathogens, our immunity.

Longevity and Curing Cancer, Chronic Conditions and CAD

I would consider myself a strategist for conceiving longevity... I didn't plan it this way but by ameliorating a chronic condition with either pharmaceuticals or diet/lifestyle means, we are trying to improve longevity.

Mitochondria hold the the key between the balance between mTOR, SIRT-1, AMPK, and PPAR, as we've discussed before. These mini nuclear powerplants of energy production represent the link from our primordial past to the neolithic new world.

We are only as strong as our weakest mitochrondria...

Prior posts (Dr. Tourgeman, Dr. BG):

SIRT-1 -- (1) SIRT-1 (2) Aging and SIRT-1 (3) Evolutionary Skin and Muscles

References

1. Unusual pathways and enzymes of central carbohydrate metabolism in Archaea.
Siebers B, Schönheit P.
Curr Opin Microbiol. 2005 Dec;8(6):695-705. Epub 2005 Oct 26. Review.

2. Evolutionary aspects of whole-genome biology.
Doolittle RF.
Curr Opin Struct Biol. 2005 Jun;15(3):248-53. Review.

3. Distribution and phylogenies of enzymes of the Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas pathway from archaea and hyperthermophilic bacteria support a gluconeogenic origin of metabolism.
Ronimus RS, Morgan HW.

4. The unique features of glycolytic pathways in Archaea.
Verhees CH, Kengen SW, Tuininga JE, Schut GJ, Adams MW, De Vos WM, Van Der Oost J.
Biochem J. 2003 Oct 15;375(Pt 2):231-46.

5. Microbial behavior in a heterogeneous world.
Fenchel T.
Science. 2002 May 10;296(5570):1068-71. Review.

6. The conservation and evolutionary modularity of metabolism.
Peregrín-Alvarez JM, Sanford C, Parkinson J.
Genome Biol. 2009;10(6):R63. [Free PDF here.]

Celeb*tchy grrls know their vitamin D and Osteoporosis

2010-07-02T18:36:00.000-07:00

Celeb*tchy (ok... where I lurk for laughs...): Gwyneth Paltrow has vitamin D deficiency may develop osteoporosis

Gwen, get some:

1. vitamin D 5000 IU daily in the morning
2. sunshine sans sunscreen

3. vitamin K2 100mcg daily (and/or fermented foods, dairy, CLO)

4. Magnesium (citrate, malate, taurate (since you don't eat much MEAT), chelate, etc) 500-1000mg daily or more

5. BONE BROTH w/grassfed bones + REAL FOOD + FAT D*MN IT

6. Worried, melanoma? Don't. Consume real food/antioxidants proven to prevent UV damage (selenium, iodine, NAC (glutathione presursor), vitamin C + natural E tocopherol, proanthocyanidins (wine/grape seed), pycnogenol, thyroid, maca, plant/animal polyphenols, etc)

7. repeat bone mineral density (BMD) in 2-3 yrs -- will be improved...?normal probably

8. avoid bisphosphonates which make a brittle bone matrix, not crosslinked correctly (like an unstable dense house on sand) -- which are drugs highly linked to spontaneous fractures, poor gum/bone healing, jaw osteonecrosis, inflammation and atrial fibrillation (=strokes/mortality/lifelong-warfarin/etc)
9. lower your serum insulin (basal, postprandial)

10. minerals + hormones: pregnancy leaches minerals and bone-protective hormones (omega-3, vitamin D) vertically to the baby unless mom is totally replete. Birth control especially progestins (ALL) lower bone mineral density compared with placebo (Depo-Provera, the worse, because injected; pellets and IUD and orals, TOTALLY bone degrading)

***Comments crack me up from: cheekemunkey, MightyMouse (no it's not me, I'd be batgrrrl) *haa aha*

Sounds like evo/paleo hunter-gatherer grrrrls.

Peter initiated... *haa*

Hyperinsulinemia and Metabolic Syndrome (which is a high insulin syndrome) are highly associated with bone degradation, bone fractures and osteoporosis. Consider also a grain-free, soy-free, lower carbohydrate diet... to prevent trigging all that insulin that grows inflammatory belly fat which breaks down bone.

Osteoporosis Resources:

o The Standard, Guilliam PhD

o Vitamin D 5000 IU daily normalizes 25OHD PTH in 12 months and improves BMD as good/better than a bisphosphonate (thanxxx Neo!)

Healthy bones [and clear arteries without calcifications, see Rotterdam and HERE] require as evident in this recent study:
--25OHD ~50 ng/ml
--PTH < 20 pg/ml

--[optimal thyroid (TSH FT4 FT3 rT3) -- not discussed, important and ultimately vital for the intimately inter-related network of endocrine organs: parathyroid, thyroid, kidneys, adipose, gonads, marrow... B-O-N-E-S ]

Evolutionary Medicine posts (Dr. Tourgeman):

(1) Brain, Bone and Metabolism (2) Celiac Disease and Osteoporosis; (3) Drugs That Weaken Bone Structure

'Woman Makers': Cry Like a Little Grrrl

2010-07-01T21:56:00.000-07:00

Diablo CrossFit "Woman Makers" from Diablo CrossFit on Vimeo.

Here is haaaawt Jeremy, Crossfit coach and co-owner showing how to do Woman Makers... 6min MetCon after 3-3-3-3-3-3-3 strict push presses. I love talking digestive, health and paleo topics w/him and other members. Recall his Primal Nutrition 101, upside down food triangle (sans 'lots of s*x'): HERE.

Did 28 but I lost count (30? 32??) in 6 min AMRAP (as many reps as possible). I didn't Rx either, just 20# wts (instead of 25# or 36#)

Crestor FAIL: JUPITER Busted

2010-06-30T07:11:00.001-07:00

It is hard to enumerate all the problems with statins but the main one is that they fail to reduce coronary events and may actually be associated with higher mortality, cancer, congestive heart failure, lower serum testosterone, suicide, depression, brain damage, memory loss, pain syndromes, peripheral neuropathy, liver failure/jaundice and accidents.

We've talked about Crestor before: statins may make you dumb.

The problem is that Crestor is more potent therefore the side effects are more obvious now in clinical trials than they were before:
--'nonstatistically' increased %MI and revascularizations (see Nissen et al JAMA 2007, below)
--increased serum insulin
--increased serum glucoses
--increased incidence of new onset diabetes Type 2
--increased kidney failure and proteinuria
--increased percent of small dense atherogenic LDL particles (pattern B)

In a prior post, Nissen's JAMA 2007 article was discussed and a modified Table 6 showing event rates based on LDL (below average or above average, 87.5 mg/dl) presented. How statistical significance was not achieved is unbelievable to me but the results clearly make you wonder. With higher LDL (Greater than average LDL, last row), there was less myocardial infarctions (% MI) and less revascularization surgeries. Conversely, with the lowest LDL below average 87.5 mg/dl, the highest rates of myocardial infarctions (%MI) and revascularizations occurred.

Nicholls SJ, Tuzcu EM, Sipahi I, Grasso AW, Schoenhagen P, Hu T, Wolski K, Crowe T, Desai MY, Hazen SL, Kapadia SR, Nissen SE. (Full PDF here) Statins, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and regression of coronary atherosclerosis. JAMA. 2007 Feb 7;297(5):499-508. PMID: 17284700

Prior posts:
Atheroma Regression 101: Focus on HDL
Ancient Transporters LDL and HDL (The higher LDL the better)

Archives of Internal of Medicine recently published two articles on statin fails. The latest study re-examines the statistics in JUPITER, one of the seminal Crestor (rosuvastatin) trials that apparently showed regression on imaging however apparently has highly questionable outcomes in real life. PDF HERE. Crestor significantly raises basal insulin secretion. Insulin is a growth promoter -- need some (for muscles and fat storage) but not a lot. Insulin grows plaque, stiff arteries, obesity, waist-hip-ratios, skin tags, acanthosis nigricans, warts,inflammation, migraines, mood disorders, and benign and malignant tumours.

Prior post: Insulin -- Atherosclerosis, Hypertension, and CKD

Cholesterol Lowering, Cardiovascular Diseases, and the Rosuvastatin-JUPITER Controversy: A Critical Reappraisal
Michel de Lorgeril, MD et al. Arch Intern Med. 2010;170(12):1032-1036.

Background Among the recently reported cholesterol-lowering drug trials, the JUPITER (Justification for the Use of Statins in Primary Prevention) trial is unique: it reports a substantial decrease in the risk of cardiovascular diseases among patients without coronary heart disease and with normal or low cholesterol levels.

Methods Careful review of both results and methods used in the trial and comparison with expected data.

Results The trial was flawed. It was discontinued (according to prespecified rules) after fewer than 2 years of follow-up, with no differences between the 2 groups on the most objective criteria. Clinical data showed a major discrepancy between significant reduction of nonfatal stroke and myocardial infarction but no effect on mortality from stroke and myocardial infarction. Cardiovascular mortality was surprisingly low compared with total mortality—between 5% and 18%—whereas the expected rate would have been close to 40%. Finally, there was a very low case-fatality rate of myocardial infarction, far from the expected number of close to 50%. The possibility that bias entered the trial is particularly concerning because of the strong commercial interest in the study.

Conclusion The results of the trial do not support the use of statin treatment for primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases and raise troubling questions concerning the role of commercial sponsors.

Donald Miller MD: Sex and Death

2010-06-08T16:13:00.000-07:00

I am glad that I am not the only one who frequently reflects on sex, origins of death and the divine. Dr. Donald Miller is the author of 'Heart in Hand' and is a cardiac surgeon and academian at the University of Washington in Seattle with a wealth of rich insights. He's also evo/paleo, low carb high sat fat. He published articles and posts them here at his website: donaldmiller.com

Thank you O Primitivo for posting on him!

Quote is from Miller's essay The Two Pole's of Life's Magnet: Sex and Death

Fairy Stories and health myths that he debunks:
o [Grant Whores] The Government Grant System: Inhibitor of Truth and Innovation
o Fluoride Follies
o Mercury on the Mind
o Moon Goddess' Role in Health (selenium's role)
o Extrathyroidal Benefits of Iodine
o Health Benefits of a Low-Carbohydrate, High-Saturated Fat Diet
o Adaptive Innovations in Health: Vitamin D, Iodine, Selenium (slides on nuclear receptors, nutrigenomics, evolutionary perspective and dosing of Vitamin D, Iodine and Selenium supplementation)

Supplementation

His list of Top 10 critical supplements for optimal health and why they are cheaper than healthcare HERE. And YES he is for nuclear power as I am... screw Gore.

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"Art is the last defense against death..."

Teresa Teng
Fave song to hear when we're playing M.J. (mah jongggg!)
(courtesy youtube.com)