BEST THING for your HEALTH RIGHT NOW

 Have an ORGANIC VEGETABLE GARDEN. If you really want to improve your physical and mental health, this is the most important thing you can do this spring.

http://emmettmurphy.blogspot.com/2014_04_01_archive.html


https://www.planetnatural.com/start-organic-garden/


If you live around Salt Lake, Wasatch Community Gardens has their plant sale coming up.

Sat May 7th

https://wasatchgardens.org/events/annualplantsale

Also, Traces Organic Garden has seedlings available right now.

http://www.tracesgarden.com/

best of health,

emmett

PREVENTING ALZHEIMER'S and DEMENTIA

 New research shows insulin resistance in the brain can lead to Alzheimer's and Dementia. What can you do?

1. Sugar and Carbohydrate consumption lead to insulin production. This can lead to inflammation and plaque buildup in the brain. Eating a diet lower in sugar and high glycemic carbohydrates can prevent and reverse this process.

http://www.alsearsmd.com/glycemic-index/

2.Exercise - Exercise helps to improve insulin sensitivity throughout your brain and body. Move every day. Any activity that gets you moving and your heart rate elevated works fine. This is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your physical and mental health. 20 or more minutes a day is great.

2. High DHA Fish Oil. DHA has been shown to help protect your brain and neurological processes. Often referred to as high dose or pharmaceutical grade fish oil. Easy to find in health food stores or amazon.

http://www.lef.org/magazine/2008/1/report_dhafishoil/Page-01

3. Probiotics and Prebiotics. Strange as it is, there is increasing evidence that the bacteria that lives in you gut can affect you brain health. Probably by preventing inflammation throughout your body. Probiotics are good bacteria found in your GI tract. You can increase these levels by eating foods with live and active cultures (yogurt, kefir, kombucha, fermented foods and/or a probiotic supplement. Prebiotics are greens, garlic, onions, chicory root, inulin, etc. 

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/06/20/gut-brain-connection.aspx

best of health, 

emmett

BEST OILS to COOK WITH

What are the best oils to cook with, use for marinades, salad dressings, saute, etc.? Here is a short guide. 

1. Don't use trans fats for anything as they increase your risk for coronary heart disease, dementia, and other health problems. These are not natural fats but are generally produced artificially in food production. Generally vegetable and seed oils are used in this process of hydrogenation (very bad for your health), 

2. Monounsaturated Fats and Oils (MUFA). These oils are generally known for their positive health benefits and are usually associated with the mediterranean diet. These oils include olive, avocado, grapeseed, and macadamia nut oil. They are great for marinades, salad dressings, sauteing, and cooking. There seems to be some controversy on high heat cooking with extra virgin olive. Here is an article describing why it is relatively safe. 

http://authoritynutrition.com/is-olive-oil-good-for-cooking/

3. Saturated Fats and Oils. These are very stable and are the most resistant to oxidation at  high heat. In my opinion Coconut Oil and Grass Fed Butter are the best to cook at high heat with, and have many positive health benefits (especially for your brain). In the past 40 years they have an undeserved bad health reputation, however the  Feds and Conventional Medicine have finally started to come around. 

http://emmettmurphy.blogspot.com/2015/02/new-cholesterol-guidelines-from-feds.html

http://emmettmurphy.blogspot.com/2015/03/cleveland-clinic-you-can-eat-fat-if-you.html

4, Polyunsaturated Fats and Oils (PUFA). Should not be used for any type of cooking. These include all vegetable and seed oils (corn, soybean, canola, sunflower, etc.)  These oils are oxidized with heat and can cause your good cholesterol (HDL) to be converted to bad cholesterol (certain types of LDL). Another problem is these oils generally contain trans fats as they are highly processed. 

Fish Oil is a type of PUFA that is great for your brain health because it is high in omega 3 fatty acids and DHA, however it should not be used for cooking for the same reasons. 

http://www.drperlmutter.com/tag/fish-oil/

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/02/09/fish-oil-brain-health.aspx

best of health, 

emmett

Cleveland Clinic "You Can Eat Fat If You Choose Wisely"

  The worm has really turned. Go ahead and eat fat! just not trans fat (hydrogenated man made fat).

SATURATED, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated (especially omega 3) are all ok. The nations most well respected heart clinic has completely changed their tune.

http://health.clevelandclinic.org/2015/02/you-can-eat-fat-if-you-choose-wisely/?utm_campaign=hvi+enews&utm_medium=email&utm_source=hv1503&utm_content=fats+moderation

  The advice from Dr. Gundry, Dr. Davis, Dr. Perlmutter (much of which is 10 years old) is probably the way to go. EAT REAL FOOD. NOT PROCESSED FOOD

 best of health,

emmett

Food of the Week - AVOCADO and AVOCADO OIL

  Avocado's are one of natures superfoods.
1. They contain primarily monounsaturated fats along with over 20 important nutrients including fiber, vitamin a, b vitamins, potassium (more than twice that of a banana). Diets high in monounsaturated fats have been shown to reduce belly fat.
2. Can raise HDL  cholesterol and lower triglycerides, both of which are very positive.
3. Monounsaturated fats help your mitochondria run more efficiently and help protect them from free radicals.
4. According to the CDC eating half an avocado a day was correlated to a higher dietary quality and 50% reduced rick of metabolic syndrome (pre-diabetes).
5. Avocado oil has the highest smoke point of any vegetable oil so it works great for high heat cooking.
6. Researchers at Ohio State found avocado oil improves the absorption of antioxidants found in vegetables. Great for salad dressings.
7. Fills you up. Avocado's work great with salads because they take longer to digest and help keep you satiated.

Best of Health,

emmett

New CHOLESTEROL Guidelines from the FEDS

 Most of my blog posts are mainly information that will hopefully help you to improve your health. This one is very personal. Headline from the Washington Post this week "The US goverment is poised to withdraw longstanding warnings about cholesterol"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/02/10/feds-poised-to-withdraw-longstanding-warnings-about-dietary-cholesterol/

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/19/nutrition-panel-calls-for-less-sugar-and-eases-cholesterol-and-fat-restrictions/?_r=0

  Really? What's next. are they going to advise us to quit smoking.  Their low fat, high carbohydrate diet has precipitated a huge rise in obesity, diabetes, heart disease, alzheimer's, cancer, etc,.  My father had several of these conditions when he died and his quality of life was nonexistent. He ate the standard low fat high carbohydrate diet recommended by the American Heart Association and his health suffered for it, as did the health and wellness of  many others. Luckily for me, my mom did not buy into any of this B.S., I was raised on a diet of mostly unprocessed natural foods (fruits, veggies, grass fed beef, pastured eggs, fish, etc.), nothing that was processed or out of a box. Thank You Mom, my health is great.
  The internet can a very good educational tool, do your research and make your own decisions. If you blindly follow the advice on the USDA, AHA, ADA, etc., your health and quality of life will likely suffer. The system is very corrupt and controlled by large food and drug corporations. Your health is not their first priority, $$ is.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/magazine/the-extraordinary-science-of-junk-food.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0


Take Control of your health. In the words of Michael Pollan "Eat Real Food, Not Too Much, Mostly Plants."

Here are some good resources related to nutrition and health.


http://www.drperlmutter.com/category/videos/
http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/blog/
http://www.drgundry.com/

best of health,
emmett

Dr. Gundry Latest on Nutrition

  Most of you know Dr. Steven Gundry from past blogs and also his book "Dr. Gundry's Diet Evolution" written in 2009. Here is a book review I did in 2011, it remains one of my favorite health and nutrition books. 

http://emmettmurphy.blogspot.com/2011/05/dr-gundrys-ner-diet-evolution-review-5.html

  I listened to a great podcast with Dr. Gundry today and hopefully you will have a chance to listen to it. It covers a wide range of topics including:

- improving your health by eating food

- why the best diet is  low in carbs and protein, and high in FAT

- cholesterol, small ldl vs. big ldl, triglycerides

- eating egg yolks will raise HDL levels

- cholesterol has nothing to do with heart disease

- APOE4 (it is a genotype often referred to as the alzheimers gene)

   30% of the population have this gene and should avoid animal fats 

- never been a case of arthritis recorded before 10,000 years ago, what this means

- eat FAT

enjoy, below is the podcast

http://www.healthnutsanonymous.com/hna/episode23

best of health,

emmett