Monthly Archives: February 2013

A good friend of Stone’s Pharmasave in Baddeck is Donna White. We have had her in to speak to our patients on hormone health in the past and I use her book, The Hormone Makeover on a regular basis in my practice and sell it to our customers.

She speaks about chronic, excessive cortisol; a condition that affects many of us. Symptoms related to this include:

Insomnia/sleep disturbances, headaches, “tired but wired” feeling, stressed feeling, irritability, low libido, depression, food cravings, low seratonin (depression and carb cravings), hormone resistance (body is unable to properly use any or all of it’s hormones), thinning skin, loss of muscle mass, bone loss, heart palpitations, cardiovascular disease, and breast cancer, abdominal weight gain/obesity, blood sugar imbalances, mood changes, estrogen dominance, slow wound healing, impaired immunity, heart palpitations, fluid retention, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and impaired cognitive performance.

Do these symptoms sound familiar? Our genes developed during the first 100,000 generations of life. Imagine life during this time. The lifestyle was different. Stress involved running out of your shelter, collecting food without being killed by an animal and returning to your shelter to eat. Stress was short-lived but intense. This is how we deal with stress the best. We now have constant stress, bills, relationships, jobs, family, traffic, school, deadlines and so on. The stress is constant and does not let up. This is something the body was not designed for. The diet was also different. Back then you ate what was available on the land, nuts, berries, seeds, fruit and animals. In just the last 500 generations we introduced dairy and wheat. The genes of the food we eat are foreign to our digestive system and can cause systemic inflammation when they are consumed. In just the last 3 generations we introduced the the industrial revolution with it’s fast paced life and with it, fast food, double income families, cars, factory pollution, plastics, exhaust, and many other things not seen by our early ancestors. Our genes have not been able to catch up in just a few generations. They need the 100,000 generations like our ancestors had to slowly fine tune. This brings on high cortisol from chronic stress.

Reducing elevated cortisol is helped with a good diet and regular exercise. Donna points out that elevated cortisol are reduced by,

Phosphatidylserine, vitamin C, essential fatty acids (fish and flax), relora, theanine, DHEA, ginko biloga, adaptagenic herbs, thyroid hormone medication and hormone balance.

Chroinc elevated cortisol can lead to a condition called Adrenal Fatigue or Adrenal Exhaustion. This is where the body’s cortisol drops after constant output from the adrenal glands. The symptoms of low cortisol include,

Severe fatigue, allergies, stressed feelings, irritability, aches and pains, heart palpitations, sugar cravings, chemical sensitivities, low thyroid symptoms and low blood sugar symptoms (shakiness, headache, foggy thinking, irritability).

Treating low cortisol includes vitamin C, vitamin E, pantothenic acid, magnesium, Siberian Ginseng, ashwagandha, licorice and natural cortisol.

If you feel you need help with any adrenal issue, let us know. We can help direct you to the proper testing and treatment, much of which is without a prescription.

Thanks Donna for all of your information!

Ref: White, Donna: The Hormone Makeover, 7 Steps to Transform Your Life with Bioidentical Hormones. Xulon Press, 2010, Chapter 5.

Autumn chicken stew
Natural Standard Recipe, Copyright © 2013 (www.naturalstandard.com).
Recipe Information

Servings 6
Preparation Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 25 Minutes
Total Time 45 Minutes
Difficulty Intermediate
Main Ingredient Chicken
Category Poultry
Meal Lunch; Dinner
Type Main Dish; Side Dish
Subtype Soup
Cuisine American
Cook Method Stove Top
Diet Low Calorie; Low Fat; Low Cholesterol; Heart Healthy; High Protein; Gluten Free
Ingredients

5 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 pound chicken tenders, cut into bite-size pieces

1 large onion, chopped

4 medium parsnips, peeled and chopped

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons chopped fresh (or 1/2 teaspoon dried) rosemary

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Directions

Heat the 2 teaspoons of oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring until just cooked through, 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Add the remaining 3 teaspoons of oil to the pot. Add the onion, parsnips, carrots, rosemary, salt, and pepper, and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, 3-5 minutes.

Add the broth and apples; bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes. Return the chicken to the pot and stir in the vinegar.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 208 cal

Fat: 6g

Saturated fat: 1g

Monounsaturated fat: 4g

Cholesterol: 42mg

Sodium: 621mg

Potassium: 630mg

Carbohydrate: 21g

Fiber: 4g

Sugar: 0g

Protein: 19g