I guess you thought I'd forgotten about finishing this vastly important information about vitamin D! Funny how life happens in the middle of deadlines - and, hopefully, you've done some sleuthing on your own and might be able to give me some pointers. If you've missed Part I and Part II, just follow the links. This part (III) is about our resources for Vitamin D. We will discuss in Part IV some of the disagreement and debate surrounding adequate serum levels for vitamin D. This is an issue that shouldn't be taken lightly and this is one of those times where just "listening to your doctor" might not be in your best interests - hey, but we'll get there in Part IV. Just saying, it's good to be informed before going to see the doctor. A good doctor will appreciate that.

Vitamin D, in a nutshell, Part III. What are our best sources?

Sunshine and Vitamin D:

Sunshine is considered to be our best source for vitamin D. That being said, obtaining adequate levels of sunshine is not necessarily easy or advisable. For those who live above 42° North latitude, the UVB wavelength is insufficient for skin absorption of vitamin D synthesis from November through February. And you're most likely asking where exactly would that be? Well, consider that to be above a line approximately between the northern border of California and Boston. And in even further northern latitudes their reduced availability of vitamin D through sunshine lasts for up to six months. There are other factors to consider such as amount of melanin in skin, fat storage and others - yep, that will be in Part IV.

Now for our Southern friends in the United States who live in latitudes below 34° north, there is enough UVB to obtain vitamin D through sunshine exposure throughout the year. This latitude would represent a line between Los Angeles and Columbia, South Carolina. However, complete cloud cover reduces UV energy by 50% and shade or smog, reduces it by 60%. Sunscreens with a sun protection factor (SPF) of eight or more can block any vitamin D producing UV rays. It actually requires a wavelength of 290 -- 315 nm to obtain adequate vitamin D. In practical terms, it would require approximately 5 to 30 minutes of sun exposure between 10 AM and 3 PM at least twice a week to the face, arms, legs or back. And I'm sure you've noted this is also the hours that we've been told by cancer authorities to stay out of the sun. Enchanted Learning has provided us with a map that gives a close estimation of the USA in terms of latitudes. For those who want an exact latitude and longitude of where they live or where they are going to vacation, or for our friends outside of the USA, follow this link.

Tanning Beds and Vitamin D:

I have to say right out, I'm not a proponent of tanning beds. That being said, I'm reporting to you that my research shows commercial tanning beds that emit  2% to 6% UVB radiation can be effective. The issues surrounding sun exposure and tanning beds is not going to be discussed in this article. Except to say it is obviously a good idea to limit exposure of skin to sunlight and UV radiation from tanning beds, as UV radiation is a known carcinogen responsible for most of the estimated 1.5 million skin cancers, and the 8000 deaths due to metastatic melanoma that occur annually in the United States alone. For me personally, I love sitting in the sun. I love working in the garden, I love reading and watching wildlife (okay, a couple rabbits, frogs, birds, squirrels) from my deck. My solution, albeit not necessarily the best, nor one that I am recommending for you, is not to use sunscreen products (mainly because most of them are laden with chemicals) for at least 2 days a week and for 20 minutes each of those days. I also would suggest that you definitely limit exposure of your face to direct sunlight without protection. I prefer real sunshine, but I do, however, protect my face with a large floppy hat or wide brimmed cap. Let it be said, the American Academy of Dermatology advises the use of what they call “photo protective measures”, including the use of sunscreen whenever exposed to the sun.

Food Sources of Vitamin D:

Obviously, for those who live in one of those places where there is not enough sunshine to emit the wavelength of UVB required to trigger Vitamin D synthesis, it is essential to find other ways to build up our serum levels of this very important vitamin.

• Fortified foods - very few foods contain vitamin D naturally. Vitamin D is fortified in the USA in formula and whole milk, and in some cereals. This helps, of course, but is not adequate for the levels necessary as discussed in the research I've done.
• Fish oil- if you are not a vegetarian or worried about toxins in our seas, fish, such as salmon, tuna, mackerel and fish liver oils are some sources. This is great if you have availability to a toxin-free source of fish, but for most of us this isn't an option. Alaskan salmon from most reports is one of the cleanest fish you can eat at this point in time. Vitamin D can be found in cod liver oil - again, make sure the brand you are using is of the highest quality and you will have to do some of your own research to determine which brands to purchase. One tablespoon of cod liver oil contains 1,360 IU of vitamin D. Consumerlab.com has good information in this area of disclosing which brands we should be purchasing.
• Mushrooms - some mushrooms provide Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol), but in varying amounts and only when enhanced with Vitamin D from being exposed to ultraviolet light for this specific reason.

Supplements for Vitamin D:

Both Vitamin D2 and D3 are available in over-the-counter supplements, but only Vitamin D2 is available in pharmacological preparations - according to the Office of Dietary Supplements. After reading this, I subsequently did some interviewing of friends, family and clients who have recently received a prescription from their doctors for 50,000 IU of Vitamin D3 - it's been a long winter here in the USA. One was told to take 50,000 IU twice a week and the other was told to take it once a week, obviously depending upon their own level of deficiency. Of course, "prescriptions" can apply to over-the-counter vitamins as well as pharmacological preparations. Obviously the issue is does your doctor really know how much to recommend for you or have they bothered to measure these levels. This situation has improved and is improving daily as more and more research is being released about the importance of adequate Vitamin D levels.  We will discuss this further in Part IV. Reportedly the "gold standard" for determining vitamin D status in humans is a serum level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D. Personally, I think we all should have our levels checked. Many of the diseases and disorders mentioned in Part II, are what we call "silent diseases", which means you probably won't know you are developing these diseases until symptoms are irreversible.

The debate is heating up about whether to supplement with Vitamin D2 or D3. Many supplements are being formulated to contain Vitamin D3, but now new research is debating which one is better. Bottom line, both forms effectively raise serum 25 (OH) D levels. Vitamin D supplements are both affordable and safe, even at levels more than ten times the current U.S.RDA (another discussion for another day as these levels are minimums and mostly outdated.)

In Part IV we will examine the debate surrounding which type of Vitamin D, how much is enough and why, and how much is too much and why. We will also look at some cautions concerning medications and vitamin D supplementation.

Thanks for listening! Comments, suggestions or personal experiences are greatly appreciated.

Ann

Disclaimer:

I am recounting to you my summary of the research articles, online discussions by medical professionals and information from governmental information sites. References and resources are many and will be included at the end of this series. I am absolutely not diagnosing or prescribing. Please read our general disclaimer for the website.

Copyright © 2003-2010 by Wingsets. All Rights Reserved. Wingsets, Bugz Off, and Wingsets Aromatherapy logo and blog are registered trademarks of Wingsets. We welcome the sharing of this information with due credit given to Wingsets and myself. No part of this blog or our website may be duplicated or incorporated into other work without written permission.

Raw-Vegan Lifestyle:

Probably about 3 years ago, I was lead to do a spiritual fast. Let me tell you, first of all, that I am not a person of great discipline – not me, wish I were. However, I do have a strong prayer life and know that God answers prayers and the Bible teaches me that prayer and fasting is attuned to the heart of God. Daniel is a good chapter, but there are others. I inherently knew that considering the situation in which my husband and I found ourselves, we needed a huge miracle (I guess any miracle is huge) from our God. For that reason, and that reason alone, I was able to “fast” for 3 days. I began this fast with the very familiar Lemonade Fast made available to us all by Stanley Burroughs. As God often works, He wasn’t only answering my cries to Him, but He was also showing me even greater revelations of Himself in the areas of health and how to get from here to there and as always He had bigger answers for me than I could imagine.

Health? What does it look like? What doesn’t it look like? At the time, I was 58 years old, 20 pounds overweight, under-exercised, depressed, demotivated, lost in a world of “what-if’s” and on the road to no where. I had heart palpitations, looked awful, felt awful, and knew this wasn’t where I was supposed to be. I really cried out for a way to “feel” better. I never asked for a way to lose weight – frankly because I didn’t think God could/would do that for me – seriously!?

Fasting:

So – I fasted for 3 days and to this very day almost 3 years later, I don’t know how I did it. I don’t know that I could do that again. I've seriously tried several times. I know, I know, people do it all the time – but, hey, that’s not me! But – I did. I lost 7 pounds immediately. And let me just say, this whole story is NOT about losing weight. Okay – this story has to start at some level above that. I did though, lose 7 pounds. You may think that’s not much weight and truly it isn’t. I’m 5 feet tall (my husband would argue that with you and insists for some odd reason that I’m only 4’11”–what’s an inch? I don’t know).  And for this almost 5' frame, that's sort of a lot of weight. I’m “old” by definition (although I would vehemently argue that with you right now). My metabolism has NEVER been one that allowed for candy bars, popcorn, potatoes, white rice or anything fairly resembling decadence – did I say NEVER. Not since I turned 13 – this is true. I have pictures to prove it.

As they say, to make a long story short, I have had issues with losing and gaining weight since I was 13 years old – period. I managed to keep the weight off in my 30’s and 40’s by walking – a LOT. I didn’t eat a lot of the things I knew by history that I couldn’t – candy bars, rice, potatoes, etc. However, I was told in my early 40’s during a routine annual exam that my cholesterol was about 280 and my triglycerides were over 300 – this is not good. The doctor was amazed that this skinny, young-looking (he thought I was in my 20’s – seriously!) scrawny girl had imminent heart disease in the form of high levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.

Low Fat Diets:

So – in the early 1990’s what did they tell you to do for high cholesterol? Oh yes – that was the age of “LOW FAT”!! That’s when the entire population of the United States of America bought into the myth that LOW FAT was God’s answer for everything. The statistics prove quite clearly that the USA population from that time on shows a definite increase in total BMI for the entire population.

Books are the Answer!:

Being the anal-retentive person that I am, I read every book I could get my hands on about cholesterol, diet and exactly what should I do. I even enrolled in nursing school! I was told to help myself to bagels, rice, bread – all those things I knew from my past would make me gain weight. But – I was more interested in getting my cholesterol down than whether I gained weight or not.

30 pounds later: Yep, 30 pounds in very little time and I carried that weight for the next almost 20 years. I tried EVERYTHING to get that weight off. I should take a picture of my book shelves when I say EVERYTHING. None of which worked for any length of time, but I did learn a lot about the different and varying views of weight loss.  A lot of people have made a LOT of money over the past 20+ years writing about weight loss. Probably nothing else will bring about immediate and substantial sales on a new book release than the new and best way to lose weight.

What Did I Learn about Raw-Vegan?

In 3 short days, I learned that fasting cleans out my “gut”. It released toxins that hold onto fat. I learned that over the next 4 weeks I would lose an additional 20 pounds easily and without exercise. I’m not advocating no exercise – absolutely NOT. But I didn’t’ exercise and I lost the weight – yep, I had slack muscles that weren’t very attractive and won’t go that route again. I weighed myself daily to see what did or didn’t affect weight gain. I read every book I could get my hands on, signed up for every newsletter I could find on the internet and learned all I could learn about RAW and VEGETARIAN.  Why? Because when I ate those meals I felt good and I did have more energy, my mood was better, my skin was brighter.

Three Years Later:

Yep, almost 3 years later, I’ve learned more but actually gained a lot of the weight back because I tried out a pharmaceutical antidepressant that quickly put weight back on both my husband and me – plus almost bringing us to the point of not being able to get out of the bed in the morning.  We tried to find the “easy fix” of a pill to help us in our situational depression and it didn’t work for us. It truly did make things worse. That was our situation and it is NOT necessarily your situation and you do need to talk to a physician (and your God) who specializes in that area if you have depression.

What is the point of all of this? I’ve learned that RAW is without a doubt the BEST way to eat long term. If this shows up as salads, flax seed crackers, green smoothies or whatever, we will show you in this series how it is we found this to be true, what it is you can do to BE there and really how much fun it is to eat this way. It is so absolutely not anything close to deprivation! We were truly surprised at this. I have so many stories to tell you, but I’ve already gone on too long. I felt that this preliminary personal story was necessary for you to understand why I’ve come to the RAW/VEGAN mind-set. I'm not talking 100% - not there yet. The rebel in me says that’s not the way to health – for me anyway. But yes, a large portion of our diet should be and would be better for us if we did eat raw and vegetarian. We will give you recipes and research in the coming months to substantiate our personal experiences. We will also introduce you to the amazing “Raw Community” and all those wonderful experienced “Raw Fooders” who gave us the tools we needed to get from there to here.  And here’s to HERE! Nothing better than the present!

Thanks for listening!

Ann

Ready for Part II?  Vitamin D - What does it do?:

OLD NEWS:  I found it interesting that the list of what happens if you DON’T have enough vitamin D takes up far more space than just what Vitamin D DOES do for the body.  Basically, vitamin D is essential for promoting calcium absorption in the gut, and thereby maintaining serum calcium and phosphate levels, which enables bone growth and remodeling. This is old news.  We’ve known for a long time that vitamin D is important for bone health, which is why the USA adds vitamin D to a lot of their dairy products and cereals. This was back when rickets was a real problem, but these days, I imagine most people under the age of 60 have no idea of what that is – unless they are actually teaching our kids some health and nutrition in school beyond birth control. Sorry, I digress.

NEW NEWS: Now for some of the exciting new news - some of the newer research has shown that in addition to maintaining bone health, vitamin D is also important in human health in the areas of cardiac function, immune function, reduction of inflammatory response, and neuromuscular health. In addition to these there is preliminary research showing that adequate vitamin D levels can be cancer protective and helpful in auto immune diseases. I think the answer to why that is true is because of what you will see in the next paragraph.

What’s important about the newer research is that scientists have discovered that vitamin D is crucial to activating our immune system. They believe they have found that without sufficient serum levels of this vitamin our killer cells, specifically our T-cells, will not be able to do their job, which is to fight off infections in the body. T-cells are our fighter cells, the “big guns” you could say.  But, apparently, they must be "triggered" into their defensive mode in order to seek out and kill all foreign pathogens such as bacteria or viruses. The researchers found that the T-cells rely on vitamin D to activate them.  According to Prof. Carsten Geisler, Department of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, "When a T-cell is exposed to a foreign pathogen, it extends a signaling device or antenna known as a vitamin D receptor with which it searches for vitamin D.” This means that the T-cells must have vitamin D before they are activated! Vitamin D is the "ON" switch for the T-cells! Which means, of course, if the T-cells can't find enough vitamin D in the blood they can’t do their very important job. This important fact is also an important consideration in dealing with auto immune reactions and the virus theory of cancer.

The other issue that seems to keep coming up is our inflammatory response and what role vitamin D plays here. Inflammation modulation is considered crucial for many chronic problems and diseases, such as how our blood clots. That alone will affect our chances of having a stroke or heart attack. Truly, inflammation is a subject in itself, but I found overwhelming agreement that anything you do that increases the inflammation in your body is NOT good for your body. A recent study showed that increased concentrations of a particular serum (blood) inflammatory marker, were found in women with low vitamin D levels. This would explain why adequate vitamin D intake is important in the prevention and treatment of inflammatory diseases, including heart disease, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. There was a direct inverse relationship - vitamin D low, inflammation markers high.

Vitamin D - What happens when we don't have enough?:

Other than the generalizations of bone, immune function and inflammatory response I talked about in the previous paragraphs, below is what I consider a long and scary detailed list of both diseases and disorders that may result from NOT maintaining adequate levels of vitamin D:

•    Bones disorders:  Osteoporosis, rickets, osteomalacia (bone pain caused by softening), painful teeth
•    Cancer, especially bone, breast, and prostate
•    Adrenal insufficiency
•    Alzheimer's disease
•    PMS
•    Depression, usually in the winter months, seasonal affective disorder
•    Parkinson's
•    Cardiovascular disease – 45% increased risk of heart attack
•    Type I and 2 diabetes
•    Periodontal disease – which also leads to chronic inflammation
•    Premature births
•    Gestational immunity
•    Stroke – 78% increased risk
•    Autism, ADHD – please follow this link to read more about autism.
•    Chronic inflammation – which in and of itself leads to other dangers such as stroke & heart attack
•    Increased risk for cesarean section delivery
•    Overall decreased immune response
•    Any disease – there is a 77% chance of dying of any disease if vitamin D levels are low

We will see later that “what is normal” is still being debated. As you look through this list, you can see that some of these disorders/diseases can be interrelated, as chronic inflammation for example can cause cardiac failure and/or stroke. The point is, obviously, maintaining an adequate level of vitamin D is essential to our health and well being.

Let me just add this disclaimer - I am recounting to you my summary of the research articles, online discussions by medical professionals and information from governmental information sites. References and resources are many and will be included at the end of this series. I am absolutely not diagnosing or prescribing. Please read our general disclaimer for the website.

Tomorrow - Part III, we should be able to get through a discussion of our best sources and maybe even what is considered enough or too much. This is where the not everyone agrees and your own choices come into play. You must educate yourself before walking into any medical professionals office. Do not take the "just give me a pill for it" line of reasoning - because that is not reasoning at all.

Thanks for reading - comments and questions, as always, are very welcomed.

Ann

Copyright © 2003-2010 by Wingsets. All Rights Reserved. Wingsets, Bugz Off, and Wingsets Aromatherapy logo and blog are registered trademarks of Wingsets. We welcome the sharing of this information with due credit given to Wingsets and myself. No part of this blog or our website may be duplicated or incorporated into other work without written permission.

Vitamin D in a nutshell - that was my original title – “in a nutshell”, or so I thought. What started out to be a quick, concise, organized discussion of all things surrounding vitamin D turned out to be not so easy. The problem was not in finding enough information, but in weeding out extraneous information. And who am I to really know what is important and what might not be important?  Even at that, I found that any accurate and helpful discussion would require more than the requisite 500 word blog. Therefore, I have decided to break up the information into segments more easily digested and understood. I seriously considered shelving the entire project and my 20 plus pages of information, but I kept coming back to the glaring fact that maintaining adequate vitamin D levels is probably one of the most important and easy things we can do to improve and protect our health.  Add to that equation, I have a pregnant daughter-in-law, which brings this discussion even closer to home due to the very important need for vitamin D for pregnant and/or breast-feeding moms. In fact, I just read an article relating that scientists found that women with low levels of vitamin D were twice as likely to have a cesarean section at delivery than women with no deficiency!

I've noticed this past month that each day a new article or research paper about vitamin D has come across my desk. Some of this research is not new, some of it doesn't agree with what I learned in nursing school and when discussing a lot of the important stuff, those that are supposed to know the answers don’t agree. So this is why I decided to spend the last few weeks doing an in-depth research of all that I could find concerning vitamin D.

I've decided to break up this important content into the following categories - I hope you'll stay with me throughout the discussion and give me feedback with your particular and personal experiences concerning this essential nutrient.

Vitamin D, what is it?

Vitamin D, what does it do?

Vitamin D, what happens when we don't have enough?

Vitamin D, what are our best sources?

Vitamin D, what is considered "enough"?

Vitamin D, what is considered "too much."?

Vitamin D, interactions with medications and other cautions.

References and Resources.

Vitamin D, what is it?

Everyone agrees that vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that it is available in only a few foods and is, therefore, added to other foods as a supplement. Individual vitamin D supplements are readily available in both a prescription and an over-the-counter form. Many agree that the best way to obtain vitamin D is through natural sunshine exposure.  It is, however, necessary to have an adequate amount of ultraviolet rays (specifically UVB) from sunlight to strike the skin and trigger vitamin D synthesis. As you will see, this is not possible in some northern latitudes. Although there are five forms of vitamin D, numbers one through five, only D2 and D3 are bioactive and used in supplements, and for those who care, they are specifically Ergocalciferol or vitamin D2 and Cholecalciferol which is vitamin D3. Vitamin D2 is synthesized by plants, whereas vitamin D3 is synthesized by humans in the skin when it is exposed to UVB rays from sunlight. Foods may be fortified with vitamin D2 or D3.

Although supplementation is available for both, we will find that there is controversy over which form, either vitamin D2 or vitamin D3, is better able to supplement our serum (blood) vitamin D levels. Sun exposure is still considered the best source for vitamin D. There are those who would argue that sunshine and ultraviolet rays are the leading cause of skin cancer. This is true and we will discuss this later.

Tomorrow, Part II - What does it do and what happens when we don't have enough.

Comments and questions are very much solicited.

Ann

Addendum - dated August 17, 2010

Since this original article was researched and written, there have been many other studies published showing that Vitamin D is, in fact, crucial to our health. What brings me back to this original, Part I, and the continuing discussion of Vitamin D were two things. A recent discussion with a customer from New Zealand about sunscreen. I explained that we (Wingsets) don't make a sunscreen at this point because most of them contain way too many chemicals that would not be in line with our natural/organic philosophy for a business or lifestyle. I understand that in New Zealand the sun is at a different angle and, yes, they do need sunscreen if outside for very long. My experience in Nebraska, and even when I lived in Mississippi, was that I didn't need to use sunscreen unless I was going to be out in the sun for a long period of time - such as sitting on a nice beach in North Carolina (short pause for dreaming.) I need my sunshine and even in the summer time I don't get enough, so we do supplement with Vitamin D3. It isn't as effective of course as nature's vitamin D. We did come across an "all natural" broad spectrum UVA/UVB 30 SPF sunscreen that I think I could recommend to people - it's called Solar Aegis. Again, I don't recommend using sunscreen on an every day basis. For women who wear foundation makeup, it's a good idea to find one that includes an SPF of at least 20. We do need to protect our faces ladies!

The second reason for adding this addendum is a recent article I saw that gives us another reason to be vigilant about getting enough vitamin D. The research study concluded that vitamin D "may treat or prevent allergy to common mold." This article is of particular interest to those with Cystic Fibrosis. We would see patients come through out critical care unit with this disease and it was always so frustrating that science didn't have answers for this population and we felt fairly helpless in what we could do for them. I've provided a link to this article below.

Stop drinking soda pop!

A recent study shows a link to a higher risk, like 87% higher risk, of developing pancreatic cancer. Now as a nurse, I know whenever we heard “pancreatic” mentioned in the same sentence as “cancer”, we knew we had a seriously ill patient on our hands. The survival rate is not good for this type of cancer.

For most teenagers this risk doesn’t even phase them because as we all know – teenagers are invincible. The truth is, the problem of soda type soft drinks is much bigger than pancreatic cancer. Soda pop is full of phosphorus which causes an automatic balancing system in your body to restore the balance between phosphorus and calcium. How does it do this? Well, unfortunately, for a LOT of teenagers, actually for all of us who have been drinking soda pop all of our lives, this calcium is leached from our bones. We all know what that means. If you don’t, it means osteoporosis at earlier and earlier ages and for sure and certain if you don’t stop drinking this stuff! A 1996 study published in the Journal of Nutrition by the FDA’s Office of Special Nutritionals noted that a pattern of high phosphorus/low calcium consumption, common in the American diet, is not “conducive to optimizing peak bone mass in young women.” No kidding.

Not all agree – as with any discussion, there are those in the soda pop industry who will tell you that the amount of phosphorus in one can of soda is not enough to cause harm. Maybe true – one can probably not. The problem is and continues to be that most people drink far more than that in just one day. Most sources I checked agreed that the majority of teenagers (and adults) are drinking far more carbonated drinks any day of the week than any other beverage. The point is the high sugar content, or worse than that the aspartame, is contributing not only to early onset of osteoporosis but to early obesity in children.

True story – checking out at the grocery store, I turned to see three really cute little girls. Ages were probably 2, 4 and 6, cute as buttons, happily following alongside their father who had a grocery cart FULL of processed foods consisting of boxed everything. I saw no fresh anything – and yes I did stare. I really wanted to ask him if I could take a picture of his girls and his grocery cart, but I wasn’t in the mood for an argument. What really depressed me then and still continues to haunt me, was each of these LITTLE girls was proudly carrying a very large bottle of their own Mountain Dew! He was much bigger than me, so I decided now wasn’t the time to give him a lecture about how bad, wrong and evil he was. Yeah, I know at least he was WITH his girls and at least HE was doing the grocery shopping.

We won’t even go into the neurological dangers of aspartame at this time, but I have a very strong personal testimonial of how dangerous this one ingredient can be. Drink water!!

Follow this link to see a review of this article published in the medical journal, “Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention”, as well as a short article by one of our favorite healthy-planet websites, Natural News.

I’m sure everyone has heard about BPA (bisphenol-A) by now and if you haven’t you certainly need to. Many of us in the health and wellness industry have been complaining about this issue for some time, but the FDA kept telling us that we were incorrect and they didn’t have enough evidence, etc., etc. Although we think for your health and that of your family, the FDA should NEVER be your first choice for unbiased or educated opinions, we are happy to see that they’ve recently announced that, yes, in fact, it is a harmful chemical.

Not just baby bottles, but all the plastics and canned goods in your home – including your personal care products! Wingsets uses recycle #1 and glass – don’t use #7 – look at the bottom of your bottle.

Check out this link to see what they are FINALLY doing about it. There’s a lot you can do too.

Blueberries help protect the brain – in research studies on animals, blueberries were shown to protect the brain from oxidative stress. The high antioxidant level in blueberries may reduce the effects of age-related brain diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. For all ages, studies have shown that frequently incorporating blueberries into your diet can significantly improve your learning capacity, memory and motor skills – a true anti-aging fruit to include in your daily diet. In fact, study results show that people who consume just one cup of blueberries a day have performed 5–6% better on motor skills tests than the control group.

Now, the truth is, I’m getting older – oh, you are too! So, this remains an interesting topic for me. Plus, my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at what I now consider a very young age – in her 70’s. She was a vibrant woman with an amazing array of talents. She has left a legacy of beautiful intricate quilts, some of which were commissioned by the Virginia Historical Society. So you see that I have a particular interest in keeping my brain healthy – and keeping your brain healthy.
Anthocyanin is what is proposed to be responsible for this neuron protection (see chart below). This particular flavonoid gives blueberries their color and is believed to be the key component of the blueberry’s antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Plants rich in anthocyanins are from the Vaccinium species, and as well as the blueberry, include cranberry, black raspberry, red raspberry and blackberry, blackcurrant, cherry, eggplant peel (cook it with the peel in place), black rice, concord grapes, and red cabbage. Which is where the “eat the rainbow” theme comes from. Blueberries and the other vegetables and fruits just mentioned will test high in their ability to decrease the amount of free radicals in your body. This is measured by the ORAC scale. Take a look at the chart below and see that although blueberries are somewhat down the scale, they are more easily available, usable and more reasonable in price. Someone please tell me where to get purple corn – I live in Nebraska for heaven’s sakes, why haven’t I seen purple corn? Chokeberry Jelly is Warren’s favorite, but this is processed to the point that any nutritional value is greatly reduced. Grapes in this part of the world are, in my opinion, fairly expensive and contain a high sugar content. From what I’ve been able to find there is 15.48 grams of sugar per 100 grams of fruit. We’ve been growing (okay ignoring) black raspberries in our back yard for almost 10 years now and they’ve produced a paltry amount of berries. They usually end up as bird food, but I think if I tried, I could probably get some pesticide-free, organically grown berries out of the vines that come up every year. But, my point is, blueberries are easier to come by. Please note, however, that black raspberries have been shown in studies to be very cancer preventative and inhibit promotion and progression of tumor cells. Food (pun, I guess) for another blog.

Food source – Amt of Anthocyanin (per 100 grams of fruit)

Purple Corn 1,642 mg
Chokeberry 1,480 mg
Red grape 888 mg
Eggplant skin 750 mg
Black raspberry 589 mg
Blueberry 558 mg
Red Raspberry 365 mg
Cherry 350-400 mg
Acai 320 mg

Free radicals: The term free radicals is no longer a mysterious sounding term to us. You can’t pick up a magazine, read a newspaper or check out your email without coming face-to-face with this fact of life. We all have free radicals and they are caused by normal metabolism. The question and issue is – can my body deal with the number of free radicals I have? The more inflammation, the more free radicals. We all do things to increase the inflammation in our bodies that includes regular wear and tear, degenerative pervasive abuse on bones and muscles, poor diet, as well as constant exposure to toxins from our food and environment. These free radicals, which can damage cell membranes and DNA through a process known as oxidative stress, are blamed for many of the dysfunctions and diseases associated with aging. I, personally, am not ready to get old!

We found a very good resource from the US Highbush Blueberry Council that goes into a lot of detail about the many benefits of including blueberries into your diet. In fact, they tell us that, “Using a test called ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity), researchers have shown that a serving of fresh blueberries provides more antioxidant activity than many other fresh fruits and vegetables.” This is not new information, but I believe it is something worth repeating. And new research continues to prove this as true.

Fortunately for us, blueberries taste good and can be used in so many different ways. If you do a search on the internet for blueberry recipes you will find no less than 2,600,000 recipes! We know that fresh is best, organic is your only choice and raw is preferred for health benefits. How do we eat blueberries in the Wooledge household? Okay – Warren and our grandchildren love them as pancake topping syrup and I love them in non-fat, plain yogurt sweetened with stevia. Okay, I do like to add just a little of whipped cream (just a squirt – I promise!). We buy them fresh when in season and frozen the rest of the year. The price is not outrageous and of all the high-antioxidant fruits I can think of, the most available.

How do you use blueberries? Do you use organic? Share your recipes and ideas with us – we’d love to hear.

You should! It takes a lot less time than a doctor’s visit. What that 4 or 5-digit number says means a lot:

4-digit number – means the produce has been conventionally grown – meaning lots of use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Enough said.

5-digit number – if it begins with an “8”, means the produce is genetically modified. We avoid GMO as much as possible, but very often when you buy processed foods you have no idea what’s really in that box and much less what’s in your children’s school lunches. This is also why I recommend buying and eating food as close to the source as possible, and hopefully, you KNOW the source. Why take chances with your children’s health? We’ll be posting a blog very soon about the pro’s and con’s concerning genetically modified foods. Can you even think about Monsanto and not be concerned? All of the European Union nations, Japan, China, Australia, New Zealand and many other countries require the mandatory labeling of foods that contain genetically modified ingredients–the U.S. does not. However, on our produce we can tell – take advantage of it.

5-digit number – if it begins with a “9”, means you’re getting organically grown produce. Obviously, I think this is the only real choice. Do we always buy organic, well no, but we do try and the price difference is narrowing all the time. I’m a very lucky woman in that my husband does the grocery shopping. Warren found organic apples at our local Hyvee (probably the higher-priced grocery store in town) and paid $1.38 for Braeburns. The produce sticker was #94101. He also found Golden Delicious, sticker #94021, for $1.88. Not bad I’m thinking. I figure my eating organic produce now will certainly save me dollars in health care in the future. How much did that box of fake macaroni and cheese cost? The over-processed but already flavored rice?

These numbers are NOT on your barcodes, they are stickers placed directly on the apples as shown in this picture.

Let us know the prices you find for organic product. I’d like to compare different grocery stores, different towns and states.

Organically yours, (okay, not original – any suggestions?!)

Ann

Acai oil (Euterpe oleracea) seed oil is full of high powered nutrients, anti-oxidants and other benefits which alerted us to its potential as an impressive ingredient for our anti-aging creams, soaps and serums. Studies indicate that the phenols in Acai oil act as antioxidants – and very powerful ones at that. We also use Acai extract in our formula’s – see the discussion below about the extract of Acai. Not only does Acai have a significant antioxidant profile, but it is also an excellent emollient and an effective moisturizer that will relieve dry skin and help reduce the appearance of aging skin. It is quickly absorbed leaving your skin soft and supple. We use a high percentage of both the Acai oil and Acai extract in our Skin Renewal Intensive Facial Complex – which is why it is tan in color, not white! We also use Certified Organic Acai pulp powder in our Pomegranate & Acai Organic Shea Butter Soap.

World’s #1 Super Food?": The Acai (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) berry, a more recent discovery from the rain forest, was proclaimed the “World’s #1 Super Food” on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Enough said, right? Well, no, not in our book. Although like everyone else, we do love Oprah, we decided to research this a little further. According to NBC Today, the Yanomami Indians harvested and used this phenomenal powerhouse as a food that “holds unique power.” They believed there was energizing power in both the fruit and its oil.

Miracle Skincare ingredient? So – in our never-ending search for beneficial, natural ingredients, we decided to take a look at this miracle fruit as a possible skin-care ingredient. Guess we weren’t the only ones interested and you will now find it listed in some of the most expensive skin care products on the market.

What is Acai oil and where does it come from?: The Acai palm tree is native to Brazil and other parts of Central and South America. The small purple berries hang in clusters from the tall palm tree and each berry contains one large seed. As with any fruit, we’ve learned that the darker, the better as far as antioxidant and phytonutrient power. The oil from the Acai is cold-pressed from the seeds of the Acai berry. Cold-pressed is the best way to obtain oils as this process retains the highest content of beneficial properties otherwise lost during a heat or solvent extraction. The oil is naturally deep golden to light brown.

Why is Acai oil so beneficial?: The Acai fruit does, in fact, contain a truly amazing nutrient profile with a combination of omega-3, omega-6 and omega 9 essential fatty acids that support cellular structure, phytosterols, vitamins such as B1, B2, B3, E, and C, minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, and potassium, and essential amino acids. And as importantly, the Acai fruit is rich in anthocyanins and phenols, which are powerful antioxidants. It is no secret that Vitamin C is essential for helping to rejuvenate and revitalize your skin. Research shows that the content of anthocyanins is reported to be an astounding 10-30 times higher than the anthocyanin content of red wine grapes.
Antioxidant values are calculated according to an ORAC value and the Acai fruit is shown to have a value higher than pomegranates or cranberries. Studies have also shown that the phenols in Acai Berry Oil may help destroy and protect against cancer cell formation. Quite truthfully, all of our products are formulated with this element in mind – to help protect against cancer cell formation, which is why we use green tea and rooibos tea in all of our creams. Our research usually starts with this fact in mind even more than the anti-aging issue – luckily they usually go hand in hand due to free radical elimination.

Acai extract: The extract we use generously in our creams, especially the Skin Intensive Facial Renewal, is produced using a blend of dried Acai pulp, vegetable glycerin and water. It is alcohol free, GMO free, preservative free and biodegradable. The extract, of course, contains all of the beneficial properties mentioned above. These antioxidants help to reduce cell death which causes the aging process, thereby keeping your skin more firm and youthful. The full-bodied extract that we use is naturally dark brown in color and if you purchase a cream that has any beneficial amounts, the cream will NOT be white, it will be cream colored to tan – which ours is.

So – you decide. Is Acai “The World’s #1 Super Food?” Well…maybe not, as we can think of others that are probably more nutrient dense. We’ll publish a blog very soon about foods and what it truly means to be nutrient dense. In the meantime though, definitely Acai is a powerful skin care ingredient and one you should look for while reading labels. And – please DO read the ingredient labels before you buy anything.

You can also check out an article by WebMD on Best Ingredients for Skin Care Products – you’ll see that we use them all!

Hopefully, healthfully helpful!

Ann

Acai oil (Euterpe oleracea) oil is full of high powered nutrients, anti-oxidants and other benefits which alerted us to its potential as an impressive ingredient for our anti-aging creams, soaps and serums. Studies indicate that the phenols in Acai oil act as antioxidants – and very powerful ones at that. We also use Acai extract in our formula’s – see the discussion below about the extract of Acai. Not only does Acai have a significant antioxidant profile, but it is also an excellent emollient and an effective moisturizer that will relieve dry skin and help reduce the appearance of aging skin. It is quickly absorbed leaving your skin soft and supple. We use a high percentage of both the Acai oil and Acai extract in our Skin Renewal Intensive Facial Complex – which is why it is tan in color, not white! We also use Certified Organic Acai pulp powder in our Pomegranate & Acai Organic Shea Butter Soap.

World’s #1 Super Food?": The Acai (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) berry, a more recent discovery from the rain forest, was proclaimed the “World’s #1 Super Food” on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Enough said, right? Well, no, not in our book. Although like everyone else, we do love Oprah, we decided to research this a little further. According to NBC Today, the Yanomami Indians harvested and used this phenomenal powerhouse as a food that “holds unique power.” They believed there was energizing power in both the fruit and its oil.

Miracle Skincare ingredient? So – in our never-ending search for beneficial, natural ingredients, we decided to take a look at this miracle fruit as a possible skin-care ingredient. Guess we weren’t the only ones interested and you will now find it listed in some of the most expensive skin care products on the market.

What is Acai oil and where does it come from?: The Acai palm tree is native to Brazil and other parts of Central and South America. The small purple berries hang in clusters from the tall palm tree and each berry contains one large seed. As with any fruit, we’ve learned that the darker, the better as far as antioxidant and phytonutrient power. The oil from the Acai is cold-pressed from the seeds of the Acai berry. Cold-pressed is the best way to obtain oils as this process retains the highest content of beneficial properties otherwise lost during a heat or solvent extraction. The oil is naturally deep golden to light brown.

Why is Acai oil so beneficial?: The Acai fruit does, in fact, contain a truly amazing nutrient profile with a combination of omega-3, omega-6 and omega 9 essential fatty acids that support cellular structure, phytosterols, vitamins such as B1, B2, B3, E, and C, minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, and potassium, and essential amino acids. And as importantly, the Acai fruit is rich in anthocyanins and phenols, which are powerful antioxidants. It is no secret that Vitamin C is essential for helping to rejuvenate and revitalize your skin. Research shows that the content of anthocyanins is reported to be an astounding 10-30 times higher than the anthocyanin content of red wine grapes.
Antioxidant values are calculated according to an ORAC value and the Acai fruit is shown to have a value higher than pomegranates or cranberries.

Acai extract: The extract we use generously in our creams, especially the Skin Intensive Facial Renewal, is produced using a blend of dried Acai pulp, vegetable glycerin and water. It is alcohol free, GMO free, preservative free and biodegradable. The extract, of course, contains all of the beneficial properties mentioned above. These antioxidants help to reduce cell death which causes the aging process, thereby keeping your skin more firm and youthful. The full-bodied extract that we use is naturally dark brown in color and if you purchase a cream that has any beneficial amounts, the cream will NOT be white, it will be cream colored to tan – which ours is.

So – you decide. Is Acai “The World’s #1 Super Food?” Well…maybe not, as we can think of others that are probably more nutrient dense. We’ll publish a blog very soon about foods and what it truly means to be nutrient dense. In the meantime though, definitely Acai is a powerful skin care ingredient and one you should look for while reading labels. And – please DO read the ingredient labels before you buy anything.

You can also check out an article by WebMD on Best Ingredients for Skin Care Products – you’ll see that we use them all!

Hopefully, healthfully helpful!

Ann