‘Twas two days before Christmas
....

I love being a Nurse Practitioner. Even working in a fast paced family practice clinic, I made a difference.  For the last 13+ years, I’ve been able to practice how I think is best for my patients.  I spend more time with them than I could in a typical medical practice.  I get to know them.  I get to know their stressors, their highs and lows.  I can help them in meaningful ways, not just writing a prescription.  Some of my patients have been with me since I opened my doors in 2006.  This is the best part of my job.  These patients are more like friends.  I don’t need to look at their charts to know what medications they take, what surgeries they’ve had, what foods they’re allergic to.  I know what they do for a living, how old their kids are.  I get to celebrate marriages, graduations, births, job promotions, beginning new careers, marriages that have made it through hard times.

But the opposite side of that coin is that I also play a small part in their sorrows.  Divorces, aging parents, lay-offs, cancer diagnoses, and deaths.  I can’t always separate my professional objectivity from my personal emotions, because these patients are my friends.  Today, I’m particularly affected by the death of a child of one of my patients.  I don’t just know the mom.  I know the aunts and grandparents of this precious child.  The mom and I were pregnant at the same time, and we compared belly sizes and pregnancy symptoms.  The grandma made a special baby blanket to welcome her first grandchild, and she made one for my baby too.  See? They’re friends.  And this is the worst part of my job.

As I sat at the funeral just 10 days before Christmas, I grieved with everyone else who was there.  My professional objectivity was no where to be found.  And in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Christmas season, I’ve been forced to pause.  Look around me.  Look at my children.  Look at my husband, my extended family.  Remember that I’d rather make memories than wrap presents. Errands can wait till later if I can bake cookies with my youngest child.  Even dishes can wait if it means watching a TV show with my family. That unpredictable tragedies can happen to anyone.  My kids don’t want hugs anymore, but fist bumps and back scratches are still okay.  I made sure they all got those at bedtime last night.

We always talk about taking a step back and evaluating our priorities.  But when was the last time we really did?  I’ve been doing that in the last week.

Why should you choose a hormone expert?

This is our BEFORE.  Come see our AFTER!

A new study was published in June, 2019 which looks at the effect of curcumin supplementation on cholesterol levels.

Abundant Life Healthcare is moving on July 1st, so you may want to mark your calendars. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed serving you from our office in Garden City, but it’s time to make a change. We won’t be moving too far, though, and we found the perfect office for our practice-- we’re sure you’ll love it, too. 

In the News: Artificially Sweetened Beverages Increase Risk for Stroke and Coronary Heart Disease in Menopausal Women

Read the article here: https://tinyurl.com/y3l8esnw

The Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study followed over 81,000 women for almost 12 years.  They have found some interesting trends as the numbers have been crunched.  This latest study was published on February 14, 2019 in the medical journal, Stroke.

Postmenopausal women who consumed two or more artificially sweetened beverages per day had a statistically significant increased risk of stroke, coronary heart disease, and all-cause mortality.  In obese women who had a BMI of 30 or higher, that risk went up even more.

“Artificially sweetened beverages may not be harmless and high consumption is associated with a higher risk of stroke and heart disease,” one of the authors said in a statement.

Here’s my conclusion: Get rid of artificial sweeteners!  This is just one piece of evidence pointing to what natural medicine practitioners have been saying for years.  These chemicals are not meant for our bodies.  They do more harm than good.  Let’s all say “so long” to sucralose!  Adios, aspartame!

Have you heard about golden milk?  It is a drink, which is traditionally cow’s milk simmered with herbs, specifically turmeric root and ginger root.  The health benefits of this ayurvedic beverage are purportedly numerous, and I always have a dose of skepticism when it sounds too good to be true.

But I know how beneficial curcumin is (it’s the primary active ingredient in turmeric) as an anti-inflammatory and the research is plentiful in its use as pain control.  The anti-inflammatory effect is not limited to the joints.  It’s been shown to be effective for gut inflammation as well.

Traditionally, golden milk has been used for liver health, heart and brain health, immune system support (supposedly treats colds, flu, and sore throats), inflammation, skin health and healing, and is full of anti-oxidants.  Sounds good, doesn’t it?

Then I started reading about how to make golden milk.  Chopping, slicing, mashing fresh roots.  Simmer it in milk for 15 minutes, watching closely so it doesn’t scorch.  Then remove from heat and allow it to sit to continue infusing the milk with all that herbal goodness.  Strain the mixture through a cheesecloth.  Add honey to taste.  Then finally, you can drink it.

WHO’S GOT TIME FOR ALL THAT?  Not me.

So I was very excited when Metagenics released Golden Fusion, a powder version of golden milk that is added to warm water, coconut or almond milk.  It’s been so easy that I’ve been drinking my Golden Fusion every day for three weeks now.  Can I see any difference in how I feel?  Yes, I can.  (If you want details on what I have been noticing, please ask me in person!)  Is it doing everything that golden milk claims it does?  I don’t know yet.  But I’m going to keep drinking it and see.

The big question is, how does it taste?  It was quite good in sweetened coconut milk (I accidentally bought sweetened coconut milk. Oops!), and it was oh, so soothing when I had a cold with a very sore throat.  In unsweetened coconut milk and warm water, it’s okay.  By no means does it taste bad or bitter, but it’s not something that tastes like dessert either.

If you want to read more about golden milk, and Golden Fusion, in particular, click this link:

https://tinyurl.com/ybsh3qjp

Golden Fusion is available in our online supplement store.  Click the tab above for “Supplement Store.”  If you haven’t yet, you’ll need to create an account using your email address and password of your choice, then click “Shop Dispensary” and you’re ready to place an order. 

More than two thirds of American adults are overweight or obese. As the American waistline increases so does the epidemic of insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. The link between decreasing testosterone levels associated with these syndromes is well established in the scientific literature: men with diabetes have significantly lower levels of serum (blood) testosterone when compared with men without diabetes; as well men in the lowest levels of free testosterone have a four-fold increased risk of having diabetes when compared with men in the highest levels of free testosterone. We don’t know the exact mechanism between insulin resistance and low testosterone in men. Visceral adiposity (belly fat) also plays a role where the enzyme aromatase can convert testosterone into estrogen, which also decreases testosterone levels.

A recent study suggests that another mechanism may have a direct impact on testosterone levels: sugar consumption. A study with 74 men between the ages of 19-34 looked at the impact of 75g of glucose on serum (blood) total and free testosterone levels in men with varying glucose tolerance. Glucose ingestion was associated with a 25% decrease in mean testosterone levels regardless of glucose tolerance or BMI, and remained suppressed for 120 minutes. What is 75g of glucose equivalent to in real food terms? A can of Coca Cola has 75g, a McDonald’s M&M McFlurry has 84.8g, a cup of low-fat fruit yogurt has 46.7g, a Clif Z bar has 30g and a pumpkin spice latte (grande) has 50g of sugar. It’s easy to see how regular sugar consumption alone can add up to perpetually suppressed testosterone levels in men.

So what does this mean?  If you are concerned about your testosterone level, decrease or eliminate your sugar consumption.  Everyone knows we should eat less sugar, and here is one more reason we should do so.

Then have your testosterone levels measured with a saliva test, and be treated accordingly with physiologic dosing of bio-identical hormones, along with lifestyle changes, such as diet and exercise.