Heart Attacks Are Not Caused by Clogged Arteries!

One of my favorite nutrition publications I get is Health Alert by Dr. Bruce West. Each month I look forward to the latest edition. The official title is Health Alert: When All Other Treatments Fail. I think you get the picture. Dr. West is a Chiropractor and a big fan of Standard Process products. He is also a big fan of the truth. February’s issue was full of juicy nuggets that I’d like to share.

Nugget #3: Heart attacks are not caused by clogged arteries! Coronary artery blockages rarely cause heart attacks because of the body’s ability to create its own natural bypass system. Go to the website www.heartattacknew.com and see for yourself what the body does on its own! What really causes heart attacks are imbalances in the autonomic nervous system and nutrient deficiencies (particularly B-complex deficiencies – see my article on Vitamin B4 – click here: http://brwellness.com/nutrition-news/?p=467.

Artificial sweeteners cause diabetes!

One of my favorite nutrition publications I get is Health Alert by Dr. Bruce West. Each month I look forward to the latest edition. The official title is Health Alert: When All Other Treatments Fail. I think you get the picture. Dr. West is a Chiropractor and a big fan of Standard Process products. He is also a big fan of the truth. February’s issue was full of juicy nuggets that I’d like to share.

Nugget #2: Artificial sweeteners cause diabetes! A study of mice showed that consuming artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, sucralose (Splenda), and aspartame (Equal, Sweet n low) cause glucose intolerance or type 2 diabetes. In the study one group of mice was fed the artificial sweeteners and another group fed sugar. The ones fed sugar did not develop diabetes, just the artificial sweetener group. This was replicated in a small group of healthy human subjects who were placed on a diet containing artificial sweeteners. Within just one week over 50% of the humans developed glucose intolerance! 

How does this happen? The artificial sweeteners alter our gut flora in the large intestines which changes our metabolism to favor glucose intolerance. This was proven by transplanting feces from the two groups of mice into germ-free mice. The mice that got the feces from the artificial sweetener fed mice developed diabetes. Not so with the mice getting feces from the sugar fed mice. This proves the artificial sweeteners affected the gut flora and led to glucose intolerance!

 

Almost All Treatment for Heart Disease is Unnecessary!

One of my favorite nutrition publications I get is Health Alert by Dr. Bruce West. Each month I look forward to the latest edition. The official title is Health Alert: When All Other Treatments Fail. I think you get the picture. Dr. West is a Chiropractor and a big fan of Standard Process products. He is also a big fan of the truth. February’s issue was full of juicy nuggets that I’d like to share.

Nugget #1: Almost all treatment for heart disease is unnecessary! Dr. West states that most of the cardiac procedures are all band-aids as they ignore the underlying issue and are unnecessary for 70% of patients. He also cites a study showing five behaviors in men cause 86% of all heart attacks. I’m sure you can pretty much guess what they are: smoking, eating too much, drinking too much, a big stomach (as a result of eating and drinking too much), and being inactive. His conclusion – it’s about lifestyle!

March 2015 Newsletter: Exercise, Science, and the Cardio Myth

“I Don’t Get it. I Work Out Every Day with My Trainer and Can’t Lose Weight.”

Is this you? It is many of my clients. And, I hear this statement more often than you’d think. What’s going on? In January I introduced you to the book Body by Science. This month you’ll learn more of the details. I have a series of four articles to share with you which capture the major themes from the book. The first two appear in this newsletter. The four articles are: 

1.      Introduction to Body by Science

2.      The Cardio Myth

3.      Fat Metabolism

4.      Genetic Expression

So, without further ado, let’s get to Body by Science.

Getting Started With Body by Science

“I don’t understand. I work out every day and I’m still gaining weight.” Believe it or not I hear this question quite frequently. On the surface it seems to be quite the paradox. All the conventional wisdom tells us to lose weight all we need to do is watch what we eat (meaning to eat less) and exercise more. Follow this simple formula: use more calories than you take in. 

In the past I’ve explained part of this myth - how all calories are not created equal. Based on what the calorie is from (protein, fat, or carbohydrate) it will have a different effect in your body. If you need a refresher you can find that article on my blog at http://brwellness.com/nutrition-news/?p=99. 

Now let’s explore the other half of the equation: exercise more. This of course leads to a series of questions. What type of exercise is best? How many times a week should I exercise? How long should I exercise? 

For the rest of the article click here: http://brwellness.com/nutrition-news/?p=509

The Cardio Myth

In the introductory article I summarized his key points. In this article I will address one of those key points. His recommended method of exercise is what he terms high intensity training (or HIT). It benefits both the aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways. Most “cardio” only works the aerobic pathway. 

High intensity training is in many ways the complete opposite of what is now known as “cardio.” HIT is designed to be short and sweet. The techniques work the major muscle groups to exhaustion and then you must stop, rest, and then begin the next exercise. Cardio is designed to be lower intensity so that you can perform the exercise without stopping, usually anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour.

For the rest of the article click here: http://brwellness.com/nutrition-news/?p=511

The Cardio Myth

I have recently introduced you to the book Body by Science by Doug McDuff, MD and John Little. This book offers a clear explanation of the actual science of exercise, how activity relates to hormones, and how this determines what happens in your body. In short, it answers the question I am frequently asked. “Why am I gaining weight when I am working out every day?” 

In the introductory article I summarized his key points. In this article I will address one of those key points. His recommended method of exercise is what he terms high intensity training (or HIT). It benefits both the aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways. Most “cardio” only works the aerobic pathway. 

High intensity training is in many ways the complete opposite of what is now known as “cardio.” HIT is designed to be short and sweet. The techniques work the major muscle groups to exhaustion and then you must stop, rest, and then begin the next exercise. Cardio is designed to be lower intensity so that you can perform the exercise without stopping, usually anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour.

The roots of modern cardio trace back to the mid-1960’s when Kenneth Cooper was searching for an exercise that he thought would optimize cardiovascular fitness. This was the time when we first began to see a dramatic increase in heart disease related deaths and the thinking was by exercising our hearts they would not attack us!

Unfortunately he began with a false premise. He believed that “aerobic” was the same as “cardiovascular” and wanted to develop an exercise that would isolate the aerobic metabolic system. He created the term “aerobics” to refer to his exercise technique. This low intensity and steady in state method he developed is now referred to as “cardio.”

But this is where we have to understand how the body works! The body has two pathways for metabolism – aerobic and anaerobic. These processes are conducted in each and every cell in our body. Both are essential for the total health of the cell and thus the entire organism. Aerobic means “with oxygen” and anaerobic means “without oxygen.” 

Cooper believed that the aerobic was the most important pathway therefore it should be isolated and trained. There was no actual evidence that one pathway was more important, it was just his belief, and unfortunately for many he was wrong. For many it proved to be dead wrong.

His main error was that the pathways cannot be separated in a live human (remember our body is not a test tube – what happens in the body is different than isolating something in a test tube!). The aerobic pathway is fueled by a substance called pyruvate which is produced by the anaerobic pathway.

As we’ve discussed before energy comes from glucose going from the blood stream into the cell. It takes a series of twenty chemical reactions to produce pyruvate from glucose. This is an anaerobic process. Pyruvate then goes to the mitochondria of the cell. If you remember your basic biology the mitochondria produces energy via the Krebs cycle in an aerobic process.

So, as you can see, we need an exercise method that will strengthen both systems of metabolism. Modern day “cardio” does not fit the bill as it isolates the aerobic and the science share in the book shows it does not benefit the anaerobic. It is high intensity training that will benefit the complete system. 

The effectiveness of any exercise is all about hormones, fat metabolism, and blood glucose levels. High intensity training works the major muscle groups to exhaustion, uses up glucose, and encourages the body to burn fat and build muscle. This is explored further in the article Hormonal Implications of Exercise.

Another irony concerning aerobic specific training is that it produces additional oxidative stress on the body which creates inflammation and excess free radicals in the body. This factor puts one at increased risk of heart disease – exactly what the “cardio” exercise is supposed to help prevent!

Bernard Rosen, PhD is a Nutrition Consultant and Educator. He works with individuals, groups, and at corporations to create individualized nutrition and wellness programs. His office is in Mequon, WI. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, e-mail at bernie@brwellness.com, call (262) 389-9907 or go to www.brwellness.com.