What's Your Gut Telling You?

Yesterday, I had the privilege of being interviewed for the New Self Health Movement's Power Half Hour series on "What's Your Gut Telling You? You can view the 1/2 hour show here but I wanted to share a few highlights.

We mentioned the importance of vitamin D to prevent leaky gut and autoimmune disease. Did you know that optimal Vitamin D levels can also reduce cancer by 50% and decrease mortality from all disease? 

This week, I also had the honor of providing an in-service to the medical and clinical staff at The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders on autoimmunity and the gastrointestinal tract. I asked Dr. Delara Tavakoli, an integrative OB/GYN to speak. She said, 

"We are no longer in the era of scurvy and rickets; 

we are in the era of preventative medicine".

The RDA (or really dumb advice) for vitamin D is 400 international units per day. This is the minimum you need not to get rickets. Most of us need 10 times this amount for optimal health.  Normal lab ranges are between 30-100 ng/ml but if 50% of the population has cancer, I certainly don't want to be normal. I want to know what optimal is! Optimal is 60-80ng/ml in healthy individuals, or higher if you have cancer or autoimmune disease, according to Dr. Tavakoli.

Epigeneticis, the study of the expression of genes proves we are not bound by our genes. We know that, "All Health Begins in the Gut" I don't care what your diagnosis, nutrition can make a drastic difference in your quality of life and often the outcome and prognosis.  I know this for sure. As a health coach, I have the honor of being a witness to patients and clients innate ability to heal.

I've shared this online course before on Radical Remissions, created from a Harvard trained Ph.D researcher who has interviewed over 6,000 cases of radical remissions. 

Lori, a co-host of the Power Half Hour Series and author of The Gift of Disease is also proof of the power to heal first the gut, then the body. She is now thriving, symptom free and medication free, after a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. Authors who are part of the New Self Health Movement will share powerful inspirational stories of self healing in future episodes of the Power Half Hour Series.

I shared in this interview a patient with Crohn's, another autoimmune disease. He experienced dramatic improvement in just 3 weeks by following my Kick Start Program and anti-inflammatory diet. 

How to prevent and heal from chronic illness and autoimmune dis-ease? Enlist the 5 R's of functional Medicine:

1. Remove inflammatory food (sugar, gluten, dairy and processed and GMO foods and trans fats)
2.  Replace processed foods with whole foods and nutrients and effective supplements. (Get micronutrient testing and ensure vitamin D is optimal not just within normal lab results)
3. Restore probiotics and prebiotics through supplementation and fermented foods
4. Repair the gastrointestinal tract using healthful foods and proven supplements
5. Rest and digest. Rebalance using stress management, yoga, meditation, exerciseand movement to improve sleep. Change negative attitudes and address negative thoughts.

What three things can you do? 

1. Try one new vegetable this week. Begin to crowd out processed acidic food with whole organic alkaline foods found in green leafy vegetables, legumes and some fruit. 
2. Supplement with vitamin D3/k2 until your number is in the optimal range. (watch your vitamin A too and other essential vitamins)
3. Come to our nutrition support group, Join our Thursday Power Half Hour and hire a health coach!

Carpe Diem,

Lisa

About Lisa Jackson, RN, CHC, RYT-500

Lisa is an author, inspirational speaker, and coach with a mission to inspire and empower others to feel their best at any age. She is also Executive Director of the Integrative Wellness Program for the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders.  

Her book, Savvy Secrets: Eat, Think & Thrive outlines seven steps that are fun and transforming. Lisa is part of the New Self Health Movement, the International Health Coach Association and the Wellness Inspired Network. When she is not coaching, speaking or writing, you can find her practicing yoga and joyfully sharing Carpe Diem Dance at every opportunity.