Hello StrongHealth Tribe,
Natural health news can teach us about various aspects of holistic wellness, and alternative medicine. Here are some potential lessons to be learned:
Discover natural remedies: For example, understanding the health benefits of specific herbs, essential oils, or other natural substances.
Gaining an understanding of holistic approaches that promote overall well-being.
Raising awareness of environmental health by teaching us about risks associated with toxins, pollutants, and other environmental hazards.
Nutrition and dietary guidance with respect to specific diets and information about nutrient-dense foods and their impact on our health.
Understanding the mind-body connection through mental and emotional well-being on physical health.
Education about natural health professions, such as naturopaths, herbalists, nutritionists, and other practitioners in promoting holistic health.
Modern medicine tells us that natural health lacks scientific backing and therefore we should consult with reputable sources. We are advised that natural health news should never replace medical advice or evidence-based treatments but rather serve as a source of information and inspiration for exploring alternative approaches to health.
I disagree and would add that it’s important to use critical thinking with your health. Reputable sources and an evidence-based approach are often also lacking or biased in orthodox medicine, where money plays an outsized role in treatment. Just check out disease statistics and deaths by pharmaceutical drugs and hospitals. It’s a grim situation due to medicine having become a "god" of society.
In truth, the answer to most physical health and even mental issues is a change in lifestyle habits!
In This Issue:
Egg Consumption Improves Heart Health
Exercise Beats Medicines In Managing Mental Health
Long Covid Patients Suffer From Persistent Inflammation
Don't Touch That Receipt!
The Benefits of Functional Fitness
1. Egg Consumption Improves Heart Health
A study conducted by researchers at Peking University found that individuals who ate a moderate amount of eggs had higher levels of a protein called apolipoprotein A1, which is a building block of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or 'good cholesterol'. These individuals also had more large HDL molecules in their blood, which help clear cholesterol from the blood vessels and protect against blockages that can lead to heart attacks and stroke.
The study also identified 14 metabolites linked to heart disease. Participants who ate fewer eggs had lower levels of beneficial metabolites and higher levels of harmful ones in their blood, compared to those who ate eggs more regularly.
A 2018 study published in the journal Heart found that people who ate eggs daily had a substantially lower risk of heart disease and stroke than those who ate eggs less frequently.
The American Heart Association (AHA) and the Australian Heart Foundation (AHF) have made similar recommendations, stating that there is no evidence to suggest any limit on egg consumption for normal, healthy individuals.
2. Exercise Beats Medicines In Managing Mental Health
Researchers are calling for exercise to be a mainstay approach to managing mental health. A new study shows that physical activity is 1.5 times more effective than the leading medications for improving symptoms of depression, anxiety, and distress.
Higher intensity and short to mid-duration bursts of exercise had greater improvements for mental health, while longer durations had smaller effects. This includes all types of activity including walking, resistance training, Pilates, and swimming.
Importantly, the research shows that it doesn't take much for exercise to make a positive change to your mental health. So get busy!
3. Long Covid Patients Suffer From Persistent Inflammation
A study from the Allen Institute and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre suggests that the cause of many protracted COVID cases may be an excessive inflammatory response.
When researchers examined proteins in the blood, they discovered a group of chemicals linked to inflammation that was only detectable in a small subgroup of patients with extended COVID and were not present in those who recovered from their condition.
About two-thirds of 55 patients with extended COVID exhibited chronically elevated levels of certain inflammation-related markers. Additionally, the researchers examined blood samples from 25 COVID-positive individuals who recovered and from 25 healthy participants. People lacking lengthy COVID did not exhibit the same blood inflammatory symptoms.
Specifically, the blood markers uncovered in this subset of patients with "inflammatory long COVID," as the scientists call it, point to a flavour of inflammation similar to that seen in autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.
4. Don’t Touch That Receipt
We handle a lot of receipts in life, whether from credit card machines, ATMs, airline boarding passes, movie tickets, prescription labels, supermarket food labels or cash registers. But did you know receipts can be toxic when handled due to the presence of chemicals such as bisphenol A (BPA) and bisphenol S (BPS)? BPA and BPS are known endocrine disruptors, which means they can interfere with hormonal functions, have reproductive and developmental toxicity, disrupt the endocrine system, and have been linked to metabolic and cardiovascular harm.
While some studies suggest that daily exposure is below accepted safe levels, other research emphasizes the cumulative nature of toxins and the potential health consequences of even trace amounts of BPA. The impact of long-term exposure to these chemicals is still being studied.
To minimize exposure to these toxic receipt chemicals, there are several recommendations. First, when possible, opt for email or text receipts instead of paper receipts. If you do accept a paper receipt, store it separately in an envelope to prevent contamination of other items. After handling receipts, it's important to wash your hands, especially before preparing food or eating.
Avoid using lotions, hand sanitizers, or anything wet or greasy on your hands immediately before touching receipts, as this may increase the absorption of chemicals.
5. The Benefits of Functional Fitness
The goal of functional fitness is to train the muscles to work together and simulate common movements of daily life. Unlike traditional strength training that often isolates individual muscles, functional fitness emphasizes movements that engage multiple muscle groups simultaneously.
This approach builds strength, stability, and mobility across the body, making you stronger and more efficient.
One of the key principles of functional fitness is the emphasis on compound exercises—using multiple muscle groups working together to perform the movement, replicating the way the body naturally moves.
Examples of compound exercises include squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, and lunges. By training these movements, functional fitness improves the body's ability to work as a unit and handle the physical demands of daily life.
Some added benefits:
Increased lean muscle mass
Improved coordination and mobility
Increased calorie burn
Improved aerobic capacity
Increased ease of everyday movement
Improved quality of life
As a trainer, I can assure you that functional fitness works. I've been using it with clients for decades and have seen astounding results across all walks of life. Used with either dumbbells, kettlebells, bands or bars, this method of training is like no other for building lean muscle and getting fit. Try it today!
Have a great weekend and stay healthy!