What you MUST know to Beat SAD Seasonal Affective Disorder

January 10th, 2012

Do you get the winter blues? As the nights get longer and darkness last longer, many people get SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. The symptoms of SAD are seasonal and similar to depression and may include:

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Seasonal Affective Disorder

  • Weight gain and increased appetite
  • Increased sleep and daytime sleepiness
  • Less energy and ability to concentrate in the afternoon
  • Loss of interest in work or other activities
  • Slow, sluggish, lethargic movement
  • Social withdrawal
  • Unhappiness and irritability

Populations such as Icelandic and Japanese that eat a lot of fish did not get symptoms like populations that did not eat as much fish. Fish contain a high amount of Vitamin D and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) found in algae. DHA is a component of fish oil that is acceptable for vegetarians. DHA has also been shown to help with a variety of neurological dysfunctions. However, the combination of EPA and DHA or EPA alone has been shown to be more beneficial for depression.

Studies show Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is more common when vitamin D stores are typically low. Although light therapy with full spectrum light at 10,000 lux has been a standard treatment for decades, Vitamin D therapy has been shown to be more effective for treating depression. Other studies suggest that high doses of supplemental vitamin D may improve mild depressive symptoms. Other studies have suggested that low levels of vitamin D are associated with poor mood.

So if the long dark nights make you blue:

  • Get sunlight for at least 30 minutes a day
  • Use a full spectrum 10,000 lux light for 30 minutes a day
  • Take adequate Vitamin D 3 (cholecalciferol)–The blood level of 25 OH Vitamin D is optimal when it is 60-80 ng/ml
  • Take at least 1,000 mg of EPA/DHA fish oil (add up the EPA and DHA)

As with any general advice, consult your doctor to be certain this regimen is safe for you. It is possible to beat the winter blues.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is an expert in anti aging medicine, bioidentical hormone replacement, weight loss, nutrition, supplements and executive health.  She has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ.  You can live younger and healthier; Click Here to Get my Tips on How to Live Younger and Healthier!

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The Sweetener Debate: The Truth About Agave

December 14th, 2011

A spoonful of sugar may help the medicine go down, however the average American consumes about 150 pounds of sugar a year, and is thought to be responsible for the epidemic of obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a combination of 2 or more of the following: high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high triglycerides and increased waist to hip ratio (belly fat) and low HDL. Sugar is not so sweet when it comes to health effects. It can age you fast. Sugar intake is implicated weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, premature aging, and heart dis­ease. Sugar suppresses your immune system, causing problems with allergies and digestive disorders. It can even bring on depression. So what do you do with that sweet tooth?

Agave plant

Agave plant

People have turned to artificial sweeteners to satisfy their sweet tooth in an effort to avoid weight gain and blood sugar spikes, however all but stevia have been shown to have negative health effects. Many people believe that Agave is safer. It’s been marketed as a natural, whole raw food sweetener. What about it?

Agave is processed. Because it is processed at low temperatures, it is marketed as a raw food. Dr. Ingrid Kohlstadt, a fellow of the American College of Nutrition and an associate faculty member at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health commented, “Agave is almost all fructose, highly processed sugar with great marketing.” Fully chemically processed sap from the agave plant is known as hydrolyzed high fructose inulin syrup. Sound familiar? It doesn’t differ much from high fructose corn syrup except for its source. Fructose is a source of fuel that your liver converts to fat and cholesterol.  Because it doesn’t affect insulin and leptin – hormones that regulate appetite, it can contribute to overeating and weight gain. It is also not lower in calories. Agave syrup is about 16 calories per teaspoon, the same as table sugar.

Substantial differences in total antioxidant content of different sweeteners were found. Refined sugar, corn syrup, and agave nectar contained minimal antioxidant activity, maple syrup, brown sugar, and honey showed intermediate antioxidant capacity and raw cane sugar was slightly higher. Dark and blackstrap molasses had the highest antioxidant activity.

All Agave is not created equal. It would be difficult for the average consumer to know how it is processed and the concentration of fructose in their agave, so it’s best to avoid it. If you must have something sweet, stick to raw, unprocessed honey, maple syrup or cane sugar in moderation.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is an expert in anti aging medicine, bioidentical hormone replacement, weight loss, nutrition, supplements and executive health.  She has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine www.howtoliveyounger.com  in Short Hills, NJ.  You can live younger and healthier; Click Here to Get my Best 7 Tips on How to Live Younger and Healthier!

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The Biggest Anti Aging Secret

November 15th, 2011

Stress ages us and is a strong contributor to many of the chronic degenerative diseases of aging. So many people are in search of the fountain of youth through supplements, hormones, diet, exercise and other modalities. What if I were to tell you the secret lies within?

With Thanksgiving coming and all of the holiday stress upon us, it serves as a reminder that gratitude or giving thanks for what we do have is a cause for celebration. Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible, big or small. With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives. In the process, people usually recognize that the source of that goodness lies at least partially outside them and helps them connect to something larger than themselves as individuals — whether to other people, nature, or a higher power.

Dr. George Valiant, a respected Harvard psychiatrist and author of the book,  “Aging Well: Surprising Guideposts to a Happier Life” from the Landmark Harvard Study of Adult Development says: “Aging well: it can be done. Dr. Vaillant suggests that successful aging means giving to others joyously whenever one is able; receiving from others, gratefully, whenever one needs it; and being capable of personal development in between.”

1)      In positive aging, healthy individuals demonstrate characteristics of maturity (e.g., forgiveness, gratitude, and joy).

2)      Healthy aging suggests issues related to quantity as well as quality.

3)      Graceful aging is demonstrated by a simple acceptance of one’s fate in a genuine, affable, and socially connected way.

Vaillant concludes that the paradox of life is that the past may predict but never determines old age: life can be disturbingly wonderful. “Gratitude is almost always more fun than spite or regret” Let’s give thanks for whatever we can, no matter how big or how small, and add some years to our lives.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is an expert in anti aging medicine, bioidentical hormone replacement, weight loss, nutrition, supplements and executive health.  She has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine www.howtoliveyounger.com in Short Hills, NJ.  You can live younger and healthier; Click Here to Get my Best 7 Tips on How to Live Younger and Healthier!

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Anti Aging Antioxidant Glutathione

October 4th, 2011

Glutathione is your body’s most powerful antioxidant and has even been called “the master antioxidant because it resides inside every cell in your body and protects them and maximizes the activity of all the other antioxidants including vitamins C and E, CoQ10, alpha lipoic acid.” It removes toxins from your cells and protects you from the damaging effects of radiation, chemicals, and environmental pollutants. Antioxidants are critical for eliminating free radicals from your body that damage cells and prevent regeneration and repair of damaged tissue and are anti aging.

Glutathione

Glutathione

Because free radicals are so destructive, cells have a network of defenses designed to neutralize them and Glutathione is very important in this line of defense.

As you age, your body’s ability to produce glutathione decreases.

Glutathione is comprised of three amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine and is an essential factor in energy utilization, detoxification, and preventing the diseases we associate with aging. Glutathione deficiency has been linked to:

  • Age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s
  • Coronary and autoimmune diseases
  • Arthritis, asthma and other inflammatory conditions
  • Cancer
  • Mitochondrial dysfunction
  • Muscle weakness and fatigue

Enhancing glutathione production may strengthen your immune system in a way that will shield you from many of the adverse effects of aging.

Getting more glutathione

Most oral glutathione supplements have been shown to be poorly absorbed so you have to boost production in other ways

  • Alpha lipoic acid supplementation is known to regenerate glutathione and also helps to regenerate vitamins C and E so that they remain active longer in your body.
  • Vitamin D increases intracellular glutathione
  • N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) is a component of glutathione and supplements can raise levels
  • Nutrition plays a role and nutritious foods can naturally boost glutathione levels such as:
  • Whey protein is the top food for maximizing glutathione. Ideally it should  be cold pressed derived from grass fed cows, and free of hormones, chemicals and sugar. Quality whey provides all the key amino acids for glutathione production (cysteine, glycine and glutamate) .
  • Raw milk products, raw eggs and meat are good sources but this comes with risk.It is almost entirely absent in pasteurized dairy products.
  • Fresh fruits and vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, avocado, squash, okra, cauliflower, broccoli, walnuts, garlic and tomatoes have the highest glutathione per serving, but once cooked, values become negligible. .
  • The herb milk thistle is an excellent source of the antioxidant compound silymarin, which may help to prevent glutathione depletion in the liver. Glutathione is crucial in the liver for detoxification and can become depleted from acetaminophen (Tylenol), alcohol consumption, and general toxic overload.
  • Curcumin may also be useful for increasing glutathione levels.

To keep your health and wellness and quality of life at it’s best, keep glutathione levels high by increasing factors that boost your glutathione and decreasing factors that lower it. The things that deplete your glutathione the fastest are chemicals, toxins and sugar.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is an expert in anti aging medicine, bioidentical hormone replacement, weight loss, nutrition, supplements and executive health.  She has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine www.howtoliveyounger.com in Short Hills, NJ.  You can live younger and healthier; Click Here to Get my Best 7 Tips on How to Live Younger and Healthier!

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Stress Management – What to do in times of adversity

September 7th, 2011

Stress is your response to what is happening around you. While you don’t have control over what is, you have control over your response, which affects your hormones and health. Thinking can set off an adrenaline and cortisol surge that can have damaging effects on your health if left unchecked. Having just experienced over a week without power at home and work after the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, I had to put into practice some stress management skills that I teach.

I had no power or phone at home or work and was trying to run a business and respond to patient requests from Starbucks and the libraries (those that were open). It was a challenge trying to find a power source to keep my phone and computer charged, as they had become my lifeline to communicate with the world. I got to meet many people going through much worse. Since I read and write a lot about stress management, I thought I would share the tried and true tips that I used. My situation was minor but I had been through much, much worse at times in my life. I know people are going through far worse and don’t want to minimize their pain and suffering.

Acceptance: I always go back to the Serenity Prayer. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.” We couldn’t change the fact that there was no power but many of us formed community in Starbucks by sharing power outlets and making room for people to charge up. Random acts of kindness can take the sting out of wounds. Knowing others are going through the same thing can build bonds.

Attitude: Make a decision to make the best of things. With a refrigerator and freezer full of food that would have been thrown out, neighbors and I had community barbecues and long candlelight dinners with great conversation, food and laughter. We created a stronger community bond. All of us made the best of it by walking at night in groups with flashlights, enjoyed what we could of some sunshine and tried our best to take care of what was essential. At night, the absolute silence and darkness was an ideal time to meditate, stretch, and practice yoga and deep, healing breathing.

Gratitude: Someone always has it better or worse. Comparison can help or hurt. I consider myself lucky that I didn’t lose my house and all of my belongings and was grateful for that and was able to see this as an inconvenience that will pass. Those who suffered devastating losses cope with the fact that they and their families are alive and well and things are replaceable. As hard as it may be, find something you are grateful for and focus on that.

Compassion: Having compassion for yourself and others, lending a helping hand and giving back to those who are in need sends forth a positive energy and can be healing and give a sense of control.

Let’s reach out to those who need help and find something to be grateful for.

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Foods That Make You Fat

June 27th, 2011

While we may know what foods make us fat, an interesting article published in the New England Journal of Medicine, identified how fat they actually make us.  Many of you have experiences “waist creep.” Over the years a pound here and there adds up and you no longer fit in the same size.  So let’s take a look at the “Letterman” style list and give you the top 12 foods that make you fat.

Food Rank Food Pounds Gained in 4 years
12 Butter and cheese 0.3
11 Fruit juice 0.31
10 Fried foods 0.36
9 Refined grains 0.39
8 Sweets and desserts 0.41
7 Potatoes (boiled, mashed or baked) 0.57
6 Trans fats 0.65
5 Processed meat 0.93
4 Unprocessed red meat 0.95
3 Sugar sweetened soda 1
2 Potato chips 1.69
1 French Fries 3

A takeaway is if you add up the pounds over a 10-year period, French fries tops the list and can add on 10 pounds and the others will add on less. A combination of these can really pack on pounds.  So waist away by eliminating or cutting back on these foods, add more vegetables and shed those pounds. If you still can’t lose, consult a doctor who specializes in metabolic medicine to help you.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is a consultant to corporations wanting to improve the health and productivity of employees and has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ. You can live younger and healthier, buy “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier” and make an appointment for a consultation at my website, How to Live Younger; Please click on Vibrance For Life to purchase my book now!

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Food Revolution 2: What’s in my Beef?

June 1st, 2011

Americans love their burgers. How about pink slime and ammonia? I can’t get the image out of my mind when Jaime Oliver, a chef and food revolutionary, took all of the trimmings from a butchered cow that would normally be turned into dog food, sanitized it with ammonia, and made “pink slime” which was then ground into ground beef to be used in the good old fashioned burger. Food for thought isn’t it? Do we really know what we are eating?

Straight from Jaime Oliver’s website is the following:

“Any trimmings that can’t be used as edible beef get sent to a rendering plant where everything is turned into dog food. But that’s not always the case.

Those last bits of meat are processed and washed in a water and ammonia solution to kill the salmonella among other things. After it is all minced, up to 15 percent of this “pink slime” is allowed to be put into ground beef. They don’t even have to mention the ammonia on the labels. It seems the only way to get true ground beef is to actually watch the butcher grind it!”

As I learn more and more about food processing, I am appalled that we really don’t know what we are eating. When my patients bring me a list of the foods they eat, they seem fine, however some contain preservatives, herbicides, pesticides or other chemicals or are treated, decontaminated or processed with salt and fillers that are foreign to our digestive, enzymes and detoxification systems. These are sometimes responsible for many of the symptoms my patients complain about.

Symptoms of food intolerance are not always allergic or gastrointestinal. Aches and pains, depression, weight gain and fatigue along with or without gas, bloating are typical. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, go back to a cave man or elimination diet, eat whole unprocessed foods and see if there is a difference.  There is a lot more to know about good nutrition. To find out how food can help or heal, read “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier.”

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is a consultant to corporations wanting to improve the health and productivity of employees and has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ. You can live younger and healthier, buy “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier” and make an appointment for a consultation at my website, How to Live Younger; Please click on Vibrance For Life to purchase my book now!

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Coffee Mojo and Health

May 26th, 2011

Is your love of coffee hard on your heart? And do you wonder if drinking it is helpful or hurtful? I love coffee and I love tea and want to share with you the good news that coffee, in moderation, can actually benefit your health.  Tea and coffee, the most popular beverages in the world, have been consumed for thousands of years for their alluring flavors and health benefits. Polyphenols, particularly flavonoids and phenolic acids, are of great abundance in tea and coffee and contribute a lot to their flavor and health properties.

Here are some not so well known benefits of coffee on health:

  • It was associated with a statistically significant lower risk of total stroke, cerebral infarction, and subarachnoid hemorrhage but not intracerebral hemorrhage.
  • There is evidence that habitual coffee consumption is not associated with increased risk of cardiovascular diseases or premature mortality among diabetic women.
  • A systematic review supports the hypothesis that habitual coffee consumption is associated with a substantially lower risk of type 2 diabetes.
  • Evidence has been accumulating that frequent consumption of coffee may reduce risk of type 2 diabetes and liver cancer.
  • Coffee consumption may lower risk of prostate cancer

Risks

Epidemiological studies suggest that consumption of boiled coffee is associated with elevated risk for cardiovascular disease. This is mainly due to the two diterpenes identified in the lipid fraction of coffee grounds, cafestol and kahweol

For adults consuming moderate amounts of coffee (3-4 cups per day providing 300-400 mg/d of caffeine), there is little evidence of health risks and some evidence of health benefits. However, some groups, including people with high blood pressure, children, adolescents, and the elderly, may be more vulnerable to the harmful effects of caffeine. In addition, evidence suggests that it may be prudent for pregnant women to limit coffee consumption to 3 cups per day providing no more than 300 mg/day of caffeine to exclude any increased probability of spontaneous abortion or impaired fetal growth.

Enjoy a cup of coffee and reap the health benefits.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is a consultant to corporations wanting to improve the health and productivity of employees and has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ. You can live younger and healthier, buy “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier” and make an appointment for a consultation at my website, How to Live Younger; Please click on Vibrance For Life to purchase my book now!

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Spring Cleaning for Your Body

May 2nd, 2011

Do you want to reboot your system and eliminate bloating, excess weight and sluggishness? If so, you need to give your system a rest from digesting processed and toxic foods and nourish your liver and gastrointestinal tract. The result will be newfound energy and clarity. Just like you weed, seed, fertilize and till your garden to prepare for planting, you can do the same for your body in order to plant seeds of health and vitality.

Many of the foods you eat have traces of herbicides, pesticides, preservatives, dyes and chemicals and processed ingredients that are not found in nature. As you age, you may not have sufficient digestive enzymes to handle the load this creates on your body. Also, exposure to antibiotics you’ve taken or antibiotics found in foods, decreases the healthy bacteria in your gut. These unnatural substances build up over time and contribute to your digestive and detoxification systems not working as efficiently as they should. Also, some foods are more likely to cause allergies or subtle effects of intolerance such as headaches, muscle aches, swelling, mucous, bloating, fatigue, lack of clarity and more. Eliminating these foods and providing nutrients to nourish the gastrointestinal tract and liver can give your system the rest and rejuvenation it needs to make you feel so much better.

• Weed out foods most likely to cause intolerance or allergy – grains with gluten, dairy and processed foods, peanuts, tree nuts such as Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, almonds and walnuts and eggs, soy and shellfish

• Seed your gut with probiotics -healthy bacteria that are essential for a healthy immune system. Choose a supplement with several types of strains of Lactobacillus, Bifidus and Saccharomyces boulardi

• Feed your body with nutrients that support growth of healthy bacteria such as fructose oligosaccharides (FOS) and aid liver detoxification such as N-cetyl cysteine, L glutamine, high antioxidant vegetable extract blend,(what is this) fiber and alpha lipoic acid. The best liver detoxifiers are dandelion, milk thistle (silymarin), artichoke leaf, and yellow dock root extract.

• Add or replace enzymes that help your digestion with supplements containing betaine, pepsin, bromelain, and pancreatin (a combination of amylase, lipase and protease).

• Eat organic, especially the “dirty dozen”: Apples, bell pepper, celery, cherries, grapes, lettuce, nectarines, peaches, pear, potato, spinach, and strawberries.

There are many products on the market that contain these ingredients in powders and capsules, however the quality of the supplements can make a difference. A body cleanse does not mean eliciting diarrhea and it does not mean fasting. Cleansing means decreasing irritants and toxins going into your body, enhancing their elimination and supporting your body with nutrients to heal. But, be sure to choose high quality supplements that support both the liver and gastrointestinal tract and consult with your healthcare provider regarding the products that are most appropriate for you.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is a consultant to corporations wanting to improve the health and productivity of employees and has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ. You can live younger and healthier, buy “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier” and make an appointment for a consultation at my website, How to Live Younger; Please click on Vibrance For Life to purchase my book now!

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Good News for Hormone Replacement Therapy

April 25th, 2011

News flash! You can safely get rid of your hot flashes! Estrogen is not so bad after all. A study in JAMA Journal of the American Medical Association April 2011 found that estrogen alone had a reduced risk of breast cancer and their risk of stroke declined after stopping the medication.

There is so much confusion regarding hormone replacement therapy. When evaluating the studies, consider a few things. The type of hormone (synthetic versus bioidentical), the route of administration (oral, transdermal or through the skin or other), the age when started and other therapies. These are just a few considerations.

Eating health aides longevity

Eating health aides longevity

This study cited in the media was done on women with hysterectomies using oral synthetic estrogen alone without any synthetic progestin. They began using the hormone in there 50’s. There were 3 important findings:
• The first one is when you stop taking oral synthetic hormone therapy the increased risk of stroke and blood clots in the legs and lungs go down and so does the benefits on decreased hip fracture. Note: only oral estrogen produces blood clots and increases risk of stroke. Bioidentical estrogen given through the skin does not increase stroke or cardiovascular disease risk.
• The second major finding was a decreased risk of breast cancer. When we followed for another four years, that decreased risk of breast cancer persisted, so that, over the entire follow-up period, we saw a 23 percent decreased risk of breast cancer. Note: it was the oral, synthetic progestin that was implicated in increasing the risk of breast cancer.
• The third finding is that the risks and benefits of hormone therapy differ importantly by age for several types of chronic disease, heart attacks, colorectal cancer, death and then overall chronic diseases are lower among women taking hormone therapy in their 50s compared to placebo, but among women in their 70s, they actually had higher rates of all these conditions if they were taking estrogen alone vs. placebo. Note: In the Women’s Health Initiative study the average age of women studied was 63 and most were 10 years post menopause.

So if you are considering hormone replacement therapy, keep in mind the differences in type, route of administration and age when you begin taking them. Discuss all of your options with a physician knowledgeable in bioidentical hormones to determine the most appropriate treatment given your age, risk factors and state of health.

Lorraine Maita, MD is an award winning physician, speaker and author of “Vibrance for Life: How to Live Younger and Healthier”. She is a consultant to corporations wanting to improve the health and productivity of employees and has a private practice in Anti Aging Medicine in Short Hills, NJ.

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